Night in Tunisia

Composed by Dizzy Gillespie and Frank Paparelli, arranged by Sammy Nestico

A Night in Tunisia, Sammy Nestico arrangement performed by the Air National Guard Band of the Southwest/562nd Air Force Band

There are many versions of Dizzy Gillespie's 1942 classic A Night in Tunisia. Ours is an arrangement by the great Basie composer/arranger Sammy Nestico.

Night in Tunisia was one of the signature pieces of Gillespie's bebop big band, and he also played it with his small groups. In 2004, Dizzy Gillespie & his Sextet’s 1946 Victor recording was added to the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Night in Tunisia Dizzy Gillespie & his Sextet, 1946 Victor recording

Dizzy Gillespie (tpt), Don Byas (ts), Milt Jackson (vib), Al Haig (p), Bill DeArango (g), Ray Brown (b), J.C. Heard (d). Recorded February 22, 1946.

And then there's Charlie Parker's 1946 "famous alto break." On the first take, Parker took a solo break which absolutely floored the musicians and engineers. The rest of the take proved unusable, but Ross Russell eventually decided to issue the fragment.

A Night in Tunisia Charlie Parker Septet, 1946 "Famous Alto Break" (Dial LP 905)

Miles Davis (trumpet), Charlie Parker (alto saxophone), Lucky Thompson (tenor saxophone), Dodo Marmarosa (piano), Vic McMillan (bass), Roy Porter (drums). Radio Recorders, Hollywood, CA, March 28, 1946.

Given its popularity, there's a lot of history to this song.

Oop Bop Sh'Bam

Composed by Dizzy Gillespie, arranged by Gil Fuller

Oop Bop Sh'Bam, Billy Eckstine (1946)

Our chart is a David Berger transcription, based on a Gil Fuller arrangement recorded in 1946 by the Billy Eckstine Orchestra. Notice a young Miles Davis in the trumpet section. And Sonny Stitt, who was on the original recording with Dizzy earlier that year.

Miles Davis, Hobart Dotson, Leonard Hawkins, King Kolax (trumpet) Water Knox, Chippy Outcalt, Gerald Velentine (trombone) John Cobbs, Sonny Stitt (alto saxophone) Gene Ammons, Arthur Sammons (tenor saxophone) Cecil Payne (baritone saxophone) Linton Garner (piano) Connie Wainwright (guitar) Tommy Potter (bass) Art Blakey (drums) Billy Eckstine (vocals, valve trombone); Radio Recorders, Hollywood, CA, October 5, 1946

Here's the original sextet version, from 1946:

Oop Bop Sh'Bam, Dizzy Gillespie Sextet (1946)

Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet, vocals) Sonny Stitt (alto saxophone) Milt Jackson (vibraphone) Al Haig (piano) Ray Brown (bass) Kenny Clarke (drums); NYC, May 15, 1946

And here's an interesting tidbit on Kenny Clarke's influence on the lyric.

Clarke wrote a series of exercises for himself to develop the independence of the bass drum and snare drum, while maintaining the time on the ride cymbal. One of these passages, a combination of a rim shot on the snare followed directly by a bass drum accent, earned Clarke his nickname, "Klook", which was short for "Klook-mop", in imitation of the sound this combination produced. This nickname was enshrined in "Oop Bop Sh'Bam," recorded by Dizzy Gillespie in 1946 with Clarke on drums, where the scat lyric to the bebop tune goes "oop bop sh'bam a klook a mop."

Of course, Dizzy did his own take on it with his big band in 1947, albeit at a brisker tempo:

Oop Bop Sh'Bam, Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra (1947, from the short Jivin' in Be-Bop)

Birks' Works

Composed by Dizzy Gillespie, arranged by Ernie Wilkins

Birks' Works, Dizzy Gillespie and his Orchestra (1957)

Our Birks' Works arrangement is a Mats Engström transcription of the great Ernie Wilkins arrangement. Check out that lineup!!

Talib Daawud, Lee Morgan, Ermit V. Perry, Carl Warwick, Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Al Grey, Rod Levitt, Melba Liston (trombone), Ernie Henry, Jimmy Powell (alto saxophone) Billy Mitchell, Benny Golson (tenor saxophone), Billy Root (baritone saxophone), Wynton Kelly (piano), Paul West (bass), Charlie Persip (drums), Ernie Wilkins (arranger)

Soloists: Benny Golson, Dizzy Gillespie

You'll find it on the Verve album of the same name: Birks' Works.