PRACTICE PORTAL

Lately i’ve been rereading a great book, the second part of Chester Himes’ two volume autobiography entitled “My Life Of Absurdity”. Himes, an awesome writer and contemporary of James Baldwin, Ralph Ellison, John A. Williams, etc., spent a large part of his adult life as an expatriate artist searching for and eventually finding a measure of success after leaving the U.S., where he was largely neglected. as the title suggests, Himes’ tale is one filled with enough adventure, humor, heartbreak and stories so bizarre that they test the limits of credulity. he speaks with gritty, bitter honesty about the lifestyle of expatriate black artists in postwar Europe. the first volume, “The Quality Of Hurt”, which deals with his life before leaving the states, is just as incredible. perhaps Himes and Mal Waldron have nothing more in common than spending the larger part of their artistic life living abroad. unlike Himes, Waldron didn’t want for work while in New York. he was busy as a leader and sideman before his departure. also, unlike Himes, he seemed to adapt to his new environment in Europe without too much difficulty… below are two of Waldron’s compositions from different points in his career. the first, “Fire Waltz”, is from the record, ERIC DOLPHY LIVE AT THE FIVE SPOT, VOL. 1, recorded in New York in 1961, which features forward thinkers Dolphy, Booker Little, Ed Blackwell, Richard Davis and Waldron. listening to Waldron blow, after to the iconoclastic wail of Dolphy and the fertile linear conception of Little, one is struck by how stark and stubborn Waldron’s solo sounds. he takes very specific melodic and rhythmic ideas and ceaselessly reexamines them. his approach to improvising is very personal and unique. “Fire Waltz” is a sixteen bar song built over a common turnaround. it opens with a funky four bar intro from Waldron and Blackwell, then the melody by Dolphy with comments by Little and the rhythm section. “Autumn Dreams”, recorded thirty years later in Germany, is from the album by the same name, and features the beautiful alto of Charlie Mariano along with paulo Cardoso on bass and John Betsch on drums. it’s a thirty two bar AABA ballad. the melody and harmony are pretty conventional but contain some subtle tweaks that set it apart…

MAL WALDRON- “FIRE WALTZ” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR “FIRE WALTZ” (pdf)

MAL WALDRON- “AUTUMN DREAMS” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR “AUTUMN DREAMS” (pdf)

Here are some more transcriptions from one of my favorite pianists, Mulgrew Miller. as i mentioned in an earlier post, Miller’s compositions share something in common with the great Cedar Walton. they’re made up of memorable, even singable melodies, and set on top of unconventional, sophisticated progressions.  they’re accessible and elusive at the same time. the two songs below are good examples of what i mean. “For Those Who Do” is from the record HAND IN HAND. it features five members of the album’s septet: Kenny Garrett on soprano sax, Steve Nelson on vibes, Christian McBride on the bass and Lewis Nash on drums. the form is interesting: after a four measure drum intro, the melody is stated by the saxophone. the first section is twenty bars long. after a second twenty-two bar melody is played, the section’s progression repeated for solos. after blowing by Garrett and Nelson, the initial melody is restated. the second melody is then looped while Miller blows over it. the lines that he plays over the challenging progression are just incredible. Miller dances on the outer edges of the harmonies but he is always able to anchor what he does with a strong rhythmic sense and an ever present funkiness. “Another Type Thang” comes from the date WITH OUR OWN EYES, a trio record featuring Miller, Richie Goods on bass and Tony Reedus on drums. the melody begins after an eight bar introduction. the A section consists of a four bar idea that is repeated in the following four bars, modulated down a major third. the B section starts with a two bar motif that is repeated in descending whole steps. half of the A section is repeated, then a coda like section, eight bars long is played. the blowing is over the twenty-eight measure ABA form. Miller plays a really grooving solo punctuated by amazing 16th note runs…

MULGREW MILLER- “FOR THOSE WHO DO (melody)” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

MULGREW MILLER- “FOR THOSE WHO DO (solo)” (mp3)

SOLO FROM “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

MULGREW MILLER- “ANOTHER TYPE THANG (melody and solo)” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

SOLO FROM “FOR THOSE WHO DO” (pdf)

