Bluegrass Banjo

I bought my first banjo in a music store in Northampton, MA back in 1976 (a Harmony, complete with plastic resonator!). Given the choice between a Mel Bay primer and this book, I opted for the latter and am glad I did. Pete covers the basic techniques in an easy to understand manner, and takes a very encouraging tone in the way he presents the material. No one book can cover every aspect of playing, but this one gives the aspiring player a good first look at how to play bluegrass banjo. Pay attention to what Pete says about synchopation - it's really important! Once you get comfortable with the techniques presented in this book, I'd suggest getting the Scruggs book, a copy of "Foggy Mountain Banjo," and really have at it!

This is a good book for the most part. The only problem with it is sometimes i have a hard time reading the "handwritten" tabs from more than a foot away.

I bought this book some time ago. It is great and filled with a lot of useful information. My copy came with a "built in" soft record that you could play on a phonograph. Is this "record" nowavailable as a CD ? Regards Dan

Tried a few books, then started working through Wernick's. Starts simple and builds up with more complex patterns and fingerings. Though originally I tired of the same few songs being repeated using new concepts, I now appreciate it as I get better at accentuating the melody within the picking. The other books I tried progressed too slow, and the Skruggs book was a little too sink or swim for me and just didn't flow well for a beginner. After finishing up through the intermediary section of Wernick's, I'm flying through the Skruggs book. Basically, I use Wernick's for study, and Skrugg's for songs. The CD is great if your not taking lessons at the same time, since you definetly need to pay attention to the timing and sounds of your rolls, pull offs, hammer ons and slides. The songs on the CD are a little too fast for the beginner to play along with, but they give you an idea where your heading.

I must admit that I was skeptiacal at first when I saw Mr. Wernick's book on this here wesite. But by Job! He done a great job. This is a good'un. I erspeicllay liked the way he explains all the ailements of playin bluegrass. In just three weeks I was playin and hootin and hollerin with the kinfolk. You should just go out and buy this book. You here?