Antônio Carlos Jobim, music · Newton Mendonça, lyrics · On João Gilberto's Odeon single, recorded in Rio de Janeiro in 1958
Desafinado
Desafinado is a bossa nova by Antônio Carlos Jobim and Newton Mendonça, recorded by João Gilberto in 1958. Players like its long form, which leaves F for A major and C major before it comes home. Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd made it a hit in 1962; Ella Fitzgerald and Coleman Hawkins also recorded it.
▶ Plays the whole path in order, one recording after another.
- 1 Learn the song João Gilberto✓
- 2 Hear the hit Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd✓
- 3 Hear the composer's version Antônio Carlos Jobim✓
- 4 Hear a singer with a saxophone Stan Getz and João Gilberto, featuring Antonio Carlos Jobim✓
- 5 Hear a tenor saxophone over two guitars Coleman Hawkins✓
- 6 Hear it live, led by a flute Herbie Mann✓
- 7 Hear an alto saxophone quartet Art Pepper✓
- 8 Hear a modern piano trio Gabriel Latchin Trio✓
How the tune works
A chorus runs 68 bars in eight sections and passes through three keys. A (bars 1 to 8) holds Fmaj7 for two bars and G7♯11 for two, then runs Gm7, C7, Am7♭5 and D7♭9. B (9 to 16) goes Gm7, A7♭9, Dmaj7 and D7♭9, then G7 for two bars, G♭maj7 and G♭7♯11. A returns, and C (25 to 32) opens with Gm7, A7♭13, Dm7 and E7♯9, which lead to Amaj7 in bar 29, the first bar in A major. Dominant chords then step down: A♭7♯5, G7 and G♭7. D (33 to 40) stays in A major with Amaj7, A♯°7, Bm7 and E7, then Amaj7, Am7, Bm7♭5 and B♭7♯11. E (41 to 48) starts in C major with Cmaj7, C♯°7, Dm7 and G7, and Gm7 in bar 45 turns back toward F. A′ (49 to 56) repeats A and ends on D7♭13. A 12-bar tail brings the song home: B♭maj7, B♭m6, Am7 and A♭°7, then G7 for two bars and G♭maj7 for two, then G7, Gm7 with C7, and F6.
The 68-bar chorus from Jobim's own lead sheet, in F, four bars to a line: A (bars 1–8), B (9–16), A (17–24), C (25–32), D (33–40), E (41–48), A′ (49–56) and a 12-bar tail (57–68).
Taken from the lead sheet and piano arrangement in the Jobim archive (words by Newton Mendonça and Gene Lees, arranged by Antônio Carlos Jobim). The sheet opens with a two-bar intro and a nine-bar rubato section before the chorus starts a tempo; neither is charted here. Extensions such as 9 and 13 are dropped, and ♯11, ♭9, ♭13 and ♯9 stay where they color the chord. Bar 28 starts on Emaj7♯9 before E7♯9, bar 48 is C7sus4 then G♭7, and bar 67 plays F6, C7♭9 and F6 inside one bar. Bar 68 is the F6 that opens the sheet's closing vamp, counted here to complete the 68 bars. Other charts differ in bars 37 to 40, which the Art Pepper transcription reads as Amaj7 F♯m7 Bm7 E7. A forum poster reports that the Real Book's fifth edition leaves out four bars, and Wikipedia says the chart in The New Real Book follows Charlie Byrd's Jazz Samba reading and contains many errors, so compare this chart with the one you play from and with the recording. Use the key buttons to move the chart to the key you play in.
Source: Desafinado: lead sheet and piano arrangement, Jobim archive (Instituto Antonio Carlos Jobim)
Listen in this order
Play all 8 on YouTube ↗The path starts with João Gilberto's 1958 recording, the Getz and Byrd hit and Jobim's own version, then adds Getz with Gilberto, Coleman Hawkins, a live flute group, Art Pepper and a 2019 piano trio. Each step gives you one thing to hear and one thing to try.
-
Step 1 · Learn the song Now playing
João Gilberto 1958
Chega de Saudade
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Gilberto sings the Portuguese words, and the take lasts under two minutes. Follow the form on this page and see how its sections fit into that time.
- Try this
- Play the first eight bars of the chart: Fmaj7 for two bars, G7♯11 for two, then Gm7, C7, Am7♭5 and D7♭9. Smaller version: play only the first four bars as a loop.
