Twenty "Something Betters"
Published: Fri, 05/12/23
There's inherent drama in the fact Martin's character is building a list of put-downs, albeit about himself. Even though we're counting along with him on his way up to twenty, it's basically got the anticipation of a top-ten countdown, with the built-in expectation that the list is going to really end with a bang. And who's immune to that? Clearly no one who spends any time on Youtube, with its Best-Of this and the Top-Five that and The Seventy-Six Things You Must Know About X. I am, of course, as guilty as the next online purveyor – among other things, I made a lesson a little over a year ago simply titled "10 Turnarounds."
To my credit, I like to think, I refrained from calling it "The 10 Essential Turnarounds You Have To Know," but probably only because it didn't occur to me at the time. I go back and forth on how best to structure these kinds of things anyway. My own inclination is towards the explanatory: "You want to put some of these together for yourself? It works like this." Other times I think it's more effective just to put the information in the viewer's hands and walk away: "You want turnarounds? We got turnarounds. A whole mess of turnarounds; here they are."
Clearly, a "10 Turnarounds" video falls into the latter category. But today's lesson falls more into the former. Vamps are a regular part of the Fingerstyle Five curriculum; it's always handy to have a short, repeating place to land mid-tune, and they make great intros and endings too. Both utilitarian and versatile, the vamp. For the most part, I tend to present them from the informative point of view: "Here they are, some vamps for 'Nobody's Fault But Mine.' Help yourself!" But lately I've found myself explaining more about where they come from and how to come up with them, and I thought that would make a cool lesson of its own. So I made one, and you can find it at the link below:
Intros: The Quickest Way To Make Your Blues Sound Better
Meanwhile, a couple of reminders:
I'll be teaching this August at Rocky Mountain Guitar Camp, and I'm told there are still a few slots available. Total enrollment is capped at something like 35 students, so while it's not cheap, it's a chance for some pretty close-up and hands-on instruction with some crazy-good musicians, namely John Knowles, Pat Bergeson, Richard Smith, Jim Nichols and Brooks Robertson. Also – five days in Colorado. In August. Just saying.
Rocky Mountain Guitar Camp
Rocky Mountain Guitar Camp
There is, of course, no travel required to attend my upcoming workshop, The Swing Scale, next Saturday, May 20th. It's the second installment in the three-part series that began with Freddie Green Chords last month and will continue in June with Bebop For Beginners. Each workshop, including The Swing Scale, is designed to stand on its own, but if you want to sign up for all three you can still do so, and save $40 on the
total price. Which means if you missed the Freddie Green Chords workshop and have been wallowing in regret ever since, you can still sign up to watch it on replay when you sign up for the complete three-part series:
The Swing Scale Workshop
The Swing Scale Workshop
More soon,
David