Well, the more i listen to Scofield’s record, TIME ON MY HANDS, the sicker it sounds to me. the blend of his guitar with Joe Lovano’s saxophone is really sweet. the contrasting timbres combine in so many intriguing ways. i like that Scofield leaves so much to the imagination in his comping. Charlie Haden’s bass lines are a subtle but insistent catalyst, plotting the harmonic direction of the other voices. he never fails to make the right choices, he plays harmonically and melodically at the same time. he’s truly one of a kind… Jack DeJohnnette’s drums are like a surging river full of cross currents, inviting the soloists to dive in and try to stay afloat. i can’t say that i’m a fan of how his drums were recorded, but i can get past that. “So Sue Me”- such a great piece of music. there’s so much going on. the melody is a collage of melodic and rhythmic motifs set against each other in such a way as to keep the ear constantly unsettled. the feel of the melody is situated somewhere between two rhythmic poles, each exerting its influence to blur the edges of the lines. melodic ideas are piled on top of each other like a house of cards, and threaten to implode until the final release into the blowing section. definite echoes of Ornette Coleman’s music, bluesy, balls-to-the-wall, a compacted orchestral movement, constantly evolving. what makes this music so great is that there’s an element of mayhem, chaos is always lurking in the back of the room, ready to pull the rug out from under everything, but the musicians, who sound to me as if they are really pushing themselves to draw outside the lines, always know where the lines are, and push forward and pull back as the music demands. and they really seem to be enjoying themselves. this, to me is the beautiful thing about improvised music. what a great record..!

JOHN SCOFIELD- “SO SUE ME” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR “SO SUE ME” (pdf)

Honestly, i’ve never been a big fan of guitars drenched in electronic effects or, as i call them, affected guitars, in largely acoustic settings. but that’s never stopped me from enjoying a lot of John Scofield’s work. there’s the great record, “So Near, So Far”, led by Joe Henderson, which was featured in an earlier post. there’s also his date, TIME ON MY HANDS with Joe Lovano, Jack DeJohnette and Charlie Haden. a song from that date i particularly like is Scofield’s “Since You Asked”. i can’t help but think that maybe he had Mingus in mind when he wrote it. the writing definitely evokes echoes of a song like “Goodbye Porkpie Hat”. like “Goodbye”, “Since” is an understated, bluesy ballad with a 12/8 feel. it has an AABA form, starting out with Scofield alone on the first section. the band then joins him for the rest of the tune. the melody moves beautifully, especially during the bridge as the harmony wanders toward Amaj but never quite makes it there. then there’s Lovano, who, with his dark, woody tenor that serves a great contrast to Scofield’s ethereal soundbending,  just seems never to sound bad. he delivers a quiet, lyrical chorus full of beautiful altissimo work… so, here’s a sketch of “Since You Asked” along with a transcription of Lovano’s blowing. once again, the changes? i think they’re pretty close but i’ll leave you make the call…

JOHN SCOFIELD- “SINCE YOU ASKED” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET TO “SINCE YOU ASKED” (pdf)

JOE LOVANO SOLO FROM “SINCE YOU ASKED” (pdf)

“Nardis” by Bill Evans is one of my favorite compositions. i love the way the chords move, as well as the feeling the melody evokes. i thought it would be interesting to do the same thing i did on a recent post where i took the melody of “Body And Soul” and transposed it diatonically. “Nardis” presents some challenges because there are several notes in the melody that don’t belong to the harmony. for example, in the second measure, there are D#’s that don’t belong to the FMaj chord. in measure seven, there’s an F that doesn’t belong to the EMaj chord. in the third and fourth measures of the original melody, the B is held through the B7 and CMaj chords. the note will sometimes change from chord to chord as the melody is transposed diatonically. i put those notes in parentheses. like i said before, playing through these transpositions reveals other aspects of the original melody…

“NARDIS STUDY” (pdf)

With its powerful three horn front line and a several great composer/ improvisors, the configuration of the Jazz Messengers featured on the record MOSAIC was one of the finest ensembles that Art Blakey assembled. the addition of a third horn allowed for more complex voicings and an even richer sound that the band’s composers were able to exploit to fine effect. Cedar Walton’s composition, “MOSAIC” is a great example of the power and complexity that the ensemble could achieve. the song starts with a brilliant fanfare that leads into a powerful drum break by Blakey. Walton and Jymie Merritt (bass) join the groove for sixteen bars before the horns come in with the main melody. i love melodies like this: the melody comes directly out of the rhythm. during the bridge, the voices take on different tasks. the lower two horns play harmonic pads while the lead horn is free to comment from above. the piano plays something that i’ve heard called a rhythmic palindrome. for example, in 4/4 time a measure can be evenly divided by certain units (sixteenth notes, eighth notes, quarter notes, half notes, whole notes, etc.). certain units, however (dotted half notes, dotted quarter notes, etc.) won’t divide into the measure evenly. consequently, they resolve themselves over the course of several measures. so, for example, if measures in 4/4 time are evenly divided into dotted half notes, it takes three measures before a note falls in the same place as it did when the cycle began. in the diagram below, each dot, regardless of color, represents a quarter note. the top line of dots indicates the beats per measure. in this case, the measures are divided into 4 quarter notes (4/4). the bottom line indicates the unit of division which is a dotted half note (3 quarter notes). each group of like colored dots represents a unit.

