The Jazz Sax & Improvisation Blog of Saxophonist Bobby Stern

We Got Rhythm Changes!

7/26/2019

We Got Rhythm Changes!
"Who could ask for anything more?"

Yeah... we got 'em!

"We Got Rhythm Changes!" is this months featured Shortbook™, and if there's any doubt as to its subject matter, the title itself should be clear enough.

The seminal chord changes to George Gershwin's 1930 classic "I Got Rhythm" became popular among swing era musicians of the 1930's and '40's. With creative modifications, they became iconic to the post WWII bebop era and beyond, being referred to simply as "Rhythm Changes".

Next to the 12 bar Blues, the 32 bar AABA standard American song form "Rhythm Changes" became one of the most popular (and flexible) vehicles for improvisation.

Many classic lines or "heads" were composed over "Rhythm Changes". Some of the best known are:

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