Using Billie Holiday's Rendition of "Fine and Mellow" as a Model for Writing Your Own Blues Stanza

Using Billie Holiday's Rendition of "Fine and Mellow" as a Model for Writing Your Own Blues Stanza

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Now that you know how the melody, rhythm, and harmony (chords) come together in a 12-bar blues, it is time to see how the lyrics are organized in this form. Along the way, we will look at Billie Holiday's life, note how jazz musicians handle the 12-bar blues form and use it as a means of structuring their improvisations. All of this leads up to the assignment, which is for you to write your own blues stanza, just one stanza of lyrics. That is all. Do not worry, you do not have to write any music or chords for this assignment. However, do not sigh in relief. Writing a stanza of blues lyrics that is thoughtful, imaginative and clever is a challenge.

Work through the following files in this folder, which will prep you for the assignment and give you more background in the blues, how they lyrics are organized and how jazz musicians use the form.