Walton plays dotted quarter note units that resolve every three bars. Merritt plays a  repeating three note sequence. the beginning of the melody falls on the downbeat every three measures. Blakey, meanwhile, is incorporates ALL of these elements into his drum groove. it’s a stark contrast to the preceding section where all the elements are more overtly unified. “MOSAIC” is a great piece of music by one of jazz’s most influential composers. check out the sketch and mp3 below…

CEDAR WALTON- “MOSAIC” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET- “MOSAIC” (pdf)

I received a request from a friend here in tokyo for a transcription of Hancock’s song “Oliloqui Valley”, which comes from the his record, EMPYREAN ISLES. it features many of the same personnel from his more well known date, MAIDEN VOYAGE (Tony Williams, Freddie Hubbard, Ron Carter). this is a great recording that features what seem to be general sketches that the musicians are able to expand upon. it’s an excellent example of the post bop attitude- musicians who were willing and able to reference traditional styles as well as work at the boundaries of free playing with confidence and authority. what i love most about this record is how relaxed and assured it sounds… “Oliloqui Valley” is built off of a vamping bassline under a piano figure and a simple four note melody by Hubbard. the song then moves into a short improvised passage. the whole passage is repeated before it moves into the blowing section. the chords are related by color more than anything else. Hancock plays a great solo, the right hand of which is transcribed below…

HERBIE HANCOCK- “OLILOQUI VALLEY” (mp3)

LEAD SHEET- “OLILOQUI VALLEY” (pdf)

HERBIE HANCOCK SOLO- “OLILOQUI VALLEY” (pdf)

Here are the pdf’s and mp3’s from the Andrew Hill post that went missing….

ANDREW HILL- “REFUGE” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “REFUGE” (pdf)

ANDREW HILL- “PUMPKIN” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “PUMPKIN” (pdf)

ANDREW HILL- “GHETTO LIGHTS” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “GHETTO LIGHTS” (pdf)

ANDREW HILL- “BLACK FIRE” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “BLACK FIRE” (pdf)

Well, PRACTICE PORTAL went off the grid for a while and when it came back online, the last two posts, featuring Ornette Coleman and the World Saxophone Quartet, were nowhere to be found. since i’ve forgotten just about everything i wrote in those posts, i’ll just redo the links here for you. three words of advice for you bloggers: BACKUP, BACKUP, BACKUP! the mp3’s and pdf’s will be back online shortly all mp3’s and pdf’s are working properly… oh yeah, the missing Andrew Hill material is coming soon (thanks Matt, i totally forgot).

ORNETTE COLEMAN “PEACE” (mp3)

ORNETTE COLEMAN “LAW YEARS” (mp3)

ORNETTE COLEMAN “MOB JOB” (mp3)

ORNETTE COLEMAN “THE GARDEN OF SOULS” (mp3)

ORNETTE COLEMAN “LOVE WORDS” (mp3)

ORNETTE COLEMAN “HIM AND HER” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “ORNETTE MELODIES” (pdf)

WORLD SAXOPHONE QUARTET- “FULL, DEEP, AND MELLOW” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “FULL, DEEP, AND MELLOW” (pdf)

WORLD SAXOPHONE QUARTET- “FEED THE PEOPLE” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “FEED THE PEOPLE” (pdf)

WSQ ON DAVID SANBORN’S NIGHT MUSIC

Powell, along with Thelonius Monk was the most influential pianist to came out of the Bebop period of the 40’s and 50’s. he was the catalyst of a significant change in the way pianists approached the instrument. though well versed in the styles of his predecessors, his unique take on improvisation was characterized by long, chromatic, mostly linear right hand lines, balanced by a sparse, syncopated left hand accompaniment full of harmonic variation. his approach was similar to that of a horn player. i took a couple of solos off of a compilation CD called “YOUNG BUD” which features music he recorded as leader and sideman between 1944 and 1947. “Jay Bird”, a J.J. Johnson line based on rhythm changes, is performed by the Cootie Williams Orchestra. Powell takes a one chorus solo on each of the takes. “Nice Work If You Can Get It” by the Gershwin Brothers, is peformed by the Bud Powell Trio, featuring Curley Russell and Max Roach. nice… this is just a brief preview of the genius of Bud Powell. i’ll dig a little deeper in coming posts…

BUD POWELL- “JAY BIRD” (mp3)

BUD POWELL- SOLO FROM “JAY BIRD” (mp3)

BUD POWELL- SOLO FROM “JAY BIRD” (ALTERNATE TAKE) (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “JAY BIRD” (MELODY), “JAY BIRD” (SOLO), “JAY BIRD” (ALTERNATE TAKE)  (pdf)

BUD POWELL- SOLO FROM “NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTON OF “NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT” (SOLO) (pdf)

Bobby Hutcherson’s NOW! is a record i’d never heard until a few months ago. i was listening to a show on the radio and “Slow Change” came on as bumper music. i was attracted to the singing (especially the trio of background vocalists) and the beautiful ostinato in 3/4 time. what really hit me was the transition the song makes from a waltz to a funky modal vamp. the 8th note flattens out and and evens up, the feel turns from ethereal to earthy.

