Miles Davis
‘All Blues’ from the
Album
Kind of Blue
Starter 3
• Match the term with the correct definition:
Put the correct letter in the answer box.
Once you have finished have a quiet and
quick discussion with your neighbour.
• Discuss
In the study of this set work you
will learn about:
• The features of All Blue
• The 12-bar blues chord sequence
• How the set work All Blues is
constructed through an analysis of
the music
• Jazz harmony.
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Recap: Background to ‘Kind of
Blue’
Line-up for the album Kind of Blue:
Miles Davis: trumpet
Julian 'Cannonball' Adderley: alto sax
John Coltrane: tenor sax
Bill Evans: piano
Paul Chambers: bass
Jimmy Cobb: drums
•
One of the things that makes this album so special - all the musicians
were top jazz musicians of the time playing at the peak of their
abilities - they all worked so well together.
•
Davis felt that jazz was becoming too dependent on complex chord
sequences
•
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In this album, he wanted to explore the concept of modal jazz.
This means that rather than relying on complicated chord patterns the
harmony focuses on a MODE or scale and the improvised solos are freer
and longer
•
This track is from the ALBUM, KIND OF BLUES which was recorded in
one take in NY in 1959
•
Instrumentation: trumpet /alto sax / tenor sax / piano/bass / drums
•
Unusually for Jazz the time signature is 6/4 and is marked JAZZ
WALTZ
12-bar blues sequence
• 'All Blues' is based around a repeated 12-bar blues
sequence with a four-bar linking riff in between each
section.
• The main melody (the head) and the solos are all
played over the 12-bar sequence (the changes).
• The 12-bar sequence is repeated 19 times in total.
Changes for 'All Blues': Head/Solos
Bar 1
2
3
4
G7
G7
G7
G7
5
6
7
8
C7
C7
G7
G7
9
10
11
12
D7#9
Eb7#9 D7#9
G7
G7
Notice there are DOMINANT sevenths used and that the last line
has ALTERED chords - the harmony is made more interesting by
adding notes
•Adding extra notes to a chord is known as extending the chord.
•There are lots of extended chords in jazz.
•
Structure of ALL BLUES:
The piece can be broken down into 5 sections
1. INTRO: the opening 4 bars, played by the rhythm
section is followed by the riff
2. HEAD 1 – this is where the original tune or melody is
played: Head melody followed by the Riff is played
2x
3. IMPROVISED SOLOS – for trumpet / alto sax /
tenor sax / piano each followed by the riff
4. HEAD 2- the main theme returns Riff is played 2x
5. OUTRO (Coda)-this fades out…a solo for muted
trumpet
RIFFS – what are they?
• A RIFF is a short rhythmic ostinato- very common in
Jazz, Blues & Pop.
• KIND OF BLUE uses 3 short riffs
• 1st Riff: G D ED F DED is on Double Bass
• 2nd Riff: alto and tenor saxphones play in the intro in
3rds (in harmony)
• D/B E/C F/D E/C
THE INSTRUMENTS & THEIR
ROLES
• The RHYTHM section provides the harmony and
rhythmic background- in this case it is the DRUMS /
BASS / PIANO
• The frontline instruments are TRUMPET,ALTO
SAXOPHONE & TENOR SAXOPHONE
• THE WORD COMPING means
accompanying- playing the background
chords & rhythms
Let’s play detective
Section
Bar
Numbers
and timing
Intro
1-8
0:00-0:21
Analysis
• The piece begins with the drums (played with brushes),
the bass playing riff 1 and the piano playing a trill in
thirds (A-G and E-F Natural). The trill immediately
causes a little dissonance. Riff 1 is played by the bass
almost throughout the whole piece.
• The time signature is 6/4 with a tempo of crotchet =
156. Although this may seem rather fast, the bar feels
like it is split into two slow beats (two dotted
minims), so it feels like a laid back tempo of Dotted
minim = 152.
• At bar 5 the alto and tenor saxophones join in with a
harmonised riff (riff 2).
• All the parts are played quietly with a rather
breathy tone in the saxes.
Section
Head 1
Bar
Numbers
and timing
Analysis
9 – 20
• Davis plays the main melody for the first time.
0:21 – 0:52
• The trumpet is muted and has the distinctive Davis
'vulnerable' tone.
• The melody is based on a very simple motif - a leap
of a major sixth, with the long high note slightly
ornamented (adding a mordent). The rest of the melody
is made up of stepwise movement. It soars effortlessly
over the rest of the band.
• Over the C7 chord the sax parts are more legato
than the slightly chopped phrasing over the G7 chord.
• The altered chords D7#9 and Eb7#9 are highlighted
by a change in texture and the bell-like piano chords
replace the trill for a few seconds.
Section
Link
Bar
Numbers
and timing
21-24
0:53 -1:03
Analysis
• The link section punctuates the whole piece – it
breaks up what would otherwise be 19 straight
repetitions of the 12-bar sequence.
• This section is the same as bars 5-8 of the intro.
Head 2
25 – 36
1:03 -1:34
Link
37 – 40
1:35 -1:45
• The same as for the first time the head is
played, but the melody is developed slightly.
• The piano trill drops out with Evans switching to
riff 2 - the lack of the trill has quite a dramatic
effect on the texture.
• Cobb introduces the ride cymbal with a few subtle
hits before it plays a major role in the solos to
follow.
