"Watermelon Man" is a

jazz standard Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive lis ...

written by

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

for his debut album, '' Takin' Off'' (1962). Hancock's first version was released as a grooving

hard bop Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that is an extension of bebop (or "bop") music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz that incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gospe ...

record, and featured improvisations by

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives fo ...

and

Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and actor. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians, which included other greats such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gi ...

. A single reached the Top 100 of the pop chart. Cuban percussionist

Mongo Santamaría Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez (April 7, 1917 – February 1, 2003) was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga and ...

released the tune as a

Latin pop Latin pop (in Spanish and in Portuguese: Pop latino) is a pop music subgenre that is a fusion of US–style music production with Latin music genres from anywhere in Latin America and Spain. Originating in Spanish-speaking musicians, Latin po ...

single and it became a surprise hit, reaching No. 10 on the pop chart.Strong, Martin Charles (2004). ''The Great Rock Discography: Complete Discographies Listing Every Track''. Canongate. pp. 652–653. Santamaría's recording was inducted into the

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

in 1998. Hancock radically re-worked the tune, combining elements of

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

, for the album ''

Head Hunters ''Head Hunters'' is the twelfth studio album by American pianist and composer Herbie Hancock, released October 26, 1973, on Columbia Records. Recording sessions for the album took place in the evening at Wally Heider Studios and Different Fur T ...

'' (1973).Brackett, Nathan (2004). ''The New Rolling Stone Album Guide''.

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

. p. 361.

1963 Herbie Hancock version

Hancock wrote the piece to help sell his debut album as a

leader Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...

, '' Takin' Off'' (1962), on

Blue Note Records Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derived its name from the blue notes of jazz and the blues. Or ...

; it was the first piece of music he had ever composed with a commercial goal in mind. The popularity of the piece, due primarily to

, paid Hancock's bills for five or six years. Hancock did not feel the composition was a sellout however, describing that structurally, it was one of his strongest pieces due to its almost mathematical balance.Lyons, Len (1989). ''The Great Jazz Pianists: Speaking of Their Lives and Music''. Da Capo Press. p. 275. The form is a sixteen bar blues. Recalling the piece, Hancock said, "I remember the cry of the

watermelon Watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a flowering plant species of the Cucurbitaceae family and the name of its edible fruit. A scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, it is a highly cultivated fruit worldwide, with more than 1,000 varieti ...

man making the rounds through the back streets and alleys of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. The wheels of his wagon beat out the rhythm on the

cobblestone Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct fro ...

s." The tune, based on a

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

y piano

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...

, drew on elements of R&B,

soul jazz Soul jazz or funky jazz is a subgenre of jazz that incorporates strong influences from hard bop, blues, soul, gospel and rhythm and blues. Soul jazz is often characterized by organ trios featuring the Hammond organ and small combos including ten ...

and

bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrumen ...

, all combined into a pop

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

. Hancock joined bassist

Butch Warren Edward Rudolph "Butch" Warren Jr. (August 9, 1939 – October 5, 2013) was an American jazz bassist who was active during the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Warren's mother was a typist at the CIA. His father, Edward Sr., was an electronics tech ...

and drummer

Billy Higgins Billy Higgins (October 11, 1936 – May 3, 2001) was an American jazz drummer. He played mainly free jazz and hard bop. Biography Higgins was born in Los Angeles, California, United States. Higgins played on Ornette Coleman's first records, be ...

in the

rhythm section A rhythm section is a group of musicians within a music ensemble or band that provides the underlying rhythm, harmony and pulse of the accompaniment, providing a rhythmic and harmonic reference and "beat" for the rest of the band. The rhythm sec ...

, with

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 ...

and

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...

.Creswell, Toby (2006). ''1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time and the Artists, Stories and Secrets Behind Them''. Thunder's Mouth Press. p. 333. Hancock's chordal work draws from the

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

tradition, while he builds his

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 ...

on repeated riffs and trilled figures.

Mongo Santamaría version

Watermelon man by mongo santamaria band US single side-A

Hancock filled in for pianist

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

in Mongo Santamaría's band one weekend at a

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

when Corea gave notice that he was leaving. Hancock played the tune for Santamaría at friend Donald Byrd's urging. Santamaría started accompanying him on his

congas The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest) ...

, then his band joined in, and the small audience slowly got up from their tables and started dancing, laughing and having a great time. Santamaría later asked Hancock if he could record the tune. On December 17, 1962, Mongo Santamaría recorded a three-minute version, suitable for radio, where he joined

timbalero Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfic ...

Francisco "Kako" Baster in a cha-cha beat, while

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...

Ray Lucas performed a

backbeat In music and music theory, the beat is the basic unit of time, the pulse (regularly repeating event), of the ''mensural level'' (or ''beat level''). The beat is often defined as the rhythm listeners would tap their toes to when listening to a pi ...

