Funk Tune Suggestions

[davekain]

Hey Guys and Gals,

Can anyone suggest any good and simple funk tunes they use on their gigs or just enjoy playing? Something aside from the usual Canteloupe Island/Chameleon.

Also, do you have any lead sheets for any suggested tunes? Just trying to mix up the set list and could use some suggestions.

Dave Kain

[Patrick2]

A few I used to do . . . usually requires horns;

Tower Of Power; What is Hip . . . Don't change Horses in The Middle of a Stream . . . This time it's Real.

Stevie . . Sir Duke

AWB . . . Pick Up The Pieces . . . . Groovin' The Night Away . . . I've Got Work To Do.

James Brown.. . . . . . I've Got You

Wild Cherry. . .. . . Play That Funky Music White Boy

David Sanborne . . . .. Butter Fat

Kool and The gang . . . . Hollywood Swingers


(Holy shit man. . . . . I'm really old!!!!)

[davekain]

Hey Patrick,

Thank you for the suggestions. I appreciate you taking the time but I was thinking more along the lines for a simple guitar trio. A simple head. A few changes and not a complex form.

[medblues]

John Scofield "Up All Night", "A Go Go", "That's What I Say", his work with Medeski Martin and Wood

Bill Frisell plays "Chain of Fools" in "Is That You ?"

[mike g]

I'm thinking of tunes like;
The Sidewinder-Lee Morgan
Mercy Mercy-Cannonball
There's a lot of Horace Silver stuff

[Patrick2]

Hey Patrick,

Thank you for the suggestions. I appreciate you taking the time but I was thinking more along the lines for a simple guitar trio. A simple head. A few changes and not a complex form.

In that case, you could probably take just about any head and funk it up. Just do it as James would, hit the 4s hard . . . . and lots of E9

I don't think of the songs you referenced like Sidewinder and Mercy Mercy as funk . . . more like R & B or Soul to me.

I kinda like taking Brubeck's Take 5 in a funky direction too. with the 5/4 time, you could really have some fun with it.

(OK . . now I'm ready for those purists who will contest it as "not really 5/4)

[davekain]

In that case, you could probably take just about any head and funk it up. Just do it as James would, hit the 4s hard . . . . and lots of E9

I don't think of the songs you referenced like Sidewinder and Mercy Mercy as funk . . . more like R & B or Soul to me.

I kinda like taking Brubeck's Take 5 in a funky direction too. with the 5/4 time, you could really have some fun with it.

(OK . . now I'm ready for those purists who will contest it as "not really 5/4)

For some reason I didn't get email these replies so I'm just seeing them now. Thank you for the responses and Mike for the charts:-)

I know you could funk up a lot of tunes but I know there has gotta be a repertoire of tunes that I should know and just don't know where to start. I think ultimately, I'm just going to have to write a couple myself. I write so many jazz tunes and for some reason I have some kind of a writer's block when it comes to writing a simple funk tune.

I found a Scofield tune that I think would work pretty good. I'm gonna try and attach the lead sheet. It's called Hottentott.

[Patrick2]

For some reason I didn't get email these replies so I'm just seeing them now. Thank you for the responses and Mike for the charts:-)

I know you could funk up a lot of tunes but I know there has gotta be a repertoire of tunes that I should know and just don't know where to start. I think ultimately, I'm just going to have to write a couple myself. I write so many jazz tunes and for some reason I have some kind of a writer's block when it comes to writing a simple funk tune.

I found a Scofield tune that I think would work pretty good. I'm gonna try and attach the lead sheet. It's called Hottentott.

I guess I overlooked the reference in the original post to "set list". Didn't realize you would be gigging these funk tunes. As such, I think writing your own might be a better idea than a scaled down instrumentation setting, (such as a trio would represent), of songs that will be familiar to whom ever your audience is. With the large majority of the audience probably not being musicians, they will most likely listen to a funky tune and equate your trio version to an 8 piece band offering of it. Then, you fall short of their memory of that particular song.

The David Sanborn tune I referenced, Butter Fat . . . and another Duck Ankles, would be great for a trio setting, with you obviously doing the alto sax head on guitar. Both songs offer great syncopation opportunities for the bass and the kick drum. I'd be hard pressed to know where you might find recordings though. We covered them off of . . . Vinyl albums

Also, Miles' "So What" could be funked up and fun.

