Mapenzi – Harold Land
One of Harold Land's most important, intriguing and challenging masterpieces. The four recordings, all with Harold playing, show slightly different approaches to this song's irregular form. Also check out our rhythm section set up edition, showing how the rhythm section on each recording plays the eight measures before the melody to set up the tempo after the rubato intro.
- Recording: Harold Land - Mapenzi
- Recorded on: April 14, 1977
- Label: Concord (CJ 44)
- Concert Key: No key center
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (uptempo)
- Trumpet - Blue Mitchell
- Tenor Sax - Harold Land
- Piano - Kirk Lightsey
- Bass - Reggie Johnson
- Drums - Albert "Tootie" Heath
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
This driving uptempo song is an exciting workout from the latter part of Harold Land's career. The form, though a short 24 measures long, is quite irregular: an 11-measure A section, divided into 3-, 4-, and 4-measure phrases, is followed by an 8-measure B section and 5-measure C section. The melody is angular but not particularly convoluted except at the end of the A and C sections. A Latin groove is played on the B section. The changes contain a lot of stepwise motion, with no II-V7-based progressions. Starting in the fourth measure, two measures of Fm7/B♭ are followed by two of A♭m7/D♭; this minor 3rd motion is mirrored in the B section, which has four measures each of Fm7/B♭ and Dm7/G. The last four measures of the A section contain descending minor 7th chords in whole steps, while the C section also descends stepwise but mostly with dominant chords.
There is an intro that begins rubato, based on the first four chords of the head. It's played twice, featuring a different soloist each time; on this recording Harold Land begins, and trumpeter Blue Mitchell plays on the repeat. Each soloist begins with the first five notes of the melody, with the fifth cueing the second chord, and fills in on each chord after that. The third and fourth chords are cued with the equivalent melody note from the head. The tempo is then established with an eight-measure rhythm section vamp going into the head; this is where our audio excerpts start for all four recordings. A "rhythm section set up" edition is available showing how the rhythm sections on the four Harold Land recordings play this set up. Click on Inside and Beyond for more details.
In all versions, the head is played twice in and once out; the coda holds out the first chord of the head (Em7), over which the first melody phrase is again played rubato (with each note directed) and ending on the second chord of the head (E♭maj7♯5).
On this recording, the horns are harmonized in fourths on the B section and first three measures of C; they are in octaves elsewhere. The last note of the coda is harmonized as a 6th. This is the quintet arrangement for which we have a condensed score and 2nd horn parts.
We have a piano part which comes from Harold's original manuscript. It includes the melody in the right hand for the A section, with two-handed voicings at B and C. On the Timeless All-Stars recording (click on the second album cover), Cedar Walton plays the piano part as written, doubling the melody with the horns at A. Bassists and drummers can read either the C lead sheet or Concert Condensed Score.
There is an intro that begins rubato, based on the first four chords of the head. It's played twice, featuring a different soloist each time; on this recording Harold Land begins, and trumpeter Blue Mitchell plays on the repeat. Each soloist begins with the first five notes of the melody, with the fifth cueing the second chord, and fills in on each chord after that. The third and fourth chords are cued with the equivalent melody note from the head. The tempo is then established with an eight-measure rhythm section vamp going into the head; this is where our audio excerpts start for all four recordings. A "rhythm section set up" edition is available showing how the rhythm sections on the four Harold Land recordings play this set up. Click on Inside and Beyond for more details.
In all versions, the head is played twice in and once out; the coda holds out the first chord of the head (Em7), over which the first melody phrase is again played rubato (with each note directed) and ending on the second chord of the head (E♭maj7♯5).
On this recording, the horns are harmonized in fourths on the B section and first three measures of C; they are in octaves elsewhere. The last note of the coda is harmonized as a 6th. This is the quintet arrangement for which we have a condensed score and 2nd horn parts.
We have a piano part which comes from Harold's original manuscript. It includes the melody in the right hand for the A section, with two-handed voicings at B and C. On the Timeless All-Stars recording (click on the second album cover), Cedar Walton plays the piano part as written, doubling the melody with the horns at A. Bassists and drummers can read either the C lead sheet or Concert Condensed Score.
The title of this song is a plural of the Swahili word for "love," though on the Timeless All-stars recording it is announced as meaning "brotherhood." Harold Land and Blue Mitchell played together quite a lot in the '70s. In 1977, besides "Mapenzi," Blue and Harold recorded together on two of Blue's albums, "African Violet" and "Summer Soft," and Jimmy Smith's live album "It's Necessary." "Mapenzi" was Harold's only recording with Kirk Lightsey. Harold and Tootie Heath only recorded together on one other album, Art Farmer's 1996 "Live at Stanford Jazz Workshop." Bassist Reggie Johnson had played with Harold in Bobby Hutcherson's quintet in the late '60s.
Don Sickler: If you want to start your performance of Mapenzi with Harold's rubato introduction, the rhythm section will have to figure out how they are going to play the last eight measures of the intro, which sets the tempo for the start of of melody. Our Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition lets you compare in detail how the rhythm section on each recording addressed this situation. I had the honor of getting to perform this composition with Harold on several occasions. After the opening cadenza-like section, Harold's goal was for a seamless transition of the rhythm section into time, with the piano having the main role of locking in the time feel with the rest of the rhythm section.
