Thursday, January 26, 2012

Guitar Workshop: Richard Thompson Reconsidered

Hey, kids, remember the fun we had with Richard Thompson last week? Well, oops, let's do that again, only this time, more up-close and personal.

We've seen what can be done with Travis-style picking, in our workshops dating back to September and October of 2010. Well, there's more than one way to do double duty, with the running bass line on one hand, and punctuating licks on ... well, the same hand. We have Thompson to give us an example here.

The iPad is the superior model of a type of electronics that is changing how we obtain and use our information. If you download “On The Music Path” from Apple's App Store, you can get this lesson in “Folk Rock Guitar” for $9.99. One of the songs he opens up for us, is off the 1985 album "Across a Crowded Room" on Polydor, with “When the Spell is Broken” as the first cut. He uses a flatpick in his thump and forefinger to keep the bass line running, leaving, the other three (yes, all three of them) to give a light touch where necessary.

There are many artists whose work can be examined with this amazing app. For the intermediate guitarist, this is as good a place as any to start.

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