Philly Twist – Kenny Dorham
A classic blues head with a driving rhythm, written for drummer Philly Joe Jones. Condensed score, second parts and separate bass part. All rhythm hits included. Our "K.D. Challenge" version has Minus You tracks for all instruments at three different tempos, so you can start slow and work up to full speed.
- Recording: Kenny Dorham - Whistle Stop
- Recorded on: January 15, 1961
- Label: Blue Note (BLP 4063)
- Concert Key: B-flat
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (medium up)
- Trumpet - Kenny Dorham
- Tenor Sax - Hank Mobley
- Piano - Kenny Drew
- Bass - Paul Chambers
- Drums - Philly Joe Jones
Video
- The Flat Five: Ali Enaam, guitar; Naman Wiesel, piano; Josh Dodds, bass; Ben Dodds, drums; live at Oscar Peterson Hall, Montreal, 2009.
- Charles Levin Quintet: Mike Rocha, trumpet; Frank Silva, tenor sax; Kevin Fukagawa, piano; Emilio Terranova, bass; Charles Levin, drums; live at CalArts, Valencia, California, 2011.
- Joe Mazzaferro, trumpet; with Jason Thompson, tenor sax; Mike Seal, guitar; Keith Brown, piano; Clint Mullican, bass; Nolan Nevels, drums. Live at University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
The lead sheets include the repeating drum chorus with its horns-against-rhythm-section figures.
On the recording, Philly Joe sets up the melody with a four-measure solo. Our audio clip teaser starts with the melody and gives you a taste of the B section.
As with so many of K.D.'s compositions, this one needs a separate bass part. The bass part and the C Condensed Score (recommended for pianists and drummers) are the only editions that contain all the specific chord symbols. The other editions (remember, the A section is a blues) contain the melody (or the second part) along with all rhythm hits which are so important to this composition.
When the recorded melody is played by trumpet, sometimes the melody goes below the staff. For that reason we'll often write the C lead sheet an octave higher and label it "Guitar," since guitar parts are written an octave higher than they sound. Often this is also the best range for a flute or violin to play the melody. If not, simply play the melody down an octave.
Philly Twist may be played at a medium up tempo, but you'll have to stay extremely focused to get the hits right. Trumpeter/composer Kenny Dorham shows no mercy with these challenging hits, meant to be played in unison by everyone in the group. Once they start walking at the B section, though, you can just swing away on a B-flat blues until the hits are re-introduced for the drum solo. If reading rhythms is something you're trying to solidify, this would be a great one to check out.
Related Songs
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- Recording: Phil Woods - Voyage
- Recorded on: October 28, 2000
- Label: Chiaroscuro (CR 368)
- Concert Key: B-flat
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (medium up)
- Alto Sax - Phil Woods
- Trumpet - Roy Hargrove
- Piano - Bill Charlap
- Bass - Peter Washington
- Drums - Willie Jones III
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
Check out our drum transcription of Willie Jones III's playing on this track in the Drum Corner tab. On the complete recording you'll hear from Phil Woods and Roy Hargrove who take full solos and trade as well as from pianist Bill Charlap. Woods uses the same ending as on Kenny's original recording, but ends on the sharp 9 instead of on the fifth like on the original and "K.D. Challenge" recordings.
Note: the lead sheets available here are the same as the ones on the "Whistle Stop" page. The Willie Jones III Drum Transcription is only found on this page.
-- Jones' four-measure drum intro CLIP
-- horn melodies written above drum staff
-- everything Jones plays on the in and out melodies
-- comping and time for first eight measures of the alto solo (Phil Woods)
The short syncopated phrases that make up the melody to Philly Twist show us why this tune was written for Philly Joe Jones; there's an art to filling cracks in the melody, and Philly Joe Jones mastered it. But other drummers have too! Our transcription shows Willie Jones III's graceful, dynamic accompaniment.
Seeing the notes written out with sticking patterns will help you to play around the melody in a balanced way, creating your own fills.
The intro in particular is a great example of fundamental, Max Roach-esque bebop drumming language. Phil Woods is an incredible player and this transcription will show you exactly how Jones comps for him during the first eight measures of his solo. Look no further than the first measure of Woods' solo for a great comping tool to add to your repertoire; Jones drops what is commonly referred to as a "bomb" on beat 4. CLIP Filling in the gaps of the melody with eighth notes, as we see Jones doing on this recording, propels the forward motion and intensity of the melody.
To play along with this song or check out how drummer Vince Cherico plays Dorham's classic blues, get our Minus You version of Philly Twist, part of our "K.D. Challenge" (click the album cover above right). Also, check out our Drum Corner for more transcriptions by Willie Jones III and other masters.
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Email Send Philly Twist to a friend
- Recording: Don Sickler - The K.D. Challenge
- Recorded on: October 6 , 2001
- Label: jazzleadsheets.com (JLS 1033)
- Concert Key: B-flat
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (medium up)
- Trumpet - Don Sickler
- Piano - Cecilia Coleman
- Bass - Tim Givens
- Drums - Vince Cherico
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
This arrangement differs from the original by introducing an "interlude" section (C) before the solo choruses. Instead of going directly into the first solo after B at the fifth measure of a blues chorus, our C section consists of eight measures of stop-time with drum breaks (though again beginning on the fifth measure of a chorus). The "Medium" version does not have solo choruses; in this version the last two measures of C are a drum break leading into the drum shout choruses. All versions have two drum shout choruses followed by the out head. The last two measures of the coda are rhythmically slightly different in the "Uptempo" version. All these variations are indicated clearly in the Minus You parts.
