The Dobro® Christmas Songbook

By Lee "Drew" Andrews
Review by Richard Turner

For beginning Dobro® players what could be more fun than Mel Bay's Dobro® Christmas Songbook? A collection of 27 Christmas songs, this volume contains all of the standard Christmas hits plus a few extras such as Bring a Torch, Isabella, The Holly and the Ivy, and Toyland. All of the songs are presented with one verse of lyrics and are in easy resonator guitar keys such as C, G, A, F, and Am.

Melodies in this book are given in standard notation with chord symbols above. They are also presented in tablature for Dobro® tuned G-B-D-G-B-D, the standard tuning for the square-necked bluegrass Dobro®. Caution: Do not tune a round-necked resonator guitar like this as the string tension- with the two lowest strings going up, strings 4, 3 and 2 staying the same as standard and only the first string going down- may be too much for it.

If any of you are not familiar with the Dobro®, it is the instrument that looks like a wood-bodied steel-string acoustic guitar with a large hubcap screwed to the soundboard. My extensive research has taught me that this is not actually a hubcap but really a cover which hides a spun aluminum resonator cone. It truly works like a mechanically-activated speaker and provides the listener with lots of satisfying volume and twang.

Square-necked Dobros® are played horizontally using a "steel" or "bar" held in the left hand and metal or plastic fingerpicks on the right-hand thumb, middle and index fingers like a banjo player; round-necked resonator guitars are held in the customary position and are frequently played with a slide on the left-hand fourth finger. Dobros® are commonly used in bluegrass music and the round-necked resonator guitar is often used in Delta blues.

So, now you know which instrument to purchase along with this fine Christmas songbook! Mel Bay's Dobro® Christmas Songbook was designed for compatibility with both Mel Bay's Ukulele Christmas Songbook and Mel Bay's Mandolin Christmas Songbook. Most songs are in the same key so it would be a cinch to put your Christmas band together. Have fun and share some Christmas songs with your friends this year!

Richard Turner