Lead sheets, where?

[J.F.N.]

Hello y'all,

 

Coming back into this game after 15+ years off, and starting with my first band since then now, I have a small repertoire to plug with 20 songs, most of them standard stuff, but for a few of them other ones I am finding it a good idea with lead sheets, to not have to spend to much time noting down the form structure, details, etc.

 

What online service do people here use? So far I have tried a couple of paid ones, and they all suck, just sent another angry email to one of the sites demanding a full refund and deletion of my data.

 

[ElmerJFudd]

What’s the set list? 

[JamPro]

I use the "hit-r-miss" method: I enter a search string into Google "song pdf name of song".  This returns a usable file fairly often.

 

Sometimes I enter into Google "lead sheet name of song".  This often returns a usable file.

 

Often I end up making my own charts based on what I find online.  I keep these on my computer so I can print them out as needed.

 

 

[stoken6]

The most reliable service I've come across is a post to this forum along the lines of "I'm working up song XYZ by band ABC (link to YouTube/Spotify...) and am struggling with the three chords coming out of the solo before the final chorus."

 

Often you'll get an offer for the entire chart to be sent to you.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[J.F.N.]

1 hour ago, ElmerJFudd said:

What’s the set list? 

 

The ones left that I haven't started yet on the "never played before" list, hence not googled (in the same fashion as per other posts in this threy) are:

 

The right thing - Somply Red 

Valerie - Amy Winehouse 

Kryptonite - 3 Doors Down 

Bohemian like you - Dandy Warhols

 

Musically no Biggie, but faster worked through with lead sheets...

 

1 hour ago, JamPro said:

I use the "hit-r-miss" method: I enter a search string into Google "song pdf name of song".  This returns a usable file fairly often.

 

Sometimes I enter into Google "lead sheet name of song".  This often returns a usable file.

 

Often I end up making my own charts based on what I find online.  I keep these on my computer so I can print them out as needed.

 

 

 

Yep, that's been my strategy so far too

[ElmerJFudd]

7 minutes ago, J.F.N. said:

 

The ones left that I haven't started yet on the "never played before" list, hence not googled (in the same fashion as per other posts in this threy) are:

 

The right thing - Somply Red 

Valerie - Amy Winehouse 

Kryptonite - 3 Doors Down 

Bohemian like you - Dandy Warhols

 

Musically no Biggie, but faster worked through with lead sheets...

 

 

Yep, that's been my strategy so far too

Do you really need the lead sheet, as in a notated vocal and chord symbols with the form laid out with repeat signs, first & second endings, etc?   Or do you just need the lyric and chords over it?

[J.F.N.]

Just now, ElmerJFudd said:

Do you really need the lead sheet, as in a notated vocal and chord symbols with the form laid out with repeat signs, first & second endings, etc?   Or do you just need the lyric and chords over it?

 

Lyrics and chords, and most important, the form/structure.

[ElmerJFudd]

12 minutes ago, J.F.N. said:

 

Lyrics and chords, and most important, the form/structure.

Is this sort of thing helpful?

 

KRYPTONITE Chords - 3 Doors Down | E-Chords

[J.F.N.]

3 minutes ago, ElmerJFudd said:

Is this sort of thing helpful?

 

KRYPTONITE Chords - 3 Doors Down | E-Chords

 

Definitely a good start, even better if there are bars too, but yes, this works. 👍🏻

[J.F.N.]

So there's no global conclusion on any service for this, a friend musician recommended iReal, I may take the plunge and pay for it, to find out if it's useful.

[ElmerJFudd]

VALERIE Chords - Amy Winehouse | E-Chords

 

Bohemian Like You

 

With these free available charts, I would just listen to the tune and compare to make sure the person who created it is right.  Copy/paste into your own sheet and make changes where needed, including song structure.  

[ElmerJFudd]

12 minutes ago, J.F.N. said:

So there's no global conclusion on any service for this, a friend musician recommended iReal, I may take the plunge and pay for it, to find out if it's useful.

iReal is great for having all your charts in one place.  you can lay out bars and mark structure, but I do not believe it includes lyric placement.  

 

 

You may prefer an app like OnSong, it imports text files for lyrics.  You can place your chord changes yourself. 

 

[J.F.N.]

Yeah, iReal seems to be for Cheat Sheets, which is what I do manually while practicing a tune, prefer working with lead sheets that contain the full form etc. while practicing, then I take notes of each part and create Cheat Sheets to keep with me on band rehearsal and live. So probably iReal could be great for that process instead of like now, pen and paper. 

 

However, while starting on a new song and doing my personal homework I still want the lead sheet (bars, structure, lyrics, and chords).

 

Google it is... 🤣

[niacin]

This is my lead sheet for Valerie, written with Musescore (freeware), no lyrics but has the string lines written out and the whole structure.

 

 

Valerie.pdf

[CHarrell]

Believe it or not, a great source of any kind of sheet music is the website Scribd. It costs a subscription fee, but you can find some of the most obscure stuff on there...I've found rare Hermeto Pascoal scores, some Chucho Valdes, and even a Japanese transcription book of some Herbie Hancock solos.

[niacin]

2 hours ago, CHarrell said:

Believe it or not, a great source of any kind of sheet music is the website Scribd. It costs a subscription fee, but you can find some of the most obscure stuff on there...I've found rare Hermeto Pascoal scores, some Chucho Valdes, and even a Japanese transcription book of some Herbie Hancock solos.

 

On Scribd I've found back issues of a Hammond Organ mag with transcriptions, out of print Dollar Brand/Abdullah Ibrahim sheet music, not so sure about pop lead sheets though

[J.F.N.]

