Bill Evans - All About Rosie

I transcribed this solo in 2012, and have been tweaking it ever since. It's pretty close but I'd welcome any feedback you have. I couldn't find any other transcriptions of this amazing solo, so have at it!

The solo begins at 6:24 in the video below:

Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/Gunther-Schuller-George-Russell-Modern-Jazz-Concert/release/5280839

Full Solo:

Bill Evans - All About Rosie (C)

Bill Evans - All About Rosie (Bb)

Bill Evans - All About Rosie (Eb)

George Russell - Part Two

I'm not keen on explaining myself to "The Internet", but I feel that a 14-month delay deserves a bit of background, especially when it bears directly on the subject at hand.

When I planned on doing a two-part feature on George Russell's compositions, I had already transcribed both "Lydiot" and "Ezz-Thetic". I had consulted various recordings of the latter, eventually settling on what I took to be the "definitive" version: the version on Russell's Jazz Workshop (rec'd in 1956). I also referred to his recording from a few years later entitled Ezz-Thetics (1961).

Russell's Jazz Workshop (1956)

But as I continued my research, I realized that there were many recordings of "Ezz-Thetic", and almost all of them were different in some key ways. I'll return to this point as we go along. Let's first get to the tune.

In a post from April 2013, I mentioned that Max Roach characterized modern jazz in New York as having an "uptown" and "downtown" school. The uptown school was defined by the crowd that included Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, and the downtown school was defined by Lennie Tristano and his various students (especially Lee Konitz and Warne Marsh). Of course, these schools were not homogenous and isolated; collaborations and sharing of ideas was commonplace. But they had their definite identities that can be heard in the music. (think about the difference between Miles Davis' "Donna Lee" and Lennie Tristano's "Wow"!)

George Russell's "Ezz-Thetic" was written in 1948, but it has a strikingly idiosyncratic sound, even compared to both the uptown and downtown schools. Tristano, Monk, and others experimented with dissonance, but not like this. Russell's melody stretches the harmonic structure of Cole Porter's "Love For Sale" to its limits, nearly tearing it to pieces:

(A lot of information that was available to the band on the recording date that is missing here. But this lead sheet should be enough to get you started.)

The composition is easily Russell's most well-known, having been recorded in 1951 for Prestige by a group led by Lee Konitz which included Miles Davis. (By the way, this recording is a great example of how the uptown and downtown schools worked together: Konitz, pianist Sal Mosca, bassist Arnold Fishkin and guitarist Billy Bauer were all Tristano-ites, and were working with Davis and Max Roach.) Russell himself recorded "Ezz-Thetic" at least three times, and versions also exist by Grant Green and Max Roach. In addition, the New York Contemporary Five (led by Archie Shepp) used the introductory statement of "Ezz-Thetic" as a sign-off to end their shows. Russell even wrote an arrangement for Charlie Parker and strings, but this was never recorded.

Russell's Ezz-Thetics (1961)

Transcribing "Ezz-Thetic" was challenging, not just because of the angularity of the melody, but because in each recording, there are slight differences made to the melody's notes and rhythms. For example, compare bars 5-6 of the version on Russell's Jazz Workshop and Ezz-Thetics recordings:

Ex. 1

with Grant Green's recording (Solid, rec'd 1964):

Ex. 2

Green's recording, which features saxophonists James Spauling and Joe Henderson, is different from Russell's in a number of other ways, and deserves a lead sheet of its own. As a second example, compare the last two bars of the bridge on three versions. First, the version from Russell's Jazz Workshop and Ezz-Thetics:

Ex. 3

Note the ascending 1-2-1 (semitone - whole tone - semitone) relationship in the second bar of the example, resulting in a downward major-3rd needed to return to the tonic. Next, the same two bars in Green's version:

Ex. 4

In this case, an ascending 1-2-2 (semi-whole-whole tone) relationship is heard. But this is jarringly different in Lee Konitz's version (The New Sounds, Prestige, rec'd 1951), in which he swaps the Eb and E(nat):

Ex. 5

On the Prestige recording, the head out consists just of one playing of the tune's A section, so we don't get to hear Konitz play this version of the bridge again. But if we fast-forward by 35 years, we can find another version recorded by Konitz in which he plays the same figure. (Ideal Scene, Soul Note 1986). If we wish to pursue the matter further, we can look to Konitz's duo record with pianist Harold Danko entitled Wild as Springtime. On both the alternate and the master take, Konitz (in unison with Danko) plays the figure in Ex. 5.

Such examples present us with some philosophical puzzles that are beyond the scope of this blog post, but which are partly responsible for the 14-month delay in its publication! One thing is clear: It's disingenuous to say that Konitz, Green, Henderson, etc. were all playing the tune "wrongly". (Especially when you consider that Russell himself wrote the bridge as Ex. 5 for his New York Band... see Live in an American Time Spiral, rec'd 1982) So the whole debate just seems a little dumb: try your best to respectfully represent the tune, whether you're transcribing it or whether you're playing it.

