Blues part 4 – Meade Lux Lewis

The fourth of these five blues solos, like the third, has no intro but starts at the top of the first chorus in a high register. This one has some distinctive textures but is clearly related to the other solos in this series. Some of the left hand figures in this one are a bit more staccato than in the others, though the lines and voicings are mostly the same. The first chorus begins with soft, chiming half notes in two-handed voicings, leading to melodic lines starting in the fifth measure over a bouncy, staccato version of the 2-feel bass line. Some choruses in part 4 start with just two measures of a strong theme before moving on. The second chorus is the first of these, beginning with a repeated descending series of chords in the right hand in staccato triplets and going to single-note lines in the third measure. The third chorus starts by developing a minor third tremolo, but the texture is broken up within the third measure. In the eighth measure of this chorus the left hand moves to open position voicings in quarter notes, which continue into the next chorus in a higher register. This chorus is launched with three measures of tremolo chords in the right hand. The fifth chorus continues the same left hand texture an octave lower, with a rhythmic chordal figure in the right hand followed by more tremolos. The sixth chorus returns to the bouncy 2-feel bass line, accompanying triplet lines in the right hand. This solo has a distinctive ending, with punching accented chords.

Part 4 is very slick and refined. The open position voicings in the fourth chorus are similar to those in the fifth (which appear in most of the others in this series), but an octave higher. The descending chordal figure Lewis often uses appears yet again, in the ninth measure of the second chorus.

The Blue Note Records label became well-known in the late 1950s and 1960s. Headed by Alfred Lion and Francis Wolfe, the album covers had a distinctive look, due in part to the high intensity, dramatic photos of the musicians taken by Wolfe. Graphic designer Reid Miles used a combination of sophisticated typography and Wolfe's photos to create striking images in later years.

"The First Day."

This series of five blues solos were transcribed by Shaye Cohn, who is the daughter of guitarist Joe Cohn and the granddaughter of saxophonist Al Cohn. We have made these transcriptions highly detailed, with a special focus on the dynamics. Often the two hands are at different dynamic levels, and we feel it is very important to note where the left hand accompaniment is truly in the background behind the right hand melody.

These solos are played with a rolling swing feel, and we have notated swing eighth notes in triplets in many places where the rhythmic feel is dominated by triplets.