Best all inclusive books to improve my improv/jamming, to learn jazz, adv. theory

[TenorGeetard]

Would like to get some strong suggestions on books that will improve my playing.

I've been playing a while, professionally and casually... I consider myself to be an intermediate to advanced player in various fields.

However i'd like to go back to basics and start from there. The fundamentals, beginner theory, and trace it all the way through to the most advanced theory available.

Outside of that i'd also like to improve my soloing, my ability to play and jam with other musicians. So i'd like to really get to know the fretboard, I want to be able to look at it and know every note, every possible combination, I want to really become familiar with it. I want to practice more of the complex arrangements, scales, and chord structures as well. But as i said, i'd like to come at it from the very beginning and work my way there.

I've never really played jazz. I'd like to also start getting into it, and would love a recommendation on what books would be all inclusive on taking me down the road from the very fundamentals of jazz to the more complicated theory and practice.

I'm not just interested in jazz, id like to learn all of the aforementioned skills and gain the knowledge of the various things i've mentioned previously, and on TOP of that start getting into jazz. and if at all possible a more progressive and modern approach to it all

some of you may give me some resources that aren't found in books. i.e. youtube and other websites. I learn really well from books. the whole experience with a book for me is simply the easiest and most effective way of learning.

There is a catch. I currently (as you may be able to tell from my name) play the Tenor Guitar (4 strings tuned D-G-B-E, just like the top four of a guitar). I'm asking here because a book on 6 strings would have all the information I need, will the only caveat being that i'm missing two strings. I have other resources that I can look at to help transpose most of the information that may strictly pertain to 6 strings instead of four. However, there are some books out there for the Baritone Ukulele which is in fact tuned the same exact way as my tenor, and with the same number of strings, just a shorter scale. So if there are any books out there you can recommend that are strictly for the baritone uke, they may be useful as well. After thinking about it though, theres probably a lot more in depth knowledge, know-how, and information out there in books designed to teach the reader about the 6 string guitar, than books that focus on the ukulele. So having a book on guitar may be a better overall learning experience.

Thanks for helping.

[mr. beaumont]

To start on jazz for your tenor:

Google drop 2 voicings for guitar. Focus on string set 4-1. Should be pretty easy to find.

Buy a Real Book and start learning tunes!

And join us in the PLAY and WRITE section on the "90 days to fretboard freedom" thread (shameless plug)

And buy any record you can find with Tiny Grimes, if you haven't already.

[TenorGeetard]

i appreciate the response, but it really doesnt address my questions.

[BT55]

Private Lessons with a Jazz Guitar teacher.

[mr. beaumont]

Originally Posted by TenorGeetard

i appreciate the response, but it really doesnt address my questions.

Actually it does. Learn the drop 2 chords and then apply them to music.

Jazz isn't theoretical. It's still tunes.

[Mark M.]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Actually it does. Learn the drop 2 chords and then apply them to music.

Jazz isn't theoretical. It's still tunes.

I second this. You have laid out some pretty ambitious goals, and that’s good. But, getting proficient in the jazz repertoire, theory, and facility in improvising is a marathon. There is not an “all inclusive” book that will get you there. I recommend that you do what is suggested above, do a lot of listening, and over time see if you can find people to play with that are better than you. A teacher would also be recommended. Good luck in your journey. Enjoy it!

[TenorGeetard]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Actually it does. Learn the drop 2 chords and then apply them to music.

Jazz isn't theoretical. It's still tunes.

Just because you may learn one way, or you may have a complete understanding of something doesn't mean a simple explanation in a few words is going to teach me what I need to know, or lead me in any direction. I asked about books and resources, you told me to use google... most people have their own ways of approaching music, of knowledge in general. You in fact Did not address my question, which specifically asked for a book. You told me "find a good book"... Im not a jazz aficionado, but im pretty sure theres more to it then just learning the drop 2 chords and applying them... If that was all there is to learning jazz, then everybody would be a master.. I came to these forums to look for solid advice, specific advice... not a response that seems like one of those internet ads: "see how this one simple trick... yada yada yada".

[Johny Tenthumbs]

I'll pile on too by saying those are all great responses. When I started taking jazz guitar lessons as a teen, my instructor tossed me a Real Book with a couple of songs circled in the index, and said learn them for next week, it forced me to start learning right away. I learned more in a few months than in the preceding 5 years and my playing improved vastly.

As mentioned, there is no single all encompassing book on music theory, it can be a life long learning process even for music professors.

[iim7V7IM7]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Actually it does. Learn the drop 2 chords and then apply them to music.

Jazz isn't theoretical. It's still tunes.

Yup and yup Jeff...

[mr. beaumont]

Originally Posted by TenorGeetard

Just because you may learn one way, or you may have a complete understanding of something doesn't mean a simple explanation in a few words is going to teach me what I need to know, or lead me in any direction. I asked about books and resources, you told me to use google... most people have their own ways of approaching music, of knowledge in general. You in fact Did not address my question, which specifically asked for a book. You told me "find a good book"... Im not a jazz aficionado, but im pretty sure theres more to it then just learning the drop 2 chords and applying them... If that was all there is to learning jazz, then everybody would be a master.. I came to these forums to look for solid advice, specific advice... not a response that seems like one of those internet ads: "see how this one simple trick... yada yada yada".

