Is it possible to learn to play guitar well enough to play a concert within 6 months? One man took on that challenge.

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Product Description

The guitar, after a dip in popularity during the 80s, is now once again the instrument of choice for modern popular music. It is portable, it has history, it will always be hip. Why has this instrument become such a household classic? Will Hodgkinson, a nascent guitar player, with only an afternoon's experience bashing on a friend's guitar at the age of 16, sets out to find out. Along the way he hoped to teach himself a few chords too. At the end of his odyssey he decided that he would test his newfound knowledge by playing before a live audience. On his trip he chats to Bert Jansch, who patiently explains to him how to play the folk classic 'Anji', British guitar hero Johnny Marr and reclusive folk guitar legend Davey Graham. He travels to America and with a hurricane brewing he visits Roger McGuinn from the Byrds in his suburban home in Orlando, in the spirit of Robert Johnson he travels to the Deep South and drops in on T Model Ford, an old bluesman living in Mississippi, and meets Les Paul after a deeply disappointing gig in New York. With a dawning realisation that his own talents may be severely limited, his fellow band-members reluctant to practice, and his wife and children increasingly bored by his new obsession, Will wonders whether the gig that he has planned, in front of 200 of his friends and colleagues, not to mention paying members of the public, may all have been a terrible mistake. Gloriously readable, highly amusing, hugely informative and always entertaining, Will Hodgkinson gets to the root of modern music's and his own obsession with the guitar.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #228107 in Books
• Published on: 2006-03-20
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Review
'A compelling odyssey, by turns hilarious and informative' Observer Music Monthly

Dylan Jones, GQ
A six stringed classic.

Independent on Sunday
Celebrates and demystifies the art of guitar playing, striking a chord which will have widespread resonance.

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Customer Reviews

Great Read
OK, if I'm honest, I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book when I was given it, being neither a guitar player nor having any aspirations to learn. However, I was really surprised when I found that I enjoyed it so much I didn't want to put it down - reading on into the night to find out if the author did really achieve what he set out to do - which, frankly seems to be impossibility when he starts out.

Here's the thing though, not only does this book turn out to be a really interesting read, it's also very funny, making you laugh out loud as you find out more, not only about the famous guitar players and their views, but the authors' friends and family (am full of admiration for the long-suffering NJ, don't think I would be so tolerant if my husband dedicated his every waking minute to learning an instrument) and the effect that this new found passion has on their lives.

Can definitely recommend this book, whether or not you have any interest in the guitar.

A brilliant read
I was bought this as a present and, as a budding player was slightly dubious as to what Mr Hodgkinson, (who's hardly a guitar meister), could add to my experience... Well, loads, it transpires! He soon began to feel like a travelling companion who was as enthusiastic about music as me but at the same time as wary of the frustrations of learning. And it was great to see that all guitarists struggle on certain things - even the likes of Roger McGuinn from the Byrds! You also learn a lot about the origins of guitar music and find out about some really interesting musicians (whose music I lok forward to searching out - particularly Bert Jansch who sounds great.) And I won't spoil it for anyone by saying that the book's finale - when the author plays in front of a live audeince - is brilliantly tense, very funny and strangely uplifting. It felt like it would make a great TV documentary.

The writing style is very funny, imaginative and free-flowing, and I found myself racing through it. A must for any aspiring guitarist but more than that, a great read for anyone interested in music and how it is made.

An entertaining read - not just for guitar obsessives.
This is a hugely enjoyable book, as much a page turner as any novel. Hodgkinson, in his 30s with a wife and two kids, decides to learn the guitar in a matter of months, and perform live at the end of it. This creates the narrative thrust of the book - and much of the humour and drama (it's not easy getting a band together when you've got kids to put to bed).

Hodgkinson has been pretty lucky with his teachers - Johnny Marr, Roger McGuinn, Bert Jansch, blues legends, a bunch of muso friends. As well as learning the techniques of playing he tries to discover what lies at the heart of great guitar playing - how a few chords played in the right way manage to sound wondrous. It's a testament to the writing that you are left with a strong urge to go and buy all the songs he has been talking about.

Obviously anyone with an interest in the guitar or music should read this book. But so should anyone who wants to read a story about someone following their dream - cause it's never too late.