2 comments about Mel Bay Swing to Bop: The Music of Charlie Christian.

1. I have always admired Charlie Christian's accomplishments as a musician especially considering his death at a very early stage in his career. I marveled that someone so young could play at such a high level so soon in his career.... With this book I discovered that genius IS simplicity. Charlie Christian's playing was the perfect combination of economy and grace. I never 'got it' until this book deconstructed his style and laid it out for me in the most basic terms.... within days I was able to actually USE what I learned from this book and now I am rethinking my entire approach to the guitar! I highly recommend this book for the serious guitarist and the rabid Charlie Christian fan as well... In fact, I thought so much of it that this is the first and ONLY review I have ever written on Amazon... But I just had to tell somebody how valuable this book is... it's the kind that can change everything.



2. This book contains a thorough analysis of Charlie's playing. The author demonstrates a system for analyzing the chord shapes from which Charlie based his soloing and includes many many examples for you to try. The text is clear, with enlightening insight into Charlie's style and choice of notes. It also contains several transcriptions, although because of copyright issues, they tend to be from lesser known recordings (although transcriptions of the Minton's playhouse solos are included). I bought this book along with "Charlie Christian - The Definitive Collection", and found that to be a good combo. If you want to learn how to play like Charlie Christian, this book will not let you down.

No comments about Swing Along: The Musical Life of Will Marion Cook.

4 comments about Swing, Swing, Swing: The Life and Times of Benny Goodman.

1. This is really the only bio to get of BG. Collier's book "BG And The Swing Era" perpetrates many myths and inaccuracies, mainly because he seems to have this fear about going to primary sources and seems to get a lot of his information off album sleeves and from 12th-hand anecdotes. Firestone's book uncovers some interesting facts, about Benny's flirtation and near-marriage to singer Helen Ward, about the recording of the famous Carnegie Hall concert (contrary to popular myth, there was more than one overhead mike turned on that night, and the band knew they were being recorded) and Benny's near emotional breakdowns in the 50s and 60s and his near total dependence on painkillers and other medications (for a chronic bad back) that also may have altered his personality and brought on some of the bizarre behavior Goodman is infamous for. Briskly-written, filled with surprises, a fascinating read, it should be on the shelf of every jazz fan and big band enthusiast.



2. If you are interested in the history of Jazz, this is one of the books that is essential to your collection. It's not only a great biography about an unusual but talented man, it's the story of a man who stood at the divide between swing and bop, who was a cruel band leader but who nurtured some of the great talents that followed him, who never really mastered bop but whose vision and band format was the foundation that made bop possible.

   Goodman was apparently a hard man to like, and this biography squarely faces his difficult personality. He was also a genius, and incredibly hard working. This book does a good job both of telling the story of Goodman's life and the context of his music. There are many compelling anecdotes, and the story is engrossingly told.




3. So many people love Benny Goodman's music, but know so little about the man himself. Hopefully, all of you Benny aficionados will take a crack at this excellent, well-written biography. Firestone has done copious amounts of research, interviewed many people close to BG and has produced an absolutely definitive look at the King of Swing. From cradle to grave, this provides readers with information on Benny as a musician and also as a(oftentimes difficult) human being. If you want a detailed musical analysis of Goodman, you will find it here, but there is also a gossip-y element which adds considerable spice.

   Firestone illuminates Goodman's jazz beginnings, the early sidemen gigs in the 20's and then the genesis of the Swing band in the mid-30's. It was great to have thumbnail portraits of the great musicians Benny's early bands, they're all here: the frenetic, pot-loving Gene Krupa, the arrogant Harry James, the gentle Teddy Wilson and the phenomenal Lionel Hampton. At the core is Goodman himself, an extremely hard task master, perfectionist and driven man. Firestone details how nit-picky Benny could be, demanding take after take on various album cuts until it all sounded "perfect." Goodman's notorious cheapskate ways are also detailed.

   If you love Goodman's music, then treat yourself to discovering what Goodman was like behind the scenes: difficult, ambitious and addicted to prescription pain killers in later years. Yet despite it all, who could swing like this man? No one.




4. No, not the caped crusader folks. That was the title of a 1940 original composition for the Benny Goodman band composed by Eddie Sauter. But it could also serve as a fitting eulogy for the man who became a clarinet virtuoso in both popular and classical fields of music.
   
