The Herb Ellis Jazz Guitar Method: Swing Blues by Herb Ellis (Repost)

Mitchell Herbert "Herb" Ellis was an American jazz guitarist. Perhaps best known for his 1950s membership in the trio of pianist Oscar Peterson, Ellis was also a staple of west-coast studio recording sessions, and was described by critic Scott Yanow as "an excellent bop-based guitarist with a slight country twang to his sound."

The Herb Ellis Jazz Guitar Method is designed to take the mystery out of playing jazz guitar. Herb teaches single-note improvisation through a system of simple guitaristic 'shapes' that are derived from chord fingerings you already know.

If you're into learning Ellis' uptown beboppy swing style, you should investigate this book. The "how to" part is pretty brief, going over a few of the CAGED shapes, scales and arpeggios as they apply to dominant and 9th chords, plus a look at chromatics. But it's what Ellis does with this that makes the book a great resource. He lays out three long multi-chorus blues solos with various tempos and feels, and it's pretty much the sort of playing you'd hear on one of his records. They're all transcribed and annoted in places with the shapes particular lines were built on. Ellis is a master of taste, timing and melodic bluesy lines, and this book showcases all of that.
The value of this book is in the 3 sample blues that Herb plays - it really is a lesson in how to swing. Most of the time Herb is playing single eighth-note lines, and despite the absence of piano, bass, or even another guitar on the CD tracks, Herb really drives. These are great solos, with a heavy Charlie Christian influence. This book is well within the grasp of an intermediate guitarist.