Sophia Yes! A real book is the same thing as a fake book. Originally, there were only fake books, which were printed in the basements of university music departments. These were created without any permission from the copyright holders, and allowed musicians to "fake" their way through a performance, without the actual sheet music. So when legal version of fake books were created, they were marketed as "Real Books". Now that real books are commonplace, the illegal versions do not have to be smuggled and copied clandestinely (though people now can easily illegally obtain real books, so are they fake again?).

I would choose an easier fake book, though, to start with. Something like this. Or if you don't have a teacher who can teach you, something like this (sorry it's out of print--I remember looking through it and thinking it was pretty good, but I'm sure there are similar beginner-level books about using fake books).

    I have probably played more classical than anything else, but I like listening to and playing all kinds of music. In addition to classical I've played a lot of ragtime and some new age and rock/pop from sheet music.

    I have dabbled with lead sheets, using them to make some simple arrangements of Christmas songs. I've learned a few things by ear although I'm really slow. I need to work on my ear training!

    These days I do a lot of improvising. I'm not trying for any genre when I improvise, I just play.

      rogerch

      I say this as a compliment, you remind me of Nahre Sol, who is a classically trained (Juilliard) musician who delves into different genres. It's always encouraging to me, to see folks branch out of one certain type of music. I imagine a lot of the techniques and ideas you get from one genre complements and generates ideas for the other genres.

          HeartKeys Wow, thanks HeartKeys! Nahre Sol is amazing and someone I look up to and have learned from so I am flattered!

            rsl12 Also, based on other stories you've told about your drummer, I don't think you should take his criticism to heart.

            I hear what you're saying. I still don't wanna open up that part of me to him. There are just certain things that aren't on the table. (Church work is one of them, long story... Been there, done that. No longer interested.)

            It's a bit of an odd dynamic. I sometimes think he thinks of me almost like a "son" as opposed to just someone he plays music with. He is old enough to be my dad. The other guy, the bass player, does vocals, too. But he's in between age wise and "can do no wrong". He actually has a hard time carrying a tune as well but since he's "experienced", it doesn't seem to be criticized.

            There are quite a few "musical" styles that I find fascinating, styles that don't seem to "carry a tune" with a lot of precision but yet are or were quite popular. Jimmy Durante. Leon Redbone. Louis Armstrong. Randy Newman. Major Holley. I'm sure there are others. But they were all kinda unique and endearing in some way. I'm still thinkin' about that.

            Not really sure where the current band will take me but it still seems to be expanding in the circle of influence and I'm still making new acquaintances and playing in new places that I might not be on my own. So I plan to ride this train a bit longer. Some of those connections may pay off later on when this particular band ceases to exist, and it will come to an end, just don't know when. Leader / drummer just turned 82, not in good health. But hey, one never knows.

              Pallas , thanks!

              LOL!! Probably won't be any "nose flicking" but there are just certain things I won't do for his band. Didn't say I wouldn't do them on my own. 😉

              Actually, the bass player does do gigs on his own, did before he joined the band. He plays guitar and sings, probably has more gigs a year than the band does. I've not ventured out as far but could, and that might happen in the future. I've got some ideas.

              Actually, I could use some energy! 😃 I'm a part time musician. I'm also a part time farmer trying to earn a few pennies growin' and sellin' produce. (Nothin' like making money the hard way, aye? LOL! I now have two avocations that suck time and make next to no money! LOL!)

                I certainly hope you will accept me into this club!
                I am classically trained and play classical music 99% of the time, but I actually prefer to listen to film music! Here is a rare non-classical performance of mine, playing something by Enrico Morricone, one of my favorite composers:

                This was recorded on my former piano, a beat-up old Pease baby grand from 1911 that I restored to the best of my limited ability. You can hear how out of tune it was (it could not stay in tune no matter what) but I think it did have a pleasant tone nonetheless.

                  Hi. Spent the last 14 years taking classical lessons and working pretty hard at it. I like classical, but always wanted to be able to sit down and play things like classic rock, blues, jazz ballads, GAS tunes, etc. So in January this year I stepped away from my lessons, first for a nice long piano break, and more recently poking around for a path to something different.
                  This isn't very productive at the moment, but I'm giving myself a lot of leeway exploring.

                  rsl12 how to use fake books (which is the non-sheet music route for playing pop and jazz).

