Mystery Of Ebop – Robert Watson

This song presents an unusual ensemble challenge: the tempo changes no fewer than five times within the head. All but one of these changes of tempo are set up by the drums. The song begins with a two-measure phrase at a very fast clip, ending in a fermata where the melody instrument and drums improvise freely together. The drums then continue soloing for two measures at half the tempo of the first phrase, setting up a second melody phrase based on the first at this new slower tempo. Again, this ends in a fermata with soloist and drums improvising out of time. Then there’s another two-measure drum setup, this time for a medium-up Latin groove. The next eight measures are in this tempo and feel, followed by a sudden return to the fast opening tempo for a repeat of the first 16 measures with the same tempo changes (with the melody slightly different). This time, the tempo stays the same for a 12-measure bridge, though the bass and drums play double-time feel in the third and fourth measures of this section! The last section of the head is a variation of the eight-measure Latin section from before. Our lead sheet uses a different letter for each tempo change, but the form is essentially ABABCB with each A section containing the first two phrases at different tempos.

Through all these shifts of gear, the song is prevented from being chaotic by a strong melodic thread. The melody is certainly singable, and largely diatonic in the key of B♭, though moving to other tonalities in the bridge with a more angular sound based on fourths and fifths. The changes are mostly based on II-V7s, with some sections of more unpredictable movement especially in the bridge. The fermatas at the end of the first two phrases are on A♭maj7 and A♭7. In the Latin sections, the changes vamp on a four-chord cycle which is essentially a “Tadd Dameron” turnaround in the key of D, though the absence of a D chord makes the cycle establish a B♭ tonality. The bridge has a few rhythm section hits, including a pedal-like figure starting in the seventh measure with two measures each of A7 and C7.

The solo chorus, fortunately, stays in one tempo. It’s based on the head changes, stretched out in the first eight measures to one chord per measure. The rhythm section swings with a 4-feel through most of the solo chorus, except for the Latin sections and the hits starting on the seventh measure of the bridge which are the same as on the head. A break at the end of the last solo chorus sets up the out melody. The coda continues the Latin vamp from the end of the head, with the melody reappearing for the last eight measures on cue before concluding with the first melody phrase once again.

Our lead sheet shows detailed articulations based on how Bobby plays the melody. Piano fills from the last eight measures of the head are shown in the C treble clef lead sheet.

A Concert Condensed Score, first and second horn parts are available for this quintet arrangement. There are a few slight differences in phrasing and rhythm section hits from the original quartet version, and the melody is simplified in the C and F sections, but the basic form is the same with all its tempo and feel changes. The horns are harmonized at the beginning, with the alto adding a rhythmic countermelody at C; at G the horns play unison. The coda again begins with a vamp, this time with the horns improvising together before coming back to the phrase from the last eight measures of the head.

In our score and parts, we show the form the same as on the lead sheet; however, on this recording the out head is abbreviated, essentially going back to D after the last solo.