NOW! comes from a period in jazz that is often overlooked or dismissed, when the dramatic impact of avant-guard styles turned some listeners away from jazz, other styles of music like rock and funk became more popular with younger audiences, and the influx of so many other styles of music into jazz created something of an identity crisis for many performers. while some musicians were unable or unwilling to accept that any music necessarily has to change, for better or worse, others like Bobby Hutcherson, who has consistently embraced new ways of making music throughout his career, found ways to make his music fresh, creative and adventurous, and could rise above arbitrary labels like “fusion” or “jazz funk”. for this date, he gathered some of his regular partners in crime like Harold Land on tenor sax, Joe Chambers on drums, Stanley Cowell (and Kenny Barron) on keys and Herbie Lewis on bass, and augmented them with congas (Candido), guitar (Wally Richardson) and vocals (Gene McDaniels, Eileen Gilbert, Christine Spencer and Maeretha Stewart). the music is inspired by all that was happening at the time: the decline of the civil rights movement, psychedelia, drugs, Black pride, Vietnam, the onset of urban decay and general disillusionment of the 70’s. despite all that heaviness, the message i hear form this group is one of  empowerment and uplift. a strong Afrocentric attitude permeates the recording. many other artists come to mind as i listen to this music: Pharoah Sanders, Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln, Donald Byrd, Roberta Flack, Miles Davis, Roy Ayers, Earth Wind And Fire, Rotary Connection, Weldon Irvine, Marvin Gaye, John Klemmer, Gary Bartz, Leon Thomas, Curtis Mayfield, Horace Tapscott, Aurthur Blythe, Erykah Badu… i’m reminded of the time i spent in Los Angeles’ Leimert Park, often seeing cats like Harold Land, Horace Tapscott, Azar Lawrence, Oscar Brashear, Ndugu Chanceler and so many others… the song is in two sections. the first is an ostinato figure with a simple, repeated riff as the melody. the combination of the background voices and the vibraphone makes for a really nice pad for the lead voice. the song is in two parts. the first section is played and repeated. on the third pass, the melody builds intensity by moving through a series of chords voiced in fourths. the melody and harmony then settle into a two chord vamp. the entire form is repeated and then the vamp opens up for solos by Land and Hutcherson. i also included an mp3 of another version of the song from a record called BLUE NOTE MEETS THE L.A. PHILHARMONIC, recorded almost a decade later…

“Montara” is title track from the record MONTARA. on this outing Hutcherson is accompanied by a host of great jazz musicians based on the west coast as well as stars from the world of Latin jazz. “Montara” is a pretty simple, gentle song. the melody is a three note motif that unfolds over a four bar vamp. it’s is played by Hutcherson, on vibes and marimba, Oscar Brashear on muted trumpet and Ernie Watts on flute. nice, mellow percussion along with Fender Rhodes and electric bass. where’s the beach? where’s my Pina Colada? i’m not sure why i like this song so much; it just appeals to me. i first heard it on a record by a hip hop producer named Madlib. Blue Note records allowed him access to their catalogue so he could dig up some samples for a recording project called SHADES OF BLUE. that whole endeavor was a little spotty but his version of “Montara” was great. the melody is the kind that sticks in your brain after you’ve heard it. the record itself is pretty nice. some of the music is modalish and other parts are Latin flavored jazz, with the emphasis on Latin. standouts on the disc are Hutcherson’s “Yuyo” and a nice cover of “Oye Coma Va”.

