How Many "Real" Songs Are in Your Repertoire? (And the Art of Lay-back)
The "Emergency Gig" Scenario
Let’s indulge in a hypothetical scenario this weekend. You are at a concert of your favorite jazz band. Suddenly, the guitarist falls ill and cannot continue. The bandleader looks desperately into the audience and asks: "Is there anyone here who knows just one of our standard tunes inside and out? We just need to play one encore to finish the show." Could you raise your hand? Or would you hesitate? Would you bargain? "Well, if you give me a chord chart..." or "I can jam over a Bb blues, but I don't know the head..." This reveals the harsh truth about Repertoire. A true musician isn't defined by how many scales they know, but by how many songs they can perform from start to finish—Intro, Melody (Head), Comping, Solo, and Outro—without a safety net. If your list of such songs is zero or one, then truthfully, much of your practice time has been misdirected.
Repertoire First, Theory Second
Too many students—hobbyists and majors alike—become "Lick Collectors." They hoard scales, complex voicings, and fast patterns, yet they lack the vessel to carry them. They build a library of words but cannot tell a story. At Berklee, my mentor Richie Hart would often start lessons with a simple command: "Just play." No warm-ups, no excuses. He wanted to hear a song. He taught me that learning a tune isn't just memorizing the changes; it’s internalizing the Time Feel and the specific groove of the piece. This brings us to the elusive concept of Lay-back. Listen to Grant Green’s 'It Ain't Necessarily So'. Even the legendary George Benson admitted he couldn't replicate Grant Green’s unique sense of time. Lay-back isn't about dragging the tempo or being lazy. It is a deliberate artistic choice to stretch the time specifically against a rock-solid internal clock. However, you cannot achieve a "Lay-back" feel if you are struggling to remember the chord changes. If you try to play behind the beat without mastering the song first, you won't sound soulful; you will just sound like you are dragging the band down. True rhythmic freedom comes only after you have totally dominated the repertoire.
Play Like You Mean It
Whether you are preparing for a conservatory entrance exam or playing in your bedroom after a long day at work, my advice is the same: Build your Repertoire. Instead of memorizing another mode this weekend, pick one standard tune. Learn it deeply. Hum the melody. Absorb the rhythm. Try to mimic the time feel of masters like Grant Green. Music is storytelling. An audience will always prefer a simple, complete story over a chaotic dictionary of fancy words. Be the musician who can raise their hand when the bandleader asks for help. Play with intention. Play chords that mean something. That is the attitude of a real jazz guitarist. For inspiration and guidance on building your song list, visit VoiceLidJazzGuitar.com.