The Dictionary of Strum & Picking Patterns

A very good book for beginner to develop solid basis and also for old timers who have not had the chance for acquiring the skills by themselves or through teachers.The CD will be good for those with good ears as it covers alot and the notation for those who were not bestowed by the gift , notation and CD good for the half-gifted and motivated to overcome their half-deafness .I was looking for some classic rock and roll strumming patterns and Latin rhythms such as chacha , samba , mambo and tango but unfortunately the book only has Latin Rock . However I still will rate this book with 5 stars .N.B It is also good for beginners in Bass guitar and drummers because the CD is very clear and not muddled by one loud section on the expense of others which I have experienced with other instructional CDs which have all the sections on o0ne track . Go for it even if the postage is expensive outside USA .

I like having this for what it is. It's not exactly teaching you anything per se but it's great for rhythm practice and adding some new patterns to your repertoire. I love that it gives you a list of songs that use the pattern its showing you, this has been exposing me to some new songs I'd of never thought to learn.It's hard finding good rhythm books out there and most of them are for beginners. This one covers a lot of styles, acoustic and electric.

It's a good book, but the descriptions are a bit misleading. You need to know that it uses different formats for showing the different kinds of rhythm patterns. It has slash marks for strums, and tab for finger picking. If you're not familiar with these types of notations, you might have difficulty reading the rhythms. Be sure and read the intro as it explains most of the symbols. The CD has the rhythms, but it would have been far better if all the instruments except the guitar and a metronome had been left out. Its difficult to separate them from the rest of the music. And they could have been twice as long as they are to give a better feel for the rhythm. Not a bad book, but not a great one either.

covers a wonderfully wide range of styles of music. Wish each demo track could be longer but, I realize, that then there couldn't be as many tracks on the CD as there are so it is a trade off. I found I needed to slow the tracks down in a music editing program to get some of them, as some were too fast to grasp initially... for an intermediate like myself. I also used the music program to loop the tracks to hear it more times in a row. I like it over all.

For some reason, I thought this book would have more weight to it, but it's actually very thin. Nonetheless, there's a good load of information in it about strum and picking patterns, enough to keep me busy for some time. I gave the DVD a listen: it offers a quick play of the material in the book, so if you want to check your efforts in the book, you can always listen to the DVD.Overall, I think it's a pretty cool book. I would definitely buy one for any beginner, because it will open a door to a whole new world of music and their guitar.

This is a great book for a beginner. The only one of the patterns I bought, opened my eyes. Will take me a few years to learn many of them. Each pattern comes with song names that I can hear from YouTube. If you're a serious beginner, you should buy it.

I purchased this book for my girlfriend who is learning to play guitar. I have been playing for quite some time, and it has taught me much as well. I definitely recommend this book for anyone who plays guitar, and is looking to learn some new styles of playing; you can add alot of character to your songs with the styles in this book. The CD has been extremely helpful as well, giving an example of the sound you are trying to learn.Get it!~RDE~

I'm just getting into this book, but it seems well laid out and fairly comprehensive. The cd always helps to match up how the exercises are supposed to sound with your playing.

A lot of very useful patterns and knowledge to learn here. Very well presented and inspiring for students of the guitar.

Any guitarist will find this book very useful and will gain more in depth knowledge on effective strumming and picking and will help guitarists become more fluent.

Really pleased, I found a song I had been looking for for ages,.

A very useful book that guides you through an area that is easy to neglect but a key to improving you skills.

very instructive.