5 Jim Hall Jazz Guitar Intros (Paul Desmond Quartet)

In the late ’50s and early ’60s, Paul Desmond recorded six classic piano-less albums with jazz guitarist Jim Hall. This quartet featured Paul Desmond on alto saxophone, Jim Hall on guitar, Connie Kay on drums, and Eugene Wright on bass.

In this lesson, you will learn 5 Jim Hall intros taken from these recordings.

Here are the six albums by the Paul Desmond Quartet with Jim Hall:

• Paul Desmond Quartet – First Place Again (1959 – later reissued as East of the Sun)
• Paul Desmond (with strings) – Desmond Blue (1962)
• Paul Desmond Quartet – Take Ten (1963)
• Paul Desmond Quartet – Glad to Be Unhappy (1965)
• Paul Desmond Quartet – Bossa Antigua (1965)
• Paul Desmond Quartet – Easy Living (1966)

I highly recommend checking out these albums. Jim Hall’s subtle style blends perfectly with Paul Desmond’s sound, and every tune on these albums is a small lesson is phrasing, time, and space.

Pay special attention to Jim Hall’s comping. He never plays more than necessary, yet the harmony, time, and form are always clear.

If you are looking to improve your comping, this is essential listening.

 

 

Jim Hall Intro 1 – Samba Cantina

Key: F minor

This intro comes from Paul Desmond’s album Bossa Antigua (1965).

Hall opens with two less common inversions: a third inversion Gm7♭5 followed by a second inversion A♭maj7♯5 (which can also be heard as Fm/maj9 with E♭ in the bass).

These voicings avoid a root-position sound and keep the harmony open.

 

 

Jim Hall Intro 2 – Alone Together

Key: C minor

This intro is from the album Take Ten (1963).

Jim Hall starts with a phrase that combines a G pedal note with notes from the C minor scale.

 

 

Jim Hall Intro 3 – A Taste of Honey

Key: F minor

This intro appears on Glad to Be Unhappy (1965).

The core idea of the intro is a line cliché in F minor:

Fm → Fm/maj7 → Fm7 → Fm6 going to the dominant C7#9.

 

 

Jim Hall Intro 4 – You Go to My Head

Key: Eb major

Intro 4 comes from the album First Place Again (1959).

Jim Hall uses open triads and inversions, avoiding dense voicings and keeping the register wide.

 

 

Jim Hall Intro 5 – The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else)

Key: Ab major

This intro is also from Take Ten (1963).

Hall starts with a simple rhythmic figure applied to arpeggios of Dbmaj7 → Dbm/maj7 → Cm7.

He then moves into a series of ii–Vs using shell chords with smooth voice leading.

 

 

 

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