Players Books

I discovered this book at my local library and after I read a few pages I knew I had to own it. I purchased it new and received it in pristine condition. The book has everything you need to know as a beginning musician and some tips for the professionals as well. Denyer covers lots of ground including artist profiles, guitar construction and repair, music theory, guitar scales and chords, the list goes on. The book is something I will keep in my music room near my gear and other favorite music books and periodicals. This is a rare find. You won't be disappointed!

I took up guitar playing back in India in the 80's and taught myself how to play using this book, then life took its course and brought me to the US and I quit playing till last month. I picked up this book again (photocopies of most sections as it was not available except in the library in my hometown) and started playing again. The book is timeless and covers scales, triads and chords systematically by building the right theoretical underpinnings allowing one to play melody and rhythm while having a solid understanding of how to compose for the guitar.

It covers tremendous ground that I have not found in any other book since encountering it in terms of playing guitar.

If you want to learn guitar from the very basics to the most advanced concepts in order to play your own music, buy this book! You will not regret it! I am buying this book today at long last!

This book is laid out in a very easy to approach format. Most items are a page or two long with tones of illustrations. You could print out most sections and they would stand on their own as a handout. I've been told this is THE book for music instructors (of which I'm not), and I couldn't agree more! Beyond that, it gives great direction to what to learn for us self educated guitar players. The book explains not only concepts but popular opinions on those concepts. It tries not to focus or narrow your options, and I think it succeeds. Awesome book with an appropriate title.

This is one of the few guitar books I've seen that is well rounded without lacking substance. It has a good amount of material covering the history of the guitar, how it is amplified, how things like materials, neck length, string action, etc, can effect tone, and playability on all sorts of axes. It even includes brief histories on some of the larger manufacturers and what to look for when buying a guitar. Likewise, it has sections dedicated to tuning and adjusting your guitar...basic information that doesn't seem readily available in many beginner books. What's nice about this, especially for the new player, is that it enlightens you as to what a guitar really is and helps you to learn your instrument, aside from your basic chords. On that note, it has great recommendations for the beginning guitarist, including which chords to learn, how to make progressions, and basic solo licks. It explains in very nice illustrated/photographed details some of the more advanced methods, including trills, hammer-ons, bends, etc. I've played guitar for many years, now, and I think this is a great book that finds focus in the right areas, and I highly recommend it to anyone wishing to know more about guitars and playing them.

Ray's Guitar Players Practice Guide is an outstanding teaching tool for professionals and serious enthusiasts alike. If you are a guitarist serious about improving your skills or already a serious guitarist looking to improve --- I highly recommend this book.

I so highly recommend it, that I now make sure each guitarist I work with has the opportunity to use this guide. Make no mistake, this is work. But with this practice guide you will quickly develop and hone your musicianship beyond what you can dream. I have now made Ray's Practice Guide a regular part of my own daily music routine and am astounded by the results. Simply put, I've not found any other workbook, teaching, or guide that can produce such amazing results in such a short amount of time.

Another thing I might mention, this practice guide works wonderfully (with modifications).... on both keyboard and violin, particularly violin. If the person has enough knowledge and theory behind them, they can use the principles on a wide variety of instruments.

Regards,
kim wendt
creative worship
trinity united methodist church

When I received the practice guild my lead playing and knowlege of were to be on the fret board was in a state of disaray.
Once I started to study with the practice guild my playing made quantum leaps forward. Its easy and fun.

Thanks Ray
Jason Bishop

Hey folks, this book is great. I'm finally organized in my practice time. I'm seeing progress each day. Great technical and practical advice...I use it in conjunction with other material, the book actually helps organize all that other stuff as well. I ordered this guys CD from raycarrano.com, why he is not famous I can't tell you. Sounds like Joe Satrianni, Rush etc...

This book is the tool guitar players have been waiting for. I am a 20 veteran guitarist and teacher. I use this book with all my students and for my own practice time. You will be organized and you will learn....Randy, CA

"A Handful of Summers" is the most informative and entertaining book on tennis I've read.

But the 1997 HarperCollins edition is dreadful: the paper quality is poor, and -- most importantly -- all the photographs are missing. I was so disgusted with it I returned it to Amazon and bought a second-hand copy instead.

The five-star rating is for the writing, not the edition.

Be warned.

