Take Five

In 1959 Paul Desmond wrote the first million-seller jazz single 'Take Five'. Take Five is also one of the first jazz standards written in an odd meter, 5/8 in this case.

Here's a transcription of Take 5, arranged for guitar. Take Five is a good song to get the feel of 5/4.

One bar of 5/4 contains 2 parts: a 2 beat part and a 3 beat part. Sometimes the 2 beat part comes first, sometimes the 3 beat part. In the case of Take Five the 3 beat part comes first:

| 1 2 3   1 2 | 1 2 3   1 2 |1 2 3   1 2 |1 2 3   1 2 |...

Listen to samples from the original recording by Dave Brubeck and Paul Desmond: 'Time Out'

George Benson recorded a very nice version of Take Five:   'In Concert-Carnegie Hall'