Tag: jazz

Dave Koz | Show Me the Way

“By virtue of his many achievements, Dave Koz has long been considered the prime contender for the saxophone throne of contemporary jazz,” (AllMusic). “Active since 1990 when he arrived on the scene from seemingly nowhere to issue his self-titled leader debut, he climbed onto the Billboard contemporary jazz charts and stayed there for several weeks. The platinum-selling Koz was nominated for nine Grammys, hit the top spot on the contemporary jazz charts five times, placed 14 singles in the Top Ten, and earned a total of 20 cuts on the jazz songs charts. He is also a seasoned radio and television host … His sound is full of fire and intensity, often recalling that of his musical forebear David Sanborn, and which often crosses over to the adult contemporary R&B side of the genre line.”

Along the way, Koz has collaborated with guitar phenom Cory Wong, jazz fusion standard bearer Jeff Lorber, pop songwriter/performer Richard Marx, legendary bassist Marcus Miller, pop/R&B vocalist Jeffrey Osborne, vocalist/keyboardist songwriter extraordinaire Michael McDonald, and many others.

Featuring pianist Greg Phillinganes, bassist Nathan East, and percussionist Lenny Castro, 1993’s “Show Me the Way” is a slow burn of a track. Building gradually from a soft-spoken ballad to a fully-fledged gospel-centered summit, it features a shift from C major to D major at 3:51. Many thanks to Christopher Fox for submitting this tune!

Jaco Pastorius + Toots Thielemans | Three Views of a Secret

” … having played many of Jaco’s compositions while the bass player was part of Weather Report, (Weather Report bandleader Joe Zawinul) held the opinion that ‘Three Views of a Secret’ was Jaco’s best composition,” (JazzInEurope). “1981 was a critical year in Jaco Pastorius’ career. Musically he was held by many as the most innovative bass player in modern jazz. Five years have passed since he joined Weather Report, replacing Alphonso Johnson while the band was recording the album Black Market. During those five years, the band released its most successful albums and became well known beyond jazz audiences, performing at major festivals and large concert halls all over the world. The band’s appeal can be attributed to Zawnul’s compositions which became more melodic and structured (‘Birdland,’ ‘A Remark You Made’), but Pastorius played a major role in driving the band towards new audiences. His live performance showmanship, the incorporation of Hendrix licks like ‘Third Stone from the Sun,’ the feet work (enhanced by talc powder spread over the floor prior to the show), the rapid signature 16th-note runs and the wild harmonics, all found the adoration of younger folks, many of them introduced to jazz because of him.

… Pastorius was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder, but in 1981, his behavior was simply considered eccentric and unstable. Amazingly, through that period he was able to write and produce Word of Mouth, his major achievement as a bandleader, composer, and arranger … ‘Three Views of a Secret’ is a great piece of music, moving between calm and dramatic orchestral passages and truly utilizing the full impact of a combined orchestra and jazz big band …”

The studio version is a classic, but the 1985 live version, featuring Pastorius’ obvious joy and rapt attention in his able accompaniment of Thielemans, by then a musical elder statesman, is also required listening and is our focus here; both are included below. Shifting from E major to C# major at 1:38, the bouyant jazz waltz sneaks back into E at 2:22.

Lauded as “arguably the most important and ground-breaking electric bassist in history” by New Directions in Modern Guitar, Jaco died 35 years ago this month — at the age of only 35. His influence on the contemporary jazz and electric bass worlds continues to reverberate strongly.

Renee Zellweger & Sam Smith | Get Happy

“Get Happy” was the first song composer Harold Arlen and lyricist Ted Koehler wrote together, and was made famous by Judy Garland in the 1950 film Summer Stock. In 2019, actress Renee Zellweger starred in the movie Judy, a biopic of Garland’s life, and recorded this arrangement for the soundtrack with singer Sam Smith.

The tune features a succession of three half-step modulations: from the original home key of G up to Ab at 1:08, rising to A at 1:52, and finally landing in Bb at 2:26.

Shelby Flint | Cast Your Fate to the Wind

In 1962, pianist Vince Guaraldi created that rare thing, a hit jazz instrumental, “Cast Your Fate to the Wind”, which reached #22 on the Billboard chart. The recording won a 1963 Grammy for Best Original Jazz Composition. A few years later, Guaraldi enshrined himself in American popular culture as the composer of the songs for the Peanuts TV specials.

On their first date, lyricist Carel Werber went with her future husband Frank, then manager for the Kingston Trio, to a club in Sausalito, where Guaraldi played the song for her. She loved it, and wrote the lyrics during trips over the Golden Gate Bridge.

Singer Shelby Flint had her own Billboard #22 hit, “Angel on My Shoulder”, which she wrote, in 1962. Her vocal version of Guaraldi’s song was released in 1966, reaching #61 on the Billboard charts.

The song starts in Db major, with a modulation to D in the instrumental section at 0:51, closing with another half-step shift up at 1:14. The verse then resumes in D-flat.

Here’s Guaraldi’s instrumental original:

Ann Hampton Callaway (w/ Liz Callaway) | Moondance

Actress/singer/composer Ann Hampton Callaway makes her MotD debut today with a cover of Van Morrison’s most popular song, “Moondance,” featured on her 2004 studio album Slow. Callaway is joined on the track by her sister Liz Callaway, also a singer and actress. The tune begins in D minor and subtly modulates up a half step in the middle of the second verse at 1:35.

