Help and FAQs

How to Use the Site

From the menu, select the category that best describes what you are looking for, for example, if you are a saxophonist and are looking for backing tracks, select backing tracks for 'Saxophone'. From there you can refine your search with the filters and browse for the appropriate keys, styles, and instrumentation.

Listen to the sample of each product and add your selections to your shopping cart.

Our online payment system is securely handled by PayPal and Shopify. Most credit and debit cards are accepted.

I've bought my tracks, what happens next?

Immediately following your purchase, your download email should arrive at your inbox. If you don't find it there, please search your spam/junk folder. If you still can't find it, send me an email letting me know. We will always fix any problems or difficulties you may have with downloading your order. Please keep in mind that we are based in the UK and are in the GMT time zone.

About our Tracks

Available here are jazz, blues, and r&b backing tracks for any instrument or vocalist. Even if you are in a Duo you will find the right category of tracks to suit your use. You will find many of the classic Jazz Standards  and songs from Great American Song Book - Swing, Bossa Novas, Ballads, Modern Jazz, Gypsy, Vintage Jazz and more.

All of our tracks have proper endings - we will never fade out. It is important to us to use accurate chord changes in keeping with the greater jazz community of the past and present. That is why the musicians we use are experienced and accomplished in this genre.

We are musicians making musical recordings for other musicians. We record real musicians playing on real instruments to make our tracks. That means live drummers, pianists, bass players playing in our studios in front of microphones.

Help & FAQs

Help

If you encounter a problem or issue that you think we should be aware of, please let us know using the form at the bottom of the page. Thank you.

Articles

Please read the following articles for more information on various aspects of the site.

For general help with the use of the site, read our quick guide:
How to Use the Site

To get to know more about our production process and ethos, visit:
About our Backing Track Library

For information on how to choose a track in an appropriate key, see our guide for that:
How to Choose a Track in an Appropriate Key

For information about cookies and their use on the site, see:
Privacy - Cookies

Frequently Asked Questions

If you have any queries about this site, we may have already answered them. Choose a question from the list below to go straight to it, or scroll down to browse them all.

Q. Do the endings have fade outs?

A. No. All of our tracks have proper endings. We never fade out.

Q. Can I have a Track In A Different Key Or Tempo?

A. Because our tracks are made with real instruments/musicians it is not simple to change the key. Please read our article.
Also, software/apps are now available to change the key without changing the tempo (and also change the tempo without changing the key). Audacity, Amazing Slow Downer, Garageband, Logic, and similar programs will all do this function.  

Q. How Do I Download My Order?

A. After you make your purchase you will be sent 2 emails - one from Shopify/PayPal confirming your online transaction, and one from Jazzbacks confirming your order.

The Jazzbacks email will have the Subject line something like this:

If you do not see this email immediately after purchase please check your junk folder.

On this email you will find the download links to the backing tracks you ordered. These will be individual blue underlined URL address linking to each item ordered. Click to download.

Q What Is a zip file? 

A. Zip files are like folders that can bundle multiple objects together into a single download.

Q. Why doesn’t my purchase download to my IPad?

Your purchase consists of multiple files: mp3 audio, & pdf lead sheets. These are bundled together into a zip file so they can be downloaded all at once. Mobile devices like iPads, iPhones etc are not able to manage zip files. 

Q. How can I get them onto my iPad?
You can get them onto your ipad by downloading to your computer. Unpack the zip file by double or right clicking. putting the mp3 audio file into a playlist on your iTunes. Connect your iPad to your computer and drag the playlist into your iPad from iTunes on your computer.
- Another way (more limited) is to email the mp3 audio file to yourself (mp3 attached to a the message) and play the file from the message on your iPad. 

Q. A zip file will not open in a media player. You need to unpack it first.

It is the mp3 files that will open in a media player.

Q. How do I open a zip file?

Most computers can easily open zip files by clicking on them. Mac computers open them automatically.

 Click here for information on how to zip or unzip a file.

