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“I looked at the
notes of the chords as I played
the progression and noticed they
formed a melody ... [with a] Latin,
even oriental feeling.” |
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- Dizzy
Gillespie
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Dizzy
Gillespie wrote “Night in Tunisia”
in 1942 while he, alongside Charlie
Parker, was a member of the Earl
Hines Band. Shortly thereafter,
Gillespie, Parker,
Sarah Vaughan, and Billy Eckstine
left Hines to form what came to
be known as the first “bebop big
band” under the leadership of Eckstine.
It was
Sarah Vaughan who introduced
“Interlude” as it was called before
being renamed “Night in Tunisia.”
With Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie
as sidemen, Vaughan made that first
recording on December 31, 1944,
for the Continental label.
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According to Dizzy Gillespie’s
To Be or Not to Bop: Memoirs of
Dizzy Gillespie, he was
sitting at the piano playing chord
progressions when he noticed the
notes of the chords formed a melody
with a Latin/oriental feel. Adding
a bebop-style rhythm to the melody,
Gillespie came up with “Night in
Tunisia.” When played, this “mixture
introduced a special kind of syncopation
in the bass line,” a jazz pioneering
step away from the traditional regular
4-beat bass. During the videotaped
concert performance, “A Night in
Tunisia,” Gillespie discusses how
he composed this “anthem to bebop,”
introducing Afro-Cuban rhythms to
mainstream American jazz. He does
concede, however, that “Manteca”
was the “definitive breakaway from
the old beat.”
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The publication credits list
John Gillespie and Frank Paparelli
on the instrumental version and
add Jon Hendricks on the version
with lyrics. Although Frank Paparelli
is given credit for the composition
in both cases, Gillespie claims
that his contribution was transcribing
the piece for publication.
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While Jon Hendricks had originally
written lyrics for the tune in 1942,
some forty years later he would
revisit the song. Using both lyrics
and vocals he was able to reproduce
the sound and feel of the original
instrumentation and this vocalese
version of the song, retitled “Another
Night in Tunisia,” won a Grammy
award for “Best Vocal Arrangements
for Voices.” Jon Hendricks would
also write all of the lyrics to
the 1985 Manhattan Transfer album
Vocalese, which received
12 Grammy nominations.
Although the song is sometimes
titled “A Night in Tunisia” the
proper title is “Night in Tunisia.”
The song appears as the title track
of 30 CD’s and is included in over
500 currently available CD’s. And
in January of 2004, The Recording
Academy added the Dizzy Gillespie
& His Sextet's 1946 Victor recording
of “Night in Tunisia” to its Grammy
Hall of Fame.
The similarly titled “Tunisian
Fantasy” was produced by Lalo Schifrin,
pianist and arranger for the Dizzy
Gillespie Band from 1960 to 1962.
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Musical analysis of
“Night in Tunisia”
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| Original
Key |
D minor |
| Form |
A1 – A1 –
B – A2 with 16 measure tag |
| Tonality |
Minor throughout |
| Movement |
A short,
sharp arpeggiated figure moves upward, followed
by another leap upward. It descends by a
leap before bouncing back up a step. “B”
descends with a skip and three steps before
leaping back up. Generally, the melodic
contour is very jagged and restless. |
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Comments
(assumed
background)
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Melodically, this is a challenging piece.
Most of the melody notes fall on color tones
and chord extensions, and the tune moves
very quickly using exotic intervals in both
directions. Harmonically, the piece is less
complex. “A” is simply V7 – i – V7 – i,
with an altered Neopolitan chord being used
as a tri-tone substitution for V7 most of
the time. The chord progression of “B” is
a standard one as well: a cycle-of-fifths
variation alternates minor and major 7th
chords starting on v7(b5) (functioning as
a ii chord of III) and descends to III before
dropping a half-step to the ii7(b5) of i.
This is identical to the harmonic progression
of the “B” section of “Alone
Together” (in the original key, Am7
– D7(b9) – Gm – Gm7(b5) – C7(b9) – F). |
K. J. McElrath - Musicologist for JazzStandards.com
Check out K. J. McElrath's book of Jazz Standards Guide Tone Lines at his web site (www.bardicle.com). |
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“Night in Tunisia”
was included in these films:
- Dizzy Gillespie: A Night in Tunisia
(1990)
- Dizzy Gillespie - A Night in Chicago
(1993)
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Click on a CD for more details
at Amazon.com
The Quintet
Jazz at Massey Hall
1991, Original Jazz Classics 44
Original recording, 1953
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| Bassist Charlie Mingus recorded
this incredible concert in Toronto, featuring
Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Bud Powell,
and Max Roach. Each of the players is at
the height of his game, and the power of
each and rapport of all are palpable on
this track. |
Dexter Gordon
Our Man in Paris
2003, Blue Note
Original recording, 1963
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| Bebop saxophonist Gordon pulls out
all the stops on this track. His solo on
“Night in Tunisia” is considered one of
his finest performances ever recorded. |
Bud Powell
The Amazing Bud Powell Vol. 1
2001, Blue Note
Original recordings, 1949 and 1951
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| This later reissue includes “Night
in Tunisia” and an alternate take which
were not on the 1989 CD release. The early
and influential bop pianist covers his own
compositions and a few standards in trio
and quintet settings. |
Gonzalo Rubalcaba Trio
Diz
1995, Blue Note 30490
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| On this tribute album the Cuban
pianist leads the song even farther into
Latin territory. Rubalcaba’s improvisation
and dexterity take the song to loftier heights. |
Ella Fitzgerald
Clap Hands Here Comes Charlie!
1989, Verve 835646
Original recording, 1961
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| Fitzgerald swings with an uncharacteristically
small group. On such a song as “Night in
Tunisia” this intimacy leads to intensity. |
Lambert, Hendricks & Ross
The Hottest New Group in Jazz
1996, Sony 64933
Original recording, 1961
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| LH&R recorded two versions of “Night
in Tunisia” with Hendricks’ lyrics in March,
1962. Ross sang lead on the first version
which was later released as an additional
track. The alternate take with Hendricks
singing lead is previously unreleased. |
Giacomo Gates
Fly Rite
1998, Sharp Nine Records 1011
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| Gates is in the tradition of vocalese
master Eddie Jefferson who wrote these lyrics
to “Night in Tunisia.” |
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Dizzy Gillespie’s first two recordings of this
number are a contrast; the first, in December, 1944,
featured vocalist Sarah Vaughan and the second,
a month later, was with Boyd Raeburn’s Orchestra.
Raeburn hired Gillespie as a special guest for
an appearance at New York’s Apollo Theater and the
following day recorded Dizzy playing his arrangement
of “Night in Tunisia.” The Raeburn band, considered
to be ahead of its time, was filled with talented
players including tenor saxophonist Al Cohn, bassist
Oscar Pettiford, baritone saxophonist Serge Chaloff
and drummer Shelly Manne.
A year later, Gillespie recorded the tune again
with his small band including tenor saxophonist
Don Byas and vibist Milt Jackson (who later became
an integral part of the Modern Jazz Quartet).
Chris Tyle - Jazz Musician and Historian
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| This section shows the jazz standards
written by the same writing team. Click on a name
to see all of a writer's jazz standards.
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Additional information on “Night in Tunisia” may be found in:
1 paragraph including the following types of information: music analysis and jazz solo transcription.
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