Images (Of Things To Come) – James Williams

A beautiful 3/4 song that combines a lyrical melody with colorful and unpredictable changes. James' Solo Piano Arrangement is available in an exclusive recording by Kenny Drew, Jr.

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Recording: James Williams - Images (Of Things To Come)
Recorded on: June, 1980
Label: Concord (CJ 140)
Concert Key: E minor, No key center
Style: 3/4 swing (medium)

Tenor Sax - Billy Pierce
Piano - James Williams
Bass - Charles Fambrough
Drums - Carl Burnett

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James Williams - Images Of Things To Come (Images Of Things To Come)

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Description

Images (Of Things To Come) is a great example of the lyricism that is characteristic of James Williams' songs. The melody is singable and memorable as it bridges a colorful set of changes. The first chord is Em7 and the beginning of the melody suggests E minor, which is the key signature in our lead sheets, but the rest of the song moves toward other key centers. The form is a neat 24 measures, with the 17th through 20th measures being a repeat or "tag" of the previous four-measure phrase. This later section of the song suggests a B minor tonality, followed by a resolution to C major before returning to E minor for the next chorus.

There is a 16-measure intro that alternates between two modes of the same scale: B phrygian and C lydian. James plays chord voicings here, but the former mode is written in our lead sheet as B phrygian to avoid a complicated chord symbol. The basic voicing here from the bottom up is F♯, B, C, E—essentially Cmaj7♭5/B or Cmaj7(♯11)/B if a G is added.

Click on the next album cover for James' Solo Piano Arrangement, performed by Kenny Drew, Jr.

Historical Notes

Recorded in San Francisco, "Images (Of Things To Come)" was James' third album as a leader. At the time of this recording, James Williams, Billy Pierce and Charles Fambrough were all members of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. Drummer Carl Burnett played regularly with saxophonist Art Pepper through the late '70s and early '80s; also in June 1980 he recorded his own first album as a leader, "Carl Burnett Plays Richard Rodgers" featuring saxophonist Eddie Harris.

Leadsheets $1.49 /ea
B-flat $1.49 In Basket
C bass clef $1.49 In Basket
C treble clef $1.49 In Basket
E-flat $1.49 In Basket
Piano $3.99 /ea
Solo Piano Arrangement $3.99 In Basket
MP3 Audio Tracks $1.49 /ea
MP3 Solo Piano Arr (KDJr) $1.49 In Basket

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Recording: Kenny Drew, Jr. - Kenny Drew, Jr. Plays Solo Piano Arrangements
Recorded on: March 24, 2009
Label: jazzleadsheets.com (JLS 1053)
Concert Key: E minor, No key center
Style: 3/4 swing (medium)

Piano - Kenny Drew, Jr.

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Images (Of Things To Come) - James Williams (Kenny Drew, Jr.)

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Description

James Williams' solo piano arrangement is two choruses long, without an intro. The recording by Kenny Drew, Jr. is a bit slower than the original version. Click on Piano Corner for more details.

Historical Notes

"Kenny Drew Jr. Plays Solo Piano Arrangements" was recorded at the legendary Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs.

Pianist Kenny Drew, Jr., came up from his home in Florida to spend a few days at Rudy Van Gelder's recording studio. Don Sickler's idea was to ask Kenny to document piano arrangements written by Second Floor Music/jazzleadsheets.com composers. Genius that he was, Kenny was able to sightread the music; he recorded all arrangements in James' book Arrangements For Solo Piano along with many others.

Piano Corner

This solo piano arrangement is two choruses long; the first chorus has a single-line melody and the second chorus melody is in octaves. Both choruses have a similar, rhythmic chord pattern almost throughout: the root on the downbeat, a voicing on the "and" of beat 1, and another note adding to the voicing on the "and" of 2. There are a few expressive embellishments of the melody in the first chorus. The seventh measure adds a brief countermelody within the chord voicing in both choruses.

James Williams

Mar 8, 1951 – Jul 20, 2004

James Williams' distinguished career began in the city in which he was raised: Memphis, Tennessee. Having taken up piano at the age of thirteen, he graduated from Memphis State University in the early seventies and threw himself into his city's jazz community. Only a year after attaining his degree, Williams was hired as a professor at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Coming to a new city opened up an entirely new scene for the young pianist, who began to play as a sideman for visiting artists like Red Norvo, Art Farmer, Sonny Stitt and Milt Jackson. When Art Blakey met him in 1977, he convinced the then-26 year-old Williams to resign from Berklee and go on tour with the Jazz Messengers, a post he held for the next four years and with whom he would win a Grammy Award nomination for the album "Straight Ahead." Read more...

48 songs available.