May 2024 - Goodbye

[M-ster]

We visited I Remember You in Aug 2013, so our standard for May 2024 will be Goodbye (Gordon Jenkins, 1935).

Background:
Jazz Standards Songs and Instrumentals (Goodbye)

[ragman1]

Oh, right.. :-)

[ragman1]

It's a blues.

[Jimmy Smith]

^ How do you like the song? I thought it was one of those tunes with a narrative but boring melody and uninteresting chords too. But then I ended up liking it after learning it and spending time with it and the recordings. I'm pretty sure the form is ABA, while you did AABA.

[ragman1]

I agree, it's not that inspiring but it's the song we've got.

The RB has AABA so I did it like that but I did notice that most versions including the composer's skipped the repeat. And it's not done as a blues.

But I felt happier with the repeat, I felt it leapt into the bridge too soon. And the whole A is basically a Cm blues (Ab7-G7-Cm-%)... so... :-)

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

This is a beautiful classic jazz ballad. I’ll try to put up a track later today. I just finished my restoration of the blonde Fender clone kit that Jazzkritter built for himself years ago (tube rectifier, 2x6L6, 2x10, reverb, no vibrato, and a rotary switch labeled “stack” that seems to select among multiple combinations of tone control wiring and components). This is as fine a tune as any to test it out, so I’ll record and post the first take as soon as I replace the ratty old grill cloth with some new wheat and screw the baffle back in. The rest is done.

I learned it from the original Stan Getz version when I got the 1960 vinyl (Cool Velvet - Stan Getz and Strings):

Here’s Bill Evans’ version:

Bobby Timmons took a more traditional harmonic approach:

[ragman1]

You've missed this one. Pretty slick, this :-)

[ragman1]

As we're doing it, here's another one, no repeat, no blues.

I hope the black and white's not too pretentious. The tune's a little... moody

[Jimmy Smith]

The tune's a little... moody

Yep. It brings out my grandiose playing lol.

[ragman1]

Nice to hear the piano. I liked the interesting voicings in the treble. Are you playing single notes with your left hand?

[Jimmy Smith]

Thx, yes the piano is better. I am playing single notes with my left hand and jazzy voicings in the right hand, it's my Tony training. When I started piano, I was locked into the beginner way of chords in the left hand and single note in the right hand. Now I'm addicted to the Tony way.

[ragman1]

beginner way of chords in the left hand and single notes in the right hand

I can't play the piano, I don't have the brain for it, I can't coordinate the two hands at all. But my mother was, or used to be, a concert pianist before the war. And, of course, there are all the piano transcriptions on YouTube.

I'd have thought that it's not generally one or the other, that both hands played both single and multi-notes according to the arrangement.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

There's good news and bad. The good news is that the Jazzkritter amp I just restored looks fantastic, except for the faceplate which is a custom laser etching that should arrive soon. The basic circuitry is now fine, with Atom caps in the signal path and F&Ts in the power supply. The bad news is that there's a hum in the reverb circuit and faint but audible distortion above a whisper - so the recording doesn't sound right. I'll get it sorted out. The Tolex cleaned up nicely and I fitted a new handle like Fender used on these cabs but without a Fender logo. I'll post in the GA&G section once it's fully fine again. Here's a before and after:





So I just made this one using the DV Mark EG250 through a Toob Metro.

[ragman1]

Bill Evans transcript:

[Jimmy Smith]

I can't play the piano, I don't have the brain for it, I can't coordinate the two hands at all.

It takes a lot of work. I died several times as I was learning piano. I remember when I was learning it in college, my brain would be in pain trying to think of all the notes and execute them. Then I believe I had 3 burn outs and breaks. The organ period being the last of them.

But my mother was, or used to be, a concert pianist before the war.

That's cool that your mother was a maestro.

I'd have thought that it's not generally one or the other, that both hands played both single and multi-notes according to the arrangement.

That's absolutely right. Proficiency is being able to distribute the notes between the hands however you want or however it's called for. Although I prefer thinner in the left hand and denser in the right hand because it's a better sonority and not muddy. It's kind of a beginner way to theory out playing piano by just playing block chords in the left and melody in right. I think it's pretty tacky. Bud Powell would play like that a bit. Although he did have beautiful style regardless. And he had technique well beyond that method I'm disparaging.

[ragman1]

Although I prefer thinner in the left hand and denser in the right hand because it's a better sonority and not muddy.

Absolutely. Obviously it's a terribly basic idea to plonk down block chords with the left while playing a tune with the right. I mean, that's the sort of musical equivalent of a child intensely trying to make a big round 'a' when they're learning writing. It actually didn't occur to me because we're way past that.

But the thing in jazz is, and we're talking real piano playing here, is that the two hands aren't really separated, the notes drift from one to the other and everything moves as one. But you've got to be pretty good to do that.

[Jimmy Smith]

But the thing in jazz is, and we're talking real piano playing here, is that the two hands aren't really separated, the notes drift from one to the other and everything moves as one. But you've got to be pretty good to do that.

One of my goals is to take independent parts heard in the combo like bass lines and make it sound pianistic in solo piano.

[ragman1]

I always thought this was a blues. Only three pentatonics in this, Cm, Em and Gm.