Great input from y'all, cheers!!

 

I was just curious if there was a "holy grail" online service worth paying for, that delivers proper correct reliable material, which I would be surprised if there was, but you never know..

 

🤪

[JamPro]

I have a home-made chart of Valerie if you want.

 

Musescore - someone else mentioned this.  It is a useful tip: free downloadable working notation software. This has proved pretty useful to me in making charts.  I recommend it.

 

Mind for Music (here: https://www.mindformusic.com/)  Advertised as "the internet's largest collection of Jazz and Contemporary sheet music, arrangements and transcriptions, all completely free!"  It has a lot of music; not everything, but a lot.  A worthwhile place to visit when you are looking for a chart.

[Bobadohshe]

I will see if I can find the PDF online through google search. I will then probably make my own real chart because most of those leadsheets don't have the right form.

[stoken6]

On 3/23/2024 at 3:22 PM, J.F.N. said:

Bohemian like you - Dandy Warhols

OT: In an old band I was in, 2nd guitarist had a spare guitar tuned in Open G for a couple of Stones numbers. When we did Bohemian Like You, he used that guitar to play the riff using the 6/4 Keef shape. Sounded pretty cool.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[MathOfInsects]

It just depends on the song and gig. If it's just a few chords and I only have to remember how long to play each one, that's usually just me typing or writing a quick chord chart, almost always Nashville these days. 

If it's more than a few chords and I need notes on form and the like, I always start with ireal and see if anyone's charted it already. Then I do a google image search. Then I try the tab sites. If all those come up empty or unusable then I make my own chart, either in a form I've made up and gotten used to over the years, or on ireal. 

I really only care about exact form if it's going to be played that way. Otherwise I just want really clear A, B, C sections, etc, and a good sense of how it's LIKELY to go, even if it goes some other way. Most of my cover gigs are in a context that involves extending some section with solos and the like, so you really just need to know what you have to play when someone signals that we're going back to the bridge, etc. 

 

If it's originals for a session, I chart that by hand, on special pads I order exactly for that purpose, with some weird little customs I'm used to using to make them intuitive (for me). 

 

If there's a line I need to know, I notate that, or screen shot it from sheet music, or even write it out note-name-by-note-name above the relevant places in the count.

[Bobadohshe]

17 hours ago, MathOfInsects said:

I really only care about exact form if it's going to be played that way. Otherwise I just want really clear A, B, C sections, etc, and a good sense of how it's LIKELY to go, even if it goes some other way. Most of my cover gigs are in a context that involves extending some section with solos and the like, so you really just need to know what you have to play when someone signals that we're going back to the bridge, etc. 

 

 

Good point. I know some cats who are so married to their own ink that they become a drag when the form gets more fluid.

[CEB]

I’m curious and maybe this isn’t the right place. But…

 

Am I the only guy that doesn’t worry much about form.  If I have section charts then I’m usually good to go.  It’s like I just feel the change when they happen, probably from the bassist if there is one.  But I generally don’t think much when I play.  I guess I’m just weird. 

[J.F.N.]

 

For the lead sheets I went the Google happy go lucky way.

 

For my cheet sheets, I went with this free service:

 

https://www.chordsheet.com/

 

Linked below is my "exam" for learning the service, easy tune, same chords all the way basically, though I went with repeating lines for each part instead of just listing the part names and x reps, easier to follow, and eventually during upcoming rehearsals there will be notes needed, "organ in", "strings", backing vocal cues etc. where it's nice to have each part included.

 

I can't seem to get the file upload to work here, when downloading it says there is some problems and the file can't be opened, here's a download link instead:

https://we.tl/t-hGjqJmTV6e

 

 

 

[ElmerJFudd]

1 hour ago, J.F.N. said:

 

 

https://we.tl/t-hGjqJmTV6e

 

 

 

O que é isto?

[J.F.N.]

7 hours ago, ElmerJFudd said:

O que é isto?

 

I can't seem to get the file upload to work here, when downloading it says there is some problems and the file can't be opened, so there's a download link instead.

[ElmerJFudd]

2 hours ago, J.F.N. said:

 

I can't seem to get the file upload to work here, when downloading it says there is some problems and the file can't be opened, so there's a download link instead.

Ah ok.  It’s working.  Yesterday it just sent me to an advertisement.  

[J.F.N.]

Just now, ElmerJFudd said:

Ah ok.  It’s working.  Yesterday it just sent me to an advertisement.  

 

Yeah, it's not ideal with We Transfer, and will also be deleted in a week automatically, I will take some time during the day here and add a public folder in my dropbox and put it there instead.

[J.F.N.]

16 hours ago, J.F.N. said:

 

For the lead sheets I went the Google happy go lucky way.

 

For my cheet sheets, I went with this free service:

 

https://www.chordsheet.com/

 

Linked below is my "exam" for learning the service, easy tune, same chords all the way basically, though I went with repeating lines for each part instead of just listing the part names and x reps, easier to follow, and eventually during upcoming rehearsals there will be notes needed, "organ in", "strings", backing vocal cues etc. where it's nice to have each part included.

 

I can't seem to get the file upload to work here, when downloading it says there is some problems and the file can't be opened, here's a download link instead:

https://we.tl/t-hGjqJmTV6e

 

 

 

 

Grrr, seems I can't edit my post anymore SO, here is a proper link to a share in my Dropbox instead:

 

Amy Winehouse - Back to Black : Cheat Sheet

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/6auvnosl8hyxxbw1lqxi5/amy-winehouse_back-to-black_cheat-sheet.pdf?rlkey=16j47qul5ga8byqktg20xlc1t&dl=0