Sad music jazz can elicit deep emotions from listeners. This musical genre blends beats from West Africa, Caribbean and European classical instruments into its soundscape.
Jazz music is an emotional genre characterized by many emotive yet melancholic songs that have stood the test of time. Let’s look at a few such sad jazz tunes and discover their melodic beauty.
Goodbye Pork Pie Hat
Goodbye Pork Pie Hat was written as an elegy for Lester Young and first recorded as an instrumental by Charles Mingus on his album Ah Um in 1959; later Joni Mitchell performed her version for her LP Mingus released later that same year. Both renditions evoke a similar feeling of loss and sadness.
At the time of recording Mingus Ah Um, the band were grieving the death of Lester Young saxophonist, so an elegy for him titled ‘Goodbye Pork Pie Hat’ was written as the final track on this album; its darkly elegant ballad features one dissonant note to capture feelings of loss and sorrow.
The lyrics of this song highlight the hardships experienced by blacks living in America. Additionally, it touches upon how music helped black people forget their problems by providing an outlet through music-making – this phrase “bloodstained reeds” symbolizes their hard work to express themselves through instruments.
This jazz song demonstrates the powerful impact of music with its haunting melody and emotive lyrics that will surely bring tears to your eyes. Joni Mitchell’s voice shines throughout and makes this an outstanding track that should be part of everyone’s music library!
There could be an entire thread dedicated to discussing this song and its amazing 7#9 chord changes, cover versions that have been done, Mingus’ state of mind when writing it, etc. Since such thread titles often become contentious and do nothing further the dialogue, let me just say this – I adore this tune!
NativeDSD offers the ideal audiophile mastering and archival remaster of this masterpiece with their new release by Dieter Ilg: Stereo DSD 256 and Stereo DSD 128 formats are both available – this release was masterened by Tom Caulfield at NativeDSD – making this release perfect additions to any jazz lovers collection.
Misty
Misty is an iconic jazz standard first recorded in 1954 by pianist Erroll Garner. At first it was simply instrumental; then in 1955 Johnny Burke added the now-familiar lyrics. Since then it has become a beloved jazz classic recorded by various vocal artists worldwide.
Misty depicts an unlikely romance which ended tragically, while its music conjures feelings of loss and longing while also underscoring the importance of maintaining healthy relationships. Misty stands out as an exceptional example of melancholic jazz.
Melancholy music can help us better comprehend the world we live in and can strengthen relationships between loved ones. However, it is important to remember that melancholy music does not cause depression or sadness – instead it amplifies preexisting emotions and experiences. Everyone’s reactions towards melancholy music differs accordingly.
Lee Konitz and Hank Mobley collaborated on their version of Misty for Lee Konitz’s album The Newest Sound in Town in 1959, reaching number 12 on U.S. Billboard chart while becoming a huge success on UK charts.
Aretha Franklin recorded a gospel version of this song in 1970. Her soulful performance captured the original melody perfectly and has often been compared with Erroll Garner’s instrumental composition that also bears similarities.
Frank Sinatra, commonly referred to as Ol’ Blue Eyes, recorded an original version of this song for inclusion on his 1962 album Your Christmas Gift and also featured in the film The Man with the Golden Arm.
Ray Stevens, a country and novelty singer, had great success with his 1975 recording of Misty. Stevens says it came about by chance; while warming up for a session he and his band began playing it on banjo, fiddle, and steel guitar as they warmed up for another session; their attempt led them all the way into making Misty an instant classic and ultimately earning him a Grammy Award for Best Arrangement.
Girl From Ipanema
Antonio Carlos Jobim, one of Brazil’s foremost composers, created numerous tunes that are regularly performed and recorded in jazz repertoire. But one song stands out: it’s called “Garota de Ipanema,” or The Girl From Ipanema – this tune propelled a global Bossa Nova wave and was recorded by some of the most iconic musicians at that time; moreover it is also an emotionally profound classic which contains essential harmonic and melodic details every musician must know.
Helo Pinheiro may have inspired the song, but another Carioca took “Garota de Ipanema” and made it famous: Astrud Gilberto of Carioca fame carried it further afield when she entered a New York studio with Jobim and Stan Getz to record an English verse on “Ipanema” in March 1963. Getz wanted Astrud to join in, since Joao couldn’t do it himself; her childlike vocal was the perfect complement to Getz’s smooth tenor voice!
Getz/Gilberto recorded, which eventually won the 1965 Grammy Award for Record of the Year – marking a first for jazz albums! Thus establishing one of today’s iconic songs.
Astrud Gilberto’s version of “Oceans” became an international success, leading to various recordings from prominent musicians like Frank Sinatra (on his 1965 album Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim) and Ella Fitzgerald (her two-disc set Pablo Today). Additionally, Astrud and Getz’s rendition was used as part of the opening ceremony for 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.
While many songs celebrate women’s beauty, “Garota de Ipanema” pays special homage to one particular woman that the narrator admires on Ipanema beach. She is described as being both alluring and mysterious – making this song especially captivating for music enthusiasts.
Body and Soul
Frank Conroy first made waves in literary world with Stop-Time 25 years earlier, so critics eagerly anticipated his debut novel Body and Soul. Body and Soul tells the tale of Claude Rawlings, an orphan raised in poverty who makes his fortune through music – a tale about an exceptional young person searching for self-worth and meaning in life.
Body and Soul’s dark subject matter doesn’t deprive it of hope, however. Claude finds strength in music as his outlet; Weisfeld offers him guidance as a potential father figure who gives him focus in life; ultimately, all that really matters for Claude is being able to express himself through music.
The lyrics of the song are inspired by two Old English poems which explore how our bodies relate to our souls and afterlife. While not as lengthy or profound as Body and Soul, both poems share similar themes: encouraging their readers to live according to their soul’s fate rather than follow fleshly desires.
Body and Soul featured an eye-catching chord progression at its time, featuring an opening riff based on the minor chord of its supertonic (ii). Additionally, Green wrote the bridge using E-flat major instead of D major when writing Coquette but later used this same modulation in Body and Soul’s melody.
Recordings of Body and Soul became more frequent after Paul Whiteman recorded it numerous times for Tin Pan Alley songs in the mid 1930s. Paul loved this tune so much he asked Roy Bargy, one of his pianists, to arrange it; their interpretation contains an impressive compression of melody in its introduction, an intricate orchestral theme during Jack Fulton’s high tenor vocal, as well as an antiphonal flare in its final phrase of verse.
Though many jazz musicians have recorded the song, Coleman Hawkins is widely recognized as having made the definitive recording. His 1939 rendition became an industry standard and also served as an acid test for singers specializing in tenor voice arias.