Question about “Night Train” by Jimmy Forrest

[Michael]

😎 Hey Johnny,
Been loving every bit of “The Big Horn” collection I got though your link at johnnyferreira.com, will be getting your CDs and the Honkers/Bar Walkers collection very soon. I can listen to this stuff all day long and it’s amazing how much I’ve picked up just by listening to these guys. I think some of them, when they play in the Altissimo range, can play the notes higher than anyone could blow on a dog whistle LOL
I was checking out “Night Train” by Jimmy Forest…..does this mean that King Curtis is not the player who came up with this song? Is Jimmy the original artist for this song? I’m curious as to the origins/history of this song…….that I will be uploading to the blog soon; thanks to your lessons on chromatic scales/glissandos that is 🙂 What a major, major difference v.s. just doing what I guess could be called a “generic” fall off! It adds so, SO much to playing the Saxophone.

[john]

yes I think it adds a lot too and use it all the time. Can you imagine Night Train being playing without that big fall-off every time on the first melody part? No way!
I think Jimmy Forrest recorded that song first. Very slow and cool, bluesy with a different approach to the beat, it has some other percussion instead of just the drum kit. This song is probably as popular for so many artists having recorded it as Harlem Nocturn was. Even James Brown did a version of it and it has no lyrics!

[Michael]

I could not imagine Night Train sounding the same without glissandos (chromatically)! My goodness…with a song like that, which I’m working right now, don’t think it could be played without them. Yeah, I noticed Jimmy’s version was much, much slower than King Curtis’ but didn’t know James Brown did it too. I Wonder who the Sax player was on the movie “Back to the Future” who was shown playing it at the beginning of the scene at the dance and it showed Marty Mcfly’s Dad dancing by himself? Now Harlem Nocture………you have GOT to do that song!!!! Please don’t make me beg LOL
I’m just about done with all of the song of the Watermelon Man now, including the Sax solo with the fall off….chromatically! 🙂 I played it along with your video and it’s almost exactly on par (almost that is LOL) and to say I’m happy about having come to this next level of playing of being able to use glissandos, at will, like you teach on your lessons page would be a big, BIG understatement. Your lesson in the Altissimo course helped me zero in on some rough spots and without taking your Altissimo course, I probably wouldn’t even have realized I had these rough spots! After I took my time and addressed those problem areas I had then glissandos started to happen for me 🙂
Jake and I are getting ready to upload the duet soon of your song “And I love her”–we’ve been doing a lot of collaboration back and forth and you’ll see each of us having our turn at taking the lead playing while the other one is playing some very “sensual” backing vocals that we created based off of the 1-3-5 of the scale for your song and it adds so, so much:) I’ll upload the Watermelon Man or Pick Up the Pieces sometime thereafter. “Use Me” will probably be done at the end of this month too….I just take the songs and learn just a few notes at a time.

[Michael]

Dummy me….I knew James Brown had a version of Night Train LOL it’s even on a one of his CDs that we have–talk about a mental lapse LOL

[john]

Hey Michael, sounds like you are keeping very busy with your sax studies, that’s great.
The guy in back to the future was introduced as King Curtis wasn’t he? Maybe I’m thinking of another move, either way I think that whole band were just actors not players.

[Author]

Posts