No More Hanky-Panky – Tina May & Dexter Gordon
This medium swing blues march with its I-Can't-Stay-Out-Of-Trouble lyric is fun to sing.
- Recording: Tina May - No More Hanky Panky
- Recorded on: 2010
- Label: 33Jazz (220)
- Concert Key: B-flat minor
- Vocal Range: Soprano, G3 to C5
- Style: Swing (medium)
- Vocal - Tina May
- Tenor Sax - Pascal Gaubert
- Piano - Patrick Villanueva
- Bass - Pierre Maingroud
- Drums - Vincent Cordelette
This bluesy, bouncy swing is pure fun. Dexter Gordon's original composition, Hanky Panky, captures the mischievous, playful spirit of the title through the extreme syncopation of the melody that contrasts with the "Blues March" bass line below it. If your repertoire is filled with heavy ballads, try No More Hanky-Panky to add a bit more pep into your set.
Our audio excerpt starts one bar into the head and goes through the first two A sections and part of the B, where the marching bass line gives way to rhythm section hits (notated in the vocal lead sheet).
Lyric Description: Tina May's lyric plays off the cheeky title of Dexter's original. The lyric is sung from the perspective of a child who keeps getting into trouble. Regardless of what adults may say, exploring is too much fun to give up hanky-panky!
If another key would be better for you, send the key you'd like to Don and we'll post the transposition on the website for purchase. If you're not sure which key is best, send us your range and we'll work with you to figure out the best key.
Our audio excerpt starts one bar into the head and goes through the first two A sections and part of the B, where the marching bass line gives way to rhythm section hits (notated in the vocal lead sheet).
Lyric Description: Tina May's lyric plays off the cheeky title of Dexter's original. The lyric is sung from the perspective of a child who keeps getting into trouble. Regardless of what adults may say, exploring is too much fun to give up hanky-panky!
If another key would be better for you, send the key you'd like to Don and we'll post the transposition on the website for purchase. If you're not sure which key is best, send us your range and we'll work with you to figure out the best key.
Tina, then a young mother trying to balance a career and kids, wrote her lyric from the inside out, looking at the kid's point of view.
Dexter's instrumental version that inspired her is also available, in the same key of B-flat minor: Hanky Panky. Lead sheets and second parts.
Dexter's instrumental version that inspired her is also available, in the same key of B-flat minor: Hanky Panky. Lead sheets and second parts.
Tina May
March 30, 1961 – March 26, 2022
Influenced at an early age by her collection of Duke Ellington and Fats Waller records, May has become one of the finest jazz vocalists and lyricists the U.K. has produced. After heading her own Back Door Theatre Company in the early ‘80s, she established herself as a chanteuse in Paris, forming her first quartet in 1989. She has released seven albums under the U.K. record label 33Jazz, becoming a featured soloist in distinguished jazz events and venues including the Duke Ellington mass, London jazz club, and the Lionel Hampton Jazz Club in Paris. She frequently appears on BBC radio and television. Read more...
