Road Song - Improvistion

[JazzHifi]

Hi Guys, I try to get more deep into this song - can anybody help me to explain how I can improvise over the parts with a little theory?!

all the best michael

[steve burchfield]

Hi Guys, I try to get more deep into this song - can anybody help me to explain how I can improvise over the parts with a little theory?!

all the best michael

Pat Martino has a very good version of Road Song.

[ragman1]

Try this. Reducing the speed to 0.75 might clarify it a bit. I hear pentatonics, riffs, and bebop scales (descending scales with chromatic passing notes between the root and 6- so in C maj that would C B Bb A etc).

[ragman1]

And if you put the chords in you might get some scale ideas from this.

[vsaumarez]

The changes are quite straight forward so soloing shouldn't present a challenge.

Bar 1-2 G melodic minor. G A Bb C D E F#. Be careful with E natural. An Eb may sound better so it may be easier to think Bb major.
Bars 3-6 ii V I in Gm (note the EbMaj7 in bar 6 can be seen as a substitute for Gm7, or not)
Bars 7-8 Some charts show E half diminished followed by a Cm7 in bar 7. This is odd. It looks like Pat treats the Cm7 as an A7 alt in his first chorus, which makes more sense. Treat bar 8 as D7 alt resolving to Gm7

B section is II V I in Bb and a II V I in Ab. Note the Bm7 E7 in bar 4. Don't ignore it. It leads you into Ab. You need to find a line that weaves through it into the Ab II V I. Note how the three changes descend chromatically. Very guitaristic so take advantage of the guitars geography. Let your lines mirror the descent.