about PlayJazzNow.com

PlayJazzNow was created in 2006 by bassist Bill Harrison. Click HERE for information on studying with Bill.

The demise of the jam session and the explosion of interest in jazz education at the high school and college level fueled my desire to create a site that would be useful to jazz players of all levels. After more than thirty years as a jazz player and teacher, I was frustrated with the lack of high quality play-along recordings that could be used by musicians to hone their skills as accompanists and soloists.

PlayJazzNow's mission is to provide great sounding, fun and affordable backing tracks for all instrumentalists and vocalists. I sincerely hope you enjoy using them to help you advance to your highest level.

Navigating PlayJazzNow is easy. Take the VIDEO TOUR.

Listen to one of our tracks in action: sample
Click HERE to see who uses and endorses our play-alongs.
Click HERE for details about the musicians and artists who help create our tracks and website.
CONTENT
Our tracks inspire you to practice the forms, turnarounds and harmonic cycles that are the backbone of traditional and contemporary jazz. You'll be able to study and internalize many of the harmonic and rhythmic fundamentals you'll need to play any tune, any style, any tempo.

We also offer a substantial variety of tracks based on the harmony of tunes from the standard jazz repertoire. Many of these progressions are available in multiple keys.
CONVENIENCE
Simply click your instrument's link and you'll be directed to the sets of tracks specifically designed for you. Horn players and singers work out with a full jazz trio. Pianists, guitarists and vibists practice with bass and drums. Bassists play with piano and drums. Drummers and percussionists lock in with bass and piano.
VERSATILITY
YOU decide how you want to play back our tracks — on your PC, on your iPad, iPhone, Android or other mobile device, or burn them to CD — whatever format(s) work for you to play along. The old standby playalong CDs require the use of a "balance" control to dial in the tracks you need. In these days of desktop stereos, iPods and portable CD players who has a "balance" control anymore? That's why we've created tracks specifically for you.
LEVELS OF DIFFICULTY
Whatever your skill level, you'll find tracks that are appropriate for you. We've graded our sets beginning, intermediate and advanced, so you have options to chose from. Each track is 3-4 minutes long — you'll have plenty of time to experiment, try out new licks, find what works and what doesn't.
ALL 12 KEYS
All the master musicians do it. Your teachers have told you to do it. PlayJazzNow makes it easy for you to practice everything in all keys. Each set of tracks (blues, turnarounds, etc) gives you the opportunity to master your musical vocabulary in every key. You can't find that anywhere else.
PRICED FOR MUSICIANS
PlayJazzNow recognizes that few if any of us get rich playing creative music. So we've priced our tracks very reasonably. Please CLICK HERE for more info on our pricing.
TRY BEFORE YOU BUY
Each set of tracks has a short free sample so you can listen before you buy. You can also download a free chart for each set whether you decide to buy or not. Please note that we have provided transposed charts for Bb and Eb instrumentalists. We want you to know what you're getting!
EASY ON THE ECOSPHERE
All the current talk about global warming and the shortage of fossil fuels has us thinking about conservation. That's one reason PlayJazzNow mainly sells digital products. — less paper, less plastic.
More questions? Visit our FAQ page.

Donate to PlayJazzNow! Yes, this is a business. But we have had people ask what they could do to help us keep the site growing (beyond buying some tracks and spreading the word about our products). If you feel the urge, throw us a few bucks. Thanks!

DONATE (You set the amount, of course)
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