This is 2/2 or two of a two part Rockabilly Guitar set featuring this same line up of Jim Weider, Levon Helm, Rick Danko, and Chris Zaloom and there is a double size fold out pamphlet. This second one is 85 minutes long! Sizable. You should read Rockabilly review number one of this set too.
Rockabilly II is every bit as good as disc I! We start out with Chuck Berry and with the boys in the Band playing some real nice Chuck Berry Rock and Roll with Jim using a Gibson ES 350P with Paf humbuckers. A classic vintage guitar. Chuck was influenced by several others all of whose styles it behooves us to familiarize ourselves. Jim continues with Chuck Berry influences.
Jim opens with the beginning of Chuck's No Particular Place to Go. Then he talks about Chucks favorite guitar and influences: T-Bone Walker, B.B. King, Muddy Waters and Louis Jordan and his big band. Chuck would combine an eighth note rhythm with a shuffle and it had that swing feel to it. He'd also combine country, bluegrass and hillbilly with Rhythm and Blues (R & B). He shows us how to play these very popular rhythms patterns, talks palm muting and variations in the key of C. Jim segue ways into a very nice Maybellene Rhythm pattern and then Sweet Little Rock and Roller. We get deeper into these well known and beloved triplet style shuffles or the boogie woogie shuffles of eighth note triplets that Chuck used so heavily. We also learn some of the cool signature song beginning and identifying licks and riffs.
Jim sure can play these songs! He mixes and matches eighth notes and brings up the Louis Jordan swing orchestra and horn stabs. Then he funks it up but based on 12 bar blues as Chuck himself may have done. Chuck combined country music with rhythm and blues and we are shown more Maybellene in Bb. Now there is another great Chuck Berry lesson with Steve Trovato I recommend but I also recommend this in a big way. The Trovato one focusses only on Chuck Berry and like Jim Weider's Rockabilly 2 lesson set is a must have. If one shows you one way to play it the other shows you another complementary way to play it adding to your understanding and chops that's what makes the guitar so expressive.
Why in the key of Bb you ask? Because horns play in that key. Horns make horn stabs - little licks - maybe that's where the expression comes from on the 1st place I don't know but Jim explains plenty and gives us a lot of background as to how Rock and Roll developed. Chuck copied the horn stabs on to his guitar and so have other many guitarists.
Keep your feet on the ground, but let your heart soar as high as it will. Refuse to be average or to surrender to the chill of your spiritual environment.
Arthur Helps