Hey Duke, as promised, here's another shot at I'm Confessin'. A few flubs, but it's really come along. Working on this tune after getting your feedback has really opened up my ears! I've been working hard on it, and I'm feeling pretty good about the results.Thanks for encouraging me to keep at it on this one!
I'm glad you are enjoying it, Duke, because it's the opportunity of a lifetime to be able to learn from you! And I'm having a heck of a lot of fun too!
Thanks, Duke. You've hit the nail on the head, alright. The other day I watched one of Jerry Portnoy's lessons where he was saying that the main thing he heard early on from Muddy and other greats was "Take your time!", and I was thinking about that as I was *trying* to slow myself down on this. You should've heard the takes I threw away. :-) Talk about a runaway train! So THANKS A LOT for saying that, I really appreciate it, and I'll make that my main focus for now -- I've let that bad habit go on far too long. I hope you don't mind if I show you another example with this tune after doing some more practicing with this in the forefront of my mind. Thanks again -- I'm going to really take your advice to heart. Best regards, Bruce
Hey Duke. Finally as promised, with mistakes and all of course! ;-) I know I stared rushing like crazy during the double-time feel. Oh well. Now that you've got a new lesson up, I just wanted to wind this one up. Looking forward to Hoochie Coochie Man, especially because I was starting to learn the harp part from Jerry's lessons, so it'll be fun to work on it with both instruments!
Hey Duke, I just wanted to say how much these performance examples are helping me. I now hear that I was playing it really stiff, not understanding the correct grove until actually seeing you do it in context. Hope to get a video done soon, but I'm still absorbing the examples. I feel guilty stealing all these beautiful licks! But I'm going to do it anyway! ;-) Thanks so much!
I'm also working up to sending a video. This piece is quite a bit more challenging than most of the prior lessons, but I'm really enjoying it and learning a tremendous amount. I'm still not quite able to play it in time with the track, but it's getting closer all the time. I find I'm also enjoying playing this one with fingers instead of a pick; I feel like I can get a lot more variation in tone and "color" with my fingers. Thanks again for your work on showing us this one, it's really a great tune.
I recorded this as audio, but the Sonic Junction upload thing seemed not to work. So that's why it's a video with a still picture, because I made it into a video in order to upload...
Hi Corey. This is definitely out of my comfort zone, as I've always been told by friends, family and bandmates what a terrible voice I have. My sister used to say that the only reason I liked Bob Dylan was because he was proof that someone had a worse voice than me. ;-)
But as I've gotten older, and definitely wiser, I think I've kind of grown into my voice a little more. So I thought about the comments in your very interesting lesson, and tried to apply them. I would be most grateful for any insights as to how I could vocally express myself better. Thanks for your work on your lessons! You, Duke and Jerry always make me feel like you are speaking directly to me, practically like we are having a face to face lesson. They are all really great and incredibly helpful. Thanks again.
Bruce! Pardon my late reply to your video. I think you already have a voice (your own sound) and you are singing in key. My suggestion is for you to listen to the phrasing and rhythm of your words and always know where the '1' is when you are singing. Also dont be afraid to just nail the notes and sing it more straight then add little inflections or variations sparingly like salt. That would make it stand out better. Lastly just keep singing like you...be the most 'you' that you can be so when somebody hear you they know right away its you. Good work.
Hey Duke -- I decided to go back through some of the older lessons to catch up with some of the techniques you've gone over in the past. I really enjoyed doing this song -- trying to play and sing together was more than I could manage through most of it -- heck, I can't even play and count! I sang "One and two is four, two and two is eight!" ;-)
Even though this is still a bit rough, I wanted to share it with you. Would love to get your feedback! Thanks!!
Very well and very passionately put, Jerry. I remember when I first heard Billie Holiday as a kid around 1970, and being on pins and needles waiting for her to finish a phrase, thinking "She's not gonna make it, she's not gonna make it!" and just at the last (and perfect!) second, she's right there and it just digs in so deep it's magic. But even having heard this as a kid, I've been working my whole adult life trying (and still trying) to completely incorporate that into my playing. It's one thing to know it in your head and another thing to make it come out of you. But I'm still working on it! Thanks for passing along the sage advice given to you by your mentors.
I'm a guitar/keyboard guy, but since there are all these great lessons here, I figure I might as well learn some harp while I'm at it!
