An Afro 6* groove played by Airto, on the intro of Casa Forte, on Flora Purim’s 1974 record Stories To Tell. It has some big shot LA musicians on it, including saxophonist Hadley Caliman, who […]
Category: intros
Transcription: Philly Joe Jones – Stablemates – intro
A little drum solo intro played by Philly Joe Jones on Stablesmates, from Milt Jackson’s record Bags Meets Wes!. It’s 16 bars long, even though there are no 16 bar phrases in the tune— the […]
Mel Lewis intro – One for Pat
I’m just taunting myself now— I’ve got this book of intros sitting around, almost completed, and I keep finding new things that should probably go in it, but I don’t have the nerve to open […]
Roy Haynes intro – Alto-itis
I’m being very slovenly about posting as things continue being politically crazy. It’s a little distracting. So here’s something easy: a four bar drum intro played by Roy Haynes on Oliver Nelson’s tune Alto-itis, from […]
From the zone: Al Foster intro
Hey, it looks like everyone but me is getting a lot writing done right now. I have a couple more of these “from the zone” items to share— a series where people send in their […]
Transcription: Ed Blackwell intro
A 16-bar drum intro played by Ed Blackwell on The Way You Look Tonight, from Mal Waldron’s album You And The Night And The Music. I like to post these things to shame myself for […]
Drum intro: Billy Higgins – For Minors Only
Another intro, with a Latin feel, played by Billy Higgins on For Minors Only, from Jimmy Heath’s album Picture of Heath. The cymbal rhythm is reminiscent of a Mozambique-type rhythm, with an 8th rest on […]
Transcription: Frank Butler intro and fours
Maybe if I transcribe a bunch of drum intros and post them on the blog, I can guilt trip myself into finishing my Book of Intros. It’s still hanging around 95% ready to release. I’ve been blocked […]
11 Buddy intros
This is pretty interesting: Buddy Rich playing a drum intro on eleven takes of the same tune: Leap Frog, released on The Complete Charlie Parker on Verve box set. This is an actually an excerpt […]
Transcription: Roy Haynes intro
You know what, I still owe you a BOOK OF INTROS. The thing has been languishing a few short hours from completion for quite a few months now. Perhaps me drawing attention to that fact, […]
A Philly Joe intro: Dance of the Infidels
Oh, I was going to put out a book of intros, wasn’t I? Most of the transcribing for that project is actually done, and now I just need to do the not-fun part of laying […]
Frankie Dunlop plays an intro
Not much to say about this, except that one of my favorite things ever, Thelonious Monk’s Bye-Ya, from the album Monk’s Dream, came on KMHD today, and that Frankie Dunlop’s opening is just a perfect piece […]