Rhythm Changes
The chord changes for the song "I Got Rhythm" by George Gershwin is a great starting point for studying jazz. Entire books and practice records have been written on the subject of what musicians call the "rhythm changes." The chord chart and tab below is a sample for exploring the basis of jazz. Once you have this "pattern" memorized, you might try transposing it to another key. It's great training for your hands and brain. And try making up your own lines using the notes of each chord.
Strum the notes of the chord and then play the tab associated with the chord. You'll find the elements of that chord in the related notes. One of the difficulties in playing jazz (or any other improvisational form) is learning the elements of soloing related to the base chord. The tab here will force you to play those elements.
And if you don't already know this trick... to play the same pattern below in the key of C (it's in G now), start on the D string instead of the A string.
NOTE: Make sure you've selected a monospaced font such as Monaco or Courier as a "fixed-spaced font" in your preferences to correctly view this tablature.
Remember, these aren't solos. They're exercises but parts of them can easily be incorporated into your soloing.
Rhythm Changes Exercise
GMaj7 G#dim Am7 A#dim -----------------------1---0---------------------3- -5--3--2--0------2--5---------3--2--0---1--4--0---- --------------6------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| Bm7 E7 Am7 D7 -2---------------------1---0----------------------- ----5--2--0------2--5---------3--0---------0--3--6- --------------6---------------------5---4---------- --------------------------------------------------- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| GMaj7 G#dim Am7 A#dim -----------------------1---0------------------0--3- -5--3--2--0------2--5---------3--2--0---1--4------- --------------6------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| Am7 D7 GMaj6 D7 -2--0---------------------------------------------- -------5--3---0--------0-------------------0--2--3- -----------------5--4------5--0--2--4---5---------- --------------------------------------------------- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--|
Another variation
GMaj7 G#dim Am7 A#dim --------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------- -------0------------0------------2------------2---- -0--4-----0---1--4-----0---2--5-----0---3--6-----0- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| Bm7 E7 Am7 D7 --------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------- -------4--7---6--3---------------2--5---4--0------- -4--7---------------6--3---2--5---------------5--2- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| GMaj7 G#dim Am7 A#dim --------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------- -------0------------0------------2------------2---- -0--4-----0---1--4-----0---2--5-----0---3--6-----0- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| Am7 D7 GMaj6 D7 --------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------- -------2--5---4--0------------------0-------------- -2--5---------------5--2---0--2--4------5--2--4--2- |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--| |--|--|--|
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