BOBBY HUTCHERSON- “SLOW CHANGE” (mp3)

BOBBY HUTCHERSON- “SLOW CHANGE (LIVE)” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “SLOW CHANGE“ (pdf)

BOBBY HUTCHERSON- “MONTARA” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “MONTARA“ (pdf)

I’m currently reading a book called THE LIFE AND WORK OF WAYNE SHORTER by Michelle Mercer, which is on loan from a friend of mine here in Tokyo. anyone with a desire to know more about this giant of 20th century music is well advised to take a look at this book. many interesting anecdotes about his thought process, relationships with friends and fellow musicians, his home life, his spiritual convictions, his numerous misfortunes and triumphs, and his long journey stepping out from the shadows. NATIVE DANCER is, with the exception of SPEAK NO EVIL, my favorite Wayne Shorter record. it’s hard to believe that only ten years had passed between the recording of these two albums. they are vastly different. but Shorter’s sublime lyricism and compositional prowess are the threads that connect them. accompanying Shorter’s horn is the haunting voice of Milton Nascimiento. “DIANA”, written by Shorter, is a ballad played in a rubato style. it is essentially a duet between Shorter and Herbie Hancock with some electric bass accompaniment and overdubbed effects. there are three sections: the main melody, a restatement of the melody and a short coda. it comes off like a prelude to a larger piece of music or like the opening chapter of a fairytale, and conjures up vivid imagery when i listen to it. a barefoot woman in a soft dress walking through a field of high grass which is still moist from the night before, and the sun just broaching the horizon. perhaps she’s leaving someone or something behind. i wonder what she sees off in the distance. what a powerful melody. Wayne Shorter is definitely the man… i wrote out the shell of the song- the melody and bass voices. the chords are of course open to interpretation and the way i formatted the song is my own solution. listen to “DIANA” below and decide for yourself…

WAYNE SHORTER- “DIANA“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “DIANA“ (pdf)

One of the many unsung heroes in jazz, the story of Nichols’ life is by now familiar to most so i won’t dwell on that. instead, i’ll focus on his compositions which are some of the more unique and challenging in jazz (and have great titles). his music references a number of styles: older piano players, bebop, European classical music, Caribbean music, Tin Pan Alley, etc. Nichols as a player utilizes the entire span of his instrument and anchors a quick, flowery right hand with a heavy, bomb dropping left that is reminiscent of Horace Silver at times. he swings hard! his emotional range is broad. he can move from dark, heavy themes to an unabashed, kitschy brilliance  in the space of a single phrase. angular, complex lines at one moment, followed by gentle cocktail piano ticklings, block chording, stride piano- he runs the whole stylistic gamut with a flair and aggressive confidence that is infectious. the main obstacle standing in the way of taking down Nichols’ songs is trying to figure out what’s going on harmonically. i considered completely foregoing the progressions because they are very ambiguous; Nichols (and the bassists) tends to play a lot roots and fifths with no thirds or sevenths which makes classifying the chords difficult. instead, i wrote out a very general harmonic road map, mostly just the roots and sometimes, if i’m fairly sure, the chord quality. i strongly recommend that you listen to the recordings and draw your own conclusions. i chose six songs to post:  “CRISP DAY“, “IT DIDN’T HAPPEN“, “TERPSICORE“, “THE GIG“, “THE THIRD WORLD” and “CRO-MAGNON NIGHTS“. they come from a fantastic three CD compilation called HERBIE NICHOLS, THE COMPLETE BLUE NOTE RECORDINGS. another CD well worth checking out is LOVE, GLOOM, CASH, LOVE on Bethlehem Records. a while back, i took a look at a book called FOUR LIVES IN THE BEBOP BUSINESS by A.B. Spellman to learn more about Nichols. it was a little upsetting to read of his frustrated attempts at success but it chronicles the nearly there career of an artist who, if given the attention he well deserved, could have demonstrated alternatives to the dominant styles of composing and improvising of the bebop era.

“CRISP DAY” is a 32 bar song with a conventional AABA form. the A section is in the key of C. the bop flavored line has quality that is at once familiar and foreign. it is characteristic of many of his songs. the bridge starts in F. i hear so many influences running through his lines. now, i’m thinking 20th century classical composers like Bartok or Scriabin… the song has an eight bar intro. half of it is a piano riff, the second half is a drum break. the drums play a major role in Nichols’ arrangements. they function as another melodic voice in some cases and sometimes provide rhythmic turnaround during the blowing.

HERBIE NICHOLS-”CRISP DAY“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “CRISP DAY“ (pdf)

“IT DIDN’T HAPPEN” has an AABA form but the A sections are 12 bars making the song 44 bars. the minor melody has a riff-like feel to it and is played at fast tempo. like the previous song, the intro is eight bars, a four bar melodic motif and four bars of drums.

HERBIE NICHOLS-”IT DIDN’T HAPPEN“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “IT DIDN’T HAPPEN“ (pdf)

“TERPSICORE” is one of my favorite Nichols tunes. the intro borrows fragments of the main melody and is structured as a call and response between the piano and the drums. the form of the tune is pretty unique. the A section is eight bars long with a typically quirky melody line. the B section moves into a Latin flavored rhythm and is 16 bars long. the last section, A¹ is 13 bars long. the drums finish the form with a six bar solo break. it’s played a little differently each time during the song; sometimes the piano solos over the section, sometimes the drums take the last six bars alone with the bass and piano playing a bass figure.

