Jeff Newmans "No Speed Limit" course

[Joe Butcher]

Just arrived in the mail and I am halfway through part one and I gotta say......
IT ROCKS!!!!!!

As usual Jeff's courses start out with basics, but in a way that can appeal to even advanced players. Im already playing along AT FULL SPEED to track three on the CD. Simple, effective riffs that sound awesome!!

I did not know that this course is a book, DVD and CD!! That was a pleasant surprise!! Alot of bang for your buck.

Hands down the best steel courses out there!

I know where part of my next paycheck is going!! Gimmie some more!!

[Ernest Cawby]

jOIN the club, i HAVE ALMOST EVERYTHING HE HAS FOR E9th AND C6, GOOD STUFF.

ernie

[Nathan Golub]

On Jeff's site they say his courses are available on DVD and CD. Do you get both formats, or is it a choice? If it's one or the other, anyone have an opinion on which is more helpful? I tend to like the CD + tab approach myself, but if the video format gives some more insight I'd like to know.

As an aside, it's nice to see these kind of lesson reviews on the Forum. There's a lot of good steel learning material out there, but that can make it hard to decide which to go for.

[Dave Diehl]

I always say that Jeff's contribution to the Steel Guitar Community was a gift that keeps on giving. You said it all Butch about the quality of them.

[Don Sulesky]

Nathan
Read Joe's post SLOWLY and you'll have your answer.
"a book, DVD and CD" are included.
Don

[Gerry Hogan]

Nathan,

Here are my personal opinions.

I have been selling Jeff's courses in Europe since the early '90s (mostly in the UK and Ireland). Some courses are visual and so they're DVD based, but they come with a CD of rhythm tracks to practice the stuff being taught. Most of these courses have a tab / explanation book as well. Some courses are purely audio based and come with just a CD and tab book.

My customers have had nothing but praise for the courses, particularly the visual ones. Jeff was like a gospel preacher and he inspired. He also knew what and how to teach the stuff people have to be able to know in order to get the best out of this instrument.

I am so glad that I was able to bring Jeff (and Fran) to England several times between 1989 and 2002, to give various week-long classes. All his students loved him; many came back each time he came over here! He was due to give two week-long classes here in May 2004. He died in the April.

I guarantee you won't be sorry if you get some of Jeff's tuition material. It's excellent value for money.

Gerry Hogan

[Al Collinsworth]

..

[Ben Jones]

Im kinda interested in his stuff. Its very expensive tho and there are so many courses offered its a bit hard to choose which one to get.

[Joe Butcher]

Hi Joe,
I have that course, too. It's a very good introduction to using scales. Add that course to your lessons with Reece and you have the start of a powerful library.

I was just thinking the same thing, Al.
What Jeff and Reece have in common is the ability to ORGANIZE and PRIORITIZE the information in a way that makes it easy to retain and instantly useable. I feel very fortunate to have these great teachers and we are all very lucky that Jeff left behind a HUGE library of knowledge for us to use.

Back to the woodshed !!!!

[Joe Butcher]

Im kinda interested in his stuff. Its very expensive tho and there are so many courses offered its a bit hard to choose which one to get.

Theyre not expensive when you consider the amount and quality of information presented.

Like I said, I got a book, CD and TWO HOUR DVD for $65.

I'm not exaggerating when I say I'm only 30 minutes into it and am really cookin.

I also have "Up From The Top" which is amazing.

[Kevin Hatton]

I found the Jeff Newman "No Speed Limit" course to be deficient. It deals only with 1-5-1 patterns. Passing sevenths are totally ignored as are 1-4 and 4-5 passages. Its a very elementary course. Steve Palousek's Emmons course is much better. Newman doesn't explain dominant seventh playing either. Something extremely important. Someone needs to put a comprehensive course on playing through 1,4,5 12 bar patterns speed picking.

[Ben Jones]

Theyre not expensive when you consider the amount and quality of information presented.

I understand what you are saying, and i dont doubt you...its just that "up from the Top" is over $200 for the series an thats kind of alot of money to risk, for me anyway. Maybe I will try one of the other less expensive courses. I think where I really need a better understanding right now is with the levers that change the E string...maybe I should just get Up from the top part 2 and see how i like it?

