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Dave F., those chromatics sound really nice on Winter Wonderland. I just tried it.

Scep/Dave F, I'll see if I can specify the pedal in the changes so the bass player can do that.

I think I first heard Harry Connick Jr. do them on some solo album from the 90's. It's a pretty standard progression (the #iv half dim 7 leading back to the I chord).

Sometimes doing things by ear can get pretty good results, and take you away from the standard progressions.

As for the Pedal, well, that's what bassists do in the trio setting. You play the chords on top. I'm trying to teach my bassist about how to go to the V if he gets lost in the form, and listen for the changes from there. It's a good way to add some slight harmonic tension, and especially effective if the bass player knows how to move off of the pedal onto the appropriate chord.

Yeah I plugged in the pedal into my iRealB app and then played to it. Sounded good with pedal so it's in.

I think my play by ear version was fine but Dave F.'s chromatic chords sounded cool. It made me solo a little differently so I'm going to use that (mostly). I still tweaked some chords here and there.

Now the changes are a little difficult for medium swing (lots of chords) so hopefully the band doesn't get lost.

EDIT- Scep your chords where chromatic too so pardon my incorrect reference.

I know some of you liked my 3/4 tune (and some of my other tunes) and as I'm taking the time to actually get them down on paper (adding another member to the trio - "I can't see what you have written here") I thought I would share them with you - play them if you like.
WJR: http://www.box.com/s/9u5i18xtck7yg45d1fbz

Hi I haven't been here in a while.. I recently recorded me practicing some outside playing stuff over blues. Let me know what you guys think. Please bear in mind that it's not actual performance. I am mostly mostly exprimenting with outside pentatonic scale stuff, superimposition and some poly-rhythm stuff.

I kind of find it difficult to balance between going back between going inside-outside.

Take 1
http://www.box.com/s/plimeq1nyvdxp0c7kbmx

Older takes
http://www.box.com/shared/25i3ygul2d
http://www.box.com/shared/fh3c15u10g

Extra, one of the tune I am writing right now.. i am having hard time finishing this, and soloing would be tough too..yikes

http://www.box.com/s/fiy5m9qbuc7x332ja091

etc., you have to pass a "share link".

jazzwee,

I think I fixed it.. let me know if the links work. thanks!!

A little hard to hear the backing track so I just had to imagine it.

My thoughts - You are really swinging and you've got a lot of soul in your playing and you've got the chops so that's really great.

I'd break up the phrases more though with syncopation and space and melody. You'll notice the guys here are hard on me on that too. As my teacher would say, let some of those melodies "ring" (i.e. leave it alone and don't follow it with another idea). I do this all the time so it's a hard habit to break.

When I go outside, I support it with the LH harmonically. Although at least on the blues, I don't actually believe one has to go outside. Being dominants and with all the potential harmonic possibility, in theory everything can be inside (though sound out like Chick).

BTW - I heard some Matrix-lines there Cool that some of that managed to sink in.

You're swing is really strong, man. Keep that up. It's quite an asset

Here's my Set list for Friday

Set 1

1. East of the Sun (Eb) – Vocals
2. My Favorite Things (E-) – Vocals
3. Recordame (Sax Head) – (180)
4. So What – (200)
5. Winter Wonderland (G) – Vocals – (120)
6. Shadow of Your Smile (F) – Vocals (Bossa 120)
7. Jeannine (Guitar Head) – (160)

Set 2
8. Fly Me to the Moon (C) Bossa – Vocals (120)
9. My Romance (Bb) – Vocals – (110)
10. Bye Bye Blackbird (Piano Head) – (160-170)
11. Stella by Starlight (Sax Head) – (130)
12. Lullaby of Birdland (Eb) Vocals (110)
13. Solar (Piano Head) – (180)
14. Footprints (Sax Head) -
15. Take 5 (Sax Head)

Jazzwee,

thanks for the feedback.. feel is something I've put a lot of thought/time into, and TBH I am not happy with it yet. I notice moments where i feel like I don't have control over stuff I am playing, and LH is not there to support the groove/swing. When I hear someone like Alan Broadbent, I am amazing how those guys can accent some of the notes and really give it character/swing feel. For me it's hard enough getting the ideas out.

I agree that giving ideas more space is a good idea.. which is something I forget when I get too much into the playing.