I think this book was named the best book on tennis by some or other panel. Though I have not read all that many books on the sport, I cannot imagine a better book on tennis, or any other sport for that matter. Forbes is a delightful author, writing with gentle wit and charm about his childhood on a farm in the Eastern Cape, his tennis career and his life after tennis. Reading the book it is impossible not to mourn the passing of an era when sport was played for the enjoyment thereof, and sports star were friends.

A book that should be read by everybody, not only people interested in tennis or sport.

Gordon Forbes has captured the essence of what sport used to and should still be. From South African farmlands to the lawns of Wimbledon "Forbsie" paints a humorous picture of tennis in the fifties and sixtys. The cast of characters become personal friends and the author like a big brother. A Handful of Summers is among the classics on my bookshelf.

This is a journey through one man's life in an era so different from today. An insight into the world of 'amateur' tennis and its twists of professionalism. An era when tennis was played for the joy of the game, travelling, a varied existence, and a lack of anything better to do!

This traces the realities of life on the tennis tour in the 50s and 60s and the ups and downs which went with it, especially given that Gordon Forbes was from a culture as complex as that of South Africa.

This books gets you really involved in the lives of some of the greatest tennis legends of all time, and others who strove to reach their heady heights, but never quite made it to the top! This book contains so much passion and honesty that it draws you in. You can almost believe that you are right beside these tennis greats, treading in their every footstep, hearing their every breath. You feel as if you grew up with them, laughed their every laugh, and suffered their every defeat.

This is a must for every lover of tennis, and should not be written off by those who have no interest in the game. This is no ordinary tennis chronicle.

This is a nice book about Hank Aaron, the baseball player who broke Babe Ruth's home run record. It is also about an African-American man who managed to brake into Major League Baseball and endure threats from racist people who didn't like the fact he played. An inspiring story about overcoming people's bad attitudes and hatred while trying to achieve a goal.

The story Henry "Hank" Aaron begins right when you open Hank Aaron Brave in Every Way by: Peter Golenbock. Paul Lee colorfully illustrates every page. Hank's story from birth to the HR record is told in this great biography.
The book will inspire every young person to not give up. Hank's perseverance to make the majors will show kids that miracles can happen. Paul Lee's illustrations by there selves could tell the story. Pictures of Henry with his family are extremely artistic. Hank Aaron is a great example that hard work pays off. His mom said "Hank, try to be the best." He took that attitude all the way.
Hank Aaron: Brave in Every Way is a great read for people of all ages. People will admire Hank Aaron's talent and will. The pictures also help tell the story very well.

The story Henry "Hank" Aaron begins right when you open Hank Aaron Brave in Every Way by: Peter Golenbock. Paul Lee colorfully illustrates every page. Hank's story from birth to the HR record is told in this great biography.
The book will inspire every young person to not give up. Hank's perseverance to make the majors will show kids that miracles can happen. Paul Lee's illustrations by there selves could tell the story. Pictures of Henry with his family are extremely artistic. Hank Aaron is a great example that hard work pays off. His mom said "Hank, try to be the best." He took that attitude all the way.
Hank Aaron: Brave in Every Way is a great read for people of all ages. People will admire Hank Aaron's talent and will. The pictures also help tell the story very well.

it is a great biography that descibes hanks courage during a very difficult time in his carrer. however, hank overcomes all the negativity and becomes the all time home run record holder.

So many times have I heard stories about career(or dream)-ending injuries and knew it wasn't as mellow to them as they made it seem. It was nice to see Robinson rewarded with the HOF(Seton Hall) in the end. Biggio was destined for greatness, Valentin was better than I thought he was, and Vaughn was a monster from the start. They all have some facinating human stories that make it hard to look at them the same.

The Hit Men and the Kid Who Batted Ninth by sports writer David Siroty is an involved and involving study of the lives of Craig Biggio, Mo Vaughn, and John Valentin, three renowned baseball players, each of whom earned MVP honors, Gold Gloves, and more, -- as well as the life of Marteese Robinson, a friend and college teammate of the three men who was left behind from the professional baseball world. Robinson would eventually find a way to join his friends; just not a way that any of them expected. The Hit Men and the Kid Who Batted Ninth is an engaging tale, featuring an aside with a quotable quote from the men it spotlights on almost every page, as well as an inset section of black-and-white photographs. The Hit Men And The Kid Who Batted Ninth is a very fine read -- especially for baseball fans.