So I'm wondering what kind of harp to buy. First, what key? Is this an E harp or are you doing a cross-harp, which I think would be an A harp to play blues in E, right ?
Also, any particular harp you recommend for a harp dilettante like myself? ;-)
Here's my attempt at this, recycling last week's homework for a backing track. ;-) Do you have any recommendations for not too expensive archtops? Have you tried the Loar guitars? They look beautiful and are pretty affordable, but I haven't had a chance to try one. Would you opt for one with pickup or without for just playing at home? Thanks, Duke! Great lesson!
Hi Duke -- Really excited about this song! Since I just started your lessons with San-Ho-Zay, I haven't done any of your swing stuff yet, and the swing chords are mostly unfamiliar to me, so it's a challenge!
I didn't see that Mike had transcribed the Db#11 I think you said it was -- the alternate to the Eb+/G. I couldn't get my fingers to move like yours. So I'm playing
Ab x F B Eb
So if that's Db based, it's a Db 9 #13. i'm not sure if it's right, but it doesn't sound too bad.
Here's a stab at it with a few flubs, including blowing the ending big time! ;-) I was playing along with your track and got surprised by it. I hear myself rushing a little here and there -- it's hard to feel the time that slow, so I'm looking forward to hearing the full track to practice with.
Thanks as always! Looking forward to the next one!
Hi Bruce, You did very well actually. And your comment about the sharpe 11 chord was good. The note you were playing were to a Dd 7 which work fine there. Actually what the story is.... You could play it with a 5 augmented chord, which is more old school, or with the #11 which is more modern and also what goes with the whole tone thing I am playing in the song. I will have Mike post the fingering for the #11 chord to correct it. Thanks, Duke
Hey Steve. Sorry I didn't reply earlier, I hadn't seen your comment.
Thanks for the kind words, man! It took me a few hours to get it seeming that effortless. ;-) I'm using the Apogee iMic hooked up to my MacBook. I made a quicktime video then uploaded it to sonic junction.
Shorty -- the backing track is accessible by the "play" button in the widget on the right with the camera, the thing to add a lesson to your practice list and the printer icon.
For the life of me, Duke, I couldn't get one good clean take, so here it is, warts and all. Thanks for this great set of lessons. I really appreciate the pain it put you through. These have made a real difference in my playing, especially in phrasing and timing. I feel like my playing has "grown up" a little. Thanks again!
Thank you, Duke! I appreciate that deeply. And thanks again for these videos. There is so much junk on YouTube from guys pretending to know how to play stuff -- it's just amazing to get this much GREAT info from such a great player.
Looking forward to going back through all the old videos and to all the new ones yet to come! Take care!
I have to second that one, Larry. Of course standard notation by itself fails big-time for guitar, but a combination of tab and standard notation is really helpful to those who can already read. For me, it's easier to learn and remember the parts when I can read it, then listen to the performance for the phrasing.
Hey Duke! I'm a long-time fan of yours, back from the days at the Speakeasy in Cambridge with Roomful. My buddy Jerry Miller, a mighty fine guitar player in his own right, and I saw you play with Big Walter there, if I'm remembering correctly. I saw you guys many times at that wonderful old place. I remember being totally blown away by your work on a Guitar Slim tune one night. It felt like Eddie had come back to life.I did some gigs with Eddie's cousin, J.J. "Bad Boy" Jones, me. on piano. Very nice guy, was J.J. Sad when he passed. I was a student at Berklee in the 70s, and played jazz piano for many years, but recently have become guitar crazy.It's like a disease, man! You may get better, but you'll never get well. ;-)
So I was knocked out when I saw that you were giving lessons online! What an opportunity to learn directly from one of the heroes of my youth! Thanks for doing this!
RE: my guitar playing. My technique is weak, but my spirit is strong. ;-) Would be most grateful for any critique or advice. Thanks!
Hey Steve. Sorry I didn't reply earlier, I hadn't seen your comment.
Thanks for the kind words, man! It took me a few hours to get it seeming that effortless. ;-) I'm using the Apogee iMic hooked up to my MacBook. I made a quicktime video then uploaded it to sonic junction.
Hey Duke! Here is yet another try at I'm Confessin'. I feel like I'm making progress, but I'd really love to get your feedback. Thanks!!
Hey Duke, as promised, here's another shot at I'm Confessin'. A few flubs, but it's really come along. Working on this tune after getting your feedback has really opened up my ears! I've been working hard on it, and I'm feeling pretty good about the results.Thanks for encouraging me to keep at it on this one!
