IT IS A PRIVILEGE TO PLAY WITH THESE TRULY NICE PEOPLE

I don't care if it sounds odd coming from a man, but I tell you. These folks we have in the workshop played a blinder last night. Absolutely brilliant. Tremendous fun. And each one of them is so modest, so retiring about their ability. Others would shout it from the rooftops. I'm very pleased to be able to call them friends.

We really did do well last night. Performance standard. Read about what we did and what we learnt below. Just about everything we tried worked - bar one.

TWO VERSIONS OF SUNNY. SEE WHAT YOU THINK.
This music is really emotional. Beautiful song, beautifully played. Listen to the guitar player on the track of Sunny. Sparing, open. Quiet gentle song, you can imagine a sunny day, lazing by the river. Then Herbie Mann picks it up, at the last coda he goes into staccato and the piano copies.
The piano plays chords in the fills mostly



And then we go to this, the best known version of the song. totally different. The girls are fantastic. How I
love this music. All of it



Lets do Sunny next week.

WE DID THIS LAST NIGHT
Feed and response 2 bars, worked very well indeed. Try longer bars.
Dave on Guitar played echos of the solos. Sounded nice.
He also used some displaced patterns in a solo.
We all played solos using triplets, with Bob on drums echoing. Yes, got a winner here. Must do more of.
Vic on bass played on the 1 then broke time, mixing with a walking line. This added interest.
This one did not work, but we can try it again. We played a tune out of time, rhythm section sparing, kit using brushes on symbols. Just to create an atmosphere.
Geoff played a coda on the song key.
We also tried solos without backing. Try dropping out backing for the start of the solo, come in bar 5
Chris kept up with everything - at a huge disadvantage because we all knew the songs. Heroic.

VIC DAVE AND MYSELF
I think that we ought to do something in practise, and in the workshop that we don't do very well, if at all. IN our solos we don't play the tune, or extract from it. Dave could you shadow the tunes as the front line play them, whether from ear or by reading? Vic could you try using a bit of the tune in your solos? It means we have to concentrate on the dots.

GEOFF, CHRIS AND ANDREW, DARE I ASK?
Displace patterns. Playing an improvised motif, figure, whatever you call it, then repeat and displace it. I'm not talking about playing a standard riff over a 11 V 1 and doing it in every key. I'm talking about using an improvised phrase over and over. It is not difficult to do. Could I ask you three guys just to try it out please?

PLEASE DON'T THINK I'M TRYING TO TELL ANYONE HOW TO PLAY. THAT IS NOT MY JOB. But it could be my job to make sure that everyone tries things out and is as well rounded as possible. Do you think so?

DO NEXT SUNDAY
The girls, Maria and Nettie are coming in at 6.00 for a rehearsal. We might change this song list if the girls stay on. We'll play their songs. Andrew, do you fancy coming?

Bluesette
Sunny Am and Bm
Bernies Tune Dm
Greensleeves. F
Chameleon

John

Smugglers jazz bands in Sussex
Smugglers jazz workshop, Bosham, Sussex

We could do with another front line player, if you know of them.
There are about 7 of us each week.

This site is to help the Jazz smugglers workshop group and provide information about the following weeks work. We will be working on widening our range of playing styles as individuals, working together in a band, and practising the more difficult things. You need to be able to read.

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In this blog We will produce tips for jazz piano, and jazz guitar together with jazz saxophone. We will cover jazz chords, jazz guitar chords, and we will deal with jazz scales. We will cover jazz songs. This site is all about jazz improvisation. you can sign up directly to this blog site as a FOLLOWER, bottom rh side panel, you'll get all the posts.

NO THEY CAN'T DO THIS. CAN THEY?

Normally you would expect Times readers to be moderate sensible people, not given to stupidity, mindlessness. Not many dolts amongst the letter writers either, would you agree?
Well, there was this correspondence about Prince William's idea about the Royal family giving back its collection of ivory antiques to save the elephants in Africa. Can't see exactly how it would help myself, but nevertheless the heart of the lad is in the right place. They listed a number of items made of ivory which could be dissed. Then this clown wrote "Let's start with pianos"
Well, I'm against that, in an unbiased way of course.

LESS IS MORE.
THE USE OF QUIET IN JAZZ

Chet Baker. Listen to the silences the highs and the lows. Listen to the mood of the song he expresses.
We are going to have a go at a Chet Baker song on Sunday, Bernie's Tune. His mood on that is quite different. Hear it on Spotify.
On this CD listen to the way the flute player, Herbie Mann, touches on the strong notes of the tune in his solo. I'd love to have a flute player in the workshop.
The wonderful Bill Evans on keys. He popularised the use of rootless chords in piano and guitar. Neither Dave nor I use roots.

I heard Geoff on Sunday play short stretches which sounded like this. He mixed up long notes and short notes. Sounded really good so did the whole of the trio plus Maria.

For next Sunday we will do this lot. Or not, as the case may be.

All of you in Eb.

Ain't no Sunshine Dave funky intro: do melody. Xng 4's;  Am Try 3 bars/tacet again

I'm old fashioned. F 

All the things Ab 

April in Paris C The changes are awkward I find, don't you?

Bernies Tune Dm

Bluesette. Bb 3/4 song. This will test you. 

John
Ps. Got a bad cold, worse even that the cold Vic had. So be nice.

The Jazz Smugglers bands in Sussex
The Jazz Smugglers workshop, Bosham, Sussex

We could do with another one or two just to dep for the ones who find it difficult to turn up every week. It will make it crowded on the odd night but that won't matter.

This site is to help the Jazz smugglers workshop group and provide information about the following weeks work. We will be working on widening our range of playing styles as individuals, working together in a band, and practising the more difficult things. You need to be able to read.