Maybe I'm a bit biased since two of the four players profiled in this book are now Mets, but I really enjoyed their stories. Siroty takes you from their childhoods through college, to the minor leagues and the majors. Every player has a different path, and not all of them have the traditional happy endings. Every page mentions a new player whose name you'll recognize - I always wondered how every baseball player seemed to know each other, even if their teams never competed. You'll love this book if you love baseball - because it really shows the players' passion for the game.

David Siroty writes a factually accurrate account of the Hit Men from Seton Hall. As a former Pirate player, I spent some time with these guys and they were all good guys and had one distinguishing trait in common; they all had the burning desire to play the great game of baseball. Excellent job by Siroty telling a great story about the greatest game on the face of the earth.
Brought back good memories. Wish I was there!
Can't wait to bring my son to Mike Sheppard's Basball Camp...keep the hustle.
PS: Marteese Robinson was one of the nicest guys in our high school, SHP.

As others have noted, the book is not only informative but entertaining. Barkley's photos set the tone brilliantly for a look at the game in earlier days. Where today players wear helmets and masks, then Barkley's close-in style highlighted the emotion of the game by vividly showing players' faces. The illuminated, rapid-fire sports photography of today loses the luster of Barkley's contrasted shots that make it seem as though there is only the players and the ice surface, which he lit with his own set of lights along the glass hours before each game.

A must-have along with Kevin Allen, Bob Duff and Johnny Bower's "Without Fear."

I own many hockey books, and this book is, by far, the one I open up most often. Each picture takes you into a world of NHL hockey that has long passed away. The beautiful full-color photographs will cause you to forget that they are images of the fastest moving sport in the world. It's as if the players have posed for the camera in an attempt to recreate hidden moments of the game. The facial expressions alone will capture your eye. You'll find yourself scanning every detail of the pictures, looking for that elusive black puck (and you'll find that puck in nearly every picture). This book is a pure treasure for fans of the game of hockey, in particular those fans who remember the simple days of 6 teams, 120 players, 1 Cup.

You can literally spend hours looking at this book and not tire of the images. They're so life-like it's eerie. Harold Barkley's strobe photography techniques give the pictures a "3-D" quality that is completely absent in today's "flat" images. Of course, the fact that the stars in the photos are from the "Golden Era" (50's and 60's) make the book all that much better. These stills make you yearn for the hockey of yesteryear, even if you weren't there! The flat sticks, the glossy narrow skates, the bryl-cream donned hair (helmet, what helmet?) - it's all here right down to the ice-shavings littering the goal crease, all in awesome detail.

Frank Selke's introduction is excellent as well. Here is a man that makes no bones about why this was hockey's greatest era. My favorite example - fights were seen as a gentlemanly way to settle differences, not as an indication of a sport gone awry with "violence". My only complaint is that his anecdotes are only a few pages rather than a few chapters.

But the photographs are really what this book is about. Sure, the statistics and history of each player featured are there, but I found my eyes continually wandering from the print back to the image - they're that good. It's tempting to cut them all out and frame them.

This book will be enjoyed by any hockey fan, but if your over 40 it will be a treasure.

Wow! Buy this book just for the fabulous photographs taken by Harold Barkley, a long-time photgrapher with the Toronto Star. Barkley pioneered the use of the strobe in sports photography, and the detail he captured in these bright color photos is phenomenal--the texture of the ice, the meticulously greased and combed hair on the players, the rows of dark-suited spectators in the audience. This is how hockey used to look! The text consists of 1-2 page spreads on individual players of the day. The stars are all here, of course, but more interesting, to me anyway, are the players who've slipped from memory--Andy Hebenton, Norm Ullman, Camille Henry, Elmer Vasko. These names ring bells for fans who grew up in that era, but you seldom hear them now. Yet, here they are, preserved for us both in prose and in pristine photographic detail. This book's a gem.

It's information is insightful, Biblical, practical and Ken puts into the hands of his readers a do-able, day to day playbook for Dad's to win with their kids. Ken's insights, stories and truths empower and equip men to leave lasting Godly imprints in the daily lives of their children and all those whom they touch....he helps us Packer fans to realize that though it may be hard to fathom...there are indeed higher priorities in life than football and dare I say it...the Green Bay Packers

Very inspirational. Easy read, great message. This book greatly affected my husband's relationship with our children. Great book for any dad, especially a sports (football) fan.