[M-ster]

Reg hasn't been around much lately, but he's mentioned a number of Real Book type tunes that he's used in different time signatures and grooves on his gigs. There was a thread on Minority that comes to mind.

Certainly you could take that approach (try different grooves or time signatures) on a number of standards or well-known tunes.

[aniss1001]

I'd definately wanna check out some of Scofield's more funky stuff. In particular the album "A gogo" but he has made lots of funky stuff.

EDIT: Ah I see you allready did. "Hottentot" is from that very album

[FatJeff]

I've recently arranged Love For Sale with a funk feel - super fun to jam to - along the lines of this:

[davekain]

I'd definately wanna check out some of Scofield's more funky stuff. In particular the album "A gogo" but he has made lots of funky stuff.

EDIT: Ah I see you allready did. "Hottentot" is from that very album

Yeah, the Scofield stuff I thought would be good and it seems like there are charts for almost that whole album online. But I think I'd feel a little nervous presenting those charts to a rhythm section unless they actually knew the tune because those charts seem a little sloppy to present and play on the fly. Hottentot seemed like one that could work pretty easily.

[aniss1001]

Yeah, the Scofield stuff I thought would be good...

Well it shouldn't take too long to write a clean sheet. All the tunes on that particular album are very simple

And like I said he has made lots of funky stuff. I'd also check out "Hand jive". And then off course there is his 80s funk period, which I personally don't like, partly because I can't stand the sound of a synth, so I can't give you much advice there.

But I do love the tune "Blue matter".

is a live version of that. It isn't that simple though. The non-improvised sections are very harmonically complex, but the improvised sections are just one chord vamps.

[Richard-H]

So happens that I'm on a funk kick lately. Here's what I'm working on:

Steely Dan - Kid Charlamagne
Stevie Wonder - Don't you worry 'bout a thing
Grover Washington Jr - Mister Magic
Jose Feliciano (George Benson) - Affirmation
Jeffrey Osbourne (George Benson) - Love Ballad
Jay Beckenstein (Syra Gyra) - Morning Dance
Stevie Wonder - Superstition
Stevie Wonder - I Wish

I don't know if you'd call all of them 'Funk', but close enough...

[cosmic gumbo]

Some latin jazz can funk up quite well. Any standard that you can fit a NOLA second line drum pattern to will be funky, as MM&W has shown us.

John Mayer does a respectable trio version of the Meters "Cissy Strut"

The Chicken Lead sheet
Jaco Pastorius - The Chicken Sheet Music Bass + Guitar Tabs

You'll find some funk lead sheets here mixed among solo transcriptions
Transcription Page

Last but not least, this awesome thread is bound to give you plenty of ideas.
The official funk-thread

[Patrick2]

So happens that I'm on a funk kick lately. Here's what I'm working on:

Steely Dan - Kid Charlamagne
Stevie Wonder - Don't you worry 'bout a thing
Grover Washington Jr - Mister Magic
Jose Feliciano (George Benson) - Affirmation
Jeffrey Osbourne (George Benson) - Love Ballad
Jay Beckenstein (Syra Gyra) - Morning Dance
Stevie Wonder - Superstition
Stevie Wonder - I Wish

I don't know if you'd call all of them 'Funk', but close enough...

Apologies for the late response . . . just now saw this.

Well, I don't know if it gets any funkier than Superstition. But, the main funky-ness of that tune was Stevie's mastry of the synclavier clavenet. DAMN!!! Then there was the bass and the kick working together and the hi hat for accent. Man . . . I'm dancing to it as I'm typing this response. A perfect example of just destroying the funk grove of that tune was Stevie's (Ray Vaughn) version of it.

"I wish" . . . . man I definitely miss doing that tune!! Hard to do with a trio though, as the OP wants to do. Great bass line and guitar fill working in conjunction with it. (it was probably Stevie's keyboards, but, we did it with guitar)

Kid Charlamagne is how I fell in love with Larry Carlton's playing.

What a great set that list of tunes would make. I'd book you guys!!