Q. What are backing tracks and how are they made?

A. Backing tracks are recorded musical tracks which leave space for instruments or vocalists to perform with. Backing tracks are also known as 'minus one' recordings or 'playback' and 'playalong' tracks. You could call our backing tracks 'jazz standards minus one' or 'jazz playback' or 'jazz play-along tracks'. Our backing tracks are recordings of real instruments played by real musicians. We record them in our state of the art studios.

Q. Are backing tracks like midi files?

A. No. Midi files rely on the sounds produced by your soundcard and are 100% programmed and lack a natural sound and feel. Because our backing tracks are made with real instruments and musicians they sound and feel much more natural than midi files. Since we specialise in jazz backing tracks and backing tracks of jazz standards, this is a priority for us.

Q. What is a jazz standard?

A. Jazz standards are the jazz tunes that are and have been commonly played and sung by jazz musicians and singers around the world for many decades. They have been gathered together and assembled into 'Real Books'.

Q. What is a 'Real Book'?

A. The first real books (a.k.a. 'fake books') were collections of tunes put together by working jazz musicians. Musicians wanted all the songs that they might play to be in one book. The different publishing houses couldn't agree to put all their songs together into one book. So, they were handwritten and illegally copied by the musicians. This enabled working musicians everywhere to work together from the same musical information.

Today, Real Books still enable musicians to play together from the same information and the books have grown and expanded. They are also studied in the highest levels of Jazz education around the world. They are published in B flat, E flat, and C books.

At Jazzbacks we ensure that all our jazz backing tracks are in line with the common culture of jazz Real Books.

Q. Are they Aebersold backing tracks or are they like Aebersold backing tracks?

A. Jazzbacks backing tracks are an alternative to Aebersold backing tracks. Although, our backing tracks are probably less difficult to play along with and have more achievable tempos. Jamie Aebersold made most of his backing tracks in the 1970's and had the Berkely Music School's jazz student in mind. Our backing tracks are made with modern studio equipment and techniques and we are thinking more of the musicians who are just learning jazz or are crossing over from another genre. Another major difference is that our backing tracks don't have the voice count-ins characteristic of the Aebersold backing tracks. Instead, we have musical count-ins. We would like our backing tracks to be fun as well as educational.

Q. What format do Jazzbacks backing tracks come in

A. High quality mp3 files. They download easily yet sound great.

Q. Are they really high quality?

A. They are CD quality mp3s. The sound reproduction is crystal clear and nothing from the audio spectrum is compromised.

Q. Can I only play the backing tracks on my computer?

A. You can play them i-pods, ipads, smartphones, tablets, or you can burn them to a cd.

Q. How do I make a CD with your backing tracks on it to play on my CD player?

A. Use you CD burning software and choose to make an Audio CD. Select the Jazzbacks you want on the CD. Assemble them in the order you would like them to appear on the CD and burn the cd.

Q. Are they licensed? Are they legal?

A. Yes. All of our backing tracks are licensed with the MCPS. 

Q. Why don't you have sheet music for all of the backing tracks of jazz standards in your library?

A. Backing tracks and sheet music are separate licensing issues. We only offer for sale products that we have permission to sell.

Q. How do I find tracks that have lead sheets?

A. Begin to search within your instrument category. Under ‘Shop By’ you will find various tags for refining your search. One of the tags says ‘has Lead Sheets’. Click it to bring up these products.

 

Begin to search within your instrument category. Under ‘Shop By’ you will find various tags for refining your search. One of the tags says ‘has Lead Sheets’. Click it to bring up these products.

Q. Can I perform publicly using your downloadable jazz backing tracks?

A. Yes. When you download one of our backing tracks of jazz standards you are entitled to perform publicly with them as you would perform normally. As with all publicly performed music the venue owner must meet the proper requirements with regards to licensing and entertainment laws.

Q. What is a guide track?

A. A guide track is one of our backing tracks with an instrument and/or voice demonstrating how the track is intended to be played from start to finish. These are a great way to learn by ear. Backing tracks must be bought separately from the guide track.