Favorite Wayne Shorter composition

[Pharaohrock]

I'm sure there will be plenty of "other" suggestions, but I've tried to narrow it down to 10 supreme Shorter nuggets the best I could. This should be interesting because I'm sure a lot of people out there are passionate about his compositions but everybody probably has a different favorite. Not to bias anyone, but my personal favorite is "Fall."

[jazzypaul]

No Witch Hunt? sheesh...

[Pharaohrock]

Yeah, one of the glaring omissions, as are several of his great tunes written for Miles' band, e.g. The Sorcerer, E.S.P., and for Blakey, like "Children of the Night" or "It's a Long Way Down."
But Witch Hunt is not one of my personal favorites so hey-- it's therefore completely valid for me to leave it out! lol.

[GA Russell]

I voted for Footprints. I especially enjoy Herbie Mann's recording on his Windows Opened album

My second choice would be ESP.

[clifton]

Pharoahrock: Shorter has written so many truly great tunes, I suspect it was very difficult to choose ten. I voted for "Fall", but I wish you had listed "Go" or "Dolores" (my personal favorite).

[walkin]

I voted for Footprints,after I hear it it does`nt leave my head for a long time:eek: :cool:

Nefertiti would be my 2nd choice.

[saintvitus]

My vote for El Gaucho was also for Penelope from Etcetera.

[mikeweil]

Glad you included El Gaucho, I would have voted for it anyway...

[RDK]

Of the list I'd have to go with "Footprints."

[Joe]

My favorite Wayne performance (spontaneous composition) is "Water Babies" from SUPER NOVA.

[weizen]

"Night Dreamer".......then "Twelve Bars to Go"

[RDK]

Originally posted by weizen
..then "Twelve Bars to Go"

fitting. :D

[BulletHead]

I'll have to give my vote a write in. Yes Or No from JuJu.

[brucemacdonald]

It's got to be "Teru" from "Adam's Apple".

Failing that, "El Gaucho"

Bruce

[Saxman]

"Footprints" is my favorite tune, PERIOD. Not just my favorite Wayne tune! :D

[Jakeweiser]

write in vote for Witch hunt. But as a musician I love playing Footprints and listening to it.

[J_Deighton]

Von Freeman did an amazing version of "Footprints" on his Live at the Dakota set. I'm embarassed to say I was sleeping on the song until then.

[pRogers]

Infant Eyes is great.

Hammerhead is nice - I've only heard the original recording of it once (and it felt a little sloppy), and never heard anyone else play it, but I played it with my combo in camp this summer, and it was really fun. Interesting changes.

[jazzguyfromnc]

I voted for Witch Hunt, but my favorites are probably Deluge and Lady Day.

[Jazz Purist]

I voted for Speak No Evil, but I really like all of the ones listed, including some that weren't. Tough choice.:)

[clifton]

I've gotta agree with J.Deighton about Von Freeman's rendition of "Footprints". Vonski finds beautiful gems in unexpected corners of this tune.

[PurpleTentacle]

"Wildflower" from the Speak No Evil album, I love that tune. Lots of excellent stuff to choose from, though. "House of Jade" from Juju is another fave.

[Saxman]

Von Freeman did an amazing version of "Footprints" on his Live at the Dakota set. I'm embarassed to say I was sleeping on the song until then.

I agree. I borrowed that one from the library and must buy my own copy! I hope it's still in print!

[Shade of Blue]

Yeah....of the list, I'll go with Footprints.

Some other real favorites are Witch Hunt, Speak No Evil, Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum, Ping Pong, Yes or No...can't think of any others.

Oh....I missed Speak No Evil on the poll list...maybe I should have voted for it.

[jazzofonik]

Infant Eyes is great.

Hammerhead is nice - I've only heard the original recording of it once (and it felt a little sloppy), and never heard anyone else play it, but I played it with my combo in camp this summer, and it was really fun. Interesting changes.

While I my exposure to the listed songs is limited (if pressed, I'd give Foot prints a slight edge over Nefertiti), nothing that I've heard by him has grabbed me like "Hammerhead". visceral yet intelligent. I also like 'Mr. Jin"

[burning dog]

Iris from ESP

[SatinDoll]

"Wildflower" from the Speak No Evil album, I love that tune.
hey, me too, actually it´s my fave. But Wayne is such a fantastic composer, hard to choose, well I voted for Ana Maria now, don´t know exactly why, but I had listened to it recently.....Another tune I love and listen to rite know is Miyako from "Schizofrenia".

[Shade of Blue]

While I my exposure to the listed songs is limited (if pressed, I'd give Foot prints a slight edge over Nefertiti), nothing that I've heard by him has grabbed me like "Hammerhead". visceral yet intelligent. I also like 'Mr. Jin"


Oh, I forgot that he wrote that.

That might be my favorite, above the others I mentioned.

[srellek]

Great thread. Thought someone should mention "Devil's Island" and "Lester Left Town." This minute, my favorite would be "Miyako".

[Seba]

my top 3 in random order,merely from a musician's point of view:

Speak no evil
Footprints
JuJu

[cdog]

Alegria........every time i listen to it this lives up to it's name "Pure Joy"

[escher]

Footprints, Dear sir (one of his greatest compositions on Lee Morgan's procrastinator), Sanctuary, Nefertiti

[randalljazz]

dolores

[abstract]

DANCE CADAVEROUS!!!!!!!!!

