The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #76

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    Zombie thread but

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #77

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    I found a good guitar book by Dr. House MD, but two young people broke into my home and took it, unfortunately. In it, he lists all the possibilities, but then he crosses them all out and does what he wants. Fortunately, no one died.

  4. #78

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    I really think Randy Vincent's book
    The Guitarist's Introduction to Jazz fits the bill.
    https://randyvincent.com/books/

    I'm currently working through it and lots of things are clicking into place for me.

    Shell chords and Drop 2 chords have opened things right up. I have fingers spare now!

  5. #79

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    I looked into the Randy Vincent book but it seems there are no tabs, so for me, the illiterate amateur, it might be hard to start with this book. Or i could ofcourse start learning to read music.. Now that i’m thinking about it, might be a fun project to try and create the tabs for the book.

  6. #80

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    I feel ya! I've noodled away and gigged for 35 years only knowing chord symbols and big fat barre chords. I've decided to learn to read the dots and found it's not as hard or scary as I'd imagined. I'm working through the William Leavitt books for that. The combination of Vincent and Leavitt, and sitting at a piano at times to get my head round basic general jazz theory, is exactly where I am in my studies right now.
    Whatever you decide, have fun and enjoy the journey.

  7. #81

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    And now for something completely different...

    Seeing as we're now speaking of the confounded art of Reading Music... One wee trick I've learned for reading music is to practice Chord-Spelling. Yes, that lost art. Practice this on the train instead of doing a crossword or flirting in vain and getting arrested. Please keep in mind that this information is only for RAG's (Rank Amateur Guitarists), such as myself. Pro's (People Who Rant On (May God bless them!)) are far too gifted to pay any heed to this simple gem. Of course, I learned this accidently, on my own and far too late in life to ever to become a famous star!

    Imagine any possible chord and try to spell it! Glorious, no? A royale game for kings! Why, a game better than ping-pong! Though some may take offence at that comparison, I still insist on it. Sounds easy, but it can be deceptively so. It's the game that keeps on giving. You can amuse yourself and amaze your friends!

    Simply memorise this rotating sequence: CEGBDFACEG... (The Musical Alphabet!)
    You may begin it on any letter, as long as you maintain the order. You must maintain the order! Also known as the letter-names in thirds:
    C major is CEG. CM79 is CEGBD. C7-9 is CEGBbDb. F major is FAC. FM7 is FACE.
    F minor is FAbC. F7 is FACEb.

    (As a side-note... Notice the Upper Structures! You can plainly see that EGBD is the upper structure of CEGBD. What does that tell you? Well, EGBD is Em7 and since CEGBD is CM79, you may substitute Em7 for CM79. And Gm6 is GBbDFb while Em7-5 is EGBbD. By Chord-Spelling, you can see that they are similes and can sub for each other. C79 is CEGBbD. Take out the Root C and this chord is a simile of the above two chords. Gm6=C79NR=Em7-5. (NR=No Root) As I said earlier, this post is only valuable to RAGS. Most know this stuff, but it proves the value of Chord Spelling.)

    Now, bear in mind that F7 is never FACD#! Never! D# is not in the sequence. Ignore or avoid this type of behaviour. Seconding is a foul. You must always spell in Thirds! That's why Co7 is spelled as CEbGbBbb and never as CEbGbA! Follow the Musical Alphabet Sequence, regardless of any bad habits that you may have developed in the past as a wastrel. You must say FACEb. The chord must always be spelled in thirds, of course, but only with the letters from the sequence given above! Only use the letters CEGBDFACEGBD... And in that order. Else said, then rap your knuckles! They are your new friends in music...

    An Extra For Experts!!
    Your illustrious band leader demands that you play EbM13-5-9? Without the 11th.
    So, how do you raed this on the staff? Sorry, I meant to say read.
    Well, get out your wee pencils lads and lassies!
    Start with EGBDFAC from the Sequence above. 1 to 13. Then apply the cursed accidentals...
    For some reason unbeknownst to me, the key of Eb contains three accidentals in the Key Signature: Bb, Eb, and their third cousin Ab.
    Now EGBDFAC becomes EbGBbDFAbC. But that spells EbM13, you say? And everyone is calling out to you to alter it. Well, simply flatten the fifth and the ninth to: EbGBbbDFbAbC!

