SOLAR

Bars 12
The opening solo statement outlines the sound of C minor with the note B, which is a major 7th (a
Cmmaj7 chord). The typical Cm7 chord would contain the note Bb (the flatted 7th) rather than B,
but in this chord progression we use Cmmaj7.
Bar 3
Check out the lick on beats three and four. Well see this pattern in several spots in the solo. Here
the lick uses the 9th, root, 5th, and 3rd of the Cm chord (the notes D, C, G, Eb).
Bar 4
Th e Lick from last months column makes a guest appearance!
Bars 56
This phrase emphasizes the 9th (G) and 7th (E) of the Fmaj7 chord.
Bars 78
Although the Fm7 to Bb7 is a IImV progression in the key of Eb major, this lick starts on a low Bb
and moves up the Bb Mixolydian scale. The note Gb is the only chromatic tone outside of the Bb
Mixolydian scale.

Bars 910
This line also begins on the low Bb, which is the 5th of the Ebmaj7 chord. Th e note G in bar 9
changes to the Gb on beat one of bar 10. This precisely out- lines the change from Ebmaj7(the 3rd
is G) to Ebm7 (the 3rd is Gb).
Bar 11
Mirroring the lick in bar 9, the line here starts on a low Ab, the 5th of the Dbmaj7. On beats three
and four, we see a common bebop pattern: the root, 2nd, 3rd, 5th (Db, Eb, F, Ab) of the Dbmaj7
chord.
Bar 12
This is one of my favorite licks over a minor IImV progression, such as Dm7b5 to G7b9b13 in this
case. (Some of the chords are abbreviated in the notation.) The b5 of the Dm7b5 (the note Ab) and
the b13 of the G7b9b13 chord (the note Eb) are emphasized.
Bars 1314
The solos second chorus begins with a short statement on the Cmmaj7. The A in bar 14 has a hip
soundit is the 6th scale degree of a C ascending melodic minor scale, which sounds good over
the Cmmaj7.
Bar 15
This is the same lick that we hear in bar 3! Using a lick several times in a solo can sound hip.
Overusing a lick sounds boring.
Bar 16
The lick over the Cm chord in bar 15 is moved up one half-step to out- line notes in the C7b9#9
chord: Eb (#9), Db (b9), Ab (b13), E (3rd), Eb (#9), Db (b9).
Bars 1718
This is a simple inversion of an F major triad: C, A, F.
Bar 20
Here is the same lick found in bar 16, this time used over the Bb7b9#9 chord.
Bar 21
Compare this pattern over the Ebmaj7 to bar 9.
Bars 2223
Here is a melodic sequence with the notes changing to fit the chords.
Bar 24
Trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie made this lick famous back in the 40s. Its still a slick way to end a solo,
even for bass players!
Miles Davis claimed to have written Solar, and he even copyrighted the tune in 1963. Davis had a
penchant for appropriating musical compositions from others, and recent evidence has indicated
that the original Solar melody and similar harmony were composed and recorded under the title
Sonny as early as 1946 by guitarist Chuck Wayne. Regardless of who wrote the changes to
Solar or Sonny, its a bop chord progression that sounds great when you just outline the
harmony. Take time to analyze the theory behind the tune, and then work out some licks that spell
the chord changes.

