Brown Sugar Sax Solo in Killer Blues ebook

[Michael Bishop]

😎 Hey Johnny,

Lessons in Killer Blues ebook coming along great, I’ve learned a lot just by working on the first 3 lessons in part 1 😀
I was looking ahead in the book for what’s to come and was noticing on the Brown Sugar Sax Solo that I’ll start learning in a few months–KILLER sax solo, Brown Sugar would be a great Tenor Song to do for sure–and was a little confused by the wording right below your video for that lesson. It says the original version of the song is in C and that we’re working on this solo in C too. Wouldn’t we work on it in D for the Tenor if the original version is in C? It mentions in G for the Alto, but wouldn’t that mean the concert key would be Bb and not C? I’m just a little confused by the wording. Thanks!

[john]

Your transposing is correct. The first examples of the Brown Sugar solo shows in the original key as recorded by the Stones which is C. This is there so anyone that wants to work with the original version, or also be able to play it in the original key has it. (when ever I play this with a band they always play it in the original key). You’ll notice the tenor part IS in D. Alto part is in A. This is for the original key of C.
Now, for the sake of keeping the exercises in concert Bb as they are in the entire Killer Blues course, I’ve included a version of this solo in concert Bb. Therefore the tenor part is in C and the alto is in G….just like all the other exercises in the book….make sense now?

[Michael Bishop]

Yep, thanks–I think this would make a KILLING song on the Tenor, the complete song. I’ve been making good use of the lessons here on the home page on Improvisation on part 1 and 2. What blows my mind about what you’re showing in Killer Blues is that I can apply the how-to’s to any scale and have an ENDLESS array of licks and riffs for blues and rock! it’s ENDLESS to what I could do by applying this stuff. I was checking out how you break down the brown sugar solo and there are so, so many ways to take what you’re showing there and apply it to just about ANYTHING I play! So, so cool…..:)

[john]

Ya, that’s the whole point! Practice reading the stuff and eventually you want to memorize these little riffs and blues scales. Understanding how they’re structured (1, flat 3, 5 etc) is when you can transpose anything into any other key…because if you know 1 to flat 3 in C means playing C to Eb, then when you go to the key of A you know the same lick would be A and C.

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