PRACTICE PORTAL

Lately i’ve been rereading a great book, the second part of Chester Himes’ two volume autobiography entitled “My Life Of Absurdity”. Himes, an awesome writer and contemporary of James Baldwin, Ralph Ellison, John A. Williams, etc., spent a large part of his adult life as an expatriate artist searching for and eventually finding a measure of success after leaving the U.S., where he was largely neglected. as the title suggests, Himes’ tale is one filled with enough adventure, humor, heartbreak and stories so bizarre that they test the limits of credulity. he speaks with gritty, bitter honesty about the lifestyle of expatriate black artists in postwar Europe. the first volume, “The Quality Of Hurt”, which deals with his life before leaving the states, is just as incredible. perhaps Himes and Mal Waldron have nothing more in common than spending the larger part of their artistic life living abroad. unlike Himes, Waldron didn’t want for work while in New York. he was busy as a leader and sideman before his departure. also, unlike Himes, he seemed to adapt to his new environment in Europe without too much difficulty… below are two of Waldron’s compositions from different points in his career. the first, “Fire Waltz”, is from the record, ERIC DOLPHY LIVE AT THE FIVE SPOT, VOL. 1, recorded in New York in 1961, which features forward thinkers Dolphy, Booker Little, Ed Blackwell, Richard Davis and Waldron. listening to Waldron blow, after to the iconoclastic wail of Dolphy and the fertile linear conception of Little, one is struck by how stark and stubborn Waldron’s solo sounds. he takes very specific melodic and rhythmic ideas and ceaselessly reexamines them. his approach to improvising is very personal and unique. “Fire Waltz” is a sixteen bar song built over a common turnaround. it opens with a funky four bar intro from Waldron and Blackwell, then the melody by Dolphy with comments by Little and the rhythm section. “Autumn Dreams”, recorded thirty years later in Germany, is from the album by the same name, and features the beautiful alto of Charlie Mariano along with paulo Cardoso on bass and John Betsch on drums. it’s a thirty two bar AABA ballad. the melody and harmony are pretty conventional but contain some subtle tweaks that set it apart…

MAL WALDRON- FIRE WALTZ (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR FIRE WALTZ (pdf)

MAL WALDRON- AUTUMN DREAMS (mp3)

LEAD SHEET FOR AUTUMN DREAMS (pdf)

“Straight Ahead” is the title song from an album by Abbey Lincoln, released in 1961. it features many talents that have been mentioned in previous posts such as: Max Roach, Booker Little, Eric Dolphy, Julian Priester and Art Davis. the song also includes a beautiful half chorus solo by the one and only Coleman Hawkins, who sounds completely at home in the company of so many younger players, who were in the process of expanding and redefining the music. “Straight Ahead”, written by pianist , who is most well known for his songs “Left Alone” (also on this record) and “Soul Eyes”, is a 35 bar ballad with an almost traditional AABA form (the last A section is extended to include a 4 bar outro/ intro). it’s a very somber and dark melody, a great vehicle for Lincoln’s gritty, powerful voice. Lincoln, along with Earl Baker, provide lyrics that speak of a journey fraught with danger, and the need for strength, determination and realistic expectations. the energy of the song is in keeping with the overall vibe of the STRAIGHT AHEAD. there’s a lot of great music on this record. other stand outs are Lincoln’s funky, self-assured phrasing on “When Malindy Sings”, “African Lady” with its great horn arrangement, shifting rhythms and more of Hawkins’ tenor, and “In The Red” which gets my vote for the theme song of 2009 America…

ABBEY LINCOLN/ MAL WALDRON- “STRAIGHT AHEAD” (mp3)

TRANSCRIPTION OF “STRAIGHT AHEAD” (pdf)