January/February

Howdy all!

I hope this finds you and yours happy, safe, & well, and ready to come out swinging for the new year!!!

HOT ITEM: See the 2022 Guitar Resolutions page!

Info for both group & private students below (including supplemental material for everyone).

RECITAL: Next recital will be in-person, Sunday, March 20 at the Ballroom House. VIDEO option is available for anyone not attending in-person recital.

SONGWRITING SERIES: As of this writing, I have 8 lesson articles in the new "Sonic Sorcery" songwriting series, which you can access HERE. Unlike the songwriting workshops, we're deconstructing individual songs to look at chord progressions, forms, lyrics, and more. ALSO in the works: the new 8-week songwriting class video series!

WEB RESOURCES: If you haven't already, please sign up as a member at the SDML membership page so you will have access to all the material we offer.

TUITION: Those students signed up with me, I do all invoicing via SQUARE, but if you prefer you can use one of the following methods: you can pay with card or Paypal account at my directly link http://www.paypal.me/skinnydevilmusic or Venmo at www.venmo.com/David-McLean-47 ....and I'm told I need to open a BITCOIN wallet, so I suppose I'd better look into that, also (if you have advice there, please let me know)....though I'm told you can use Bitcoin or Etherium via PayPal and Venmo, so if that's your preferred method of payment, that works for me!

1) GROUP STUDENTS - NEW CLASS begins Thursday, January XXXXX! Link & password to the entire 8 weeks session is below the schedule....The schedule is as follows:

4pm - G4
5pm - G3
6pm - G2
7pm - G1

Join Zoom Meetings at:
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/5343966529?pwd=N09CWXhvOFFzY0RHSjBBaWs2TWUzUT09
Meeting ID: 534 396 6529
Password: 949288

2) PRIVATE STUDENTS - The above link should also function for ALL private lessons. You'll simply be directed to the "waiting room" if you log in early.

Each of you should be receiving (via email and/or text) your individual lesson sheets (in some cases with links to doc or video supplements). I'll be sending these weekly, as a general thing, unless we are just reviewing.

If you have NOT received these, please contact me immediately so we can rectify the situation today!

3) SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL - Below are videos that include several song walk-thrus & play-alongs, as well as a drill material. Some of this several of you started on last week. The rest is new material.

All videos are UNLISTED (except where noted), so you have to have the link to access the video.

This page WILL BE up-dated throughout the month with additional material, so check back each week (though I will often be sending notifications).

Video Drills
Play-along Song videos:

G3 and G4 level:
Workout #1 (dexterity, rhythm, scale drills)
Workout #2 (chord drill, including barre chords)
Workout #3 (improvisation - minor blues)
Am Blues Improv Track
C major Improv Track

Advanced Only:

Rhythm drill call & response

Rhythm drill 4-level counting

Song Charts:

"Whiter Shade of Pale" Procol Harum (1967)

verse

C - G - /Am - Am7 - /F - Fmj7 - /Dm - Dm7 - /

G - G7 - /Em - G - /C - G - /Am - Am7 - /

F - Fmj7 - /Dm - Dm7 - /G - G7 - /Em - G - /

C - G - /Am - Am7 - /F - Fmj7 - /Dm - G - /

chorus

C - G - /Am - Am7 - /F - Fmj7 - /Dm - Dm7 - /

G - G7 - /Em - G - /C - F - /C - G - /

***note: the chord progression moves with a bass line down (descending) in reverse alphabetical order (i.e. - C, B, A, G, F, E, D, C....) and the organ plays a theme strongly influenced by Bach's "Air on G String" (you might want to listen to Bach's original HERE)

The song is #57 on Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list, peaked at #5 in the US and #1 in 13 countries, has been covered over 1000 times, is a Grammy Hall of Fame song, and is one of only roughly 60 songs in history to sell over 10 million hard copy.

GRAMMYS:

"Happier Than Ever" Billie Eilish (2021)

PART 1