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01-14-2021, 12:59 PM #1DaShigsta Guest
Is anyone familiar with this collection of of Real Book tunes played/recorded by Mick Goodrick (Themes/Solos with chordal accompaniment) ? These were circulating in Boston among his students in the late 70’s... I got a copy of the whole lot while at Berklee in ‘82.
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01-14-2021 12:59 PM
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Yes. When Mick was teaching at Berklee back then (the first time, before he went to NEC and returned to Berklee), he was trying to get students to work on the coordination of comping skills and soloing skills. Back then, there were many portastudios available and one could take a cassette tape and record separate left and right tracks on it. He told his students "Take a song you want to work on, put the chords on one track, then listen to that on headphones and record solo on the other". That was the assignment. It turned out to be such a task to ask that none of his students could/did. He asked them what the problem was, but it turned out to be all shades of "I just CAN'T".
So it was winter break, or spring break or something and to show them how simple it was, he went through the Real Book A-Y and recorded chords and head/solo for what proved to be about a dozen cassette tapes. He used a simple phase shifter and each track has a comping track on one side, single line head and solo on the other. It was never intended for distribution so he played the heads without copyright issues.
This is not ALL the songs of the real book, but he carefully chose successive track choices so they alternated tempo and time feel, so you could go back to back and get a variety of time work outs.
He took them to a local duplicating place and had a small number of these cassette sets made up which he distributed to the students with instructions: These are for you to work on, and not for distribution.
And that's the story of them. They've since been made into digital form by various unauthorized, unofficial sources (guilty) and some of them really hold up after all these years. Mick even like some of them enough to have saved and archived them at one time, but now just about all of them have become unobtainable in their original form.
A few years back he considered doing this again, in the modern digital technology and with his, at the time, contemporary lexicon. It never came to be.
Still, they are amazing examples of Mick's chordal playing, his soloing and the treatment of one man's interpretations of the Real Book.
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This looks so cool! I wonder how one can hear these recordings. Thanks for letting us know about them.
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I bought a multitrack to do exactly this. I really should start.... Maybe tomorrow
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If you have a Mac or iPhone or iPad, GarageBand is great, easy to use free multitrack software.
Get one of these, plug it in, and open your Real Book to “A Call for All Demons”.
Apogee Jam+
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01-15-2021, 09:19 AM #6DaShigsta Guest
Thank you for sharing the story !
I got a copy of the cassette collection from a student of his... still have these.
It would have been interesting to hear him re-do the tunes again after he has moved on musically/conceptually.
I first heard MG live when he was in Gary Burton’s 2 guitars group w/ Metheny... Damn... I’m old... :-)
Originally Posted by Jimmy blue note
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I worked on them back then, gave them to various students over time, really excellent stuff. Now much easier to do with a computer workstation, of course. iReal Pro is also a good basis for the same kind of study guide.
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Originally Posted by Jimmy blue note
The students at Mick's "Summer Jazz Camp" received digital versions of about 25 tunes with Mick comping/soloing. Is this the same stuff you guys are talking about? [I'm listening to them right now!]
Marc
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01-15-2021, 12:31 PM #9DaShigsta GuestOriginally Posted by marcwhy
As you can see on top of the thread we’re talking 114 songs, 7hrs+.
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Originally Posted by DaShigsta
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Originally Posted by marcwhy
The stuff from Goodchord camp was different. Hey, by the way, Dierdre is getting the band back together. Did you get the email?
Yeah I just talked with Mick earlier today, and just now I was talking with Mike Stern who was sad to find out Mick isn't teaching anymore. Heh heh, he wants to get Mick to record something with him, wouldn't that be something?
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Originally Posted by Jimmy blue note
Mike and Mick, huh? Nah, I wouldn't want to listen to that!
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Originally Posted by marcwhy
Mick doesn't have any of his recordings. He once had an entire CD, mixed and mastered, waiting for a distribution deal and he lost interest, and threw away the only DAT master. Ha ha, SO Mick.
Hey, speaking of lost recordings... not to derail this excellent thread, but I've a heads up for you guys:
About 3 decades ago, Mike Stern, Harvie Swartz and Alan Dawson did a three day gig of standards. Some of Mike's best playing, ever. AD was the amazingly melodic drummer who taught Tony Williams. Well they did one gig that was legendary and never played again as a trio. Those recordings are now being released as pandemic fresh air and spiritual uplift. Watch out for them. All standards. All in their peak. Mike was with Miles at the time I think.
Anyway, treasures unearthed during this lockdown.
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I'd love to have those, too. Hard to imagine Mick would mind...
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Originally Posted by BickertRules
They were made to be tools and learning aids first and foremost. Anything to get his students to actually play their guitars.
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Originally Posted by Jimmy blue note
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Ive heard the standards tape years ago . I got it from one of Mikes students and it really is most excellent. I think it might have done at the 55 bar in NYC. He also shared with me some Bill Conners lessons and live gigs with Kennedy on bass and Dave W. on drums. Bill did not enjoy Chick Coreas love of Scientology too much. I sure love Bills playing and wonder if he is still active?
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Originally Posted by jbromusic
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If anyone wants to message me some of Mick's Real Book tracks feel free
Looking forward to hearing Mick and Mike
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