[Rozanno]

Hi,
I'm getting stuck improvising on Chet Baker's Let's get lost. Strange, but beautiful chord changes. Using concert C major. Of course you can play around the melody, but that would be too easy to approach

Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 | Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 B7 |

Em7b5| A7 | Em7b5 | A7 |

Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 B7 |

Em7 | A7 | D7 | Dm7 A7 |


Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 F7 | E7 Am7 |

Dm7 | G7 | C6 | Dm7 G7 |

Thanks!

 

[Pete Thomas]

I don’t know the tune but these changes don’t seem strange at all once you get past the second bar. A lot of cycle of fifths.

I’m sure we can help but what exactly is the question?

NB I would play around the melody as a start, nothing wrong with an easy approach.

Next thing is to know all the notes in the chords and their tendencies,

 

[Rozanno]

I don't know the tune but these changes don't seem strange at all once you get past the second bar. A lot of cycle of fifths.

I'm sure we can help but what exactly is the question?

NB I would play around the melody as a start, nothing wrong with an easy approach.

Next thing is to know all the notes in the chords and their tendencies,

Thanks, and indeed, looking fore carefully to the chord changes, looks that the progression is not not strange at all. The "strange" notes are f# and sometimes c#

 

[Pete Thomas]

The "strange" notes are f# and sometimes c#

Neither are strange - D7 (which has F#) is a secondary dominant - it's the V7 of V7 (ie the V7 of G7)

the A7 (which has the C#) is a secondary dominant - it's the V7 of Im7 (ie the V7 of Dm7)

More on secondary dominants

 

[lydian]

My simple analysis:

Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 | Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 B7 | Cmaj, then up a third to start, but not finish a minor ii-V in E minor, back down to C, then finish the ii-V in E minor

Em7b5| A7 | Em7b5 | A7 | Take the ii-V down to D minor, repeat

Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 B7 | Then down to a major ii-V in C, then repeat part of the opening motif

Em7 | A7 | D7 | Dm7 A7 | Then repeat the D ii-V then secondary dominants Pete's talking about



Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 F7 | E7 Am7 | C ii-V-I, A minor-ish ii-V-i-ish thing using tritone sub F for the B

Dm7 | G7 | C6 | Dm7 G7 | More ii-V-I and ii-V's in C

So big picture flow of key centers is start in C, go up to E, slowly walk down back to D then C, drop down to A minor for a bar and a half, then back up to C.

I'd approach with an idea in C then do variations of that idea in E and D, emphasizing that you're walking it back down to C.

 

[Reet McVouty]

Chet Baker in his prime

 

[Rozanno]

My simple analysis:

Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 | Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 B7 | Cmaj, then up a third to start, but not finish a minor ii-V in E minor, back down to C, then finish the ii-V in E minor

Em7b5| A7 | Em7b5 | A7 | Take the ii-V down to D minor, repeat

Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 | F#m7b5 B7 | Then down to a major ii-V in C, then repeat part of the opening motif

Em7 | A7 | D7 | Dm7 A7 | Then repeat the D ii-V then secondary dominants Pete's talking about

Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 F7 | E7 Am7 | C ii-V-I, A minor-ish ii-V-i-ish thing using tritone sub F for the B

Dm7 | G7 | C6 | Dm7 G7 | More ii-V-I and ii-V's in C

So big picture flow of key centers is start in C, go up to E, slowly walk down back to D then C, drop down to A minor for a bar and a half, then back up to C.

I'd approach with an idea in C then do variations of that idea in E and D, emphasizing that you're walking it back down to C.

This is great, thanks!

 

[soybean]

I use these changes:

Cma7 ///, B7flat9 ///, Cma7 ///, B7flat9 ///
Dm11 ///, A7#5 ///, Em7flat5 ///, A7flat5 ///

Dm ///, G7 ///, Cma7 ///, B7flat9 #5 ///
Em ///, A7 ///, D13/, D7flat9 #5/, Dm9/, G9#5/
(repeat)

2nd ending:
Dm ///, G13 ///, C /, F7 /, E7 /, Am /,
Dm7 ///, G11 /, G13 flat9 /, C ///, Dm7 /, G7 /


These are transposed for Bb instruments. The song is in Bb I believe.

 

[jazzman1945]

Perhaps the most problematic move for you is Cmaj7- F# m7b5 -Cmaj7. You should consider F#m7b5 as a distorted F maj7, that is, there are all pitches of C major with F # instead of F. You can name the scale as C Lydian or F # Locrian - it makes no difference. You can use several pentatonic chords on both chords: ACDEG, CDEGA, EGABD, as well as for F # m7b5 : F#GACD, F#ABCE, ACDEF#.

 

[Reet McVouty]

Hi,
I'm getting stuck improvising on Chet Baker's Let's get lost. Strange, but beautiful chord changes. Using concert C major. Of course you can play around the melody, but that would be too easy to approach

The problem with your query is not your approach to the changes. It's your dismissal of the melody. Along with the lyrics it's the most important part of the tune. Knowing the changes is great but without the melodic content it's just another arpeggio exercise. I would suggest learning the melody and lyrics and then run your changes with that content in mind.