30 Days to Better Jazz Guitar - Dr. Matt Warnock

My good friend and fellow blogger, Dr. Matt Warnock, is doing great things for the guitar community. Through his work on the Guitar International website and his own personal website, Matt has been challenging us all to be better guitarists, and his recently published eBook – 30 Days to Better Jazz Guitar – is his latest contribution.

For those of us (myself included) learning to play jazz, figuring out what we should practice and what we need to learn can become a very daunting endeavor. Fortunately, 30 Days to Better Jazz Guitar provides us with a great set of tools to improve our playing.

Right off the bat, the first thing I love about this eBook is the 30-day format. Let’s be honest, these days it’s very difficult to keep an organized practice regimen. Matt solves that problem in a very easy yet elegant way – start at Day 1 and keep going for a month. Each day’s lesson is different, so by the end of the 30 days you’re getting an excellent variety of things to work on. (It is the spice of life, after all.) From Dominant Cycles to the Pentatonic b9 scale to Sight Reading and chord studies, you are getting a massively essential jazz education.

If you are not a jazz guitar player, don’t let the title turn you off. Yes, there are “jazz” concepts in this book. But Matt has gone much further than that. There are guitar concepts in this book. You don’t have to want to be a jazz player to benefit from the content. As you know, I’m a firm believer in learning what you can from anyone and everyone. Even the most metal of the metal heads will find information to work on that is applicable to whatever they want to play.

As I worked through the exercises, I both hated and appreciated how many holes it exposed in my playing. Things I thought I had down – simple things – quickly became apparent to me that the material goes much, much deeper. These exercises are not incredibly difficult, but they will make you work. In some cases you will learn new material, in other cases you will get a better understanding of some things you already know.

And just when you thought 30 days of material to work on wasn’t enough, how about five bonus lessons? Yes, Matt is that generous. He is also extending the special offer price ($14.99) for a limited time, so I encourage you all to pick up your copy now. As 2012 approaches, there is no better way to kick start your playing for the new year by picking up 30 Days to Better Jazz Guitar.

30 Days to Better Jazz Guitar by Dr. Matt Warnock is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

Volume 1: Scale Mastery

We hinted about it here — and was a bit more blatant about it here — so it’s not really a surprise announcement by conventional standards. But, we (Fretterverse) are quite pleased to announce the release of its first eBook — Scale Mastery.

Over a year in the making, Scale Mastery takes you way beyond the typical scale-learning methods available on the market today. I promise this eBook to be an original solution to an old problem.

Whether you are a beginning guitarist just starting out, an intermediate player having trouble getting certain sounds under your fingers, or even just a player who’s bored with his playing and wants a fresh approach, Scale Mastery will open up your eyes and ears to new possibilities.

The best part is, we’re selling the eBook (along with accompanying audio backing tracks) for $10. Yes, only ten dollars USD. That’s a bargain.

Please visit our Products page for more information about Scale Mastery, as well as a link to purchase and download the eBook instantly.

Buy a copy, tell your friends and family, or just buy them copies, too!

Fretterverse Releases First eBook in Series is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

Hear ye! Hear ye! This eBook will revolutionize the world!

It’s taken me a year to finally be able to make this great announcement.

I’m happy to tell you all that I am now putting the finishing touches on the first volume in the Fretterverse Guitar Concepts eBook series, which will be available for sale very soon! Volume 1 is called “Scale Mastery” and, obviously, details a new method for learning scales and modes.

Surely, there have been hundreds of books, videos, and Internet websites dedicated to learning how to play scales. Everyone has an opinion, and everyone has a “trick.” So what makes this one so special? Why should you check out my eBook when you’ve probably already spent way too much money on everyone else’s?

If you really want to know, keep reading…

I’m not going to give away the farm just yet, but what’s important to know is that Scale Mastery is first and foremost not a book with a list of scales showing pictures of all of the available notes on the fretboard. (That, in my opinion, is not a good way to learn scales.) Nor is Scale Mastery a book of licks that hints at a certain “sound” that you can throw into your bag of tricks. Licks are great – everyone should have some – but again, not a great way to learn scales correctly.

