Thelonious Monk’s beautiful ballad “Round Midnight” is said to be the most widely recorded and performed jazz tune — that is, a tune that was written specifically for jazz, not an adaptation of a showtune or pop song. Carmen McRae was a good friend of Monk’s, and for my tastes, she sings this song better than …
Tag Archives: jazz
How does jazz work?
Rather than attempting the impossible task of explaining how everything in jazz works, I’m going to pick a specific tune and talk you through it: “Someday My Prince Will Come” by Miles Davis, off the 1961 album by the same name. First, here’s the original version of the tune from Snow White. Once you’ve got …
Musical politicians
Several US presidents and other prominent politicians have also been musicians. Here are some highlights. Harry Truman played classical piano.
What makes jazz great?
Improvisation Charlie Christian – “Waiting For Benny” [iframe_loader width=”480″ height=”360″ src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/PHnBiT1Jp_4″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen]
How did the word “groovy” come to acquire its current meaning?
The word “groovy” originates in jazz slang, referring to music that’s swinging, tight, funky, in the pocket. The analogy is to the groove in a vinyl record — the musicians are so together that it’s like they’re the needle guided by the groove. The “groove” becomes generalized to any good rhythm, passage, or entire piece …
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What are some ideas for making jazz more popular?
The trumpet player Nicholas Peyton wrote a blog post recently: On Why Jazz Isn’t Cool Anymore. It’s a must-read for anyone interested in the future of the art form. If jazz is ever going to be popular again, it needs to regain its cool. Jazz was popular when it was intimately connected to popular culture. …
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Who are some musicians whose work got better with age?
Ella Fitzgerald lost some of her range as she got older, but her soul and phrasing got deeper and deeper. The series of duet albums she did with Joe Pass late in her life are exquisite. [iframe_loader width=”480″ height=”360″ src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/dnYnpApOkQg” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen]
The Lick
There’s a certain jazz lick that’s so heavily used that it’s just known as The Lick. It’s the only jazz lick I know of that has its own Facebook page. Here’s a greatest hits compilation: Update: now there’s a volume two!
The best jazz versions of classical pieces
For my tastes, you can’t beat the Ellington Nutcracker. [iframe_loader width=”480″ height=”360″ src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/ONknTGUckKc” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen] Ellington’s Peer Gynt suite is also pretty wonderful. [iframe_loader width=”480″ height=”360″ src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/1mne1rQ0rcw” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen] This one has inspired some remixing from me. [iframe_loader width=”100%” height=”166″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”no” src=”http://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F12726693&auto_play=false&show_artwork=true&color=ff7700″]
Where does the “Egyptian” melody originally come from?
I know this melody as the cartoon snakecharmer song. Here’s a kid playing it on bass clarinet: I’ve always wondered where the Egyptian melody came from. It turns out to be hundreds of years of old, and goes by many different names. You can find an excellent capsule history of it in William Benzon’s book …
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