.Gerard, Charley (2001). ''Music from Cuba: Mongo Santamaria, Chocolate Armenteros, and Cuban Musicians''. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 54-55. With the enthusiasm of record producer

Orrin Keepnews Orrin Keepnews (March 2, 1923 – March 1, 2015) was an American jazz writer and record producer known for founding Riverside Records and Milestone Records, for freelance work, and for his work at other labels. Biography Early life Keepnews w ...

, the band re-recorded the song and released it as a single under Battle Records. The single reached number10 on ''Billboard'' in 1963. Santamaría included the track on his album ''Watermelon Man!'' (1963). Santamaría's recording is sometimes considered the beginning of

Latin boogaloo Boogaloo or bugalú (also: shing-a-ling, Latin boogaloo, Latin R&B) is a music genre, genre of Latin music and dance which was popular in the United States in the 1960s. Boogaloo originated in New York City mainly among teenage African Americans ...

, a fusion of

Afro-Cuban Afro-Cubans or Black Cubans are Cubans of West African ancestry. The term ''Afro-Cuban'' can also refer to historical or cultural elements in Cuba thought to emanate from this community and the combining of native African and other cultural ele ...

rhythms with those of R&B.

Chart performance

1973 Herbie Hancock version

Hancock re-recorded the tune for ''

'' (1973), combining

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

s with a

Sly Stone Sylvester Stewart (born March 15, 1943), better known by his stage name Sly Stone, is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer who is most famous for his role as frontman for Sly and the Family Stone, playing a critical role in the ...

and

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

influence,Vincent, Rickey (1996). ''Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of The One''.

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

. adding an eight-bar section. Hancock described his composition "

Chameleon Chameleons or chamaeleons (family Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards with 202 species described as of June 2015. The members of this family are best known for their distinct range of colors, bein ...

", also from ''Head Hunters'', to ''

Down Beat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' magazine in 1979: "In the popular forms of funk, which I've been trying to get into, the attention is on the rhythmic interplay between different instruments. The part the

Clavinet The Clavinet is an electrically amplified clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds by a rubber pad striking a point on a tension ...

plays has to fit with the part the

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

play and the line the bass plays and the line that the

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

plays. It's almost like African drummers where seven drummers play different parts"; "Watermelon Man" shares a similar construction. A live version was released on the

double LP A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...

Flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

'' (1975), recorded in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. On the

intro Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and ...

and outro of the tune, percussionist

Bill Summers Bill Summers may refer to: * Bill Summers (car builder) (1935–2011), American car builder and longtime speed record holder * Bill Summers (musician) (born 1948), American jazz percussionist *Bill Summers (umpire) William Reed Summers (November ...

blows into

beer bottle A beer bottle is a bottle designed as a container for beer. Such designs vary greatly in size and shape, but the glass commonly is brown or green to reduce spoilage from light, especially ultraviolet. The most widely established alternatives to ...

s imitating hindewhu, a style of singing/whistle-playing found in

Pygmy music Pygmy music refers to the sub-Saharan African music traditions of the Central African foragers (or "Pygmies"), predominantly in the Congo, the Central African Republic and Cameroon. Pygmy groups include the Bayaka, the Mbuti, and the Batwa. ...

Central Africa Central Africa is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries according to different definitions. Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, ...

. Hancock and Summers were struck by the sound, which they heard on the

ethnomusicology Ethnomusicology is the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it. It encompasses distinct theoretical and methodical approaches that emphasize cultural, social, material, cognitive, biological, and other dim ...

album ''The Music of the Ba-Benzélé Pygmies'' (1966) by

Simha Arom Simha Arom (born 1930) is a French-Israeli ethnomusicologist who is recognized as a world expert on the music of central Africa, especially that of the Central African Republic. His books include '' African Polyphony and Polyrhythm: Musical Stru ...

and Geneviève Taurelle.Feld, Steven (1996). "Pygmy POP. A Genealogy of Schizophonic Mimesis.'' Yearbook for Traditional Music 28. p. 4-5. This version was often featured on

The Weather Channel The Weather Channel (TWC) is an American pay television channel owned by Weather Group, LLC, a subsidiary of Allen Media Group. The channel's headquarters are in Atlanta, Georgia. Launched on May 2, 1982, the channel broadcasts weather forecas ...

Local on the 8s ''Local on the 8s'' (or the Local Forecast) is a program segment that airs on the American network The Weather Channel. It provides viewers with information on current and forecasted weather conditions for their respective area; a version of thi ...

segments. It was also played in the 2018 movie ''

mid90s ''Mid90s'' (stylized as ''mid90s'') is a 2018 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film written and directed by Jonah Hill, in his feature directorial debut, inspired by Hill's own childhood in the mid-1990s. It stars Sunny Suljic, Lucas Hedges ...

