SwingJournal #10

Sonnymoon For Two: Dexter counted down in medium up tempo, and the rhythm section starts playing two chorus introduction for Dexter. This trio was the hardest swinging trio in Europe at that time, and they are Kenny Drew, Niels-Henning ørsted Pedersen and Albert "Tootie" Heath. Dexter starts playing the famous blues melody line which was composed by another great saxophonist, Sonny Rollins. As soon as Dexter finishes playing the melody, Kenny Drew lays out. Dexter carries on a spiraling solo with just Pedersen and Tootie without piano accompaniment. Dexter plays chorus after chorus with great ideas. According to the liner notes by Alun Morgan, Dexter's solo is 28 chorus.

Kenny Drew starts comping in the middle of Dexter's solo. Many jazz fans agree Coltrane and Rollins are two main tenor sax players who can enjoy improvising without chords instruments. Dexter proves that he is also very comfortable expressing his skills within the same setting. Despite Coltrane and Rollins becoming more flexible improvisers in the trio setting, Dexter guides listeners to show the location he is in and II-V-I solutions clearly.

After Dexter's solo, Kenny Drew starts with his burning solos, Young Pedersen takes care of his solos. He is the only one European in this group, he shows his respect to Dexter with solid grove and smooth right-hand fingering techniques. After Pedersen's solos, Dexter takes over and extends another few chorus to Tootie's drums solo. After 1 chorus (12 bars) exchange between Dexter and Tootie, Dexter sets up call and response figures. It means instead of 1 chorus and 1 chorus trading, it becomes 4 bar figures to 8 bar drums solo. They play two chorus of call-response figures, and play the closing melodies.

For All We Know: There is a famous story that Ben Webster stopped in the middle of recording because he forgot the lyrics. I could say Dexter may know the lyrics of this composition very deeply. There are not many instrumentalists who plays the verse of this composition, "For All We Know". The verse goes like this.

Sweetheart, the night is growing old
Sweetheart, my love is still untold
A kiss that is never tasted
Forever and ever is wasted
For All We Know we may never meet again

Not many singers sing this verse either. In my research, Billy Holiday sings it in her album called "Lady in Satin". I always enjoy the way Dexter plays the melody especially on the ballads, because he always has incredible fill-in phrases as if it was originally written for melody.

The first solo is taken care of by Dexter and Tootie's brush work is also remarkable to support Kenny Drew's accompaniment flow. When Kenny Drew starts his solo, Tootie lays out and you can enjoy the duo performance with Pedersen. Tootie comes back in the half of the chorus and cymbal open accompaniment. After Kenny Drew completes one whole chorus, Dexter bypasses to the middle of the chorus and finishes the song, and short echoey melody can be heard when Dexter plays cadenza.

Devilette This composition was written by a bassist Ben Tucker who often appears on Grant Green's recording for Blue Note Records. There are three famous versions of "Devilette". One is of corse the "Live at the Montmartre Jazzhuis", and bassist Pedersen sets up groovy line for whole ensemble. Prior to this recording, Dexter recorded for Blue Note Records. This album is called "Clubhouse" and you can listen to Bob Crenshaw set up his grooving pattern with the drummer Billy Higgins. Last one is the composer Ben Tucker's recording "Sweet Thunder" for Benglo Music in 2010, Ben plays with a drummer Kinah Boto.
Audio File

Download Sheet Music for Ben Tuker's Devilette (Dexter Gordon's version)

Solo Guitar Arrangement/Performance by Hideaki Tokunaga

Doxy: On Alun Morgan's liner notes, Doxy was introduced as the Ja Da sequence. Ironically people stopped using the term, the Ja Da sequence. The chorus of Doxy comprised of four four-bar phrases in an AABA form. I assume the Ja Da sequence means an AABA form. Doxy was composed by Sonny Rollins and first recorded by Miles Davis Quintet for Prestige Records in 1954. Sonny Rollins was also on this Miles Davis' recording, "Bag's Groove".