"Stolen Moments" is a jazz standard composed by

Oliver Nelson Oliver Edward Nelson (June 4, 1932 – October 28, 1975) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, composer, and bandleader. His 1961 Impulse! album ''The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' (1961) is regarded as one of the most signifi ...

. It is a 16-bar piece though the

solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series * Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''S ...

s are on a conventional minor blues structure. The recording of the song on Nelson's 1961 album, '' The Blues and the Abstract Truth'', led to it being more generally covered. The tune was given lyrics when Mark Murphy recorded his version in 1978.

History

The piece first appeared as "The Stolen Moment" on the 1960 album '' Trane Whistle'' by

Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis Edward F. Davis (March 2, 1922 – November 3, 1986), known professionally as Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. It is unclear how he acquired the moniker "Lockjaw" (later shortened in "Jaws"): it is either said that ...

, which was largely written and co-arranged by Oliver Nelson. It was not marked out as anything special, in fact the cover notes only mention that the

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

solo is by

Bobby Bryant Bobby Bryant (born January 24, 1944) is a former cornerback for the Minnesota Vikings. Early life At Willingham High School, he was a star in football along with basketball, track and field, and baseball. Bryant was recruited to play for the Un ...

and that Eric Dolphy's bass clarinet can be heard briefly on the closing. However, in the liner notes to ''Eric Dolphy: The Complete Prestige Recordings'', Bill Kirchner states that this incorrectly credits Dolphy with playing what is actually the baritone saxophone of George Barrow, with Dolphy's contribution to the piece being the second alto behind Nelson. The first recording of the song to gain attention was the version on Nelson's own 1961 album, ''The Blues and the Abstract Truth''.

Ted Gioia Ted Gioia (born October 21, 1957) is an American jazz critic and music historian. He is author of eleven books, including ''Music: A Subversive History'', '' The Jazz Standards: A Guide to the Repertoire'', ''The History of Jazz'' and ''Delta Blu ...

describes this version of as "a querulous hard bop chart that makes full use of the horns on hand with its rich spread-out voicings." Gioia also observes "a clever hook in the song – its brief resolve into the tonic major in bar four of the melody, one of the many interesting twists in Nelson's original chart." Nelson's solo on this version contains "possibly the most famous" use of the

augmented scale In music and music theory, a hexatonic scale is a scale with six pitches or notes per octave. Famous examples include the whole-tone scale, C D E F G A C; the augmented scale, C D E G A B C; the Prometheus scale, C D E F A B C; and the blues s ...

in jazz.Advanced: "Secrets of the symmetrical augmented scale". Josh Workman. ''Guitar Player'' 41.7 (July 2007): p108(2). Singer Mark Murphy wrote

lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a " libretto" and their writer, ...

for his 1978 version. Gail Fisher later wrote different lyrics to Nelson's original melody. They were first recorded on the 1987 album '' The Carmen McRae – Betty Carter Duets''. This vocal version of "Stolen Moments" was given the alternative title "You Belong to Her".

Recordings

Emilie-Claire Barlow Emilie-Claire Barlow (born 6 June 1976) is a Canadian singer, arranger, record producer, and voice actress. She has released several albums on her label, Empress Music Group, and has voiced characters for animated television series. She performs ...

– ''Sings'' (1998) * Kenny Barron,

Jay Leonhart Jay Leonhart (born December 6, 1940) is a double bassist, singer, and songwriter who has worked in jazz and popular music. He has performed with Judy Garland, Bucky Pizzarelli, Carly Simon, Frank Sinatra, and Sting. Leonhart is noted for his cle ...

, and

Al Foster Aloysius Tyrone Foster (born January 18, 1943) is an American jazz drummer. Foster's professional career began in the mid-60s, when he played and recorded with hard bop and swing musicians including Blue Mitchell and Illinois Jacquet. Foster ...

– ''Super Standard'' (2004) *

Kenny Burrell Kenneth Earl Burrell (born July 31, 1931) is an American jazz guitarist known for his work on numerous top jazz labels: Prestige, Blue Note, Verve, CTI, Muse, and Concord. His collaborations with Jimmy Smith were notable, and produced the 1965 ...