    You may prefer to spell this as EbGADbEAbC. But you will get your knuckles rapped hard, because you did not follow the order and now confusion reigns. And it will look dreadful on the staff! And you will never learn to READ MUSIC!

    And did you toss out the poor unwanted 11th?
    Congratulations! If you spelled it as EbGBbbDFbC, YOU HAVE WON!
    EbGBbbDFbC is 1 3 5b 7 9b 13 is M13-5-9.
    It lays well on the staff because the Key Signature tells you that the B, E and A are flattened. All you have to do is write in the two flat symbols beside the chord's Bbb and Fb. See? It's not simply robotic. To read, you must understand...

    Though, after hearing this chord, (my budgie is looking unwell) I think that I might have selected a dominant 13-5-9. My regrets to Mickey Baker. There you go! SPELL THAT CHORD!

    See how that works, eh?!
    NOW, YOU KNOW THE REST OF THE STORY... (Please forgive this small musical joke.)

    Since writing this, I have modified the game slightly. I now apply the rules of Hangman. When I make a mistake, I draw part of the hanged man on the gallows and continue with the game. However, once the entire man has been drawn, I must stop playing or I will get a headache. You know, sometimes it's better to quit while you're ahead.

    This will help you immensely when reading chord stacks. (Now, there's the rub!)
    Notice that the 5 lines of the staff are: EGBDF
    Notice that the 5 spaces on the staff are: FACEG
    So the lines and spaces follow the sequence. This is how chords lay on the musical staff. And we often play chords and arpeggios anyway. Even the Ledgers are in agreement.

    You can sit on the bus looking greatly amused, all by yourself, staring off into the distance with a strange look of bedevilment, consternation, amusement and eternal satisfaction as you spell your chords! But do not sing them aloud. Your fellow travellers will become greatly jealous. They may even become vexed at you! So try to be discreet. Chord Spelling! Do It!
    Last edited by StringNavigator; 03-24-2021 at 03:57 PM.

  8. #82

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    That. Is. Brilliant.

    Thank you so much for sharing that!!!

  9. #83

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    Quote Originally Posted by StringNavigator
    I realise this to be an old thread, but beginners will find it as long as JGF keeps it available.

    To get started, Roger Edison's book gives you 60 chords that sound well together and fall under the hand in a logical fashion. They're all you'll ever need. Very utilitarian. You can add chords to these later from other books like Johnny Rector's or Baker's, but Edison explains how Rhythm Change tunes and 12-Bar tunes are put together. He provides seven tunes that explicitly use the chords and many 2-5 drills to get you nimble until the chords are engrained. Back-cycling and substitutions are explained very well. A book to keep forever, but you can master it quickly if you apply yourself moderately. You will be able to comp in any situation.
    Ideal for beginners, but out of print. I got lucky at a Value Village. However it's available to download:
    [Roger Edison] Jazz Rhythm Guitar | Popular Music | Jazz (scribd.com)

    Also, Chord-Melody is a really crucial objective for any aspiring Jazz Guitarist, whether behind a singer or in a Jazz Group or playing alone in a pub or bar. Mel Bay has two books with about 20 of the most popular songs in each. Music notation and Tab for each song in all three styles: chord-melody, single-note soloing and comping. The tab gets you started quickly. Later you can improve on your reading.