   Along the way he managed to be credited with launching the 'Swing Era,' was truly amazed at the fans who came to scream (yes scream) at his band's performances and dance in movie theatre isles (oh you thought it was the Beatles who started all that stuff - think again!!), became an International Ambassador to the USA through his music, playing in Moscow and other Russian cities in 1962 at the height of the cold war, and, oh yes, performed what is generally acknowledged as one of the finest performances of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto. Whew! But then, you only have to listen to understand why he was so highly regarded.
   
   As a Goodman enthusiast I have to confess to owning a large collection of his music, and I have read several mini biographies of the man. In Ross Firestone's book I found many details not previously known to me, which when combined with an excellent and well researched narrative style, combine to make outstanding reading.
   
   From 'hot shot' clarinetist too young to wear long pants but old enough and good enough to find a place in the early dance bands of the 1920's, to 'King of Swing,' World Ambassador of popular music and classical supremo, this book manages to convey a lot about Goodman the man, perfectionist, genius and who could be a nightmare to work for.
   
   Through some fine research it is also one of an elite group of writings that manages to bring the period to life.
   
   Highly recommended.
   
   Drew. Drew Savage is a lifelong big band enthusiast, presenter and the author of The Deceivers
   
   Happily there are hundreds of 'BG' recordings still available. Here are a few of my favorites.
   
   50 Tracks in One Day With One Hour for Lunch, Of CourseThe famous 1935 session done in a single day for radio transcription services!
   Complete Benny Goodman Carnegie Hall Concert 1938Definitive Goodman and has the distinction of being in the catalog every year since first released in 1951!!
   B.G. in Hi-FiBenny was not happy with the soundtrack for the movie 'The benny Goodman Story and so recorded this Hi-Fi (for 1955!) album of his hits. Actually it sounds great.
   1941 Vol 2 The 'modern' band that contained Charlie Christian on electric guitar and trumpeter 'Cootie' Williams who Benny stole from Duke Ellington's band, and the modern arrangements of Eddie Sauter and Bill Finnegan
   Benny In Brussels, Vol. 1/Benny in Brussels, Vol. 2 In fine form in Europe
   Mozart at TanglewoodOne for the classical fans. Benny was proud to be a performer at the first 'Mostly Mozart' festival of music in New York in 1986. Tickets for his concert were the first to sell out but sadly he died before the session and the event became something of a tribute to him.

2 comments about SWING FAVORITES BIG BAND PLAY-ALONG VOL. 1 DRUMS BK/CD (Big Band Play-Along).

1. Classic tunes but all tracks include drums. It is NOT a true Drum Play-along. It should have two tracks for each tune; one with drums and one with out. This only has the one track with drums.
   
   It is not as advertised.



2. True, the CD only has full band versions of the songs and the CD is not enhanced so you can't slow down the songs but the arrangements are professional and the charts are also professional. I guess that would be my one complaint is that the charts are for those who already read charts. I have a degree in music but I could still use a nice key for all the different symbols on the chart. But there is no key and the notation isn't self explanatory. IF you are experienced then this won't be a problem, but for beginners then this is too advanced.
   Still, it's got the grooves and with some practice you can play them.
   
   Just an addition to my review: I'm used to transcribed score arrangements where every note is transcribed and I now realize this book uses a shorthand method. In places, the drum is notated not on the staff, but by using "B.D" for Bass drum and regular quarter notes in the staff. In traditional drum notation, the bass drum has a designated spot on the bottom space of the staff. And whenever the bass drum is played then it gets a note. This goes one step further in the short hand method. That keeps all songs to one page or 2 with no page turns so it's useful.
   
   This book provides a piece of the actual drum part and then indicates any embellishments like rim shots or loose high hat, but you are left to devise your own swing pattern. The whole song is notated, but if you want a transcribed score then this isn't the book to get. Swing and Jazz really aren't the genres to try for a note for note recreation. If you can play good fundamental jazz grooves and only want the embellishments and where to play them as well as the phrase markings and rehearsal marks then this book will work.
   EX: On the CD the drummer plays an extended ending tag improvisation on the Toms and the notation is "Toms" with one note.

1 comments about Swing Jazz Violin with Hot-Club Rhythm: 18 Arrangements of Great Standards for Violin, Violin Trio, and String Quartet Book/2-CDs Pack.