No, Scale Mastery is a system of exercises that will teach you how to Deep Learn a scale; how to really get the sound in your ears and under your fingers so you can use it freely as opposed to shoving into your favorite line. There are no tricks, no secret hints that can shorten your learning curve so you sound like Pat Metheny in two days. No tricks, just a method for honest, hard-working guitarists to become better players and better musicians.

I will be releasing more information about the book in the next few weeks, so stay tuned. I promise it will be good, and I promise it will be more than affordable.

If you like reading Fretterverse, please spread the word. Sales of the eBook will help support this blog and keep it running.

Cheers!

The eBook is Coming! The eBook is Coming! is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

Who has the worst biography of a musician, ever?

Sometimes a guy just has to cut through the witty banter, joking titles, and say what’s on my mind.

I have, unfortunately, just finished reading what I believe to be the absolute worst biography of a musician ever in the history of print.

The worst part is that I was really looking forward to reading it.

But alas,  I had to suffer through it.

Keep reading if you want to know which book to avoid…

Wost. Book. Ever.

I’m sorry, everyone… I simply won’t have witty commentary or engaging thoughts on this one. This is a straight up rant on a really bad purchase. The book is called Grant Green: Rediscovering the Forgotten Genius of Jazz Guitar.

Things start off badly right from the get-go with the simple fact that the author is the ex-wife of one of Green’s sons. I’m sorry, but from the first few sentences it became apparent to me that the author, Sharony Andrews Green, was trying to elevate herself just as much as her subject. Sharony spent a lot of time in the beginning talking about herself, even to the point of her plugging her 1st book! I mean, I’m sorry but I didn’t buy this book to hear about Sharony’s life. But it felt like I was going to hear just as much about her and her husband as I did Green.

This went on for quite a while. It got better towards the middle, but then the timeline got screwy. In one paragraph she was writing about Green’s life in the 70′s, and then all of a sudden we’re back to the 50′s. I had a very hard time keeping track of what point of Green’s life was being discussed.

This went on for most of the book. But the absolute WORST offense came in the section that described the death of Wes Montgomery. Sharony, as the author, had the audacity to frame the event that was Montgomery’s death as to intimate that Green was somewhat relieved “now that his competition was gone.” (My paraphrasing.) I mean, could you be any more disrespectful? I’m sorry, but no matter what you think of Grant Green as a player, he was never, EVER, any competition to Wes Montgomery. Even if that might have been the case in his own head, Sharony never met Grant and never indicated that Green said (or felt) that way towards Wes. At the very least it was an incredibly insensitive thing to say about the greatest jazz guitar player who ever lived.

And so the book goes on and on like this for a while. Very disjointed, very hard to read. The most disappointing art of the book was when she spoke about Green’s funeral. Now, this isn’t necessarily the author’s fault, but I find it very odd that no one seemed to be able to accurately describe the funeral. Some people said it was taken over by militant Mulsims, other say no. Some say it was largely attended, some say not. Some say only the family was at the cemetery, others say not. It’s more sad than anything that a guitar player as great as Green, who Sharony went out of her way to hype up (deservedly or not) as a very popular and respected member of the guitar, St. Louis, and Muslim communities, was not able to be remembered accurately even at his own funeral!

The last straw for me, honestly, was the end of the book where Sharony went back to talk to herself to mention that she divorced from one of Green’s sons. You know what? I don’t care! I mean, I’m certainly sorry that for whatever reason it didn’t work out, but what does that have to do with Grant?

Simply put, the book was poorly written. The author interjected herself into the subject’s story, the timeline was screwy, and the disrespect to Montgomery’s memory was all just too much for me to bear. I strongly recommend that you NOT buy this book. Everyone’s mileage may vary, but for me the mileage on this book was very short.

What I would love to see is someone do a much better job about the life of Grant Green. I don’t think his story has been sufficiently told, and it should be.

The Worst Musician Biography, Ever is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

Chicken Pickin by Erik Halbig

I done luvs me some country chicken pickin’. Seriously, I’m a huge fan. I don’t know a ton about the country guitar scene, but when I hear Scotty Anderson or Danny Gatton or Johnny Hiland I get all warm and fuzzy on the inside. There is little better in my opinion than listening to a great country guitar player rip out some sick line that drops my jaw.

I have always wanted to be able to throw out a few country licks during jam sessions. Not necessarily master the style, but have just a few licks under my belt to whip them out when the hell hounds are on my trail and Steve Vai seemingly has me down for the count. (That one will catch you on the way home.)

