Vocalese: Does it please?

[mjzee]

On November 18, 2015 at 2:25:29 PM, fasstrack said:

As an aside, the only drag about that recording is the end ('of those whose lives, etc') where McCoy plays chromatic sharp nine chords instead of the beautiful contrary motion Strayhorn wrote. If it ain't broke.....

Also how he mispronounces "poignant."

[fasstrack]

17 hours ago, Larry Kart said:

Eileen Wilson (dubbing for Ava Gardner) and Dick Haymes sing it in the film version. A bit creepy to see the inherently creepy Robert Walker ("Strangers on a Train") opposite Gardner:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UluAL7GMPWw

I kill one for you, you kill one for me. Criss cross. Creepy indeed.... 

[JSngry]

[mikeweil]

Those Jon Hendricks liner notes to the Prestige twofer are a piece of jazz poetry, or whtever you may call it. I will keep the LP just for them, eventually.

"Measure for measure. To invite you to listen to King sing is my very great pleasure." 

Who else could have thought that up, besides Hendricks?

[JSngry]

 

[JSngry]

On 11/11/2015, 10:01:34, Teasing said:

...what is so interesting about vocalese lyrics is the the shapes and lengths of the improvised lines force the lyricist into directions that they typically would not explore if, say, writing the lyric to a standard 32-bar pop tune.  The result is almost a missing link between jazz and psychedelia. 

I was wondering the other day - what would/will happen if/when freestylers start getting into melody and harmony and incorporating that? Or is that one of those things that just ain't ever gonna happen?

[mjzee]

CLOUDBURST

(Instrumental Lyric)

I was blue

and I was always wearin' a frown

because my gal had turned me down.

Then we met,

and you can bet I knew from the first

You were my love 'cause that's when the

ole' grey cloud-burst!

My heart really flew

the day you caught my eye. I hope that we two will never say good-bye.

Clouds of grey

have silver linings when they're reversed.

I found your love and that's when the

ole' grey cloud-burst!

Hey, Baby, I'm gonna tell ya

'bout 'cha lovin' and y" kissin' an' y' huggin'

an' your sweet turtle-dovin', pretty baby

I won't be satisfied

'till I hear 'em play "Here Comes the Bride"

Listen t'me, baby, an' I don't mean maybe

listen to m' story it's terrifically true

I wanna' find a way o'tellin' ya'

that I really go for you

I hope y' really believe me, Baby

'cause I certainly do,

'Cause you're thrillin' me, really,

really thrillin'! When y' tell me that 'cha prob'ally got a kind of crush on me

it moves me—grooves me

How divine can one woman be?

Oh, Little da'lin', I'm really fallin'

you got me goofy and gay

I'm gonna' get carried away

just think! you're gonna' be mine some day.

Oh, let's spin-a-little, park-a-little

stop-a-little, spark-a-little

live-a-little, love-a-little, maybe turtle-

dove-a-little,

baby, everytime y' hold me so near,

nobody loves me like you, dear

Let's stop-a-little, tease-a-little

prob'ly maybe squeeze-a-little,

try-a-little, sigh-a-little

Maybe have t' cry-a-little bit

'cause to tell you the truth I'm gonna love you

an' that's it!

'Cause I love y' baby, love y' baby

love y' baby, love y" baby, love y" baby

with all my heart

O-ooh listen to me while I say

I set a lotta' little ladies get away

because I know—

I know pretty baby, I know

I know pretty baby, I know you're the one

Yes, you're the one—I knew it when I met'cha

what a break it is t'get'cha!

When it's cloudy 'n grey 'n that's the worst

How d'ya cause clouds to burst

Y' just find a lover, find a lover, find a lover, find a lover. If it's silvery under clouds of grey how d'you chase grey away

Y' gotta find a little girl

'n make 'er love you a lot    __

don't ever leave unless you're

flippin' your lid 'n really wanna

ruin the plot

sounds easy-does-it

light as a breeze thru the trees, boy

how pleasant was it?

Pleasant as one summer breeze, boy

It's so wonderful what a love can do

look at what love did for you

Well I'm a lucky lover a lucky lover I got the love that y'should discover

I was blue and I was always wearin' a frown

because my gal had turned me down

Then we met an' you can bet

I knew from the first

You were my love-n' that's when the

ole' grey cloudburst!

Take-a-look-at-me-boy Take another look take another look take another look take-another-good, long look at me love o-pened m'eyes an' now I see—

Clouds of grey have silver linings when they're reversed

I found your love

an' that's when the ole' grey

cloud-burst!

