Description
BILL BAILEY Arranged By Andy Firth
About BILL BAILEY Arranged by Andy Firth
This classic old jazz standard penned in 1902 by Hughie Cannon gets a funky coat in this treatment.
The song is an old vaudeville song about a performer that drinks to excess and seeks the company of other women until his wife throws him out of their home for his debauchery. “Won’t you came home Bill Bailey” (the full title of the song) has always been a favorite of Dixieland and jazz bands, but this arrangement adds some fire, funk, and punch to this jazz classic.
The arrangement opens with a funky rhythm section vamp. The saxes then state the melody in unison and on the repeat of the theme this is punctuated by the brass.
This leads to a fugue-styled conversation between the saxes, trumpets, and trombones. Solos for alto sax and piano follow which then lead to individual ensemble sections.
The trumpets and trombones then return with the main melody punctuated by the saxes before a short syncopated ensemble section leads to the end of the arrangement.
Range and Technical Aspects:
Technical and Ranges: Tpt 1: D above stave (only a few times) Trom 1: Ab above stave (only once). 4th Trom: Bass or trigger (low “C”)
Moderate technical and rhythmic difficulty. Semi-quaver lines occasionally. Soloist: Written/Impro: Piano. Written sax team solo.
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