Book's Bok – Bertha Hope
Book's Bok shows off Bertha Hope's vivid imagination as a composer. A separate bass part is available, as is a solo piano arrangement with an exclusive MP3 track.
- Recording: Bertha Hope - Nothin' But Love
- Recorded on: October 14, 1999
- Label: Reservoir (161)
- Concert Key: C minor
- Style: Swing (medium)
- Piano - Bertha Hope
- Bass - Walter Booker
- Drums - Jimmy Cobb
Video
- At the jazzleadsheets.com studio, Book's Bok is interpreted by Eric Borczuk, clarinet; Sam Glick, guitar; Ben Caine, piano; Greg Momjian, bass; Cam Johnson. May 3, 2015.
Our audio excerpt starts at the melody, but the complete recording sets up the melody with a repeating tutti bass/piano line. The melody is a repeating 16-measure AB form; the last measure of the intro vamp reappears as the last measure of B. Solos are on a 4-measure vamp; the last 4 measures of the head are used as a cue for the out head. The coda tags the end of the head 4 times, leaving space for drum fills in between the melody phrases.
A Bass part is available, in addition to lead sheets for every instrument.
A Bass part is available, in addition to lead sheets for every instrument.
Bertha titled this composition for her second husband, bassist Walter Booker. A lifelong musician and passionate teacher, Booker abandoned a career in medicine for music, but not before he absorbed anatomy. Using that knowledge, Booker liked to sculpt in wood and stone, signing his pieces "Bok."
This is another composition from Bertha Hope's fourth album as a leader, "Nothin' But Love". Check out Bertha's Gone To See T, also on this album.
This is another composition from Bertha Hope's fourth album as a leader, "Nothin' But Love". Check out Bertha's Gone To See T, also on this album.
Bass part: A separate bass part is available.
From an inexperienced bassist's viewpint:
Bertha Hope's composition Book's Bok ranks a 3.5 out of 10 for difficulty and is a really fun way to explore different techniques all bassists strive to perfect: locking into a solid groove with the drums, switching in between 2-feel and 4-feel, and keeping the pulse in a syncopated piece.
The anticipated downbeat Hope uses gives the piece its funky syncopation. Locking into a solid groove with the drummer on this piece is extremely fun since together you two can play off of the syncopation and really create a nice dialogue. None of the fingerings or rhythms are too tricky so a bassist at any level can do a lot with this piece.
The four-chord progression for the solo section is surprising but fits really well into the landscape of the piece, leaving you space to really lay down a groove, and is a great place to practice alternating between a 2-feel and 4-feel. Use this section to practice your communication skills within the rhythm section and the group as a whole when you practice this piece with others. Make eye contact with your drummer to make sure you two are on the same page about when to go to a 2-feel and when to switch to a 4-feel for each different solo.
From an inexperienced bassist's viewpint:
Bertha Hope's composition Book's Bok ranks a 3.5 out of 10 for difficulty and is a really fun way to explore different techniques all bassists strive to perfect: locking into a solid groove with the drums, switching in between 2-feel and 4-feel, and keeping the pulse in a syncopated piece.
The anticipated downbeat Hope uses gives the piece its funky syncopation. Locking into a solid groove with the drummer on this piece is extremely fun since together you two can play off of the syncopation and really create a nice dialogue. None of the fingerings or rhythms are too tricky so a bassist at any level can do a lot with this piece.
The four-chord progression for the solo section is surprising but fits really well into the landscape of the piece, leaving you space to really lay down a groove, and is a great place to practice alternating between a 2-feel and 4-feel. Use this section to practice your communication skills within the rhythm section and the group as a whole when you practice this piece with others. Make eye contact with your drummer to make sure you two are on the same page about when to go to a 2-feel and when to switch to a 4-feel for each different solo.
- Recording: Glenn Zaleski - Glenn Zaleski Plays Bertha Hope's Solo Piano Arrangements
- Recorded on: December 1, 2012
- Label: jazzleadsheets.com (JLS 1054)
- Concert Key: C minor
- Style: Swing (medium)
- Piano - Glenn Zaleski
In Bertha Hope's solo piano arrangement (recorded by Glenn Zaleski), the head is essentially the same as she plays it on her recording, but the intro is different. Click on Piano Corner for details.
Check out other songs from this project, as well as "Glenn Zaleski At Van Gelder's: Solo Piano"—Glenn's own personal interpretations of some of Bertha Hope's songs, from the same session.
This solo piano arrangement has the same voicings for the head as Bertha Hope plays on her trio recording. However, the intro is a bit different. It still repeats a four-measure phrase (twice instead of four times); the first two measures are the same as the original version, but the third and fourth measures are now the same as the third and fourth measures of the A section. The head has a rest in the fourth measure of B, filled in by the drums in the trio version; in this solo arrangement, the left hand plays a fill here. Another measure of rest, the seventh measure of B, is left open here the first time through the head. Instead of the coda, on the repeat of the head the final melody phrase is played a measure early.
Bertha Hope
born on November 8, 1936
A dynamic force in improvised music, pianist Bertha Hope has been making headway in the jazz scene since the early 1960s. Raised in Los Angeles, Bertha attended Manual Arts High School. She began her jazz journey with pianists Elmo Hope and Richie Powell in her youth. Although she studied piano at Los Angeles Community College, she received her B.A. in early childhood education from Antioch College. She married Elmo in 1960; they moved to New York where Bertha worked as a telephone operator by day and performed at night. Read more...