Hey guys. I am investigating developing a new web-based application that will allow guitar players to find new songs to add to their repertoire, pull it all together nicely and take them on a journey from not knowing the song at all to being able to perform the song publicly. It will be a spin-off from my Youtube channel of play-along videos.
The idea is that you will only ever need one site to learn, play or perform a particular song (if that song is in the catalog and I am not going down the "tab every song" route like Ultimate Guitar). So say you want to learn to play Country Roads by John Denver and it is in my catalog, you pay, say one dollar and you have everything you need to get from not knowing the song at all to adding it to your "repertoire" and being able to perform it publicly. You have the play-along video and a guitar lesson, the chords and lyrics and maybe even a backing track,etc I would really appreciate it if you could take a few minutes to complete this survey to help me to find product-market fit before building the application
I looked at the survey but after seeing the questions I think I should stay out of this one.
Hey Eddie. I would say that the tool is not aimed at someone like you.
It will be aimed at beginner guitar players and people who have a guitar in their cupboards but haven’t played for years.
They will come across one of my play along videos on YouTube and go “hey, I love that song. I wonder if I could play it” and then find my site and start a song book.
This would take them on a journey that may ultimately get them purchasing biab, making their own tracks and who knows, maybe even writing a few tracks.
Usual disclaimer applies. This is just my opinion.
Joanne, my things is this. Sure it isn't meant for me. However, this kind of "pseudo" learning tool allows people to sneak in under the musician club tent without paying their sweat equity. They may be able to learn the 4 chords it takes to play some song, but they didn't learn anything about music. Being an old school guy, I will cling to my death to the statement "Learn music. THEN learn songs." This tool provides a path to "microwave" learning. They can then start their "song book" without knowing ONE THING about music. About WHY those 2 chords are inter-related. Nothing about steps on a scale. You can't put a roof on a house with no walls or foundation. Well, you CAN, but will immediately fall to the ground.
I had a friend once tell me how much he loves cooking with food from those services that send you the components of a meal and directions about how to cook it. I laughed and said "So even in cooking, you are in a copy band. Call me when you cook that salmon WITHOUT the directions. Then you are cooking. Do you remember the directions when you try to cook it the next time? THAT would be actual cooking." That is similar in concept to what I am saying.
You want to play music? First LEARN music. Then learn an instrument. Then learn songs on that instrument. Otherwise just play CDs and sing along, because being able to mime a real guitar player is just that. Mime. Pretending. Acting.
Eddie, like you I am old school MOST of the time. All young students who come to me must learn how to read music. But for the bucket list people or older people who just want to learn some chords for their campfire sing-a-longs then that's what I teach them.
If one learns music it becomes a lifetime experience. For most whom do not learn music it is just a passing fad. This information is based on the fact that many of my guitar playing friends from the 60's haven't played in years; they were also the ones who did not learn how to read music.
BUT you do not need to learn music to make good music; others have to transcribe what they play. Wes Montgomery couldn't read a note of music but he was a fantastic player. What about The Beatles? They wrote some fantastic music with no music knowledge, just very good ears.
So back to the point Joanne idea is a good one; get people to play music. Even if one person from her audience decides to continue their music education would be a big plus. For the others just play and have fun. YMMV
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64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
You want to play music? First LEARN music. Then learn an instrument. Then learn songs on that instrument. Otherwise just play CDs and sing along, because being able to mime a real guitar player is just that. Mime. Pretending. Acting.
Your disclaimer is noted . (all in good fun).
If this applied to me I would never have learned to play the guitar and would not be on this forum or writing approximately 30 songs a year, be performing at our national arts festival and be having a huge amount of fun doing it.
I come from a very unmusical family. Nobody understands music or anything about it. I persuaded my mum to buy me a guitar at the age of 13 and bought a John Denver song book. I learned to play every song in it. When I tried to work out songs by ear that I heard on the radio, I could never understand why everything was A, D and E!
Without that JD song book, I would probably not be playing today. I have had years of pleasure from my guitar, just learning and singing songs and probably will until my hands can no longer play.
So, all I am trying to do is provide people with the modern equivalent of that JD song book and make a small side hustle business out of doing so.
Eddie, like you I am old school MOST of the time. All young students who come to me must learn how to read music.
Reading is a tool, but it goes deeper. Do they know the Circle of 5ths and WHY chords relate to each other? Do they know the steps of the scale (tonic/root, subdominant/4th dominant/5th) etc? Do they know WWHWWWH (Whole and Half, the intervals of a scale)? If they don't know that stuff, they will only be able to play in C. Throw Eb at them and they don't know the scale.
Quote:
BUT you do not need to learn music to make good music; others have to transcribe what they play. Wes Montgomery couldn't read a note of music but he was a fantastic player. What about The Beatles? They wrote some fantastic music with no music knowledge, just very good ears.
