All the Right Changes: The Best Chord Changes and Substitutions for 100 More Tunes Every Musician Should Know

I had started studying piano late in my forties, and really wasn't doing well until I obtained two books: 1.) "Preparatory Studies For Jazz Piano" by Herb Drury (St.Louis Mo. teacher, Mel Bay Publisher) and 2.) This book. It opened up the world of music for me that I couldn't find trying to play the Real Book, etc. This made the ideas flow, and really got me started at least in the right direction. There is another facet to this book, and follow on books by Dick: not only do you have substitutions, but you may be seeing the CORRECT harmonic structures (chord changes) meticulisly, accurately writen for the first time. I could not say enough about Dick Hyman's contributions to music, he deserves a "Peace Medal" or something big.

I got this book because I've been "woodshedding" jazz standards, and while my ear grows I wanted to see what the journeymen do when it comes to playing tunes that have had the soles played off of them for close to 100 years in some cases. Dick Hyman is the master with boatloads of experience playing the "american songbook" for decades. This book does not disappoint. The suggested chord substitutions for the common chords is what is instructional. He may have 2 or 3 separate subs which not only give you alternatives, but they also give you food for thought if you are trying to teach yourself how to suggest your own substitutions. On top of that, the harmonic substitution suggests alternate ways to solo to the tunes. There's no replacement for experience, and Dick definitely has it. As a guitar player, I found this superlative though I figure if you're a keyboard player, it will make even more sense to you. Zoot says check it out.