real book
The most widely used collection of jazz lead sheets, originally an illegal bootleg from the Berklee College of Music.
In Depth
The Real Book was compiled by Berklee students in 1975 to correct errors in earlier fake books. Despite being an unauthorised, hand-copied manuscript, it became the standard reference for jazz musicians worldwide. Its clean calligraphy and relatively accurate transcriptions made it indispensable. Hal Leonard published a legal edition in 2004, paying royalties to composers. The Real Book remains the single most important document in jazz education.
The identity of the Berklee students who compiled the original Real Book remained a secret for over 30 years to protect them from copyright lawsuits.