For this song as well as most other "K.D. Challenge" songs, we consider it important for the pianist, bassist, and drummer to know what else is going on around their parts. Accordingly, in all three rhythm section parts we have included the melody on a separate upper staff, as well as any notable figures below the lower staff that one instrument in the rhythm section has but another does not.
clip Medium up Minus You format:
-- intro (drums)
-- melody
-- trumpet solo 4 choruses
-- trumpet trading 4s with drums 2 choruses
-- drum shout 2 choruses
-- out melody
-- coda
clip Medium up mp3 minus melody
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play the melody
-- solo 4 choruses
-- trade 4s with drums 2 choruses
-- play the drum shout 2 times
-- play the out melody and coda
clip Medium up minus Piano
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play figures for the melody
-- comp for the trumpet solo 4 choruses
-- comp for trumpet/drums trading 2 choruses
-- play figures for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures for the out melody and coda
mp3 Medium up minus Bass
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play figures/walk for the melody
-- walk for the trumpet solo 4 choruses
-- walk for trumpet/drums trading 2 choruses
-- play figures for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures for the out melody and coda
mp3 Medium minus Drums
-- count off sets up the intro
-- solo for the intro
-- play figures/comp/fills for the melody
-- comp for the trumpet solo 4 choruses
-- trade 4s with trumpet (trumpet starts) 2 choruses--snaps added clip
-- play figures/solo for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures/comp for the out melody and coda
Related Songs
Email Send Philly Twist to a friend
- Recording: Don Sickler - The K.D. Challenge - practice tracks
- Recorded on: October 6, 2001
- Label: jazzleadsheets.com (JLS 1033-A)
- Concert Key: B-flat
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (medium)
- Trumpet - Don Sickler
- Piano - Cecilia Coleman
- Bass - Tim Givens
- Drums - Vince Cherico
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
MP3 Medium Minus You format:
-- intro (drums)
-- melody (alternate ending)
-- drum shout 2 choruses
-- out melody
-- coda
MP3 Medium minus melody
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play the melody (take alternate ending)
-- play the drum shout 2 times
-- play the out melody and coda
MP3 Medium minus Piano
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play figures for the melody (take alternate ending)
-- play figures for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures for the out melody and coda
MP2 Medium minus Bass
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play figures for the melody (take alternate ending)
-- play figures for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures for the out melody and coda
MP3 Medium minus Drums
-- count off sets up the melody
-- play figures/comp/fills for the melody
-- play the break at the alternate ending
-- play figures/solo for the drum shout 2 times MP3
-- play figures/comp for the out melody and coda
Related Songs
Email Send Philly Twist to a friend
- Recording: Don Sickler - The K.D. Challenge - extra
- Recorded on: October 6, 2001
- Label: jazzleadsheets.com (JLS 1033)
- Concert Key: B-flat
- Vocal Range: , to
- Style: Swing (uptempo)
- Trumpet - Don Sickler
- Piano - Cecilia Coleman
- Bass - Tim Givens
- Drums - Vince Cherico
Video
- Description
- Historical Notes
- Solos
- Piano Corner
- Bass Corner
- Drum Corner
- Guitar Corner
- Inside & Beyond
- Minus You
clip Uptempo Minus You format:
-- intro (drums)
-- melody
-- trumpet trading 4s with drums 2 choruses
-- drum shout 2 choruses
-- out melody
-- coda (alternate ending)
clip Uptempo minus melody
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play the melody
-- trade 4s with drums 2 choruses
-- play the drum shout 2 times
-- play the out melody and coda (take alternate ending)
clip Uptempo minus Piano
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play figures for the melody
-- comp for trumpet/drums trading 2 choruses
-- play figures for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures for the out melody and coda (take alternate ending)
clip Uptempo minus Bass
-- count off sets up the intro
-- tacet for the intro
-- play figures/walk for the melody
-- walk for trumpet/drums trading 2 choruses
-- play figures for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures for the out melody and coda (take alternate ending)
MP3 Uptempo minus Drums
-- count off sets up the intro
-- solo for the intro
-- play figures/comp/fills for the melody
-- trade 4s with trumpet (trumpet starts) 2 choruses - snaps added during trading cklip
-- play figures/solo for the drum shout 2 times
-- play figures/comp for the out melody and coda (take alternate ending)
Related Songs
Email Send Philly Twist to a friend

Kenny Dorham
August 30, 1924 – December 15, 1972
Trumpeter/composer Kenny Dorham was very much on the jazz scene from the mid-1940s through most of the 1960s. He worked and recorded with all the major figures in the modern jazz movement, which includes the legendary Billy Eckstine big band, Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Bud Powell, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk and Max Roach as well as Kenny Clarke, Sonny Stitt, Fats Navarro, J.J. Johnson and many other giants of that period. Read more...