Rather than try to pepper "Any Old Sunday" with crazy karate fills and pointless padding, Anthony Jackson provides exactly what's needed for this kind of mellow shuffle-time number. Not only that, but he does it in a subtle, understated fashion that doesn't step on the track's metaphorical tootsies. And, when he does insert something resembling a fill, as in bar 21, it's a tasteful affair that outlines the principal tones of the underlying chord.
As for the appearance of the potentially user-unfriendly Cb sections, it's only a fleeting pain so don't cower in the corner! ;-) Cb is the only way to go here - had it been B major, it would mean cycling back to Eb via the wholly unrelated steps of of E#sus and A#. Look upon the short Cb section as character-building, and, just as one is advised not to glance down when crossing a deep ravine via a shaky rope-bridge - whatever you do, don't think about seven flats! ;-)
To play some of the semi-pitched ghost notes in this track, you'll probably have to use complex algebraic formula to work out where to play them on your 5- or 6-string bass to approximate where AJ where was playing them on his detuned 4-string.
In other areas of interest, check out the cool way a long Bb is held over the four chords (Ab9, Gmin7, Cmin7 and Bb9sus) first seen in bar 8, and which repeat throughout the song at the regular cadences. The bass pattern could conceivably have been a far more pedestrian Ab, G, Ab, Bb, but the move to C on the third chord (creating a Cmin7) paints a far more interesting harmonic picture.
As with all my transcriptions, I've tried to notate the chords as actually played by the musicians/band rather than trying to second-guess what was written on the original charts. For example, it's likely that most of the dominant 9th, 11th, and 13th chords in my Chaka Khan transcriptions were written as straight 7th chords. Likewise, the sus chords (9sus, 13sus) were probably written as slash chords. (E.g. Ab/Bb for Bb9sus.) Slash chords, are great if you need to get a handle on what to play quickly and easily, such as during a session or when standing in for someone. However, for transcriptions I prefer to write out the chord in full to get a better idea of how the harmony is working.
Finally, I was almost tempted to transcribe Randy Brecker's superb reverb-heavy flugelhorn solo, which fits the song like a glove. Perhaps a flurry of Brecker Brothers transcriptions will be next on my list...
Transcription © Stevie Glasgow 2008 |