    Mel Bay Jazz Guitar Standards Vol1 and Vol2
    Jazz Guitar Standards Book - Alfred Publishing, Inc./Mel Bay Publications, Inc. : Mel Bay

    Jazz Guitar Standards II: Complete Approach to Playing Tunes Book - Alfred Publishing, Inc./Mel Bay Publications, Inc. : Mel Bay

    I've tried before, but now retired, I can earnestly start going through these three books and hope to play solo guitar as an amateur at any venue that will take me. Who knows, I might find a real gig, land a vocalist or just play with other musicians interested in the American Songbook. Cheers from Oshawa, Ontario!
    Alas the Edison book on Scribd is available only if you have a subscription. I'm tempted to try the 30-day plan just so I can download it, but I'm usually pretty awful at things like that. Of course, it's available on eBay for $104.00, so the Scribd looks positively gorgeous by comparison!

  10. #84

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    I'm thinking that they won't ever re-print it because publishers want you to buy book after book while you're chasing the bird. Since people are getting paid by the word, most tutorial books today consist of many pages devoted to prefaces, introductions, biographies, indexes, contents, how to use the book, ads for other books, glossaries of musical terms, how to tune the guitar, three page primers on musical notation, and a conclusion. This goes for the vast majority of bass and guitar books on the market. The actual reason you bought the book gets the few pages left over. Some books even have three pages devoted to photos of the author's guitar...

    Roger Edison wrote a most useful and comprehensive book and you can tell that he wanted to convey the knowledge and skills for you to become adept at Jazz Guitar. I also have an old bass book by Bob Haggart and two other books by Eddie Lang and Johnny Smith. Judging by those, I'm afraid that it's been all downhill since the thirties. Why, even the majority of Jazz Standards that we play today stem from the 30's and 40's. What's really telling, as we play through the Real Book, is when the realisation hits you that everybody's dead...
    Last edited by StringNavigator; 04-03-2021 at 09:54 AM.

  11. #85

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    Quote Originally Posted by StringNavigator
    I

    ...the realisation hits you that everybody's dead...
    Nil desperandum! Not everybody's dead Just came from an evening of socially distanced playing with an 80 year-old pianist playing lots of 30's and 40's standards. It was a great opportunity to practice my Freddie Green rhythms when I wasn't taking a solo backed by very comprehensive chord and bass-lines from my veteran colleague. A great night was had by all.

  12. #86

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    Glad to hear about it!

  13. #87

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    I would recommend any book that has recorded Mp3's of all the notation in the book--where the person who recorded the samples is a real jazz musician.

    I went through all of the Jazz Conception books by Jim Snidero. These are all etudes of varying difficulty over standards, blues, and beyond. Jim Snidero is a great soloist, arranger, and educator. But forget all of that. Why were these books ridiculously valuable to my own progression in music?

    One name... Keep scrolling down



    Joe Cohn plays the guitar part for all of Jim Snidero's Jazz Conception series. These are etudes. No writing. No theory. Still worth the purchase to hear a storied professional play these etudes:

    Snidero Books - Our Products

  14. #88

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    I know they're old, but I remember liking the very practical, hands on approach of the Arnie Berle books.

    I know that tab is frowned upon, and I agree it had limitations, but the Charlie Parker for Guitar book helped me getting started in translating horn language to the guitar. A teacher might have shown me the same thing, but between a day job and a family this was a good resource for learning some things.

  15. #89

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    Quote Originally Posted by waltf
    I looked into the Randy Vincent book but it seems there are no tabs, so for me, the illiterate amateur, it might be hard to start with this book. Or i could of course start learning to read music.. Now that i’m thinking about it, might be a fun project to try and create the tabs for the book.
    The Randy Vincent book will take you a long way. If you learn how to read music you won't need to create TABS Reading standard notation is not difficult. C D E F G A B and sometimes you have to raise or lower them a 1/2 step. Take a pencil and jot down the note names next to the standard notation. You will learn much. The Vincent book does have some chord diagrams.


    Recommend Me a Method Book for "The Jazz Guitar Basics"-g-clef-jpg

  16. #90

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    Quote Originally Posted by alltunes
    The Randy Vincent book will take you a long way. If you learn how to read music you won't need to create TABS Reading standard notation is not difficult. C D E F G A B and sometimes you have to raise or lower them a 1/2 step. Take a pencil and jot down the note names next to the standard notation. You will learn much. The Vincent book does have some chord diagrams.
    There is a lot more to reading than that.