Section
Bar Nos and
timing
Solos
Davis
41 – 88
1:35 – 3:51
Analysis
• The first solo focuses on the band leader, Miles Davis,
with the other two frontline instruments dropping out to
emphasise this. He has removed the mute to allow for his
tone to comethrough a bit clearer.
• Davis takes four choruses for his solo (he allows himself
four repeats of the 12-bar sequence). There is no link
between the repeats - the four choruses are played back
to back.
• The solo is modal - Davis improvises over the changes
using the G mixolydian mode over the G7 chords and C
mixolydian over the C7 chords.
• He uses a diminished scale over the altered chords.
Evans (piano) comps chords underneath the solo based on
riff 2.
• Cobb keeps time on the ride cymbal with flourishes
and highly syncopated, quite unpredictable snare hits
keeping some rhythmic interest throughout.
Section
Link
Bar
Numbers
and timing
89 – 92
3:51–4:01
Analysis
• Davis drops out (almost reluctantly), handing the spotlight to
Adderley.
• The music is the same as the link before, but without the two
saxophones.
• Each link seems to be anticipating the solo to come, sounding
quite eager to hear what the new soloist can do.
Solos
cont.
Adderley
• Adderley also takes four choruses for his solo.
93 – 140
4:01–6:05
• His solo is more angular than Davis's solo, including more
leaps and shorter phrases.
• He includes more chromatic notes than Davis.
• He has a rhythmic quality to his soloing, placing strong
accents on the beats.
• He has a thick tone, almost making his alto sax sound more
like a tenor sax than Coltrane's tenor!
• There are quite a few technically difficult bursts of fast
notes thrown in.
Section
Link
Bar
Numbers
and timing
141 – 144
6:05 – 6:15
Solos
cont.
Coltrane
145 – 192
6:15 – 8:17
Analysis
• Similar to previous link.
• Adderley drops out, handing the spotlight to Coltrane.
• Coltrane's tone is very different to Adderley's, with almost
no vibrato (or adding it late on in the note) compared to
Adderley's wide vibrato.
• Coltrane also takes four choruses for his solo.
• The first chorus is kept quite simple, with some ideas
exploring the mode.
• In the second chorus he plays some three- and four-note,
short ideas and develops them using sequence and some
clever rhythmic development.
• The third and fourth choruses successfully combine
blindingly fast passages with long, sustained phrases. The
phrases are different lengths and come in at different places
in the bar, giving the solo the impression of being as natural as
speech.
Section
Link
Bar
Numbers
and timing
193 – 196
8:18 – 8:27
Solos
cont.
Evans
Analysis
• Coltrane drops out, leaving the spotlight for Evans
• Evans continues comping in the left hand, but it becomes
197 – 220
8:28 – 9:28
slightly more intricate.
• Evans takes two choruses for his solo. In the first chorus,
his
right hand plays a melody line, very much like one of
the frontline instruments.
• In the second chorus he combines the two hands into a
chord-based solo, with some alternate motion in bars 213
and
215 to add some variation.
• He uses a fairly limited range of notes around the middle
of
the piano in typically understated fashion, slipping
seamlessly
into the link
Section
Link
Bar
Numbers
and timing
221 – 224
9:29 – 9:39
Analysis
• Evans starts with the chords of riff 2, but drops back
into the trill idea after two bars.
• The two saxes begin playing their harmonised riff again.
• Cobb fades the ride cymbal down considerably.
Head 3
225 – 236
9:39 – 10:10
• The same as for head 1, with slight developments of the
melody.
• The trumpet is played with a mute again.
Link
237 – 240
10:11-10:21
Head 4
241 – 252
10:21 –10:52
• Saxes continue to play through the link, along with the
piano trill.
• Further minor developments of the melody
Section
Link
Bar
Numbers
and timing
Analysis
253 – 256
10:52 –
11:02
• The drums back down quite a lot, contributing to an overall
drop in volume.
257 – 268/9
• A final ('nineteenth) repeat of the 12-bar pattern with
Davis
Outro
11:03 - fade
playing a short solo on the tonic note of G over riff 2 in the
saxes and the piano trill.
• The song fades out towards the end of the final chorus.
Important points to note
• Jazz soloists often think in terms of chords and arpeggios when
soloing, so it is almost as if they are spreading a chord out
horizontally instead of playing it vertically like a piano or guitar
• But, in this track, the soloists are using scales or modes a lot more
than usual, partly because the chords don't change very quickly.
• The solos are much more than simple improvisations using a
pentatonic scale over a blues sequence - the soloists combine riffs
they have learned previously with arpeggio ideas, the use of scales and
modes and some clever rhythmic development to create solos with a
sense of direction and development.
• The soloists never solo at the same time. When the frontline
instruments are playing at the same time, they all have very clearly
defined parts to play (saxes play the harmonised riff while the
trumpet plays the melody).
•The link gives the music space to breathe - the contrast in
texture between each section builds up a sense of
anticipation for the next section.
•The bass part repeats riff 1 constantly throughout the
song. This makes it become part of the texture so that it
doesn't take away from the soloist’s limelight.
•The piano part provides chordal accompaniment
throughout the piece, but Evans maintains interest by
constantly changing the voicings of the chords and the
rhythm of his accompaniment.
•The drums provide a constantly shifting backing by Cobb
improvising highly syncopated snare drum part, but he also
keeps a steady beat throughout on the ride cymbal, varying
how he hits it to create changes in dynamics and texture.