• The KillerFrogs

Happy Dave Brubeck Day!

PurplFrawg

PurplFrawg

Administrator
For all you real music lovers out there: The Dave Brubeck quartet was the leading example of "cool jazz" back in the 50s and 60s. Their signature piece, Take Five, was a huge success both musically and commercially, being entirely in the time signature of 5/4. The only other "popular" music I can think of which was written in 5/4 was the theme to TV's Mission Impossible. At any rate, this date is celebrated by musicians in tribute to Dave, his quartet, and the unusual time signature which they made to sound so easy.
 
HornyWartyToad

HornyWartyToad

Active Member
Awesome post, thanks!!! Some great players in that bunch individually as well, especially Paul Desmond(wrote Take Five) and Joe Morello. If you are a big fan of that style of jazz generally, I have a rec for you: Livestreaming KCSM.org. It's the Bay Area's best jazz station, out of San Mateo College. Fantastic music, and most if not all their DJ's are themselves musicians and historians, so some really rich discussions of the music and the music scene, both then and now. Happy Dave Day!
 
RufeBruton

RufeBruton

Active Member
Bought ‘Take Five’ as a kid. One of the first records that I spent my own $ on. It disappeared and I suspect that my older brother took it to Mizzou with him.
 
namollec

namollec

Full Member
PurplFrawg said:
For all you real music lovers out there: The Dave Brubeck quartet was the leading example of "cool jazz" back in the 50s and 60s. Their signature piece, Take Five, was a huge success both musically and commercially, being entirely in the time signature of 5/4. The only other "popular" music I can think of which was written in 5/4 was the theme to TV's Mission Impossible. At any rate, this date is celebrated by musicians in tribute to Dave, his quartet, and the unusual time signature which they made to sound so easy.
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Good piece.
I liked his Blue Rondo ala Turk.
 
Virginia Frog

Virginia Frog

Active Member
PurplFrawg said:
For all you real music lovers out there: The Dave Brubeck quartet was the leading example of "cool jazz" back in the 50s and 60s. Their signature piece, Take Five, was a huge success both musically and commercially, being entirely in the time signature of 5/4.
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Time s running out for the jazzmen of the sixties. I always liked Ramsey Lewis and at 88 he's still "out there." (KenCenter Honors - are you listening?)

Brubeck was KC honored in 2009 along side Bruce Springsteen, Mel Brooks, and Robert De Niro.
 
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FrogAbroad

FrogAbroad

Full Member
JF...thanks for the link. I don't pretend to know squat about music theory, and parts of the video were quite over my head, but still I think I captured the very basics. If nothing else the link gave me a deeper appreciation for the complexity of music and a greater respect for the musicians who do so much with it.
 
Froglaw

Froglaw

Full Member
JogginFrog said:
This video offers an explanation of the signature for non-musical types (like me).


Mentions Take Five and the MI theme right at the top, then listed other examples from popular music--none of which I knew. The one I did recognize was mentioned in the comments: Jethro Tull's Living in the Past.
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I love Tull’s Living in the Past.

I really never realized there was a 5/4 time.

Jimmy Buffet has a song called Living and dying in 3/4 time.
 
Limp Lizard

Limp Lizard

Full Member
Everything's Alright from Jesus Christ Superstar was in 5/4, too. To me as a non-musician (who was married to a musician for 4.5 years), The Temple in 7/4 meter sounds a lot more difficult.
 

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