Lee Konitz, The New Sounds, 

So that's my excuse for the delay on part 2. Oh yeah, I also moved to Nashville, got a dog, and got married.

[In researching this blog post, I came upon the doctoral dissertation of Peter Kenagy, which provided very useful details about Russell's Jazz Workshop album. Thanks for your work, Peter.]

George Russell - Part One

George Russell (1925-2009) is one of the most important figures in 20th century music. As a theorist, his Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization introduced the concept of chordmode, which synthesized horizontal (linear) and vertical (chordal) pitch organization into a single principle. A similar principle had already been known to Western theory since the Baroque period, but Russell articulated it in terms of contemporary jazz practice, at a time in American history when Baroque music theory would have been inaccessible (for obvious reasons) to many practicing jazz musicians.

The LCC was first published in 1953, but only a handful of copies were made. It saw a second, more prolific printing in 1959, at a time when more and more colleges were hiring jazz musicians as faculty members. Russell's chordmode idea influenced David Baker, whose student, Jamey Aebersold, would later build a publishing franchise out of the idea.

As a result, Russell's ideas became and remain the cornerstones of contemporary jazz education, although this contribution of his is seldom recognized, and few (if any) of his compositions have entered the "standards" repertoire.

Russell was also an inspired composer and arranger. In the late 1940's he wrote large ensemble works for Benny Carter, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Charlie Parker, and Artie Shaw. Throughout his life he wrote and directed many major works, and led various small groups in America and Europe. In 1969 he joined the faculty at Boston's New England Conservatory of Music, a position he held until 2004. He received three Guggenheim fellowships (1969, 1972 and 1980), six NEA fellowships (1969, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1981 and 1985) and a MacArthur fellowship (1989).

As a pianist, Russell had a probing, rhythmic style, highly inspired by Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk, and somewhat reminiscent of the early Cecil Taylor.

George Russell - Lydiot

 

To my knowledge, the first recording of this tune was on Russell's 1960 large ensemble recording Jazz in the Space Age. It was recorded again the following year on his sextet recording Ezz-thetics. The two versions are slightly different; this transcription is from the latter source. It's a pretty typical Russell tune, a sort of Schoenbergian post-bop line.

I'm not too sure about the chords. I listened carefully to Steve Swallow's basslines and Russell's chords, and this is what I came up with. As always, feedback is welcome.

I'm working on a transcription of Russell's composition "Ezz-thetic", which I'll post next time. Stay tuned!

Two Tunes by Don Ellis

Hello everyone!

Dec. 17th 2012 marks the 34th anniversary of the death of the trumpeter Don Ellis. A 1956 graduate of Boston University's music composition department, he began his career playing trumpet in the Glenn Miller (Ray McKinley, cond.), Charlie Barnett and Maynard Ferguson bands. In the late 50's he recorded with Charles Mingus and in the early 1960's joined George Russell's influential sextet. It was also at this time that Ellis began recording as a bandleader, releasing three albums between 1960 and 1962.

His first, called "How Time Passes", borrows its name from the title of an essay by Karlheinz Stockhausen. The album was recorded in early October 1960 and featured a top-tier rhythm section of pianist Jaki Byard (who also doubles on alto sax), bassist Ron Carter and drummer Charlie Persip. Here are two tunes from this album:

Don Ellis - Sallie

A very lyrical melody, which could easily have words written to it. Note the casual way in which the dissonant F and D are used in the final B major chord. The influence of George Russell is palpable throughout this album, and especially in this bar.

My apologies for the switching between the keys of B and Cb. I try to let the melody lead the way when I transcribe, but if I hold to that exclusively, sometimes the melody demands a double-sharp chord symbol or something outlandish like that. I also find that mid-tune key changes can be distracting. I have tried to make the tune as readable and intuitive as possible. If someone has suggestions to make this clearer, I'm all ears.

Don Ellis - A Simplex One

 A tune which betrays a heavy Thelonious Monk influence. The progression near the end borrows from the harmonic progression of John Coltrane's "Giant Steps", which had only been known for about two years when "A Simplex One" was recorded. The two melodies may be played separately or simultaneously. The second melody may be an experiment with a 12-tone row idea.

Ellis' later work is much more well-known than these early records. In 1965 he formed the Don Ellis Orchestra, which stunned the audience at the 1966 Monterey Jazz Festival. By the late 60's the band had garnered a following among younger audiences, playing at many colleges and making a famous appearance at the Fillmore West alongside the Quicksilver Messenger Service. Ellis had also become involved in recording soundtracks, contributing to the soundtrack of Roman Polanski's "Rosemary's Baby". In 1972 his Orchestra recorded the soundtrack to the hit film "The French Connection", and continued to perform widely. In 1975, Ellis suffered from a heart attack which set him back quite considerably, although he was performing again by 1976. After continuing to have heart problems, Ellis stopped playing drums with his Orchestra, and eventually stopped performing altogether. He suffered a fatal heart attack on Dec. 17th, 1978.

Don Ellis 1934-1978