The Sunday Listen: 'Un Poco Loco' by Bud Powell
Good afternoon all!
I had great fun with one of my students this week diving into the basic elements of jazz improvisation, and riffing on a few one chord jams, which has inspired this week’s Sunday Listen – ‘Un Poco Loco’ by Bud Powell.
Bud Powell was a phenomenal jazz pianist, and generally regarded as one of the forefathers and leading innovators of the bebop style, the faster, leaner and more angular child of the huge swing ensembles of the 30s and 40s, and traditional blues of the early 20th century.
Powells’s 1951 composition ‘Un Poco Loco’, which blends idioms from bebop and Afro-Cuban music, remains his calling card, and features an absolutely ripping solo over a single chord which set a precedent for all the solos over simple vamps to come; it's a song with more than one moment that pushes the envelope of standard jazz language, rhythm and form.
The man they called ”the Charlie Parker of the piano” had his career damaged by many unfortunate events. The most disheartening were at the hands of the police. At age 20, a drunken Powell was brutally beaten by cops going far beyond the acceptable call of duty. Following the incident, Powell was institutionalized for several months.
In between stays at mental institutions for schizophrenia, Powell left behind a remarkable legacy. All one has to do is listen to the giants of jazz speak about Bud Powell to know his significance. Miles Davis said, “Bud was the greatest pianist in this era”. Additionally, Bill Evans paid Powell tribute: “If I had to choose one single musician for his artistic integrity, for the incomparable originality of his creation and the grandeur of his work, it would be Bud Powell. He was in a class by himself”.
Happy practising!
Will