Style:

Swing, usually played at up tempos.

Form:

A-A-B-A (44 Bars) [12-12-8-12]

Arrangements:

George  Shearing included a brief Coda to finish the off the piece, however  this arrangement is oftentimes omitted in performances.

Key:

Db Major

Harmony/Overview:

The  harmony of this composition is rather complex, containing a fair amount  of chromaticism. The A sections begin with a minor II - V to IMaj7 and  continue with the iconic root movement of I - bVII - bVI - V. The chord sequence however is not so conventional, moving from DbMaj7 - Bmi7 -  AMaj7 - Ab7. The A sections then continue with a II - V of IV7 before a  V7 of VI resolves to VI7 in the 7th bar. Bars 7-8 are made up of Dom7 chords descending in semi-tones, and this tends to be a point of difficulty for many soloists when navigating the changes. The A sections  then finish with a brief stay in bIII Major before returning back to the tonic. The bridge takes place in bIII Major and is also made up mostly of II - V's. Miles Davis' arrangement has become a popular way to  approach the tune, and it features a new melody for the second half of the composition along with several pedal points throughout the form. It also lengthens the final section with an additional 2 bars.

Recordings:

This song has been recorded over 40 times to date and is a widely popular standard among instrumentalists. George Shearing first recorded it with  his Quintet on a 1949 session for MGM Records, and it has since been recorded by many leading artists of the day. Miles Davis' arrangement of the tune has also become very popular, having been recorded by the  likes of Bill Evans and Chet Baker.

JGC Top Picks:

Bill Evans, New Jazz Conceptions, 1956

Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Ugetsu, 1963

Kurt Rosenwinkel, Intuit, 1998