TRANSCRIBING AND TAB FOR COUNTRY GUITAR, ETC.

I can transcribe guitar parts from records for you. (Examples of my transcribing can be found on my Karl Straub Guitar blog, karlstraubguitar.blogspot.com/)
If you're looking for something you can't find online, I can transcribe to order for less than you'd probably pay for a lesson. My base price for a transcription is $30.00. This can vary depending on various elements. (note-- if you're interested in me writing western swing arrangements for you, here's an example I recorded. straubcountryguitar.blogspot.com/2009/08/panhandle-rag-straub-arrangement-for.html

CUSTOMER FEEDBACK
(Karl transcribed various instrument parts from several Warren Zevon recordings. He then arranged the parts for three horns.)

"Karl helped transcribe my most basic head arrangements into three perfectly harmonized horn parts for my performance fronting a thirteen piece band. There was only one run through just prior to the show and so the notation had to be correct, and it was. His experience as a musician playing in many different styles makes him especially easy to relate to conceptually and I would recommend him for any project requiring a keen ear and an accurate transcription."

David Kitchen

PRICING AND POLICIES

MORE EXPENSIVE

Complicated music, such as chord voicings on a jazz record, 3-part harmonized lines such as you'd find on a Bob Wills record, Chet Atkins fingerstyle arrangements, etc.
These kinds of things take a long time to transcribe. It also takes much longer if you want notation, as opposed to tablature. Notation includes rhythms, adding a lot of extra work. I can also provide a video clip of me demonstrating how to play the parts, or certain techniques. That takes a lot more time, of course.

LESS EXPENSIVE

Single-note solos and fills are easier to transcribe. It's also easier for me to transcribe using tab only, and not notating rhythms. I prefer notation myself, because it's more accurate than tab, but if you don't read notation or rhythms, I can do tab-only quicker for you. The tablature will tell you frets and strings, but you'll have to figure out the rhythms on your own.

BULK RATE

If you are interested in an ongoing service, like taking lessons, I may be able to offer a discount.

SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT THE VALUE AND COST OF THIS WORK.

I've already had some customers tell me my prices are too high. Naturally, I understand the concept of "what the market will bear." If you honestly can't afford what I'm charging, please tell me that and we may be able to work something out. If you think I'm overcharging, please consider the following information.

If you take a guitar lesson with a qualified professional, you would very likely pay even more than my transcribing price for one lesson. If your teacher has to write down something he's figuring out by ear, that takes additional time. This is assuming you can find a teacher you trust to figure things out accurately.

Transcribing is not like raking leaves-- it's very complex work, and not everyone can do it. I have a music degree and years of experience teaching and performing many different styles. I think sometimes people have trouble thinking of musicians as qualified professionals who should be paid well. Part of the problem is that there is so much free tab and online information. This conditions people into thinking they should be able to get tab without paying for it. Some of the free stuff is good, but much of it is worthless. There is also an awful lot of music you will never find free tab for.

I provide a service for people who are serious about music, and want their transcription to be accurate. I also am doing this for people interested in music that's hard (or impossible) to find in tab form. If I charged my hourly teaching rate for my transcriptions, my price would be much higher! I'm charging less than I think I'm worth because I'm trying to establish an online reputation and not scare people away.

PAYMENT POLICIES

At this time, I ask for payment by mailed check at the conclusion of the work. My address is Karl Straub, 406 Cloverway, Alexandria, Virginia, 22314. I can post the transcription while it's in progress, in case a customer wants to give suggestions for me to do it differently in some way.

MY TRANSCRIBING SYSTEM

I can email a file with the transcription to you. I usually post it on my private site, where you can watch it in progress, and print it out for your own use.

WHAT I NEED FROM YOU

Customers must make the recording available to me in one of the following ways.

1. Mail me a burned CD of the music.

2. Email me an mp3, using YouSendIt (www.yousendit.com/) or similar program. (Note-- if you have ITunes program, it's easy to make an mp3, drag it to your desktop, and send it it to me in an email using YouSendIt. My email address is karlstraub@hotmail.com.)

3. If the song is on YouTube, send me the link. I can usually transcribe from a YouTube clip.

I also need very clear information from you about what you want. This means a clear description of which parts, solos, chords, etc. I also need to know the timings of where a part comes in. (i.e. if you want a guitar solo, I need to know that it is 1:40 to 1:58.)

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PANHANDLE RAG, STRAUB ARRANGEMENT FOR TWO, FOUR, OR EVEN FIVE GUITARS

www.karlstraubmusic.com/PANHANDLE RAG straub arrangement.mp3

Here are three different Straub arrangements of "Panhandle Rag."