That's when the ole' grey

cloud-burst!

©1959; Eastwick Music Co.

[JSngry]

Usually for me, the vocalese by necessity removes the more subtle embellishments of the soloists, and in contrast/compare, that often ends up bugging me.

But the lyrical narrative on this one for some reason continues to delight me, especially now that I've learned that business about, "I wrote mine, now you write yours" and Hendricks coming up with "I heard what you said and I know that you're trying to tighten my head". The whole adult warning/child response thing...timeless, really. Take away the "hip" thing and you still got something worthwhile, with lots of memorable expressions.."find out where to fall when the sun goes down just in case your troubles get you down".

Fish and fowl, the fowl noticeably smoothed out, but none the worse for the wear...more aerodynamic, actually.

 

otoh...Getz ftw on this one. Those lyrics hint at, and occasionally hit on, something deeper but ultimately end up being just another "love sucks" song. Missed it by THAT much.

 

Anybody know the "meaning" of the title "Diaper Pin"? Always wondered about that...my first reaction to the title is opium, the few times I smoked opium, it was by inhaling fumes off a smoldering piece that was stuck on a diaper pin, this was supposedly the "hip" way to do it, but who knows the real significance?

[JSngry]

On 11/6/2015 at 0:08 PM, JSngry said:

Might be best heard on the original LH&R version, done for Pacific Jazz and not widely restored to circulation, as far as I can tell.

No, this is wrong. Not at all on the PJ album. That's wrong, so fuck me.

[bluenoter]

On 12/13/2015 at 11:37 PM, JSngry said:

Anybody know the "meaning" of the title "Diaper Pin"? Always wondered about that...my first reaction to the title is opium, the few times I smoked opium, it was by inhaling fumes off a smoldering piece that was stuck on a diaper pin, this was supposedly the "hip" way to do it, but who knows the real significance?

A more prosaic explanation, from Visions of Jazz: The First Century by Gary Giddins, p. 411, second paragraph: "Getz's masterful variations on 'Old Black Magic,' which he called 'Diaper Pin' to commemorate the birth of his son . . . "

http://tinyurl.com/diaper-pin-in-Giddins-book

[JSngry]

That makes enough sense to be believable.

[mikeweil]

Spinning Georgie Fame's Poet in New York CD from 2000 right now, one of the gems of vocalese, in my book. And maybe his jazziest album to date. Originally conceived as a Benny Golson tribute, it's subject changed a bit, although it opens with Fame's dedication to Golson, Tuned In To You. Several Tadd Dameron tunes. New lyrics by Fame on improvised solos by Chet Baker and others. Great stuff - for a vocalese lover like me, at least. Recorded direct to two track, with Bob Malach, David Hazeltine, Peter Washington, and Louis Hayes providing excellent accompaniment. There is a mystery vocalist on some tracks - maybe Ben Sidran, who also produced.

The Fame box set inspired me to check this out. Missed this one the first time around, but got a used copy autographed by Fame (!) for a price much lower than average on amazon. Recommended.

[fasstrack]

And last night the local jazz station played the Royal Bopsters' version of Red Clay---featuring the late Mark Murphy. Well done, but again the lyric made little sense to me, going by so fast I couldn't even discern it.

But kudos for a great job of vocalizing by the Bopsters and Mr. Murphy.

[JSngry]

38 minutes ago, fasstrack said:

And last night the local jazz station played the Royal Bopsters' version of Red Clay---featuring the late Mark Murphy. Well done, but again the lyric made little sense to me, going by so fast I couldn't even discern it.

But kudos for a great job of vocalizing by the Bopsters and Mr. Murphy.

This sounds just plain silly to me...like if you get a hipster who comes to you full of jazz dis and they pull this out for that special dry hipstermockery, you just gotta say, yeah, I gotta give you that one.

 

Here's the lyrics, roughly: http://www.thelyricarchive.com/song/788954-106740/On-the-Red-Clay I mean, yeah, they are words, but...

 

Quote

Scream door slappin’ somewhere on a side porch

A sleepy morning way out in the boon docks

Stories are being told on the red clay

Every clays where wecame from to begin with

And where were going when time comes for splitting

Sands –being- dug on the red clay

Moving,

Always moving

Morning,

Midnight sleep tight

Someone’s playing something on the back steps

The happy fac-es look out of the windows

Al-ways something good on the red clay

Waiting fir the paper in the evening

You watch the roses climb out of their earth bed’s

Lives being lived on the red clay

Moving down my baby when he’s tired out

I tell her fun things and watch him strat smiling

Nobody’s even sat on my red clay

Your move,

My move check me

He moves,

They move dig me

Red clay’s just a dirt but it’s a large sum

So what you doing just sitting there goofin’

Always a lot to do on the red clay.

