DB Hall of Fame

SOLO  FLIGHT

THE  CHARLIE  CHRISTIAN  WEB  SITE

DB Hall of Fame


 


ON THE ALAMO


mx  CO 29513-1


JANUARY  15,  1941 Wednesday COLUMBIA STUDIOS,  NYC




32  BARS    (ABAC) Key of Eb Quarter Note = 82 Time: 3:27



2 ˝  CHORUSES:


  4  bars  –  piano (Intro)


32  bars  –  clarinet (Melody) [ABAC]


16  bars  –  trumpet [AB]

16  bars  –  tenor sax [AC]


»   8  bars  –  CC [A]

  8  bars  –  clarinet (Melody) [C]




Personnel: Issued Recordings:


Benny Goodman & his Sextet [ 78 ] Columbia 35938

CHARLIE CHRISTIAN.....Guitar Columbia 37513

GEORGIE AULD................tenor sax V Disc 55 B

BENNY GOODMAN.........clarinet

COOTIE WILLIAMS.........trumpet [ EP ] Columbia B-350

COUNT BASIE...................piano

ARTIE BERNSTEIN...........bass [ LP ] CBS 2BP 220094

JO JONES............................drums CBS 62.581

CBS 67233

CBS / Sony 56AP 674-6

CBS / Sony SOPM 162

Columbia 33SX 1035

Columbia CG 30779

Columbia CL 500

Columbia G 30779

Columbia GL 500

I Grandi del Jazz GdJ-48

Philips BBL 7178


[ CD ] ASV AJA 5144

Avid AVC 542

CBS 465679 2

Classics 1202

Columbia/Legacy AC4K 65564 (disc 3, track 4)

Columbia/Legacy C4K 65564 (disc 3, track 4)

Columbia CK 45144

Definitive DRCD11176

Giants of Jazz 53039

History 20.1960-HI

History 20.1975-HI

Jazz Archives / EPM 15908 2

Jazzterdays JTD 102410

Masters of Jazz MJCD 68

Past Perfect PPCD 78129

Proper PROPERBOX 98

Topaz Jazz / Pavilion TPZ 1017

Universe UV 129/2



Composed by: Isham Jones - Gus Kahn

© VALDÉS 10/28/01

 


 

Transcription Page:     On the Alamo

 


 

C&A:

On the Alamo doesn’t receive nearly as much attention as it should.  Possibly because it was one of the slowest tunes played by the sextet, recorded only once on one take, and almost half of it is fairly straight melody.  It was also recorded during the same studio session as the multiple takes of up-tempo tunes Breakfast Feud, I Found a New Baby, and Gone with What Draft (Alamo’s 78-rpm flipside companion).  It is beautifully played by all.

Charlie Christian’s eight-bar solo is a gem.  Everything fits together perfectly.  The four notes he plays on the pickup bar and bar three are identical and go with both the Eb and F7 harmony and are used for the same purpose.  Then you have two phrases that ascend in triplets and descend with quarter notes; two cascading triplets and a leap up to a single note and the phrase is resolved with a couple of notes in the next beat.  The solo is then resolved with two similar, and unexpected, two-note phrases that also relate to the first measure.

So simple and sensible and lovely.

 


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