Solo Guitar Tune #4: The Shadow of Your Smile

**lawson-stone** · 04-23-2018, 06:40 AM

Originally Posted by jazzdan

Thanks Lawson.....yeah, I can hear and see where I didn't hold a few of those half notes long enough and the dotted half notes long enough. I'll work on that

It's an easy place also to add some flourish, elaboration, or just to arpeggiate or strum the chord.

**PaulW10** · 04-27-2018, 02:46 PM

I recorded this as a practice run the same day as our last song (Tenderly). I intended to work on it a bunch more before posting, especially trying to add some improvising, but I suddenly find myself at the end of the month and wanted to at least post some kind of contribution. You may see a second one yet!!

**John A.** · 04-28-2018, 02:00 PM

Originally Posted by PaulW10

I recorded this as a practice run the same day as our last song (Tenderly). I intended to work on it a bunch more before posting, especially trying to add some improvising, but I suddenly find myself at the end of the month and wanted to at least post some kind of contribution. You may see a second one yet!!

That's a really nice arrangement and feel, Paul. Is that entirely worked out, or are some elements (fills, articulations, etc.) ad-libbed? I'd don't think either the arrangement or the performance of the head needs any more work; it's there. As to improv, yeah, give it a shot. It's a very improv friendly solo tune, especially if you keep it in E.

**PaulW10** · 04-30-2018, 02:07 PM

Originally Posted by John A.

That's a really nice arrangement and feel, Paul. Is that entirely worked out, or are some elements (fills, articulations, etc.) ad-libbed? I'd don't think either the arrangement or the performance of the head needs any more work; it's there. As to improv, yeah, give it a shot. It's a very improv friendly solo tune, especially if you keep it in E.

Wow thanks for the kind words John! I was playing it off the lead sheet and ad-libbing it somewhat. However, I've had this song in my book for a long time and have played it a lot as I have always really liked it. The song seems to have a lot of space for call and answer types of lines.

**lawson-stone** · 05-03-2018, 07:07 PM

Here's my final effort on "Shadow." I'm pretty obsessed with a huge writing project that is consuming most of my time, so I literally just sat down and shot this, one take. I've been playing the song for many years, and the improvisation is more worked out than spontaneous. I wanted to see what I could do with some phrases and ideas, so I pretty much planned the solo... and you can tell! But hey, it's something to play.

SO there is a rubato chorus playing with a few weird voicings, then a swing feel chorus of the melody, then an improvisational chorus, and I comp few lines on the way out.

Epiphone Elitist Broadway... wow what a guitar!!! played through a DV Mark 50 head and a 10 inch speaker. I blended a direct line out with an SM57 about 3 inches from the speaker grill, a little closer to the edge of the speaker than to the center, if that makes any difference. Seriously, I have a very expensive mic requiring phantom power, and the SM57. I can't see where the SM57 falls behind in any way!

**PaulW10** · 05-04-2018, 02:27 PM

Originally Posted by lawson-stone

Here's my final effort on "Shadow." I'm pretty obsessed with a huge writing project that is consuming most of my time, so I literally just sat down and shot this, one take. I've been playing the song for many years, and the improvisation is more worked out than spontaneous. I wanted to see what I could do with some phrases and ideas, so I pretty much planned the solo... and you can tell! But hey, it's something to play.

SO there is a rubato chorus playing with a few weird voicings, then a swing feel chorus of the melody, then an improvisational chorus, and I comp few lines on the way out.

Epiphone Elitist Broadway... wow what a guitar!!! played through a DV Mark 50 head and a 10 inch speaker. I blended a direct line out with an SM57 about 3 inches from the speaker grill, a little closer to the edge of the speaker than to the center, if that makes any difference. Seriously, I have a very expensive mic requiring phantom power, and the SM57. I can't see where the SM57 falls behind in any way!

That was really awesome Lawson. I liked the rubato chorus and the voicings and you really took off on the improv part. Very nice. Also you're right about that guitar. it sounds great as did the whole recording.

What happened to the ending though? I was expecting perhaps a slowdown and return back to the rubato chorus for the ending, but suddenly it stopped and you were gone. It reminded me of an old reel to reel recorder that unexpectedly ran out of tape at the end!!! Left me wanting more!

