What fingering do you prefer for the basic left-hand shuffle / bass line? 5-1 & 5-1 5-2 & 5-1 I naturally started using 5-1 exclusively, but I notice that when the fingerings are written in, it says 5-2, 5-1. I'm still wondering if there's an advantage to either one. Note: By basic shuffle / bass line I mean the bass pattern that alternates between the fifth and sixth. In C Major you'd play CG, CG then CA, CA.

I'm excited for NOP :-) - I'm still working through the Boogie Woogie Piano book. Gone through it once at the "jump-in with two-feet" level and then back several times to get it more solid. But I do find myself using the New Orleans bass lines the most. For me the trickiest New Orleans bass line is the simplest one (1 2& 4). It's the one I find the hardest to really fit properly, especially with swing time. Interestingly, I find the New Orleans bass lines built on the simple one - easy to play, in fact I love to switching back and forth between those bass lines and the Yancey bass line to spice it up. Anyway, excited for the new ... New Orleans Piano books/lessons.