Donna Lee Composed by Miles Davis?

**MarkRhodes** · 12-01-2014, 05:41 PM

Originally Posted by henryrobinett

I'm on a cruise ship in the Carribean. I think that's the problem. Well not a problem per se.

Ha! Enjoy.

**Stevebol** · 12-01-2014, 06:13 PM

I took a slow boat to China one time.

**grahambop** · 12-01-2014, 07:34 PM

He's on a sailboat in the moonlight.

**Vladan** · 12-01-2014, 08:20 PM

.... oh baby, now we gatta go .... bum bum bum ... bum bum ....

**jasaco** · 12-01-2014, 08:24 PM

Louie Louie?

**Stevebol** · 12-01-2014, 08:28 PM

Originally Posted by henryrobinett

I'm on a cruise ship in the Carribean. I think that's the problem. Well not a problem per se.

Are you gigging or just on a cruise?

**henryrobinett** · 12-01-2014, 09:37 PM

Not gigging.

**Stevebol** · 12-01-2014, 09:59 PM

^^^
I had some questions about cruise ship gigs so I'll start a thread about it.

**Greentone** · 12-01-2014, 10:35 PM

I don't believe that Miles wrote Blue in Green--never did. That one has Bill Evans all over it. It's his DNA. OTOH, listen to Donna Lee, but play it in your mind about half speed. Ahhh. Hmm? It doesn't sound particularly Bird, to me. It sounds...well, like Miles' DNA, to me honest.

I am willing to grant Miles his due on that one. Never thought about it until this thread...and I read the autobiography.

**pubylakeg** · 12-02-2014, 03:31 AM

Interesting information presented here; Jazz Standards Songs and Instrumentals (Donna Lee)

It seems Parker referred Gil Evans to Miles when approached for permission to arrange the tune.

Super clean execution and nice relaxed tempo on this rendition.

**Petimar** · 12-02-2014, 04:35 AM

I hear Evans every time I hear Nardis as well.

**Vladan** · 12-02-2014, 04:44 AM

My experience with the issue is minimal, I don't know if Donna Lee sound particularly "Miles", but definitely
I can hear "master mind" behind it, as opposed to master player.
Someone crafted that one from own will and knowledge, it was not generated by stacking player's licks, one after another.
That's how I hear it.

**sgcim** · 12-02-2014, 05:22 AM

I just read the link above, and it's clear that Fats Navarro probably had a lot to do with writing it.
The article says that the opening phrase was taken from a tune that Fats played that was based on the changes to "Indiana". The opening phrase is the tune AFAIC, with the rest of it fairly standard bop lines.
Fats died at a young age, so it would make sense that someone else would take credit for it.
Look at page 12 of this, opening phrase:
WordPress.com
It also said in the book "So What"on Miles Davis, that "various takes of "Donna Lee" by Charlie Parker show that Miles Had problems playing the song that day in the studio, and never recorded it again."

**henryrobinett** · 12-02-2014, 07:12 AM

Could be. I have trouble playing some of my own much simpler lines. That might not be an excuse.

**Vladan** · 12-02-2014, 09:44 AM

So what if he could not play it, he could easily write the notes onto staff.

It's actually consistent with my opinion - my feeling about it is, the theme of Donna Lee was figured out and written down, to be played. It was not improvised than transcribed for preservation.

**henryrobinett** · 12-02-2014, 09:46 AM

Originally Posted by Vladan

So what if he could not play it, he could easily write the notes onto staff.

It's actually consistent with my opinion - my feeling about it is, the theme of Donna Lee was figured out and written down, to be played. It was not improvised than transcribed for preservation.

Exactly. It's like a study, étude piece.

**docbop** · 12-02-2014, 02:09 PM

Originally Posted by sgcim

I just read the link above, and it's clear that Fats Navarro probably had a lot to do with writing it.
The article says that the opening phrase was taken from a tune that Fats played that was based on the changes to "Indiana". The opening phrase is the tune AFAIC, with the rest of it fairly standard bop lines.
Fats died at a young age, so it would make sense that someone else would take credit for it.
Look at page 12 of this, opening phrase:
WordPress.com
It also said in the book "So What"on Miles Davis, that "various takes of "Donna Lee" by Charlie Parker show that Miles Had problems playing the song that day in the studio, and never recorded it again."

No one had the chops of Parker back then and Miles talks about he could keep up with Dizzy, but in a lower register took him awhile to start developing his high register. He talks about the band with Parker and how at gig Parker who like take a breath and just let loose with these streams of endless notes. I think he said Coltrane was the only other one he saw that could do that. Miles also talks a lot about Fats and he was a fan of his.

He says in the book back then 52st was full of Jazz clubs and the clubs like Minton's in Harlem. He and the other now great musician were close in age and would either be playing at the clubs or carrying their horn club to club jamming every night, then after hour jams. They were living Jazz 24 hours a day. Also have to remember back then there wasn't CD players in your pocket and internet full of music. There were record player if you could afford one so most of the music they learned via going to clubs and jams and talked to each other. They taught each other tunes so I find easy to believe a tune originated with one person, but morphed and original author name lost over the playing at jams and clubs. For them the tunes were mainly just a beginning and a end to improv over changes.

Dizzy, Miles, and Monk in the books talk about a lot of great musicians back then that we don't hear of today. They played as great as the others, but for what ever reason didn't get the record dates or public popularity.