Moment’s Notice is a hard bop jazz standard composed by John Coltrane. It was recorded for the album Blue Train (1957) in Rudy Van Gelder’s studio in Hackensack. The song is played uptempo (225 BPM) and built on fast-moving ii-V-I progressions that cycle through multiple key centers.
Blue Train was Coltrane’s only session as a leader for Blue Note Records. The rhythm section includes Paul Chambers (bass) and Philly Joe Jones (drums), Coltrane’s colleagues in Miles Davis‘ band.
In this lesson, you’ll learn the theme of Moment’s Notice, played as a mix of single-note lines and chord voicings (drop-2, drop-3, and quartal chords).
At this tempo (225 BPM), the main focus is to keep the rhythm steady without rushing or slowing down, and to play single notes and chords cleanly and fluently.
Work in small sections and make sure each phrase of the melody sits well in time before putting the whole tune together.
Recommended listening:
- John Coltrane – Blue Train (1957)
- Keith Jarrett – After the Fall (1998)
- Mike Stern – Standards (And Other Songs) (1992)
- Doug Raney Quartet – Listen (1994)
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Backing Track
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I cannot download the new arrivals (via mail), let me know how to fix this.
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woah !! this is a short but very beautiful and useful post – blog ! Thank you for sharing! I am definitely going to work on this !
Thanks Loris! It’s a fun standard to play