We’re continuing our FREE lesson series on Cowboy Chords, AKA First-Position Chords. This month’s lesson is on A and A7.
I’m trying something new; instead of creating the lesson as a webpage, I’m embedding a PDF in the webpage. That cuts down on the work I have to do. I create the lesson in a PDF anyway, and this eliminates all the copy and pasting to the webpage. Let me know what you think.
This lesson has two pages, 15 fretboard diagrams and a video.
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Blogs Since Last Newsletter
Bill Evans Time Remembered: I recently saw a documentary called, “Bill Evans Time Remembered.” Listening to players of other instruments besides guitar has made me a better guitar player.
Know Your Notes? I recently watched a podcast where Steve Vai talks about his lessons as a beginner with Joe Satriani.
You’ve Got 3 Seconds: I felt a little compassion, maybe it's misplaced but I decided to send her one last message - a little fatherly advice if you will.
Back to Cowboy Chords: June Newsletter: Free lesson on Cowboy Chords, blog links, Tune of the Month and more!
Tune of the Month
This song originated in a dream. I dreamed the whole first verse of this song one night. Words, chord progression, lyrics - everything, all at once. I got up that morning, picked up a guitar and instantly sang and played it without working on it (except I DID work on it - in my dream!).
The second verse came almost immediately thereafter, with about 15 minutes work. I let it simmer on the back burner for several months and then came up with the chorus. This happened towards the end of a long stretch (seven years) of 70 to 80 hour workweeks. I'm pretty sure my subconscious was telling me I needed a vacation!
Comparisons to James Taylor's famous song of the same name are unavoidable. I would be lying if I were to say that JT hasn't been an influence on me. But - - - this is MY Mexico, not his. With the exception of rhyming, "Oh" with, "Mexico" there are no other similarities that I can think of. Also, this is the ONLY song I have ever heard that rhymed, "Tequila" with "heal ya". Take THAT, James!
Many of the friends and family I use to get honest feedback on works-in-progress also said something like, "Sounds kind of like a Jimmy Buffet song." I would say, "Yeah, it kind of does (except for that one Dominant flat-9 chord in the chorus) - until the coda. Then it goes somewhere Jimmy Buffet has never been!"
Jay
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The 5-Lesson Foundational Series teaches the Circle of Keys as an organizational mechanism by which you ensure that whatever you learn is drilled in every key in all possible positions. It also gives you a method to find any note, anywhere, without memorizing note names on every string. That is a beautiful thing!
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