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Post by tabeck5 on Sept 9, 2014 11:32:32 GMT -6
I spent six months of diligent study getting through the first BYCU and then proceeded onto the More BYCU, it seems that the degree of difficulty right off the bat in More BYCU, any suggestions on order of the books, is there another BYCU (i.e. Jazzin the Blues, or Rhythm & Blues) that bridges the gap to prepare for the More BYCU, thanks for any suggestions you may have,
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Post by Phil on Sept 9, 2014 13:47:54 GMT -6
First, welcome to the forum. A couple of us have just finished BYCU and have started "More BYCU." From my point of view, if you can play the last 5 or 6 studies in BYCU reasonably well, you should be ready to tackle "More BYCU." I'm not saying you have to be able to play them perfectly, but you should be to play them at full tempo without feeling that you are forcing yourself.
So, it may be time for some introspection and self-assessment. Can you comfortably play all the studies in BYCU? Did you you skip the ones that you didn't particularly like or found too difficult? If so, take comfort in knowing that I and probably many others have done the same thing. But, we went back and eventually got those studies under our fingers.
If you are comfortable playing all the studies in BYCU, then just jump into "More BYCU" and don't let it intimidate you. Take it slow and steady. I came to a screeching halt with "MBYCU." I posted a crappy version of "Chord-on Bleu" and week or 2 ago, and I'm currently working on "Drivin'Blues." I'm moving much much slower through this book than with BYCU. To give you an example - I'm playing the 1st 12 bars at 50% of the slow tempo version. This book is a real challenge, but I'm convinced that if I can get through it I will have accomplished something worth while.
So, to answer your question - there is no book that serves as a transition from BYCU to MBYCU. I think that last few studies of BYCU do that. However, I will recommend "Blues Rhythms YCU" that can be worked along with "MBYCU." I just bought "Jazzin' the Blues" and it is a full blown introduction into Jazz guitar and I just can't handle it at the moment - maybe in a couple of months. It's a very good book. Some of the other members can give you some insight into John G's other books.
Once again I want to welcome you to the forum and I hope you can share your progress with the rest of us. Post some recordings of you efforts. The benefits of recording yourself and posting the results are too numerous to go through right now.
Phil
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Post by Phil on Sept 9, 2014 13:56:32 GMT -6
Trabeck5,
I just realized that you posted a few months ago and we got off to a bad start because I jumped to some conclusions a little too fast and shot from the lip. I think I apologized. I hope that's all water under the bridge now.
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Post by tabeck5 on Sept 9, 2014 18:01:25 GMT -6
Hey Phil, yes indeed water under the bridge, absolutely no worries, I did (and still do) go back through BYCU as a review, almost constantly, some of those I can play in my sleep. The last lessons in BYCU seemed within my reach technically speaking, so when I went to More BYCU it threw me for a loop. I read some reviews (Maybe on Amazon, can't quite remember) that said there was another book in the series that really served as a good transition, I think it was R&B you can use, and at least the first few lessons seem much easier, not in a hurry to get through these, just want to make sure I can walk before I run. Thanks for the advice!
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Post by jack1982 on Sept 10, 2014 4:31:37 GMT -6
I'm working on the R&B book too. The first two songs were pretty easy, the next three were more of an intermediate level, and now I'm on the sixth one which I'd say is just as hard as the stuff in More Blues You Can Use. And from listening to the CD is doesn't sound like it gets any easier  I think with More BYCU you just have to resign yourself to the fact that those songs are going to require a whole lot more practice than the ones in the first book. But it's not a race - just take your time and put in the work. You'll get there You're taking your playing to a whole 'nother level and those steps are bigger and harder than they were before. It can seem pretty insurmountable at first but after a while you get used to it. I'm really enjoying working on More BYCU and the R&B book at the same time. They compliment each other very well as far as the techniques you're learning, and the R&B book adds some much needed variety to your practice schedule. |
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Post by tabeck5 on Sept 10, 2014 11:38:26 GMT -6
I pulled out the R&B book last night and began working on it, I think it is a good transition from BYCU to More BYCU. I felt the progression in BYCU was perfect, each lesson I started was definitely a challenge, I tried to do one lesson per week and the pattern was the same, no way I can get this figured out to I might be able to figure it out, to hey I can actually play this. I am going to work the R&B then maybe go onto More BYCU or maybe Jazzin the Blues. I do review the BYCU on a pretty regular basis, if only to remember that there was a time when I didn't have the ability to play them through without stopping!
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Post by Phil on Sept 10, 2014 15:16:25 GMT -6
I am going to work the R&B then maybe go onto More BYCU or maybe Jazzin the Blues. I do review the BYCU on a pretty regular basis, if only to remember that there was a time when I didn't have the ability to play them through without stopping! Regarding reviewing BYCU: you can always refer to pages 90-91 of BYCU which I call the Chapter 21 Catch 22 - where John recommends going back over various studies and learning them in different positions.  Someday I might actually try that, but today is not that day.  If you can remember the problems you had playing the BYCU studies all the way through, then you have made some identifiable progress. That's good. It's when we can't see that we've made any progress that we tend to throw in the towel and give it up. This is one of the reasons I'm such a vocal proponent of recording yourself. Regarding Jazzin' the Blues: You didn't mention if you already have it. I just bought it a couple of weeks ago and read the introduction. I thought it was going to simply be some jazzier studies of Blues. It is actually an introduction into Jazz guitar with some pretty heavy theory. I'm holding off on it for now. I have a feeling that once I get bitten by the Jazz bug I'll be totally consumed by it.  Although I've always admired their playing abilities, I've never been a big Jazz guitar fan. But recently I've been having an increasingly growing interest in it. Maybe it has something to do with age. What could be cooler than seeing an old man playing some cool Jazz?  It has to be cooler than seeing grandpa Steve Tyler dressed up in some ridiculous outfit strutting and singing "Walk this Way." |
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Post by tabeck5 on Sept 10, 2014 18:27:43 GMT -6
Phil, I already purchased the Jazzin the Blues and I have looked through it, I did some of the lessons and found them to be within my reach, but at the same time I did not feel I was ready for it yet, I did go through the Beginning version of Jazz Guitar by Jody Fisher, a really good book for jazz, but I really like John's approach (at least in the BYCU books) better because at least I feel like I am constantly building on progress. There are a lot of times I'll be playing through a lesson and come across a lick and I instantly recognize it as something I have seen before (but in a different context if you know what I mean), the learning progression seems much more thought out when compared to other resources. I'm looking forward to digging into JTB when the time is right, and I think you are right, once you get bitten it will likely consume you.
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Someday I might actually try that, but today is not that day. 
It has to be cooler than seeing grandpa Steve Tyler dressed up in some ridiculous outfit strutting and singing "Walk this Way."