Books:
I believe that formal exercises and books and such play a secondary role in shaping a player. Even so, they can make a real big difference...
Here's some reading material that has helped to enlighten me over the years:
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Too many books I've seen are stale,
stale stale. The dots on the lines are designed to make your fingers
press and contort in specific ways and impart certain intellectual
principles, but on a musical level, they leave me cold. Super
cold! So cold I'd rather be out making snow angels in my jockey
shorts than practicing.
Well Carol Kaye's books aren't like that. After reading a few bars of her stuff, you'll be saying "Wow... this is COOL!". After appearing on literally hundreds of hit singles with virtually every name in the business, Carol can speak with some authority about the crafting of great bass lines. To learn more about Carol and her books, check out the site at www.carolkaye.com.
 The
Improvisor's Bass Method by Chuck Sher: a good overall resource
for aspiring jazzers new to the concept of soloing. Put out by
Sher
Music Co. |
Jazz Fakebooks: Not the best way to learn a song, but it's generally
considered a good idea to have a few handy on a gig in case you
need to look at some changes for a tune you don't know. The New
Real Books put out by Cher Music Co. are the legal standard: well-researched
and carefully copied. The Mel Bay book has some sour changes and
the arrangements are sketchy, but it has a lot of hard-to-find
but worthwhile titles, like "A Felicidade" and "Billie's
Bounce". It makes a good reference volume. To me, fakebooks
are best for reference and sight reading practice. Whenever possible,
I prefer to learn a song by ear and make up my own lead sheet
for the gig. By far the better way to go.
 The Advancing
Guitarist by Mick Goodrick: a very interesting book. It contains
more questions than answers, which some may find frustrating.
It's a good resource for those looking to expand their understanding
of harmony on any stringed instrument while nurturing their own
unique approach. All the hip guitarists I know seem to know and
like this book. It's put out by Hal Leonard Publishing Corp. |
 The Yamaha Sound Reinforcment
Handbook: bassist know thy gear! If you're going to spend
40 hours a week surrounded by gizmos, wouldn't it be nice to
know how they work and what they do? There's plenty of info to
answer everything you ever wanted to know about sound equipment
but were afraid to ask. Also Hal Leonard Publishing Corp. |
This is a super book, designed to turn
a player with some basic knowledge into a monster. It starts
with a very useful setup guide and some good practical advice.
Then you get a comprehensive first position drill, followed by
an exhaustive shifting workout. The idea is to get you comfortable
with all the various extremes of both shifting and not shifting,
so you can function either way. If you choose to let them, the
first chapters alone will blow your playing wide open! Later
chapters reiterate the concept of varying fingerings (from familiar
to bizarre) while covering most of the scales and modes you are
likely to encounter. It's put out by Warner Brothers Publications.