(Please note-- anyone who would like a copy of these arrangements should email me at karlstraub@hotmail.com. I'm happy to sell it to anyone who would like to use it for their own group. I'm also available to write similar arrangements for anyone who wants to spice up their country or western swing music with harmonized stuff like this. Want a Bob Wills style arrangement written for your group? I'm here to help!)


Some of this is in four-part style-- I played these sections as two parts, both playing double stops. It takes a lot of work to play a four-part arrangement with just two players-- the double stops are tough, and it took me many takes to get it right.

(Of course, if I learned how to punchin while overdubbing, it would be easier. But one man can only do so much.) It's a lot easier to play these kinds of lines with four players, but how many groups have that many soloists handy? (In fact, this arranging approach is even stronger with five players-- with a fifth line an octave below the top line.)

The eight bar intro is four-part style.

Next is thirty-two bars (the whole head) in two-part style. This is two lines, and could be more easily played by two players. This section is a fairly straight rendition of the original melody, harmonized.

Then I have more four-part style, thirty-two bars. This is again played by two guitars with double-stops.

Last, I have another two-part section. This is the variation that departs most from the original melody. It's hotter and more swinging.

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BUDDY MERRILL, STEEL GUITAR, ON LAWRENCE WELK SHOW

Call me old-fashioned, but I'd rather watch the Welk show than the hideous "American Idol." I think we've somehow reached a point where our current mainstream pop music is actually less hip than Lawrence Welk.

(thanks to Charlie McCardell for sending this along.)
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LEON RHODES WITH BUDDY EMMONS-- "WALKIN' THE FLOOR OVER YOU"

The Troubadours with Charleton and Rhodes are usually considered the hottest lineup Tubb had, but it must be said-- before Charleton came on board, this guy Emmons wasn't bad.
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BUDDY CHARLETON WITH LEON RHODES ON FLATTOP GUITAR, "COOL IT"

This is a feature for Charleton, with the bonus of Leon playing what Ernest Tubb refers to as the "grammar guitar." He's struggling to keep it near the mike, but playing great as usual. It's interesting to watch a guy who usually plays electric when he's playing single-note stuff on acoustic-- he doesn't really change his style much here. Pretty swinging, as usual.
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MERLE HAGGARD PLAYS WITH SOME REAL BITE ON THIS SOLO, WITH GUEST TAMMY WYNETTE

At 1:21, Haggard plays a Tele solo worthy of the great Roy Nichols. I've seen and heard a lot of Merle Tele solos-- he always has a great feel and tone, but sometimes his execution paints him into corners he can't get out of. Getting out of corners was Roy's specialty-- and it takes a lot of practicing to learn how to do that! At any rate, this is probably the best and tightest solo I've ever heard Merle play. He's still slightly tentative compared to a top-drawer picker, but it's beautiful playing, with the twang and some tasty overdriven raunch. Years ago, Haggard had an interesting influence on Roy's playing-- supposedly at Merle's suggestion, Roy started experimenting with what I call an "unbend" lick. The pre-bent note struck and unbent became a Roy Nichols trademark.
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HANK GARLAND-- "SUGARFOOT RAG"

Here's a great clip of Hank playing Sugarfoot Rag. This clip is unusual because there are some nice closeups of both left and right hand; if you look fast you can get some great insight into the approach of one of the best country guitarists ever. Another bonus-- this version has more of a clean Les Paul/Chet Atkins kind of tone than Hank's earlier Nashville session work. Not to say it's better, just that it's an interesting middle ground between his fifties country and sixties jazz styles.

Note-- the slapback Hank uses here is the main reason for the tone having less bite and twang than some of his other recordings. I've noticed that when I turn on the slapback, it cleans up my tone a lot. Even if I am using overdrive pedals, a lot of the raunch and grit are minimized. No doubt there are technical reasons for this--

but I don't know them. I just know that your tone is squashed a bit by slapback. Hank provides some good ideas here for what to do with slapback-- he works with the slapback, leaving space in his lines so the effect can come through. When he goes to an extreme muted sound, the slapback jumps out even more. Presumably he learned these methods from Les Paul records, as most everyone did.

I'll be using this clip as a frame of reference for my own work-- it's a nice blend of fiddle tune type playing with Les Paul ideas. It's not surprising that the different styles work well together, since along with jazz Les had a lot of country guitar in his sound.

My last point-- the studio version I've heard of this has Hank playing less, and other players trading with him. I would guess that he used the different styles here to keep it from getting stale, since the arrangement is all him. This is another thing I'll keep in mind for my own playing-- I already try to do this when I play long solos, although I have to say I don't do it this well. Check in with me in a few years-- maybe Hank will rub off on me some more by then!

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