PDF for Satin Doll Chord Solo?

[JohnParticipant]

Hi Rick
Just viewed the video for the Satin Doll chord solo (It’s part 5 – lovely!) and you refer to the PDF for it but there doesn’t seem to be one. There is only the Chord PDF. It would be great to have a PDF of the chord solo.

Thanks

John

PS – Is there any chance of a lesson on Have You Met Miss Jones (with chord solo example)? Sorry to be cheeky but I absolutely love that song.

[Rick StoneKeymaster]

John,

Thanks for writing. I know this has been highly requested, but the truth is, it’s a copyright issue. Wasn’t such a big deal when there were only a handful of my private students using the site, but as we grow, it could become a huge liability. You may have noticed that some of the more recent tune-based lessons (see “ATTYA” and “Autumnal Eves”) use contrafacts rather than the original melodies. This is because copyrights cover the melody and lyrics, but don’t extend to chord progressions (tons of songs use the same chord progressions, think “Ornithology” aka “How High the Moon,” “Donna Lee” aka “Indiana,” and countless songs based on “I Got Rhythm” or the blues).

I could probably give you the chord voicings I used (without the actual arrangement of the melody) and stay within the law. But as far as the melodies are concerned, I think I’m going to be sticking with writing contrafacts on the tunes. And to be fair, the melodies are in the Real Book (which is now available legally), so this really shouldn’t be a big deal.

Musically Yours,
~ Rick

[JohnParticipant]

Hi Rick

OK – thanks for the explanation – I hadn’t realised the implications!! I realise that I should learn to do this myself but at 66 years old I’m on borrowed time already Lol! Going to dig in to the vid and sort it out.

Thanks again for your reply.

John

[Rick StoneKeymaster]

John,

I know what you mean, but “borrowed time” or not, I can tell you from my personal experience that the best way to do this
(and by “best” I mean the way that’s most enjoyable and will help you to really learn to play a tune in a way that feels natural to you and the knowledge will stick) is to spend a lot of time listening to the tune, learning the lyrics and the melody, learning to feel where you want to place the chords belong (rhythmically) and then deciding which chord voicings you like play in those places.

That said, this is something that I do with my private and Skype students and maybe I could do a video about this because
it is the way the process works for me (I think that I actually kind of do this in the “Satin Doll” lesson, but
maybe I could have gone more in-depth).

In the meantime, here’s a kind of procedure that I use all the time:

1. Pick a tune that you like. It can be one you’ve heard on the radio or on a cd, or if you go to jam sessions or places where you might have a chance to sit it, pick something that they play. Whatever it is, it should be a tune that you can get excited about. A tune that you really want to learn.
2. Go through your record, cd, mp3 collection and find and listen to as many versions of the tune as you can. If it’s a tune with lyrics, at least some of those versions should be with singers. If you feel like your collection is pretty weak for that tune (if you can’t find at least about 5 versions or so) then go online and find some more (I usually use this as an opportunity to use of some of my eMusic credits and wind up with anywhere from 15-30 versions of a tune).
3. Listen, listen, listen! This is the fun part. Enjoy it!
4. Memorize the lyrics. I used to write them down on an index card and keep it in my pocket. As I’d just be going about my business for the next few days (buying groceries, working in the yard, or whatever) the tune was constantly in my head. I’d find myself just singing it to myself. Didn’t really have to try to do anything, this just happens. If I couldn’t remember a lyric, it would bug me and I’d pull out the card and read just the line that I needed, then put it back and continue.
5. Try to play the melody on the guitar by ear. Doesn’t really matter what key at this point. Just wherever it feels comfortable. You’ll probably want to check with some of the recordings you’re listening to though and pay attention to what key(s) most players like to do the song in. Learn the melody in the most common key first, then try it in a few others. If you’re going to do a chord melody, you’ll probably find that it lays much better on the guitar in some keys than others.
6. After you’re familiar with the melody, you’ll want to start thinking about the chords (these two activities sometimes overlap). If your ears are pretty developed, you might just get them straight from the recording. But if you need a little help, you can take a look at a fake book. Most professional musicians I know keep iReal Pro on our smart phones so that we’ve got a quick reference if we have to play a tune we’re not all that familiar with). Just be aware that these things aren’t always accurate and that chord changes can vary slightly from one version of a tune to another, so you have to decide whose changes you want to use. You’ll probably want to write out your own sheet with the changes you prefer.
7. Memorize the changes: Practice reciting them (yes, say the out loud!). When you first try to do this, you’ll probably find it impossible to recite the changes to a whole tune from memory, so break it into bite-size pieces. Memorize from 2 to 4 measures at a time (about 4 chords) and just say them in order until it’s easy and natural (like remembering a phone number). Then do the next few chords. Then put them together. Do this until you can get through saying the changes for the entire tune from memory. As with the lyrics, I’ve always found it useful to write the changes out on a sticky note or file card and keep it in my pocket as a quick reference while I’m doing this. Try not to just read it off the paper though. Glance at it for the information you need and then put it away and get back to the work of memorizing. I actually like to do this when I’m out walking or jogging because it forces me to do it in rhythm (your footsteps become your metronome) and I hear the tune in my head as I’m saying the changes. I should also mention that at this stage of the game, I’m only interested in the most basic family of the chord; Major, Minor, Seventh (and sometimes Diminished).
8. Back at the guitar, play that melody and really pay attention to where you feel the chords belong. Sometimes they’ll be right on a melody note, but often you’ll notice that they fall in between melody notes (like the chord changes in “Autumn Leaves” that fall mostly between the phrases). Use your ears and your knowledge of the melody and chords to choose voicings that you like (I did a lesson video the other week on Chord Melody Voicings that you’ll probably be interested in).
9. Play the tune A LOT! I often spend weeks on a tune, coming back to it day after day. I’ll often make little changes and improvements to my arrangement as I go. The way I play the tune evolves over time until I arrive at something I’m happy with.

The point of all this is that playing jazz music is more about a journey than it is about a destination. I’ve been doing this stuff for many years, and what I just outlined above is still the way I approach learning a new tune. I do it because for one thing it’s just enjoyable in and of itself (I can lost in a tune for hours, days or weeks) but also because I know it works so I just trust the process.

Hope this helps!

Musically Yours,
~ Rick Stone

P.S. This answer got to be so long that I think it’s probably going to show up as a post on the blog.

[JohnParticipant]

Awesome response Rick – thank you so much for taking the time to outline your procedure. I had a little go at Ladybird last night while watching a rugby game (we’re a bit rugby mad here in Wales) on TV. Got something quite simple using some internet stuff I’d seen plus some fiddling about. The result is very pleasing to me even though it’s very basic and I can only play it very, very slowly at the moment – ha ha! The Ladybird head is quite short and I really like the chord changes. These tunes are so much more harmonically interesting than most modern pop music.

Thanks again!

John

[Rick StoneKeymaster]

John,

No problem. I actually love it when people ask me questions like this because it motivates me to write. There are so many topics I could write a blog post about, but having something immediately relevant is very helpful. So anyway, my answer to question did get fleshed out and edited a bit more and I posted it it here: https://www.jazzguitarlessons.com/how-to-create-a-jazz-guitar-chord-solo/. Thanks!

Musically Yours,
~ Rick

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