Home Field Advantage allows a father to remember what is really important and how he score where it really counts.

In 1992, Dave Branon of Sports Spectrum joined with Joe Pellegrino to present Christian role models in baseball. Now Branon and Packer Ken Ruettgers give us a role model in football, a sport in desperate need of same. When the bad boys get all the ink, we all need to look beyond that to the behavior and character of players like Ruettgers. Branon - we're waiting for the good guys of basketball. The mainstream media don't even try to hide their rolling eyes and smug boredom when Christian players praise The Lord. Get over it, media, and ask yourselves why you're disturbed at a player who kneels in the end zone to thank his Lord rather than break into a dance of self-glorification.Bit by bit, book by book, the good guys are gaining.For more on the Branon touch, try a subscription to his magazine, Sports Spectrum. It's a whole new world out there, sports fans, a world where the Minister of Defense is in the pulpit

I haven't read this book but I think it is a great book about a great player as well as person.I was shocked that he was getting death threats from people and it was over a stupid homerun.Thats my review on the book Homerun:My Life In Pictures by Hank Aaron and Dick Schapp and a forword by Ted Williams.

the man was not only a great ball player but a reminder of the struggle for african-americans.he broke down so many doors.imagine having the fbi escort you to a baseball game? hate mail for breaking babe ruth's record? jackie robinson&larry doby opened the doors as well as the negro league but mr. Aaron kicked it thru.he is a class act and a true ambassador.he stared racisim dead in the eye and achieved.a true hero for all time.this book states that&more.

the book deeply touched me , as it told the life of the great base ball palyer , and his struggle as an african american in the major leagues.

This was an excellent book with beautiful illustrations. The quotes from so many exceptional athletes really adds to the book. It made a great Father's Day gift, especially since Hank was in Atlanta last week for the book signing. He's a class act who is very humble. He's the type of person I hope my children have as one of their heroes. I didn't realize until I read the book the kind of discrimination and criticism he had to deal with in baseball.

This is a highly amusing look at baseball by one of the game's most colorful characters. John Kruk looked more like a beer-swilling softball player from the corner tavern than a pro athlete - maybe that's why so many fans rooted for him. But Kruk was a good ballplayer, not to mention a decent and intelligent human being. Here he recounts the 1993 season with the Philadelphia Phillies, a colorful squad that won that year's NL pennant and faced Toronto in the World Series. Kruk describes himself, many of his teammates, and that very enjoyable season. He is both funny and revealing without being disrespectful. Kruk clearly enjoyed himself as a player and a teammate, and isn't baseball supposed to be fun?

This book may be no compendium of deep ideas, but it's a fun read by a player with a nice balance of decency and humor.

I think this book is great it was written so neatly and i think you should all call the publisher and tell them to bring it back.

Simply, there are three main reasons to read this book One, it provides the reader with an inside look at the lifestyle of Major League Baseball Players. This is especially interesting because the Krukker is not the stereotypical mold for a baseball player, physically, or as you will know when you finish the book, he has a more humble attitude then baseball players are given credit for. It really makes you wish you could live your life playing baseball Two, it is hysterical, especially the second or third time you read it (I have read it at least 5 times) Three, even non-baseball fans can appreciate this down to earth look at life generally.

John Kruk was not known in Philly for his neatness therefore you cannot expect his book to be neat either ! Instead the book is everything that embodied Krukker,and the rest of his team mates during that wonderful season 1993. He is honest, open and caring. He is straight forward where criticism is needed and gentle and kind where emotions ran high. His story about his bout with cancer was touching and human. I ain't an athlete lady, maybe not but you are a heck of a human being. Thanks for a terrific experience. This book makes us all part of the 93 Phillies. Welcome to Macho Row !

This is the premiere book of its kind on the Red Sox. Knoefel has clearly established himself as the Bob Dylan of sports writing. He is able to make sense of and put into words the things the rest of us only wish we could. No one his age has ever understood the psychology of the game as he does. How many masterpieces must a writer publish before you call him a sage? The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind but this kid has it!