[davekain]

So happens that I'm on a funk kick lately. Here's what I'm working on:

Steely Dan - Kid Charlamagne
Stevie Wonder - Don't you worry 'bout a thing
Grover Washington Jr - Mister Magic
Jose Feliciano (George Benson) - Affirmation
Jeffrey Osbourne (George Benson) - Love Ballad
Jay Beckenstein (Syra Gyra) - Morning Dance
Stevie Wonder - Superstition
Stevie Wonder - I Wish

I don't know if you'd call all of them 'Funk', but close enough...

Just thought I'd attach some more charts I've been putting together for my trio. I should say, I wasn't limiting myself to straight funk. Anything to break up the swing, bossa, waltz, ballad routine. So, here are some ideas. I included I Wish. I made a lead sheet for which might help someone get a visualization of a form that could work. The line before last is basically the interlude and I was thinking I'd put in between solos that would be over the form of the verse and prechorus. The last line I put to be the ending. Probably cued after head, solos head then a short vamp on the Eb-7 Ab7 vamp/groove.

I also attached a simplified lead sheet for "Jaco" by Pat Metheny and a tune called "The Red One" from the Metheny/Scofield album. They're all very easy and should be easy and fun for a guitar trio. Enjoy!

[mr. beaumont]

I've recently arranged Love For Sale with a funk feel - super fun to jam to - along the lines of this:

I often think of the way Chet Baker did this one in his later years...often in a drumless trio, but still funky! I could definitely hear it working in a Guitar/Bass/Drums context...

Another "out there" thought...something from A Tribe Called Quest's "Low End Theory." Ron Carter played bass on a couple of tracks there...take the bass and drum line and jam.

[Soco]

Hey Guys and Gals,

Can anyone suggest any good and simple funk tunes they use on their gigs or just enjoy playing? Something aside from the usual Canteloupe Island/Chameleon.

Also, do you have any lead sheets for any suggested tunes? Just trying to mix up the set list and could use some suggestions.

Dave Kain

"The chicken"-just kidding. It is always hard to find tunes like that.
I have done Caravan with a backbeat and a monk tune called Green Chimney, it seemed to work pretty well. If you run out of ideas' just stay on a E9 chord while stepping on the wah. Another idea is to write some simple tunes, It is relatively easy to make up tunes like that.

[FatJeff]

I often think of the way Chet Baker did this one in his later years...often in a drumless trio, but still funky! I could definitely hear it working in a Guitar/Bass/Drums context...

Another "out there" thought...something from A Tribe Called Quest's "Low End Theory." Ron Carter played bass on a couple of tracks there...take the bass and drum line and jam.

As it turns out, the arrangement I made, based on Ernestine Anderson's version I previously linked to, was prone to dying a slow death at the hands of a lesser rhythm section. So I'm going to double-time it and make it into a true funk version, with a swing bridge. I'll let y'all know how it turns out, and I'll post the sheet if anyone is interested.

[Jazzpunk]

Some Grant Green tunes you might like:

Ain't It Funky Now
Cantaloupe Woman
Upshot
The Final Comedown
It's Your Thing
Ease Back
I Don't Want Nobody To Give Me No

A couple more from Scofield:

Groove Elation
Kool
(and most of A Go Go which was already mentioned)

I don't really think there is a standard 'funk tunes for jazzers' list. Blanchard did a really nice semi funky take on 'Footprints'. I think funkifying your favorite tunes is a good way to go.

[theot71]

Does anyone know if there is notation / tab for Grant Green's The Final Comedown.
It sounds like a one chord tune but the funky solo makes it a very interesting tune to listen to.

[Atticus]

Taking a non-funk tune and playing it in a funk style isn't all that hard- it's mostly a matter of what the rhythm section is doing. Like the difference between the original Watermelon Man and the Headhunters one. Here's Trombone Shorty doing a funked-up version of St. James Infirmary. I'm don't really care much for the particulars of this one, but it's an indicator of what you can do.

I played in a group that did a Stanton Moore tune called Chilcock, which was a bit more complex than what you're looking for, but fun.

[eddy b.]

the Hook and Sling, Tippi-Toes, September and Sing a Song(by Earth Wind and Fire), Cissy Strut, Funky Moon, Booger Man, Get Up Stand Up, Exodus,Actions Speak Louder than Words(by chocolate Milk),anything by the Meters.