A couple of months ago I started collecting my favorite jazz recordings, transcribing phrases from them and sharing them with my friends. It's been a fun experience discovering new music for myself, and introducing my favorites to them.
As this newsletter has grown over the years, from just a few dozen friends now to nearly 10,000 jazz nerds (a term of affection), I've been struggling with the best way to keep this content valuable and relevant to everyone from all experience levels.
And so, I thought it would be fun to share some of these recordings with you as a way for us to learn from the masters together.
Introducing the "2-5-1"
So, here's my idea: 2 transcribed phrases, 5 observations from 1 jazz recording. (I thought it was a clever play on words... humor me).
Night and Day / Bill Evans
Originally written by Cole Porter, this recording comes from Bill Evans' Trio on "Everybody Digs Bill Evans" (1959)
Transcribed excerpts from piano solos in recording.
This has long been one of my favorite Bill Evans recordings. Here are 5 observations to listen for.
Bill changes up his voicings from his signature, colorful 5-6 note two handed chords, for modern quartal voicings
Bill plays in a locked hands rhythm throughout, except for some solo phrases like the ones transcribed above.
He targets the natural 11 on minor chords consistently, especially the Bb on an Fm7b5.
In the later chorus's, he "trades 8's" with the drums and bass taking turns soloing 8 bars at a time.
The final time through the head, he ends with dense cluster chords, often 7 or 8 notes within a span of 2 octaves.
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I would love to hear your thoughts about sharing recordings in this format. It's important to me that this content is as valuable as it can be. Please let me know by responding to this email. I read and reply to every response.
Josh Walsh
Say hi ππ» on YouTube or Threads. Or, just reply to this email.
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Submit a Recording - Have a suggestion for a track I should include in a future 2-5-1? Send it over by replying to this email.
When you're ready, here are ways we could work together:
Take our free 7-day soloing challenge - Learn step-by-step how to invent simple but authentic solo phrases.