April Issue of Guitar World: Mike Errico on Percussive Acoustic Guitar Playing

April Issue of Guitar World: Mike Errico on Percussive Acoustic Guitar Playing

In the April, 2014 issue of Guitar World, I explain my percussive acoustic guitar playing techniques and how they can inspire songwriting. The article has transcriptions of the grooves for “Springtime” and “1000 Miles,” and the web site features bonus video content. I had a great time writing it and filming with the GW crew. It’s on newsstands now, or available at the Guitar World Online Store. “Beat It: A Guide to the Inspired Techniques of Percussive Acoustic Guitar Playing” Bonus video content from the...
New Song, “The People You Never Really Trusted”

New Song, “The People You Never Really Trusted”

I had a great time being part of The Acoustic Guitar Project, in which participants are given a guitar, a mic, and a week to write a song. This is what happened. The song is done (I’m already thinking of revisions, of course), and the guitar is signed and passed onward. Thanks Matt Beck for handing it to me, and good luck to Osei Essed this coming week… “The People You Never Really Trusted” (first draft) © Mike Errico Did you know You tell a lot and never show You talk too fast and listen slow Did you know Are you mad The shiny things you never had It’s a drug, and it’s easy to go bad Are you mad And I wonder how you ever got so angry The gratitude you missed with your swinging wild fist You’ll take my time enough to finally blame me For the moment we first kissed and I wound up on your list Of the people you never really trusted Do you care The cage you’re in is made of air And nothing real is really fair Do you care And I wonder how we ever get so blinded By what we think we need, what it looks like to succeed But do you even want to be reminded That no matter what the speed, you’re not close to breaking free From the people you never really trusted Line ‘em up against the wall And tell everybody else for once and for all You know your secret’s safe with someone new If only you could hold on to the strength you need...
Teaching at NYU, New Writing, Guitar Lessons, and More

Teaching at NYU, New Writing, Guitar Lessons, and More

Teaching Songwriting at NYU’s Clive Davis School of the Recording Arts Break out the violet cardigan sweaters: After a successful semester at Yale, I will be teaching songwriting at NYU’s Clive Davis School of the Recording Arts this fall. We’ll be focusing on the establishment of a personal songwriting voice, and oh, we will write. And write. Can’t wait. New Writing: “The Art of Songwriting and the Business of Survival” I just published an essay for Medium about my experience as a songwriting professor at Yale and NYU. It features “Still Beautiful to Me,” a great song and video by Caitlin Pequignot, one of my students. Mike Errico Guitar Lessons Now On YouTube Guitar players: Here are some videos that explain the techniques I use on songs like “Springtime,” “1000 Miles,” “Johnsburg, Illinois,” and many others. There are some cool electric guitar licks in different styles, too. Enjoy them, and see if they spark something in your own playing. Deluxe Editions of the Mike Errico Catalog. Pay What You Want. Thanks to your generosity, this experiment has been a success, so let’s keep going: you can pay what you want for new, deluxe editions of my recordings. This includes demos, remixes, extended versions, unreleased tracks and more. $.99? $10? $55.32? It’s your call. But, to reiterate, your generosity makes it possible for me to keep doing what I do and bringing it to you. As always, the official site updates regularly with any news/changes: http://www.errico.com. More Facebook || Twitter || YouTube || Bandcamp || iTunes Tallboy 7, Inc. Box 20463 NY NY...

The Performing Arts Project/Mike Errico Collaborations

Three inspiring videos from at the Performing Arts Project, Winston-Salem, NC using my music. (Song: “Someday” http://mikeerrico.bandcamp.com/track/someday) (Song: “When I Get Out of Jail” http://mikeerrico.bandcamp.com/track/when-i-get-out-of-jail) (Song: “Tonight”...

“How It Ends” Featured in “The Survival Kit” by Donna Freitas

Sales of this song have spiked in Germany. Turns out, it’s featured in the novel “The Survival Kit” by Donna Freitas, which has just been translated into German. All In [Deluxe Edition] by Mike Errico “The Survival Kit” is available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/The-Survival-Kit-Donna-Freitas/dp/0374399174 Short synopsis (also from Amazon): When Rose’s mom dies, she leaves behind a brown paper bag labeled Rose’s Survival Kit. Inside the bag, Rose finds an iPod, with a to-be-determined playlist; a picture of peonies, for growing; a crystal heart, for loving; a paper star, for making a wish; and a paper kite, for letting...
New, Deluxe Editions of the Mike Errico Catalog. Pay What You Want.

New, Deluxe Editions of the Mike Errico Catalog. Pay What You Want.

Hey everyone, I’ve just completed a semester teaching songwriting at Yale University, and thanks in part to the conversations I had with guest speakers Amanda Palmer, Ryan Miller and Jonathan Coulton, I’ve decided to try an experiment: you can pay what you want for new, deluxe editions of my recordings. IT’S ALL HERE: http://mikeerrico.bandcamp.com/ Q: Why? Also, are you crazy? No. It’s because I want you to have it for the amount you think it’s worth. For instance, the other day I put $2 in an open banjo case after listening to a bluegrass duo; gave a dollar to a mariachi band that wandered into my subway car; and purchased the new Queens of the Stone Age album on iTunes. I didn’t have to (it’s not like the mariachi band would have stopped playing), but somewhere in my reptilian brain I have made calculations that music has value. I bet you have, too, but if you feel that it should be free, I don’t want that to stop you from listening. I’m aware that, to some, this puts me in a certain camp, and I don’t like being in any camp. My work is still available at all fine digital retailers and you can buy it there, too. And as I said, this is an experiment. If it doesn’t go well, we’ll just tweak the experiment. Q: What are other people doing? You’d be amazed. It varies, of course, but overall, you’ve decided the music is worth MORE than the standard “iTunes price” — in some cases, by a lot. To me, it means that you understand what is...