**lawson-stone** · 05-04-2018, 02:48 PM

Originally Posted by PaulW10

That was really awesome Lawson. I liked the rubato chorus and the voicings and you really took off on the improv part. Very nice. Also you're right about that guitar. it sounds great as did the whole recording.

What happened to the ending though? I was expecting perhaps a slowdown and return back to the rubato chorus for the ending, but suddenly it stopped and you were gone. It reminded me of an old reel to reel recorder that unexpectedly ran out of tape at the end!!! Left me wanting more!

Thanks!

I didn't plan on doing much past the improv chorus. We were already at 4 minutes and I could imagine viewers being weary! So I did a line or two of comping and faded out. I enjoy comping on this one in a more Freddie Green swing mode because it's so much fun to sub out the chords. I could post a clip of that if there is any interest.

**PaulW10** · 05-04-2018, 03:01 PM

Originally Posted by lawson-stone

Thanks!

I didn't plan on doing much past the improv chorus. We were already at 4 minutes and I could imagine viewers being weary! So I did a line or two of comping and faded out. I enjoy comping on this one in a more Freddie Green swing mode because it's so much fun to sub out the chords. I could post a clip of that if there is any interest.

That would be great to hear some more comping Lawson!

Although I always watch the videos some, I usually turn it on and keep working at my desk and just listen, so the length of recordings doesn't bother me at all. In fact I usually listen twice or more to everyone's posts. Not watching gives a different perspective to me as to what the player is doing

**lawson-stone** · 05-05-2018, 12:10 PM

Here is the chorus of "comping" cut out of my last clip. I actually call this "pseudo-comping" because no comping guitarist in their right mind would throw this at a soloist unless you had a real simpatico connection with them. I was reaching for the kind of thing Joe Pass often does when playing solo guitar. He'll basically comp, but use so many subs and switch-ups that it's actually a kind of chord-solo that isn't carrying such a prominent melody line on top. I'm not sure what to call it, it's not chord-soloing and it's not really comping, so I call it "pseudo-comping."

I changed my mind once doing this, and then changed it back, and so there are a couple of hesitations and missed changes... sorry about that. Hope nobody expected perfection!

**joe2758** · 05-05-2018, 03:51 PM

Cool, Lawson. I agree thats an interesting middle ground between comping and chord solo

**PaulW10** · 05-07-2018, 01:59 PM

Originally Posted by lawson-stone

Here is the chorus of "comping" cut out of my last clip. I actually call this "pseudo-comping" because no comping guitarist in their right mind would throw this at a soloist unless you had a real simpatico connection with them. I was reaching for the kind of thing Joe Pass often does when playing solo guitar. He'll basically comp, but use so many subs and switch-ups that it's actually a kind of chord-solo that isn't carrying such a prominent melody line on top. I'm not sure what to call it, it's not chord-soloing and it's not really comping, so I call it "pseudo-comping."

I changed my mind once doing this, and then changed it back, and so there are a couple of hesitations and missed changes... sorry about that. Hope nobody expected perfection!

Very free sounding chord improv. Interesting to hear Lawson! I like it.

**lawson-stone** · 05-07-2018, 03:52 PM

Originally Posted by PaulW10

Very free sounding chord improv. Interesting to hear Lawson! I like it.

Thanks! But it actually isn't very free at all. I just use tritone subs amidst the ii-V patterns. So the first ii-V goes F#m7/C13/Fm/B13 Then Em7/Bb13/Ebm7/A13. So I'm sticking with the published changes but simply inserting passing chords based on the tritones. It's fun to take a progression and then, using tritones and diminished chords, try to walk it up or down chromatically, landing on the critical changes where you need to. Great exercise in jazz harmony.

**PaulW10** · 05-07-2018, 03:56 PM

Originally Posted by lawson-stone

Thanks! But it actually isn't very free at all. I just use tritone subs amidst the ii-V patterns. So the first ii-V goes F#m7/C13/Fm/B13 Then Em7/Bb13/Ebm7/A13. So I'm sticking with the published changes but simply inserting passing chords based on the tritones. It's fun to take a progression and then, using tritones and diminished chords, try to walk it up or down chromatically, landing on the critical changes where you need to. Great exercise in jazz harmony.

I see what you mean. Very informative. Thanks for the explanation. I'll definitely give it a try when I get home!

