• Explorations of the left-hand comping of Barry Harris, up-tempo comping by Bud Powell, rootless voicings, drop-2's using the sixth-diminished scale, comping in the style of Count Basie, modal voicings, and comping across the bar line
• 9 note-for-note transcriptions of Barry Harris, Bud Powell, Ahmad Jamal, Wynton Kelly, Hank Jones, and Bill Evans comping behind the soloist
• 2 examples of comping in the styles of McCoy Tyner and Herbie Hancock.
• Comping guides, rhythms, and progressions derived from the transcriptions
• 65 comping exercises aimed at getting the concepts under your fingers
• 2 CDs containing demonstrations and play-along tracks
• Interviews about the art of comping by Peter Bernstein and Albert "Tootie" Heath
• 256 pages, plus 2 CDs!

Endorsements

 Jeb Patton has written a well-conceived and well-thought-out book about the art of comping for pianists. It's full of examples of voicings and rhythms and interviews with top musicians discussing the art of comping. A great book!”
— Kenny Barron, jazz pianist

 The accompaniment skills of a pianist in the classic Jazz ensemble are what most often makes or breaks an aspiring young pianist's career. Jeb Patton's book, "An Approach to Comping" very logically and systematically outlines the heretofore difficult and even mysterious aspects of good solid piano accompaniment, while supplying a plethora of great comping exercises. A must have for any serious Jazz Piano student!”
— David Hazeltine, jazz pianist and composer

 Jeb is a very dedicated young man, and his new book on comping will be an asset to all of us.”
— Harold Mabern, legendary jazz pianist

 Jeb has lovingly transcribed and analyzed the actual comps of several jazz masters. What can be better than that? This book should provide inspiration for jazz musicians of all levels and instruments.”
— Bruce Barth, jazz pianist

 Jeb Patton has done an amazing job of describing the intricacies of the too-often overlooked subject of comping. As Jazz pianists, we spend most of our time comping behind ourselves and others. However, too many of us fail at this crucial and fundamental task. Anyone who is serious about Jazz piano must have a copy of this on their shelves!”
— Xavier Davis, jazz pianist and composer

 For me, comping is the main ingredient for supporting the soloist. This book allows the pianist, guitarist, or even drummer to experience comping first-hand by comping along with the great jazz pianists from the bebop tradition and beyond. It also has a lot of valuable information for people whose first instrument is not piano.”
— Albert "Tootie" Heath, legendary jazz drummer