Bebop Licks for Guitar : A Dictionary of Melodic Ideas for Improvisation

Rating:
Summary: Misleading Marketing
Review: If this book had been marketed for what it is, I would not have been so disappointed. The book contains hundreds of licks in the key of C major against II-V-Is and turnarounds. It also contains a CD playing most of these licks on an electric piano, not a guitar. Some of the licks are very good but not hearing a guitar play them is disappointing. One of the benefits of being a guitarist is that when someone plays a lick on a guitar, you can magically see it being played in your head.
To call this "A Dictionary of Melodic Ideas for Improvisation", however, is inaccurate. There is no explanation of how or why the licks work and there is little musical theory contained in the book. Furthermore, the marketing states "Over 800 Licks in the Styles of Tal Farlow, Pat Martino, Wes Montgomery" etc. There is, however, absolutely no examination of these guitarists' styles or musical phrasing. None of these Titans are even mentioned in the book, except on the cover.
Overall, the book is economically priced. In my opinion, if you are an intermediate jazz guitarist only interested in grabbing some licks in a new style, buy it.