HERBIE NICHOLS-”TERPSICORE“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “TERPSICORE“ (pdf)

“THE GIG” gives us another strange intro. i wrote out this way: four bars full rhythm section intro, two bars in 6/4 time with whole rhythm section, followed by a four bar drum break in 4/4 time. the 75 measure form (with the eight measure drum break) is unconventional: ABABCABD. the nine bar A section has a stop time feel. it sounds like a children’s melody or something you might hear on the Benny Hill Show (just add a syrupy tenor sax to the melody line). the following melody on the eight bar B section is like some strange European folk dance music and moves in unique ways the C section is a whole other animal. it features a pattern that starts in C and moves down by minor 3rds to Eb. the D section starts out as a pretty typical jazz interlude. the last four bars feature a shape that’s played once and then transposed up a major 3rd. a really pretty sound.

HERBIE NICHOLS-”THE GIG“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “THE GIG“ (pdf)

“THE THIRD WORLD” is conventional 32 bar tune with an AABA form. the intro is eight bars; four bars with the full rhythm section, the next four are a drum break. the melody on the A section features a playful melody built with a descending sequence of triads over an unsual cyclic progression. the bridge is built on two 7(b5) chords and then a turnaround back to the A section.

HERBIE NICHOLS-”THE THIRD WORLD“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “THE THIRD WORLD“ (pdf)

“CRO-MAGNON NIGHTS” starts with a rumbling low note intro from the piano and bass which is answered by the drums. the first motif is repeated in a higher octave and again answered by the drums. the melody is a really quirky riff the first four bars and then an outline of an ascending half step progression over the next four bars. for the eight bar bridge, another interesting line in the key of C followed by the same line in Bb. the form of the 32 bar song is AABA but the melody and the harmonies give it an altogether unique character. i wonder if cavemen would party to this tune?

HERBIE NICHOLS-”CRO-MAGNON NIGHTS“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “CRO-MAGNON NIGHTS“ (pdf)

I bought a copy of Mark Turner’s eponymous CD a few months back and before long, i had his version of “327 East 32nd Street” on repeat. as a saxophonist i, am always amazed by the facility of Turner (and Joshua Redman, who also plays on this tune). there is a passage from the 20th measure of the song that moves into the altissimo register of the tenor sax and is really difficult to make sing. Turner pulls it off like he’s playing in the comfortable middle register. although they are not the first to play with fluidity in the extreme registers, guys like Turner and Redman, Joe Lovano and others have set new technical standards for contemporary saxophonists. those high G’s and A’s are no longer only used as “devices”. by that i mean they are no longer just the domain of honkers and screechers (not a diss). what i’m trying to say is that these notes are more often being seemlessly incorporated into the melodic line as opposed to serving only as emotional exclamation points. Turner is a pretty scary saxophonist, a very unique voice among the younger generation of musicians. i first heard his work on YAM YAM, a CD he released several years back. i’m glad to hear that he’s recovering from his recent injury and is back playing.

Tristano’s tune has great melody line with some of the tricky rhythmic ideas that he’s known for. there are a couple of spots in the melody (bars 15 and 16, and bars 23 and 24) where i wrote down what i can only call a rough approximation of how it might be notated. keep in mind, i don’t have a recording of a Tristano version so i used the Turner version as a reference. you can listen to the clip and draw your own conclusions. if anyone has suggestions on how it should be notated, i’d love to hear them… listening to “327 East 32nd Street”, which is based on the “Out Of Nowhere” progression, inspired me to try and write my own melody. unfortunately, i’ve yet to record “Into thin Air” but you can hear a clip of “327 East 32nd Street” and check out charts of both tunes below…

LENNIE TRISTANO (MARK TURNER)- “327 EAST 32ND STREET“ (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “327 EAST 32ND STREET” (pdf)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “INTO THIN AIR” (J. MAHONE) (pdf)

“Bossa De Luxe” is a song off of a record called HI VOLTAGE by Hank Mobley. the song sounds just like the title; a nice, mellow latin beat with three horns playing warm harmonies- when i first started listening to it, i immediately thought of “Caravan”, the song made famous by Duke Ellington. the progression of the intro to “Bossa” is harmonically similar to the A section of “Caravan”- the form is AABA and is 32 bars long. the trumpet plays the melody with the other horns harmonizing underneath. “Peresina”, from the McCoy Tyner record, EXPANSIONS also has a latin flavor to it but harmonically and formally, it is a bit more of a challenge. on this song the three horns accompany the piano which is featured on the improvised opening vamp, the melody and the partially improvised bridge. after the extended intro vamp and a fanfare like section, the melody proper begins. the A section is 8 bars and is followed by an 8 bar B section. the song then returns to the fanfare section followed by blowing over A and B. the thing that defines this song, however, is the unique harmonic vision of Tyner. in his hands, any piece of music  can become much more than ever can be written on a piece of paper.  i enjoy listening to the opening vamp which becomes a song in itself. Tyner takes the static harmony and mines it for the hidden gems it contains… check out the lead sheets below. many thanks go out to Alan in Tokyo for the CDs!

