(Part 3) Reddit mentions: The best books about jazz

Use a metronome and play the root chord tones in time through out the entire tune. Then roots and 3rds. Then roots, 3rds, 5th. And then the 7th chords. You want to be able to sing/play roots of the entire tune by yourself, in time, with a good feel. Do this with every tune you play.
Make sure you have a solid foundation when in comes the basic ii-V-I and their resolutions.
Also some of their extensions and how they resolve.
This will give you a start on how to construct a solo through changes.
Some books that may help
http://www.amazon.com/Elements-Jazz-Language-Developing-Improvisor/dp/157623875X
http://www.amazon.com/Patterns-Jazz-Theory-Composition-Improvisation/dp/B008LX27OU/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1345573762&sr=8-9&keywords=jerry+coker+patterns+for+jazz
Start listening to a lot of players who play with more melodic feel to the solos. (Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon) and not necessarily just sax players. (Miles Davis, Chet Baker)
If you do purchase transcriptions, be sure you can analyze what they're doing.Then take that idea and transpose it into 12 keys.
Charlie Parkers Omnibook is great cause it has the chord changes above the solos. Pick a few or all of the ii-V-I's from that and take them through all 12 keys and work them into your solos.
Most importantly. This will take you where ever you wish to go as an improviser.
SING EVERYTHING!!!
If you can sing it, you can play it!
This simple concept is kinda hard to grasp at first, but once you fully understand it, it unlocks so much.
Good luck!

Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original is fantastic. One of the best Jazz bios I've read. Very well researched and well written. Check that out.

I early on in the Stanly Crouch book Kansas City Lightning: The Rise and Times of Charlie Parker and it's excellent so far and is also well researched and written. Hope he continues the story with a second volume.

The content of many "jazz" methods can be applied to most styles of music, even though delivery would be different and certain exercises specific to the style. Here are a few books you can check out:

• "Daily Warm-Up Exercises for Saxophone" by Jackie McLean ($10). Covers the basic scales and chords with some additional info about tone and some solo transcription.
  
  
  
• "Around The Horn" by Walt Weiskopf ($17). A book strictly about scales & chords (although a little atypical) with some etudes. Although the concept of the book is based around the most common jazz chord progression it can be used as a refresher of basics as well and presents a great challenge to fully master. If he's an intermediate player, this book would definitely be something he could use to practice with.
  
  
  
• "Comprehensive Technique for Jazz Musicians: For All Instruments" by Bert Ligon ($18). Covers scales and chords with an amazing amount of exercises and detailed explanation as well as many other exercises which are more "jazz" related. Still a worthy book to get even if jazz isn't his focus.
  
  Finally, make sure he checks out this free ebook: "The Scale Omnibus". No chords but it's an incredible resource. From the description:
  
  > The Scale Omnibus is a FREE book that describes as many as 399 distinct scales in all 12 keys,with synonyms,historical notes,chords over which the scale sounds well,summary tables,and more. It took hours of researching,typing,read-proofing,and double-checking and might easily be the most complete book on this topic.

Sure thing! I've been on a bit of a Miles Davis exploration the last year. I've amassed a rather large collection of original pressings and have been devouring whatever I can learn.

Here's a great book about the making of Kind of Blue, specifically, that also contains some really interesting history through the course of Davis' career. The author had great access to Columbia Records' archives and master tapes in his research. Cool read had for cheap!

Here's a couple that I've found useful:

• Complete Idiot's Guide to Music Composition by Michael Miller - http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Idiots-Guide-Music-Composition/dp/1592574033/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1418209745&sr=1-3&keywords=music+composition+for+dummies&pebp=1418209748985 – this is the first book I read on composing and I found it was a great introductory text. Not too heavy, entertaining but still informative. Will provide you with a basic foundation to build upon.
  
  
• Fundamentals of Music Composition by Arnold Schoenberg - http://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Musical-Composition-Arnold-Schoenberg/dp/0571196586 – this one is more theoretical but packed full of good information. A classic.
  
  
• Composing Music, A New Approach by William Russo - http://www.amazon.com/Composing-Music-A-New-Approach/dp/0226732169/ref=pd_sim_b_8?ie=UTF8&refRID=1ZNR3GJFDSRX6Z2PGS4R – this one's a bit more modern and full of practical exercises, will get you composing straight away.
  
  And the one I'm reading at the moment, Jazz Composition and Arranging in the Digital Age by Richard Sussman and Michael Abene - http://www.amazon.com/Jazz-Composition-Arranging-Digital-Age/dp/0195381009/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1418209939&sr=1-1&keywords=jazz+composition+and+arranging
  
  Hope that helps!

