Jan Jakut has been working hard transcribing a lot of great music over the past few years. I’m a fan of his work & was very happy to get this book recently. As a fan of both Jan’s work & Bill Frisell’s playing, this was a treat.
This book contains 7 transcriptions of Bill Frisell’s playing. Three are traditional pieces: Red River Valley, Shenandoah and We Shall Overcome. Two are blues based pieces: Nobody’s Fault But Mine by Billie Willie Johnson & St. Louis Blues by W.C. Handy. The final two are Bill’s originals: Made to Shine & Small Town.
Also, Jan has included two chapters going deeper into what he learned from his transcriptions.
In Melodic Devices, Jan shares his take the guitar techniques of Jim Hall and Bill Frisell. In Tele Moves, we get licks and riffs inspired by Bill Frisell. I love seeing how Jan interprets Bill’s concepts and makes it his own. This takes makes the book even more valuable than a typical transcription collection.
Everything is beautifully notated with a lot of care taken with the look of the notation, layout and fonts. Jan’s books are very attractive aesthetically and this adds to the allure of his work.
The transcription includes hyperlinks to the audio recordings & YouTube video referenced. Only Made to Shine & Small Town audio links are not included as they’re from studio albums.
All in all, this is a great book from Jan Jakut. There’s so much to dig into. Jan’s love for the material shines in how he does his work. There’s so much attention to detail throughout.
I recommend this to any guitarist curious to get new ideas for their solo guitar playing inspired by the Bill Frisell aesthetic. I for one, am looking forward to apply these in my arrangements and improvisation very soon.
Pros: Great transcriptions & analysis in one book. Beautiful notation & good explanations.
Cons: None.
TLDR: If you love Bill Frisell’s guitar playing, this is a great book to invest in.
Jan Jakut gave me a complimentary review copy of this book. Thanks Jan!
You can get it here: https://janjakut.bandcamp.com/merch/bill-frisell-transcriptions-2
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