''.

Other versions

The tune is a

and has been recorded over two hundred times: *In 2003, pianist David Benoit covered the song from his album ''Right Here, Right Now''. *A live and funky performance at the 1999 Montreux Jazz Festival Casino Lights '99 featured

Fourplay Fourplay (stylized as fOURPLAY) is a contemporary American smooth jazz quartet. The original members of the group were Bob James (keyboards), Lee Ritenour (guitars), Nathan East (bass), and Harvey Mason (drums). In 1997, Lee Ritenour left the ...

George Duke George M. Duke (January 12, 1946 – August 5, 2013) was an American keyboardist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He worked with numerous artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and as a pr ...

Boney James Boney James (born James Oppenheim September 1, 1961) is an American saxophonist (tenor, alto and soprano), songwriter, record producer and recording artist. He is a four-time Grammy Award nominee (Best Pop Instrumental Album, 2001, 2004, 2014 an ...

and

Kirk Whalum Kirk is a Scottish and former Northern English word meaning "church". It is often used specifically of the Church of Scotland. Many place names and personal names are also derived from it. Basic meaning and etymology As a common noun, ''kirk'' ...

trading choruses, and

Rick Braun Rick Braun (born July 6, 1955) is a smooth jazz trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone and keyboards player, vocalist, composer, and record producer. Career Braun was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and attended Dieruff High School. His mother was a se ...

Samples

Hancock's recording has been

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...

in: *"1-900-LL-Cool-J" from ''

Walking with a Panther ''Walking with a Panther'' is the third studio album by American hip hop recording artist LL Cool J, released June 9, 1989, on Def Jam Recordings. Background While his previous album ''Bigger and Deffer'' (1987) was produced by The L.A. Posse ...

'' (1989) by

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, along ...

*"Open Your Eyes" from ''

Organized Konfusion Organizing or organized may refer to: * Organizing (management), a process of coordinating task goals and activities to resources * Community organizing, in which communities come together to act in their shared self-interest * Professional organi ...

'' (1991) by

*"Smoke Some Kill" from ''

Smoke Some Kill ''Smoke Some Kill'' is the third album by rapper Schoolly D. The album was released in 1988 for Jive Records and was produced by Schoolly D. Release Though the album was not as successful as ''Saturday Night! – The Album'', it did manage to mak ...

'' (1988) by

Schoolly D Jesse Bonds Weaver Jr. (born June 22, 1962), better known by the stage name Schoolly D (sometimes spelled Schooly D), is an American rapper from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Career Schoolly D teamed up with DJ Code Money in the mid-1980s. His ...

, *"Pocket Full of Furl" from ''Uptown 4 Life'' (1996) by U.N.L.V. *"Sanctuary" from '' Bedtime Stories'' (1994) by

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

Dolly My Baby "Dolly My Baby" is the title of a reggae/ hip-hop song performed by Jamaican reggae/dancehall recording artist Super Cat released as a single in early 1993 (see 1993 in music). The original version of the song is featured on Super Cat's album ''D ...

" from ''Don Dada'' (1992) by

Super Cat William Anthony Maragh (born 25 June 1963),Huey, Steve " Super Cat Biography, Allmusic, retrieved 18 July 2010 also known as Super Cat, is a Jamaican deejay who achieved widespread popularity during the late 1980s and early 1990s dancehall mo ...

Personnel

''Takin' Off'' version: *

– piano *

– tenor saxophone *

– drums, percussion *

– trumpet *

– double bass ''Head Hunters'' version: *

– Fender Rhodes, clavinet, synthesizer *

Bennie Maupin Bennie Maupin (born August 29, 1940) is an American jazz multireedist who performs on various saxophones, flute, and bass clarinet. Maupin was born in Detroit, Michigan, United States. He is known for his participation in Herbie Hancock's Mwandi ...

– soprano saxophone *

– percussion, beer bottle, hindewhu *

Harvey Mason Harvey William Mason (born February 22, 1947) is an American jazz drummer, record producer, and member of the band Fourplay. Mason, who attended Berklee in the 1960s, received an Honorary Doctorate at Berklee's 2015 Commencement Ceremony for ...

– drums *

Paul Jackson Paul Jackson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Paul Jackson (bassist) (1947–2021), American jazz fusion bassist * Paul Jackson Jr. (born 1959), American jazz fusion guitarist * Paul Jackson (poker player), English professional poker player ...

– bass guitar

References

{{Authority control 1962 songs 1963 debut singles 1960s jazz standards Hard bop jazz standards Bill Haley songs The J.B.'s songs 1960s instrumentals Jazz compositions Songs written by Herbie Hancock Jazz compositions in F major Jazz standards Herbie Hancock songs Herbie Hancock