Vocalese - Showcase
bebop jazz, vocalese showcase, virtuosic solo vocalist, single male or female jazz singer, rapid-fire syllables, articulate phrasing, upright bass, brushed drums, piano comping, walking bassline, smoky studio jazz club sound, clean microphone, human expressive timing, scat-to-lyric transitions, sophisticated swing, dynamic phrasing, intimate studio recording,
Vocalese - Showcase
bebop jazz, vocalese showcase, virtuosic solo vocalist, single male or female jazz singer, rapid-fire syllables, articulate phrasing, upright bass, brushed drums, piano comping, walking bassline, smoky studio jazz club sound, clean microphone, human expressive timing, scat-to-lyric transitions, sophisticated swing, dynamic phrasing, intimate studio recording,
Lyrics
Intro] [spoken softly
This is vocalese...
Words riding melodies once played by instruments.
Listen close.
Intro Scat
Ba-da lee-ba doo-ba day
Shoo-ba ditty da-ba sway
Bop-dee yip-ba doo-ba line
Now we turn those notes to rhyme
Verse 1] [vocalese fast swing
Trumpet took a flight at quarter after nine
Dancing through the changes in a silver spiral line
Every little run became a story I could sing
So I borrowed every heartbeat from the horn’s bright wing
Saxophone was laughing in a language made of air
I caught it with a sentence and I placed it gently there
Now the solo has a suitcase full of poetry and flame
That is how instrumental dreams can learn another name
Chorus] [smooth swing
Vocalese, vocalese
Words inside the melodies
Every note can speak with ease
Flying free through vocalese
Take a solo, make it sing
Give the rhythm human wings
Turn a phrase the trumpet frees
Into lines of vocalese
Verse 2] [faster articulation
Piano dropped a staircase made of midnight polished keys
I climbed it with a paragraph that floated on the breeze
Bass was walking downtown with a pocket full of time
I followed every footprint and I set it all to rhyme
Drummer brushed a whisper on the corner of the bar
I answered with a consonant that traveled just as far
When the band begins to sparkle and the singer starts to chase
That’s the art of putting language on a lightning-fast phrase
Bridge] [spoken teacher tone
Not just scat...
Not just lyrics...
You study the solo...
Then sing the solo... with words.
Scat Break
Bee-da bop-da lee-da lay
Shoo-ba zip-ba run away
Diddy-ba-da twist and glide
Now hear language join the ride
Final Chorus] [bigger energy
Vocalese, vocalese
Words inside the melodies
Every note can speak with ease
Flying free through vocalese
Take a solo, make it sing
Give the rhythm human wings
Turn a phrase the trumpet frees
Into lines of vocalese
Outro] [slow smoky finish
When horns grow quiet after play
Their stories still have much to say
Listen close and you may see...
The voice becomes the melody.