"Señor Blues" is a composition by
Horace Silver
Horace Ward Martin Tavares Silver (September 2, 1928 – June 18, 2014) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, particularly in the hard bop style that he helped pioneer in the 1950s.
After playing tenor saxophone and piano at sc ...
. The original version, an instrumental by Silver's quintet, was recorded on November 10, 1956. It has become a
jazz standard.
Silver later wrote lyrics, which were first recorded by Silver's band with
Bill Henderson singing in 1958.
Composition
"'Señor Blues' is a 12/8 Latin piece with a dark, exotic flavor that recalls no other jazz composer as much as
Duke Ellington. The first two chords are E minor and B7, resembling (whether consciously intended or not) one of Ellington's favorite harmonic gestures."
Original recording
The piece was first recorded on November 10, 1956, by the Horace Silver Quintet, of Silver (piano),
Hank Mobley (tenor saxophone),
Donald Byrd (trumpet),
Doug Watkins
Douglas Watkins (March 2, 1934 – February 5, 1962) was an American jazz double bassist. He was best known for being an accompanist to various hard bop artists in the Detroit area, including Donald Byrd and Jackie McLean.
Biography
Watkins ...
(bass), and
Louis Hayes
Louis Hayes (born May 31, 1937) is an American jazz drummer and band leader. He was with McCoy Tyner's trio for more than three years. Since 1989 he has led his own band, and together with Vincent Herring formed the Cannonball Legacy Band. He ...
(drums).
commented that Señor Blues' officially put Horace Silver on the map".
It was released as part of the
Blue Note Records album ''
6 Pieces of Silver
''6 Pieces of Silver'' is a studio album by jazz pianist Horace Silver released on the Blue Note Records, Blue Note label in 1957 featuring performances by Silver with Donald Byrd, Hank Mobley, Doug Watkins and Louis Hayes. The Allmusic review b ...
''.
The track was a minor hit and was released as a 45-rpm single by Blue Note.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Senor Blues (song)
1950s jazz standards
1956 songs
Compositions by Horace Silver