Campilongo lessons

I finally tried out one of the mail order lessons from Jim Campilongo...I'd been wanting to for a while and could never decide on which one to try. He's recently added some new ones, including "The Prettiest Girl in New York." That's my favorite song of his so I went for it.
I'm impressed. It's a very thorough lesson and it's easy to follow along. I can actually play the main ascension pattern and the open string phase at about 3/4 speed, which is better than I was expecting after two days. He makes a pretty tough song (at least for my skill level) seem manageable by breaking it down into smaller pieces and explaining each piece in detail.
Just wanted to pass along the good experience. Has anyone else tried these lessons? I'm wondering which one I should order next.

I have been thinking about ordering Night Rider, love love love that tune, but s far I have been able to figure it out for myself, thanks amazing slow downer, but I am still considering getting the lesson just to check myself.

They're methodical, extremely well thought out in terms of teaching concepts. I like the cd format, sometimes DVDs get me distracted. Here you have the chart before your eyes and Jim talking and playing into your ear.

My advice is to email him at the address mentioned on the lessons page, tell him roughly where you're at, what you want to achieve with the lesson, he'll make a couple of recommendations. I'm in the middle of F Jazz Blues Concepts and loving it, it's a box breaker.

I have 4 or 5 of his lessons (I can personally recommend Night Rider) and will second how helpful they are. They might seem expensive at first glance but in my experience they are well worth it if you want to learn that song. There was one that I haven't been able to get through (4 wheel drive) but I think it was that I was not really familiar with the tune and lost interest as I struggled with it. One of these days, I'll have another go at it. I haven't tried any in a while, I might just have to give the Prettiest Girl in NY a try- love that tune.

Oh, man! I LOVE "The Prettiest Girl ..." -- thanks for the tip!

mud

Thanks for all the nice things you wrote. I was kind of holding my breath as I scrolled down!

I take a lot of pride in the lessons I sell, and I think they come across as very "user friendly". I'm glad you guys felt that way.

I know I compete with name player lessons who can shred for days, but I do notice some great players, aren't great teachers.

Me? I'd rather learn from a non-genius who can break down trouble points that are obvious from their own personal experience, as well as drawing upon thousands of hours of one on one experience from the teaching studio.

Some folks consider my mail order lessons expensive ($45 going on seven years now) and my private lessons are considered pricey too ($85-$100) - but honestly, at this juncture in my life, with the amount of time and effort the lessons take, I can't imagine charging less. It wouldn't make any sense to me.

I know some are on a tight budget and I empathize with that, but my private lessons don't exceed the cost of a 20 minute dental cleaning, some yoga classes, a 15 minute chiropractor visit or even a massage! But I guess this is all a well-traveled debate.

I'm glad you enjoyed the lessons and thanks for ordering them. It's a privilege for me to share whatever I have to offer.

All the best -Jim

I'll add my experience with Jim's Lessons.

I'm still pretty much a beginner, playing for 3.5 years, I took lessons for about a year ~$25 per 30 minute lesson four times a month. Now I mostly learn on my own, although I might try lessons again if I can find the right teacher that will do 45min-1hr twice a month (30 minutes is too short, and 4 times a month is too often for a working adult, IMHO).

I've gotten Jim's "Buckaroo" and "Workin' Man Blues" Lessons. Both have been great, I've learned the songs completely and can play along. This is much better than many of the songs I learn on my own and only get around to doing 80% of it.

Jim plays the parts slowly so you can hear what the licks should sound like, plus adds great advise on how to play the parts. It's much better to hear him play the part slowly than using something like "Amazing Slow Downer", trying to figure out whats going on. It is really like a private lesson that you can repeat over and over, without too many diversions.

I've really gotten more out of these lessons than the DVD's I've tried, and I think they are well worth the $45 Jim charges.

Thanks for all the nice things you wrote. I was kind of holding my breath as I scrolled down!

I take a lot of pride in the lessons I sell, and I think they come across as very "user friendly". I'm glad you guys felt that way.

I know I compete with name player lessons who can shred for days, but I do notice some great players, aren't great teachers.

Me? I'd rather learn from a non-genius who can break down trouble points that are obvious from their own personal experience, as well as drawing upon thousands of hours of one on one experience from the teaching studio.

Some folks consider my mail order lessons expensive ($45 going on seven years now) and my private lessons are considered pricey too ($85-$100) - but honestly, at this juncture in my life, with the amount of time and effort the lessons take, I can't imagine charging less. It wouldn't make any sense to me.

I know some are on a tight budget and I empathize with that, but my private lessons don't exceed the cost of a 20 minute dental cleaning, some yoga classes, a 15 minute chiropractor visit or even a massage! But I guess this is all a well-traveled debate.

