Behind the Changes

Wanna know how Ron Carter plays all those famous walking bass lines and how he comes up with such innovative chord progressions?

It’s all in this easy-to-follow book, laid out so you can do it too. If you have an actual Ron Carter lesson, at some point, this is what he will teach you.

Charlie Parker changed the melody – with this book you are going to change the changes, and in doing so open up a whole new world of creative possibilities for yourself and for any band you play with.

There are 3 example songs in this book. (12 bar blues, rhythm changes and Seguaro by Ron Carter) On the opening page of each song you’ll see the original changes that will show the band that you know that song. The next page (transparent overlay page) shows alternate changes that Carter has found to replace the original changes. Which, by the way, are alternate views of harmony, which are great changes to solo over. These alternate changes are some of the great examples that are available to an inquisitive mind after being comfortable playing the original changes.

This is the heart of the Ron Carter Method and it gives you visual examples, in real-time, of the process that unfolds in the Maestro’s mind as he plays any tune. He likens it to a reel of the current chorus playing in his right ear, and the possibilities for the next chorus playing in his left.