– ''

Moon and Sand ''Moon and Sand'' is an album recorded by Kenny Burrell at Coast Records in December 1979. The album was initially released on the Concord Jazz label. The record is considered unusual in Burrell's catalog for the amount of acoustic guitar playi ...

'' (1979) *

– '' Trane Whistle'' (1960) * Ahmad Jamal, '' The Awakening'' (1970) * J. J. Johnson – '' J.J.!'' (1964) *

Stanley Jordan Stanley Jordan (born July 31, 1959) is an American jazz guitarist noted for his playing technique, which involves tapping his fingers on the fretboard of the guitar with both hands. Music career Jordan was born in Chicago, Illinois, United St ...

– ''Stolen Moments'' (1991) * Joe Locke and Kenny Barron – ''But Beautiful'' (1991) *

Herbie Mann Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet (inclu ...

with Chick Corea –''

Standing Ovation at Newport ''Standing Ovation at Newport'' is a live album by American jazz flautist Herbie Mann recorded at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1965 (with one track from an earlier performance at The Village Gate) for the Atlantic Records, Atlantic label.< ...

'' (1965) * Tina May – '' 'Time Will Tell...' '' (1996) *

Carmen McRae Carmen Mercedes McRae (April 8, 1920 – November 10, 1994) was an American jazz singer. She is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century and is remembered for her behind-the-beat phrasing and ironic interpre ...

and Betty Carter – '' The Carmen McRae – Betty Carter Duets'' (1987) * Mark Murphy – ''Stolen Moments'' (1978) *

– '' The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' (1961) *

– '' Stolen Moments'' (1975) *

Jimmy Raney James Elbert Raney (August 20, 1927 – May 10, 1995) was an American jazz guitarist, born in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, known for his work from 1951 to 1952 and then from 1953 to 1954 with the Red Norvo trio (replacing Tal Farlow) and ...

and

Doug Raney Doug Raney (August 29, 1956 – May 1, 2016) was an American jazz guitarist. He was the son of jazz guitarist Jimmy Raney. Career Raney was born in New York City. He began to play the guitar when he was 14, beginning with rock and blues. He was ...

– '' Stolen Moments'' (1979) * Lee Ritenour – '' Stolen Moments'' (1990) *

Mary Stallings Mary Stallings (born August 16, 1939) is an American jazz vocalist and mother of soul singer Adriana Evans. Biography One of eleven children, Mary Stallings was born in San Francisco, California. She grew up in the neighborhood of Laurel Hei ...

– ''Songs Were Made to Sing'' (2019) *

Andy Summers Andrew James Summers (born 31 December 1942), is an English guitarist who was a member of the rock band The Police. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a band member in 2003. Summers has recorded solo albums, collaborated wi ...

and Victor Biglione – ''Strings of Desire'' (1998) *

Turtle Island Quartet The Turtle Island Quartet is a string quartet that plays hybrids of jazz, classical, and rock music. The group was formed in 1985 by David Balakrishnan, Darol Anger, and Mark Summer in San Francisco. They released their first album on Windham H ...

– ''Turtle Island String Quartet'' (1988) * United Future Organization – '' Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool'' (1994) *

Kazumi Watanabe is a Japanese guitarist. Other guitarists such as Luke Takamura and Sugizo have cited him as an influence. Career Watanabe learned guitar at the age of 12 from Sadanori Nakamure at the Yamaha Music School in Tokyo. He released his first album ...

– ''Mo' Bop III'' (2011) *

Phil Woods Philip Wells Woods (November 2, 1931 – September 29, 2015) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader, and composer. Biography Woods was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. After inheriting a saxophone at age 12, he began ...

– ''Americans Swinging in Paris'' (1968) * Frank Zappa and Sting – ''

Broadway the Hard Way ''Broadway the Hard Way '' is a live album by American musician Frank Zappa recorded at various performances along his 1988 world tour. It was first released as a 9-track vinyl album through Zappa's label Barking Pumpkin Records in October 1988, ...

'' (1988)

Sources

External links

* {{youtube, Q1dK1JHacbQ, Oliver Nelson – Stolen Moments Jazz songs Sixteen bar sections 1960 songs 1960s jazz standards