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1. Maestro @herbiehancock turns 81 today. Herbie is great in so many ways, but perhaps this doesn& #39;t get said enough: He& #39;s one of the best accompanists in jazz history. What are the greatest examples of Herbie "comping" on record? Please chime in with faves. I& #39;ll start with a few.
2. Stella by Starlight w/Miles, 1964. What an intro! 4 rubato bars of perfection. Telepathy w/Miles is off the charts, Herbie playing in the cracks. Harmony, touch, melodies & rhythms link Miles phrases in ballad or swing time. Same thing behind George. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZx4pnEKOHc">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
3. Snuff w/JMac, 1964. 32-bar modal structure. B-flat minor for 8 bars, B-flat 7 for 8, chromatic bridge, then back to B flat 7. Herbie’s rhythmic hook up w/Roy Haynes--whew! He& #39;s alert to the blues behind Jackie but wanders harmonically behind Tolliver. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2eqdcgMo1Y">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
4. Feelin’ the Spirit w/Grant Green. 1962. One of the great piano vamps ever. Talk about the blues! Talk about defining a pocket! Check out how Herbie expands the figure during the guitar solo without abandoning the groove. Magic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y-2y_lxkeM">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
5. Teru w/Wayne. Just the way Herbie underlines the harmony during the head--at times mirroring the rhythms of the melody, other times offering counterpoint (those gentle triplets). The delicacy of his touch is otherworldly in its expressive beauty. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1N6AmFNlgWU">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
6. You& #39;re My Everything w/Freddie. Great example of how Herbie can comp aggressively without getting in the way. He steals the show in a good way on the melody & he& #39;s RIGHT ON everything Freddie does without crowding the trumpet. More magic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i28C9tYoJC8">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
7. Pinnochio w/Miles, 1967. The way Herbie plays behind the repeating melody statements is brilliant. It& #39;s like he& #39;s having two elevated conversations at once -- one a private dialogue with Wayne& #39;s beguiling melody & another with the whole ensemble. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri7A5vy9z7I&list=PL0q2VleZJVEk-pAEjeqd5baYmSL0RQdB8&index=6">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
8. @mcbridesworld asks a great question perhaps to nudge me out of the & #39;60s. Name your favorite post-1990 tracks of Herbie comping. I& #39;d start w/ "Sweet Bird" from River: The Joni Letters, 2006/7 -- the sublime dialogue w/Wayne. They comp for each other. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9hdjN9f0uI&list=PLNVGKTi8j9j53bgQVGVsNkMsNIY7VVmtm&index=5">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
9. Summertime, 1998 from Herbie& #39;s Gershwin& #39;s World, a record I found unfocused when it first came out but which has grown considerably on me. I love the feeling of floating behind Joni & Stevie -- but fie on the clumsy edit of the harmonica solo at 2:15. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cp37NgqlhQ0&list=PLUj6v_kUAv5fcWxF0ul3o06ms9HFa88ye&index=7">https://www.youtube.com/watch...
Errata: The title of Wayne Shorter& #39;s composition in tweet No. 7 should have been spelled "Pinocchio." We regret the error.
