Regarding "Octaves" - or *playing* them, I should say - I'm at the beginning end of the learning curve. I know what they are, what they sound like, how to "do" one on a guitar -- but that's about it. I need exercises, I need assignments, I need _something_ that will lead me to sit down with my guitar and learn THIS or THAT thing, which, consequently, will bring me that much closer to being able to PLAY a solo, or part of a solo, using octaves.
This book does exactly that. It's pure gold - no fat, no fluff, just all nuts & bolts. Every single THING in this book is necessary, it seems to me. It might be only 16 pages, but the stuff Don Mock has squeezed into these pages is all stuff you'll have to know in order to get that groovy, funky, jazzy, HIP sound of octaves.
And the CD is awesome! Lots and lots of tracks - demos galore, and practice tracks galore. If you're a budding jazz player, or one who wants to make sure there are no gaps in his knowledge of this technique, buy this book! It's good for all other styles as well. Rock, country, blues, funk, metal, shredding -- even bluegrass. Nothing grabs a listener's ear like a sudden blast of well-played octaves. You gotta learn this stuff eventually -- might as well start now.