I'm glad you are enjoying it, Duke, because it's the opportunity of a lifetime to be able to learn from you! And I'm having a heck of a lot of fun too!
Thanks, Duke. You've hit the nail on the head, alright. The other day I watched one of Jerry Portnoy's lessons where he was saying that the main thing he heard early on from Muddy and other greats was "Take your time!", and I was thinking about that as I was *trying* to slow myself down on this. You should've heard the takes I threw away. :-) Talk about a runaway train! So THANKS A LOT for saying that, I really appreciate it, and I'll make that my main focus for now -- I've let that bad habit go on far too long. I hope you don't mind if I show you another example with this tune after doing some more practicing with this in the forefront of my mind. Thanks again -- I'm going to really take your advice to heart. Best regards, Bruce
Hey Duke. Finally as promised, with mistakes and all of course! ;-) I know I stared rushing like crazy during the double-time feel. Oh well. Now that you've got a new lesson up, I just wanted to wind this one up. Looking forward to Hoochie Coochie Man, especially because I was starting to learn the harp part from Jerry's lessons, so it'll be fun to work on it with both instruments!
Thanks! I sure learned a lot working on this one!
Hey Duke, I just wanted to say how much these performance examples are helping me. I now hear that I was playing it really stiff, not understanding the correct grove until actually seeing you do it in context. Hope to get a video done soon, but I'm still absorbing the examples. I feel guilty stealing all these beautiful licks! But I'm going to do it anyway! ;-) Thanks so much!
I'm also working up to sending a video. This piece is quite a bit more challenging than most of the prior lessons, but I'm really enjoying it and learning a tremendous amount. I'm still not quite able to play it in time with the track, but it's getting closer all the time. I find I'm also enjoying playing this one with fingers instead of a pick; I feel like I can get a lot more variation in tone and "color" with my fingers. Thanks again for your work on showing us this one, it's really a great tune.
I recorded this as audio, but the Sonic Junction upload thing seemed not to work. So that's why it's a video with a still picture, because I made it into a video in order to upload...
Hi Corey. This is definitely out of my comfort zone, as I've always been told by friends, family and bandmates what a terrible voice I have. My sister used to say that the only reason I liked Bob Dylan was because he was proof that someone had a worse voice than me. ;-)
But as I've gotten older, and definitely wiser, I think I've kind of grown into my voice a little more. So I thought about the comments in your very interesting lesson, and tried to apply them. I would be most grateful for any insights as to how I could vocally express myself better. Thanks for your work on your lessons! You, Duke and Jerry always make me feel like you are speaking directly to me, practically like we are having a face to face lesson. They are all really great and incredibly helpful. Thanks again.
Bruce! Pardon my late reply to your video. I think you already have a voice (your own sound) and you are singing in key. My suggestion is for you to listen to the phrasing and rhythm of your words and always know where the '1' is when you are singing. Also dont be afraid to just nail the notes and sing it more straight then add little inflections or variations sparingly like salt. That would make it stand out better. Lastly just keep singing like you...be the most 'you' that you can be so when somebody hear you they know right away its you. Good work.
Hey Duke -- I decided to go back through some of the older lessons to catch up with some of the techniques you've gone over in the past. I really enjoyed doing this song -- trying to play and sing together was more than I could manage through most of it -- heck, I can't even play and count! I sang "One and two is four, two and two is eight!" ;-)
Even though this is still a bit rough, I wanted to share it with you. Would love to get your feedback! Thanks!!
Bruce
Very well and very passionately put, Jerry. I remember when I first heard Billie Holiday as a kid around 1970, and being on pins and needles waiting for her to finish a phrase, thinking "She's not gonna make it, she's not gonna make it!" and just at the last (and perfect!) second, she's right there and it just digs in so deep it's magic. But even having heard this as a kid, I've been working my whole adult life trying (and still trying) to completely incorporate that into my playing. It's one thing to know it in your head and another thing to make it come out of you. But I'm still working on it! Thanks for passing along the sage advice given to you by your mentors.
Thanks so much!
Hey Jerry,
I'm a guitar/keyboard guy, but since there are all these great lessons here, I figure I might as well learn some harp while I'm at it!
So I'm wondering what kind of harp to buy. First, what key? Is this an E harp or are you doing a cross-harp, which I think would be an A harp to play blues in E, right ?