Learn To Play Charles Mingus Haitian Fight Song

BY BRIAN FOX
October 1, 2009
WHEN IT COMES TO HARDCORE bebop bass cred, Charles Mingus is one tough cat to beat. A
prodigious and adventurous composer, a bold and outspoken social critic and jazz iconoclast, and
one hard-swinging mofo, Mingus first became a fixture following his early days touring with
luminaries Louis Armstrong and Lionel Hampton. He later formed famously tumultuous
partnerships with Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, and Max Roach, and ultimately formulated ruthlessly
rigorous curricula in his legendary Jazz Workshops, forums that served as launching pads for
countless young lions of jazz. Viewed by some as Duke Ellingtons heir-apparent, Mingus firmly
embraced big-band settings, scoring and arranging with an eye towards collective improvisation (
la Dixieland), all while attempting to elevate the art of jazz to equal or surpass the status of
European-derived classical music.
Recorded March 12, 1957, Haitian Fight Song stands out as one of Minguss most enduring
contributions. Though the song was recorded with a humble 5-piece band (bass, drums, piano,
saxophone, and trombone), Minguss clever round-like melody lines and masterful dynamic
direction make it sound as if it were played by a much larger group.
Example 1 shows the exotic-sounding bass motif at the heart of the tune. To get your ears around
the tonality, first play through a G Aeolian scale (GABbCDEbF). Now raise the fourth scale
degree (C) by a half step to form an Aeolian #4 scale: GABbC# DEbF. That enlarged
interval between the 3rd and 4th degrees, paired with the scrunched half-step intervals between
C# , D, and Eb gives the scale its unique color.
After tapping out a tempo of 147 BPM and swinging hard for a few bars, youre ready to tackle the
tune. Take heed of all those ghost-note Gs and really lay back thats where the swing comes
alive. And of course, theres that sweet quarter-note triplet tag that rounds out the 12-bar form. The
trick is to milk bar 12s Bb slide for all its worth without missing the landing on beat three.
Of course, this bass hook barely scratches the surface of the 12-minute masterwork that is Haitian
Fight Song. Take some time to study Minguss amazing solos, both at the beginning of the tune
and in the middle, where he blows through a staggering nine 12-bar choruses. Its a humbling
lesson in soulful feel and technical agility.
HEAR IT ON
Charles Mingus, The Clown [Atlantic, 1957]
One of eight records released by Mingus in 1957, The Clown was the first to feature drummer
Dannie Richmond, who would remain Minguss rhythmsection foil for the remainder of his career.
DIG DEEPER
On his album Cachaito [Asylum, 2001], Orlando Cachaito Lopez uses Haitian Fight Song as the
central motif in his Tumbao No. 5 (Para Charlie Mingus).
WHO KNEW?
The joint project of Mingus and folk icon Joni Mitchell, Mitchells album Mingus [Asylum, 1979] was
the last creative work to benefit from the bassist/composers personal involvement. (The disc
features a phenomenal band including Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Peter Erskine, and Jaco
Pastorius.) As Mitchell writes in the liner notes: Charles Mingus, a musical mystic, died in Mexico,
January 5, 1979 at the age of 56. He was cremated the next day. That same day, 56 sperm whales
beached themselves on the Mexican coastline and were removed by fire. These are the
coincidences that thrill my imagination.

Jazz Concepts: Mastering the Half-Whole Diminished Scale

YOU KNOW IT ALLYOU JUST DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH THE information. If you read
my last two Woodshed columns, youre familiar with immutable truths about diminished scales:
They come in two varieties, wholehalf and halfwhole; they repeat themselves every minor-3rd
interval; and they can sound predictable and mechanical when overused.
Why bother with diminished scales? Because theyre so functionallike a secret ingredient that
binds the gumbo of harmony. The tude this month, Diminished Gumbo, uses three different
diminished scales: F wholehalf, Bb wholehalf, and C wholehalf. Each chord of the 12-bar blues
form is embellished with the b9 sound. As you recall from my two previous columns, a chord
symbol with 7b9 or 13b9 suggests the use of the halfwhole diminished scale (think of the scale

from the root of the chord). There are other scales that could work, but the diminished scale
starting with a half-step interval is the best fit for a dominant-7 chord with the b9 and n13.

Work slowly through the solo tude Diminished Gumbo, taking time first to understand the theory
behind the notes, and then to learn the sound of the three diminished scales. Your mastery of the
diminished scale will provide countless hip options for your bass lines, fills, and solos.
Note the following:
Bars 12 The first chorus of Diminished Gumbo is a soloistic, beboppish eighth-note line. The
tude begins with an arpeggio up the F7 chord, landing on the b9 (the note Gb) in bar 2.
Bars 34 The line starts on the note Eb (the b7 of the F7b9 chord) and snakes down the F half
whole diminished scale.
Bar 5 This melody mirrors the diminished lick in bar 1, transposed up an interval of a 4th here to fit
the Bb13b9 chord.
Bar 6 The #11 (the note En) and the 13 (the note G) characterize the Bb13b9 sound.
Bars 78 This is a classic bebop lick using the diminished scale.
Bar 9 The inversion of the C triad (the notes G, E, C) is followed by an inversion of the Gb triad
(the notes Bb, Gb, Db). This is an example of using a triad pair to outline the sound of a
complicated chord structure. The notes of the Gb triad provide the b7 (Bb), #11 (F# or Gb), and b9
(Db) of the C13b9 chord.
Bar 10 Here the Bb13b9 is outlined using a triad pair: the root-position Bb triad and the rootposition E triad. The notes of the E triad provide the #11 (E), b7 (Ab or G#), and b9 (B or Cb) of the
B13b9 chord.
Bar 12 Diminished licks can also sound melodic, as heard here. Db is the b9 and Bb is the b7 of
the C13b9 chord. On beat four the chord resolves to the notes A and F, which belong to the F13b9
chord. This final lick sets up the walking line that begins in bar 13.
Bars 1314 The second chorus of Diminished Gumbo starts with a descending walking line using
the F halfwhole diminished scale. The note B in bar 14 stands out because this is the spot in a
blues where the harmony will often move to a IV chord (Bb7). By landing on the note B, the line
emphasizes the #11 found in the diminished scale, and broadcasts the diminished sound.
Bar 15 The notes Ab and A play with the ear, suggesting both a major and minor sound on the F
chord. The F halfwhole diminished scale does indeed contain F minor (F, Ab, C) and F major (F,
A, C) triads. This majorminor duality gives the diminished scale its urbane, complex-yet-bluesy
sound.
Bars 1718 This is a three-note sequence, repeated and transposed up in minor-3rd intervals
through the Bb halfwhole diminished scale. Since the walking line is in 4/4, the repeated threenote patterns create an across-the-bar-line rhythmic feeling.
Bar 19 The notes Ab and Gb outline the #9 and b9, which characterize the diminished scale.
Bars 2122 As in bar 15, the notes here play on the duality of the major-and minor-3rd intervals.
Bars 2324 The line moves up an F triad arpeggio, but finds the b9 (Gb) on beat four. In bar 24,
the line juxtaposes the Gb triad over the sound of the C13b9 chord. The notes of the Gb triad
provide the altered notes of the C13b9: Db (b9), Bb (b7), Gb (#11 or b5), and E (3rd).