One of the best things I did for myself when learning how to play, was learning the blues scales.

http://www.jazclass.aust.com/lessons/jt/jtx014.gif

http://www.jazclass.aust.com/scales/scblues2.gif

http://www.jazclass.aust.com/scales/scablu.htm

I'm sure you can find some written out parts somewhere, but most real blues is improvisation based. When I started learning how to improv, blues scales were a godsend.

The best advice I can give you on jazz and blues is to go buy the "real book." You can find the melody to just about any jazz or blues standard in these books. http://www.amazon.com/The-Real-Book-Edition-Leonard-ebook/dp/B00BFUNKFQ/ref=pd_cp_kstore_0

To start, I would recommend learning the ii-V-Imaj7 progression for every key center on the Circle of Fifths. That progression is one of the backbones of jazz music and is essential in playing a lot of standards.

After that, I would also recommend purchasing the book Maiden Voyage by Jamey Aebersold. It is a nice introduction into learning to play chord changes along with standards, and also slowly learning how to improvise.

Good luck on your journey to learn jazz piano!

Forget phrygian, and all the other mode stuff (at least for now). Learn the six basic 7th chord types, and their functions within major and minor keys:

Maj7, Δ = I and IV in major; III and VI in minor
7 (dom7) = V in major and minor
m7 , -7 = ii, vi and iii in major; iv in minor
m7b5, ø7 = ii in minor
dim7, °7 = vii in major and minor
m(maj7) = i in minor

Common variations:
Tonic chords in major or minor keys may have major 6ths instead of maj7 (especially where the melody is the root);
V7 chords may be altered (#5, b5, b9 or #9) especially in minor keys.

Work through as many jazz standards as you can stand, using 3rds and 7ths alone ("guide tones") in the right hand, root in left. (Remember if playing with a bassist you can probably omit the root.) Follow those through the progressions, noting how they generally lead by scale step, commonly descending.
Add b5 for dim7 and m7b5 chords (5ths are optional in maj7s and dom7s).
Ignore all extensions, at least to start with (9, 13, 11, #11).
Regard alterations on V7s as optional; if you want to include them, look at the voice-leading to the next chord (including to 6th or 9th). Include a #5 or b5 if marked, but still 3rd and 7th alone will be enough.

Obviously substitutions are common (especially for V7s), and tunes will move through many (implied) keys - secondary dominants are everywhere! But the 3rd-7th guide tones are always a failsafe route through - you don't have to really understand the theory of what's going on as long as you can see the connections from chord to chord. (Even when you do understand the theory, those connections are still what matters.)

You can find more jazz standard sequences than you could possibly want [here] (http://www.jazzstudies.us/) - you can select any key you want too, but go with the default key to begin with (most commonly used).

Ideally, you'd learn the melodies too (so you can understand how they relate to the chords), so buying a [Real Book] (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Real-Book-Sixth-Online-Audio/dp/1495079473) is recommended.

Tip: as you may already know, the ii-V-I is the basic element of standard jazz sequences, and ii-V pairs are everywhere in various keys. Spotting these as you work through a tune can help to make sense of it. (m7b5-7b9 usually indicates the minor key version.)

NB: when you see a lot of sus chords (7sus, 9sus, 13sus), especially if you get several bars on each one, you've probably found a "modal" tune. In jazz, "sus" chord symbols are usually a clue to voice your chords in 4ths. E.g., a 7sus could be voiced 5-R-4-m7. These chords are non-functional sonorities. Modal jazz behaves very differently from the old functional standards (multiple chord changes in major and minor keys). Make sure you listen to any tune like this, to get an idea of how those chords work. (Obviously listen to the standards too! But their sounds tend to be more familiar and predictable.)

I use this book with my private students who are developing jazz musicians. The etudes help you focus on getting clear articulations which is key for getting a good feel. It comes with a CD so you can hear Slide Hampton play these with a rhythm section, and there are additional tracks of just rhythm section so you can play by yourself or use it to improvise over the chords.

Don't forget to listen to jazz! Listen to a variety of trombonists and decide what you like about them.

Another series I'd recommend are this series: http://www.amazon.com/Swinging-Jazz-Piano-Series-Numbered/dp/1423460200/ref=pd_sim_b_17piteno-20

http://www.amazon.com/Jazz-Blues-Piano-Solos-Series/dp/0634058800/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_zpiteno-20

Hal Leonards has a whole series of them. They also have similar books (cover styling is the same) that are note-for-note transcriptions of artists like Bill Evans and Oscar Peterson (who you should listen to by the way). http://www.amazon.com/Bill-Evans-Piano-Series-Volume/dp/1458405818/ref=pd_sim_b_8piteno-20

New Orlean's has a great volunteer run radio station that would teach you a lot - WWOZ 90.7 FM. You can stream via Itunes Radio. Good luck!

