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In another thread several people said they like to memorize bebop heads to get a better feel of the language. There are several “top 10 standards” lists out there. That got me wondering what would be on people’s short list of essential bebop heads to learn?
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08-06-2023 04:39 PM
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Since you might be referring to me, I can kick it off:
Originally Posted by rlrhett
Anthropology
Au Privave
Billies Bounce
Blues for Alice
Donna Lee
Half Nelson
Ornithology
Oleo
Scrapple from the Apple
Segment
Segment just because it’s weird and I like it. Oleo doesn’t have a lot of the language but it’s cool and people call it a lot.
Other good ones: Dewey Square because people call it. Dexterity because it’s wicked .
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Peter's list is good. Of course many more heads can be added but the OP isn't asking for a list of all of the bebop heads (it'll very likely end up being just that I fear, lol).
So for the purposes of this thread I'll keep my additions to Peter's list to a minimum.
Some blues heads:
Bloomdido, Tenor Madness, Blue Monk. The last two are simple but are good examples of playing the changes with bebop language and feel.
And of course no essential bebop list would be complete without Joy Spring.Last edited by Tal_175; 08-06-2023 at 06:30 PM.
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There are also bebop heads that mightn't be called quite as regularly as some already mentioned but worth learning for the amount of vocabulary they contain such as The Eternal Triangle and Crazeology.
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Probably need to include confirmation, certainly likely to get called.
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Yeah … also I guess it depends on whether essential means “best for the style” or “most likely to be called.”
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I would add "Serpent's Tooth."
Not likely to be called but it's a great line.
I took the OP to be asking for best bebop heads to get a feel of the language, not necessarily the most likely ones to be called on a gig. But then, Charlie Parker's heads were built from his (soloing) language, so it's six of one, half dozen of the other.
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My present listening/study/practice list extracted from David Baker’s Vol 3 Techniques for Learning and Utilizing Bebop Tunes:
Rhythm changes: The Serpent’s Tooth, Ah-Leu-Cha, The Theme;
All God’s Children Got Rhythm changes: Little Willie Leaps, Mayreh;
ATTYA changes: Bird of Paradise;
Cherokee changes: Parker 51, Ko Ko;
Confirmation changes: Denial;
Fine and Dandy changes: Bebop Romp;
Honeysuckle Rose changes: Marmaduke, Scrapple from the Apple;
Sweet Georgia Brown changes: Stoptime;
Back Home Again in Indiana changes: Dona Lee;
What is this Thing Called Love changes: Hot House;
Love Me or Leave Me changes: Lullaby of Birdland;
Out of Nowhere changes: Casbah;
Lady Be Good changes: Fats Blows:
How High The Moon changes: Ornithology, Satellite;
Pennies from Heaven changes: Hi Beck.
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Straight No Chaser
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Ted Dunbar gave his students a (not so short) list of ca. 40 bebop tunes. They were expected to learn them by heart and play the whole list of heads in a row once every day in their practice. According to Peter Bernstein (IIRC), Dunbar said that each tune had a lesson of its own to tell the student, but he would not tell them which one, they should find out on their own. Here is the list according to Rick Stone and Amanda Monaco. As you can see it seems to have varied very little over the years. According to Rick Stone (IIRC) Dunbar himself would practice his own list every night before going to sleep.
An idea for another endless thread: Discuss what you think you learned from those of the heads from Dunbar's list (or David Baker's list mentioned above) that you can play by heart :-)
EDIT: According to Rick Stone playing through all the heads would take about an hour "at a reasonable tempo".
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My top 10 likely to be called heads (in no specific order)
Anthropology
Confirmation
Billies Bounce
Moose the Mooche
Blues for Alice
Scrapple from the Apple
Ornithology
Au Privave
Donna Lee
Dewey Square
beyond that it depends where you are and what people play on your local scene
less played but I didn’t see it on here but it’s nice to have contrafacts on some other tunes
Quasimodo - Embraceable You
Stupendous - S’Wonderful
Nostalgia - Out of Nowhere
Dig - Sweet Georgia Brown
Chi Chi is a nice blues head, I’ve played that a few times on gigs. I also really like Move, which I haven’t played in a while.
Segment mentioned elsewhere is one of the few minor ones. There’s also Bebop. I kind of count Hot House as minor?
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This is imo the best technical practice there is - and it’s stuff you will play on gigs too. Presumably later you would work on transposing them. Originally Posted by Bop Head
I’ve probably learned more from working on bop heads than working on solos. It may take an hour to play through them; but it’s a very efficient use of time.
In general I’ll just choose a ‘head of the week’ but a slightly cut down version of this exercise might be worth revisiting. I don’t have an hour to throw at just this these days, but otoh I do know quite a lot of heads that have got a little rusty.
