Fake book
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A fake book is a collection of simplified sheet music (sometimes called fake music or lead sheets), either transcribed manually or copied from some other source. The fake book is a central part of the culture of playing music in public, particularly in jazz, where improvisation is particularly valued.
A song in a fake book contains the melody line, basic chords, and lyrics. Fake books are not intended for novices: the reader must follow and interpret the scant notation.
However, for someone playing music as a hobby, fake books can be an avenue to playing their favorite songs very quickly, instead of spending months learning rudimentary songs ("Mary had a little lamb" and the like), as is often the practice in music lessons. By learning a few chords and a one-note melody line, an amateur can be playing Pink Floyd or Bob Dylan surprisingly quickly and have a lot of fun doing it.
In a method popularized by Scott "The Piano Guy" Houston, the use of lead sheets can lead to a satisfying and fulfilling experience playing the piano, even (and especially) for amateurs. Simply put, his thesis is that if you don't intend to play classical piano, then you don't need to spend years learning classical piano and advanced music theory; musicians can have fun (and sound good) using lead sheets and fake books.
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Origins of the name
Before the invention of the photocopier, copying papers or texts was often labor intensive. Therefore, fake books were collections of "lead sheets", usually grouped for a particular style of music. A lead sheet is simply a melody line marked up with chord symbols. This is the minimal information for musicians apt in improvising to "fake it", i.e., to make an impromptu arrangement of a song. The name fake book is derived from the aid the book provides musicians in extending their normal repertoire by "faking".
Despite the name "book", they often looked like a thick, loose stack of unbound sheets.
History
The primary usage of fake books was for professional musicians. When faced with a request for an unfamiliar song, a competent musician could look up a number of popular songs in a fake book, and generally offer at least a passable performance after learning the song's melody line and chord progression.
Fake books also turned out to be a good starting point for learning new tunes, a convenient supplement to a recording of the tune.
The origins of the transcriptions were often murky and not always of the best musical quality. But the sheer amount of the tunes more than compensated for this drawback, especially since skilled musicians could always improve the sound. At some point, there came The Real Book, which claimed to fix all problems of poor design. It was extremely popular and in its turn spawned a number of "fake Real Books".
Fake books used to infringe onto copyrights, and their circulation was primarily underground. Today regular, legal fake books abound in musical stores.
Types of fake books
- The Masters of Rock Guitar Fake Book
- The Real Book
- The Ultimate Fake Book
- Book One
- Cuban Fake Book
Further Reading
- Houston, Scott. Play Piano In A Flash. ISBN 1401307663
External link
- The Piano Guy (http://www.scottthepianoguy.com/)