Highlights:

• Cliffs of Dover:  The best song on the CD and probably the most recognizable.  Fast runs, great phrasing and that incredible violin like tone sets the stage for a terrific listening experience.  When I was in High School, I learned how to play the into to this and it wasn’t too bad.  If you asked me to play it now, I am afraid how much damage I would do to myself and to your ears.
• High Landrons:  A great guitar song where Eric throws lick after lick and there never seems to be a place to rest until the end.
• Trademark:  A smooth, easy listening song where Eric doesn’t show too much flash but the phrasing and tone is incredible.  The song features great bass lines provided by Kyle Brock and I find myself listening to him instead of EJ.
• Song For George:  His only acoustic song and once again, not too flashy but great phrasing and use of the occasional harmonics.  I have a bit of a soft spot for this song because it was the song that I played on my first solo performance in a High School talent show.

About 18 years ago, my brother handed me a tape of “Ah Via Musicom” and he told me that I had to listen to it, a must listen.  Now I’m doing the same to you.  If you play guitar or a fan of great guitar, get it!

Features and Thoughts:

• Tuner:  Has many different tuning modes from standard tuning to modal or open tuning.  Initially, I tried the tuner on the 1st Gen iPhone and it didn’t work so well. The response was terrible and wouldn’t register the low E string and was rendered useless.  I now own the 3G iPhone and the tuner is working much better.  I’m thinking that the 3G has a better microphone.  Any thoughts on this?  As a test, I set my Korg tuner next to the iPhone to see how close they responded and the tool kit did very well.  The tuner does not work on the iTouch because of the lack of a microphone.  But you can use the “Tones” option which is a graphic representation of the six strings and you can run your finger over each string to act as a reference.
• Metronome:  My first impression of the metronome was annoyance.  The tones for the beats sounded like a trash can and there was no way to change those tones to something more pleasant.   After I  installed the update, the option to to change the tone was there so now the  metronome is usable and quite nice to have.  The current version of the tool kit only offers 2/4, 3/4, 4/4 and “no time signature” as options for time signatures.  I would like to see a way to customize the time signatures and even an option on where you want the accents within the measures.
• Chord Chart:  Very handy little program with lots and lots of chords for you to reference.  What is nice is that you can move up and  down the fretboard to get your desired chords in different positions.  I would like to see is an option to illustrate where the root of the chord is located on the chart.  Even better, the 3rd, 5th, 7th etc… location as well.

So would I recommend this program? Definitely!  It’s not going to replace your current equipment but at only $9.99, it’s nice to have when you’re on the go and need something in a pinch.

Links:

Guitar Toolkit Homepage

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