You can throw examples out all day of people who didn't read, but consider it this way. The Beatles did NOT have no musical knowledge. They just didn't KNOW they had a lot of musical knowledge. You don't write chord changes like they did with no knowledge. Learning theory is not knowledge. Theory is tools. When you drive a car, are your tools in the trunk for when you need them or in the front seat next to you?
Quote:
So back to the point Joanne idea is a good one.
Yes. There will be a market for it. I just won't be in it, but she already acknowledged that this isn't aimed at someone with now over 64 years of experience and a degree in the field. This is aimed at the "campfire" player. Run with it and see how it goes.
I'm a big fan of instructional material. I started learning to play after my brother came home from the navy in Okinawa and gave me a Teac or Tascam reel to reel with a whole box full of tapes. CCR, Steppenwolf, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Johnny Rivers, Woodstock, Otis Redding, Jethro Tull and the list goes on.
My Dad taught me the melody to "Wildwood Flower". His left hand had been crushed in a coal mining accident so that was all he could play. A childhood friend taught me the 4 or 5 songs he knew.
I learned everything I could from anyone who would show me how to play a song or riff. It wasn't until I discovered Homespun Tapes in a guitar magazine that I really began to learn how to play and understand music. I taught myself to read music and learned music theory from Mel Bay books.
I then immersed myself in scales, chords and arpeggios form numerous books and videos. Then I went on to diatonic scales, modes and progressions.
I met a bunch of pickers who were much better than me and were playing songs I didn't know. I had to learn to improvise to survive in that environmet. Jay Blankinship was instrumental, (no pun intended), in pushing me to expand my playing ability. He is the guy playing mandolin on the link in my signature. Jay is blind, but he's a great mandolin and guitar player. He's also a dear friend.
I wouldn't have been able to learn all of the new songs Jay was throwing at me if it hadn't been for all of the instructional material I had found over the years.
What you doing is a good thing. Don't let any naysayers discourage you. Keep it up.
Bob. Thank you! Here is a message I got yesterday on my youtube channel. I get loads of these types of comments. People who have not played for years....
Hello Joanne, I'd like to thank you for the play along format you put the songs in, I'm 55 and been trying to learn to play the guitar for awile now on you tube with little success until I found you, now I'm playing along with your songs and love it, your quite the inspiration, especially during these times of covid, thanks so much ,God bless you and much success to you in your endeavors
Usual disclaimer applies. This is just my opinion.
Joanne, my things is this. Sure it isn't meant for me. However, this kind of "pseudo" learning tool allows people to sneak in under the musician club tent without paying their sweat equity. They may be able to learn the 4 chords it takes to play some song, but they didn't learn anything about music. Being an old school guy, I will cling to my death to the statement "Learn music. THEN learn songs." This tool provides a path to "microwave" learning. They can then start their "song book" without knowing ONE THING about music. About WHY those 2 chords are inter-related. Nothing about steps on a scale. You can't put a roof on a house with no walls or foundation. Well, you CAN, but will immediately fall to the ground.
I had a friend once tell me how much he loves cooking with food from those services that send you the components of a meal and directions about how to cook it. I laughed and said "So even in cooking, you are in a copy band. Call me when you cook that salmon WITHOUT the directions. Then you are cooking. Do you remember the directions when you try to cook it the next time? THAT would be actual cooking." That is similar in concept to what I am saying.
You want to play music? First LEARN music. Then learn an instrument. Then learn songs on that instrument. Otherwise just play CDs and sing along, because being able to mime a real guitar player is just that. Mime. Pretending. Acting.
OMG, what a load of elitist bull crap! Music, like everything else in life, can be enjoyed at a multitude of levels. My first guitar teacher wasted a year of my time and a bunch of my dad's money trying to teach me music theory. My second guitar teacher, at my first lesson, asked "what would you like to learn?" to which I replied "Stairway to Heaven"! And I have been hooked on playing and writing music ever since. And no, I have no clue what you mean when you tell me to try a "A minor diminished fifth neutered to the power of 2" nor do I care! I'm having fun and I'm doing it my way.
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 Mac Special Offers Extended Until May 31st!
Good news- we've extended our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® special offers until May 31, 2026!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 is packed with major new features, enhancements, and an incredible lineup of new content! The program now sports a sleek, modern GUI redesign across the entire interface, including updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, a new dark mode option, and more. The brand-new side toolbar provides quicker access to key windows, while the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, creating a flexible, clutter-free workspace. We have an amazing new “AI-Notes” feature. This transcribes polyphonic audio into MIDI so you can view it in notation or play it back as MIDI. You can transcribe an entire track (all pitched instruments and drums) or focus on individual parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
There are over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®.
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Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac - Special Offers End at 11:59pm PDT on Friday, May 15th, 2026!
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202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!
