About
Bud Powell closes out the solos on piano with half a chorus, following Miles Davis at approximately 226 BPM. Set within a swinging rhythmic framework, the 32-bar AB form and the key of A♭, the solo navigates the chord changes with purpose. The tune borrows its harmonic structure from "Indiana," a set of changes that generations of improvisers have used as a testing ground for new ideas. Coming last in the solo order, Powell has the task of building on everything that came before while steering the performance back toward the closing head. This May 1947 Savoy session was one of the first to feature the Parker-Davis-Powell combination, assembling three of the most important voices in modern jazz. Powell plays on just the second half of a chorus before the band comes back in to take the head out.
Bud Powell was 22 to 23 years old at the time.
Comments
What do you think of this solo?