Papa Jo Jones Drum Transcription: "Philadelphia Bound"

Our first drum transcription from brush master Papa Jo Jones, from the classic record (and bible for brushes playing) The Papa Jo Jones Trio, with Ray Bryant and Tommy Bryant.  You can find it here:

Papa Jo Jones drum transcription - Philadelphia Bound

--Drum Transcription: A four-page in-depth drum transcription of “Papa” Jo Jones playing brushes on Ray Bryant’s "Philadelphia Bound."
-- solo drum introduction
-- in melody (horn melodies are shown above the drum staff)
-- Jo Jones’ time as he plays behind Ray Bryant’s piano solo (first two choruses)
-- piano and drums trading fours (six choruses) -- out melody

--Description: Any great jazz drummer will tell you that “Papa” Jo Jones helped write the book on playing brushes. Countless well-known jazz drummers cite this particular recording as their bible of brush playing. You can hear the articulation of his brushes very clearly, and his feeling is so strong. The tempo is extremely fast, but Jones plays it with relaxed ease and the group follows his lead.

This transcription also showcases Jones' solo talents and demonstrates why his style of playing would be so influential on the drummers who followed.

As you work through this transcription, try to emulate Jones’ sound on the drum: the dynamics and “touch” of his accents.

Ray Bryant Swings

I recently discovered a great record called the "Ray Bryant Trio," with Ike Isaacs on bass, and Charles "Specs" Wright on drums, recorded in 1957.


I had heard Ray on two of my all-time favorite drum records, "Papa Joe Jones Trio" and "Max Roach +4," but this record is much different, very mellow and tasty, with some nice brush playing by Charles "Specs" Wright.

Ray Bryant is a terrific composer, and you can find some very nice compositions of his here:

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