I picked up the book Chicken Pickin’ (Over 100 hot country guitar licks) by Erik Halbig during one of my frequent music store excursions, for the specific purpose of getting a few of these equalizers into my jam repertoire.

I wasn’t sure what to expect. When I’m checking out a new jazz guitar book I know exactly what I’m getting into, so the purchasing decisions are easy. But country guitar is so foreign to me that I had no idea what to expect. Chicken Pickin’ looked like as good a place as any, however, so I bought it to give it a shot.

Halbig’s book is very straightforward. At only 40 pages (and an accompanying audio CD) he wastes no time getting right down to business. Every page has several examples – it is a “licks” book, after all – to get you started. The chapters are:

1. Scales
2. Bending
3. Open-String Licks
4. Double-Stop Licks
5. Repetitive Sequences
6. Chromatic Licks

I have to tell you, these licks are cool! The problem is that I suck at them!  They aren’t incredibly difficult from a technical perspective, but obviously you need to get the feeling down to sound convincing. I think I’m partial to the open-string licks the most.

There is not a lot of explanation in the book, which in this case works well. The concepts are rather simple, so there is no need to waste time reading long-winded descriptions. Just listen to the audio CD and spend the majority of your time working through the examples (in standard notation and tab) and you’re good to go.

As time goes on I would like to explore the country guitar thing in more detail. For now, I need to get some of these licks under my fingers first! If you want a great introduction, this is the book to start with.

Chicken Pickin’ by Erik Halbig (book) is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

Jazz Guitar Harmony by Jody Fisher

I love chords. Love ‘em, love ‘em, love ‘em!

I’m one of “those” guitar players that gets off on hearing great guitar rhythm playing/comping than a great solo. Especially in regards to jazz, comping and playing the right notes and chord voicings is where it’s at. There is nothing like hearing a new chord underneath a nice melody line in a ballad that sends shivers up my spine.

Let’s be honest. Guitar solos are great. We all know that; that’s why we started playing guitar to begin with, right? Without a great harmonic background to support that ripping solo, however, it’s just not the same.

And so, in my desperate quest to try and pass myself off as a jazz guitar player (still working on it…) I purchased pretty much every jazz guitar harmony/chord book there is. We’re talking dozens and dozens of books. I think I kept the jazz guitar education community gainfully employed for a few months.

Of all the books I bought, only a few managed to stick out and stay on the top of the pile. Though most covered the same material, it’s all in the presentation. Jazz Guitar Harmony, written by guitarist Jody Fisher, is one of the books I continuously turn to time and time again.

You can tell a lot about a jazz guitar player by his chord voicings. I believe, even more so than how he solos. So there must be something about Fisher’s playing that I really like, because I love this book! All of the material you would expect and require from a jazz guitar harmony book is covered here. I think it’s the way Fisher presents the material that strikes a chord (pun intended) with me.

There is not a lot of text explanation, but there are lots of examples to play and practice. Chapter 1 – a very short chapter on triads – is the only group of pages without direct practice material. But once you quickly get into Chapter 2 you are off to the races!

It’s both apparent and obvious to me that Fisher is a very good teacher, as his book builds progressively upon previous chapters to expand your chord vocabulary and knowledge of jazz harmony concepts. But it’s not just a book of chords to learn (though I have circled many a chord voicing to make sure I add to my playing). Rather, it’s a book that gives you just enough material to immediately add to your bag of tricks but also plenty of inspiration and a pathway to work out other ideas on your own. Nothing is too far-fetched or out of place; Fisher provides you with exactly what you need to know to get better quickly and build upon the foundation in your own way.

In addition to chords, progressions, leading tones, backcycling, passing chords, reharmonization, tritone substitutions, and a whole host of other ideas are presented in the book – all with simple but easy-to-understand explanations and lots of examples. I guess I should also mention that every example is written in standard notation and tablature, so you don’t have to be a sight-reading guru in order to get a lot out of this book.

I was hoping to be able to show a few pages from the inside of the book, but for copyright reasons I thought better of it. You can, however, see some example pages from Amazon’s page, so I encourage you to check it out and see some of the material.

