Table of Contents:
What is a Jazz Standard?
A jazz standard is a musical theme that has acquired a certain notoriety in the jazz genre, which is known by many musicians and which has been the subject of numerous versions, interpretations and improvisations, and which is frequently used in jam sessions and performances.
There are standards from all eras of jazz, such as ‘When the Saints Go Marching In’, ‘I Got Rhythm’ or ‘How High the Moon’, ‘Take the ‘A’ Train’ to cite examples of the hot, swing and bop.
Many of the best-known standards were composed for films, or come from the so-called Great American Songbook, and have been incorporated into the genre, such as, for example, ‘Summertime’, by George Gershwin, while, for example, ”Round Midnight’, by Thelonious Monk, has been covered by, among others, Cootie Williams, Dizzy Gillespie, Art Pepper, and Miles Davis.
Best Sheet Music download from our Library.
The most recorded standard composed by a jazz musician, and one of the most covered songs of all time, is Duke Ellington’s and Juan Tizol’s “Caravan” with over 500 uses.
Originally, the most recorded jazz standard was W. C. Handy’s “St. Louis Blues” for over 20 years from the 1930s onward, after which Hoagy Carmichael’s “Stardust” replaced it. Following this, the place was held by “Body and Soul” by Johnny Green.
Please, subscribe to our Library. Thank you!
Before 1920
At the beginning of the 20th century, jazz was still considered dance music. The first Dixieland groups remained influenced by this image: King Oliver and his Creole Jazz Band, the New Orleans Rhythm Kings and many other groups included Tin Pan Alley in their repertoires, and record companies sometimes dictated the list of titles that must be recorded by their artists.
Certain imposed songs have thus become standards, such as Darktown Strutters’ Ball or (Back Home Again in) Indiana, recorded by the Original Dixieland Jass Band at Columbia Records in 1917.
Also, among the standards of this era are the songs After You’ve Gone (Turner Layton and Henry Creamer, 1918) and Some of These Days (Sophie Tucker, 1910).
The 1920s
The Jazz Age began in the United States in the 1920s. Jazz became popular there, even though the older generation considered this music immoral and endangering their cultural values.
The first artist who allowed himself to freely choose his titles was Louis Armstrong, who popularized many standards during the years 1920 to 19301. The popular tunes of the 1920s were songs like Sweet Georgia Brown, Dinah or Bye Bye Blackbird.
Some compositions from this era written by jazz musicians have become standards such as Honeysuckle Rose (1928) and Ain’t Misbehavin’ (1929) by Fats Waller. The song Stardust by Hoagy Carmichael and Mitchell Parish is the most recorded jazz standard of the 1920s. Others are written by Broadway composers such as The Man I Love by George and Ira Gershwin (1924), Blue Skies by Irving Berlin (1927), or What Is This Thing Called Love? by Cole Porter (1927).
However, it was not until the 1930s that jazz musicians became comfortable with the complex melodies and sophisticated harmonic grids of Broadway tunes, and used them regularly in their repertoires.
The 1930s
Broadway contributed some of the most popular standards of the 1930s, including the famous Summertime from the comedy Porgy and Bess by George and Ira Gershwin (1935), My Funny Valentine by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart (1937), All the Things You Are by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II (1939), and Body and Soul by Johnny Green (1930). These standards are among the most recorded.
The 1930s saw swing establish itself in American music. Duke Ellington and his musicians composed many themes which would become jazz standards: It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing) (1932), Sophisticated Lady (1933), Caravan (1936) among the most famous.
The swing era (1935–1946) is that of the greatest big bands, such as those of Benny Goodman and Count Basie, who also participated in the repertoire of jazz standards.
The 1940s
New themes became popular, such as Cotton Tail by Duke Ellington (1940) or Take the ‘A’ Train by Billy Strayhorn (1941). The Second World War was a difficult time for big bands, and small groups developed.
The arrival of bebop brought out a new audience sensitive to sophisticated harmonies, fast tempos, and the virtuosity of the musicians. Their repertoires largely use the standards of the 1930s, but their compositions will also enter the list of standards: Salt Peanuts (1941) and A Night in Tunisia (1942) by Dizzy Gillespie, Anthropology (1946), Yardbird Suite (en) ( 1946), Scrapple from the Apple (1947) by Charlie Parker, or ‘Round Midnight (1944) by Thelonious Monk.