Jazz Concepts: The Half-Whole Diminished Scale

BY JOHN GOLDSBY
Its A C7b9 chord, and youre playing an Effind natural! the piano player is giving you the ray,
which means youre either about to get fired, or hear a lecture about how bass players dont know
jack. The lecture will be annoying, but your goal is to keep the gig, so you ask, What should I be
playing over a C7b9 anyway? I usually ignore those tiny sharps and flats in chord symbols.

The pianist shakes his head and takes a long drag on his e-cig. In the old days, he would have put
his real cigarette out on your bass. He wont fire youbass players are too valuable. Plus, you
have a car and you drive him to gigs. But you might want to think about why hes ranting. Does it
matter which bass notes we use on a 7b9 chord? Last month, we looked at the wholehalf
diminished scale. Now, lets get friendly with the halfwhole diminished scale (Ex. 1).
Like the whole half diminished scale, the halfwhole diminished is an eight-note symmetrical
scale. When you see the chord symbol 7b9 or 13b9, the halfwhole diminished scale is a good
choice (Ex. 2). At this point, let me tender a disclaimer to avoid a maelstrom of righteous
indignation flooding my inbox: Chord/scale relationships offer only one of several ways to
understand harmony and assist in creating, playing, and analyzing bass lines. In this Woodshed,
Im addressing chord/scale relationships.
Using the first three bars of the standard It Could Happen to You, we can explore the usefulness
of the halfwhole diminished (Ex. 3). Our focus is on the C7b9 chord in bar 2, which functions as a
dominant chord leading into the Fm7 in bar 3. Bass players often like to walk up chromatically to
the root of a chord. But be carefulthis is where a clash can occur on a 7b9 chord. A typical bass
line might look like Ex. 4: Playing the note D, which is the n9th of the C7 chord, creates a clash
with the Db in the chord voicing and melody. At a fast tempo, this isnt much of a problem; the
momentum of a chromatic approach to the root F in bar 3 will disguise the sound of a D in the bass
against Db in the chord in bar 2. At a medium or slow tempo, however, the sound of the n9th (D) in
the bass will grate against the chords Db, the musical equivalent of a paper cut for one beat.

The more elegant solution uses a halfwhole diminished scale, which contains the root, b9, #9,
and 3rd of the C7b9 chord (Ex. 5), or a line which mirrors the b9 of the melody (Ex. 6). At a slow
groove tempo, Examples 5 and 6 sound hipper. You might even get a nod of approval and some
jazz eyebrows from your snarky piano player.

Example 7 shows a variation of the C7b9 sound. On the 1957 Miles Davis release Relaxin With
the Miles Davis Quintet [Prestige], Paul Chambers chooses to go straight to the note E on the
C7b9 chord, effectively making it sound like Edim7. Both C7b9 and Edim7 are found in the C half
whole diminished scale. Review last months Woodshed for more information about diminished
chords and the wholehalf diminished scale.
Example 8 shows another common way to play bar 2 of It Could Happen to You by using a minor
IImV progression, in this case Gm7b5 to C7b9. The addition of the Gm7b5 simply adds more
harmonic movement.
Diminished scales provide endless melodic material for soloing. Example 9 is a solo excerpt over
the first five bars of It Could Happen to You. Note that the line in bar 2 uses the C halfwhole
diminished scale. In bar 4, the line uses the F# wholehalf diminished scale. Next time, well look

at a solo tude composed entirely of diminished scales. Until then, make an effort to look at the
extensions of chord symbols, and tailor your bass lines to the fit the details of the harmony and
melody.

