Episode 2: Anatomy of a Tune – The 32-Bar Song

Even though jazz is largely improvised music, there is usually a song underneath it all—melody and harmony that establishes a structure for musicians to follow. Sometimes, these songs are original compositions by one of the performers, but very often these songs are “jazz standards.”

“Standards” doesn’t refer to a kind of quality control. It’s a set of songs (or “tunes,” as most musicians like to call them) that are familiar to any accomplished player. Every wedding band knows how to play “Proud Mary,” or Kool and the Gang’s “Celebration.” Every seasoned jazz player knows how to play “Just Friends” and “Body and Soul.”

A popular “fake book” used by jazz musicians.

The repertoire of jazz musicians can come from lots of different places. They will often tote around a large binder that contain the chords and melodies for hundreds of songs. It’s called a Fake Book for some reason, probably because it allows a musician to “fake” their way through an unfamiliar song if someone requests it. But there’s nothing fake about it. These one-page summaries of songs are all experienced musicians need to bring a tune to life.

Of course, most musicians will know many of these songs by heart. They are often part of the so-called Great American Songbook from the 1940s & ‘50s, the legacy of great songwriters like George Gershwin, Jerome Kern and Cole Porter. They also might be original compositions by jazz musicians—like Duke Ellington’s “Take the A Train” or Sonny Rollins’ “Oleo.” Or they might just be songs that everyone seems to know, like Lennon and McCartney’s “Michelle” or that old chestnut, “My Way.”

Having some “standards” in your memory bank is essential for jazz musicians because it gives everyone a common foundation. Sometimes, jazz groups (usually the larger ones) play well-rehearsed arrangements that require a written score. There will still be places for improvised solos—perhaps even long sections of improvisation. But much of the music, including “the head,” or melody of the song, will be scored for the members of the group to play as written.  

But often, experienced musicians just show up to a gig and decide what to play on the spot. The leader or organizer might call out a tune—Ellington’s “Take the A Train,” for example—be sure everyone is playing in the same key, set the tempo (“ah-one—ah-two—ah one-two-three-four”), and the group is off and running. Typically, the group will play the melody together, take turns soloing over the chord changes, then close the number with the melody again.  

One of the great things about jazz is the ability of seasoned players to make music on the spot, without rehearsal. If you frequent jazz clubs in the later hours, you’ll often see musicians show up with their instrument in hand, hoping to “sit in.” They might take the stage, chat a bit to agree on a song and key signature, and then make terrific music together.

 A COMMON “ROAD MAP”—The AABA Structure.

Jazz compositions and arrangements can be complex and detailed, requiring written scores and lots of rehearsal time to bring an ensemble together. Duke Ellington wrote tone-poems and suites that are similar to those written by so-called “classical” composers like Richard Strauss or Claude Debussy. 

But the backbone of jazz is improvisation, which is built on a shared familiarity with certain forms and structures—songs, in other words, that are built on similar patterns. Two of the most common patterns for songs used by jazz musicians are the 32-bar song, or the 12-bar blues.  

Even when standards are quite different, many follow a few basic structures. A classic American song usually has 32 “bars” or measures—each having the same number of beats or “counts.” And it often follows an AABA form. That means a similar eight-bar melody (the “A” section, often called the “head”) will repeat three times in a single song. And there will be a contrasting “B-section,” also called the “bridge.”  

As long as it’s in your ears from previous episodes, let’s take Duke Ellington’s “Satin Doll” as an example. Here’s a version of the song performed by the Ellington orchestra in 1962:

After a short, signature piano introduction, the song starts with the saxophones (0:08). They play the first “A” section, then repeat it (0:25). Then comes the “B” section (0:42), a different melody that offers a contrast with the main tune. Then, the “A” section returns (0:59) and the “head” ends (1:15). That’s the basic structure of the song—AABA. In this version, though, Ellington adds a little variation in the second half. Instead of going back to the beginning of the song for his solo, he he skips middle of the song, improvising on those harmonies in the “B” section and the “A” section that follows in a little “conversation” with bassist Aaron Bell (1:15-1:49). Then the full band enters to play the final “A” section to close off the song.

That’s the “AABA” structure, and if you hum through any number of familiar songs (“Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” Paul McCartney’s “Yesterday,” Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm”) you’ll hear how satisfying its just-symmetrical-enough form is to the ears. Of course, you don’t have to mentally note the sections as they come and go, but the structure of the songs is certainly part of why they stick with you, and how the music can be satisfying in many ways.

“Satin Doll” is just one example of the AABA form. Page through a jazz “fakebook” and you’ll find hundreds of songs that follow this basic structure. In the bebop era—around the 1940s and ‘50s—musicians often took the harmonic structure of one of these songs (George Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm,” for example), and composed a brand new “bebop” melody and called the song their own. Bebop pioneer Charlie Parker has several songs based on the so called “rhythm changes,” including “Anthropology,” “Moose the Mooch,” and “Steeplechase.” Parker’s “Ornithology” uses the song “How High the Moon” as the harmonic foundation for an entirely new melody. “Lester Leaps In,” written by Count Basie regular Lester Young, is also based on the “rhythm changes,” as well.

If a jazz tune you’re listing to doesn’t fit the 32-bar mold, it’s likely following the other common jazz structure—the 12-bar blues. For more about that, go on to the next episode.