The 1950s and beyond
Some modal jazz recordings became popular in the late 1950s, such as the albums Kind of Blue by Miles Davis in 1959 with the compositions All Blues and So What, Impressions (en) by John Coltrane in 1963, or Maiden Voyage by Herbie Hancock in 1965.
In the mid-1960s, Miles Davis’ second major quintet with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock recorded a series of albums which contained standards such as Footprints (Wayne Shorter, 1966) and Freedom Jazz Dance (Eddie Harris, 1966).
At the end of the 1950s, bossa nova appeared in Brazil, a mixture of samba and jazz, made popular by João Gilberto, Antônio Carlos Jobim and Luiz Bonfá. Gilberto and Stan Getz launched this trend in the United States in 1964 with the famous Getz/Gilberto album. Among the standards of the genre are compositions by Bonfá (Manhã de Carnaval, 1959), Marcos Valle (Summer Samba, 1966), and numerous songs by Jobim such as Desafinado (1959), The Girl from Ipanema (1962), Corcovado (1962).
In the mid-1970s, jazz fusion appeared, which was a mixture of jazz, funk and rock. Joe Zawinul with Weather Report, Chick Corea with Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock with The Headhunters, or John McLaughlin’s Mahavishnu Orchestra considerably broaden the jazz audience, and some of their successes have become standards: Spain (en) by Chick Corea (1971), Chameleon by Hancock (1973), and Birdland by Joe Zawinul (1977).
Jazz standards
Musical compositions that have become jazz standards.
Irving Berlin – Alexander’s Ragtime Band [1911]
“Alexander’s Ragtime Band” is a Tin Pan Alley song by American composer Irving Berlin released in 1911 and is often inaccurately cited as his first global hit. Although not a traditional ragtime song, Berlin’s jaunty melody nonetheless “sold a million copies of sheet music in 1911, then another million in 1912, and continued to sell for years afterward.
It was the number one song from October 1911 through January 1912.” The song might be regarded as a narrative sequel to “Alexander and His Clarinet”, which Berlin wrote with Ted Snyder in 1910. The earlier song is mostly concerned with a reconciliation between an African-American musician named Alexander Adams and his flame Eliza Johnson, but also highlights Alexander’s innovative musical style.
Berlin’s “Alexander’s Ragtime Band” was introduced to the American public by vaudeville comedienne Emma Carus, “one of the great stars of the period.” A popular singer in the 1907 Ziegfeld Follies and Broadway features, Carus was a famous contralto of the vaudeville era, renowned for her “low bass notes and high lung power.”
Carus’ brassy performance of the song at the American Music Hall in Chicago on April 18, 1911, proved to be well-received, and she toured other metropolises such as Detroit and New York City with acclaimed performances that featured the catchy song. The song as comically recorded by American singing duo Arthur Collins and Byron G. Harlan became the number one hit of 1911.
Nearly two decades later, jazz singer Bessie Smith recorded a 1927 cover, which became one of the hit songs of that year. The song’s popularity re-surged in the 1930s with the release of a 1934 close harmony cover by the Boswell Sisters, and a 1938 musical film of the same name starring Tyrone Power and Alice Faye. The song was covered by a variety of artists such as Al Jolson, Billy Murray, Louis Armstrong, Bing Crosby, and others. Within fifty years of its release, the song had at least a dozen hit covers.
Etta James – Stormy Weather
From the album is At Last.
Search in our Library by author, or song name.
