Ok, here's the Stupid Questions Dept. :-) I know what a "Fake book" is, but I wonder why it is called a Fake book. I can't see why such books would be "fake"... At worst, one could say that some of the sheets are simplified, but that doesn't make it "fake", does it?

Bart, I think the term refers to a "bootleg" copying of tunes..I purchased my first "fake" books in the late 50's...they were as illegal as could be.....but they were great..especially for accordion players..

Fran's right. In the 60's when i began buying fake books, they were about $75.00 and illegal as hell. Quality varied widely; both the quality of the transcriptions and quality of the reproduction. They were always photo copied and cerlox bound individually.

Haven't seen any "real Fake books" offered for years. the guys selling them would show up at a club, and sell them out of their trunks.

Russ

Here's another take on the title:

I was told that they are called Fake Books, because with a simple melody line and chords....a musician could "fake" an arrangement without really having a full score in front of him.
That explaination makes more sense to me, although it's true - they always were illegal because they didn't obtain the copyrights back then. Might be different today, but I still think the term refers to the ability to fake it till you make it !

WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!..

The original "fake" books were the opposite of the "real" books.....illegal...

The "Real" books were legal..

Although what Dave says is true in use...

Dave's take is also correct. My early ones were more complete (some of them), but ones available in the 70's and 80's were abbreviated...usually containing the score for the verse and bridge and just lyrics for the rest. usually, 2 or three tunes per page.

Still have a few old ones laying around.


Russ

Thanks all, I pretty much understand what it's about now

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Russ. I just counted 19 fake books...right in front of me..starting back to 1959 (purchased)..

I can remember the first fake our band bought back in the mid-50's. We were directed to a side street in center city Philadelphia with instructions to open the back door of a perticular car, take the book and leave the money on the seat. Seems a little dramatic now, but you figure a thousand plus counts of copyright infringement. Some of you may know how hard BMI and ASCAP come down on even the smallest pizzaria and coffee shop owners that offer live music ... but that's another story.
Ciao,
Jerry