GROSSMAN

LONNIE JOHNSON, STEFAN GROSSMAN'S EARLY MASTERS OF AMERICAN BLUES GUITAR. CD TABLATURE

Stefan Grossman's Early Masters of American Blues Guitar: Lonnie Johnson
Lonnie Johnson / transcr. Stefan Grossman

ORIGINAL RECORDINGS

SERIES: Stefan Grossman’s Early Masters of American Blues Guitar
CATEGORY: Guitar Method or Supplement
FORMAT: Book & CD

The Early Masters of American Blues series provides the unique opportunity to study the true roots of modern blues. Stefan Grossman, noted roots-blues guitarist and musicologist, has compiled this fascinating collection of 16 songs, transcribed exactly as performed by legendary blues master Lonnie Johnson. In addition to Stefan's expert transcriptions, the book includes a CD containing the original recordings of Lonnie Johnson so you can hear the music as he performed it.

One of the most influential blues artists of the 20th century, Lonnie Johnson began his 50-year music career in the early 1920s, and continued to perform and record until his passing in 1970. Recording both as a soloist and with legends like Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Eddie Lang, Lonnie Johnson's influence can still be heard today, from the work of blues guitar greats like T-Bone Walker and B.B. King, to a whole new generation of blues players.

INTRODUCTION

by Stefan Grossman
I grew up in New York City. During the 1960s I had the
unique opportunity to see and study with a host of great
blues guitar players: Mississippi John Hurt, Son House,
Skip James, Fred McDowell, Mance Lipscomb, Bukka
White, and especially Rev. Gary Davis.
I spent several years traveling up to the Bronx every
weekend to learn guitar from Rev. Davis. He had a vast
repertoire of songs and guitar styles and a memory that
was as sharp as a razor. He would talk about recordings
and performers of country bluesmen from the 1920s and
1930s. Usually he was disdainful of their talents-Blind
Lemon Jefferson could play the guitar but he cried when
he sang; Blind Boy Fuller couldn't play the guitar and
needed lessons; using a bottleneck was cheating. But
Rev. Davis had his own guitar heros-Blind Blake had a
sportin' right hand, Willie Walker was a guitar giant and
onnie Johnson was the king of the fretboard.
s a teenager, I absorbed each word and note of Rev.
Davis as the gospel. I bought blues albums, searched for
old 78s, and went to clubs to see blues guitarists. Gerdes
olk City was a center for concerts in New York City and
one week I discovered that Lonnie Johnson would be
playing there. With great eagerness I went down to see
he "king of fretboard."
onnie was playing a cheap electric guitar and using
a plectrum. His blues were a combination of late 1940s
&B tunes and folk blues played in a very diluted
ashion. His singing had a cocktail lounge edge. All in all
I was disappointed. I saw and heard nothing that I would
ant to play.
uring the next few years, I saw Lonnie Johnson in
arious blues festivals and club appearances. I was
ever impressed but in the back of my mind I had Rev.
avis' unequivacable recommendation that Lonnie was
one of the best that had ever played the blues.
Nhat a fool a teenager can be! If only one of my record
ollector friends would have played me some of Lonnie's
great instrumental tracks from the 1920s, I might have
een converted on the spot! As was, I didn't really
delve into Johnson's playing until 20 years later. During
e 1960s, Lonnie's brand of blues was out of fashion
with both record collectors and blues enthusiasts. The
Delta blues was high on everyone's mind and guitar
playing fingers. The steady flow of melodic riffs and
runs that Lonnie recorded in the 1920s/1930s were too
sophisticated and jazz oriented for blues guitarists and
record collectors.
Many of the fingerstyle blues guitarists of the 1960s
eventually got interested in single-line improvisation and
electric blues styles. This usually started with studying
B.B. King and then Albert King and Freddie King. The
road travelled backwards in time from players of the
'60s to '50s (T-Bone Walker) to '40s (Charlie Christian)
and eventually ended in the '30s and '20s with Lonnie
Johnson. The roots of modern electric blues and rock
guitar can be found in the playing of Lonnie Johnson.
Lonnie was sadly overlooked in his later years by blues
and guitar playing historians. He was never interviewed
in depth about either his life or his guitar techniques.
What a crime; especially as his guitar playing has so
many mysteries.
When listening to Lonnie's early great recordings, one
is struck with how spectacular, complex and innovative
they are. What is very unusual is that the tonality and
key is the same for so many tunes. He might have his
guitar tuned low, or play it with a capo, or use a twelve
string instead of a six string but the chord shapes are
always based around the key of D. Document Records
(Eipeldauerstr. 23/43/5, A-1220 Vienna, Austria) have
released a 7-volume CD set Lonnie Johnson-The
Complete Recorded Works (each CD containing over 20
titles) and within those 140 plus tracks, you will only find
3 or 4 tunes in a key other than D! Yet, Lonnie's recording
output in the 1940s and 1950s has little in common
with blues in D, and he in fact rarely played in that key
or style during these years. I personally CCllHlUlcile
another guitarist whose style and technique changed so
dramatically, especially after it was so widely acclaime
and imitated. This is a very strange phenomenon that
only Lonnie could have helped us to understand.
There are a host of great instrumentals and blues
accompaniments that Lonnie recorded in the '20s and
'30s. This book presents a collection of 16 instrumental
 

