We are pleased to announce the release of Leo Kottke/6- and 12-String Guitar: A Companion—a limited-edition, two-volume set which includes note-perfect transcriptions of all 14 compositions and an account of those events and circumstances that, in December 1969, culminated in the release of this landmark recording. QR codes connect readers to extended essays and a rich digital collection of audio and video recordings. A beautiful resource for players and a treasure for those who hold Leo Kottke’s music close.
About the Album
Released on Takoma Records in 1969, 6- and 12-String Guitar has reportedly sold more than half a million copies and achieved cult status among guitar players around the world. Kottke opened up a new chapter for the guitar. He created the space for the development of fingerstyle guitar, a space for a recombination of guitar technique and music styles and an opening for original, creative composition. It was without bounds, and its influence on the guitar and on music generally was extensive.
Inside the Book
note-perfect transcriptions which correspond directly to the original recording, presented in extensively-edited tablature and standard notation
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The Driving of the Year Nail
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The Last of the Arkansas Greyhounds
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Ojo
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Crow River Waltz
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The Sailor’s Grave on the Prairie
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Vaseline Machine Gun
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Jack Fig
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Watermelon
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Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring
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The Fisherman
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The Tennessee Toad
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Busted Bicycle
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The Brain of the Purple Mountain
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Coolidge Rising
wide-ranging primary source materials from the Stropes Foundation archives
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previously unpublished photos
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concert posters and ephemera
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newspaper articles and ads
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artifacts
Beyond the Page
Throughout the books, QR codes lead readers to extended essays and a rich digital collection that couldn’t fit in the print edition. Additional audio, video, written material, and performance variants make this a deep multimedia resource.
And something more fundamental becomes available—what many players describe as a form of embodied cognition: the experience of recognizing the shapes, movements, and logic of a piece not only with the ears or the eyes, but in the hands themselves. Once learned, the music becomes physically intuitive—felt as much as understood. This Companion is designed to cultivate that transformation.
A Labor of Love
This project represents decades of research, documentation, and collaboration, offering the most comprehensive account to date of Kottke’s early work and its lasting musical significance. It looks back at the beginning of Leo Kottke’s performing career, but it has benefited in every way from the intervening years. It is the product of curiosity, diligence, and friendship. These transcriptions and contextual materials are designed to reward your attention.
