This book and CD set are as advertised, but I would have liked a wider selection of songs. This collection has many of the classics, and the tablature is helpful, but in hindsight I would have bought The Beatles Complete Chord Songbook...

I play guitar and consider myself an intermediate player. I was looking for some Beatles music that I could play by myself without a band for guitar. I first bought the Beatles full transscriptions book (the white book) for 50 bucks after reading all the rave reviews. I used it for a few songs but was disappointed because it really wasn't meant for self-accompaniment. So I got this book instead. I went to Norwegian wood. I was very impressed by the accuracy of the tabs provided. The guitar parts are clearly laid out. The chords are usually spelled out clearly in the beginning of the song. He tells you where to place the capo if one is used. The CD that comes with the book is helpful also as he plays at normal speed and then slows things down. I am hearing things in these songs that I didn't know existed even after listening for more than 30 years. The Beatles were incredible and you will have new respect for them after getting this book. The other thing about this book I enjoy is the short introduction the author provides to each song. He goes over some of the music theory behind the song or what makes it unique - very good job.

When I was a kid - 14 years old in 1963 - the Beatles came along. This was not long after some pretty depressing times... The Cuban Missle crisis,
the assassination of President Kennedy, the Racial unrest and conflicts in US cities. This was not a very happy time in the States. Those of us just
starting our teen years didn't have an awful lot of optimism for the future. We had a lot of fears, insecurities and doubts about the world in general.

Enter the Beatles. A lot of people would question how a 'pop group with a new sound' could possibly have the charisma to change lives, bring hope,
present possibilities, ignite imaginations. They redefined the concept of 'coming together' and showed a generation that 'there's nothing you can
do that can't be done.' And that is what I, and millions of others, began to believe. What a ride it was. It wasn't perfect, it wasn't always successful,
but it was a new way. I believe the Beatles music actually contributed to world peace. They bridged differences and united a generation; actually several
generations... They managed to unite countries, religions, thinking. No small achievement by a few young guys who could use the language of music in their
effort to find a common love in the most unlikely places.

So this is me - a 61 year old, still strumming and humming along. I bought this particular Beatles music book, and it came with a CD of some of the guitar
licks and phrases that make their songs unique. It makes me smile to know that the stumbling along I did on my $25 guitar back in 1963 (with no talent or knowledge of how to play a guitar) turned out ok. I learned to play them by ear, by trial and error. And it was all exactly right.

Was it worth it - the whole 4+ decades? Yes, it was. Thanks especially to Paul and Ringo, and John and George.

PS - I highly recommend this simple book, and especially this seller, who was super nice and very professional.

Maybe everyone else got the full version, but from my reading this book provides intricate details about the listed songs but they are not the complete song. They are only half of the score or so for each entry, which I guess is what they feel enough to give you the gist of what the song is about. Whatever... I need more than that.

Good book with extra information for playing and tips and insights as to how the song was recorded.

I agree with the reviewer who mentioned the fact that "Norwegian Wood" is oddly tabbed in the key of E instead of D. Must have been transcribed by a piano player. A guitarist would never do that. It just needlessly confuses the issue. That being said, I like the book and find it to be useful in learning the tunes. I don't care to learn some of the songs in the book and wish it had others more to my liking but still worth the money.

Ok, Wolf Marshall put a lot into this book. However, The Beatles Acoustic Guitar(recorded series) also from Hal Leonard(and Wolf Marshall?) is nearly identical and contains complete transcriptions. In the "Best of" book, we get rhythmic figures that we must link up with the recordings. It is very helpful to have the cd that comes with this book to do slowed down as well as actual tempo play alongs. But, my main criticism of this book, and this is not specific to this book, is the refusal to acknowledge the function of the capo in musical notation and the tab.
For those of you who hate the capo and don't use it, tough luck. The Beatles used it and it is essential to getting the right sound out of their instruments. My point is this: On a song such as "Norwegian Wood", it is more useful, I believe, to show the tab and music in the actual GUITAR key that it is played in, rather than actual music notation. The capo is used primarily as a way of preserving the open position sound(i.e. percussive) of the guitar so that it can be matched to the best key for the singer. In "Norwegian Wood", the guitar part is played out of a "D" position. Yet the resultant tab and musical notation is written as if you we're actually playing in "E". The actual key but not the guitar key. That's because the capo is placed on the second fret so that the singer can execute a guitar part invented in the key of "D" but better sung in the key of E".
When you use a capo, you are essentially shortening the neck to create a new open position., thus the the notation and tab would be clearer if it reflected the actual chord formations you would use. For example. The song "Norwegian Wood" starts out on a "D" chord, there fore the tab should show this as 0(5) 0(4) 2(3) 3(2) 2(1): thus showing what the open strings are(5 & 4) and allowing the player to see what the actual chord formation is. Then just say, capo on the second fret. I stongly believe this would be clearer and I encourage Hal Leonard and all music publishers to consider changing their notation and tab formats to embrace the actual "played key" of a song rather than the "pitch"key of the song. To emphasize what I'm talking about,"Julia" is done exactly the way I'm talking about, as is "Here Comes The Sun". For "Julia",the tab and music are shown in the key of C, which is how it is played, but, you must capo on the 2nd fret to get the same sound('actual key of D major) as John Lennon does when you try and play along. For "Here Comes The Sun", the transcription is in D, where it is played, but capoed on the 7th fret to get the same sound as when George plays it. Why do it for these and not the others? Other than this, it is a great book.

This was a gift for my 14-year-old son, who plays guitar. It may take him some time to work through it. I'll reaspond again once he tells me his impressions (or I hear they through his playing.)

I'm a professor and have been playing for two years (inexpensive mid-life crisis.) This book is fantastic in terms of accurate breakdown and analysis of the songs. Its best attribute is the CD instruction which provides slow and up to tempo versions of the songs. Some of the songs are not for solo guitar, but others (e.g. Blackbird, You've Got to Hide Your Love Away) are. Learning just one very well is worth the price of the book. Keep pickin' readers!

This Marshall book contains the music AND lyrics. Once you have his method of transcription down, the book is priceless. It does help to know the tunes and not be a beginning guitarist.