Naima

History

Coltrane recorded "Naima" many times. It appears on The Complete Copenhagen Concert (1961), Live at the Village Vanguard Again! (1966), Afro Blue Impressions (1977), The Complete 1961 Village Vanguard Recordings (1997), and Blue World (2019). "Naima" has since become a jazz standard.

Structure

According to Coltrane, "The tune is built ... on suspended chords over an E pedal tone on the outside. On the inside – the channel – the chords are suspended over a B pedal tone." The composition, on that recording, is a slow, restrained melody, with a brief piano solo by Wynton Kelly.

Chord changes

Chord changes for "Naima":

‖: B–7/E‖ E–7 ‖ Amaj7+5/E Gmaj7+5/E ‖ Amaj7/E:‖ ‖ Bmaj7/B‖ B79 ‖ Bmaj7/B ‖ B79‖ ‖ B-maj7/B‖ Bmaj7/B ‖ Amaj7/B ‖ Emaj711‖ ‖ B–7/E‖ E–7 ‖ Amaj7+5/E Gmaj7+5/E ‖ Amaj7/E‖

Scale associations:

‖: E Mixolydian | E Dorian | F Mel. Minor, E Mel. Minor | A Lydian :‖ ‖ B Phrygian | B Dim. Scale (H-W) | B Phrygian | B Dim. Scale | ‖ B Alt. (B Mel. Minor) | B Phrygian | B Mixolydian | E Lydian ‖ ‖ E Mixolydian | E Dorian | F Mel. Minor, E Mel. Minor | A Lydian ‖

Cultural references

• "Naima" is featured in a scene in the 2013 Polish movie Ida, in which the title character is intrigued by the jazz and its player.
• Kamau Brathwaite's poem "Naima for John Coltrane" was included in the Poems on the Underground project.

References

References

1. Aebersold, Jamey. (1995). "Jamey Aebersold Play-A-Long - Volume 27 - John Coltrane". Jamey Aebersold Jazz Inc.
2. Zisman, Michael. (2005-06-01). "The Real Easy Book". Sher Music Co.
3. "Ida (2013) {{!}} Soundtracks".
4. Fuller, Graham. (May–June 2014). "Review: Ida".
5. "Poems on the Underground".
6. (1976). "John Coltrane". Schirmer Books, a division of [[Macmillan Publishing]].