I'm glad you enjoyed the lessons and thanks for ordering them. It's a privilege for me to share whatever I have to offer.

All the best -Jim

Hi Jim .
Heard you are in the UK soon .
Any venues fixed yet ?

Nice take on Harlem BTW :cool:

Me? I'd rather learn from a non-genius who can break down trouble points that are obvious from their own personal experience, as well as drawing upon thousands of hours of one on one experience from the teaching studio.

Hi Jim!

Sorry, but I must disagree with you here - you ARE a genius!! :smile:

mud

Me? I'd rather learn from a non-genius who can break down trouble points that are obvious from their own personal experience, as well as drawing upon thousands of hours of one on one experience from the teaching studio.


You're far too humble. You've been amongst my favorite guitar players since the time I first heard you play.

I wish I were in a location where I could take lessons from you.

The amount of time I've spent trying to break down "Twister", I should have just bought your lesson :)

Me? I'd rather learn from a non-genius who can break down trouble points that are obvious from their own personal experience.



Yeah this is what i meant by methodical in terms of teaching, Jim is really good at explaining what he's thinking with every musical decision, his perspective on what's happening in the music, how he reads what's going on. His real lesson is not how to play this or that piece, it's how he reads the musical terrain you're trying to traverse.

That you end up able to play "All Blues" or "Prettiest Girl" or whatever piece it is that happens to be the specific object of instruction, it's almost a fringe benefit, like catching a fish while you're taking fishing lessons. They're good lessons, Jim, I wouldn't sweat the cost, they're worth it.

Thanks so much for the kind words and support - you guys are great!

Success at last

25-May-08 Sunday Manchester, Bridgewater :cool:

Don't know if you've been there before but it's a cool venue

Thanks so much for the kind words and support - you guys are great!

Jim- please keep up the good work. I have your 'panhandle rag' lesson and it's excellent. Still trying to get a handle around improvising using chord subs though...i'm definitely going to order something else in the near future.

I have the Hamster Wheel leson and it has been great.

I have already stolen some of the licks I learned and tweaked them for my own songs. :lol:

I want the Twister lesson next.


I love Jim Campilongo!! :grin:

A quick bump for Campilongo. Jim is a stud and a nice guy. The lessons are well worth the money to me.

I haven't tried Jim's lessons yet, but I have found that the instructor led CD with printed material format to be very productive. I get more out of that format than any other format IF I don't get lost. When it is done well, I think it is the most powerful of the various guitar teaching formats.

It's just a matter of time before you get me.

Some folks consider my mail order lessons expensive ($45 going on seven years now) and my private lessons are considered pricey too ($85-$100) - but honestly, at this juncture in my life, with the amount of time and effort the lessons take, I can't imagine charging less. It wouldn't make any sense to me.


Both the Lessons by Mail and the private lessons seems like a great bargain to me. True, the private lessons would be considerably more for me once you factor in airfare and a hotel, but I suspect that it would still be worth it. I have tried a handful or so of the Lessons by Mail, and I get much more out of them than just learning a particular song or a few licks. They have opened up many areas for me that I doubt I would have found on my own, and I really believe that they have improved my playing tremendously.

So, yeah, $45 is a bargain. Besides, I can't even fill up my car for that these days.

Thanks, Jim!

I've been thinking of getting some Campilongo lessons in the years gone by. With all the positive reviews, I might actually get around to doing that (even being the cheapskate I am)!

And this post was just a lame excuse to put up a picture of me holding a famous tele, hoping for the magic to rub off for free:
http://www.tdpri.com/telephoto/data/500/medium/DSC_0202w_edited.JPG
:)

Guess what guys? My band it youring through NYC and I am going to have a personal lesson with Jim Campilongo! I can't wait to pick his brain.

He is one of my all time favorites so need less to say I am excited. :)

Having suffered through years of crap lessons , finally took the plunge
and I am taking lessons with this excellent teacher/ artist .The jump start in my playing in less than 4 months is amazing . My regret is I did not do this sooner. guess what JIMS LESSONS ARE WORTH MORE THAN HE CHARGES .
I walk out of my lessons a happy man , and a better guitar player .

I had my lesson and it was everything I was looking forward to.

Jim was so humble, encouraging, and nice. It was so great being able to actually see him play; I was able to pick up things I couldn't have any other way. i told him I have a hard time with learning melodies by ear and he said he had the same problem!

I cannot wait to get off of tour and have the time to woodshed everything I learned.

Jamie

p.s. it was great not being disappointed meeting one of your hero's.