Horace Silver, music · Title track of Silver's 1964 Blue Note album
Song for My Father
A 24-bar tune in F minor that Horace Silver first recorded in 1964. It uses four chords over a repeating bass line, so it is easy to learn and open for solos. Jam sessions play it often, and more than 180 versions had been recorded by 2014.
▶ Plays the whole path in order, one recording after another.
- 1 Learn the song Horace Silver Quintet✓
- 2 Hear it live Horace Silver Quintet✓
- 3 Hear it as soul jazz Richard "Groove" Holmes✓
- 4 Add a horn to the organ Johnny "Hammond" Smith✓
- 5 Hear it on guitar George Benson✓
- 6 Hear it for a large band Horace Silver Orchestra✓
- 7 Hear it sung Dee Dee Bridgewater✓
- 8 Hear it as a piano trio David Hazeltine Trio✓
How the tune works
The tune runs 24 bars in three parts of eight: A, A again, then B. All 24 bars stay in F minor and use four chords: F minor 7, E♭7, D♭7 and C7. In A, F minor 7 holds two bars and E♭7 holds two. D♭7 and C7sus take a bar each, and F minor 7 returns for the last two bars. B starts on E♭7 for two bars and goes to F minor 7 for two. E♭7 and D♭7 share bar 5, C7 takes bar 6, and F minor 7 closes the last two bars. Bar 6 is the C7 bar in both parts, and on the 1964 record the rhythm section breaks there in every section.
Each box is one bar of 4/4. Play the A strain twice, then B. The chart uses four chords: F minor 7, E♭7, D♭7 and C7.
Taken from the Standard Repertoire chart, which is an image of a lead-sheet style chart marked 24 bars, AAB, 4/4, Latin, in F minor. It writes C7sus in bar 6 of A and C7 in bar 6 of B, and uses two chords in bar 5 of B. Wikipedia lists the four chords as F minor 9, E♭9, D♭9 and C9, and Jazz Video Lessons gives F minor 7, E♭7, D♭7 and C7sus4 in an AAB form of 24 bars. The chart leaves out the 9ths. Use the key buttons to move the chart to the key you play in.
Listen in this order
Play all 8 on YouTube ↗Eight versions, starting with Silver's own quintet and a live set from the next year. An organ trio, an organ quartet with tenor and guitar, a guitar-led record, Silver's big band, a vocal and a piano trio follow.
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Step 1 · Learn the song Now playing
Horace Silver Quintet 1964
Song for My Father
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Follow the bass line under the whole track, which plays only roots and fifths of the chords. The rhythm section breaks at bar 6 of every section, in the melody choruses and in the solos by Silver and then Henderson.
- Try this
- Play the chart's four chords with the record, one chord per bar, and count to bar 6 in each section so you hear the rhythm section's break arrive.
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Step 2 · Hear it live Now playing
Horace Silver Quintet 1965
“Song For My Father (Live at The Penthouse, Seattle, WA / 1965)”, Silver in Seattle: Live at the Penthouse
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- The band stretches out over about nine minutes in a live setting. Compare Woody Shaw's trumpet here with Carmell Jones on the 1964 record, and listen for Joe Henderson on tenor in both.
- Try this
- Play the chart's chords with this recording and make a pencil mark each time you pass the end of bar 24, so you count the choruses.
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Step 3 · Hear it as soul jazz Now playing
Richard "Groove" Holmes 1965
Soul Message
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- Listen for
- The trio has an organ, a guitar and drums, with no horns and no bass player credited. Listen for which instrument plays the low notes under the tune.
- Try this
- Play the chart's chords with this recording. Hold each chord for its bar, with the root in your left hand and the full chord in your right.
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Step 4 · Add a horn to the organ Now playing
Johnny "Hammond" Smith 1968
“Song For My Father”, Nasty!
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- A tenor saxophone, Houston Person, joins the organ, guitar and drums. Listen for who plays the melody and who solos next.
- Try this
- Play the chart's chords on a keyboard with an organ sound, one held chord per bar, and keep them steady for a full 24-bar chorus.
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Step 5 · Hear it on guitar Now playing
George Benson 1968
“Song For My Father”, Goodies
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- Listen for
- The guitar takes the lead role, with bass guitar and drums behind it. The take runs under five minutes.
- Try this
- Play the chart's chords on guitar or keyboard, one chord per bar, and finish a full 24-bar chorus without losing the count.
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Step 6 · Hear it for a large band Now playing
Horace Silver Orchestra 1993
“Song For My Father”, It's Got to Be Funky
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Silver plays piano in front of a large horn section instead of a quintet. The track runs 8:34, so count the choruses and notice where the horns play together.
- Try this
- Play the chart's chords as a big-band pianist would, with short chords on each bar, one chord per bar, and a gap between them for imaginary horns.
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Step 7 · Hear it sung Now playing
Dee Dee Bridgewater 1994
“Song For My Father”, Love and Peace: A Tribute to Horace Silver
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Hear the tune with a singer in front. A trumpet and a tenor saxophone share the band with Silver's piano. The whole track takes 5:36.
- Try this
- Sing the melody on one syllable over the chart's chords, one chord per bar. Then sing along with the recording for the first eight bars.
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Step 8 · Hear it as a piano trio Now playing
David Hazeltine Trio 2000
“Song For My Father”, Senor Blues
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- The trio has piano, bass and drums and no horns. Listen for which of the three plays the tune's repeating bass line.
- Try this
- Play the melody and the chart's chords yourself in F minor, then play along with the trio for one chorus.
More great versions
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Steely Dan 1973
“Rikki Don't Lose That Number”, Pretzel Logic
The intro riff of this 1974 single is described as an almost direct copy of the intro of Silver's tune.
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Michel Camilo 1997
Thru My Eyes
Michel Camilo plays the tune on his 1997 album Thru My Eyes, which Wikipedia lists as Latin jazz.
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Madlib featuring Sound Directions 2003
Shades of Blue: Madlib Invades Blue Note
Madlib's 2003 Blue Note remix album includes this track, credited to Madlib with Sound Directions.
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Stanley Jordan 2008
“Song For My Father”, State of Nature
Stanley Jordan plays the tune on his 2008 album State of Nature.
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Carmen Souza 2010
Protegid
Carmen Souza, born in Lisbon to Cape Verdean parents, sings the tune with lyrics she wrote.
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Conrad Herwig featuring Michel Camilo 2017
The Latin Side of Horace Silver
Trombonist Conrad Herwig recasts Silver's tunes in a Latin framework on this live album.