EDITED AND TRANSCRIBED BY STEfAN GROSSMAN

The Early Masters of American Blues Guitar series provides the unique
opportunity to study the true roots of modern blues. Stefan Grossman, noted
roots-blues guitarist and musicologist. has compiled this fascinating
collection of 16 early blues guitar classics as performed by the legendary
Lonnie Johnson. In addition to Stefan's expert transcriptions, the book
includes a CD containing the original recordings so you can experience
the music as it was originally performed.

Titles:

Mr. Johnson's Blues
Love Story Blues
To Do This, You Got to Know How
Blues In G
Away Down In the Alley Blues
Sweet Woman You Can't Go Wrong
I'm So Tired of Living All Alone
Bitin' Flea Blues
Life Saver Blues
Blue Ghost Blues
Uncle Ned Don't Use Your Head
Cat You Been Messin' Aroun'
There Is No Justice
Go Back to Your No Good Man
Stomping 'Em Along Slow
Woke Up With the Blues In My Fingers

Each book in the Earlv Masters series contains the original artist's performances, transferred
from vintage 78s. These original recordings are a piece of musical history, and the only way to
hear and appreciate the powerful feel and impact of these pivotal, early music giants.

BEGINNER'S BLUES GUITAR. FRED SOKOLOW. TAB. DVD

Product Description:
By the end of this DVD lesson, you will be playing the blues in several keys and styles. You'll know how to play blues turnarounds, boogie-woogie bass lines, several strumming and fingerpicking accom- paniment patterns, as well as blues solos, licks, and fills. Includes blues solos, licks, and accompaniment styles of Lightnin' Hopkins, Big Bill Broonzy, Jimmy Reed, Mississippi John Hurt and others. Classic blues tunes used as examples are: How Long Blues, Key To The Highway, Baby What You Want Me To Do, Blues With a Feeling, and Hesitation Blues. If you've always wanted to learn to play the blues, this is a sure-fire way to get started. A detailed tab/music instructional booklet is included as a PDF file on the DVD. 70 minutes.

Song Title: Composer/Source:
Baby, What Do You Want Me To Do
Blues With A Feeling
Call Me A Dog
Hesitation Blues
How Long Blues
Key To The Highway
Spike Driver Blues

TEXAS BLUES GUITAR. DVD

Product Description:
The Lone State boasts many cultural riches, and its gifts to the blues tradition are among its most exemplary treasures. The range of Texas blues guitar styles, both rural and urban, is captured in this collection of fourteen per-formances by four legendary Texas bluesmen. Blazing 1991 performances by the great Albert Collins generate a heat which belies his Iceman moniker. Freddie King cooks at full boil in a 1972 set which includes his signature song Going Down. Rare 1960 footage of Lightnin' Hopkins shows how intense the downhome acoustic Texas blues could be. A 1968 performance by Mance Lipscomb traces the blues tradition to its work song taproot with Captain, Captain. Alternately stark and celebratory, the Texas blues of these per- formances comprise a legacy as expansive as the Lone Star State's legendary vistas. Running time 60 minutes.
Date Published: 11/25/2003

Song Title: Composer/Source:
Baby, Come Go Home With Me Lightnin' Hopkins
Big Leg Woman Freddie King
Blues Band Shuffle Freddie King
Bunion Stew Lightnin' Hopkins
Captain, Captain Mance Lipscomb
God Moves On The Water Mance Lipscomb
Going Down Freddie King
Going Down Slow Lightnin' Hopkins
Head Rag Albert Collins
Iceman Albert Collins
Let's Pull A Party Lightnin' Hopkins
Lights Are On But Nobody's Home Albert Collins
Night Time Is The Right Time Mance Lipscomb
Which Way Do The Red River Run Mance Lipscomb

BUSTER B. JONES, HOT LICKS, RHYTHMS & GROOVES. TABLATURE DVD
"Buster B. Jones is the best fingerpicker I've heard since Jerry Reed. He Play like he's double parked."
Chet Atkins

Product Description:
Hot Licks, Rhythms and Grooves is a journey through 30 years of my musical life. I touch on many different styles and approaches to playing lead and rhythm guitar. My goal as a player is to expand these perimeters and express what I feel musically. My goal as a teacher is to present this in such a manner that you can absorb it, play it and then use the ideas and take them to new places. I hope you find this musical adventure to be as enjoyable for you to learn from as it was for me to make. Includes a 56-page tab/music booklet.

