Overview
The history and evolution of jazz—and the world inhabited by its innovators and practitioners—continues to provide a remarkable lens through which to view the larger American cultural landscape. The early 1950s United States was still a racially segregated society, especially in the South. And while the "color line" in jazz had been crossed more than a decade earlier, the terms of such interactions continued to be dictated by the dominant white culture.
In this section we will see how hard bop represents the maturation of bebop—its evolution, and how Charlie Bird and Dizzy Gillespie threw the doors open (or "blown" them open), ushering in not just a new style, but a new era—the modern jazz era.
Racial dynamics were also at play at the advent of hard bop. It's worth noting that many of the innovators of cool jazz were white, with the notable exception of Miles Davis and John Lewis. We will explore how emerging hard bop styles were motivated in part by black jazz musicians' desire to reclaim jazz as their own music.
Objectives
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to do the following:
- Identify musicians who created jazz that came to be known as hard bop
- Identify similarities and differences between bop and hard bop
Miles Davis Mid-50s Quintet
In 1956, Miles Davis put together a quintet with tenor saxophonist John Coltrane joining him on the front line. Pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer "Philly" Joe Jones comprised the rhythm section. In quick succession, the quintet recorded four albums: Cookin' ♫, Relaxin' ♫, Workin' ♫, and Steamin'. The contrast in styles between Davis and Coltrane was part of the group's successful chemistry. Davis' understated, laid-back approach was set in sharp relief by 'Trane's energetic, restless, emerging virtuosity.
Let's listen to the Miles Davis' mid-50s quintet's final session, a performance of the Thelonious Monk tune Well You Needn't ♫, recorded on October 26, 1956. The piece is an uptempo 32-bar song form (AABA) with a characteristically quirky Monk melody. Miles and Trane make things sound all the more bustling in the final A section by playing the melody out of synchrony with each other, rather than staying together in unison (0:25-0:32). The effect seems entirely appropriate for a cover of one of Monk's signature tunes. After the head, Miles solos for three choruses (0:33-2:11) with an assured manner that projects confidence in this bop-inspired idiom. He's not trying to sound like Dizzy — he knows he can't. More to the point, though, he's not Dizzy — he's Miles — and some time after his early forays into bop, he has found his voice.
John Coltrane solos over the next two choruses (2:13-3:17), and we hear some characteristic mannerisms (mostly related to vocal inflections) and promising hints of the extraordinary virtuosity that will come to the fore over the next several years. Pianist Red Garland offers up a choice solo over two choruses (3:18-4:18). Then the band jumps in for the A section of the next chorus (4:18-4:27), followed by a rare arco (bowed) solo from bassist Paul Chambers (4:27-5:22). Davis' First Great Quintet is quintessential hard bop.
Cannonball Adderley studied at the U.S. Navy School of Music, and led two army bands before moving to New York City.