Really, if you can find a chart for that one, check it out. Nothing in heaven and earth compares.

And, Footprints is great and all but, I think its a bit pedestrian compared to a great deal of his other tunes.

[escher]

And, Footprints is great and all but, I think its a bit pedestrian compared to a great deal of his other tunes.

Ban?
Joking apart, i don't like too much his version on adam's apple, but on miles smiles i think is one of the greateast moments of jazz history.

[abstract]

Ban?
Joking apart, i don't like too much his version on adam's apple, but on miles smiles i think is one of the greateast moments of jazz history.

The thing is, its just a blues. So many of his other tunes are major feats of writing. I think he put a lot more thought into writing something like Infant Eyes or Dance Cadaverous and those tunes as well as many of his other ones are so strikingly original and interesting, no one had heard anything like them before.

[escher]

The thing is, its just a blues. So many of his other tunes are major feats of writing. I think he put a lot more thought into writing something like Infant Eyes or Dance Cadaverous and those tunes as well as many of his other ones are so strikingly original and interesting, no one had heard anything like them before.

I'm very interested in harmonical complexity, but i don't think that complexity is just a matter of number of strange chords. Footprints may be just a blues, but at least on Miles Smiles has a great subtlety that i don't find listening to Shorter's albums.

[abstract]

I'm very interested in harmonical complexity, but i don't think that complexity is just a matter of number of strange chords. Footprints may be just a blues, but at least on Miles Smiles has a great subtlety that i don't find listening to Shorter's albums.

Hey, Miles Smiles is a fucking great record and Footprints is a great tune, I just don't think it ranks as one of his best. We'll just have to agree to disagree on that one.

And you don't hear subtlety on Shorter's albums? Really? Have you ever listened to speak no evil? I think that album has a brilliant subtle tension running all the way through it. And the players on it are some of the same guys from Miles' quintet, Hancock and Carter, plus theres Hubbard and Jones. To me that album is absolutely perfect. I never tire of it.

[escher]

And you don't hear subtlety on Shorter's albums?

i'm not saying that; i love Wayne Shorter and i think he is one of the most interesting composers exactly for the originality and subtlety of his harmonies. I like Speak no evil (infant eyes is perhaps my favorite composition on it) and most of his album of the sixties.
But most of his compositions that i prefer are not on his albums but on those of Miles, Lee Morgan, Art Blakey: Footprints, Dear sir, Rio, This is for Albert, Sanctuary, Nefertiti, Masqualero. I don't know why.

[jazzsoulfunk]

Fe-Fi-Fo-Fum?

I would have picked that, but instead I'll settle with the classic that is footprints.

[abstract]

i'm not saying that; i love Wayne Shorter and i think he is one of the most interesting composers exactly for the originality and subtlety of his harmonies. I like Speak no evil (infant eyes is perhaps my favorite composition on it) and most of his album of the sixties.
But most of his compositions that i prefer are not on his albums but on those of Miles, Lee Morgan, Art Blakey: Footprints, Dear sir, Rio, This is for Albert, Sanctuary, Nefertiti, Masqualero. I don't know why.

I dig. Everything sounded great when Miles' 60's quintet played it.

[jagor]

Even though I voted for Footprints, the truth is that I consider all eight of Wayne Shorter's 1960's Blue Note albums as parts of a cohesive and coherent whole--the Wayne Shorter Blue Note Oeuvre.

On several occasions I have played all of these albums in chronological order, and I can state that the experience is unforgettable. Nothing seems surperfluous and everything is of the highest level of musicianship. I would compare the experience to classical music lovers listening to the 6 Bach solo cello suites or the 6 Bartok string quartets in succession: it's overwhelming.

I recommend this experience to anyone. You will emerge from it with an ever greater respect for Wayne Shorter as a composer, a performer and a band leader.

Jagor

[Chris Covais]

My favorite Shorter tune is Tom Thumb, which nobody seems to play. However, I voted for El Guacho, because I love Joe Chambers' playing on the recording.

[trpt2345]

The Three Marias is maybe my favorite all time Wayne tune. Sanctuary, Children of the Night (the revamped version on Hi Life), Over Shadow Hill Way, there are so many. Someone mentioned Tom Thumb, excellent. Footprints isn't even in my top ten, it was a toss-off so Miles' band would have something to play in concert, but the ones they never played (Nefertiti, Pinnochio, Iris, Delores) were so much more interesting as tunes. Oh, and Endangered Species, no one does that one. Too hard.

[Siddhartha]

If I have to choose from the list given - "Footprints".

But overall for me it is a tie between "Deluge" and "Adam's Apple".

[AronZana]

If I would have to choose from the list, I would pick "Footprints" - the version by Lonnie Liston Smith. Mm. So nice.

But my own favourite is "Non-stop home" recorded by Weather Report. Damn. It's crazy.

[ebrew]

I love Wayne's music... impossible to pick one but right now I've been digging "Armageddon" from Night Dreamer. "Iris" is another great tune that I'd like to hear more musicians cover...

[WorldB3]

On the list I voted for Nefertiti, if I had the option I would have voted for Fee Fi Fo Fum or Deluge... or... 10 -20 others.

[abstract]

lately I'm digging ponta de areia from Native Dancer. The first time I heard it, I scratched my head a little, but I love it dearly now.

[JameyA]

possibly "The Big Push" from the Soothsayer record.