Homespun Beginner courses (2 choices which one?)

[Chicken]

So the Homespun courses have been recommended here and by I've heard people recommend them off board and I think I might get one just to get something a bit more organized than randonly searching the net for free lessons. There's two that seem like they would do the trick...

 

You Can Play Guitar! A Complete Course for the Beginner

Taught By Happy Traum.

Level 1

Two DVDs, Includes Chords, Music and Tab

 

or

 

Guitar For The Absolute Beginner

Taught By Happy Traum.

Level 1

Four CDs, Includes a book of chords and lyrics

 

Price is similar, but the main difference seems to be that one has DVDs and the other 4 CDs. I'm thinking the DVD version would probably be better, but maybe someone has both of these (or at least one) and has an opinion on which to get?

[Berkleo]

It's been my (expensive) experience that Homespun Videos can be extremely hit or miss (mostly miss IMO I'm sorry to say), and I've found the Happy Traum lessons to be useless. For the money, there's a lot better instruction out there and some of the free internet stuff is pretty good. One exception on Homespun: the Pete Huttlinger vids are excellent although a bit more advanced than what I think you're looking for. Nevertheless, I think they'd be great for beginners to help develop good habits and technique. If you do decide to go with the Happy Traum vids check Amazon. They're frequently for sale used a bit cheaper. Good luck.

[totamus]

I have had a totally different experience with Homespun - have purchased maybe 4 videos and satisfied with all (ESPECIALLY the Thom Bresh video).

 

Homespun is Happy Traum - he started it so I had assumed that his would be pretty good. Maybe his real calling is producing...

[Broadus]

I've found David Hamburger's Acoustic Guitar Method to be quite good, especially if you fairly master each new thing before going to the next. The last time I checked, bestbuy.com sold it online for $14.95 plus a couple dollars for shipping.

 

Bill

[Freeman Keller]

I have no experience with Traum's lessons but everything else that I have bought from Homespun has been top notch(the recent Rory Block stuff was great). I find I learn much more from video lesson, regardless of the instructor, than a straight cd, so I would vote for that one. With a video or dvd you can stop, look at fingering and go back and repeat something. It is like having the teacher right in front of you.

 

You might also look through the offerings from Stefan Grossman. I have used several of his Country and Delta blues videos and dvd's and they are very good

 

http://guitarvideos.com/

[musictime365]

I've ever heard about the A Complete Course for the Beginner, that book seems quite nice, but I don't have experience with it.

[jwm1958m]

Chicken, do you play at all? The sample video seems very very simplistic, but for someone with no chord knowledge at all I think it would be helpful.

For $50 it would probably get someone started, but I think you might be well served at some point to take lessons or play with friends who are better players.

When I first began playing I learned from a couple of old Mel Bay books. Taking a guitar class in college opened up a world of new technique and then I was fortunate to meet lots of better players who were willing to share.

 

For what its worth I love instructional videos. The ones I have had the opportunities to view have been well worth the price.

[Steadfastly]

From what I've seen on home courses, the best is Learn & Master Guitar (www.learnandmasterguitar.com)

 

It's not cheap, but it's more than a beginner's course. You might find it on eBay for around $120.00 Cdn.

 

Have any others seen this or tried it/

[teegee420]

It's not cheap, but it's more than a beginner's course. You might find it on eBay for around $120.00 Cdn. Have any others seen this or tried it/

I have it and can recommend it. It's a very thorough course that's good for beginner and intermediate players. My only criticism is that the song selections can be a little mundane at times. They're all public domain, so you're not going to find your favorite artists' hits in the curriculum.

[JerseyGuy]

I have had excellent experience with Homespun DVDs and agree that they are far superior to CDs -- the camera tends to do split screen, showing both right hand and left hand techniques. I haven't any knowledge of the two Happy Traums you mention but I've used a couple of his others on beginner blues guitar and he's good on those.

 

An alternative I can recommend based on my own experience is the David Hamburger Homespun DVD for beginners:

 

http://www.homespuntapes.com/prodpg/prodpg.asp?prodID=1337&prodType=

 

if you like "roots" music. I have used the book/CD combo and enjoyed it and found it useful, and I would think the DVDs are good, too. He starts at the very beginning and takes you quite a long ways and gives lots of useful info about the music along the way. Good luck and let us know what you decide and what your experience is.

[Chicken]

Chicken, do you play at all? The sample video seems very very simplistic, but for someone with no chord knowledge at all I think it would be helpful.

Not enough to mention I know a few basic chords and strum a bit, making stuff up as I go along. But I can't play anything. Really, I don'yt have high aspirations, maybe just play a bit on the couch, etc.

 

I used to play drums, and while I still have a couple of kits, my drumming days seem to be all but over, as people I used to play with (just old friends) have moved away. Now I keep them in my classroom and teach the kids some basic 1/4 and 1/8 note beats. Really even that's somewhat pointless (but better than absolutely no music program, which is what they have now). Besides you can't sit and strum the drums on the couch and I've never found it to be all that relaxing (been more of a fun thing to do with friends), and playing it alone bores me to death.

 

So I decided to get a guitar (and am the collector type so I have too many, despite the lack of talent), and would just like to play some Beatles songs and other classic/contemp. rock. Nothing all that amazing really.

For $50 it would probably get someone started, but I think you might be well served at some point to take lessons or play with friends who are better players.

I guess I should work harder at finding some people who play and who'd be willing to sit and show me something. I missed the last community college registration, but I think it's coming up again (unless I've missed it yet again).

When I first began playing I learned from a couple of old Mel Bay books. Taking a guitar class in college opened up a world of new technique and then I was fortunate to meet lots of better players who were willing to share.

I think the college class would be the most motivating at this point, due to meeting others at the same point as me, though lessons wouldn't be bad I just don't know of any great instructors. Maybe they'd be good, maybe not, expensive though to find out.

 

I have some books (The Hal Leonard Acoustic Guitar Method: A Complete Guide with Step-by-Step Lessons and 45 Great Acoustic Songs) and (Hal Leonard Guitar Method, - Complete Edition: Books 1, 2 and 3 with CD or DVD, haven't really gotten into it) and actually have Learn & Master Guitar, but find it a bit too distant from what I want to do, though I suppose if I sucked it up and played the garbage songs it would enable me to play others that I actually want to play. As someone said, the songs are a bit mundane and I'd much rather learn chord progressions by playing the Beatles than by playing Morning Has Broken (have no idea what that is).

 

I just find that I'm running around in 100 different places and it doesn't help the motivation to learn out of books, and my DVD player/recorder is in the shop, further stopping progrssion. I'd probably do better in a class or private lesson. I guess yet another book and DVD isn't the answer.