This book was absolutely amazing. There aren't any sports authors his age that can understand the depth of baseball culture, fanaticisicm, and performance like Knoefel. He has a level of understanding that would make major sports networks weep, and could add more than quality insight to any major syndicated show in the US (not just because he is a sox author). Furthermore, he's been able to capture the essence of a season that really can't be described with any language god's been kind enough to pass to us. Not that I'm religious, but Knoefel has a divine talent and should be read, studied and respected by any baseball, or aspiring sports author in the planet. Enjoy, and to knoefel, keep hacking away.

We all knew it would hit--the onslaught of books, each claiming to be "the" definitive documentation of how the Red Sox won. I've perused most of them--except the O'Nan/King debacle which I blindly purchased thinking, "Hey, it's Stephen King--it's got to be good--right?" Wrong! Boy, do I wish I had my money back. The last time I read something so boring I think Joseph Conrad wrote it.

The first warning to every fan looking for a definitive documentary of the Red Sox 2004 season is to not be put off by the cover of Idiot-syncrasies. The cartoonish caricatures would make one believe the book is another in the long line of box score recaps that populate the market. Jerry Remy's forward certainly does nothing to alert readers to what will follow. Rather, it appears to simply be a vehicle for Remy to remind us of his playing days.

Then--then, if you will simply take a moment to read Longest's introduction, The Eternal Sunshine of Terry Francona, you will know that Idiot-syncrasies holds the promise of something as special as the 2004 season itself. I must admit that Longest knew how to hook me when he begins his season-long narrative with the grandest "idiot" of all--Johnny Damon. After a delightful analysis of how JD fit into the overall dynamics of the team I was captured. If Longest was to dissect the entire team as he did Damon I couldn't wait to read on. There they were: Manny and Ortiz. Varitek, Millar and Pokey--Mueller--well, count on it--they're all there. While many championship season books include only the post season, Longest puts us on a season-long path with the Red Sox--potholes and all.

Longest takes us far beyond the mundane stats of a season. He engages us in a deep analysis of what makes these men tick and how they converged to make a team tick. There are some who might argue his analysis, but this is precisely the point--you can't argue finite, historical statistics, but you can debate the elements, and eccentricities, of personality. It's the same as debating how one man won the presidency--a conversation of personality, character, soul and many intangibles we can never really quantify. This is what we'll discuss over the years rather than the stats--well, except "the walk"--a stat we'll not soon forget. Longest doesn't completely ignore statistics, but couches them in game situations that assist in explicating his analysis of character and skill.

Longest's compelling analysis of a season is enhanced by his generous inclusion of sidebars he labels "MONSTERminutiae" and his final words at the conclusion of each chapter (Idiot Rule) are thoughts one might choose to live one's life by.

A few hours later when I read the last Idiot Rule--The Future Can Wait--on page 288, I felt I had been in the stands for every precious moment of a precious season. I really didn't care there was very little box score trivia like so-and-so was lifted in the seventh for so-and-so; so what! Rather I now have a vivid portrait of a team of players who performed magic tricks for us. I agree with another reviewer who compares Longest to Roger Angell. While I think this is Longest's first book, it's obvious he's a student of baseball and probably a student of Mr. Angell's prowess at capturing so much more than statistics. In fact Longest may have an even keener sense of vision in his ability to seize nuance.

You might buy one of the "box score" books, but if you want a documentary to consult over time in reliving the 2004 Red Sox season--something to pass along to your children and grandchildren--then Idiot-syncrasies is the one book you should have. I've only owned the book two weeks and I've relived the season cover-to-cover three times.

Somehow this book is flying under the radar, and I'm afraid it's going to be lost under the deluge of titles hitting the market about the 2004 Red Sox. Too bad, because there is only one word to describe "Idiot-syncrasies" - Gem.

This book is difficult to describe precisely. It's not a nuts-and-bolts examination of the strategy of the 2004 season. It's not a retropective of the year. It's not a behind-the-scenes look at the team. I suppose it's best described as a look at the philosophy of and the lessons imparted by the "Idiots," and how we as fans related to them, and they to us.

What's best about this book is its style; it utilizes magnificent turns of phrase and builds profiles with the lyricism of Roger Angell (with perhaps a bit of the wryness of George Plimpton as well). At various moments I was nodding in agreement, then laughing out loud, and then breaking into tears. It's a magnificently crafted series of essays on most of the key players of the 2004.

This is a MUST read for any Red Sox fan. Treat yourself, or buy it for a Sox fan you love.