If you think there's a book to help you "master" jazz, it's never happening.

I gave you good advice. If you learn those drop 2's and their arpeggios,
Nd you learn actual songs, I guarantee I can get you playing real jazz.

I told you to buy a Real book. Not a "good" book. It's a thing. A real book, hal Leonard publishing, hundreds of tunes.

And, join the group and learn the whole fretboard.

It's literally several years of work I laid out for you. Doesn't have to be long winded to be useful.

Guarantee.

[Doug Young]

I'm not sure any single such book exists, or even a series of books. There are lots of books on jazz, theory, harmony, etc, but nothing I know of that is a beginning to end nuts and bolts approach. There are some classic books worth having, like Ted Greene's books, Jim Fergeson's books. There's Mark Levine's massive theory book. You can also check Berkeley Press and all the books by Musician's Institute (just search for all of these on Amazon). There's a wealth of info there, but not a straight-line course, I think the topic's just too big and diverse for a book.

Years ago, I had the good fortune to attend a week-long seminar by Howard Roberts - it was sort of a test curriculum for what was about to become GIT. 6 or 7 days, 8 hours a day, and he did have it all laid out in sequence from pretty basic to quite advanced. I came home with a huge stack of notes and handouts, maybe 400-500 pages of stuff. I wish I still had those, it's the closest I've seen to a comprehensive course in one place. But rather than put it out as a book or series, he decided to found a school instead, with the idea that it was better taught interactively with hands-on experience. I suspect that's correct. So I'd find a good teacher, grab lots of books, and and dive in.

[JonPR]

This is the most comprehensive jazz theory book I know:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jazz-Theory.../dp/0415537614

But the best book of all for jazz theory (at least for improvisation) has to be a Real Book. I.e., a book of melodies and chord sequences.
Second to that (before even the best theory book) would be a book of transcriptions of solos by jazz greats.
Naturally the latter would benefit from theoretical analysis (to help understand how the solos work), so you would need enough theory knowledge to understand that. But that doesn't need to be very deep. Knowledge of keys and chord structure is really all you need. Possibly some chord-scale theory when it comes to modal jazz, or any jazz of the last few decades. (CST is of no use in pre-1959 jazz.)

And better than any book - of course - is jazz recordings. Listen and copy, listen and copy, over and over. Songbooks and solo transcriptions will assist in that process, naturally, but need to be taken with a pinch of salt (your ear is probably at least as good as whoever did the transcriptions). Some way behind those comes the best theory book.

Theory will certainly help give an overview of what's going on, but won't really help you improvise. Improvising well is about knowing the material thoroughly, a good ear, and knowing your instrument thoroughly.

But even with minimal knowledge (of the material or your instrument), you can still improvise to some extent. That's more a question of attitude than anything else. You don't have to be able to play an instrument at all in order to improvise on it!
For it to be good improvisation, you have to be able to judge the noises you're making, decide what other noises will sound good with those, and have some idea how to make those other noises. Beginners can do that - or at least they could if they believed they could.
I.e., my point here is there is a myth that you have to reach a certain level of skill and knowledge before you can even start trying to improvise. The same myth applies to composition. In fact, one can - and IMO should - begin improvising and composing from day one when you start learning an instrument.

Sorry, I know this is drifting off topic, because you're clearly not a beginner. My main point is that books of any kind are secondary sources at best. Don't put your trust in books. Don't expect books (especially not theory books) to provide you with revelations or secrets about how music works - at least not how jazz improvisation works.
Books can be very interesting, no doubt about that. I've read some great books on jazz (even one or two quite good jazz theory ones). None of them have helped me improvise. It's learning tunes, practising my guitar - and above all playing with other musicians - that's helped me do that.

[Howard Klepper]

Probably the best book for what the OP is seeking is Wm. Leavitt's A Modern Method for Guitar. You can get it from Amazon.

OP was pretty clear about wanting fundamentals and thorough fretboard knowledge.

Sure, becoming a player requires playing a lot of tunes. I didn't see where the OP said he thinks otherwise. He seems to know his own learning process.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by Howard Klepper

Probably the best book for what the OP is seeking is Wm. Leavitt's A Modern Method for Guitar. You can get it from Amazon.

OP was pretty clear about wanting fundamentals and thorough fretboard knowledge.

Sure, becoming a player requires playing a lot of tunes. I didn't see where the OP said he thinks otherwise. He seems to know his own learning process.

Fair point. I was just indulging in my usual rant.

[rick-slo]

Originally Posted by Howard Klepper

Probably the best book for what the OP is seeking is Wm. Leavitt's A Modern Method for Guitar. You can get it from Amazon.

OP was pretty clear about wanting fundamentals and thorough fretboard knowledge.

Sure, becoming a player requires playing a lot of tunes. I didn't see where the OP said he thinks otherwise. He seems to know his own learning process.

A good book series with actual tunes to put stuff in practice.
You will need to be able to read standard notation (no tab in book).

You can download it free here:
https://epdf.tips/queue/a-modern-met...e-methods.html