 

[Jim R]

On 12/30/2015 at 3:15 PM, JSngry said:

No, this is wrong. Not at all on the PJ album. That's wrong, so fuck me.

In your defense, I see no track listings anywhere (which sucks) at that Amazon link you provided for the CD.  They expect us to rely on our memories when we discuss this stuff?  Don't they know how old we're getting?  

[JSngry]

I was thinking of "Four", which has an equally expansive expounding philosophically based lyric, not on the head, but on the solos.

http://www.harmonyware.com/JonHendricks/wwwboard/messages/47.html

(HEAD)

Of the wonderful things that you get out of life there are four,
Baby, and there may not be many but nobody needs any more,
Of the many facts makin’ the list of life, truth takes the lead
And to relax, knowin’ the gist of life, it’s truth you need.
And the second is honor and happiness makes number three,
If you put them together you’ll know what the last one must be,
Baby so to truth, honor and happiness add one thing more,
Meaning only wonderful, wonderful love that’ll make it four...

(Miles' Solo)

Don’t you know the score, well, people when they’re younger
Never realize the pleasure treasure life’s got,
But as they grow older realize a lot,
They’ve got their mind on all the wrongest scenes,
And things that cost a lot of money but it’s really very funny,
They fade away and don’t amount to a hill of beans...
Funny how the things in life we really should adore,
We forget, or ignore, end up poor, makin’ money
Till we’re nigh on to madness and end up in sadness,
Youth is the time when we should see the light,
‘Cause when we’re old and wasted, the dues for what we’ve tasted
Run so high that we pay till we die, then,
We know that youth that made us strong is wasted on the young,
So, enjoy it daily, love life and live it gaily,
You’ll find a lot of things to bring you joy and give peace of mind,
Get it while the gettin’s good, ‘cause everybody if they only could...
Life would be a set, life would be a groovy set, groovy as a movie...
Wail, wail, let your voice be heard, spread the word,
Everybody here’s got ears, only gotta teach ‘em how to use ‘em
Not abuse ‘em, so take a tip from me,
The world’s everything it oughta be if you can only be sure
There is no more to life than the same old four...

(Trane's Solo)

Hard to believe I know but time will show that even though you think it’s boresome
Two and two together constitute a foursome,
That’s all, four is a figure, that’s all,
Ain’t gonna be gettin’ any bigger, doesn’t matter how you slice it up,
You’ll never change it...
You count everything that fate throws into life’s pot,
Still, really four is all you got.
Haven’t I told you about the little treasures that are part of all the rest?
You love a little and live a little and take a little and give a lot,
Still the total is happiness...
But that’s only one, you’ve just begun,
There’s gonna be more, after this it’s truth and honor shinin’
And love combinin’ to make it four! (No more!!)

(HEAD)

Of the wonderful things that you get out of life there are four,
Baby, and there may not be many but nobody needs any more,
Of the many facts makin’ the list of life, truth takes the lead
And to relax, knowin’ the gist of life, it’s truth you need.
And the second is honor and happiness makes number three,
If you put them together you’ll know what the last one must be,
Baby so to truth, honor and happiness add one thing more,
Meaning only wonderful, wonderful love that’ll make it four...

There's a Youtube video of them doing this live, and to see somebody singing words like this...you realize how boxed in that the conventional songworld is. Don't mean that there's not marvelous things there or that it's not an art, just that...it's not set up to accommodate everything that somebody might want to say in the way they might want to say it.

Nor is vocalese a bottomless pit of substance...hardly. But when something like this exists...yeah, this set the bar.

Next step - improvising both melody and lyrics/poetry over original changes/grooves...freestyle meets jazz. Gonna happen. GOT to happen.

[Jim R]

1 hour ago, JSngry said:

...when something like this exists...yeah, this set the bar.

Indeed.  As I posted in 2004, that's desert(ed) island stuff for me (and I'm not necessarily all-in as a fan of vocalese in general).  Now I need to check to see if I heard it the same way as Ms. Duncan (I think I went freestyle when I posted the lyrics then, because I had already sold the LP, which I believe had included them on the back cover...?)