With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Funk & World (Sets 468-475):
Our new jazz, funk & blues RealTracks include a groovin’ collection of RealTracks and RealDrums! These include more requested “soul jazz” RealTracks featuring artists Neil Swainson (bass), Charles Treadway (organ), Brent Mason (guitar), and Wes Little (drums). There are new “smooth jazz” styles (4), which include a RealTracks first: muted trumpet, as well as slick new smooth jazz brushes options for drums. Blues lovers will be thrilled—there are more “classic acoustic blues” styles, including guitar (5), bass (4), and drums (10) with blues master Colin Linden, featuring understated and tasty background acoustic soloing, plus brushes drums and acoustic bass. There are also new electric blues RealTracks, including electric blues with PG favorite Johnny Hiland (3) and soulful electric slide guitar from Colin Linden (4). If you love funk & gospel, there are great new options this year, including gospel organ (3) from Charles Treadway, as well as new funk, tango, and rock ’n’ roll drums (3) and bass (1). And for big, bold arrangements, we have uptempo soul horns (4) featuring a three-part hip horn section with options for a full mix or stems of each individual horn — plus an accompanying rhythm section (4) of drums, bass, guitar, and electric piano!
Rock & Pop (Sets 476–482):
Our new rock & pop RealTracks bring a powerful mix of requested favorites, fresh genres, and modern chart-inspired styles! We have more of our popular “Producer Layered Acoustic Guitars (15)” featuring Band-in-a-Box favorite Brent Mason. We’ve continued our much-requested disco styles (10), and added new Celtic guitar (5) with a more basic, accessible approach than our previous Drop-D or DADGAD offerings. There are also highly requested yacht rock styles (17), inspired by the smooth, polished soft-rock sound of the late ’70s and early ’80s — laid-back grooves, silky electric pianos, warm textures, elegant harmonic movement, and pristine production aesthetics. Fans of heavier styles will love our new glam metal (13), capturing the flashy, high-energy sound of ’80s arena-ready guitar rock. We also have a set of rootsy modern-folk rock (18), with a warm, organic sound combining contemporary folk textures and driving acoustic strumming. And we’ve added lots of new modern pop styles (16) — the kinds of sounds you’re hearing on the radio today, featuring exciting new drums, synths, and cutting-edge RealTracks arrangements.
Country, & Americana (Sets 483–488):
Our new country & Americana RealTracks deliver a rich collection of acoustic, electric, and roots-inspired styles! We have new country pop (9) with legendary guitarist Brent Mason. There is also a potpourri (14) of bouzouki, guitars, banjo, and more, perfect for adding texture and character to contemporary acoustic arrangements. We’ve added funky country guitar (5) with PG favorite Brent Mason, along with classic pedal steel styles (5) featuring steel great Doug Jernigan. There are more country songwriter styles (8) that provide intimate, rootsy foundations for storytelling and modern Americana writing. Finally, we have “background soloing” acoustic guitar (12) with Brent Mason — simpler, but still very tasty acoustic lines designed to sit beautifully behind vocals or act as a subtle standalone solo part.
And, if you are looking for more, the 2026 49-PAK (for $49) includes an impressive collection of 20 bonus RealTracks, featuring exciting and inspiring additions to add to your RealTracks library. You'll get new country-rhythm guitar styles from PG Music favorites Johnny Hiland and Brent Mason, along with modern-pop grooves that capture today’s radio-ready sound! There are also new indie-folk styles with guitar, bass, 6-string bass used as a high-chording instrument, acoustic guitar, and banjo. Plus, dedicated "cymbal fills" RealDrums provide an added layer that work very well with low-key folky styles with other percussion.
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2026 Free Bonus PAK & 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!
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These PAKs are loaded with additional add-ons to supercharge your Band-in-a-Box®!
This Free Bonus PAK includes:
The 2026 RealCombos Booster PAK:
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-For MegaPAK customers, this includes 25 new RealTracks and 23 new RealStyles.
-For UltraPAK customers, this includes 12 new RealStyles.
MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
Playable RealTracks Set 5
RealDrums Stems Set 9: Cool Brushes
SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
iOS Android Band-in-a-Box® App
Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums with 20 RealStyle.
FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)
XPro & Xtra Styles PAK Sets On Sale Now - Until May 15, 2026!
All of our XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAKs are on sale until May 15th, 2026!
It's the perfect time to expand your Band-in-a-Box® style library with XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs. These additional styles for Band-in-a-Box® offer a wide range of genres designed to fit seamlessly into your projects. Each style is professionally arranged and mixed, helping enhance your songs while saving you time.
What are XPro Styles and Xtra Styles PAKs?
XPro Styles PAKs are styles that work with any version (Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition) of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). XPro Styles PAKS 1-10 includes 1,000 styles!
Xtra Styles PAKs are styles that work with the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). Xtra Styles PAKs 1-21 includes 3,700 styles (and 35 MIDI styles)!
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Note: XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 19 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version as they require the RealTracks included in the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
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