Chords for MIMI FOX: Solo Jazz Guitar (Playing Melody Lines)

[D] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[A] So now that we've got the chords and we've got the bass [Dm] line [Em] moving, _ [A] [D] what about the melody?
How do we play off of these?
First of all, we have to know the melody to the tune.
[E] _
[Dm] This is a jazz standard called Alone Together. _ _
_ [E] _ [A] So it's good to [G] first be able to play the melody, learn the melody, but then when you're
improvising, taking it to the next level would be first to be able to arpeggiate your way
through the whole tune so that you would set a metronome at a very slow click and play
eighth notes, continual eighth [Dm] notes. _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [E] _ _ _ _ [A] _ _
[G] _ [Db] _ [Dm] _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [D] _ [G] _ _ _ _ _
_ [D] _ _ [Gm] _ _ [G] _ _ _
[A] _ _ [Em] _ _ [D] Now there I was just taking the _ basic _ minor 2-5-1 vamp of the song, which is D [E] minor,
E minor [A] 7-flat-5, A7.
[G] And you notice that I did some very long leaps covering the entire neck because I'm trying
to see the arpeggios, not just, [Dm] you know, first [Eb] _ _ [Db] _ _ [Dm] you want to see them in one area of
the neck, but then you want to be able to see them everywhere on the neck.
So different ways to practice this.
Again, this song has a lot of _ different chords going, so you would practice all the arpeggios
in all the different areas of the neck.
So wherever you have a chord, you have an arpeggio.
And so for D minor, we have a D minor here, you know, you'd have the arpeggio.
_ _ _ [A] _
And [N] for those of you that are familiar with the pentatonic scale, for when most rock _ _ _ _ _ and
minor arpeggios, the same as the pentatonic minus the fourth degree.
[Am] So [G] for D minor, we don't [A] have the G [Dm] in there, but other than that, it's the same if you're
familiar with the minor pentatonic fingerings.
_ _ _ _ _ And then we go to this shape, [G] _ [Dm] _ I just put the fourth in. _ _
_ _ _ _ And then this one, the first shape. _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ [G] _ _
A lot of this arpeggio stuff, by the way, I cover in my book, Guitar Arpeggio Studies
on Jazz Standards, which is available through Melba A.
But anyway, and then we would go to our next chord, E minor 7 flat [Gm] 5.
And then you do the same process. _ _ _ _ _ _
You would take all of the arpeggios that go with that chord, _
_ [Bb] etc.
And you do that up the neck, then you would take [F] A7.
[A] And so you'd have this one first, _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ [Em] [Dm] etc.
And you take them and you play them in each position.
Always see a chord next to your arpeggios.
The arpeggios serve as a springboard for _ improvisation because you can add scale tones to it or just
stay on the arpeggios.
So for instance, so coming out of, _ _ _ [G] _
_ [A] _ [Dm] _ [D] _ _ [G] _ _ _
[Ab] _ [G] _ [A] _ _ _ _ [G] _ _
_ _ these were just arpeggios without passing tones, but
I'm seeing those basic chords.
So what that means next, and seeing those basic arpeggio shapes.
Now if I add some passing tones, _ [Ebm] _ _
[A] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
_ [Em] _ _ _ [G] _ _ [D] and I'm seeing all those [A] basic chords, so I'm seeing A7,
may see the A7 arpeggios right there, _ _ [Dm] and then the D minors. _
_ [Em] _ [Bb] _ _ I barely get that chord out [G] there, but I'm seeing the arpeggio underneath it.
So that's a very good way to begin to start adding single lines is to integrate arpeggios,
just snippets of arpeggios.
_ If you just played arpeggios, they can be kind of boring because they're literally the
notes in the chord, but it's very good to have them as a foundation because then when
you start adding some of the passing tones, you know, you can get into a lot of stuff.
For instance, you know, if I have this D minor here, and I know you guys all know your pentatonic
scale right here, what I call the shape one in my book.
So _ I'm leaving out again, just leave out the fours and you have the [Dm] _ minor seven arpeggios.
So if I have this position here, so if I just play arpeggios, so we've got, _ _ _ _ that's _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ [C] _ [Dm] _ _
[D] _ _ all [Bb] just
arpeggio now, [Gb] let's add some [D] passing tones.
_ [G] _ _ _ [Fm] _ _ [G] _ [D] _
_ [G] _ _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
[E] _ _ [D] _ _ _ [F] _ _ _
[Em] _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
_ [G] _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [Cm] _ _ _ _ [D] _
[Dm] So again, I'm seeing that basic shape, I'm seeing the chord, you guys might still see
your bar chord, that's cool, [F] whatever you see under there.
[G] I'm seeing the basic arpeggio, and then I'm able to start adding passing tones and start
shaping lines from that.
So you always have to see your basic chord, basic arpeggio, and then you can start adding
on to it.
_ _ _ [N] _