Tadd Dameron - The Scene is Clean
Tadd Dameron is one of my favorite Jazz composers and, as the author of many “standard” (commonly performed and recorded) tunes, is certainly one of the most influential figures of the Bop era. However, his album Fontainbleau remains relatively obscure and, while beautifully and originally made, contains no standards. I love the compositions on this album and the singular sound and atmosphere it captures, and I feel that it draws heavily on 20th century European classical music elements, infusing modern Jazz with new colors and stretching its boundaries. It is unusual for a Jazz album from the early fifties to have more through-composed music than individual solos, and to use five different horns: baritone, alto and tenor saxophone, trombone and trumpet. The result is a modern small “big band” playing soulful and lyrical romantic music with a driving African rhythm and spontaneous improvised solos. Have a listen:
The tune and arrangement that I felt like transcribing is called “The Scene is Clean”, which has some of the most unusual chords and voice-leading I have ever heard on a Jazz tune. On paper, it shouldn’t work: the dissonance seems too great at some points, the note combinations too weird. But it does! The more I played it and explored the original recording, the more I realized how daringly bold the harmony and writing are on this record - an instructive invitation to express yourself freely and try out unusual things. I was debating with myself whether or not I should present such an avant-garde and experimental transcription when the words of Dameron’s contemporary, the genius Jazz composer Thelonious Monk, came to my mind and made my decision clear: “The piano ain't got no wrong notes.”