Also, any particular harp you recommend for a harp dilettante like myself? ;-)
Thanks!
Here's my attempt at this, recycling last week's homework for a backing track. ;-) Do you have any recommendations for not too expensive archtops? Have you tried the Loar guitars? They look beautiful and are pretty affordable, but I haven't had a chance to try one. Would you opt for one with pickup or without for just playing at home? Thanks, Duke! Great lesson!
Awesome Bruce! Nice duet too.
Hi Duke -- Really excited about this song! Since I just started your lessons with San-Ho-Zay, I haven't done any of your swing stuff yet, and the swing chords are mostly unfamiliar to me, so it's a challenge!
I didn't see that Mike had transcribed the Db#11 I think you said it was -- the alternate to the Eb+/G. I couldn't get my fingers to move like yours. So I'm playing
Ab x F B Eb
So if that's Db based, it's a Db 9 #13. i'm not sure if it's right, but it doesn't sound too bad.
Here's a stab at it with a few flubs, including blowing the ending big time! ;-) I was playing along with your track and got surprised by it. I hear myself rushing a little here and there -- it's hard to feel the time that slow, so I'm looking forward to hearing the full track to practice with.
Thanks as always! Looking forward to the next one!
Best Regards,
Bruce
Hi Bruce, You did very well actually. And your comment about the sharpe 11 chord was good. The note you were playing were to a Dd 7 which work fine there. Actually what the story is.... You could play it with a 5 augmented chord, which is more old school, or with the #11 which is more modern and also what goes with the whole tone thing I am playing in the song. I will have Mike post the fingering for the #11 chord to correct it. Thanks, Duke
Hey Steve. Sorry I didn't reply earlier, I hadn't seen your comment.
Thanks for the kind words, man! It took me a few hours to get it seeming that effortless. ;-) I'm using the Apogee iMic hooked up to my MacBook. I made a quicktime video then uploaded it to sonic junction.
Shorty -- the backing track is accessible by the "play" button in the widget on the right with the camera, the thing to add a lesson to your practice list and the printer icon.
For the life of me, Duke, I couldn't get one good clean take, so here it is, warts and all. Thanks for this great set of lessons. I really appreciate the pain it put you through. These have made a real difference in my playing, especially in phrasing and timing. I feel like my playing has "grown up" a little. Thanks again!
Very good Bruce! You did fine and played some things of your own that worked really well. Good job! Duke
Thank you, Duke! I appreciate that deeply. And thanks again for these videos. There is so much junk on YouTube from guys pretending to know how to play stuff -- it's just amazing to get this much GREAT info from such a great player.
Looking forward to going back through all the old videos and to all the new ones yet to come! Take care!
Best,
Bruce
I have to second that one, Larry. Of course standard notation by itself fails big-time for guitar, but a combination of tab and standard notation is really helpful to those who can already read. For me, it's easier to learn and remember the parts when I can read it, then listen to the performance for the phrasing.
Hey Duke! I'm a long-time fan of yours, back from the days at the Speakeasy in Cambridge with Roomful. My buddy Jerry Miller, a mighty fine guitar player in his own right, and I saw you play with Big Walter there, if I'm remembering correctly. I saw you guys many times at that wonderful old place. I remember being totally blown away by your work on a Guitar Slim tune one night. It felt like Eddie had come back to life.I did some gigs with Eddie's cousin, J.J. "Bad Boy" Jones, me. on piano. Very nice guy, was J.J. Sad when he passed. I was a student at Berklee in the 70s, and played jazz piano for many years, but recently have become guitar crazy.It's like a disease, man! You may get better, but you'll never get well. ;-)
So I was knocked out when I saw that you were giving lessons online! What an opportunity to learn directly from one of the heroes of my youth! Thanks for doing this!
RE: my guitar playing. My technique is weak, but my spirit is strong. ;-) Would be most grateful for any critique or advice. Thanks!
Bruce
Hi Bruce
Very nice. You make it seem effortless which is great. I am curious how you are recording. Are you using an interface?
Steve
Hey Steve. Sorry I didn't reply earlier, I hadn't seen your comment.
Thanks for the kind words, man! It took me a few hours to get it seeming that effortless. ;-) I'm using the Apogee iMic hooked up to my MacBook. I made a quicktime video then uploaded it to sonic junction.