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7♭5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version.
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7♭5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version.
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- Recording: Timeless All Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall
- Recorded on: April 5, 1982
- Label: WDR/Jazzline (N77063)
- Concert Key: No key center
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (uptempo)
- Trombone - Curtis Fuller
- Tenor Sax - Harold Land
- Vibes - Bobby Hutcherson
- Piano - Cedar Walton
- Bass - Buster Williams
- Drums - Billy Higgins
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
The intro of this live version starts in the same way as the original recording, with Harold blowing over the rubato chords, followed by Bobby Hutcherson on vibes. The drums and piano set up the tempo together; click on the Inside and Beyond tab for more details on the rhythm section setup. This recording has a different horn arrangement from the original version. Notably, the melody notes on the B section (starting on concert F) are not played: the tenor sax has the same harmony part from the original recording, which starts on a C, and the trombone adding a part a further fourth below that. The piano and vibes double some of the melody; Cedar Walton is playing the piano part (from Harold's manuscript) essentially as written. Simple horn backgrounds are played on the B and C sections in the vibes and piano solos.
Cedar Walton, Buster Williams, and Billy Higgins do an excellent job of making the irregular form very clear in the solos. At this fast tempo, the odd phrase lengths can be very challenging for a soloist. Cedar and Billy often emphasize whole notes or half notes in the descending sequences of the form: the last four measures of the A section, and the C section. In particular, they typically play quarter notes in the last measure of the form. Bobby Hutcherson frequently plays a simple variation of the melody on the fourth and fifth measures of the solo chorus, sometimes joined by Cedar.
This recording has an unusual structure of trading with the drums. The first soloist plays the A section, drums take B, and then the next soloist starts at C and continues through the A section of the next chorus. On the last trading chorus, Billy Higgins completes the chorus and then continues soloing.
Cedar Walton, Buster Williams, and Billy Higgins do an excellent job of making the irregular form very clear in the solos. At this fast tempo, the odd phrase lengths can be very challenging for a soloist. Cedar and Billy often emphasize whole notes or half notes in the descending sequences of the form: the last four measures of the A section, and the C section. In particular, they typically play quarter notes in the last measure of the form. Bobby Hutcherson frequently plays a simple variation of the melody on the fourth and fifth measures of the solo chorus, sometimes joined by Cedar.
This recording has an unusual structure of trading with the drums. The first soloist plays the A section, drums take B, and then the next soloist starts at C and continues through the A section of the next chorus. On the last trading chorus, Billy Higgins completes the chorus and then continues soloing.
This live recording is the first of five Timeless All-Stars albums. The same lineup stayed together through the '80s. The last album, 1990's "Time For The Timeless All-Stars," has Steve Turre on trombone instead of Curtis Fuller. Fuller and Harold Land never recorded together outside this band.
Don Sickler: If you want to start your performance of Mapenzi with Harold's rubato introduction, the rhythm section will have to figure out how they are going to play the last eight measures of the intro, which sets the tempo for the start of of melody. Our Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition lets you compare in detail how the rhythm section on each recording addressed this situation. I had the honor of getting to perform this composition with Harold on several occasions. After the opening cadenza-like section, Harold's goal was for a seamless transition of the rhythm section into time, with the piano having the main role of locking in the time feel with the rest of the rhythm section.
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7?5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7?5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version
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- Recording: Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone
- Recorded on: July 10-11, 1982
- Label: Theresa (TR 124)
- Concert Key: No key center
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (uptempo)
- Trumpet - Oscar Brashear
- Tenor Sax - Harold Land
- Vibes - Bobby Hutcherson
- Piano - Cedar Walton
- Bass - Buster Williams
- Drums - Billy Higgins
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
Another live recording, similar to the Timeless All-Stars version and with almost the same lineup—but with trumpet instead of trombone. The horn arrangement is back to the same as the original version, with vibes added on the A section melody. The intro again features tenor and vibes. This time the drums start the rhythm section setup; click on the Inside and Beyond tab for more details.
The rhythm section again makes the solo form very obvious, but there are no horn backgrounds. The trading has the same format as the Timeless All-Stars recording, but gets a little confused: Harold doesn't come in on the C section of the first chorus (the rhythm section starts comping here), and enters at the beginning of the next chorus. Billy takes both the B and C sections of Harold's chorus, but sets up the following chorus very well for trumpeter Oscar Brashear to come in at the top.
The rhythm section again makes the solo form very obvious, but there are no horn backgrounds. The trading has the same format as the Timeless All-Stars recording, but gets a little confused: Harold doesn't come in on the C section of the first chorus (the rhythm section starts comping here), and enters at the beginning of the next chorus. Billy takes both the B and C sections of Harold's chorus, but sets up the following chorus very well for trumpeter Oscar Brashear to come in at the top.
