Bluesette

[Joeontheguitar]

Hi all,

Next week we're playing Bluesette in my combo. While there's an excellent piece on this website about comping for the song, I'd like some tips on the soloing. Am I correct that the song is in Bb mostly with a couple of chords where I should find another scale? The progression is too fast for me to use arpeggios's (plus I don't know them yet for every chord).

Any advice to play a simple solo on this tune?

BTW: I know I should be able to figure this out by myself, but I'm not there yet.

[ragman1]

I'm going by this chart:



It can be broken up very simply into major and minor tonal centres. So -

Bb - Bb maj

Am7b5 - D7 - Gm - C7 ------ G harmonic minor or Bb maj (play C7 as Gm6)

Fm7 - Bb7 - EbM7 ------- Eb maj

Ebm7 - Ab7 - DbM7 ------ Db maj

Dbm7 - Gb7 - CbM7 ------ Cb maj

Cm7b5 - F7 (b9) - Bb harmonic minor (or Db maj)

Dm7/Dbm7 ----- arpeggiate

Cm7 - F7 ------ Bb maj

BUT all that isn't necessarily the way you might actually play it. You'll need arpeggios, chromatics, passing notes, patterns, and all that jazz.

If you feel comfortable with it you can introduce b9, altered sounds or blues sounds over the dominant chords or into the tune generally. Listen to how other players do it (not just guitarists).

Inevitably a bit of practice needed :-)

[ragman1]

This guy isn't bad. Solo at 2.18. Mostly b9 and blues sounds.

[ragman1]

Tip:

Don't forget the pro trick for playing a b9 sound. Take, for example Fm7-Bb7-EbM7. Play the Fm7, then move it up a m3rd to Abm7, play that, then drop it down to Gm, which gives you the EbM7 sound.

It works :-)

(It also works if you sub the major 2-5 over the minor. Even better if you do the b9 trick. So over Am7b5-D7(b9)-Gm7-C7(Gm6) play Cm7 - Ebm7 - Gm7/6).

1) G harmonic minor
2) Cm - Ebm - Gm
3) Bb major

[Joeontheguitar]

Thanks guys. I never really bothered to look into the circle of 4ths and 5ths, but apparently this tune follows these circles exactly. I'll look into it anyway.

I'm starting with your chart Ragman, for which I thank you.

[emanresu]

Last 4 measures need extra care.
I think you could get away with kinda "sliding over" and get home safely in your main key but it really is better to try and aim the dominant chord notes there.
At least, you could say "we've learned something today" when finally able to do it

[Joeontheguitar]

I'm now working on simple lines leading to chord tones. That also helps in identifying and getting familiar with the 3rd of 5th of each chord. I if I know the arpeggios I use them too.

I know the song is above my level, but it's still a good exercise to get these sounds in my head, even if I prepare a solo from note to note. At least, I hope it is.

[John A.]

Hint: It's called Bluesette for a reason -- you can think of it as a Bb blues tune, except 24 bars instead of 12. To get a feel for this, first try playing blues over the whole form. You'll see that it doesn't quite work everywhere, but you can get a sense of where blues feel/licks can work instead just running the changes. You just have to kind of superimpose a blues form over the changes in your mind, and pick spots where you throw in blues licks instead of making the literal changes of the tune. Bars 1-8 are I; 7 and 8 especially you can think of as I7(alt), paving the way for the change to IV. 9-13 are the IV of a blues, and almost any thing would normally play over the IV of a blues works. Think of 14-16 as a sub for I - VI, 17-20 as II-V, and 20-24 as a turnaround.

John

[deacon Mark]

I play it in the Key of G mostly. Never in Bb does not work for chord melody as well in Bb. It just cycles and becomes automatic really.

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

Compare it to Bird's Blues for Alice -- it is nearly a Bird blues, if you think of two measures of 3/4 as if it were one measure of 6/8.

One that's fun to do is to jump to Blues for Alice and then back to Bluesette, just to mix things up.

[John A.]

John's idea looks pretty interesting. I'd like to hear him demo it.

I'll try to find some time to do that.

John

[BigDaddyLoveHandles]

Yes, compare it to Bird's Blues for Alice -- it is nearly a Bird blues, if you think of two measures of 3/4 as if it were one measure of 6/8.

One that's fun to do is to jump to Blues for Alice and then back to Bluesette, just to mix things up.

Let me spell this out:



I'll put the changes side-by-side, with Bluesette transposed to F and written as if it were in 12 bars, and differences in red.