**lawson-stone** · 05-07-2018, 04:01 PM

Originally Posted by PaulW10

I see what you mean. Very informative. Thanks for the explanation. I'll definitely give it a try when I get home!

Hey even the chromatic section was actually built on the traditional changes.

For F#m7/B7/Em7/A7/ I used the inner shape for the m7b5 which also gives you a 9th chord and got the root movement: /F# F E/Eb D Db C B/. Notice with one chord on each beat, I start with F#m? on beat 1 and at beat 8 I'm hitting a B something. The root movement is solidly tradition, just approached chromatically. Same with the next line, the Em7/A7 /E Eb D Db/ C B Bb A/.

This kind of thing was something I learned listening to Joe Pass. He does this sort of thing all the time to add some drive to a series of ii-V progressions. Again, it's a fun thing to play with and after a while you develop an intuition on where you can use it.

**PaulW10** · 05-07-2018, 04:40 PM

Originally Posted by lawson-stone

Hey even the chromatic section was actually built on the traditional changes.

For F#m7/B7/Em7/A7/ I used the inner shape for the m7b5 which also gives you a 9th chord and got the root movement: /F# F E/Eb D Db C B/. Notice with one chord on each beat, I start with F#m? on beat 1 and at beat 8 I'm hitting a B something. The root movement is solidly tradition, just approached chromatically. Same with the next line, the Em7/A7 /E Eb D Db/ C B Bb A/.

This kind of thing was something I learned listening to Joe Pass. He does this sort of thing all the time to add some drive to a series of ii-V progressions. Again, it's a fun thing to play with and after a while you develop an intuition on where you can use it.

If I'm following correctly it's somewhat fascinating how tritones result in the chromatic descending bass line. I remember Conti discussing how music moves in fourths. But using tritone subs for every other fourth result in that stepping down effect. Interesting stuff!

**lawson-stone** · 05-07-2018, 05:21 PM

Originally Posted by PaulW10

If I'm following correctly it's somewhat fascinating how tritones result in the chromatic descending bass line. I remember Conti discussing how music moves in fourths. But using tritone subs for every other fourth result in that stepping down effect. Interesting stuff!

Yes that's true. The mechanics are that if you take Dm7/G7, then look at the tritone of each, Ab, Db, you can see you have half-step intervals in there: D Db and Ab G. as long as you start at the D and end on the G you'll be safe. You can do it otherwise, but you need to be more mindful of what's happening.

The long line of chromatic bass is a little trickier. It works because the "implied" chord is often rootless, the chromatic bass note sometimes being a 3rd or 5th of the implied chord. Also, if you use what I call the "universal chord shape" - the internal m7b5 shape- it repeats every 4 frets so you can walk it up and down chromatically and on the 4th beat you'll hit the equivalent chord a minor 3rd lower/higher. But somehow it doesn't sound as corny as walking straight-up diminished chords.

That shape, for Dm7b6/Bb9/Fm6 is:

6 5 4 3 2 1
x 5 6 5 6 x

Anyhow, listening to Joe Pass will reveal a lot of "tricks" that add some excitement and fun to improvising on solo guitar.

**PaulW10** · 05-07-2018, 05:34 PM

Originally Posted by lawson-stone

Yes that's true. The mechanics are that if you take Dm7/G7, then look at the tritone of each, Ab, Db, you can see you have half-step intervals in there: D Db and Ab G. as long as you start at the D and end on the G you'll be safe. You can do it otherwise, but you need to be more mindful of what's happening.

The long line of chromatic bass is a little trickier. It works because the "implied" chord is often rootless, the chromatic bass note sometimes being a 3rd or 5th of the implied chord. Also, if you use what I call the "universal chord shape" - the internal m7b5 shape- it repeats every 4 frets so you can walk it up and down chromatically and on the 4th beat you'll hit the equivalent chord a minor 3rd lower/higher. But somehow it doesn't sound as corny as walking straight-up diminished chords.

That shape, for Dm7b6/Bb9/Fm6 is:

6 5 4 3 2 1
x 5 6 5 6 x

Anyhow, listening to Joe Pass will reveal a lot of "tricks" that add some excitement and fun to improvising on solo guitar.

I've often used that universal chord shape you described and will now use it a lot more in walking lines. Thanks for explanations Lawson!