Oscar Brashear played a lot with Harold Land, on this album as well as on two of Harold's albums, "Damisi" (1972) and "Xocia's Dance" (1981). The two also recorded together with Bobby Hutcherson, Gerald Wilson's big band, and Buddy Montgomery . The last recording Harold made with Oscar was a 1993 album led by Billy Higgins simply titled "Billy Higgins Quintet," with Cedar Walton and David Williams.
Don Sickler: If you want to start your performance of Mapenzi with Harold's rubato introduction, the rhythm section will have to figure out how they are going to play the last eight measures of the intro, which sets the tempo for the start of of melody. Our Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition lets you compare in detail how the rhythm section on each recording addressed this situation. I had the honor of getting to perform this composition with Harold on several occasions. After the opening cadenza-like section, Harold's goal was for a seamless transition of the rhythm section into time, with the piano having the main role of locking in the time feel with the rest of the rhythm section.
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7?5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version.
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7?5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version.
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- Recording: Harold Land - Promised Land
- Recorded on: August 6, 2000
- Label: Audiophoric (APCDJ2-0001)
- Concert Key: No key center
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (uptempo)
- Tenor Sax - Harold Land
- Piano - Mulgrew Miller
- Bass - Ray Drummond
- Drums - Billy Higgins
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
This quartet version lacks the rubato part of the intro, beginning in time with the eight-measure rhythm section setup. Click on the Inside and Beyond tab for more details. The trading is also different from the other versions. The A section of the trading chorus is split up with seven measures of tenor and four measures of piano; the drums take B, and the piano returns for C. After three of these choruses, the drums continue soloing. The coda is also different: each chord of the melody is harmonized, with different piano voicings for A7 on the four quarter notes.
"Promised Land" was Harold's last recording. 2000 was a busy year for Mulgrew Miller; he recorded with Brian Lynch, Gary Burton, Niels Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Steve Turre and several others, and also made a solo piano album in October of that year.
Don Sickler: If you want to start your performance of Mapenzi with Harold's rubato introduction, the rhythm section will have to figure out how they are going to play the last eight measures of the intro, which sets the tempo for the start of of melody. Our Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition lets you compare in detail how the rhythm section on each recording addressed this situation. I had the honor of getting to perform this composition with Harold on several occasions. After the opening cadenza-like section, Harold's goal was for a seamless transition of the rhythm section into time, with the piano having the main role of locking in the time feel with the rest of the rhythm section.
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7?5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version.
The first three recordings of Mapenzi begin with a rubato section: Harold Land plays the first melody phrase and improvises over three more held-out chords, and another soloist does the same. Then the rhythm section takes over for eight measures—setting the tempo. As heard in the first recording, the piano has the responsibility of establishing and cementing the new tempo. In some of the other recordings the drums also set it up. Our audio excerpts for each recording start with these eight measures. The whole-tone scale used for this set up comes from the last two measures of the melody, which is over F7?5. Our lead sheets and parts indicate "F whole tone" here, though on these recordings the bass pedals on different notes from the same scale: B or G (except for the first recording where the bass plays E).
CLIP Rhythm Section uptempo set up edition: This separate sheet shows the eight measures before the head as played in each of the four recordings. These single staff transcriptions include the piano melody with bass, drums, and/or piano left-hand rhythms below the staff. The piano melody on the set ups is similar on the four recordings but each one is slightly different.
Harold Land/Blue Mitchell - Mapenzi: pianist Kirk Lightsey really sets the tempo by himself. He plays mostly half notes at the beginning; other pianists accent the "and" of beat 2 in the second measure. Drummer Tootie Heath comes in gradually, first with light cymbals and hi-hat and starting time at the fifth measure. Bassist Reggie Johnson starts in the third measure with double whole notes on low E.
Timeless All-Stars - At Onkel Po's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1982: in this version, drummer Billy Higgins sets up tempo with two measures of time (not shown) before the piano and bass come in. Pianist Cedar Walton comes in right on the downbeat, and bassist Buster Williams pedals B on beats 2 and 4. On this and the next recording, the rhythm section plays the set up again to go to the out melody after the drum solo.
Bobby Hutcherson - Farewell Keystone: Billy Higgins starts on the downbeat and Cedar Walton comes in on beat 3. There is no bass in this setup; Cedar pedals B in the left hand on 2 and 4, starting on beat 4 of the second measure. His phrasing is different from the Timeless All-Stars version: the "and" of 2 in the second measure is tied over here, rather than short as in the earlier recording.
Harold Land - Promised Land: there is no rubato section at the beginning here. The rhythm section starts right on it with the set up, all together. Bassist Ray Drummond pedals on G, with a rhythm that goes with the piano melody. Mulgrew Miller plays this melody in three-note triad voicings, rather than two notes in thirds as Kirk Lightsey and Cedar Walton do. Mulgrew's phrasing is similar to Cedar's in the Timeless All-Stars version.
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Harold Land
February 18, 1928 – July 27, 2001
Many people only know of Harold Land as the great tenor saxophone soloist who made the classic quintet recordings with the Clifford Brown - Max Roach Quintet: Joy Spring, Daahoud, The Blues Walk and other classics—many of which are available from jazzleadsheets.com. Harold is far more than just a great tenor saxophonist sideman. Read more...
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