I recently bought an instructional dvd that i was very disappointed in so i am a bit of a skeptic at the moment.(no, not Boutons dvd ..i found that one to be excellent and only $19.99)
Im looking for somethingot inspire me and to drive me forward...kinda stagnating right now. Thanks for the input, it is much appreciated.

edit: let me just add it is absolutely amazing to me that i cannot find a teacher , which is what I REALLY need. I live in a city of .5 million people and cannot find a teacher...and yet people wonder why so few bother to learn this instrument.

[Al Collinsworth]

edit

[Joe Butcher]

I found the Jeff Newman "No Speed Limit" course to be deficient. It deals only with 1-5-1 patterns. Passing sevenths are totally ignored as are 1-4 and 4-5 passages. Its a very elementary course. Steve Palousek's Emmons course is much better. Newman doesn't explain dominant seventh playing either. Something extremely important. Someone needs to put a comprehensive course on playing through 1,4,5 12 bar patterns speed picking.

You are saying totally conflicting things here.

First you say it only deals with 1-5-1 progressions. Then you say he dosent explain dominant playing.

The 5 is dominant. And both songs he shows you use a G7.
Last time I checked, that was a dominant chord.

Then you say he ignores 1-4 and 4-5.

1 to 4 is the same as 5 to 1.

You could also apply any of the major scale ideas to a dominant scale. Just play the same pattern in the closed position with your E's lowered.

[Kevin Hatton]

Joe, the chord progressions are ALL 1-5-1. All the scale instructions are major. He never mentions the dominant 7th NOTE in a scale, flatted 3rds, or Pentatonic scales. Passing sevenths are left out. Both courses 1&2 are extremely basic and limited.

[Dave Diehl]

Jeff was the kind of person who didn't believe in letting someone run faster than was reasonable. He would rather have spent more time in getting the basics of a topic covered than pushing a lot into a single training session. I would bet there were plans to produce advanced courses to cover the things you say it was deficient in.... unfortnately he never got the opportunity. I tried many times to have him teach me things which he knew I was not ready for and each time he forced me to a location m(many times the scales)he knew I needed first. I didn't really understand all that then but now I do.

[Tom Quinn]

I went to Jeff and Fran's school back in 76 or 77, forget which. Drove all the way from California in a VW bus. The school was located in a double-wide in a miniature road course/driving school. It was great and funky! -L-

That was the best thing I ever did to improve my playing. Plus -- this was at the beginning of Jeff's school -- we got to record at Bradley's Barn, got backstage at the GOO and Buddy came over one night to pick for us.

Jeff was a heck of a player, funnier than h*ll and just about one of the best guys I met in the music industry. He followed the KISS rule in teaching and that is why he was such a big influence on the dissemination of knowledge on what was at the time a daunting instrument. I think you are way off base Kevin, but YMMV and no problem.

[Joe Butcher]

I'm with you on that Tom. Id rather have a solid foundation so that I understand where the more advanced concepts come from when I do learn them.

[Al Collinsworth]

edit

[Joe Butcher]

Keep it up Al. Come over and jam when you are in TX!

[Tony Prior]

All courses are a jump start. Some players will get more out of them than others, it's just the way it is.

The entire purpose of tab/CD courses is to open the door, some folks get it WIDE open right away and others just a crack at first.

IF anyone is looking to get a program and expecting the out of the box package to bring you to the holy grail that day, you should not get the course, it's not gonna happen.

I'm reading above about I,IV and V..who cares, it's
all the same in the scheme of things, you either understand it or you don't. Some folks may take a bit longer but the point of all the courses is the same, use it, learn what it is teaching rather than just the motions/mechanics and then the player/student moves to the next level.

I have never seen Jeffs course as mentioned but if he took the player thru the I and V chord then he covered some pretty good ground as the IV chord is just another position of the V chord with PEDS in and up 5 frets from the I chord with PEDS out.I'm certain that Jeffs intent was for US to start thinking for ourselves at some point..

Speed Pickin' is a great subject, but here are the facts, according to .....uhhh.....me

If you don't GET the phrasing and where they come from, and don't put them into a MAJOR part of your daily practice routine it ain't ever gonna happen anyway. You are not going to get a course, learn the tabbed phrases and go to the gig that night and play Workin' Man Blues.

