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Jazz Basics

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Jazz Chords:

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Early jazz bands relied on the banjo because of its ability to match the volume of the other

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instruments. The guitar was soon to replace the banjo as the rhythmic string instrument favored in

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a jazz ensemble. Early jazz guitarists tended to play block chords to provide the rhythmic support
which was once the role of the banjo. These early jazz guitarists had to adopt a very economical

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chordal style to match some of the fast tempos they were expected to play. This involved three or

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four note chords and the legacy of this is to be found in all jazz guitar styles. Here are three

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moveable exercises illustrating the basic jazz chord vocabulary:

Exercise One: Four Note Jazz Chords In Root Position

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G major

G maj7

G7

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Exercise Two: Four Note Jazz Chords In First Inversion

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E major

E maj7

E7

E6

Exercise Three: Three Note Jazz Chords In Second Inversion

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C major

C maj7

C7

C6

Jazz Forms Any student of jazz has to be familiar with the two main forms: the twelve bar blues
and the thirty-two-bar ballad. A very famous thirty-two bar song is "Misty" by Errol Garner and
many other jazz standards also use this form. Jazz musicians have also used the twelve-bar blues
form extensively.
Fake Book Fake Books are collections of jazz standards (tunes that are in most musicians'
repertoires) by the likes of Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Bud Powell, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington,
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etc. You should start by getting a Fake Book and recordings of the tunes. Listen to the songs and
get a general feel for the jazz style.
Note that a fakebook is a good aid for learning tunes, but professional jazz musicians are expected
to develop a large repertoire of memorized tunes. It is also helpful to learn tunes in every key,
though the fakebook will usually present them in the most common key. This approach has two
benefits: one, it forces you to consider the relationships between the chords rather than simply
memorizing the chord names to play; and two, many singers perform tunes in keys other than the
"book key."
Jazz Style Jazz rhythms are meant to swing. While not all jazz consists of swinging rhythms (some
may have a straight eighth feel) it is important to become familiar with this style of playing. Swing is
a difficult style to notate because it involves pulling and pushing against the beat; so students
approach jazz by listening to the music first. If you are new to jazz then the song "My Favourite
Things" from the musical The Sound Of Music is a good place to start. Listen to John Coltrane's
jazz version and compare it against the original soundtrack version. You will notice that the original
version swings less and that Coltrane's version lasts longer than the original. Jazz musicans are
expected to be able to improvise around a melody and this is exactly what Coltrane does;
extending the song and melody beyond its original form. The drums and piano on Coltrane's
version definetly swing in comparison to the backing instruments of the original. Swing may be a
difficult style to describe on paper but its very easy to hear.
The use of octaves is a common technique in jazz guitar. Once a jazz guitarist has learnt the notes
to a melody, say "Summertime", they will then play the same melody using octaves. Audiences
hear octaves as a single melodic line and therefore using octaves is a highly effective technique
for re-inforcing the melody line. Jazz guitarists are also very adept at playing scales backwards.
The jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell on the album Midnight Blue uses simple minor pentatonic scales to
great effect starting on their highest note and descending through the scale to the lowest note.
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Kenny Burrell may also open a solo with a backwards minor pentatonic scale. Playing scales
backwards is a technique that provides for surprise openings, unusual bridges and tension
releasing.
Many famous early jazz guitarists cited horn players as a major influence. The rise of jazz
coincided with the development of radio and the gramophone and early recordings of jazz played a
major role in developing the main stylistic elements of the genre. Louis Armstrong's "West End
Blues" (Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five - 1928) is considered one of the masterpieces of early
jazz and cemented the role of the brass soloist forever in jazz. Jazz guitarists of the day took note
and soon it became standard practice for guitarists to copy "horn riffs". Charlie Christian (Benny
Goodman Band 1930s) is still considered by many as one of the great players of the instrument
with many of his riffs displaying "horn-like" qualities. Christian also played a role in the
development of Be-Bop participating in jams with Dizzy Gillespie and Theolonius Monk at Minton's
Playhouse in New York (1941) which were recorded by a jazz fan. These recordings represent the
transition from Swing to Be-Bop and offer a rare chance to hear the informal "after-hours"
meetings of some of the greatest players in jazz. A good jazz guitarist will normally have a few
"horn riffs" in his vocabulary. Try playing along to a Miles Davis or John Coltrane recordings;
choose a slow tempo ballad. Brass instruments are melodic instruments and therefore, unlike the
guitar, horn players cannot form chords. This means that horn players develop very strong
melodic capabilties and focus and this provides an ideal opportuntiy for a guitarist to improve their
lead guitar and melodic focus.

Essential Jazz Guitarists and Recordings

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Here is a list of jazz guitarists every guitarist should know,

in more-or-less chronological order.
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Charlie Christian was the first guitarist to popularize the

electric guitar as a solo instrument in jazz. Listen to the
recordings he made with Benny Goodman in the late
1930s, including "Solo Flight."
Django Reinhardt was a gypsy jazz guitarist who played
swinging single-note lines on the acoustic guitar. Listen
to his recordings with the Hot Club of France from the
late 1930s.
Tal Farlow brought the harmonic and melodic
innovations of the Bebop style of jazz to the guitar. His
mid-1950s recordings are recommended listening.
Jim Hall brought a motif-based style of improvisational
development to the jazz guitar. His recordings with Bill
Evans are an excellent starting point.
Wes Montgomery is renowned for his horn-like single
lines, innovative octaves, and 'impossible' chord solos.
The three essential Wes Montgomery recordings, all
from the early 1960s, are The Incredible Jazz Guitar of

The jazz guitarist Pat Metheny;

whose understated guitar style drew
not only praise from jazz fans but also
gained him a following from many who
had no experience of jazz.

Wes Montgomery, Full House, and Smokin' At The Half

Note.
George Benson is known for his improvisation as well as his more popular later works. Listen to
his work with organists Jack McDuff and Dr. Lonnie Smith.
Pat Martino is known for his fluid single-line improvisation. A good introduction to his playing is
Live At Yoshi's, featuring organist Joey DeFrancesco and drummer Billy Hart.
Joe Pass was a great improvisor, but he is known especially for his solo chord-melody
arrangements of jazz standards. Essential listening includes the "Virtuoso" series of recordings
which showcase his solo pieces.
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John McLaughlin is known as a pioneering jazz-rock guitarist. His work in the 1970s with the
Mahavishnu Orchestra should be considered essential listening.
John Scofield is known for his angular lines and use of dissonance. For new jazz listeners, his
two recordings with Medeski Martin and Wood are probably the best introduction to his playing.
Allan Holdsworth is a jazz-rock guitarist known for his peerless technique and his unique
approach to harmony. "Believe It," a mid-1970s jazz-rock recording by the New Tony Williams
Lifetime, and "None Too Soon," a more straight-ahead jazz recording under Holdsworth's
name, are both essential listening.
Pat Metheny is known for his small-group work as well as his work with the Pat Metheny Group.
A good introduction to his playing is the record "Bright Size Life," which also features electric
bassist Jaco Pastorius.

Jazz Movement Exercises

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These three exercises lend themselves to the 12-bar blues form. They are designed to aid
movement along the fretboard and to give the student the chance to practice applying one chord
on each beat of a bar.
Jazz Movement Exercise One

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G major

C major

G7

C major

Jazz Movement Exercise Two

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C major

F major

C7

F major

Jazz Movement Exercise Three

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D major

G major

D7

G major

Guitar
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This page w as last modified on 14 October 2013, at 20:46.

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