[Thundermonkey]

My combo has trouble choosing great songs to play at our concerts. What songs do you all enjoy playing that can be done in a small-ensemble setting?

Thanks!

 

[Pete Thomas]

Somewhere Over The Rainbow

 

[Dave Dolson]

Wow, what an open-ended question!! Rock, CW, bebop, swing, trad, religious, . . . .? DAVE

 

[Thundermonkey]

Wow, what an open-ended question!! Rock, CW, bebop, swing, trad, religious, . . . .? DAVE

Sorry, I should have specified. Its a jazz combo. ^^"

 

[RS]

Songs (vocals) or tunes (instrumentals)?

 

[BrianMitchellBrody]

Your members should take the plunge and buy all of the Real Books. There is enough music in those 3 volumes for years of work.

B

 

[Dave Dolson]

Jazz combo? That doesn't narrow it down too much. I play in a jazz combo but we play very little that was written (or maybe recorded is a better source for us) from after say 1931. Today we played among many tunes, NAGASAKI, THEM THERE EYES, and EAST COAST TROT. Do you know those tunes? DAVE

 

[Thundermonkey]

Songs (vocals) or tunes (instrumentals)?

Tunes/Instrumental.

 

[JL]

My combo has trouble choosing great songs to play at our concerts. What songs do you all enjoy playing that can be done in a small-ensemble setting?

Now you've qualified it a bit by stating jazz instrumentals, but we still need more info to narrow it down a bit. You mention "our concerts." What sort of venues are those concerts in? What type of jazz (which musicians, etc) do you like, have listened to, and want to play???

 

[rleitch]

Right now I'm working on "Five Spot After Dark" by Curtis Fuller. IMO, it's a super cool Bminor blues. I like it is that the head has three really cool phrases over a really cool walking rhythm, and then it goes into a nice swinging solo section that is fun and easy to solo over (albeit in C# on tenor). I also really love the little shots the horn players play over the last chorus of the bass solo. The band I play with is a more traditional blues/rock band, but I think this one will work out okay.

FWIW: I also like the fact that Benny Golson's solo on this one is not so freaking amazing that I can't even imagine playing the song!

I'm not sure if there are vocals for it...but it does seem to want to segue into Moondance

 

[Admark]

Play stuff you like. If you don't know what you like, listen to more jazz.

 

[guido]

Songs you love, that you play well and that work well together to establish the mood and flow you want your set to have.

 

[Brecker Fan]

Killer Joe by Quincy Jones is a good small ensemble chart.