WORKSHOP REVIEW:

Jim Nichols Guitar Clinic

by Alex Walsh

From Musical News, July/August 2007

The Jim Nichols Guitar Clinic on Tuesday, May 29, 2007, was two and a half hours of pure guitar bliss. Jim plays jazz guitar and is also a disciple of Chet Atkins. For this workshop he mainly talked about jazz.

Besides learning “licks,” scales, and what to call the chords, Jim says the two most basic things he learned to play jazz are: 1) turning a C7 into a Gm and then back into a C7 (and conversely playing a Gm scale over a C7 chord), and 2) b5 substitutions.

In jazz, Jim said, the bebop period is the divider between traditional and more modern sounds. He used the tune Autumn Leaves to illustrate his point. The song as it was originally written by Johnny Mercer was perfect, according to Jim. It used “straight” chords, and some people might prefer that arrangement. The first four measures are: A-7, D7, Gmaj7, Cmaj7. To give it a more modern jazz flavor, various passing chords can be added (in the second half of each measure to start with): A-7 (Eb13), D7 (Ab7b5), Gmaj7 (Db9b5), Cmaj7. Jim says the chord substitution possibilities are endless, and, if you give this song to ten different musicians, you can have 10 different variations.

An audience member asked the question: “What should I focus on as a guitar player that will get me gigs?” Jim described the different levels of the music industry. Basically there are two choices: 1) focus on one thing and do it really well (be seen as an artist), or 2) do many things well so that you can be hired as a side musician. Jim says he tended towards the side musician as he had so many interests and was able to play many instruments.

Watching a master play his instrument is always inspiring, and Jim did just that on a piece called The Flower Girl from the classic Charlie Chaplin film, City Lights . For guitar solos, Jim says he uses chord positions to help navigate the neck. He says if he gets lost it’s probably because he’s really high up on the neck, or if he’s sight reading a difficult chart. About playing in a group, Jim says to always listen to the guys around you (especially if you like what they’re playing). Simple enough.

Of course there’s no way to put a lifetime of learning into a workshop, and then a short review. You really did have to be there.

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