Basie-style comping

Also known as “Freddie Green” style, after the longtime guitarist in Count Basie's band who, almost as much as Basie himself, defined the band's sound. Here he is in the mid 50’s (https://youtu.be/L31pDORVifQ) with the Basie band and vocalist Joe Williams. 

What you’re hearing is Green playing three-note chords spanning the bottom (3rd - 6th) four strings on the guitar - usually the 5th string is muted. And as simple as the job seems, it can be done well or badly. Freddie did it so well that when electric guitars first became available, he got one and started playing solos. Problem was, the band was so dependent on his rhythm playing that, as Sweets Edison told it “…whenever Freddie would lay out of the band to take his solo, the whole rhythm section used to fall apart.” So they started sabotaging his amp. He’d get it fixed, and someone would do it again, until finally he said OK the hell with it. As Sweets said, “He probably could have been one of the best at that time, but we had to sacrifice him for the good of the band.”

That’s right. A guy playing primarily three-note voicings in quarter notes was vitally important to the sound, and mental/musical health of the whole band. So let’s look at this.

The easiest way to get a good voicing for these types of chords is to be in gCGDB tuning. You want to leave a little space between the quarter notes, but not too much! You’re imitating the sound of an acoustic archtop guitar with high action, and the sound you want is kind of like “fump - fump - fump - fump.” Here’s a II-V-Imaj7-I6 progression in D:

Sooner or later you’re bound to start thinking, “Isn’t this gonna get a little monotonous? Should I put in a little, y’know, razzmatazz…?”  No and no. Your job here is not to be “interesting.” Your job is to be the thing against which someone else is interesting. Think of it as being the answer to the musical question

“as opposed to what?” 

So: “Wow that soloist is very rhythmically interesting.” as opposed to what?  You and the bass player. fump-fump-fump-fump…

Or: “Wow that soloist is pretty harmonically adventurous.” as opposed to what?  You and the bass player. fump-fump-fump-fump…

Or: “I love how that arrangement goes from soft, to loud, back to soft…” as opposed to what?  You and the bass player!

Without as opposed to what? everything is in danger of being a mishmash, and mishmashes are usually BORING!

The idea of counterpoint extends beyond contrasting musical lines; there are also contrasting levels of emotion. Listen again to “Every Day…” and to how Freddie’s guitar remains emotionally constant through it all, yet always intense, never lazy, never uninvolved. On the banjo you can strum or use TIM.

Here’s a blues progression in Eb.

Yes, you could stick a fourth note into many of these chords, but the fact is, the three-note versions seem to cut through better. Besides, you'll notice that a lot of these shapes represent more than one chord. Check this out:

You can use this one shape for Bm, Bm7, Bm6, Gmaj7, D6.

This one for Ebmaj9, F13 (over Ebmaj7 and F7 respectively).

This could be Dm7, Dm7b5, Bbmaj9 (same as Bb maj7).

And this useful one can be G7, Bm7b5, Dm6, Fdim7, Abdim7, Bdim7, Ddim7, E7b9, G7b9, Bb7b9, and Db7b9!

“Rhythm changes” is what we call the chord progression to “I’ve Got Rhythm,” which in its various forms has been used for hundreds of other jazz and pop songs over the years, including “The Flintstones,” “Leave it to Beaver,” “Cottontail,” “Oleo,” “Sherry Baby” - on and on and on.  Mainly you want to concern yourself with "the lower chord tones," root, 3rd, 5th, and 7th, and you want to keep it as mid-rangey as possible.

Here are a couple of other great examples of that "emotional counterpoint." Listen to Fats Waller’s left hand here (https://youtu.be/dv2ktr-yc3o). Listen to the whole band behind Screamin’ Jay Hawkins (https://youtu.be/PwXai-sgM-s). Screamin’ Jay is going crazy and these guys don’t move, they keep it right there! You gotta be able to do that.

Most of the worst jazz is made when everybody is trying to be “interesting.” It’s like what happens when you mix all the colors: brown.