Is Broadbent your model for your swing feel? I'm curious as to your practice plan for developing your feel because it is obvious that you've succeeded in your focus. Was this on your own or did it develop when you had a teacher?

Since my teacher is a modern jazz guy, my swing tends to have a hard edge to it. I'd like to develop more of a range.

jazzwee

it's mostly from just listening to myself.. I started with learning to play along with Oscar Peterson's solo note by note.. or improvising along his records and listening to myself. I just mentioned alan broadbent because that's who i was listening to recently. I think the problem for me was inconsistency in touch/articulation/evenness in your 8th notes was what was making it not swing as much.. LH can be a big culprit too.

What was interesting was that when i heard myself play Oscar Petersons' solo alone, I noticed how i was playing it wrong, the articulation wasn't there, or it was off, or the LH got in the way in a bad way.. and so on... I am still adjusting, but at least I've noticed what was not working.

Hi Etcetra, nice to see you stopping by.

I don't really like passing any judgements on other peoples playing so I try not to do it. Having said that you are sounding very proficient at up tempo blues in a McCoy Tyner (ish) style.

If I may make one observation it is that there is not much development going on. Probably that is just because it is the nature of playing in the practice room that we just keep on going at a certain thing until it gets better, but in a real performance there needs to be shape to the solo, development of ideas, a build up of tension etc. So my suggestion would be to treat practice as a performance - don't just play endlessly on a backing track that goes on for ages, rather just play a medium length solo (or even a short one) and focus on building it up by development of ideas, reaching a climax and then creating an ending. Double tempo outside pentatonics are great but they maybe don't need to fill up the whole solo. Getting in and out of that place is probably the harder part.

But I think that maybe you are guilty (like the rest of us probably) of playing to your strengths, although this is just a guess. Obviously you enjoy playing uptempo modal blues so you do that a lot and are good at it, but that must mean that other stuff doesn't get as much attention. There is definitely something in the idea of always practicing at the weakest point, although I find that is pretty hard work! I don't know where your weakest point is but if you post a version of a medium tempo standard and a ballad that demonstrate a different side that may well suggest something.

I like your composition idea. I can immediately hear in my head how that could sound. Definitely worth keeping on with those ideas.

Etc,

I'm like Dave, I don't really like to give criticism.
But in this case, I don't really mind about the solo building up so much because I think that you're trying to stuff as much of this pentatonic weaving as you can, so the solo is bound to suffer. But I think that's the way to go as far as absorbing that stuff.

I only listen to "New Memo 3" but I thought you were rushing in a lot of places. I think you might suffer from an odd velocity curve on the keyboard and that must be difficult to deal with. Maybe the keys are light or something. But in my opinion, especially on 16th and trips, you were playing ahead, and often locking back in with that little riff you like to use on the last 2 beats.

Even on some 8th notes line. For example, at 38s, you have this great 8th line phrase that ends at 40s, but the next 2 notes (D to C) are rushed. And to me, that kind of kills it.

Beeboss,

I think someone mentioned the idea of putting yourself in a box couple of pages ago, and I guess this was me putting myself in a certain box/mode of playing to just focus on one element on playing, which I am trying to improve at. I understand your point about treating practicing as performance too... so I guess there needs to be balance between the two.

knotty,

Yea i recorded this on the keyboard and the touch on that thing is light, so that may be part of the problem.

hi girls, what do you think of this play along track I "made"? http://www.box.com/s/jxtiqlaoj9tkm41jr8dy

wanted to get something abit greasier with more tension...

Man, this sounds like live instruments. Is it? You played both? SOUNDS COOL.

lol no, the bass line is generated with biab realtracks and the drums are from http://www.paulcarman.com/store/home.php which I can really recommend, so yea it's "live" also there's a ECM/looser feel disc on it's way..
I was surprised of how good they blended togheter and kind of excited.

'hi girls'?!?

I know Paul, he's a good guy and great sax player. The drummer on those sessions is Kendally Kay, a long time friend and comrade who's played on two of my CDs.

Paul has a straight 8th, ECM type feel disc out ? It's not on the web site. That's a groove that Kendall REALLY shines on so it should be killer.

I know I said I don't endorse playing with backing tracks-most of them sound stiff to me- but in this case, I would say just playing with Kendall's groove would be a good thing. These CDs have been on my back burner to purchase for some time now . Maybe if that straight 8th one is available I'll finally take the plunge..