Mickey Baker's Complete Course in Jazz Guitar Book 1 Method for Guitarists | Jazz Guitar Instruction Book with Chord Studies Progressions Riffs Solos Rhythm Techniques for Beginner Players

Not a guitar beginner's book, and probably not even the best book for someone just starting out in jazz guitar, but if you already have enough basic guitar skills, and also a basic understanding of jazz music then I believe there is a lot that can be gained from this book. I have been working through this book at the same time as some other books and online learning materials and the more I learn from other sources the more I find the usefulness and relevance of what is covered in this book. I also found that many of the chord progressions (even in the earliest exercises) were very musical and really enjoyable to play. I'm not sure that I would regard it as a "complete course", but if it is used in combination with other learning resources, and you are willing to seek out answers to the questions the material raises, I think it provides a lot of useful insight and it's on that basis that I gave it 5 stars.

I think this was written in the 1950s. This is the 2nd copy I've owned. It doesn't pull punches and some of the chords seem impossible when you first try them (but go up the neck and work back down......) I can't say I'm a musician and I'm certainly nowhere near being a jazz guitarist, but I've learnt a huge amount from this book and used it mostly in pop / rock playing. If you stick with it, you'll find that more advanced chords become much easier.....

Worth the money

Good reference book though not for novice guitarists

I don't write many reviews but I felt I owed this one to the author. I've been playing, gigging and teaching guitar for over 40 years. I bought a copy of this, now covered in endless amounts of sellotape, right in the early days and didn't understand a word of it. However, like the best wines, it just continues to mature. Today, the majority of the chords I use, jazz, blues and rock, came from this book by a gentle process of osmosis. They just sound so good. The substitutions and progressions (just let his Cmaj7 - C#dim7 - Dm7 - D#dim7 - Em7 - A7#5b9 - Dm7 - G7#5b9 - Cmaj7 wander past those tired ears) are a delight and the work necessary to get at them worth every minute. Don't rush it though - it takes years to absorb the subtleties of this book but you will never regret it. Finally, don't be put off by the relative lack of tab, (the chords are all shown in a form of tab but the melodic lines are not). If you have any pretentions as a musician at all, its worth the effort to learn to read the way all other musicians have to work and you won't be sorry when you understand the dots a bit better. Have fun !

Seems to be very good value for the price. Some of the chord versions are different for a jazz book, you will probably know better voicings. The exercises are good too.

Jumped to the lead runs / ruffs and arpeggio section ( full of great licks) great stuff ehen the penny drops you'll be extremely happy you put this stuff inyo your musical vocabulary...Fantastic stuff I should say it probably would be better to start at the begging or at least, start section one "chords" simultaneously with section two lead.. love it. .

Only good for those who can read music, otherwise don't bother!

Almost every pro guitarist, and a lot of amateur ones, know the Mickey Baker books. A number of jazzers and rockers started out with them- Pete Townsend has said that he learned his chords from Mickey. This was the only specifically jazz oriented guitar method available back in the 50s when Mickey wrote it, and it's been in print pretty much continuously since then. That by itself should should tell you a lot. A lot of guitarists looking for a good jazz self-study course have looked at this book, and wondered if there was really much to be learned from few simple chord exercises and a few dozen riffs. Sure, there were a lot of good chords to be learned from it, but beyond that...? Actually, there is a tremendous amount of information to be found in this book, but only if you follow Mickey's directions. He doesn't give you a lot of why- just "do this until you have it down." But if you do that, you'll find yourself internalizing a lot of important rules and skills that other teachers spell out. Those hokey sounding chord progressions that Mickey wants you to memorize and transpose to other keys are actually teaching you all the standard jazz substitutions. Mickey does spell out some of these rules in the second half of the book, but if you've done your homework you'll find that it's much easier to apply these rules to soloing if you've actually internalized them than if he had just told you that you could use a Lydian or Aeolian sub for a dominant chord in a 12 bar blues. The second half of this book is all about learning to solo, and a lot of non-readers have looked at it, and been put off by the lack of tab. But you don't need reading skills beyond that absolute minimum to use this book. Mickey has provided all the fingerings below the staff for each exercise. It may be a little unfamiliar at first, but by the time you finish this book- and it'll take a year to really do it right- you'll find that you have some pretty good reading skills, too. Even though it was written back in the 1950s, the riffs and chords Mickey teaches sound just as hip today. Some guitarists will quibble with some of Mickey's choices, or his chord names, but it's more a matter of opinion than a fault in the book. For example, a lot of contemporary guitarists would play something like Bm7-Bb7-Am7... rather than Mickey's straight descending m7ths (Bm7-Bbm7-Am7..) today, but that's something the student will learn just by listening to guitarists today. In short, if you have some basic guitar skills- you know a few dozen chords, and you can strum along- and you're confused by all the different jazz guitar books out there- this is the one you should start with. If you follow his directions, practice every exercise until you've memorized it, and written out and practiced all the transpositions, too, by the time you finish the book you'll be able to comp and put together a simple solo over most any jazz tune. [n.b.- this edition is the original book as printed in the 1950s. There's another edition with a blue cover that was edited and re-typeset in the 70s, but that edition contained a number of errors that were introduced in the editing. This is the one you want.]

Bon livre complet pour travailler les différents aspects du jazz, en revanche je regrette l'absence de cd audio reprenant les exemple du livre

es bueno, sirve muy bien como apoyo de otros materiales didactos de jazz, hace falta el contenido de audio para poder seguir bien las lecciones

Validissimo, da praticare con cura meglio se con la guida di un maestro per capire il senso degli esercizi. Gli accordi e le progressioni devono entrare nelle mani e gli studi cromatici aiutano a memorizzare note e posizioni jazz sul manico. Tipografia vintage con personalità.

I need help from some one more experienced for understanding these book. I keep it in my shelf. Material given in the book is excellent