Bluesette                                       Blues For Alice


| FMaj7  | Em7b5 A7  | Dm7 G7  | Cm7  F7  |     | FMaj7  | Em7b5 A7  | Dm7 G7  | Cm7  F7  |
| BbMaj7 | Bbm7  Eb7 | AbMaj7  | Abm7 Db7 |     | Bb7    | Bbm7  Eb7 | Am7 D7  | Abm7 Db7 |
| GbMaj7 | Gm7b5 C7  | Am7 Ab7 | Gm7  C7  ||    | Gm7    | C7        | F   Dm7 | Gm7  C7  ||

Bluesette has more major sevenths -- you can make choruses bluesier by using dominants instead. The most significant difference is the GbMaj7 instead of Gm7 / C7 -- you can call it a cool tritone sub. (Same story for AbMaj7 versus Am7 / D7.) They are written with different turnarounds, but I didn't highlight that -- turnarounds vary.

[John A.]

John's idea looks pretty interesting. I'd like to hear him demo it.

Here's a quick example.

John

[sgcim]

One thing I always found weird when I'd try to fake the melody without the music was the Gb melody note in the 10th bar against an Eb Maj7 chord. It sounds fine for some reason. Some type of anticipation of the Ebm7 chord in the next measure/beat I guess.

[ragman1]

John A -

Thank you, John, I like a man who puts his money where his mouth is!

I have to say I misunderstood it. I thought the whole form was kind of subbed over as a blues. I tried it and couldn't make it work. The first 6 bars can be taken as Bb, then into Bb7. After that it gets hazy because it just goes down the three major keys so I just went back to tonal centres again.

I don't really think there's a clever formula, I wish there were. So does Joe Guitar I expect :-)

But many thanks for doing that, and so promptly. Awesome!

[John A.]

John A -

Thank you, John, I like a man who puts his money where his mouth is!

I have to say I misunderstood it. I thought the whole form was kind of subbed over as a blues. I tried it and couldn't make it work. The first 6 bars can be taken as Bb, then into Bb7. After that it gets hazy because it just goes down the three major keys so I just went back to tonal centres again.

I don't really think there's a clever formula, I wish there were. So does Joe Guitar I expect :-)

But many thanks for doing that, and so promptly. Awesome!

Well, it's basically a "Bird blues," so literally playing a Bb blues scale doesn't work and you do have to keep with the Eb/Db/B modulations. But at the same time it's a blues in the sense that it's a journey from I to IV to I to V to I. You can use that as a framework for organizing a solo and fitting in Bb blues material.

John

[ragman1]

Yes, I got the connection but I haven't tried it with serious intent yet. I'd only use a blues scale occasionally anyway.

[Joeontheguitar]

John A -

Thank you, John, I like a man who puts his money where his mouth is!

I have to say I misunderstood it. I thought the whole form was kind of subbed over as a blues. I tried it and couldn't make it work. The first 6 bars can be taken as Bb, then into Bb7. After that it gets hazy because it just goes down the three major keys so I just went back to tonal centres again.

I don't really think there's a clever formula, I wish there were. So does Joe Guitar I expect :-)

But many thanks for doing that, and so promptly. Awesome!

I found an excellent lesson on Truefire by Sean McGowan called 'Blues et toi' where he plays an example of a solo that's not incredibly hard which I can tweak a bit and memorize. At least that will get the important notes for the changes in my system. There's also a good lesson by Frank Potenza on the comping part. I will probably only play one round solo (if at all) and if the whole band sucks at the tune, we're probably going to skip it anyway.

[ragman1]

It is a good work-out for ii-V's and all that. Have you seen this transcription of Tootleman's () solo? He doesn't do a bad job considering :-)

TOOTS THIELEMANS on Bluesette - Toots Thielemans' solo transcription | Soundslice

[John A.]

I haven't seen the transcription (TBH, I've hardly ever read transcriptions of anything; I'm much more an ear player than reader), but I've heard Toots' versions of Bluesette many times. I listened to a bunch of version of, as well as a really cool version by Quincy Jones, as part of framing my response(s) on this thread.

I wonder how the OP is making out with the tune ...

John

[Joeontheguitar]

Band rehearsal was tonight. We played Bluesette a couple of times, but I didn't play a solo.
However, we decided we're going to keep working on it as an exercise. So there will be a solo in the future.

[jameslovestal]

Band rehearsal was tonight. We played Bluesette a couple of times, but I didn't play a solo.
However, we decided we're going to keep working on it as an exercise. So there will be a solo in the future.

Just curious: does the band perform any other songs in 3\4 time? We play My Favorite Things since it is fairly well known (as far as an "old' tune goes), and there have been a few very recently releases of the song by new artist.

I of course play West Coast Blues, but only in jam sessions, since I wouldn't wish to be compared to that other guitar player that wrote the song!

I ask because for variety it is always good to have some non 4\4 songs in the set.

[Joeontheguitar]

It's our first 3/4 song and I also like it because of the completely different feel.

[JazzPadd]

Howard Roberts did a cookin' version in 4/4:

I like how he shadows the horn lines at 1:25. Coupla nice solos, too.

[ragman1]

This isn't bad. Bluesy notes and a good drum solo.