Jim Hall, Charlie Christian and "Stompin' at the Savoy"(+Bonus Pages)
[Dear Paying Subscribers, attached you will find a few sample pages from Jim Hall’s Exploring Jazz Guitar (this link is for that, and his other books too). It’s his most personal book, dedicated to his wife Jane and with a biography by their daughter Devra. You’ll read Jim’s thoughtful observations that everybody, not only musicians, will find of interest. And in the full book there is plenty of notation for musicians.]
In August 1959, just before taking a break from performing, Sonny Rollins played a concert with Walter Perkins, the leader and drummer of a popular Chicago group called MJT + 3, and its bassist, Bob Cranshaw. He must have enjoyed their work, because he hired them for his return engagement two years later, in mid-November 1961, and added guitarist Jim Hall (1930-2013). “Stompin’ at the Savoy,” was a specialty of Hall in his early years, and he played it regularly with Rollins. (Those marvelous recordings remain unissued at the request of the late Mr. Rollins himself, for unknown reasons. You can hear them at archives in N.Y.C. as explained here.)
Hall always said that hearing Charlie Christian’s two choruses on a blues in F with Benny Goodman, from 1940, was what inspired him to play jazz. The tune was Goodman’s “Grand Slam,” also released as “Boy Meets Girl” and even as “Boy Meets Goy.” Christian solos at 0:39:
As Hall told Dan Ouellette: “That solo — the way he screws around with the meter and displaces notes — is brilliant. That was my spiritual awakening.” To hear what Hall was talking about, listen again to the guitar solo and pay attention to the unexpected places where Christian stops and starts each melodic phrase. But Christian’s longest recorded solos were captured in May 1941 on audience recordings at the Harlem clubs Minton’s and Monroe’s, and Hall was familiar with these as well. They were first issued in 1947, and many times since then. Here’s what Hall had to say in an interview with Chris Beyt, on Feb 19, 2012:
Chris: What does the body of work of Charlie Christian mean to you?
Jim: He was just so incredible. And there are a bunch of jam session [recordings] too. I think Thelonious Monk was involved. [Lew adds: Yes, Monk was then the house pianist at Minton’s.] But there was something about how decisive his playing was, and clear, crystal clear, and great. And it swung like—almost etched in stone, or whatever you do. I still can’t get over that when I hear his records; it’s just so clear. No nonsense at all…
Here is one of Christian’s longest and most brilliant performances, “Stompin’ at the Savoy,” at Minton’s in May 1941. He solos twice, three choruses each (three choruses was a traditional limit, as I’ll explain in a future essay). In this edition Sharp Eleven Music has faded out the trumpet solo between the guitar solos, and provided transcriptions. (I am not familiar with or endorsing this organization—just sharing with you my source.):
If you are a musician, you should check out this page where guitarist Miles Okazaki, who subscribes to my Substack, presents a more accurate transcription of the first solo, with better fingerings, and a video of himself performing it in unison with Christian’s recording!
There are so many incredible details in Christian’s playing that we will save an analysis for a future post. For now, let’s notice that indeed, the clarity of his thinking and the drive of his swing are astounding. And the main point for this essay is that Jim Hall knew this recording well. It’s no accident that among guitarists, one of the favorite Jim Hall solos is his own version of “Stompin’ at the Savoy,” as a member of Art Farmer’s wonderful quartet with Steve Swallow on bass, and, once again, Walter Perkins on drums, recorded at the Half Note club in December 1963. Below is the complete performance. Farmer plays beautifully, then Hall solos for a full 7 and-a-half minutes starting at 4:40. Of course he has very much his own approach—remember, this is two years after he toured with Rollins, and he was an advanced player by this time. But he still has Christian on his mind: At 7:40 he throws in a “honk” similar to what Christian uses (at 1:30 in the audio above), and at 7:55 he even quotes “Seven Come Eleven,” a riff tune credited to Benny Goodman and Christian that was probably written by the guitarist. He toys with moving it in and out of the key. Enjoy!
If you love this quartet, please know that during their existence in 1963 and ‘64, they also recorded two studio albums, made some radio broadcasts that are available on bootlegs, and appeared on American public television and later on BBC-TV (sorry, but I can only find that colorized version of the complete show). The BBC program is with Pete La Roca, who replaced Perkins in the spring of 1964. There was also reportedly quite a bit of music recorded at that Half Note gig that was never released. Between the group’s gigs, Farmer and Hall were also performing and recording in Gerry Mulligan’s group, with our friend Bill Crow, born in 1927 and still playing excellent bass.
See you next time!
All the best,
Lewis
P.S. Paying Subscribers, keep scrolling down for a preview of Hall’s book Exploring Jazz Guitar, which is of great interest to everyone, musicians and otherwise.