Artist or Composer / Score name | Cover | List of Contents |
---|---|---|
AC/DC – Jam With AC/DC (PDF with MP3 audio tracks Guitar Tab Songbook) | Jam With ACDC | |
AC/DC Rock Score | ||
AC/DC, Best of (Guitar & Tablature) | Best Of ACDC (Guitar) | |
Ace Of Base – Beautiful Life | ||
Ace Of Base – Dont Turn Around | ||
Ace Of Base – Living In Danger | ||
Acoustic 33 TOP Guitar Hits (Guitar Songbook) with Tablature – sheet music | Acoustic 33 TOP Guitar Hits (Guitar Songbook) – sheet music | |
Acoustic Blues Guitar By Kenny Sultan Guitar Tab | Acoustic Blues Guitar | |
Acoustic Blues Guitar Styles (Larry Sandberg) (with Tablature) | Acoustic Blues Guitar Styles (Larry Sandberg) | |
Acoustic Classics 42 songs Piano Vocal Guitar | Acoustic Classics 42 songs Piano Vocal Guitar | |
Acoustic Guitar Bible (35 great songs) Guitar with TABs | Acoustic Guitar Bible (35 great songs) Guitar with TABs | |
Acoustic Rock (Guitar) Rolling Stones, Green Day, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan (Songbook Guitar Tab) with Tablature | ||
Acoustic Rock 90’s, Best of – Guitar with Tablature | Acoustic Rock 90’s, Best of – Guitar | |
Acqua azzurra acqua chiara (Battisti) | ||
Ad Te Levavi (Musescore File).mscz | ||
Adagio (Lara Fabian) | ||
Adagio For Strings Op. 11 Samuel Barber (Piano Solo) | ||
Adagio For Strings Samuel Barber (Musescore File).mscz | ||
Adagio MP3.zip | ||
Adah’s Theme (La femme avec les yeux lumineux) Sex and the City | ||
Adah’s Theme (Le femme avec les yeux lumineux) Sex and the Cit | ||
Adam – Adolphe Charles Holy Night Cantique-Nöel | ||
Adam – Cantique de Nöel Minuit Chretiens | Adam – Cantique de Noel Minuit Chretiens VS | |
Adam – Derniers souvenirs d’un musicien | ||
Adam – O Holy Night | Adam – O Holy Night | |
Adam – Souvenirs d’un musicien | ||
Adam (Cappeau) – Cantique de Noël. Easy Piano with voice or instrument (Paroles and lyrics) | Adam-Cappeau-Cantique-de-Noel- | |
Adam (Cappeau) – Cantique de Noel. Easy Piano with voice or instrument.mscz | ||
Adam Cantique de Nöel Christmas song | Adam Cantique de noel | |
Adam Carse – The History Of Orchestration Adam Carse | ||
Addams Family Theme (Musescore File).mscz | ||
Addams Family Theme (Easy Piano) | ||
Addio Colonnello (Ennio Morricone) | ||
Adele Songs from the Album 21 For SATB, SSA and Piano | Adele Songs from the Album 21 | |
Adele – 21 | ADELE 21 SONGBOOK | |
Adele – Chasing Pavements Piano Vocal guitar chords | ||
Adele – Easy on me (Piano solo with lyrics) | ||
Adele – Rolling in the Deep | ||
Adele – Rumor Has It | ||
Adele – Set Fire to the Rain | ||
Adele – Set Fire To The Rain (2) (Musescore File).mscz | ||
Adele – Someone Like You | Adele – Someone Like You | |
Adele – Someone Like You easy piano | ||
Adele – The Best Of SongBook (12 songs arranged for easy piano) | Adele – The Best Of SongBook (12 songs arranged for easy piano) | |
Adele 19 [Piano, Guitar, Vocals] | Adele 19 [Piano, Guitar, Vocals] | |
Adele 25 Songbook | All I Ask Hello I Miss You Love In The Dark Million Years Ago Remedy River Lea Send My Love (To Your New Lover) Sweetest Devotion Water Under The Bridge When We Were Young | |
Adele Best Of Adele Big Note Piano (Adele Adkins) | Adele Best Of Adele Big Note Piano (Adele Adkins) | |
Adele Easy On Me Sheet Music | ||
Adele Original Keys For Singers (Adele) | Adele Original Keys For Singers (Adele) | |
Adele Skyfall (Piano Vocal Guitar Chords) | Adele Skyfall (Piano Vocal Guitar Chords) | |
Adios Amor – Goodbye My Love as recorded by José Feliciano | ||
Adult All In One Course Level 1 With Audio Mp3 (Willard Palmer) | Lessons Alfred’s Basic Adult Piano Course Level 1 | |
Adult All In One Course Level 2 With Audio Mp3 (Willard Palmer) | Willard Palmer – Adult All-In-One Course Level 2 | |
Adult Piano Adventures ALL-IN-ONE PIANO COURSE 1 | ||
Adult Piano Adventures All-In-One Piano Course Book 2 Book With Media Online (Nancy Faber, Randall Faber) Sheet Music | ||
Adult Piano Adventures Christmas – Book 1 (Nancy Faber Randall Faber) | ||
