your opinions

I'm new to your board and enjoy it.I've played bass for 24 yrs. Started out as a flatpicker, have gigged on guitar, berklee grad. on bass.I know my nut position chords,barre chords.It has over the years become obvious to me that a competant player who sings gets many more gigs than a virtuoso ? who doesn't sing.I would like to work on singing and comping behind it. (no solos just tunes) q#1 What books do you recomend for comping chords on tunes like nancy with the smiling face,witchcraft,standards with voice leading etc.q#2 Are any of the old Harmony, or Kay jazz boxes worth buying, I see them on ebay with the occasional mahogany top, like I said strickly rythm playing I want gigs not fame.

GET YOURSELF A REPUTABLE FAKE BOOK, THE ILLEGAL ONES PUT OUT BY THE BERKLEE GRADS ARE THE BEST, FIND SOME LOCAL JAZZ PLAYERS IN YOUR TOWN TO FIND OUT HOW TO GET A HOLD OF ONE

Thanks for your input Chris, I've played out of the realbook & new realbook for years also have a good library of Aebersold books.I'm really interested in the standard voicings vocabulary.Particularly voice leading.I work with a lot of the good players around, do casino gigs etc. but asking any one if I can stop by so they can show me some stuff, well people tend to get a little hazy at that point, so I'd rather teach myself. Who should I be specifically listening to for comping behind vocals?

Wes Montgomery is one of my favorite rhythm players, great comping ideas
also Joe Pass is a master of chords

what you want to do is take a basic chord progression, say 2 5 1 & figure out as many ways of playing it as possible

also, when comping, try to think as a piano player & resolve to the next chord holding over as many common tones as possible

it sounds easy but its not, most guitarists don't understand the true artform of playing rhythm

What casino's you playing??

Here's an ex of what i was talking about

--10---8--8--
--8----8--10-
--10---9--9--
--8----8--10-
----------8--
-------------
G-7 C7 Fmaj7

Worked a lot at showboat, some Harrah's, the occasional date at the Taj(all Atlantic city) Things are slowing up,just finishing the summer restaurant gigs. A friend lent me a danny gatton rythm playing tape so I'm grabbing some voicings and moving them around trying to do turnarounds in one neck position.I can get my hands on some Joe Pass material so I'll head in that direction.Truth is I never really paid attention to all that #9 flat this or that stuff.Playing bass for so long I just needed to know maj, min,or dom.then head for the next change.Lot of cool sounds.

So your from the A.C. area, cool me too (phila.)
I didn't think they where using live musicians down there anymore, I thought all the shows had been computerized and Trump had established the norm of closing down all the casino bars to keep people playing at the machines. I knew showboat was still doing there dixie land thing on the casino floor.
last time I was down there (2-3 yrs)spent an hour walking the b-walk trying to find a casino lounge to have a drink.

There's a lot of fine hardcore jazz players around this area, you should have no trouble finding someone to help you out.