Interestingly I wouldn’t count all of these tunes as bop heads - same with Bakers list actually - and some of them I’ve never played (they don’t get called on my scene) which shows how regional/community based these repertoire things can be. Tunes go in and out of fashion too.
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Bop heads on challenging changes that do get called
Conception
Old milestones
26-2 (does that count?)
Things on the verge of being bop tunes (baker lists them iirc)
Air Mail Special
Four Brothers
Tickle Toe
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10 entry level bop heads (that are either easy or don’t contain too much material)
Nows the time
Billies bounce
Tenor Madness
Scrapple (just play the A)
Yardbird Suite (nice and melodic, and you can leave the B open)
Cool blues (dead easy)
Marmaduke (again just the A)
Sandu (another blues, very common call)
Cottontail and Lester Leaps In (they’re not really bop but they are useful rhythm changes heads.)
And then there’s the Monk rep which I kind of think of as its own thing.
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Most things by Charlie Parker sound great, except Loverman.
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This is where I got the idea actually. Not doing the actual list, and mine is only about 25 deep now, but I had a guitar teacher who’d gotten a lesson or two with Ted Dunbar. Originally Posted by Bop Head
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Twist - you do the list, but you choose a key and play them all in that key. ‘Reasonable tempo’ might be tricky at first.
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Twist. Do each of them in five fingering positions. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
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I don't fear a jazz guitarist who plays 40 heads everyday, I fear a jazz guitarist who plays the same head 48 times everyday (4 times in each key with the conservative estimation that there are 12 keys not 17).
Of course if we learned one lesson from classical guitarists it is playing your repertoire everyday for the rest of your life makes you a really good improviser.
I'm just stirring the pot.
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I like this. A key a month will get you through the year. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
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urgh, positions for bop heads? Sadist. Originally Posted by pamosmusic
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Get it together, Miller. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
(Yes, I actually do this. I am what I am.)Last edited by pamosmusic; 08-07-2023 at 09:35 PM.
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Learning tunes is great idea... I know just in the last week I had to play at least 15 to 20 from the ones mentioned at different gigs.
You can only play so many up tunes... audiences etc... Most of them are readable as long as the tempo stay around 220. Typically most of the ensembles only play a few at the 240 and above ranges. I need to know the heads... to fast to read.. single notes.... but not for most horns etc...
( another good reason to get sight reading together.) I know most have a thing about sight reading on stage etc... But no one rehearses anymore... if you don't read, you need to know the heads. Changes become easy, there are just only so many forms and chord patterns. ( yea festival and shows etc... you need to memorize).
Most jazz players know most of the tunes.... and we all work in at least 1 Big band... that's our sight reading practice.
I work in two and have hundreds of arrangements...yada yada...
I would not waste ones time learning tunes in all keys. You would do better learning 12 different tunes. Once one gets their technical skills together ... it becomes pretty easy to play heads and changes in different keys. I mean most are in C, F , Bb and Eb.... occasionally Db. It's becomes mechanical, there are different tricks for different transpositions.
I usually try and play harmony parts.... 3rds and 6ths with 4ths, 6th and 7th for targets chords. For 2nd time through tunes.... live arranging thing. Again most Horn players do this easily...
Bottom line.... very few guitarist have the time or skills to learn tunes in all keys. As guitarist we play most of the time... you need to learns all the styles of comping, chord patterns, rhythms and harmonic rhythmic concepts.... how to develop tunes for soloist. Just in one tune, even bop tunes you need 3 or 4 variations of comping for soloist. You won't last playing the same thing over and over. Different players have different ideas and part of our job is to be able hear and create in that style. yea I know... who cares...
I also use position playing to help transpose tunes....
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For what it’s worth, I think Christian was suggesting the tunes and transposing as a technical exercise in and of itself, rather than to actually play them. Originally Posted by Reg
That’s certainly what I was referring to.
I play them in five fingering positions and I usually run the whole list in one key at a time. Though not all of them everyday. I used to spend longer on it, but it’s maybe twenty minutes a day now. It’s awkward to play them in positions but that’s the part I think is good technical practice for me. It ensures I get all those cool tricky bebop flourishes in the easiest and toughest fingerings.
I also slur into the downbeats (DOWNbeats, geez Peter) and the bop heads are how I sort of got that whole vibe going. But whatever your persuasion on that front, you have to make the articulation and the swing and the vibe happen in different parts of the guitar and with different fingerings, over and over and over again. Great practice I think.
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I love Quasimodo so much. I think that and Moose the Mooch were the hardest for me to learn. Quasimodo took longer than Donna Lee for me, hands down. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
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