Jazz Guitar Harmony also comes with an audio CD in case you are one of those players (like me) who learn better when you can hear what’s going on along with seeing it on the printed page.

If you couldn’t tell already, I highly recommend this book. It is densely packed with important information but not so big that you will feel overwhelmed. A great book for both beginner and intermediate jazz guitar players.

Jazz Guitar Harmony by Jody Fisher (book) is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

Jazz Guitar Comping by Andrew Green

Any and all guitar players should be concerned with their rhythm playing. Concerned in the sense that it’s just as important (if not more so) than being great at soloing. I have always been much more impressed with the ability of guitarists to play with the band rather than how well they stand out.

Especially in the world of jazz, comping (“accompanying”) is a very elusive beast and requires lots of practice and hard work. When done well, however – just listen to Jimmy Bruno, Jim Hall, Steve Herberman, Joe Masakowski, or a host of other great players and you’ll understand what I’m talking about.

The problem is that there isn’t really a set formula for being a great comper. I mean, I can give you a certain set of scales, arpeggios, and pentatonic licks and you can probably sound pretty good after a while, but being good at comping goes way beyond just what chords you play. It’s also knowing when to play, what rhythms to play, and how to best back up the soloist.

That’s where Andrew Green’s book Jazz Guitar Comping comes in.

I’ll tell you up front that you have to have at least some background in being able to read music, as well as some understanding of jazz harmony, to get the most out of this book. That being said, this book covers a very broad range of comping suggestions and scenarios for you to dig into. Everything from two- and three-note voicings, upper partials, rhythms, multi-use voicings, and quartal harmony is discussed.Voice leading is also discussed at length, which is perhaps the most important aspect of being a good comper.

Green’s writing style is easy to understand and uses musical examples (more so than text) to really drive home what he’s teaching. There are tons and tons and tons of examples to play through (and listen to on the included CD), and it will take you a long time to work through and internalize all of the information. That’s a good thing!

Green’s website – Chops Factory – has samples from the book, as well as some of the best information about jazz in general. For a few years he was writing a chord of the week thread that I absolutely loved. Though I don’t believe he updates it anymore, you can still view the archives on his site.

I don’t want to write too much about the book because I believe it truly speaks for itself. If you have any interest at all in being a good rhythm guitarist – jazz or otherwise – you can learn an awful lot by buying this book and making your way through all of the examples. I recommend this book as a “must-have” addition to your library.

Jazz Guitar Comping – Andrew Green (Book) is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

There’s certainly nothing wrong with that approach, but as I get older and now have several music projects being worked on, I’ve come to the conclusion that ignorance isn’t necessarily bliss.

So during a recent trip to my favorite Barnes & Noble, I picked up this little gem of a book called Big Studio Secrets for Home Recording and Production by Joe Dochtermann.

My goal? To start my recording, engineering, and production education way too late in life. Here are my thoughts on the book and whether or not it is a good place to start.

The first thing that struck me was that I really like Dochtermann’s writing style. Very direct yet funny, and not overly-technical. You can actually learn about recording and production without being mired in hundreds of confusing terms and concepts.

The book is very well thought out, starting with a chapter on honoring those who came before us. Dochtermann gives us a quick history of a few engineering pioneers, including Les Paul, Phil Spector, and the Mowtown sound. The book then works its way through audio basics, the microphone and mic’ing techniques. Everything from studio setup to EQ, effects, and arranging information is also included.

My favorite part of the book – and I certainly haven’t absorbed (pun intended) everything the book has to offer – is the section on how to build different sound absorption traps in the “Setting Up Your Studio” chapter. Have you ever thought to use a metal trash can as a bass trap? I bet you haven’t; but Dochtermann shows you how!

Also of note, which I don’t see a lot of in the few recording books I’ve checked out, are chapters on music production and arrangement. Dochtermann covers them both, and they are welcome additions. The book also comes with a CD-Rom containing audio examples. I admit that I haven’t dug into this yet, so I can’t comment on what you get. But, the book in and of itself is well worth the price. There is a ton of well-written information that beginning audio production students can learn from.

If you want to get started down the road of recording and production and don’t know where to begin, I highly recommend this book.

