Miles Davis, music · Written for Cannonball Adderley's session for Portrait of Cannonball, 1958
Nardis
Nardis is a 1958 tune credited to Miles Davis, first recorded by Cannonball Adderley that July. Bill Evans played on that first recording and kept the tune in his sets until 1980. Pianists, guitarists, horn players and singers have all recorded it, and it appears in the Real Book.
▶ Plays the whole path in order, one recording after another.
- 1 Hear the first recording Cannonball Adderley Quintet✓
- 2 Hear the trio version Bill Evans Trio✓
- 3 Hear it live Bill Evans Trio✓
- 4 Hear three horns Joe Henderson Sextet✓
- 5 Hear a sextet George Russell Sextet✓
- 6 Hear two guitars Jimmy Raney and Doug Raney✓
- 7 Hear a backbeat Jacky Terrasson✓
- 8 Hear the last trio Bill Evans Trio✓
How the tune works
A chorus runs 32 bars in AABA form. Each A starts on Em7, steps up a half step to Fmaj7, then moves to B7 and Cmaj7. The second half of the A goes Am7 and Fmaj7, then Emaj7, a short major-key chord, and back to Em7. The bridge (bars 17 to 24) leaves E minor for C major. It plays Am7 and Fmaj7 twice, then Dm7, G7 and Cmaj7, and the last bar goes to Fmaj7, which leads back into the final A. Charts of Bill Evans's version differ in small ways: they put Em7 and Fmaj7 together in the second bar and write Am6 where this chart has Am7 in the bridge.
The changes in E minor, four bars to a line: A (bars 1–8), A (9–16), bridge (17–24) and the last A (25–32). The A sections take one chord per bar. The bridge moves to C major.
Taken from the chord chart at standardrepertoire.com, which gives Nardis in E minor, medium swing, 4/4, AABA, 32 bars, and checked against the table headed 'Chords in Nardis as played by Bill Evans' on Wikipedia. The two agree on bars 1 and 3 to 8 of the A section and on the bridge's Dm7, G7, Cmaj7 and Fmaj7. They differ in four places. Wikipedia writes Em7 and Fmaj7 together in bar 2 of each A, writes Am6 where this chart has Am7 in bars 17 and 19, puts Dm7 and G7 together in bar 22, and gives the last A's bar 31 as Emaj7 and Em7 with a B7 in bar 32. The Emaj7 in bar 7 of each A is a brief major chord before the return to Em7. A guitar lesson at jazzguitar.be describes the same shape: A sections around E minor, a bridge in C major. This chart is a published chord chart and does not transcribe one recording, so compare it with the sheet you play from and with the take you are listening to. Use the key buttons to move the chart to the key you play in.
Listen in this order
Play all 8 on YouTube ↗The path starts with Cannonball Adderley's 1958 quintet, the first recording of Nardis, then follows Bill Evans in 1961 and at Montreux in 1968. It continues with two horn-led sextets, a guitar duo and a piano trio over a backbeat, and ends with Evans's last trio in 1980. Each step gives you one thing to hear and one thing to try.
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Step 1 · Hear the first recording Now playing
Cannonball Adderley Quintet 1958
“Nardis (take 5)”, Portrait of Cannonball
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- Listen for
- Alto sax and trumpet play the theme together over Bill Evans on piano, with Sam Jones on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums. Count the 32-bar chorus as A, A, bridge, A.
- Try this
- Play Em7 and Fmaj7 back and forth, one bar each, along with the recording. Then add B7 and Cmaj7 to play the first four bars of the A section.
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Step 2 · Hear the trio version Now playing
Bill Evans Trio 1961
Explorations
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- Listen for
- Scott LaFaro takes an extended bass solo. With only piano, bass and drums, you can follow each player's part.
- Try this
- Play the chart's first A section, one chord per bar: Em7, Fmaj7, B7, Cmaj7, Am7, Fmaj7, Emaj7, Em7. Smaller version: play only the first four bars.
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Step 3 · Hear it live Now playing
Bill Evans Trio 1968
“Nardis (live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 1968)”, Bill Evans at the Montreux Jazz Festival
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- Listen for
- This take runs 8:24, with Eddie Gomez on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums. Peter Pettinger writes that Evans's late-1960s Nardis performances centered on a DeJohnette solo, so listen to what the drums do.
