Nothing creates a soundquite like a bottleneck slide, which is why it is used in everything from Deltablues to finger style folk tunes and even ragtime. All well-rounded guitaristsneed to know this style, and Mike Dowling’s “Bottleneck - Blues And Beyond” is the best way we know tocatch the spirit.
On his accessible,easy-to-comprehend follow-up lesson, Mike Dowling teaches precision bottlenecktechniques designed to broaden your repertoire, textures and rhythms. Mikestarts by teaching his unique version of MakeMe A Pallet On Your Floor which uses a rumba beat in Open G tuning. Hisfunky, irrepressible Drop Down Mamais an absolute classic, a fantastic lesson in syncopation and groove. Fromthere, try D minor tuning for a haunting vocal and guitar version of The Cuckoo. After some tips on Open Dtuning, Dowling launches into a study of his own tune Street Corner Rag. This fantastic piece includes finger picking,syncopation and slide enhancements for a true tour-de-force of bottleneckguitar work.
Along the way, Mike tossesin many tips on how to use the slide, as well as his alternating thumb, formaximum effect. His “toolbox tips” on turnarounds, strumming, arranging a tunelike “Railroad Bill” and what Mike calls “ornamentation” rounds out thispowerful lesson.