Big Studio Secrets for Home Recording and Production (Book) is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

Wes Montgomery is widely regarded as the greatest jazz guitarist of all time. His work has been dissected, analyzed, and copied millions of times. His influence as a jazz guitarist has thus far been unsurpassed and will probably remain so for a very long time. One would be hard-pressed to find a straight-ahead player who has not spent a significant amount of time learning the Montgomery catalog, octaves and all. He is, for lack of a better term, the man!

I thought I had read (and bought) everything that was out there about Montgomery and his music, so you could imagine my surprise when a random trip to my local Sam Ash music store resulted in the discovery of this little gem of a book, a transcription of Montgomery’s “Jazz Icons”  live performance DVD from 1965 called “625 Alive: The Wes Montgomery BBC Performance Transcribed” by Tim Fitzgerald.

(Jazz 625 is the name of the program in which the performance was recorded, in case you were wondering.)

Jazz Icons: Wes Montgomery, Live in '65

After a very brief introduction, the book kicks off with an interview from pianist Harold Mabern, who played with Montgomery starting in 1964. It’s an easy-going interview, but there were a few revelations about Montgomery and his playing that I had not previously heard. I’m not going to tell you what they are, so you’re just going to have to track the book down yourself if you want to know. After the interview the transcriptions start.

I have not dug through every note in the book, but the transcriptions seem accurate and careful attention was made in trying to properly notate Montgomery’s nuanced playing. Although there are only six songs, there is absolutely enough material contained within to give you plenty of years of material to work on; such was the depth of Montgomery’s playing. Each transcription is also prefaced by a quick but thorough analysis of the solo, which offers great insight into how his solos were structured.

Overall I think the book is very well done. If I had to offer one complaint, I think the way the chords were identified in each song could have been executed better. What I mean by that is, in most cases the chords named above the staff are related to what Montgomery played, not what the original chord of the song structure is. I understand why this was done, but I would much rather have seen the original chord progression written and then Montgomery’s substitutions and alterations shown in small script right below. This way the reader gets a much better understanding of what is going on.

But that’s a very minor complaint given the fact that we have a transcribed account of Montgomery’s live playing. I do recommend this book for anyone interested in jazz or Montgomery’s style.

625 Alive: The Wes Montgomery BBC Performance Transcribed is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.

“Oh, you must get this book!”
“This is the only book you’re going to need!”
“Everyone usually recommends you start here first.”

It’s almost a source of pride for us as people to be able to successfully recommend a resource to someone and have them succeed. “See? I told you so” is perhaps the most gratifying sentence in the history of mankind.

Especially in the opinionated world of guitar, almost everyone you talk to has some book, DVD, or CD that they feel encompasses everything you will need to know. When it comes to learning how to play jazz (which I’m still learning to do), that resource – my “bible” – comes in the form of a book by pianist Mark Levine called The Jazz Theory Book.

From the second you open this book you become absorbed in the language of jazz. I would venture to say that pretty much every conceivable facet of jazz performance and improvisation is covered.

Modes? Got it.
Pentatonics? Covered.
Chord theory? It’s in there!
Coltrane changes? Yep.
Reharmonization? But, of course…

What I love the most about Levine’s jazz theory book is the huge number of musical examples taken from famous jazz recordings. It’s obvious that Levine has done his homework, providing literally hundreds of examples (in musical notation) and footnotes so you know what CD to buy to hear it.

Another highlight for me is extensive use of examples from pianist Mulgrew Miller and trumpeter Woody Shaw – two of my favorites. It’s not an overwhelming amount, but they are quoted enough to really get a feel for their style. Fret not, however, this is not a piano or trumpet book. It’s not a guitar book, either. It’s a jazz book.

This is not a book that you will be able to sit down from page one and play through all of the examples so by the time you are done you can “play jazz.” Nope, it’s not a method book. If anything it’s an expository work that shows you all of the tools you will need to succeed. Learning how to use those tools to build something is up to you.

I have read this book five or six times since I bought it a few years ago. I would say I read it at least once a year from cover to cover in order to keep the information fresh in my mind. You truly can never get enough from this book!

If you are interested in learning the language of jazz, I can offer you no suggestion better than The Jazz Theory Book by Mark Levine. You will not be disappointed.

The Jazz Theory Book by Mark Levine is a post from: Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons. If you are reading this on a site that is not Fretterverse.com, it's been ripped. Please come to the real Fretterverse.com.