-
Step 2 · Hear the hit Now playing
Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd 1962
Jazz Samba
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Getz is the featured soloist and Byrd arranged the tracks. The session lists two bassists and two drummers behind the tenor sax and guitar.
- Try this
- Play the chart's first four bars, Fmaj7, Fmaj7, G7♯11 and G7♯11, slowly, then try them with the record. If the record sits in another key, move the page's key buttons to match it. Smaller version: play only one chord per bar.
-
Step 3 · Hear the composer's version Now playing
Antônio Carlos Jobim 1963
The Composer of Desafinado, Plays
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Strings and a trombone join the rhythm section on this track, and the whole piece lasts under three minutes.
- Try this
- Play bars 1 to 16 of the chart once through, slowly. Smaller version: play the first eight bars twice and listen for where the record changes chord.
-
Step 4 · Hear a singer with a saxophone Now playing
Stan Getz and João Gilberto, featuring Antonio Carlos Jobim 1963
Getz/Gilberto
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Gilberto sings and plays guitar while Getz plays tenor sax and Jobim plays piano. Compare this group with the Getz and Byrd sextet in step 2.
- Try this
- Play the chart's first eight bars as a loop, slowly, then play along with the opening of the record. Smaller version: loop only the first four bars.
-
Step 5 · Hear a tenor saxophone over two guitars Now playing
Coleman Hawkins 1962
Desafinado
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- The session lists two guitarists with bass and drums behind Hawkins. Listen for the two guitars, then compare the rhythm section with the Getz and Byrd sextet in step 2.
- Try this
- Play only the bass note of each chord for the chart's first eight bars (F, F, G, G, G, C, A, D) along with the record. If it does not fit, move the page's key buttons to match the record.
-
Step 6 · Hear it live, led by a flute Now playing
Herbie Mann 1963
“Desafinado (Live at Newport Jazz Festival, July 7, 1963)”, Live at Newport
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Mann plays flute with Dave Pike on vibraphone, Attila Zoller on guitar and Don Friedman on piano. At 7:39 it is a long take, so notice where each soloist starts.
- Try this
- Follow the chart with your finger while the band plays the opening melody, and see how long you can keep your place. Smaller version: follow only the first four bars.
-
Step 7 · Hear an alto saxophone quartet Now playing
Art Pepper 1979
Artworks
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Pepper's alto takes two choruses over a shortened 44-bar cycle of the changes, in a Latin feel at about 140 beats a minute.
- Try this
- Play along with the first minute and a half of the record, using the chart's first eight bars as a loop. This take is in F, so the chart needs no key change. Smaller version: loop only Fmaj7 and G7♯11.
-
Step 8 · Hear a modern piano trio Now playing
Gabriel Latchin Trio 2019
Live at Pizza Express, Soho
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- The lineup is piano, bass and drums, so the piano carries the melody and the chords with no horn or singer. At nearly six minutes, count how many times the trio plays the form.
- Try this
- Follow the chart bar by bar for the first A section, then stop. The page's key buttons will move the chart if the trio plays in another key. Smaller version: follow only the first four bars.
More great versions
-
Charlie Byrd 1962
“Desafinado (Slightly Out of Tune)”, Bossa Nova Pelos Passaros
Byrd's own guitar version of the song, recorded in 1962 for Riverside.
-
Ella Fitzgerald 1962
The Girl From Ipanema: The Antonio Carlos Jobim Songbook
Ella Fitzgerald sang the Jon Hendricks English words in 1962 with Marty Paich conducting, and Wikipedia says her version charted at number 38 that year.
-
Zimbo Trio 1965
Zimbo Trio
A trio record that Apple Music dates to 1965, reissued by Movieplay in 1992.
-
Ella Fitzgerald 1981
“Off Key (Desafinado)”, Ella Abraça Jobim
Fitzgerald sang the Gene Lees English words, titled Off Key, on her Jobim album for Pablo.
-
Antônio Carlos Jobim, Pat Metheny and Joe Henderson 1994
“Desafinado (Live At Carnegie Hall/1994)”, The Man from Ipanema
A live Carnegie Hall performance from 1994 credited to Jobim, Pat Metheny and Joe Henderson, issued on The Man from Ipanema in 1995.
-
Eliane Elias 2008
Bossa Nova Stories
A 2008 vocal version by Eliane Elias, with arrangements by Rob Mathes.