Ted Greene: Chord Chemistry: For Guitar

I recently threw this book out. I had purchased it in 1971. Never found it useful. I'm surprised this book was ever published. Even more astonished that it's still being marketed. I found the title misleading as it suggests much more than it delivers. Normally, I wouldn't bother posting a review, but I was so underwhelmed by this book. It appears I can't post this unless I award at least one star but I'd rather give this book no stars.

42 YEARS OF PLAYING GUITAR, THIS IS MY ONE DESERT ISLAND GUITAR BOOK. YOU'LL NEVER LOOK AT THE FRETBOARD THE SAME WAY AGAIN. I started playing guitar in 1977, at age seven. Thirty five years later after becoming physically disabled yet still wanting to write, Steve Vai recommended Ted Greene's CHORD CHEMISTRY. This book has virtually every chord voicing you can imagine-- but knowledge of diatonic chord harmonization is a must, otherwise buy yourself a cheap gig bag chord book. This book is for musicians who understand chords are derived from scales; for musicians who never want to resort to the four or five most obvious chord voicings. My favorite chapter in this book was chord synonyms. Not a jazz musician by trade, this made chord substitution make sense to me. I am currently unable to physically play guitar, but I study theory almost daily and write daily. Thanks to Ted, the fretboard is always revealing new ideas and voicings, even though I haven't opened this book in a couple of years. Take it slow. And be sure to watch Ted's videos on YouTube. His wife was gracious enough to continue uploading old videos of him playing and teaching after he passed. Ted was a genius. This book made writing fun again! A must for EVERY guitarist.

This book is a fantastic resource for the guitarist, who wishes to know their chords and view them in a traditional approach. Greene gives you many options for different chords, and has a modern approach to his material. Highly recommend to any guitarist who wishes to excel in their knowledge of chords around the fretboard and unique approaches to choosing them. His other book on chords is a bible in my mind.