GW 501 and 502 reviewed in Dirty Linen!

Each of these instructional tapes offers a good solid hour of insight into covering the tunes of their respective subjects. Both are taught by Fred Sokolow, an experienced, low-key instructor with a sense of humor. He chooses songs from varied periods of Simon’s and Dylan’s careers.

For the Simon tape, the selections include "The Boxer," "Mother and Child Reunion," "Bridge Over Troubled Water," and "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)." For Dylan, Sokolow breaks down tunes including "Blowin’ in the Wind," "My Back Pages," and "Too Much of Nothing."

Each tape offers nine songs in all. Sokolow shows how to pick patterns while singing as well as how to create instrumental solos, and ideas for beginning and finishing each song. The patterns are clearly demonstrated on screen and there is accompanying written tab and notation. These tapes are useful for learning a lot about the structure of fingerpicking and how to study and perform a tune as well as learning the details of the individual pieces.