HANK MOBLEY- “BOSSA DE LUXE” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “BOSSA DE LUXE” (pdf)

McCOY TYNER- “PERESINA” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “PERESINA” (pdf)

It’s been a while since i lasted posted any music. i took a nice vacation with the family and thought about nothing but putting back a few beers and eating mom and dad’s home cooking. while i was gone i got a couple of requests for lead sheets.

as anyone who’s checked out this blog knows, i am a big fan of Booker Little, so i was happy to oblige the request for a lead sheet to his song “ROUNDER’S MOOD”. it was featured on his record, BOOKER LITTLE 4 AND MAX ROACH. i’ve also heard it on a Joe Lovano date called TENOR LEGACY. it’s a really nice melodic line played at a pretty quick tempo. the song form is ABCAB with each section being 8 measures. the progression is more or less conventional so it wasn’t too hard to figure out. horns mostly play in unison, branching out into independent lines on occasion. the second horn line is muddy and difficult to hear in measures 13 and 14 so i took a bit of liberty with that. i may have to make revisions later.

Wayne Shorter is arguably the most influential composer in modern jazz. his conception played a huge part in shaping the sound of the Miles Davis quintet of the 60’s. listening to his classic recording dates on Blue Note, we get a glimpse of his unique take on composition and improvisation. his music of that period, like his improvisations seem to be an intense  refinement of things he’d learned from his influences. everything feels essential and inevitable, nothing seems wasted. like many of his songs, Shorter’s “DANCE CADAVEROUS”, which comes from his seminal recording, SPEAK NO EVIL, is an extremely tough nut to crack. the big obstacle is deciphering his progressions which are very cryptic and personal. Herbie Hancock, the pianist on this date, demonstrates his mastery of the art of accompaniment, enveloping the melody and solos in a cloud of impressionist coloring. his voicings and chord choices never remain static and they conjure latent possibilities in a progression that the composer might not have expected. Ron Carter’s bass is removed from the traditional role of only serving as a rhythmic anchor and playing roots and fifths. he often occupies areas of a chord that lead instruments function in. this of course presents a problem to anyone attempting to transcribe what’s happening. the music is always moving forward from phrase to phrase, chorus to chorus. i don’t know if Shorter has ever published a definitive lead sheet to this song. mine is just a guess so please take it as that. i also referenced a version of this song from the Larry Willis recording, HOW DO YOU KEEP THE MUSIC PLAYING?, on which the rhythm section plays in a less ambiguous style. however, that presented another problem and raised more questions because his version often diverged from the original recording.

“DANCE CADAVEROUS”, one of my favorite Shorter songs is a thing of beauty- a gentle waltz with an elegant melodic line played by Shorter along with the late Freddie Hubbard on trumpet. the melody is simple enough but what adds intrigue is the harmonic framework that it’s set in. the song begins with an 8 measure introduction:

||  Ab Maj7  |  Ab Maj7  | Ab Maj7  |  Ab Maj7  |

|  A7  |  A7  |  A7 (b9, b13)  |  A7 (b9, b13)  |

Shorter and Hubbard play a simple three note riff that is answered by Hancock’s piano. the song then moves into the main melody. the first chord, B min(Maj7) lends to the eerie quality of the song:

||  B min (Maj7)  |  B min (Maj7)  |  C min (Maj7)  |  C min (Maj7)  |

|  C#min7 (b5)  | C#min7 (b5)  |F#7 (b9)  |  F#7 (b9)  |

the second eight bars of the melody imitate the first but the progression eventually modulates to a G Maj7 (the relative major of E min7, the chord that one would expect to be the destination after B7 (b9) ):

|  B min (Maj7)  |  B min (Maj7)  |  C min (Maj7)  |  C min (Maj7)  |

|  C# min7 (b5)  |  F#7 (b5) |  F# min7 (b5)  |  B7 (b9, b13)  |

from G maj7, the progression works its way to Ab min11. the fifth bar of this progression gets pretty sticky! i’m regarding the note G in the melody of the fifth and sixth bars of this section as ornamentation and not material from the chord (which may be totally off the mark).

