Style:

Swing, typically played at medium-up tempos.

Form:

A-B (16 Bars) [8-8]

Arrangements:

The head is generally played twice on the way in and out. The ending as heard on Sam River's original recording is sometimes included, although not always.

Key:

An atonal composition with no definitive key center, the first chord is Bb minor.

Harmony/Overview:

The harmony of this composition is non-functional and rather complex, it is predominately made up of chords moving in parallel motion. The A section consists of min7 chords moving up in minor 3rds, and the B section is made up of min7 chords moving down in minor 3rds. The melody although centered almost entirely around chord tones manages to remain especially modern, using all twelve notes of the chromatic scale within the first 8 bars.

Recordings:

This composition is by no means one of Sam River's most known, it has been recorded just over a dozen times to date. The first recording comes from Sam Rivers' 1965 debut album Fuchsia Swing Song. Despite its relative obscurity the tune manages to be performed semi-frequently to this day.

JGC Top Picks:

Sam River, Fuchsia Swing Song, 1965

Walter Smith III, Casually Introducing, 2006

Billy Hart, Sixty-Eight, 2011