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We're back with another Earl Bostic transcription on a blues. This time its the mid-tempo That's the Groovy Thing (Part 1). Part 2 will be coming soon!


Jazz Vocabulary


Compare this solo to 'Hurricane Blues' our previous in the series. Look how Earl Bostic adapts his vocabulary rhythmically to fit different settings. In this case the classic blues call phrase has been adapted to fit the main tempo at half time, where as in Hurrican Blues, it was played in 8th note triplets. This kind of flexibility and creativity with vocabulary is key to developing a personal sound. Practise improvising with your favourite phrases. Practise them over and over each time trying to change the phrase rhythmically or melodically to give it a different meaning. Restate the original phrase every fourth time so you don't stray too far from the original intention.



Phrasing

Imitate the Human Voice

Glissandos, slurs and accents are all on display here in infinite variation. These level of improvisation is extremely sophisticated and allows a lot of varied expression with a limited amount of harmonic material. Practise copying Earl's phrasing and sound exactly. The only way to go deeper is to copy the phrasing of blues singers yourself. That's what Bostic did!


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