Buster B. Boogie
5TH SPLIT SCREEN - 1ST GROOVE
6TH SPLIT SCREEN - 2ND GROOVE
FIRST ENDING
ALTERNATE ENDING
7TH SPLIT SCREEN - 3RD GROOVE
8TH SPLIT SCREEN - 4TH GROOVE
9TH SPLIT SCREEN - THE WHOLE THING
2ND VERSE
3RD VERSE
INTERLUDE
4TH VERSE
5TH VERSE
AD LIBITUM FASTER

Buster's Lick
1ST SPLIT SCREEN
LICK IN A
LICK IN D
LICK IN E
G LICK IN A
G LICK IN G
2ND SPLIT SCREEN - KEY OF E
VARIATION
KEY OF A
KEY OF G
KEY OF C
DOUBLE-STOPS
DOUBLE-STOP LICK IN E
3RD SPLIT SCREEN
HOW TO PRACTICE THIS LICK
4TH SPLIT SCREEN - THE ENTIERE LICK
E LICK IN E
E LICK IN G
DOUBLE-PICKING THE E LICK IN G
DOUBLE-PICKING THE E LICK IN A

Nashville Lick
CHICKEN PICKIN'
FINGERPICKIN'
11TH SPLIT SCREEN

Sweet Georgia Brown
G LICK OVER THE D CHORD
C LICK OVER THE G CHORD
G LICK OVER THE C CHORD
C LICK OVER THE F CHORD
10TH SPLIT SCREEN - 1ST VERSE
2ND VERSE
3RD VERSE
 

In 1988, Buster B. Jones entered Guitar Player Magazine's International Guitar Competition with his own composition Back Porch Boogie and a rendition of Limehouse Blues. He entered on a whim, at the last minute, using a $1.50 K·Mart cassette tape and a boom box. There were almost 900 entries, and he won on the first ballot.
In 1990, he won the National Fingerpicking Championship at Winfield, Kansas.
In the last years he has performed with Chet Atkins, Tommy Jones, Marcel Dadi,
Thom Bresh and John Knowles. He is a regular at the annual conventions in Nash·
ville and France of the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society. In France they have dubbed
him LE MACHINE GUN.
"Buster B. Jones is an acoustic player, a lingerpicker, a country Ilavored soloist
- and he's one ot the linest players we've heard in years ... His technique is only a
means to an end. His true gifts are his melodic sense, innate musicianship, unlailing
human, and brilliant improvisational powers. He can drive a tune with lIuid rhythmic
lorce or stroke it with sensuous, loving touch ... He's a monster player with chops
galore, great ideas and an encyclopedic reservoir of guitaristic inlluences."
GUITAR PLAYER MAGAZINE

"HOT LICKS, RHYTHMS & GROOVES is a journey through
30 years of my musical life. I touch on many different styles and
approaches to playing lead and rhythm guitar. My goal as a player
is to expand these perimeters and express what I feel musically.
My goal as a teacher is to present this in such a manner that you
can absorb it, play it and then use the ideas and take them to new
places. I hope you find this musical adventure to be as enjoyable
for you to learn from as it was for me to make." - BUSTERB. JONES

Color· Running Time: 64 minutes
Special thanks to Godin Guitars, Simon & Patrick Guitars.
D'Aquisto Strings and Fred Kelly Thumbpicks

DYLAN BOB, THE MUSIC FOR FINGERSTYLE GUITAR. Sokolow. VIDEO TAB. 72 pagine.

Product Description:
Learn how to play and sing nine classic Bob Dylan tunes from start to finish. You will learn how to fingerpick backup arrangements while singing. You will learn to play instrumental solos and how to begin and end each song. While studying Fred’s arrangements of these Dylan hits you will also learn a lot about fingerpicking: backup patterns, soloing ideas and various chord positions. Each song is played at regular speed and then slowed down with a split-screen that gives you a close-up look at the picking as well as chording hand. All the arrangements are clearly written out in tab and music in the accompanying booklet along with lead sheets and lyrics. 90 MINUTES

Song Title: Composer/Source:
Blowin' In The Wind
Don't Think Twice
I Shall Be Released
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
Lay Lady Lay
Mr. Tambourine Man
My Back Pages
The Times They Are A Changing
Too Much Of Nothing