House Of Blues

House Of Blues Presents: Blues Guitar Course (House of Blues Presents)
$29.99
I really like this blues guitar course, it's really nice how all the parts work together. You start by going through the book, first learning some chordshapes, if you're not fully comfortable with the result from the book, just put in the DVD and watch John show you the example. Then, when you think you got the stuff from the book and dvd nailed, play it along with the cd. The short blues solo's at the end of a few of the chapters sound really good btw. Really nice flow learning this way, and it keeps me interested. I have to say, I only just finished chapter 3, out of 10, and I've been using this course for a few weeks.
Good to know is that this IS the full course, so Level 1 and Level 2 combined, had me doubting for a while, but it's the real deal, 100 pages of tekst, 2 dvd's and 2 cd's. Another great feature that comes with this package is the access to the website of Rockhouse. Loads of info for guitarplayers and a lot of backingtracks, not only for this program, but for all products published by Rockhouse and House of Blues.

Bottom line:

Great product if you want to get started playing blues guitar!

House of Blues: Essential Blues V.1
$22.98
I bought the Shoebox Full of Blues which contains this disc, and the selection and quality is first rate. There isn't a bad track on the disc, and the mastering is superb. These may be the highest quality versions of these classics you'll hear. Blues purists may argue that vinyl is the only "true" way to listen to these, but who among us has pristine vinyl and the equipment to do it justice?

I wish I had known about the commentary/intros mentioned in another review of this title (There's no mention of the commentary on the reviews or details of the box set). I too find them extremely annoying, and really detest the fact that the produces grafted them onto the end of tracks instead of making them standalone cuts. For all of us that rip our CD's to MP3 there is a cure. It takes a few minutes, but it's worth it. Grab MP3Trim, a free MP3 editor from http://www.mptrim.com/ Then trim from the end of these cuts as indicated.

Killing Floor - 28 Seconds
Better Off With The Blues - 19 Seconds
Mojo Hand - 43 Seconds
Walking The Backstreets And Crying - 35 Seconds
Let's Straighten It Out - 27 Seconds
Rainin' In My Heart - 31 Seconds

I'd also suggest you adjust the volume by -3 db when you trim or you'll induce some clipping on the edited tracks.

Once you do that, and assuming you don't rip the intro that starts each disc, you're left with 30 tracks of nothin' but Blues, guaranteed to make you want more.

The House Of Blues
$6.99
If you are just starting to collect blues recordings, then you would really enjoy this one. It includes some very popular ones, like the tracks by Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Howlin' Wolf, and BB King, as well as many lesser known artists. But it's all good, and the variety in style that you hear from track to track makes this a great CD to play over and over again. It's a lot of blues for the money, if you can find it!

Learn to Play Blues Guitar Level 2
$19.99
This method is not very well organized and is not something a person trying to learn the blues with something that can help them grow along the way. There are a few things of use but not much for the price. The flashy dvd guitar playing is over done and not necessary. People buy this stuff so that they can learn and not something to watch someone else show them how good they are after years of playing. I would not recommend this to anyone but would advise them to look for something with better instruction and not just bits and pieces. Try something with a book/cd like the book by John Ganapes...Blues You Can Use. It is put together as a real teaching method.