Guitar Musings

Now that I have found tab that will point me in the right direction in learning Tommy Emmanuel’s Borsalino, it’s time to get practicing.  What I usually is listen the hell out of a song and watch any videos I have to observe technique.  I had a great version of Tommy performing Borsalino from the Sierra Nevada Center Stage show that aired on PBS.  It was on my DVR for quite a while and knew it would always be there.  At least I thought it would be.  Turns out my Tommy show got recorded over because I failed to protect it so needless to say, I was crushed and pissed.

Technology taketh away and technology giveth back!  Did a quick search on YouTube and found the performance that I once had.  Not to big of a find since YouTube has tons of videos available at anytime but I didn’t want to visit YouTube everytime I need to look at the video.  I want to be able to watch it on my iTouch any time I felt like it.  Thankfully, many have addressed this need  with programs and services that assist me in getting YouTube videos on my iTouch.  It’s called “YouTube to iPod Converter” from dvdvideosoft.com.  It’s a simple little program where you enter the URL of the video, specify where you want the .mp4 video to save and click on the “convert” button and you are set.  I now have my Tommy video back and can reference it any time I like. 

This is yet another great resource for musicians who need to reference music on they fly when they are practicing.  This video conversion method isn’t relagated to just iPods.  You can do conversions for your PSP, Zune, Windows Media or any other kind of media player. 

If only this software could transcribe the song for me and then I would be set.  : )

Links of Interest:

YouTube to iPod Converter

Another YouTube Converter (Online)

Tommy’s YouTube Video

If You have read some of my previous Tommy posts, you will know I’m on a quest for an accurate Borsalino transcription.  I think I found one that when combined with the other transcription that I found, I get a pretty good idea on how to play it.  The thing that makes this so hard is that Tommy plays the song differently depending on when he played it.  So there cold possibly be many versions of tab out there.  Anyway, this site has many different transcriptions for you to try out.  (I lost count after 20)  They are in PDF format so you don’t have to worry about having Guitar Pro or Power Tab.

I have sampled two two transcriptions; Borsalino and Bye Bye Blackbird(Up Close DVD).  Borsalino is fairly accurate but it’s hard to say because in the performance notes for the transcription, it says, “As seen in concert…”   What concert would that be?  Who knows but it fills some holes the other left.  Bye Bye Blackbird is OK as far as the notes and fingering but the rhythm was not as accurate as I had hoped.  In the “Up Close” DVD, Tommy did a lot of syncopation which wasn’t represented in the music. 

Of course, a sample of two tabs doesn’t represent the whole of the transcriptions available.  Please check it out and leave a comment with your findings/recommendatons.  I am excited to see what others think.

Keep Playing!

http://tommyemmanuel.wordpress.com/gitar-tabok/

Good news for all of us TE fans out there!  A new live 2 CD set, “Center Stage,”  is set to be released April 29th.   Recorded October 2007 in California, “Center Stage” is a compilation of 3 nights recording and the word is that there is a HD DVD coming in the following.   According to CDP, some previously un-recorded songs will be featured like “Ruby Eyes.”

Certified Guitar Player is pre-selling “Center Stage” for $15.95.  I’ve already placed my order, have you?

Been working on Tommy Emmanuel stuff lately and thought I would share some of the available tab that I have tried.  Some of these are pretty accurate and are almost the same as the stuff in my TE Note for Note book.   Anyway, hope this helps in your quest to learn Tommy’s music.

• Freight Train/Trambone:  Pretty good transcription from, what seems to me, the “Up Close” DVD.  Very similar to the “Note for Note” transcription which was based off of that DVD as well.  Choose the acoustic power link and you will need Power Tab to read it.
• Dixie McGuire:  Another transcription that is close to the “Note for Note” one.  I used the Power Tab version from the Ultimate Guitar Archive.  It is worth noting that the “Note for Note” version was a great help filling in a couple of fingering holes that the other missed. The same goes for Blue Moon.
• Those Who Wait:  Great transcription and pretty accurate to the “Only” CD version.  I then used that to adapt it to the “Live One” CD and the PBS Sierra Nevada version.  He really never does it the same way twice, it seems.  Anyway, choose the Ultimate Guitar Archive link and the Guitar Pro and Power Tab versions are both good versions.
• Borsalino:  Currently working on this myself an it’s  the best version I can find and is accurate enough.  A few of the fingerings are wrong and the transcription is incomplete but if you have a video version of Tommy playing this live, you’ll be able to figure it out.  Used the the Guitar Pro version from the Ultimate Guitar Archive.
• Angelina:  My first Tommy E. that I learned.  I didn’t use this tab myself, I used the transcription that was in December 2005 issue of Acoustic Guitar Magazine, which is the best Angelina transcprition out there.    I would use the Guitar Pro tab but there is a high rated ASCII version of the tab but I’m not a big fan of that kind of transcription. Hint: If your trying to figure it out yourself, it’s in drop D tuning with the capo on the 2nd fret.
• Blue Moon:  Once again this is very similar to the “Note for Note” songbook. I used the Guitar Pro transcription that could be found at Ultimate Guitar Archive.  Still struggling with this song, got the notes down but the feel is lacking.

That’s a short list on the Tommy E songs I have been working on.  Of those, I could probably perform Dixie, Angelina and Those Who Wait without too much trouble.  I would still say they need some polishing.  So if you need to Tommy E songs to work on, I hope this helps.  If you can afford it, I would strongly recommend getting the “Note for Note.”  Not only for the great transcriptions but there is some useful information on Tommy’s playing and his influences.  Like it says in the book, you need to learn about what influenced him if you really want to play like him.  Anyway, I hope this helps and if you find any good transcriptions, please leave a comment.

Keep Playin’

The Toronto Fingerstyle Guitar Association just posted a three part interview with Tommy Emmanuel.  Great insite how some of the chances he took to get where he is and the hard work that Tommy went through to achieve his accomplishments.  He, of course, talks about how he always try’s to improve his playing and keeping it fresh.  What’s exciting is him talking about a new Live DVD that will be shot in Chico California and a new instructional DVD featureing songs from “Only,”  “Endless Road,” and “The Mystery.”  That is certainly exciting and I can’t wait until those come out.  Oh yeah, a new CD should be out by Christmas, so Tommy is a busy man.  But don’t take my word for it. 

The links are below: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kEBr_xiRiM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZz7zRHoONg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52eLzA66tso&feature=related