This book made it simple and easy for me to get started in the music industry
352712
This book made it simple and easy for me to get started in the music industry. Such a great and easy read with retainable information. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking to have a successful career in the music business.
34750
I have received the music book earlier than scheduled and was able to start playing a couple of songs almost right away, I currently have 1 1/2 years of piano experience and I did find the music book easy to read.
3631481
I am a student from the east coast who moved out to LA to take classes and intern in the entertainment industry.  My professor swears by this book and assigns it to his class every semester.  From learning about how to impress a boss to finding a place to live in Los Angeles, this book is extremely helpful in finding your place in the entertainment industry.

It's an extremely easy read and Carole Kirschner gives a lot of simple yet effective tips on how to make yourself stand out to employers.  I just started my internship in Hollywood last week and I'm really glad I read this book beforehand.  I will definitely refer to this book for the rest of my career!
3435010
I am new to learning music, but have the desire.  WHat I needed was a book that would cover the very basics and ramp up from there without insulting my inteligence.  This is exactly what I got! A great book for someone who essentially knows nothing about music.  It starts out with notes and scales and builds from there. The book is easy to read, has plenty of diagrams, etc, plus came with a very helpful CD so not only do you see the musical notations, but you get to hear what those notations sound like.

It won't be the last music book I buy, but it certainly is a great place to start!
2400992
Unlike many of the entry level books that now saturate the market and profess to offer advice on "how to succeed" in the music business, this book focusses on how the music business works. Written with a surprising blend of simplicity and sophistication that is greatly enhanced by the clean layout and clever use of graphics, it's a quick-read that can be used to help young, new or inexperienced music artists and professionals to define terms, learn the language of the business, understand all aspects of music industry operations, and the roles of the individuals who make it work. An absolutely fabulous must have reference book for those just starting out.
155502
I've been writing songs for many years without much commercial success. This book explained to me exaclty what I've been doing wrong. But more importantly, it explained why it was wrong. It was like someone just gave me the magic key to open the right doors. It also helped explained certain mysteries on the business side of things so that when I'm talking to the pro's, I now speak their language. Great book, a must read for any aspiring song writer.
2715094
In the past For Dummies has taught me about XML, HTML, SQL and Client Server architectures, among many other things (including Buddhism). All this (except perhaps the Buddhism) has earned me a fair bit of cash so it seemed a good idea to get a Dummies Book to help me spend it on upgrading my noise.

Ive been playing guitar and writing songs for 33 years. As such, I consider myself a delicate and highly-strung artiste.  Frankly, its not my job to worry about tubes and germanium transistors. The author obviously does worry about these things. Hes bought, soldered and cranked the life out of them. Now I can read a few well-written, concise paragraphs and do the same (apart from the soldering. Im an artiste, remember).

And after all the techie stuff you get a really entertaining section on rigs, tones and the men who made them. Did you know Dick Dale wasn't originally a reverb fan? Tremelo was the way to go for surf, in his opinion. His reverb phase came later; remember Misirlou? I listened to Lets Go Trippin again; dry as a bone.  Heres a man who definitely knows his subject.
1179886
The format of this book was easy to understand and the clear way it outlined how to start a business encouraged me.  I now feel like I can use this guide to start my own entrepreneurial aspirations and turn them into a reality.
4562399
This was the perfect book for me at the time I needed it.  It doesn't bog you down on stupid complications or moot points.  Provides just enough info to teach you what you need to know and how to find out more on your own (how to figure it out for yourself).

Light hearted, easy to read and understand, and loads of info, coupling that with Stewart's humor, made this the first really influential book that helped me study, understand, and appreciate music.

--Update Oct. 6th 2016--

As I look back on my original purchase of this book I realize that I have purchased it at least 3-4 times because I have gifted this book to young musicians I have met who seek knowledge but don't have the opportunities, backgrounds, mentors, or means to study formally.  This was much the case for me when I was early on in my musical journey and career.  I was thirsty for knowledge and I was all on my own.

It's been years since I first read this book.  I knew nothing of music theory, chords, and whatnot.  This book helped me tremendously in that regard.  I look at the growth I have made since those times so many years ago.  At that time, I would never have dreamed that I would be able to play Jazz at a professional level as I do now.

I have been a professional guitarist in the US Army Band for 8 years now.  I now play at the same level as many of my peers who have formally studied music in college, even those with advanced degrees.  It all came from a profound desire to overcome my personal circumstances and grow however I could.

This book was my start and foundation.  Thank you Mr. Dave Stewart.  Your book really helped me.  It gave me a strong foundation, and the confidence which stems from that.

The reason why I am updating my review (which I assume I originally wrote in 2004 because that was when I last purchased it on Amazon) is because I am now working with another soldier in the Army Band who was just like me.  Does not have a formal background in music, but has an extreme desire to grow and learn.  He's working his butt off trying to keep up with the rest of us and has a great attitude.

