Sudan Blue – Bill Pierce

Sudan Blue is a great example of that hard-driving swing associated with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. It's a song you can really have fun with, and has been recorded in several different settings and arrangements. The A section of this 32-measure AABC form uses the minor pentatonic scale throughout, harmonized with a mix of II-V7s and more stepwise motion. The bridge changes are also mostly II-V7s but always on the move, never touching down until the C section which is the same as A. There is a coda which tags the last four measures two more times.

The different versions of Sudan Blue have two options for ending the A section melody. On Bill Pierce's "William The Conqueror" recording, the melody notes in the last measure of the A and C sections are F and E♭ over D♭maj7 to Cm7. In the last measure of the coda these are replaced with F7, with F in the melody.

Rather faster than Bill Pierce's quartet version, this later recording is a bit closer to the original arrangement played by Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. There's more dynamic contrast within the A section; the hits in the fifth measure are accentuated, set off with a quieter sixth measure. The A section melody ends differently, with a C dotted half note (half note on the first A). This note is harmonized with D♭maj7 on the first A and C, and C minor in the second A. This is in fact the only place in this version that resolves to the tonic; the end of the coda also goes to D♭maj7.