Al Jarreau | Teach Me Tonight

“Teach Me Tonight” was written by Gene De Paul (music) and Sammy Cahn (lyrics) in 1953, and has since become a jazz standard, recorded by Dinah Washington, Diana Krall, Sarah Vaughan and Aretha Franklin among others. Jarreau’s cover is featured on his Grammy-nominated 1981 album Breakin’ Away.

Beginning in Db, Jarreau shifts up a half step to D at 2:34.

Reliably Bad | If You Feel (the Way I Do)

Reliably Bad is an eight-piece Funk/Pop band based in Greensboro, NC. From the band’s website: “Specializing in composing innovative original tunes and arranging funk classics … (drawing) influence from artists such as Vulfpeck, Erykah Badu, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, James Brown, The Funk Brothers, Moonchild, J Dilla, and many more. The band was formed in 2018 with the initial intention of bringing danceable music to the college house show scene in Greensboro … Reliably Bad is committed to exploring innovative ways to engage audiences, refine their groove-oriented sound, and continue to build the musical community around them.”

“If You Feel (the Way I Do)” (2019) was released as an instrumental, but this live version with vocals has a lot more moving parts. The classic three-horn instrumentation handles the gentle funk groove with a palpable sense of fun — not least when the drummer comes forward to take the mic with a surprisingly soaring falsetto on a graceful rubato bridge, then runs back behind the kit like a jackrabbit. After the groove resumes, the key shifts from F major to Ab major at 3:27.

Holly Cole Trio | I Can See Clearly Now

“I Can See Clearly Now” was written and recorded by American singer Johnny Nash in 1972, and was a number-one hit in the US, the UK, Canada, and South Africa. Contrasting with Nash’s original reggae groove, the Holly Cole Trio recorded a jazz-driven cover as the lead track for their 1993 album Don’t Smoke In Bed. The tune begins in Db and, almost as if the sun is breaking through the clouds, emerges into Gb major coming out of the bridge at 3:02.

Natalie Cole | This Will Be

“Natalie Cole bloomed into a superstar with her debut single, ‘This Will Be,’ released in 1975 when she was 25 years old.” (JazzIz) With its funky, soulful sound, the song helped her step out of the shadow of her father, Nat ‘King’ Cole, one of the most iconic vocalists of the 20th century. Since its release, it has also been featured in several movies and was used in a long-running series of eHarmony commercials.

‘This Will Be’ was written and produced by Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy. It became a Billboard hit and earned Natalie a couple of GRAMMYs, including that for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, a category that had been dominated by Aretha Franklin up to that point. As mentioned, it also turned Cole into a major star and her popularity continued to soar through the ’70s. While drug issues would slow her down, she would launch a comeback that peaked with her 1991 album, Unforgettable … with Love.”

The track has a unique layout which doesn’t adhere to traditional songwriting structure; there doesn’t appear to be a chorus! After starting in Bb major with an extremely long groove-driven intro for a tune that clocks in at less than three minutes total, two verses unspool as Natalie sings an impeccable duet with herself. As the third verse begins, there’s a transition up to Db major at 1:02. Each verse has a different overlay of vocal melody, but the underlying chords are the same. A stop-time bridge appears at 1:29. The intensity ramps up right to the end; even as the volume fades, Cole unfurls more and more of her powerhouse upper range belt. The swing momentum, effortless vocal prowess, and the sheer joy she communicates through her performance are reminders of the Cole family’s jazz and pop legacy, which started in 1940.

Brad Mehldau | New York State of Mind

In spring 2020, jazz pianist Brad Mehldau released a suite of tunes inspired by the opening months of the COVID-19 crisis. “Locked down in the Netherlands, (he) decided to compose a 12-part cycle that reflects his response to our new normal,” (Downbeat). “Don’t come looking for Mehldau’s long, lustrous improvisations—or even short ones, though there might be some light embellishments here and there. This is a composer’s work. If its bite-size pieces are easily digestible, so are its penetrating melodies. Like the thinned-out harmonies, they emphasize the isolation at the heart of both the work and the context. Well, that and the pure strangeness … Billy Joel’s “New York State Of Mind” and Jerome Kern’s “Look For The Silver Lining” find new reservoirs of heartbreak.”

On his Bandcamp page, Mehldau released these liner notes for the Suite: ” … a musical snapshot of life the last month in the world in which we’ve all found ourselves. I’ve tried to portray on the piano some experiences and feelings that are both new and common to many of us. I’ve pointed to some of the strong feelings that have arisen the past month or more … a bittersweet gut pain that has hit me several times out of the blue when I think back on how things were even just a few months ago, and how long ago and for away that seems now … Billy Joel’s ‘New York State of Mind,’ a song I’ve loved since I was nine years old, is a love letter to a city that I’ve called home for years and that I’m away from now. I know lots of people there and miss them terribly and I know how much that great city hurts right now.”

Like Joel’s original, Mehldau’s cover grows most sentimental during its softly stated middle section. Although the tune is in C major overall, the midsection (1:10 – 1:43) is a parade of ii-V progressions through multiple keys whose eventual destination is back home to the original key. During the piece’s closing bars, a distant echo of the iconic main theme of Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” somehow boosts the NYC quotient even further.

Michael Lucke’s wonderful transcription of Mehldau’s solo is featured on this video.