Richie Powell
Piano Solo on
Swingin'

About

Closing out the solo section, this piano improvisation spans one chorus of the 32-bar AABA form at a brisk 297 BPM. Pianist Richie Powell closes the solo section with a single chorus that navigates the rapid harmonic rhythm with the familial bebop fluency inherited from his legendary brother Bud Powell. The 32-bar AABA form, a staple of the Great American Songbook, offers both structural clarity and ample harmonic terrain for improvisation. Coming after Harold Land's tenor sax solo, this is the final improvisation before the ensemble returns to the head.

Richie Powell was 23 to 24 years old at the time.