Today's Fingerstyle Five FAQ is a response to the eminently reasonable question 'If I join the Fingerstyle Five now, what exactly will I be working on in October?"

The short answer goes like this: you'll start working on playing the eight-bar classic "Key To The Highway" in E, beginning with a version that just highlights the basic melody over a steady bass.

And then, as the month progresses (and as your interest and skill level permit), you'll learn up to five ways to embellish that basic version: syncopating the melody, adding in slides and hammer-ons, harmonizing the melody with chords, adding in walking bass notes, and turning those added bass notes into fills.

Now, as my newsletter of a week or two back detailed, one of the best pieces of advice Duke Robillard ever got from a musical hero was when Count Basie advised Duke to "Play it, don't say it."

So, in the spirit of the Count, I will now cease my explaining, to instead point you first to today's Youtube lesson, in which I show you what I mean about adding more motion to a steady bass groove on "Key To The Highway:"

Bass Lines For "Key To The Highway"

And second, I will mention the live stream happening on my channel this Sunday, September 29th. As a follow up to my recent Groove Master Class, I'll discuss "Key To The Highway" in more detail and answer any questions you might have about joining the Fingerstyle Five membership:

Key To The Highway: A Fingerstyle Five Preview and Live Q&A

More soon,

David