1. CONTENTS
   
   1. Chicago
   2. Some of These Days
   3. After You've Gone
   4. Sheik of Araby
   5. Margie
   6. Swingin' Like 42
   7. My Melancholy Baby
   8. Baby Won't You Please Come Home
   9. Dark Eyes
   10. China Boy
   11. Swing in Minor
   12. The Japanese Sandman
   13. Rose Room
   14. The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise
   15. Avalon
   16. St. Louis Blues
   17. Some of These Days (String Quartet)
   
   This instructional book complete with sheet music offers melodies and solos to 16 great jazz standards. Practice and improvise along with a recorded "Hot-Club" style band. Learn playing tips from one of America's finest violinists Jeremy Cohen. Build your strength, stamina, focus, and improvising chops by jamming with the band. You'll begin by learning melodies and solos to some of the greatest and best known jazz standards, by playing along with a wonderful recorded band playing in the "Hot Club" or "Gypsy jazz" style. Each melody and solo is recorded at both slow and regular speeds, and you'll be able to practice them all with extended band rhythm tracks. Just about any violinist at any level of development can play along with one speed or the other.

3 comments about All Intros and Endings for Jazz Guitar: Bebop, Swing, Latin, Ballads.

1. This is a great book for intermediate players who want some new ideas -- not only for intros and outros but comping and solo playing too. There's a lot of really nice stuff here, lots of modern-sounding chord voicings and a brief, but good, discussion of voice leading. This guy's books are all very good.



2. A TOP choice for augmenting your Jazz Guitar instruction & a very helpful supplement to your Jazz resources.
   
   This book/CD package provides jazz stylistic instruction-practice and includes chord progressions, voice-led ending chords, vamps (bebop, swing, Latin, ballads), extended ideas, classic intros, many concepts, and more. The 40 jam-packed pages and CD provide more real-world jazz material than many other books on the market combined.
   
   Check out the opinions of others, and the author's web page,
   
   http://guitar-mentor.blogspot.com/2005/08/high-yield-guitar-instruction.html
   
   http://www.fergusonguitar.com/books.html



3. Great book,exactly as advertized.After digging into this I realized it is true what they say about having good intros and endings especially with this kind of music.Much of this stuff will stick with you and also lead to your own ideas.Also a great value.I'm eagerly awaiting Volumes 2,3,etc...

1 comments about The Uncrowned King of Swing: Fletcher Henderson and Big Band Jazz.

1. In this world of mass-market trade publications on jazz, it is really refreshing to read such a musically literate book. This fascinating and engaging text is in no way beyond the general reader (i.e., one without an extensive musical background) but it is refreshing to actually see written music in a book on music, and an important jazz volume not written by a critic or journalist (not that there isn't room for the latter too, of course).

2 comments about Jazz Improvisation 3: Swing And Early Progressive Piano Styles (Jazz Improvisation).

1. This is the third in a series of four volumes created between 1959 and 1965 by jazz pianist and instructor John Mehegan. The complete set is of the utmost historical importance for anyone with a serious interest in jazz piano. Before Mehegan, no other author had succeeded in unlocking the mysteries of jazz piano and then communicating them to a mass audience in a clear and cogent manner.

   This volume considers three primary piano styles--first is a stride architecture using open scale tone tenth chords and modelled after pianist Teddy Wilson. The second, also stride, utilizes tenths with other notes filled in. It is modelled after Art Tatum. Third is a bebop architecture modeled after Bud Powell, in which stride is abandoned altogether and the only chord architecture is a series of comparatively naked root-third and root-seventh intervals.

   (Parenthetical note: Serious Bud Powell fans may chafe to see Powell's legacy reduced to something so vastly oversimplified. However, when one is trying to communicate the revolutionary paradigm shift embodied in Powell's groundbreaking bebop work, it is difficult to incorporate his more elaborate solo piano work.

   To get the best grasp of what Mehegan is talking about, particularly in the two stride styles, you should have Mehegan's second volume, Jazz Rhythm And The Improvised Line, which includes solo transcriptions for Wilson's version of Thou Swell and Tatum's legendary "Aunt Hagar's Blues." These transcriptions make it easier to see Mehegan's theoretical concepts "in action."

   Be forwarned that both stride styles are technically very demanding, perhaps impossible if your hands are too small. Mehegan does a good job of breaking all the 10th intervals into three levels of difficulty and proposes viable root-seven alternatives for the most difficult ones.

