NickTGS
January 7th, 2008, 12:05 PM
I've gotten through Last Kiss/Have You Ever Seen the Rain in the past couple weeks, and thought I'd share my feelings about them with people on the fence about buying them.
Video quality/sound quality is good, especially compared to the YouTube lessons and site lessons. I hope that Dave and Tim continue to film the lessons with whatever camera they use for these DVDs, because everything is crisp, even on my 50" HDTV. Dave has his amp set at a level [in Last Kiss] that I can hear myself play over and hear him talk over. Good stuff.
Some of the things taught on the DVDs are redundant if you've progressed through the site's materials [which I have] from beginner lesson 1 to the end of the beginner section. This is what these two discs encompass (pretty much). You learn open chords, barre chords, some walking bass lines, some easy riffs, and even a small dose of lead playing on Last Kiss. On Have You Ever, Dave goes into some more advanced techniques that form the foundation of a solid guitarist's playing; chucking is explained in great detail and he details how to add movement/interest to simple chord progressions. All very useful to have in your arsenal.
I like how Dave teaches both beginner and advanced [re: CD version] iterations of the song; for example, on "Last Kiss," he shows first how to do the eighth note strumming, then the picking pattern that Pearl Jam plays. The tips he throws in during the lessons -- i.e., switch between strumming/picking to create interest -- are the type of stuff you don't get from just a tab book. Transcription wise, the songs sound great [Dave adds some embellishments in, too], although I don't know either song very well.
Finally, the fact that Dave doesn't just teach you the song, but also teaches you all the techniques, chords etc. that go into it is absolutely huge, and really allows you to cop the feel of the tune. I know some of the stuff I've learned from tab sounded a bit funky at first, since I had to really buckle down and listen to the CD, but Dave takes all that guesswork out and shows exactly how to do it. He also tells the viewer what his amp settings are and what equipment he's using, so you don't have to go searching the web/tweaking all the dials on your guitar to find the perfect tone.
About my only complaints are the following: one, the fact that "www.nextlevelguitar.com" pops up in the center of the screen at random intervals. I can understand this on the YouTube videos, but I don't really like it in paid content. I know where I got the DVDs guys -- you don't have to remind me in every lesson! If you want to do it, don't put it directly in the middle of the screen -- put it in a corner, so it doesn't distract the viewer from the lesson. To Dave/Tim's credit, the text only stays on for ten seconds or so, and it usually comes during a "lull" [not when Dave says something crucial]. My other complaint/request is that it is sometimes a bit difficult to pick up the riffs/picking patterns Dave is doing. Lots of rewinding was involved to hear what he was saying while trying to play along. If NLG could find some way to put that in text on the screen, as they do with the strum patterns, that would be great.
All in all, great job. Definitely superior to the fantastic site lessons, which is high praise indeed. If you're a site member and don't own these, hop on that deal right away and buy them! If you're new to guitar, Last Kiss and Have You Ever Seen the Rain are two great ways to learn some new techniques and advance your playing. Even if you're an intermediate/advanced player [which I certainly am not], you may want to check these discs out for some of Dave's tips on embellishing and "spicing up" your playing.
I give them a 9/10, and look forward to working through the rest of the DVDs I ordered from Next Level Guitar.
Update: After viewing part of the "Sweet Home Alabama" DVD, it seems that at least one of my concerns has been remedied in the newer DVDs. Nextlevelguitar.com does not flash on the screen [from what I've watched], and, at the very least, it pops up less often than it did on the original releases. Hats off to Dave and Tim for that!
Video quality/sound quality is good, especially compared to the YouTube lessons and site lessons. I hope that Dave and Tim continue to film the lessons with whatever camera they use for these DVDs, because everything is crisp, even on my 50" HDTV. Dave has his amp set at a level [in Last Kiss] that I can hear myself play over and hear him talk over. Good stuff.
Some of the things taught on the DVDs are redundant if you've progressed through the site's materials [which I have] from beginner lesson 1 to the end of the beginner section. This is what these two discs encompass (pretty much). You learn open chords, barre chords, some walking bass lines, some easy riffs, and even a small dose of lead playing on Last Kiss. On Have You Ever, Dave goes into some more advanced techniques that form the foundation of a solid guitarist's playing; chucking is explained in great detail and he details how to add movement/interest to simple chord progressions. All very useful to have in your arsenal.
I like how Dave teaches both beginner and advanced [re: CD version] iterations of the song; for example, on "Last Kiss," he shows first how to do the eighth note strumming, then the picking pattern that Pearl Jam plays. The tips he throws in during the lessons -- i.e., switch between strumming/picking to create interest -- are the type of stuff you don't get from just a tab book. Transcription wise, the songs sound great [Dave adds some embellishments in, too], although I don't know either song very well.
Finally, the fact that Dave doesn't just teach you the song, but also teaches you all the techniques, chords etc. that go into it is absolutely huge, and really allows you to cop the feel of the tune. I know some of the stuff I've learned from tab sounded a bit funky at first, since I had to really buckle down and listen to the CD, but Dave takes all that guesswork out and shows exactly how to do it. He also tells the viewer what his amp settings are and what equipment he's using, so you don't have to go searching the web/tweaking all the dials on your guitar to find the perfect tone.
About my only complaints are the following: one, the fact that "www.nextlevelguitar.com" pops up in the center of the screen at random intervals. I can understand this on the YouTube videos, but I don't really like it in paid content. I know where I got the DVDs guys -- you don't have to remind me in every lesson! If you want to do it, don't put it directly in the middle of the screen -- put it in a corner, so it doesn't distract the viewer from the lesson. To Dave/Tim's credit, the text only stays on for ten seconds or so, and it usually comes during a "lull" [not when Dave says something crucial]. My other complaint/request is that it is sometimes a bit difficult to pick up the riffs/picking patterns Dave is doing. Lots of rewinding was involved to hear what he was saying while trying to play along. If NLG could find some way to put that in text on the screen, as they do with the strum patterns, that would be great.
All in all, great job. Definitely superior to the fantastic site lessons, which is high praise indeed. If you're a site member and don't own these, hop on that deal right away and buy them! If you're new to guitar, Last Kiss and Have You Ever Seen the Rain are two great ways to learn some new techniques and advance your playing. Even if you're an intermediate/advanced player [which I certainly am not], you may want to check these discs out for some of Dave's tips on embellishing and "spicing up" your playing.
I give them a 9/10, and look forward to working through the rest of the DVDs I ordered from Next Level Guitar.
Update: After viewing part of the "Sweet Home Alabama" DVD, it seems that at least one of my concerns has been remedied in the newer DVDs. Nextlevelguitar.com does not flash on the screen [from what I've watched], and, at the very least, it pops up less often than it did on the original releases. Hats off to Dave and Tim for that!