IT’S ONE OF THE GROOVIEST TRACKS
in the entire history of jazz. Bassist Sam
Jones and powerhouse drummer Art Blakey
sneak into the intro of “Autumn Leaves”
like bandits, stealthy and sure-footed. After
Julian “Cannonball” Adderley and shooting
star Miles Davis state the theme, Jones and
Blakey start tippin’, digging into the ultimate
head-bobbing groove. Many fans and critics
say that
Somethin’ Else [Blue Note, 1958]
ranks as
the best jazz album—ever. It was
not only the front line of Adderley and Miles,
but also the rhythm section of Hank Jones
(piano, no relation to Sam), Blakey, and
Sam Jones that make this album magical.
What is it about Sam’s playing that
makes everything so hip? Check out the
recording and you’ll hear lots of basic triads,
7 chords, scales, and leading tones.
Nothing special there, but Jones had a way
of delivering the right note at the right time,
a deep and unshakable groove, and a complete
command of the basic building blocks
of harmony and melody. A sample line from
the first four bars of an
“Autumn Leaves” chorus
(Ex. 1) finds Sam
laying down the root of
each chord on beat one
of each measure and
outlining the changes
with simple triads.
In the March issue we looked at triads
and inversions of triads. I have found that
many bass players think triads are too simple,
not hip enough, and something to play
only “when you can’t think of anything
else.” The truth is, triads can be inverted,
combined, and linked together in countless
ways. However, many bassists do not
practice triads in all inversions, thereby
limiting what they play and how they move
from one inversion to the next.
Example 2 shows a basic walking line
on the first four bars of “Autumn Leaves”
using only triads beginning on the root of
each chord. Playing the root on beat one
is a precise way to outline harmonic movement.
Note the chromatic leading tone on
beat four of bar 2 (the note Cb, which is
the same as B). Each note in a bass line can be analyzed as belonging to a certain
category: chord tone, scale tone, leading
tone, or chromatic passing tone.
A leading tone can be a half-step or a
whole-step away from a target note. A chromatic
passing tone is always one half-step
away from the target note. It can be either
a note from the corresponding scale, or a
note outside of the scale. Usually in a jazz
walking line, we place leading tones on beat
four of a measure to lead into a strong chord
tone on beat one of the next measure. The
chromatic leading tone Cb on beat four in
bar 2 connects the note C (the 5th of the F
triad) to the note Bb (the root of the Bb triad).
By starting on different notes of the
chord, we can play a more melodic line
(Ex. 3), emphasizing how the chord tones
move in the IIm-V-I progression. The Cm
triad is outlined starting on the 3rd (the
note Eb), and the F triad is also outlined
starting on the 3rd (A). There are leading
tones on beat four of bars 1, 2, and 3.
Example 4 starts with the 5th of Cm (the
note G) on the first chord. From the 5th, the
line moves down the triad. The leading tone
Bb on beat four also happens to be the 7th
of the Cm7 chord. This leads nicely into the
3rd of the F triad, A. In bar 2, the leading
tone Eb on beat four is the 7th of the F7 chord,
which leads into the 3rd of the Bb chord, the note Din the next bar. In bar 3, the Aon beat
four—which is the 7th of the Bbmaj7—leads
into the 3rd of the Eb triad in the following
bar. A general rule: When playing a chord
progression in the cycle of 5ths (like this example),
the 7th of the chord on beat four works
well as a leading tone into the 3rd on beat
one of the next chord. We are still thinking
triads, but just adding leading tones on beat
four. These leading tones happen to be the
7th of the corresponding chord.
Example 5 demonstrates the use of a common
tone in two chords. The Cm triad starts
on C on beat one; in bar 2, the F7 triad also
begins on the note C, but changes the notes
on top to outline the F triad. Beat one in bar
3 is a D, which makes for nice voice-leading
up from the low C in bars 1 and 2. In bar 4,
beat one is an Eb, continuing the contour of
the walking bass melody. This can make a
bass line function as counterpoint—a complementary
bass melody to the solo line on top.
Now play through the changes and improvise
your own line. To stay in our triad vibe,
only play triads on the first three beats, and
a leading tone (either chromatic or from the
chord or scale) on beat four of each measure.
Triads obviously work well in walking
bass lines, but also in other types of music.
Example 6 shows a typically funky bass line
over the same four-bar chord progression.
Note the passing tone in bar 1, this time on
the last 16th-note of beat four. After you
master the written example, see if you can
improvise your own through the changes
in a repeated loop, sticking only with the
triads and adding leading tones on the last
eighth or 16th of each measure.
To master triads in a practical way, you
need to be able to play all triads in all inversions.
After you can do that, you need to be
able to improvise playing triads through various
chord progressions. Example 7 moves
between D major and G major, using only
notes of each triad. Once you can play the
written notes, see if you can improvise your
own line over the eight-bar progression in
a loop, only using notes from each triad. By
limiting your note choices, you will quickly
find out where your weak points lie. You
will also force yourself to create some new
ways to hook up chords using triads!
Example 8 is a walking bass line, which
moves from D major to its relative minor, B
minor, then to Gmajor and finally to G’s relative
minor, E minor. Notice that because of
the relationship of these chords, only one note
changes each time a chord changes. This exercise
will help you become familiar not only
with the differences in triads, but also with
their similarities. Changing just one note can
make a huge difference in the quality of the
sound. Now play your own walking line over
the eight-bar pattern, using only the notes of
each triad. It’s hard work to play simply.
Learn all of your major and minor triads
in all inversions (starting on each note
of every triad). Practice the simple things
on the bass, and learn them to perfection.
When you have all of the building blocks
in your ears and under your fingers, you
will be on to somethin’ else.
Check out John’s new releases, The Visit and Space
for the Bass [both on Bass Lion]. He is the author
of The Jazz Bass Book [Backbeat Books], as well
as Jazz Bowing Techniques for the Improvising
Bassist [Aebersold Jazz], which recently came out in its 4th edition.
For more info, visit John’s website at www.goldsby.de.