Guitar Fretboard Workbook

This book changed all that for me. I am doing things now I only dreamed of before. I don't know how the author figured it out, but he has come up with a way to communicate an understanding of music and the fretboard to both your head and, probably more important, your hands. Simple things like combining diagram exercises and playing, reinforced by having you speak the information out loud, really work to imprint the material on your fingers. The book walks you one step at a time, fairly painlessly, from simple to very complex. This thing is a gold mine. No kidding.


A complete, highly comprehensive approach to the fretboard.   December 8, 2003
60 out of 60 found this review helpful

I have been using this book with my students since Barrett started putting together the opening chapters. I first used it with my advanced students, those who already had some experience with the 5 patterns of major scales. Immediately they returned saying that it helped them understand the scales and visualize the fretboard more easily.

Having my students walk in with diagrams of scales and intervals for me to check has been an incredible reversal of roles. Normally I would draw diagrams for them to study and play. Going over a chapter and sending them home to complete and play the exercises gets the student involved in a way that the normal draw, demonstrate, "see ya' next week" cycle never really reaches. It gives the student an opportunity to take home and digest the information that was normally only available during the lesson.

Teaching people to operate a guitar and teaching music on a guitar are almost completely different tasks. I found the first six chapters to be very helpful when initiating beginner and intermediate students into the world beyond the 3rd fret and power chords. There is something in this book for nearly anyone interested in knowing how to play the guitar.

If you are an instructor you will find the comprehensive, organized approach very thorough and focused. If you are self-studying the instrument or a student seeking more than just another tabbed-out solo this is a book you can keep coming back to throughout your journey. I highly recommend it.

Billy Burke


Fretboard Magik   January 14, 2004
E Scott
89 out of 94 found this review helpful

This is one of the best books I've ever read for guitar. I have always had trouble finding my way around the fretbaord, but after working with this book I have no trouble at all. There are so many helpful tips and exercises that you can't help but become ultra fluent on guitar. And unlike most books, the material in this book is presented in a manner that is easy to understand. It's all connected perfectly, instead of YOU having to piece things together. I would recomend this book to anyone.


Worth 10 Times the Price!   June 14, 2005
A. Hebert (Reno, NV)
37 out of 39 found this review helpful

Tagliarino does something very few authors of guitar books have done - he puts the entire fretboard within reach of the guitar student. About 99 percent of the guitar players I know panic when they get beyond the fourth fret. But all of these players absolutely love the guitar and truly desire to learn the instrument - all the way to fret 12 and above. They have all kinds of musical notes and guitar riffs in their heads, but can't reproduce them on the fretboard. That is the worst kind of pain.

Fortunately, Tagliarino's method is the "wonder drug" that takes the mystique out of the guitar fretboard and makes it all come together. Please be advised however, that getting this book doesn't reduce the necessity of practice. What students should experience is an increased desire to practice more! My advice to any guitar player, or instructor for that matter - get this book and the boxed set of Fretboard Logic (with DVD) by Edwards - and get to work! Within six months: you, your friends, your students, your teachers - eveyone - will be absolutely amazed at your increased level of knowledge. Take the plunge and buy this book! You won't regret your investment!


The best guitar book you'll ever buy   January 25, 2004
Scott Houghton (Los Angeles)
28 out of 30 found this review helpful

If you are a guitarist, beginner or advanced, this book will take your playing to another level. In addition to being easy to read (with a little humor thrown in), it may reinvent the way you think about the fretboard. If you are a guitar teacher, it will be an invaluable tool for your students. I've been playing for 16 years, and this book helped get me off the plateau I've been on for a long time. I plan on buying more of this guy's books.