Quotes

[Free For All]

In the Horace Silver composition "Quicksilver" he uses a couple quotes as part of the melody. The first occurs in bars 13-16 where he quotes "Oh You Beautiful Doll". The next one is in bars 29-32- I'm pretty sure it's from a classical piece (Prokofiev perhaps?) but I can't remember which. I've heard it quoted repeatedly in bop solos.

Your help is appreciated.

Regarding jazz players who use quotes- Dexter, Sonny Rollins, Bird and Paul Desmond are a few that come to mind. I appreciate when the quote is clever- a pun on the tune title, a reference to a tune w/a similar chord progression. Any favorites?

[Swinging Swede]

When Bird plays White Christmas, he quotes Jingle Bells.

[king ubu]

On the early Roost quartet studio sessions of Stan Getz', Silver is quoting like mad... and he gets Getz to throw in some quotes as well. I don't remember any particulars, but the lines of the fabulous Roost 3CD set give some details.

And there's the infamous "Pop Goes the Weasel" quote of Thad Jones in "April in Paris"... too bad that one got so famous, it's far from being a favourite Basie NT Band tune in this house... and Thad could do so much more!

[Free For All]

And there's the infamous "Pop Goes the Weasel" quote of Thad Jones in "April in Paris"... too bad that one got so famous, it's far from being a favourite Basie NT Band tune in this house... and Thad could do so much more!

The funny thing about that is that it was the umpteenth take of April in Paris and Thad just came up with that one. He probably later regretted it- because of the popular success of the tune every trumpet player was/is obligated to play it on that solo (including Thad when they performed it).

[crisp]

In the Horace Silver composition "Quicksilver" he uses a couple quotes as part of the melody. The first occurs in bars 13-16 where he quotes "Oh You Beautiful Doll". The next one is in bars 29-32- I'm pretty sure it's from a classical piece (Prokofiev perhaps?) but I can't remember which. I've heard it quoted repeatedly in bop solos.

Your help is appreciated.

I gave it a spin. It's The Donkey Serenade by Rudolf Friml. So not classical, but since it's operetta, quite close. It does sound a little like Prokofiev, come to think of it.

[BillF]

In the Ken Burns Jazz documentary it's reported that Rollins inserted "Easter Bonnet" into a lengthy solo in a club, just as the clock reached midnight and Easter Sunday began.

[Free For All]

In the Horace Silver composition "Quicksilver" he uses a couple quotes as part of the melody. The first occurs in bars 13-16 where he quotes "Oh You Beautiful Doll". The next one is in bars 29-32- I'm pretty sure it's from a classical piece (Prokofiev perhaps?) but I can't remember which. I've heard it quoted repeatedly in bop solos.

Your help is appreciated.

I gave it a spin. It's The Donkey Serenade by Rudolf Friml. So not classical, but since it's operetta, quite close. It does sound a little like Prokofiev, come to think of it.

Yes! Thank you Sir Crisp!

[DukeCity]

In the Ken Burns Jazz documentary it's reported that Rollins inserted "Easter Bonnet" into a lengthy solo in a club, just as the clock reached midnight and Easter Sunday began.

There was an interview with Rollins and he was asked about his penchant for playing quotes in his solos. His response was to say that (the Easter example above notwithstanding) they usually aren't self-conscious or premeditated things. He's just improvising a line, discovers that he just played the first few notes of another tune, and then just decides to finish that melodic idea.

I love the tune "Laura" and how the melody fits over the very common ii-V-I chord sequence. Since my first wife's name is Laura I used to quote it quite a bit (to an annoying excess, as FreeForAll will no doubt attest to). I kind of swore off it several years ago.

[fasstrack]

In the Horace Silver composition "Quicksilver" he uses a couple quotes as part of the melody. The first occurs in bars 13-16 where he quotes "Oh You Beautiful Doll". The next one is in bars 29-32- I'm pretty sure it's from a classical piece (Prokofiev perhaps?) but I can't remember which. I've heard it quoted repeatedly in bop solos.

Your help is appreciated.

Regarding jazz players who use quotes- Dexter, Sonny Rollins, Bird and Paul Desmond are a few that come to mind. I appreciate when the quote is clever- a pun on the tune title, a reference to a tune w/a similar chord progression. Any favorites?

There's a fine line between creative and being annoying with quoting----and some guys erase it at times IMO. Sonny Rollins is one thing, it's part of his style. If it's done with humor, in the thrill of the moment, if it really fits the chords/architectural scheme or is an inside joke on the tune, or sly commentary, etc. it's all good. But there are players who slavishly----eg 2nd hand---copy other players' quotes. Dumb and embarrassing IMO. It's possible to dig a little deeper, generally. You just have to bust your ass. If it's important enough not to sound trite or like a clown it is a better option.....

It's funny you bring up Quicksilver, as I was thinking about this the other day. It's my least favorite of Horace's tunes, and truly annoying as a composer, to me. I understand what he was doing----writing something as if it was an improvisation and using the quotes as humor. But when you're composing especially---well, I think we can do better. There's time for detail and honing you don't have when you're improvising and have toi be a bit sketchier. Horace at his worst to me---writing or playing---is a corny quoter. Bird/ Sonny are hipper, way hipper---not to mention funnier. I really dig Horace at his best, though, which is all the other times. No dumb quotes in "Barbara" or "Gregory is Here", just really nice melodic writing over fresh changes.

Some players, FWIW, avoid quoting altogether, preferring to keep the language fresh---at least in their minds. I remember Bill Evans being asked about it and he said "the other day I quoted something and we (the trio) looked at each other, rolling our eyes, as if to say 'oh boy, it's come to this?' It's a pleasant game, but that's all it should be". I like Miles' statememt, too: "Cliches are OK, but if your whole thing is a cliche.......'

A word to the wise, I guess.

Edited March 20, 2009 by fasstrack

[jostber]

A lot of Bird's quotes here:

http://www.chasinthebird.com/quotes_e.html

[mikeweil]

Any favorites?

There is a live double LP on MPS by the Slide Hampton Joe Haider Orchestra, "Give Me A Double". Dexter Gordon is in the sax section (playing Ben Webster's horn, btw), and when he solos over a Slide Hampton tune based on the changes of "Giant Steps", he quotes Coltrane's "Some Other Blues" at the climax of his solo! Great!

[mikeweil]

Cedar Walton is also great at quoting. Many of his tunes are collages of familiar phrases combined in unpredictable ways.

When I saw him perform two months ago he managed to quote an Ellington ballad at the end of each chorus during "I Can't Get Started" - 3 chorusses in all.

[king ubu]

Any favorites?

There is a live double LP on MPS by the Slide Hampton Joe Haider Orchestra, "Give Me A Double". Dexter Gordon is in the sax section (playing Ben Webster's horn, btw), and when he solos over a Slide Hampton tune based on the changes of "Giant Steps", he quotes Coltrane's "Some Other Blues" at the climax of his solo! Great!

That one's great - it's on CD on Haider's own label, JHM Music:

http://www.jhmrecords.ch/de/index.php

[medjuck]

In Toronto about 40 years ago I saw Rollins give her first concert after a return from Europe and he quoted "Back in Your Own Back Yard".

(Actually I can't remember if that was the tune-- it might have been some other song about being back home.)