The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    My chord vocabulary is quite limited. I understand chords, but I'm all over the neck because I can't find them in position and I can't really stretch five frets. Ted Greene's Chord Chemistry didn't help me at all. I'd like to find a resource that presents inversions in context, for instance turnarounds, cadences and the like. Something pragmatic that I can put to work right away. Three-note voicings would be sufficient. Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    The Mickey Baker book. Most of the chords in the 1st book don't involve big stretches. You can skip the infamous Gmaj7 voicing which is a big stretch. Plenty of alternatives for that chord.

  4. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by buduranus2
    My chord vocabulary is quite limited. I understand chords, but I'm all over the neck because I can't find them in position and I can't really stretch five frets. Ted Greene's Chord Chemistry didn't help me at all. I'd like to find a resource that presents inversions in context, for instance turnarounds, cadences and the like. Something pragmatic that I can put to work right away. Three-note voicings would be sufficient. Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

    Too easy. Ted Greene was a chord nerd extraordinaire. There was/is no need for anyone to ever do everything that he did or tried to do. He showed a lot of possibilities for the instrument though.


    So try these. When/if you get to a stretchy one - just skip it or sub it! (The Practical Jazz Guitarist)

    https://www.amazon.com/Leading-Guita...708514&sr=8-36

    https://www.amazon.com/Swing-Big-Ban...3708554&sr=8-1

    https://www.amazon.com/All-Blues-Jaz...3708582&sr=8-1

  5. #4

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    I'm with Frank on the Mickey Baker book. All those chords can easily be reduced to 3-note shell voicings.

  6. #5

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  7. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by fep
    The Mickey Baker book. Most of the chords in the 1st book don't involve big stretches. You can skip the infamous Gmaj7 voicing which is a big stretch. Plenty of alternatives for that chord.
    Right back where I started years ago, but will dig a little deeper and with a more informed perspective.

    Quote Originally Posted by Jack E Blue
    I'm with Frank on the Mickey Baker book. All those chords can easily be reduced to 3-note shell voicings.
    Thanks for reminding me about shell voicings. Much more manageable.

    These are good resources, but a little difficult for me to process because they're laid-out like scales (horizontal) rather than as I'm used to seeing chords (vertical.)

  8. #7
    The "Moving Through Changes" book is, according to an on-line review, "written entirely in Standard Notation with suggested fingering for the Chords." When it comes to chords, I'm still a "dots in boxes" player. The "Swing Big Band" book seems tantalizing. I'd love to be able to walk the chords like Freddie Green. Would like to have a peek inside, though. That said, I found a link here that I could use right away. I just started on Fly Me to the Moon two days ago!


  9. #8

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    I don't like 4 fret or more finger spans which is probably going to limit my chording choices. I like everything within 3 frets. So delighted to find the moveable C minor 7 inversion chord (xx5546). Is there a chord app that let's you choose only chords played within 3 or 4 frets?

  10. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by fep
    The Mickey Baker book. Most of the chords in the 1st book don't involve big stretches. You can skip the infamous Gmaj7 voicing which is a big stretch. Plenty of alternatives for that chord.
    I got into the MB book last night and remembered what I didn't like about it. The chord diagrams are very small, there aren't any Roman numerals to indicate the frets, and no suggested fingerings. Also, the grids are hand-drawn, so they're a little irregular. Overall, very hard for me to read.

  11. #10

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    3 note voicings should be ok for small hands.
    Last edited by GuyBoden; 06-22-2020 at 01:41 PM.

  12. #11

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    Perhaps this will serve as a helpful guide to shaving down those chords.

    https://jazzguitarjourney.weebly.com...inversions.pdf

  13. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by rabbit
    Perhaps this will serve as a helpful guide to shaving down those chords.

    https://jazzguitarjourney.weebly.com...inversions.pdf
    Who is this person? The most I could find was a name in the email. They put together a really great resource for guitar over the course of a couple of years. I'm really curious to hear their progress! I bet they're sounding great now.

  14. #13

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    Jimmy Bruno

  15. #14

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    Quote Originally Posted by jockster
    Jimmy Bruno
    I think that's where the pdf comes from, but it was posted on a blog, My Jazz Guitar Journey - Blog . There's a ton of great stuff on there, and it looks like they started learning from the beginning in 2014 but over the course of 4 or 5 years were writing about topics with quite a bit of insight. They clearly put in a ton of work.

  16. #15

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    Quote Originally Posted by jockster
    Jimmy Bruno
    That was my first thought when I saw this post. Jimmy has small hands. Yet he's a monster player and great at chord melody.

    His chord voicings don't involve big stretches, usually w/in a 3-fret range. (A couple voicings may be wider but you can ignore them if you can't play them---there's always another way to voice a chord.)

  17. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by rabbit
    Perhaps this will serve as a helpful guide to shaving down those chords.

    https://jazzguitarjourney.weebly.com...inversions.pdf
    That's the stuff! 16 pages. Well worth saving and printing.

  18. #17

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    Fantastic resource, thanks, time to go down another rabbit hole....

  19. #18

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    Hi, B,
    I've used a simpler method when existing chord diagrams seem impossible or impractical. If you know basic chord theory/inversions, you can make YOUR OWN easy, better sounding, more efficient chords while staying within range(not jumping 5-12 positions). Last night I was working on a voicing for a C7flat9/plus 4 chord following a FM7 1st position. Rather than leaping, I played it in the 2nd position(barre) as: Gb/C/E/Bb/Db barring the second fret from Gb to Db(muted open E-1st string) and playing C-2nd finger(6th string) and Bb-third finger(third string). It works perfectly and is simple. Also, using simple triads work well especially during transitions where you don't need all the meat and potatoes. I hope this helps you. Good playing . . . Marinero

  20. #19

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    You might want to have a look at this:

    on Truefire:

    Jazz Comping Survival Guide

    Jazz Guitar Lessons - Jazz Comping Survival Guide - Fareed Haque

  21. #20

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    If you know how to effectively apply triads and dyads you will have easy fingerings and adoring bass players and maybe even friendly piano players.

    Wish I had this all down for myself...LOL

    Less is more.

  22. #21

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    Warren Nunes, Chord Bible. As I recall, very few big stretches.

    Another option is a smaller guitar. You can do it with full scale length and a very slender neck (Ibanez models are known for slender necks; some Yamahas too). Or you can go to a shorter scale guitar. The shorter scale may not sound exactly the same, but the Byrdland sounds good in the clips I've heard and it's short scale.

    How to decide? If you're just learning your chords, I'd go with the Mickey Baker and similar suggestions. If you already know that you want the sound of stretchy chords, then the smaller guitar may be worth it.

  23. #22

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    Warren Nunes, Chord Bible. As I recall, very few big stretches.

    Another option is a smaller guitar. You can do it with full scale length and a very slender neck (Ibanez models are known for slender necks; some Yamahas too). Or you can go to a shorter scale guitar. The shorter scale may not sound exactly the same, but the Byrdland sounds good in the clips I've heard and it's short scale.

    How to decide? If you're just learning your chords, I'd go with the Mickey Baker and similar suggestions. If you already know that you want the sound of stretchy chords, then the smaller guitar may be worth it.

  24. #23

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    How about two note voicings, just the 3rd and 7th? With an occasional root thrown in or plucked before or after the 2 note voicing, like stride piano: root, chord, root , chord. Isn’t that totally functional?