- Try this
- Count the form along with the recording: A (8 bars), A (8), bridge (8), A (8). Tap one finger at the start of each section. Smaller version: count only the first eight bars.
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Step 4 · Hear three horns Now playing
Joe Henderson Sextet 1967
The Kicker
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- Listen for
- Henderson's tenor sax, Mike Lawrence's trumpet and Grachan Moncur III's trombone open the track together. Each horn takes a solo, and Kenny Barron plays a short piano solo before the horns return.
- Try this
- Play the first four bars of the chart's bridge: Am7, Fmaj7, Am7, Fmaj7. Smaller version: play Am7 and Fmaj7 back and forth, one bar each.
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Step 5 · Hear a sextet Now playing
George Russell Sextet 1961
Ezz-thetics
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- Listen for
- The album lists six players: Don Ellis on trumpet, Dave Baker on trombone, Eric Dolphy on alto sax and bass clarinet, George Russell on piano, Steve Swallow on bass and Joe Hunt on drums. Try to pick out each horn by ear.
- Try this
- Play the chart's bridge, one chord per bar: Am7, Fmaj7, Am7, Fmaj7, Dm7, G7, Cmaj7, Fmaj7. Smaller version: play only the last four bars, Dm7, G7, Cmaj7 and Fmaj7.
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Step 6 · Hear two guitars Now playing
Jimmy Raney and Doug Raney 1983
Nardis
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- Listen for
- Two guitarists, father and son, with no other players credited. Try to follow which guitar plays the theme and which plays chords at each point.
- Try this
- Play the theme with the chart's chords under it for the first four bars: Em7, Fmaj7, B7, Cmaj7. Smaller version: play the chords alone, one per bar, and hum the theme.
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Step 7 · Hear a backbeat Now playing
Jacky Terrasson 2002
Smile
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- Listen for
- Listen for Eric Harland's backbeat and a spare bass line. Hear how the tune sits over that groove.
- Try this
- Play the first four bars of the A section with chords on the beat and a steady backbeat on beats 2 and 4: Em7, Fmaj7, B7, Cmaj7. Smaller version: tap the backbeat on your knee while humming the theme.
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Step 8 · Hear the last trio Now playing
Bill Evans Trio 1980
“Nardis (recorded September 3, 1980)”, The Last Waltz: The Final Recordings at Keystone Korner, September 1980
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- This take runs 15:55, with Marc Johnson on bass and Joe LaBarbera on drums. One writer singles out the solo piano introduction Evans played on these 1980 Nardis performances, so check whether this take starts with Evans alone.
- Try this
- Loop the A section from the chart, one chord per bar, and change one thing each time round, such as the register or the rhythm. Smaller version: loop only Em7 and Fmaj7 and change just the rhythm.
More great versions
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Bill Evans 1963
“Medley: "Spartacus" Love Theme / Nardis”, The Solo Sessions, Vol. 1
Bill Evans plays alone on a medley that joins the Spartacus love theme to Nardis, recorded in New York in January 1963.
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Bill Evans Trio 1964
“Nardis (live at the Trident Club, 1964)”, The Bill Evans Trio "Live"
Bill Evans, Chuck Israels and Larry Bunker played Nardis live at the Trident in Sausalito in July 1964.
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Richard Beirach, Frank Tusa and Jeff Williams 1974
Eon
Pianist Richie Beirach opens his ECM trio album Eon with an 11-minute Nardis, recorded in November 1974 with Frank Tusa and Jeff Williams.
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The Michel Petrucciani Trio 1984
“Nardis (live at the Village Vanguard, 1984)”, Live at the Village Vanguard
Michel Petrucciani played Nardis in concert at the Village Vanguard on March 16, 1984, with Palle Danielsson and Eliot Zigmund.
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Sarah Elizabeth Charles 2015
Inner Dialogue
Vocalist Sarah Elizabeth Charles recorded Nardis for her album Inner Dialogue, released on Truth Revolution Records in March 2015.
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John Abercrombie Quartet 2016
Up and Coming
John Abercrombie's quartet with Marc Copland, Drew Gress and Joey Baron recorded Nardis in April or May 2016 at Avatar Studios for the ECM album Up and Coming.