The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #26

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    Comping for my wife (good vocalist) has been my favorite thing to do for many years. Most of the bands we have been in are based around her vocal talents.

    1) Be prepared to arrange the music in her "comfort zone" keys.
    2) If you will be a Duo, be prepared to provide all the introductions and sometimes just a single chord or note to help her get started in the right key center.
    3) Be sure to listen for tag endins or slowing down when she is ending the song.
    4) Remember, she is telling a story with her vocals and your job is to help her with a backgound that will not detract from her story.
    5) There is much to be learned from listening to a good singer. Listening to the phrasing used by a good singer can help you with your phrasing when playing lead.
    6) Remember you will be providing the bass line as well as voicing the chords to highlight her approach to the song.
    7) Most important - she is the featured attraction and your job is to make her sound great!

    wiz

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #27

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    I just went to YouTube to look up "Tuck and Patti". What a goldmine!!!!!
    Check it out!

  4. #28

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    Yeah, Tuck Andress is an amazing guitarist, his solo stuff is fun too.

  5. #29

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    Hi.. '
    I'm new on this forum, but was interested to see this topic.

    Instructors guitarist Roni Ben-Hur (www.ronibenhur.com), and instructor vocalist Amy London (www.amylondonsings.com) will actually be doing a weeklong workshop on this topic in August 2010!

    If anyone wants info, here's the link: www.SambaMeetsJazz.com
    Alice

  6. #30

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    Hi

    I am just starting to work with a female vocalist. (First real post to the forum - some great info here. Thanks to everyone who contributes!)

    Does anyone have any good links on youtube of good amateur Vocalist + gtr or vocalist + gtr / bass / dr?

    Tuck and Patti or Joe and Ella are inspiriational but I would like to watch something a bit closer to my level as well to give me something achievable to aim for.

    Andrew

  7. #31

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    HI i have started doing this, accompanying a female vocalist. ive done a few gigs now and its starting to get better. My problem is when its my turn to solo. I add in more chord melody stuff some single line things but it still seems bland or boring, like not enough... Also alot of the tunes are in different keys, which is a given with vocalist.

  8. #32

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    Lot of great advice on here. I'll add my 2 cents. I play a lot of solo gigs and am a singer/guitarist, so I'm sort of a duo in one. I think the same rules apply.

    1) Rhythm is paramount. You have to be completely in time, all the time. If you can't play through a half hour or hour of material alone with a metronome and sound good, you're going to have a really hard time handling this kind of gig.

    2) It's already been said, but KISS. Jazz pedagogy tends to push people towards adding substitutions in for everything. This is fine when you're playing with an instrumentalist, because they punch the right keys and the notes come out right. With a vocalist, anything you do that creates dissonance can really screw up their ability to hear and produce the right melody, especially a vocalist who is not used to "hip" modern jazz stuff. Even the "safe" subs like tritones can really screw things up. If you don't believe me, try singing through ATTYA putting tritone subs over all the V7 chords. Welcome to pain.

    3) I would actually go against some advice given above and tell you to not use the standard Freddie Green 3-note system at first. I would try to play 4-note voicings 90% of the time (keep the 5s or root doubling in there) and stress really strong bass cadences (2-5-1s, etc.). The reason I say this is that the 3-note chords can sound really empty, and it can be hard to hear where the melody falls as a vocalist. Same with just doing a walking bass. I'd wait until you're comfortable with each other before trying this stuff.

    4) Ok, now the fun stuff. Things to do before and after the vocalist sings:
    - work on your chord/mel intros and outros; they can really class up an act
    - vamps are fun, fill up time, and let the vocalist get the feel for a song before coming in
    - a great into is to solo over the last 8 bars of a tune (or whatever the form demands) then comp the ending strongly before coming in

    5) Stuff to do while the vocalist sings:
    - stick to a comfortable rhythmic feel or pattern and make slight alterations with chord stabs, e.g. play four quarter note chord stabs to a measure generally and then alter the rhythm around the vocalist's phrasing
    - play single line licks between the vocalist's phrasing; listen to a lot of Stan Getz on the bossa records
    - when the vocalist hits a particularly climatic melody note, double it behind her on the guitar for a moment; it produces a really nice effect

    6) Stuff to do over the solo:
    - there's nothing wrong with just restating the melody of the tune as a chord/mel at first; in fact, I'd say start by just doing that and only that
    - later add some embellishments to the melody
    - play lick fills between your own melodic phrases
    - play licks instead of the melodic phrases
    - now you are soloing

    The last bit of advice I'd give before ending this long post is, don't stress too much. Relax, be comfortable, have good groove. Pick one kind of sound and texture (e.g. four note chords played four to a bar) and just do that on every tune until you master it. You don't have to mix in 20 different styles or make each song arrangement unique - each song is already unique and beautiful. Then just add new techniques in one at a time, applying them to the songs, until you feel comfortable. Then another. Then another.

    Take the long view.

  9. #33

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    Thanks ecj...really good info in there.

  10. #34

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    Hi Guys,
    I have a new video lesson available that is on this topic, here is the trailer

    there are instructions on the YT page for getting the entire 30 minute video and a 3 page PDF.
    all the best
    Tim
    www.timlerch.com

  11. #35

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    Quote Originally Posted by Stackabones
    I've been racking my brains over a book title! Just came upon it ... Gerald Moore, The Unashamed Accompanist. From a classical perspective, but it provides great insight into the art. I read it at my library ... appears to be out-of-print. Short read, about 120 pages or so.

    I'm going to check it out again!
    A good read - and very stroppy in parts. Moore's advice includes: 'First of all sit down and find out what is in the singer's mind. If he or she has one...' Ouch!

  12. #36

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    Welcome, it's always great to find a new post in an 11 year old thread.

  13. #37

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    Quote Originally Posted by cosmic gumbo
    Welcome, it's always great to find a new post in an 11 year old thread.
    Ha,ha,ha...you are a funny guy gumbo.

    But here's my take on the subject.

    IMHO perfect match voice and guitar and Ed Bickert is my guru for the time being.


  14. #38

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    I’m a beginner at accompanying a good singer of Jazz. A music teacher taught me the “Freddie Green” chords and told me that they’re a good thing to use to avoid playing notes that clash with a singer’s melody. I also like them for other reasons. I’ve created drum & bass tracks so those will be what I’ll be following primarily.
    My biggest obstacle will be the instrumental breaks - when I get those worked out I’ll consider myself a decent guitarist !