Edition: Jazz Big Band Arrangement with Vocal

Description: Swing - Medium Difficult

Publisher: Jazz Lines Publications

The combination of Ella Fitzgerald's voice, Quincy Jones's writing, and the orchestra of Count Basie makes for one of the most incomparably exciting and joyful sounds in jazz. Few citations prove this theory better than their recording of On the Sunny Side of the Street, recorded in 1963 for the album Ella and Basie!

A low-down shuffle feel sets the tone for the entire performance, only enhanced further by some muted interjections from Joe Newman's trumpet. Although Fitzgerald is the undisputed star for the first pass through the melody, the hard-riffing horns serve as more of a complimentary figure to the vocals than being just mere backgrounds. That being said, the band more than gets its chance to shine at measure 37 via a typically brilliant shout chorus from Jones's pen. In addition, Newman's trumpet continues to make its presence known through a series of playful interjections around the dense ensemble writing.

Fitzgerald returns for the back half of the melody at measure 53, with many of the ensemble figures being recycled and reconfigured from before. As the melody gets an extended tag, the band continues to swell in bravado. Charging forth and gaining in intensity, volume, and register, a quick Basie piano fill leads the ensemble into an appropriately jubilant conclusion.

This arrangement was prepared from the set of parts used for the 1963 recording session - this is not a transcription.

 

Full Score
Vocal
2 Alto Saxophones
2 Tenor Saxophones
Baritone Saxophone
5 Trumpets
3 Trombones
Bass Trombone
Guitar
Piano
Bass
Drum Set

Vocal Key: G
Trumpet 1: E6
Trumpet 4: E6 (Opt.)
Trombone 1: A4