If you have to think about what you are going to play, it's too late.

I gotta be honest here, when I am playing out of control (playing at meter beyond my means) not one time have I ever considered if I was playing a 7th or a pentatonic scale. I was holding my breath praying for correct notes in time.



tp

ps..Jeff Rocks!

[Rick Kornacker]

Just a few things that I believe are significant and interesting enough to mention. If one were to sum up all of the beneficial contributions Jeff made to so many of us as players it very well might be said that he was responsible for teaching us in a practical,yet very effective(and enjoyable) manner. Many years ago I happened to loan him a couple of Jamie Aebersold theory courses that he found intriguing. Jeff was not big on formal music theory although he certainly managed to get those same ideas across to us in his own special way. He knew where our collective heads were at and found the way to reach us. Jeff knew the market, maybe even created it. His numerous courses and videos were geared to the begginer first...then the intermediate once they were ready for more. Advanced courses...there really weren't ANY...because he realized that anybody that fancied themselves an advanced player pretty much knew everything anyway as I myself have come to believe. As a result of many discussions between us over the years I was inspired to actually design my own teaching concepts to suit some of the players who desired some advanced materials once they reached a point where they were ready for, and HUMBLE enough to show an interest in. So..why quibble over what he didn't do...he left us so much. Truth be known..he was really at a point where all he really wanted to do were other things...such as fly his beloved airplanes. I, for one, am still knocked out at how excellent an endeavor his "Once In A Lifetime" CD turned out...some of the absolute best playing from maybe the best teacher we've had the pleasure of knowing.I say all of this in earnest because I enjoyed too short of a time with Jeff..the father-in-law....I think it weirded us both out! Wouldn't of had it any other way. Respectfully submitted, RK

[Peter Dollard]

When I went to one of Jeffs earlier classes (January of 1976 in Phoenix) he said something that may, in a small way, be responsible for the conversation we are having right now. He told everyone to shake the hand of the guy next to him and get to know him: Stoneage networking at it's finest. The course he gave in Phoenix you could give today and it would still be just as effective. While there are tons of good, effective instruction courses out there Jeff fired up his students in an emotional way that I have never seen since. Whether he drove you crazy or drove you to greatness you didn't leave his class without a large mass of air underneath the cloud you were floating on. Finally I hate those minature airplanes forever and ever. I miss him everyday. Peter

[Joe Butcher]

All courses are a jump start. Some players will get more out of them than others, it's just the way it is.

The entire purpose of tab/CD courses is to open the door, some folks get it WIDE open right away and others just a crack at first.

IF anyone is looking to get a program and expecting the out of the box package to bring you to the holy grail that day, you should not get the course, it's not gonna happen.

I'm reading above about I,IV and V..who cares, it's
all the same in the scheme of things, you either understand it or you don't. Some folks may take a bit longer but the point of all the courses is the same, use it, learn what it is teaching rather than just the motions/mechanics and then the player/student moves to the next level.

Im with you on this Tony. A course should not have to hold your hand like a little baby....it should open the door and get you to come in and explore, which is exactly what Jeff does.

If one wants a "V" sound, just come up with your own riff starting on the 5th step (mixolydian mode) or the endless other ways to do it.

[Bowie Martin]

Today I started playing the "Take These Chains from my Heart" first line on his "Hank Williams" medley from the "Just Jamming" series which I have been doing for years. For some reason I realized today the first moves could be used in a dozen songs that I do that I have never thought about using. It was a whole different approach to the way I play, and I just thought of it after five or six years of doing the instrumental. Everything he did was that way. And Jeff is probably saying "Finally you understand." Nit pick if you want to. I still go back to the "A & B pedal" and start using those great licks, and they sound super. And the other courses are great. How many licks do you use in a night? If you play to entertain yourself, do what you want, and appease your ego. If you want to please the folks out front, throw in some Jeff licks. The steel players out front? They didn't pay to get in anyway, and they are going to pick whatever you do to death. If you don't like Jeff's teachings/courses, you probably don't find to much to enjoy in this life.