Autumn Leaves
One of the first tunes that jazz students learn is Autumn Leaves. I am no exception.
Many of my peers have grown tired of many of those old tunes and i also have some that i’m not that psyched to play any more. For some reason, i have always liked playing this tune.
When i was still in college, i attended a Ray Brown clinic that was held at UNH. Ray was talking about learning all of the tunes that you know in all 12 keys. I raised my hand and asked him how he went about doing this. He then asked me what instrument i played…..”Bass”, I gulped. He then beckoned for me to come to the front of the room where he gave me his bass and proceeded to have me play autumn leaves in a few different keys. Lesson learned. Huge moment for me. Playing Ray Brown’s bass. Getting a mini lesson from Ray. He passed away a couple of months later, so i feel really lucky to have experienced that.
the tune has a soft spot for me and i recorded it in mexico with Julio and Edgar. it is also yet another raspy crooner for me.
Here it is: autumnleaves1
