# UK Musicians: Looking for a Real Book **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 3, 2007, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581 "2007-01-03T19:32:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/1 "2007-01-03T19:32:42Z")
The AB Real Book, to be exact. Information/outlets to buy . . .outlets to buy used even, if possible; Real Books tend to be pricey, as are all collections of tunes where royalties are paid. (Note to my fellow moderators: This is a legal book and not violation of copyright.) Ideally I need one in C . . . C bass clef would not be my first choice as I do all kinds of stuff, but even a bass clef book would be useful. I’m not picky, though the prospect of transposing everything out of a Bb or Eb book is also not thrilling. Looks like I’m going to be doing more arranging in 2007 (and more playing! Wheee!) and I see from online sources there’s quite a few things in the book not otherwise available. Including Abdullah Ibrahim’s _The Mountain_, which is what started all this in the first place. But they don’t tell me where I can find one for purchase, I keep getting “not found” pages. Thanks in advance – ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/2 "2007-01-03T19:37:01Z")
New rather than used, but [www.musicroom.com](http://www.musicroom.com) is always my first port of call. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/3 "2007-01-03T19:40:44Z")
You mean there’s a Real Book that’s legal? The guy who sold me my copy walked me out of the music store he worked in and got it out of his trunk. It felt like a drug deal. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/4 "2007-01-03T20:14:22Z")
Well, they’re all real but some are more Real than others. 🙂 They used to be only sold on street corners and etc. (I remember buying my first “Real Book” from a van on a corner of Massachusetts Avenue over by Berklee.) But then music publishers figured out how to make money out of it and now there are legit Real Books. They seem to be more accurate too; Paul Bley’s students were not always the best of transcriptionists. Thanks for the link, Gorilla Man; I’m still hoping to find a used copy as my budget is not huge; when shipping and etc. is added in new is going to be pricey. But I’m glad to find it at all. I appreciate your help. ---
**Author:** ![guppy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7feea3/32.png) [@guppy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guppy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/5 "2007-01-03T20:23:13Z")
Did you try [Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com)? The American version has them for $25. What is the AB version anyhow? An aside: I have my grandfathers old fake book from the 1950’s. I use it on occasion but the print sucks and the chords are a little out of date. It’s cool relic though. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/6 "2007-01-03T20:36:21Z")
The UK version has different tunes . . . though I hadn’t seen these updates and different versions. Check out the list [here](http://www.musicroom.com/product.aspx?product_id=59083) Just went to amazon and was amazed to see Hal Leonard Publishing actually publishes “The Real Book;” that’s the same cover of the ones they sold out of the back of the van in Boston. (Hope they corrected the errors!) I already have that book, thanks, though. Guppy, you have what they used to call “Old #1.” For many many years that was all the fake book there was. I have a copy of that one too. Um, I don’t want to talk about it. ---
**Author:** ![Solitary\_Ascidian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee59a6/32.png) [@Solitary\_Ascidian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Solitary_Ascidian)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2007, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/7 "2007-01-04T03:00:00Z")
It doesn’t appear that the books on [amazon.com](http://amazon.com) are the same as the books on [amazon.co.uk](http://amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h_/026-5812898-5549264?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=ab+real+book&Go.x=0&Go.y=0), but I don’t know anything about the Real Books so perhaps I’m wrong… ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2007, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-musicians-looking-for-a-real-book/386581/8 "2007-01-04T03:53:58Z")
No used ones to be had, apparently. Amazing. Must be a really useful book!