Jerry Reed’s The Mad Russian In Acoustic Guitar Magazine

March 26, 2011 - PRLog -- The Mad Russian (written by Jerry Reed and Paul Yandell) appeared on the 1972 duet album Me and Chet. Many fingerstyle guitarists have almost hurt themselves trying to figure out how to play Reed's swarm of notes. Who better to transcribe the tune than Craig Dobbins? And who better to publish it than Acoustic Guitar Magazine? Dobbins is known as a leading authority on Jerry Reed’s guitar style, having written the highly respected book on Reed, “The Guitar Style of Jerry Reed.” Acoustic Guitar Magazine is the premiere magazine, as their byline says, “For Every Player in Any Style.”

The article goes beyond just an incredible tab of The Mad Russian. After the introduction by Jim Ohlschmidt, Dobbins’s lesson starts with a brief explanation of Reed-style thumbpicking. He then focuses on different aspects of that style: clawin’, country counterpoint, clawhammer, swarmin’, flamenco flourishes, and electric style. There are fourteen examples tabbed out to demonstrate each one as well. There is a note on alternate tunings and, to take it over the top, a sidebar article on the guitars and amplification Reed used. As John Knowles so aptly described it, “It’s a great resource.”

The online version of the article, including MP3 audios of all the examples, is available at http://www.acousticguitar.com.

For more Reed tabs go to http://www.craigdobbins.com

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Craig Dobbins is recognized as a leading authority on fingerstyle guitar; his books and CDs are highly sought after by guitarists all over the world.