Big Wheel

I interviewed him a couple of months ago--very nice guy. One thing I didn't know about him was that he actually has quite a lot of experience playing Fender Rhodes.

I envy you, man. I'd gladly forget all this shit if it meant I could play like Brad Mehldau or Jason Moran.

Here's a really weird but sorta interesting way to think about the diminished/whole-tone or altered scale: A melodic minor scale is the same as the Dorian mode, except the 7th has been raised, right? You could call it a Dorian #7 (of course, the Dorian already has a flatted seventh, so you're basically making it a natural 7th). So now, slide up the notes of the melodic minor scale. If the melodic minor scale is a Dorian #7, the second mode is a Phrygian #6, then a Lydian #5 (better known as Lydian Augmented), then a Mixolydian #4 (aka "Lydian dominant"), Aeolian #3, Locrian #2 (actually the most common name for this scale).... and then, we come to the mode we've been talking about. The "altered" scale is just a major ("Ionian") scale, except that the ROOT has been raised. Weird, huh? Really, the simplest way to talk about such a scale, if we don't want the problem of two 9s and a disappearing 5th or 6th degree, is to think of it as an Ionian #1. Of course, then there come all these other problems to deal with...

The reason the 4th mode of melodic minor (lydian dominant) is called the overtone scale is because it includes the first dozen or so notes of the natural overtone series. It's sort of an arbitrary designation, since once you get past the 5th or 6th overtone the natural overtones start getting real out of tune, at least with respect to an equal-tempered piano keyboard. The notes of the overtone series starting from C would be: C C an octave up G (the 5th) C again E (the 3rd) G again Bb (the b7) C again D (the 9) E again F# (the #11, though very out of tune on a typically tuned piano) G again A (the 6/13) At that point all the notes of the Lydian dominant scale have been included. See here for a visual representation of all this, or just google "overtone series." At a certain point I side with Jim on the whole Western analysis thing. European theory is simply not equipped to deal well with jazz harmony once you leave the major modes. Once you get to diminished scale harmony, things get REAL hairy. There you have a chord/scale with 8 notes, but you only have 7 letters with which to name the notes. Which one should you double? And how is it that this scale is virtually interchangeable (at least with respect to function) with the 7-note melodic minor mode we've been talking about? I sat in on a workshop with Barry Harris about 6 years ago and he started off by saying something like, "I don't know where all this II-V-I stuff got started. There ain't no such thing as no II. A II is just a IV with the 6th in the bass." Food for thought.

maybe this was actually a BNBB thread?

Yep, I noticed that and just corrected it.

Technically, you're right, Joe. But under chord/scale theory, the idea of a flat 10 poses some problems. Think about it this way: in a diatonic scale, there are seven notes. All the notes have to have different letter names. So if G7#9 is based on a 7th mode of melodic minor, it follows that the scale is: melodic minor: Ab Bb Cb Db Eb F G Ab 7th mode: G Ab Bb Cb Db Eb F G So under chord/scale theory, if you called the sharp nine a flat ten, then you'd really have to call what's obviously the THIRD of the chord a "flat 11." Oops--edited 'cause I accidentally called the Cb a Cbb.

Everyone is correct. G7#9 describes the specific chord you are playing. However, Tony is also right: under Jamey Aebersold/David Baker "chord/scale" theory, G7#9 is a shorthand way of denoting the "altered" or "Super Locrian" scale (the 7th mode of Ab melodic minor). Under this system, you could add a b9, #11, and #5 to the chord and STILL acceptably write it as just "G7#9," rather than the full "G7 b9,#9,#11,#5." But it wouldn't sound half as funky.

I posted about them in the other Grammy thread. That was pretty sick, although I agree with you that they could have settled down a little with no ill effects.

Why do I have a feeling that's akin to my claiming "technical difficulties" whenever I fall asleep for a minute when I'm doing 5am air?

"Legend"? Bah. Better a no-name gainfully employed than a legend living in my parents' basement upon graduation, I say!

No, but the Robert Randolph/Earth, Wind and Fire/OutKast/George Clinton segment ROCKED. Too bad the Chick Corea/Foo Fighters "collaboration" turned out to be nothing more than a shitty gimmick.

.186

Dewey Square and Yardbird Suite have the same changes in their A sections but very different bridges.

Funny you should mention it--I once went through the whole Omnibook categorizing tunes by the origin of the changes. 90% were blues and rhythm changes. Dewey Square was one of the only ones I couldn't pin down.

Interesting! The article kinda downplayed the whole MIDI aspect of it, so I didn't realize you could use a keyboard as an input. I assumed that you were supposed to click on the keys or use your keyboard to play different notes. Had a REALLY old simulator program for DOS that did just that, in fact. If you rig it with a laptop, is there any delay between the time you press a key and the time the sound comes out of your amp?

I never usually read MacWorld, but we get it at work since all we use there are Macs. The other day I checked it out and they had this rave review of these "virtual instruments" that you can somehow hook up to sequencing software. One of them was this analog synth-looking thing and the other was this organ software! I don't get it. I mean, it looks pretty cool and all, but what's the point? You can't play them like the real thing at all, so aren't these things basically toys?

Sincerest condolences, Tom. Hope you're hanging in there!

Thanks! I feel old. If anyone wants to give me a birthday present...I'm looking for a job! Failing that, I can send you my address so you can tell Mosaic where to send the Mobley set.

Part of the problem is welfare reform. There are a lot of single mothers out there who have to work two jobs and have no way to take care of their kids.

Ok, so a quick search says then that Michael Howell is on guitar, Henry Franklin bass, and Ndugu on drums....but I have no idea what the record is.

with Hampton Hawes??

D'oh! This is the SECOND time I've accidentally deleted my BFT answers before hitting the submit post button. I'll finish out my guesses later, but here's disc 2 number 5: 5. It took me 2 days or replaying this in my head to figure out exactly who this was. I've worked at a couple of radio stations, and I instantly knew that I'd heard this tune at one of them, but I couldn't remember which one or why or who it was. Finally, I got it: it's this guy.. Last year another guy at the station produced a program of his complete work, and this tune was used as the "bed" for the 30-second promo he made for it. I was running another program at the time and had to play the promo 4 or 5 times. Don't know what album it is, but I'm 99% sure it's him. Not quite gritty enough for my tastes, but a nice performance nontheless.

Randy, do you mean disc 2 number 5? I figured out that one but still need to type up the rest of my guesses.

If he didn't get an interview, how could they have known anything about his "demeanor"? My guess is that this guy came across as a snob and that Claypone is right--there's more than meets the eye here.