Colin Cosimini's Gypsy Chord Book

MichaelHorowitz

Hi All,

All three volumes of Colin Cosimini's Gypsy Chord Book are in Stock:

http://www.djangobooks.com/archives/200 ... stock.html

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Jack

Hi, all.

For what it's worth, these books were the breakthrough for me. I know more than a few folks have trouble with some of Colin's subs and harmonic 'liberties', but with just a little music theory under your belt, it's fairly easy to reverse engineer what he's doing so you end up with a basic progression. I think it's worth mentioning because in the long run I got so much more out of these than other chord books/playalongs, but people seem put off by the complexity of some of his charts. Don't be! Dive in, do the homework, and play it as you hear it.

Best,
Jack.

JAMF

Hi Jack,

Can you or somebody elaborate a little more? How complex or advanced are these progressions/substitutions?

I can't find a sample or more information on these books, but the description is interesting.

I would say my skill level and knowledge of theory is approaching intermediate.

Thanks.

Jack

Hi,

Although it doesn't really apply to my above post, you can find a sample page here to at least see his format:
http://www.cosimini.co.uk/page12.html

On many tunes, Colin offers a couple of sets of changes, one being far more harmonically complex (not necessarily better, but usually busier). I'm at work right now, but later I'll take a look and find an example to discuss. If you like the detective-story side to theory, I'd say pick up a volume. The skill level remains pretty constant from volume to volume, so have a look at the songlists and go from there.

More to come,
Jack.

JAMF

Thanks, that sample page helps a lot.

Jack

Glad it helped. I'll still post an example of Colin's basic/extended changes, but I've just got back from a gig and I'm dog-tired. We're expecting a blizzard here tomorrow, though, so I should have time then.

Best,
Jack.

JAMF

Hopefully, you've dug yourself out of that blizzard by now. We got more than a light dusting here in Chicago as well.

I've got Vol. 1 of this book on the way. Thanks for your help in making the decision.

Jack

JAMF wrote:

Hopefully, you've dug yourself out of that blizzard by now. We got more than a light dusting here in Chicago as well.

I've got Vol. 1 of this book on the way. Thanks for your help in making the decision.

No problem; I can't imagine you'll regret it. Once it arrives, check out Them There Eyes, Dark Eyes, Blues en Mineur, Limehouse, and Minor Swing for some examples of what I was writing about. Obviously, you won't always want to use the variants, but they can add something, especially in a duo setting. Meanwhile, the snow remains waist deep-they're actually trucking it away beneath my window right now. And while you probably already know this: if you're in Chicago, go check out Swing Gitan!

Best,
Jack.

JAMF

:shock: I've never heard of Swing Gitan. That'll change today.

JAMF

You were right. I'm not regretting getting this book. Firstly, it's fun to peruse the pics and read the captions. A lot of care went into creating this book. Secondly, I just worked my way through the "Nature Boy" progression and love it. The accompanying CD helps a lot, especially for those songs I"m not real familiar with.

So thanks once again for chiming in and recommending this one.

Jack

Glad it's turning out well. I also forgot to mention that Alphonso (from Swing Gitan) is a well known, well respected teacher of the Django style. I think he teaches at...the Old Town School of Folk? Is that what it's called? At any rate, it's in Chicago. Have a look!

Best,
Jack.