|  G Maj7 |  G Maj7  |  C7 (b5)  |  C7 (b5)  |

|  C7 (b9, b13)  |  Ab7 sus4  |  Ab min11  |  Ab min11  |

the progression then makes its way back to B min (Maj7) using a series of ii-V’s:

|  F min9 (b5)  |  F min9 (b5)  |  Bb7 (b9, b13)  |  Bb7  (b9, b13)  |

|  Bb min11  |  Bb min11  |  C# min7 (b5)  |  F#13 (b9)  |

the melody and chord progression repeats from the top but the progression changes from the fifth bar (moving to D Maj7 (#5) instead of back to B min (Maj7). both chords share the same notes) while the melody remains essentially the same:

||  B min (Maj7)  |  B min (Maj7)  |  C min (Maj7)  |  C min (Maj7)  |

|  C#min7 (b5)  | C#min7 (b5)  |F#7 (b9)  |  F#7 (b9)  |

|  D Maj7 (#5)  |  D Maj7 (#5)  |  D13 sus4  |  D13 (b9)  |

in the next four bars, the color of the chord is G maj with the bassline descending along a G major scale:

|  G Maj7  |  G/F#  |  E min7  |  G/D  |

the next eight measures are the same as measures 17-24 except for the chord on the first two bars which is a C# min7 (b5) instead of a G Maj7 (they have a very similar sound).

|  C# min7 (b5)  |  C# min7 (b5)  |  C7 (b5)  |  C7 (b5)  |

|  C7 (b9, b13)  |  Ab7 sus4  |  Ab min11  |  Ab min11  |

the last eight bars move the harmony back toward the original tonality of B minor but instead of landing there, the last ii-v ( |C# min9 (b5)  |  F#7sus4 (b9)| )moves to C Major:

|  G Maj7  |  G Maj7  |  C# min9(b5)  |  F#7 sus (b9)  |

|  C Maj9  |  C Maj9  |  C Maj9  |  C Maj9  ||

check out the transcriptions below…

BOOKER LITTLE- “ROUNDER’S MOOD” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “ROUNDER’S MOOD” (pdf)

WAYNE SHORTER- “DANCE CADAVEROUS” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “DANCE CADAVEROUS” (pdf)

LAST SESSION, a date led by Lee Morgan, features a couple of great compositions by saxophonist Billy Harper- I had the opportunity to take Harper’s ensemble class at the New School a few years back. we got a chance to work through many of his intriguing compositions. as cool as they are to play, what fascinates me most are the titles he gives to his songs. with titles like “Call Of The Wild And Peaceful Heart” and “Dance Eternal Spirits, Dance!”, it’s obvious that Harper has a bit of a poetic streak running through him. perhaps it doesn’t seem so important, but a song’s title can evoke an image in the listener and prepare him for what might follow. Harper’s titles are big and bold, they invite us into higher states of consciousness. love it! the influence of Coltrane is very apparent in Harper’s playing. you can definitely hear it in his lean sound and aggressive technique. I also hear Sonny Rollins and generous portions of Wayne Shorter. Harper solos with a composer’s sensibility. he develops his solos motivically and is conscious of balance and space. he carries on dialogues with himself, asking and then answering his questions. there’s also another strand in his conception that links him to the honkers and the shouters, gospel music and r+b. it’s the same thing I hear in guys like Oliver Lake and Aurthur Blythe. there’s a gutbucket sensibility bubbling just underneath his lines. it gives even his most oblique statements a very rooted blues feeling. his biting sound has a vocal, human quality to it. it’s very emotional and unabashed. just listen to him on “Croquet Ballet” when he takes the melody from the trumpet and flute halfway through. he just sings. even when he’s playing background lines (check him out behind Morgan’s melody on “Capra Black”) the leading edge of his sound surges through everything else. “Croquet Ballet” is waltz that moves back and forth between swing and Afro Cuban feels. the Afro Cuban sections are really loose and danceable. “Capra Black” starts with a huge, dark fanfare by the horns, and then into the melody, played by Morgan. the band is pretty big, at times featuring two bass players and four horns, horn doubles and occasional percussion. the song is a definite nod harmonically in the direction of Shorter. it reminds me of a caravan slowly moving through a vast desert. the droning bass figures evokes images of ancient civilizations. i let the mp3 clips run long so you can hear some of Harper’s solos. he’s a very talented composer and saxophonist that more people should be aware of…

BILLY HARPER- “CROQUET BALLET” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “CROQUET BALLET” (pdf)

BILLY HARPER- “CAPRA BLACK” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “CROQUET BALLET” (pdf)… COMING SOON!