There are a ton of Paul Chamber arco solos, but the scratchy gut tone is an acquired taste for some. Michael Moore, Lynn Seaton, John Goldsby, and Red Mitchell are other artists to look into. Martin Wind is another guy to check out; I like this particular recording quite a lot. John Goldsby's book on the subject is a great resource as well. It contains mostly exercises based on scales to teach articulation, but the transcribed solos in the back of the back are worth the price by themselves.

Listening to music, be it jazz, classical or whatever you are interested in, is important. You'll pick up a lot just by being immersed in the music.

What I'm doing these days is playing and learning tunes. You can pick up a lot by seeing how the great songwriters put together melodies and harmonies, and you get practice playing single lines, chord progressions -- and learn songs you can play for people at the same time.

This is the fake book I'm using: https://www.amazon.com/Real-Little-Ultimate-Jazz-Fake/dp/0793520053/

I don't think it's any better or worse than the others, but I like that it has lyrics. I recommend listening to the tunes you are learning -- both by singers and instrumentalists.

As far as instruction books go, right now I'm using Joe Pass Chords https://www.amazon.com/Joe-Pass-Guitar-Chords-Progressions/dp/0739019333/

That and the fake book are pretty much it. I have tons of other jazz guitar method books, but I'm just not using them right now. It's all about playing tunes.

The equivalent to Bach’s Inventions are... Bach’s Inventions


https://www.amazon.com/dp/1562240412/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_awdb_t1_xy-IDbDXB2S35

Great book! Designed for guitar! I studied at Eastman for a bit and this was the first book the guitar professor made me get


EDIT: “Bach’s Inventions” not “Bach’s Interventions.” I originally referenced a lesser known book, also written by Bach, about how to confront friends’ and loved ones’ behavioral issues in a loving yet persuasive way.

Not movies, but influence of Goan culture on hindi film music, which directly reflected in the attitudes of the characters shown.

The golden era of film music was due to a miraculous confluence of lyricists from the erstwhile Punjab and Lucknow, the best of classically trained singers and composers from Bengal and Tripura (hello S.D!) and the polyphonic arrangements of composers from Goa. The popular Amitabh song "My name is Anthony Gonsalves" was a tribute to the real Anthony Gonsalves, a jazz bandleader.

Check out Naresh Fernades's book on Bombay's Jazz Age: "Taj Mahal Foxtrot".

His blog (filtered to show the hindi film tag): http://www.tajmahalfoxtrot.com/?cat=27

and his talk on the subject:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5psAxN1jhV4

I started playing out of fakebooks about a year into my piano playing. Here's a link to one on Amazon. I have one for hymns, one for gospel, two that have a bunch of random music, one that's all Elvis that my cousin got me, all three volumes of the Real Book, and a country fakebook. I would find a song in the book and then listen to a recording. The chords are usually pretty close. You then learn what those specific chords sound like.

For instance, I really like this progression on the lyrics "even after you've gone". It's also the chord progression in Wonderful Tonight, "do I look alright?" You listen to the song then look up the chords. C-G/D-Am.

You wanna learn gospel? Look at gospel sheet music and fakebooks. You piece it together. Most versions of Deep River, the spiritual, being C-C+-F. I can use the augmented tonic chords to move to the subdominant in all keys. The Elvis song Reach Out To Jesus begins with I-III-vi. You learn the sound and apply it. Some versions of Peace in the Valley will use F-F#dim-G. You simply learn the pieces and put them together.

Once you know C-F-G-C, you add chords. C-F-F#dim-G7-C. Then C-C+-F-F#dim-G7-C. And so on.

Straight Life by Art Pepper is the best I've read.

Space Is The Place and Bright Moments and Beneath The Underdog also interesting.

On the other hand, Ben Watson is an idiot.

This was the first jazz book I played and it was a great intro to the style. It has sample solos which are great for learning phrases and articulation. I didn't start improvising for some time later though.


https://www.amazon.com/Essential-Elements-Jazz-Play-Along-Instruments/dp/0634091840/ref=tmm_other_meta_binding_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1556704408&sr=8-1-fkmrnull

Going off what you recommend...
/u/HXSC could learn the song, "Ruby, My Dear", by Thelonious Monk. But make sure it's the score transcribed by, Ronnie Mathews

This has a lot of good rythum practice. It's all 2v3, but instead of 8th notes and a triplet, they're 1/4 notes and a triplet in a half. Same thing except more emphasis on each note and a lot slower.

Make sure it's the score with these rythums otherwise you'd just be learning a beautiful song and not practicing rythums.

How to Jazz?

I think the short answer is listen to it live, in person.
And also learn how to play jazz.

Ted Gioia's How To Listen To Jazz may be a good resource.

There are Youtubers like Walk That Bass and Aimee Nolte to name a few.

Don't just pigeonhole your listening to a single style or era at first. Jazz is an ocean, so spend a bit of time surface, sampling whatever you hear before you dive deep.

Bon Voyage.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Listen-Jazz-Ted-Gioia/dp/0465060897