Jazz Concepts: Diminished Chords & Scales

BY JOHN GOLDSBY
May 7, 2015
SASSY SINGS THE CLEVER GERSHWIN LYRIC, WHAT A KICK, HOW I BUZZ. Boy you click,
as no one does. On the word buzz, Ray Brown starts an ascending line hipness in a two-bar
package. I first heard the record when it came out in 1978 [Sarah Vaughan, How Long Has This
Been Going On?, Pablo], and I listened to it constantly, soaking up the sound of Sarah Vaughans
incredible voice and Browns impeccable bass lines. Vaughan, known by her fans as Sassy or
the Divine One, assembled an all-star quartet to accompany her. Brown anchored the Pablo date
with characteristic aplomb.
At the time, I wasnt hip to Rays hipness. The magical line I heard was just a diminished scale, and
Brown delivered it perfectlythe right notes, deep in the pocket. One of Browns skills was making
tricky techniques sound musical and natural. He dissects diminished scales in his book Ray
Browns Bass Method [Hal Leonard], but he doesnt explain where to use them. For that, we listen
to his recorded legacy. This month, lets look at how to use diminished arpeggios and scales in
bass lines and solos.
Example 1 shows Browns slick lick over a Bdim7 chord, during the second eight bars of the head,
at 2:02. The first two bars float on a Cm7/F chord. In bars 3 and 4, pianist Oscar Peterson plays
the Bdim7/F. The low F pedal note underpins both chords. Brown jumps into the spotlight for a
moment and shows us how to use an octave-and-a-half diminished scale in an artistic way.
Why does this sound good? Do bass playersat least those who do not aspire to be the next Ray
Brownreally need to understand how diminished chords function? The chord sounds good
because it provides tension and movement, like a souped-up dominant chord. Countless songs in
the jazz and pop world use diminished chords, which are often used as passing chords, or as
substitutes for dominant chords. When you understand diminished sounds, its like having a key to
the back door always at the ready.
Diminished chords and scales are symmetrical, in that they repeat themselves every minor-3rd
interval (every three half-steps). Example 2 shows the notes of a Bdim7 arpeggio. Note that there
are three half-steps between each chord tone: B, D, F, Ab. The four notes of the chord divide the
octaves 12 notes into equal segments. This opens up a world of possibilities, because the notes in
Bdim7, Ddim7, Fdim7, and Abdim7 are all the same. You can play licks, patterns, and melodies up
and down the bass in minor-3rd intervals to create the diminished sound.
The diminished chord can also be used as a substitute for a dominant chord with a flatted 9th.
Example 3 shows a G7b9 chord. The root is the note G, followed by the notes of the Bdim7 chord:
B, D, F, Ab. When playing a 7b9 chord, you can use the diminished arpeggio starting on the 3rd,
5th, b7th, or b9th of the chord (Ex. 4).
Example 5 shows a progression, in the key of Bb, which uses diminished chords as passing chords
between the diatonic chords Bbmaj7, Cm6, and Dm7. This progression is similar to the first bars of
the ubiquitous Gershwin standard I Got Rhythm. The Bdim7 is like a G7b9 without the root, and
the Dbdim7 is like an A7b9 without the root.
There are two formulas used to construct diminished scales, and this month were only analyzing
the wholehalf diminished scale, like Ray Brown played (Ex. 6). This scale uses the formula W H
W H W H W H W H, where W = whole-step and H = half-step. Using this formula, you can
construct a wholehalf diminished scale from any starting note. (Next month, well look at the half
whole diminished scale.) Examples 79 are patterns using the B whole half diminished scale. You
can also think of these patterns harmonically as a G7b9 chord. A good practice method would be to
play the G7b9 pattern for two bars, then vamp on a Cm7 for two bars. Repeat until you and the
folks in the neighboring apartment are in a trance.

Check out some standards that use diminished chords: Wave (Antonio Carlos Jobim, 2nd bar),
Spring Is Here (Rogers & Hart, 1st bar), Crazy (Willie Nelson, 3rd and 6th bars), Its All Right
With Me (Cole Porter, first two bars of the bridge). Understanding diminished chords and scales
will give you more options in your lines and solos, and make you a better bassistRay Brown
would have backed me up on that statement!