I am gifting this book to him.  He's probably the 4th or 5th person for whom I have done so.  That's the best testament to this book that I can give.
1686275
A friend recommended I read this to help me start writing my book. I've never written a book before but have wanted to for many many years. After reading this I totally feel inspired and motivated and have already started! What I really liked about this book was the simplicity. You see, one of the reasons I had put off writing is I didn't know how to even get started - it seemed utterly daunting and confusing.

The author gives you practical, straightforward, no b.s. step by step instructions to help you make your desire for writing a book a reality. It was an easy enjoyable read. If you're looking for a straight to the point book on Kindle writing then look no further - the gold is here. After reading this I felt a sense of heaviness lift off my shoulders and am moving through the resistance of getting something out there.

Writing and publishing a book on Kindle doesn't seem as daunting as it once did. Tom simplifies and gives you plenty of step by step instructions on how to get started NOW. I liked this book so much that I'll be checking out the rest of The Kindle Writing Bible series.
3526922
Your Free Open Source Music Studio by G.W. Childs IV is an excellent guide to getting started recording music on home computers. It covers everything you need to know and shows you where to go to download plug-ins, software, DAWs, synths, and further information. One thing that is great about this book is that it uses large fonts that are easy for old timers to read. Too often it seems like books on new tech and gadgets are targeted only to kids. Another good thing about G.W. Childs IV is that he lists the advantages of using Mac computers for doing music projects, but he is not a zealot about it. He actually uses a parenthetical comment about using PCs for recording (Not that there is anything wrong with that!) that reminds me of an episode of Seinfeld. Episode 57, The Outing. Look it up on Seinology dot com if you're interested and not familiar with this quote.

Anyway, there are a few things you might have to buy, like hardware, a computer, mics, cables, perhaps a MIDI controller, but Childs has tips on where to get those, too. Cheap, but good. That is his motto. Some of the software, also, isn't completely free, but it is still cheap, but good. Sometimes you can pay whatever price you like, the way it worked with that Radiohead album. You can pay these companies voluntarily, too, and G.W. Childs is all for that. He says he paid $10 for Ardour, a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) that works on Mac or Linux.

I used this book to google and look up the websites he talks about, and though he doesn't just list a lot of URLs, they are easy enough to find using Google. I am going to put some of the links I found in my blog, so I will be able to retrace my steps and find these sites again. I don't have a Mac but I am going to get one soon. Then I will be anxious to try a lot of this software that runs only on Macs. Speaking of websites, the author has one, gwchilds dot com, and it is certainly worth a look. A really good resource that he talked about in the book was kvraudio dot com. It has a really extensive database of reviews of the software discussed in YFOSMS and lots of tutorials and forums where you can pose questions to the experts.

One question I had was where to get cords and adapters that I search for at the shack, but can't find just the one I need. Or you have to buy a half dozen of so, connecting them all like some kind of Rube Goldberg device, with the potential for noise at every superfluous connection. There was a place listed where you could get virtually any kind of a cord or adapter that you could conceivably conceive of. The company is called Hosa, and you can peruse their online catalogue at hosatech dot com.

The Bottom Line is that Your Free Open Source Music Studio is an invaluable resource that explains the basics well and points you in the right direction. You will be up and running, making your own music productions, in no time.
2087525
I felt the author did a great job of giving information that a beginner could use and learn from and it was easy to access.
48118
I found these solos, simple and easy to play.  I purchased them so I can start making music even at an elementary level.
4516673
I really loved the book! Helped me to understand basics and to get to know music industry from all aspects! Thanks a lot!
4246837
This is a really helpful book. Just as Dave promised, it is simple and easy to read. Better yet, it is simple and easy to follow. Dave writes that a book about guitar care shouldn't be as long as War and Peace, and he has successfully written a guide that is easily accessible to anyone. I think this book will be especially helpful to the person just starting out but who doesn't yet know how to to care for the guitar. Dave goes over each part of the guitar with enough detail that it's helpful, but with enough simplicity that anyone could follow it.
2185648
This book was an easy and entertaining read.  I am not a finance nerd, so it spoke to me in simple language and motivated me to work on my finances with the goal of becoming debt free!
176410
Like the spiral bending which makes it easy to try pages.  Also, like the simple music arrangements.  It is really easy to play this familiar music with only two or three note chords in the bass clef and usually only four notes or chords in the treble clef.  In with this easy simple music, I had to play Moonlight Sonata, one of my favorites, a few times to get the timing down and make sure I hit the right keys.  They should Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata with just a simple B flat, which makes it easy to play.  I played a few pieces from this book yesterday day on my Roland F120 digital grand piano and was excited with the results.  Thank you so much for this book.