Mickey Baker’s Jazz Guitar Lesson 1

Get ready for Mickey Baker’s Jazz Guitar Lesson 1! If you’re bored with playing the same bar chords for blues songs, and you’re ready to jazz up your playing, this is the place to start.

I was browsing guitar videos on YouTube a few weeks ago and came across a Robben Ford video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoQVAWbA-F8&t=550s. Robben Ford reveals some of the building blocks for his guitar style in the video. He noted that early in his career, he was playing the same few chords in every song. Recognizing that he was only playing a couple chords, he realized, “I don’t know any chords!” So what did Robben do? He bought a book, and that book was Mickey Baker’s Jazz Guitar.

Before We Begin…

I highly recommend that you purchase Mickey Baker’s Jazz Guitar Book 1. The lessons I’m presenting will stay true to the book, and you can practice anywhere you have the book and a guitar. Gone camping? No Internet? No problem! You’ve got the book! And if you want to go the extra mile, you can purchase Mickey Baker’s Jazz Guitar Book 2!

It should be noted that Mickey Baker designed this book for advanced guitar players. A lot of the chords are easy to pick up individually, but there are a lot of chords in this book. You will be required to change chords often and rapidly. You should also be able to read chords charts and fake books. If you can’t read musical staff (like me), you may get stuck when you reach the arpeggios. I’m going to learn how to read the staff and translate this to tablature for you. That way in the subsequent lessons, if you can’t read music, you can continue to learn! Plus, I’ve made a video lesson demonstrating all of the chords I use below, plus the practice vamps! Check it out below:

Music Theory

In the book, I found Mickey Baker does not explain a lot of the music theory. As you progress through the lessons, patterns begin to emerge and you develop an “ear” for how to use these lessons in a practical setting. Note, Baker does not teach you how to feel the music, and he states that this is something you must do on your own. As you improve, you’ll develop your own way of playing solos and vamps using the tools Baker teaches us.

If you’d like to learn more about the how and why of music theory, I’ll provide short explanations in each lesson to help explain what Mickey is teaching us. I do not have a music degree, but I am going to use what I have learned playing music over the years to explain things in layman’s terms.

If you have a good understanding of music theory, you can feel free to get right to the lesson and start practicing! Less reading for you! For Lesson 1, we will only be reviewing chords, so I am going to skip the Music Theory explanations. When we start putting the chords together in subsequent vamps.

You should spend at least a couple of days on each lesson. Mickey Baker says this is important, and the lessons will build on top of the previous ones. After getting through his book, it’s true. These lessons do build on one another, so the better you practice and study, the better you’re learning and experience will be down the line.

Lesson 1

Mickey’s first lesson is all about chords. His chords and chord progressions will allow you to play chords solos, background for your band or a horn section, and song introductions. First, he begins by giving us 26 chords to learn and recommends studying these chords to start. Mickey starts us off in the keys of G and C, and he notes that most of these chords are for the keys of G major and C major.

I think learning all 26 chords right away is overkill, as the first few lessons only deal with 6 or 7 chords. In my adaptation of Mr. Baker’s lessons, I’m going to start you off with 7 chords so you can practice Lessons 1 through 4 and get learning right away. Mickey Baker assigns a number to each of his chords, and I will stay true to his numbering system so that if you purchase the book, you can follow along.

Chord Fingering

I will provide you with a chord fingering diagram so you can see how to shape the chord with your fingers. I will then give you an audio clip to listen to for each chord. The audio clip will start by playing the individual notes of the chord so you can hear how the chord should sound. Then I will do a quick 4-count and play one 4/4 measure vamp. We will strum the chords on the 1, 2, 3, and 4 counts. Feel free to continue vamping until the chord feels comfortable.

Mickey Baker does not include a chord vamp, but I chose to vamp the chord because a lot of the subsequent lessons require you to vamp! I want you to get used to vamping, and get used to playing the chords this way.

Without further adieu, let’s learn Mickey Baker Chord #’s 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 9.

G – Chord 1

This is a simple G major bar chord that you should already know. Here’s the fingering chart and audio clip.

Gma7 – Chord 2

Gma6 – Chord 3

Ami7 – Chord 4

When you reach the Ami7 chord, I found Mickey Baker’s recommended fingering results in hyperextension of my 3rd finger. Look at the chord chart below, and notice that he is barring the 4 high strings with his third finger (or ring finger). I’ve been taught to avoid hyperextending my fingers as much as possible, so I am including an alternate fingering. This alternate fingering may be easier for you if you’re prone to carpal tunnel or trigger finger like I am. The audio clip will let you hear my alternate fingering for the Ami7 chord. If you are able to play the A note on the high E string without risking injury, feel free to use Mickey Baker’s fingering!

Ami6 – Chord 5

My comments for the Ami6 chord are similar to the Ami7 in that Mickey Baker’s fingering requires you to bar the 3 high strings with your ring finger or your 3rd finger. Again, I find my finger gets hyperextended, so I am providing an alternate finger for you. Both are acceptable to play.

D13b5b9 – Chord 6

This chord is a bit of a stretch, literally. If you’re used to playing bar chords and the standard open “country chords,” the D13b5b9 is going to take some practice. For now, you should work on getting your hand to stretch out and play each note of this chord clearly without any fret buzz.

A13b9 – Chord 9

Now, we’re going to jump to Chord 9 and skip Mickey Baker Chords 7 and 8. The reason I am skipping these is you will not need Chords 7 or 8 (or Chords 10 through 26) for the first few lessons. Rather than overwhelm you with chords you will not be using immediately, I want to get you into Lesson 2 right away. It’s more enjoyable to use what you learn immediately than to be stuck in an academic exercise for the sake of academia.

Time to Practice!

Practice makes perfect. Be sure to practice these simple vamps every day. People say to practice for a minimum of 20 minutes, but I personally think that 45 minutes is more appropriate. The longer you spend with these chords, the easier the next lessons will be! Once you feel comfortable shaping these chords on command, it’s time for you to move on to Lesson 2!

Enjoyed the lesson? Ready to purchase a guitar to accompany your new jazz chords? Check out my review of the Gretsch G2655T Streamliner. It’s an archtop electric guitar that looks, sounds, and plays great!

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Need More Help?

If this is a bit too advanced for you, send me an email and let me know! I’d love to hear what you are struggling with, and I’d be happy to make a new post just for you. There are probably other players just like you who struggled with the same thing, so don’t be afraid to ask!