If you're like me, and when you get into something, you 'really' get into it, you'll wind up with more music/guitar books than you have room for.
I studied classical guitar for quite a few years and was always buying new books and sheet music. I've got a lot of books and sheet music. That's just part of what I have though. Anytime I ran across a book that caught my eye, I bought it. That's all well and fine, but my point here is...unless you're wealthy there's really no need to buy tons of books, especially when you end of having much of the same content in many of those books.
Sheet music is another story. I've bought quite a bit of sheet music in my day, but most of the music I've bought comes in the form of books. If it's music that you like, and will someday perform, then go for it.
The thing is, if you don't play classical guitar, and probably most of you don't, there's probably no need to buy so many books.
Even when learning these days, you'd be better off buying and using some of the other methods, hardware, software and websites to learn from. I'll be continuously adding information on some of the more popular options available for the student to use to learn how to play the guitar.
The point of this article is to recommend a book that I whole-heartily suggest that you 'do' buy. It's a purchase I made probably a year and a half or so ago, and it's one of the best music related titles that I've ever purchased.
It's not a book of songs, but a book of a wealth of guitar/music instruction. It is actually a 266 page compilation of the lessons the writer has on his website. The title of the book is...The Infinite Guitar. It's written by a guy named Chris Juergensen, and if you've never heard of him, I can tell you that he's an awesome guitarist, a very good teacher, and a good writer. He used to teach at Musicians Institute in Los Angeles, so I guess that tells you something of his abilities. He's also presently the Director of Education at the Tokyo School of Music in Japan. Again, I think that says something about the guy.
Read the following quote.
"This book has great sagely advice every creative soul needs to absorb. I wish I'd had this when I was a teen. It's like having your own personal musical mentor!" -Jennifer Batten (solo artist, guitarist for Michael Jackson, Jeff Beck)
One thing that comes to mind about the book is the topic of modes. I use to take lessons from a friend, who, is his own right, is a very good all around musician (guitar and piano). We once hit on the topic of the 'modes'. I had no knowledge of the modes, and after I had 'learned' about the modes from him, I thought there was nothing there for me...I was wrong.
If you've been playing guitar or looking at music for any length of time, you've seen the modes mentioned. They're mentioned for a reason. There's much there to know and use. It wasn't until I bought The Infinite Guitar that I finally understood the modes, and how to use them. It was a real eye-opener (and brain-expander).
Although I won't try and cover everything in the book here, I just mainly wanted to suggest it as a must-have part of every guitarists' library of music literature.
If you're on a limited budget, as most of us are, then spend your money wisely. Skip buying that subscription to Guitar World, or maybe don't buy that other book that really doesn't cover what you actually need to become a better guitarist.
Being a good musician isn't necessarily the same as being able to play the guitar. I've seen some guys that could impress people with their playing, but couldn't tell you the first thing about the music. I truly believe (know) that you'll be much better off down the road, as well as feeling better about you level of musicianship, if you put forth the effort to learn what will ultimately get you to where you want to be as a musician.
Also, if you plan on being a studio musician , reading TAB and being able to copy a song from a CD won't cut it.
I'm not making money off any purchases of Chris' book. I just know that it's a fantastic source of instruction that you'll be extremely glad that you bought. It will also teach you things that will open up completely new levels of playing for you.
You can get information on buying the book, as well as his great CDs at ChrisJuergensen.com. You can also go straight to LuLu.com and buy the book if you want. LuLu is a 'print on demand type publisher' (they print it when you order it), and although I'd never bought a book using that type of service, I must say that I was very impressed. The quality of the book... binding, paper quality, print, everything was excellent. The turnaround time was extremely quick also. I'll never hesitate to buy from LuLu.com again.
So head on over and have a look Chris' site. You can have a look at some of the lessons there while you're waiting on your copy of The Infinite Guitar to arrive.
Oh, the book is also available as a download at about 40% off the cost of the printed version. The printed version is ($24.86), and the downloaded version is ($15.00). A fantastic bargain, whichever option you choose.