  17. #91

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    Quote Originally Posted by Litterick
    There is a lot more to reading than that.
    Of course there is but you have to get started somewhere. Deciphering standard notation so it reveals the same limited information as TAB is not difficult. I stand by my statement that taking a pencil and writing the name of the notes next to the standard notation will be a great learning experience. Too many musicians/hobbyists make excuses for not learning how to read music.

  18. #92

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    The first step in reading is to memorise the notes on the fingerboard ON THE FIRST FIVE FRETS ONLY WITH THE OPEN STRINGS.

    Too many try to memorise the entire fingerboard in the beginning. That will come later. Horn players have less notes to contend with. The guitar has approximately 6x22=132 possible notes! In comparison, the Tenor Saxophone has about 20, (unless you become a virtuoso and extend the range). Until you become a guitar virtuoso, stick to the first five frets. That's enough for reading! If you stick to memorising the first five frets and map those notes (approx 25) to the staff, you'll have thousands of songs available to read.

    Remember that your normal range for a typical piece of music for beginners is one octave (8 notes), with some excursions above and below (4?). There may be a few accidentals (2? sharps/flats). That's 12 or 14 notes in any given song.

    The lower ledger lines are hard to read until you realise that they are just a part of the Bass Clef.

    Practice reading the rhythm figures of a piece separately, until memorised. In most music, you will find the rhythm-figures repeat a lot. Practice reading the notes of the piece in question. Simple tunes often only have a dozen notes to contend with. Just practice the scale of the key of that song. Divide and conquer. Remove the stress by treating it as a game. Do it for yourself.

    If you want to start reading by using a Charlie Parker tune (virtuoso), you're going to get discouraged. You have to work your way up that.

    If you get fussy about fingering you will have to play in the higher positions. But you will have to learn the notes in that position. Better to stay within frets 1 to 5 and simply accept the fingering required.

    As you repeat a piece of music, look at the next bar following the one actually being played. Look ahead!

    Remember that chords are always spelled in the same order: CEGBDFACEGBD... This makes them easier to read. Never spell a chord as CEbGbA. The A is out of order. Spell it as CEbGbBbb.

    Reading is easier than one thinks, but you must memorise your rudiments, like the Cycle of 5ths/4ths and the key signatures, staff lines & spaces. It's just repetition and perseverance. But you have to WANT it! So take the time to own it. If you can pay for a teacher, fine, but you will still have to do it at home on your own, anyway. A Music Teacher cannot press a button and do it for you.

    Even orchestra musicians practice the pieces they perform. They don't sight read on stage. Eventually they look at the music as a memory aide. If you sight read every note on stage, you will go nuts. They have memorised the piece with the written music in front of them. Stick to one tune until you can play it from memory with the written music in front of you.

    Maybe, eventually, you will sight-read. But as your life bobs and weaves through its battle, you may never reach the lofty heights of sight-reading. Be content with just being able to read. Keep reading a piece of music until you memorised the music WITH the notation in front of you and can play it smoothly with few mistakes. The next song will be easier.

    They say to read anything you find to become a sight-reader. I believe that comes later. Keep things simple in the beginning: nursery rhymes, children's songs, simple folksongs...

    And, believe it or not, writing the note names in pencil beside the note DEFEATS the very process you must go through to learn to read. Face the music! Better to work with just a couple of lines and spaces at a time. INCULCATE those 3 or 4 notes (fingerboard and staff) into your fingers by boring repetition. Map the fingerboard and staff one small step at a time.
    Last edited by StringNavigator; 04-13-2021 at 10:52 AM.

  19. #93

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    Quote Originally Posted by StringNavigator
    .
    Remember that chords are always spelled in the same order: CEGBDFACEGBD... This makes them easier to read. Never spell a chord as CEbGbA. The A is out of order. Spell it as CEbGbBbb.
    It all makes perfect sense.