   The book's primary flaw -- one which persists throughout the series -- is its unfortunate allegiance to the concept of "figured bass" used within traditional music theory instruction. Indeed, there is a conspicuous overall effort throughout the series to "suck up" to academia, but this is a forgivable byproduct of an age when traditional academia persisted in viewing jazz as something too vulgar and intellectually impovershed to merit acceptance within hallowed academic environs. -- Cortland Kirkeby
   
   

2. First, a quick warning... this book is not for beginners or dabblers, it is very thorough, intense, and very little is simplified for folks with small hands or short attention spans. It is probably one of the most thorough yet readable documentations of Jazz Piano technique circa the '30s - '50s, but in its trueness, I imagine countless "quick fix" learners have wound up putting it aside indefinitely... The truth is that the era documented in the book was one that was very Darwinian in nature, especially for pianists who had to battle it out to rise to the top. As a pianist, you couldn't make it to the top by co-existing with your fellow section members... you had to knock the other guy off the bench by playing better than him. Finally, the '60s afforded the piano more harmonic and melodic adventureness and an economy of style where the rhythm section freed up the piano player to break free of many of the conventions documented in this very book - - a rich, full, and rhythmically strong playing style that required experience, stamina, muscles, tireless tendons plus the bedazzling ability not just to be able to play chords and modes, but to HARMONIZE melodies on the spot while playing stride style basslines (!) Fortunately (and towards the end of the book) George Shearing came along, and the 40 or so pages dedicated to his unique "locked hand" style made the book worth the purchase (atleast for me !)

   Some of the language and notation might be a bit out of fashion, and the book definitely requires a lot more reading than many of today's Jazz piano students might be used to, however, anyone seeking a true and systematically presented glimpse into the influences of Teddy Wilson, Art Tatum, Bud Powell, George Shearing and Horace Silver will definitely find this book a priceless resource.

1 comments about Sultans of Swing - The Very Best of Dire Straits.

1. This is a very good book with some of the most well-known songs by Dire Straits. The songs are in the right keys. I found that it was worth the price if only for the Romeo and Juliet tab. This song uses an alternate tuning that you won't find on free internet tabs. The only trick you have to know is to tune lower and capo at fret 3, then you're set to play it the way Mark Knopfler does. Of course, Dire Straits is recommended for, at least, intermediate guitarists. I put myself in that group. Advanced players will have fun on Sultans of Swing, Tunnel of Love and all soli. Some tablatures are less easy to read. They seem to come from magazines and the notation (bends, slides) is different. Unfortunately, the tabs are really for the Sultans of Swing compilation, i.e. shorter versions of the songs. For instance, many bars are missing for the beginning and last solo of Brothers in arms compared to the version of the eponymous album. Still, it's a lot of fun and practice, even for the rhythm chords.

2 comments about 101 Uptown Jazz Chord Progressions with Guitar Chord Frames.

1. Jazz is the authentically American music form that had its beginnings in the brothels of New Orleans and evolved to become an established musical genre appreciated and supported around the world. Larry McCabe draws upon his many years of experience and expertise as the author of more than eighty published instructional music books for children and adults to present "101 Uptown Jazz Chord Progressions With Guitar Chord Frames", a spiral bound collection of jazz progressions for the guitar. specific fingers called chord frames are presented, along with blank music staves for each progression so that aspiring jazz guitarists wanting to write, perform, record, or teach melodies, licks, solos, and bass lines can do so with a professional competence. Of special note are the 'Suggested projects for Students" and the accompanying CD which includes all 101 progressions covering two-five-one, four-bar, eight-bar opening; sections, as well as eight-bar bridges, twelve-bar blues, sixteen-bar, and turnarounds. "101 Uptown Jazz Chord Progressions With Guitar Chord Frames" is an ideal instructional that is confidently recommended for dedicated and aspiring jazz guitarists alike!



2. The complete book on Jazz rhythm... It is definitely an in-depth study on all there is with jazz rhythm, while almost. It has so many variations and chord substitutions that will keep you busy for years. I especially love the chord voicing. The chords are rootless and or played on the upper light strings, (strings 4 down to 1). That is the best location for comping along with a bass players and or piano players or for expressing the melody or for chord soloing style.
   
   The patterns are 4 bars or so in length and Larry gives you indications as to where they can be placed as substitutions for the original arrangement. This will allow you to add variety to any arrangement.
   An additional usage I found helpful is to start creating improvised lines over the patterns or in between them as fills to spark up your comping. I am not that good with it yet, but I am getting better. The key is to comp the first chord on beats 1 and 2 and then add mini fill for beats 3 and 4 and even on 1 and 2 for the next bar before playing the next chord in the pattern. To get a ideas of this playing, check out players like Joe Pass, Herb Ellis' style of comping; then take any pattern from this book and try to mimic their style of playing.
   
   But for you beginners, you will love this book for the simple reason that it will have you creating professional sounding arrangements, intros and ending. Pretty cool stuff in here, man