                  What is a fake book? Is this similar to lead sheets?

                      HeartKeys I’m one of those people who excel in one area (playing by ear most songs except Classical pieces) and deficient in some playing fundamentals. Basically I can walk up to a public place and instantly play songs they’re familiar with, on all 12 keys. It seems cool and folks ask me why I don’t play professionally. My answer is because my talent is more a niche and purely entertaining but I am NOT a conventional pianist.

                      And I can’t, and don’t have interest in, reading music. It’s more fun for me to play them by ear. Call me strange

                      In the Pop, rock, folk, jazz, blues, country genres, we would call you [Wait for it!!] ... a musician. I've never seen a gigging musician in these genres play from sheet music. You're expected to play from memory. No one will hire you if you don't know the standards from memory. Far from being niche player, I'd say you embody the norm for musicians.

                      Studiologic Numa X 73, Pianoteq, Mac, Motu M2, Kali LP6 Monitors and WS 6.2 sub

                          Sophia I'm still at "Mary Had a Little Lamb" level. Ok, just beyond, but close

                          I'm assuming you refer to the Stevie Ray Vaughan version of Mary Had a Little Lamb. Pretty advanced stuff! Good on ya!!! 🙂

                          Studiologic Numa X 73, Pianoteq, Mac, Motu M2, Kali LP6 Monitors and WS 6.2 sub

                              Quitter I've never seen a gigging musician in these genres play from sheet music. You're expected to play from memory. No one will hire you if you don't know the standards from memory.

                              I've occasionally had a lead sheet in front of me "just in case", especially doing 3 or 4 hour gigs where there are no repeats and we're doing a number we've not done in public before. Something to jog my memory of how a B section starts off, something like that. But typically, I have a set list with song titles, a key, a tempo, typical play time, and sometimes a few words to help me remember something such as "two tags on the end" or some such. For the most part, I'd be fine with someone just calling out the songs. But there might be a handful that I might mess something up pretty easily, like playing it in G instead of F (I did that once, no one knew except the bass player. LOL! I started it in the wrong key, but hey, it wasn't that hard of a song, so I just kept on going. Didn't figure there was any need to shut it down just for that, and I didn't. 😉 )

                              I think I have maybe 70 or 80 songs in my head, most are in the Real Books so I've got some more learnin' n memorizin' to do. Probably pick up a dozen or so new ones a year without even trying. And sometimes the guys on YouTube who do tutorials have some good tunes they go through that I didn't know. I've got "Bernie's Tune" in my head right now and that came from a tutorial, I'd never heard it before. Snappy little tune. 🙂

                                I've been focusing on Jazz for the past year. I love Classical but I've always been frustrated that I never learned to improvise. I play a fair amount of Pop as well (60's-90's) with a small group I'm part of, but most of that is similar to Classical in that you're really trying to play it as close as possible to the original version.

                                Sophia Quitter Haha I realize that wasn't the best example... considering what @rogerch did with it 😃

                                Since you are learning the blues form, the SRV version of Mary Had a Little Lamb is a blues/rock song. You might find it out on YouTube. When I'm learning a song, or playing an exercise, I always enjoy changing it up. Key, time signature, rhythm, genre, harmony, tempo, it's all fair game. Keeps me from getting so bored with what I'm learning, and helps make it my own.

                                Studiologic Numa X 73, Pianoteq, Mac, Motu M2, Kali LP6 Monitors and WS 6.2 sub

                                    I can't speak for others but one of my best friends for trying out different improv, different music styles, etc, is boredom. When I've played a song so many times I can play it in my sleep, know all of the chord progressions without even thinking, know the melody inside and out, I get bored. And when I get bored, stuff happens. I try out new things. Sometimes alternate melodies, sometimes new chord progressions, sometimes new rhythms (sometimes multiple rhythms in the same song), sometimes pairing songs that wouldn't normally be paired, sometimes speeding up or slowing down, sometimes changing keys. It may even get kinda silly at times, that's OK. Play with it. Let your imagination romp a little. It's amazing what kinda shows up outta nowhere sometimes. 😉 😃

                                    Quitter I listened to it. It's a very catchy version! I'm not much into rock music and I had never heard of him, but I really enjoyed what he did there. Thanks for the recommendation 😊