Adult Piano Adventures Christmas – Book 2 | Adult Piano Adventures Christmas – Book 2 | |
Adult Piano Adventures Popular Book 1 – Timeless Hits and Popular Favorites (Adult Piano Adventures Popular) | Adult Piano Adventures Popular Book 1 – Timeless Hits and Popular Favorites (Adult Piano Adventures Popular) | |
Advanced Harmonic Concepts by Wayne Naus (with audio MP3) | Advanced Harmonic Concepts by Wayne Naus | |
Advanced Harmonic Exercises For Jazz Piano | advanced harmonic exercises | |
Advanced Piano Solos 1 Encyclopedia by Tom Roed | Advanced Piano Solos 1 Encyclopedia by Tom Roed | |
Advanced Piano Solos 2 Complete by Tom Roed | Advanced Piano Solos 2 Complete by Tom Roed | |
Advanced Sacred Music Piano Solos by John Kraus | ||
Advanced Scale Concepts and Licks for Guitar (PDF + MP3 audio tracks Play Along) with Tablature | ||
Aebersold – 110 – When I fall In Love – Romantic Ballads pdf with embedded audio MP3 Tracks | Jazz Play Along Vol 110 [When i Fall in Love] | |
Aebersold – 113 Embraceable You – Vocal Standards with audio MP3 Tracks | Jamey Aebersold – Vol 113 | |
Aebersold – 30 blues scale By Jamey Aebersold | Aebersold – 30 blues scale By Jamey Aebersold | |
Aebersold – A New Approach To Jazz Improvisation Gettin’it together vol. 21 | aebersold gettin all together vol 21 | |
Aebersold – Practice Procedures For Memorizing Scales And Chords | Aebersold – Practice Procedures For Memorizing Scales And Chords | |
Aebersold – Rapid Reference Vol 1-114 | Aebersold – Rapid Reference Vol 1-114 | |
Aebersold – Vol 01 – How to Play and Improvise Jazz (with audio MP3) | Aebersold – Vol 01 – How to Play and Improvise Jazz | |
Aebersold – Vol 03 – The II-V7-I Progression Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 | ||
Aebersold – Vol 105 – Dave Brubeck Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 | ||
Aebersold – Vol 118 – [Groovin Jazz] (with audio MP3) | ||
Aebersold – Vol 32 – Ballads Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 | ||
Aebersold – Vol 34 – Jam Session Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 | Includes MP3 Play along themes as Blue moon, The shadow of your smile, Over the rainbow, etc. | |
Aebersold – Vol 45 – [Bill Evans] Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 | Aebersold – Vol 45 – [Bill Evans] | |
Aebersold – Vol 58 – Unforgettable Standards Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 | aebersold unforgettable standards sheet music | |
Aebersold – Vol 76 – David Baker – How To Learn Tunes (A Jazz Musician’s Survival Guide) | how to learn tunes | |
Aebersold 25 How To Practice By Jamey Aebersold | Aebersold 25 | |
Aebersold Antonio Carlos Jobim Vol 98 – Bossa Nova Songbook Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 | Aebersold Antonio Carlos Jobim Vol 98 – Bossa Nova Songbook | |
Aebersold Anyone Can Improvise – 52 Points To Remember | Aebersold Anyone Can Improvise – 52 Points To Remember | |
Aebersold Jazz EAR training (with audio MP3) | Aebersold Jazz EAR train | |
Aebersold Jazz Handbook 09 Tips For Learning A New Tune & Practice Procedures For Memorizing | Aebersold Jazz HANDBOOK | |
Aebersold Jazz Play-Along Books & audio MP3 1st Part Full Collection – Vol 1- 40 (with MP3) for all instruments | Compressed file Aebersold Full Collection Part 1 – Vol 1- 40 | 40 volumes with MP3 Aebersold Book Index Vol.001-106 |
Aebersold Jazz Play-Along Books & audio MP3 2nd Part Full collection Vol 41- 75 for all instruments | Compressed fileAebersold Full Collection Part 2 – Vol 41- 75.. | 35 volumes with MP3 Aebersold Book Index Vol.001-106 |
Aebersold Jazz Play-Along Books & audio MP3 3rd Part Full Collection – Vol 76- 112 (with MP3) | Compressed fileAebersold Full Collection Part 3 – Vol 76- 112 | 37 volumes with MP3 Aebersold Book Index Vol.001-106 |
Aebersold Phil Degreg – Jazz keyboard harmony – A practical method for all musicians | jazz keyboard harmony | |
Aebersold RAPID REFERENCE | Aebersold RAPID REFERENCE | |
Aebersold vol 1 Cómo improvisar y tocar JAZZ Spanish edition – Español | Aebersold vol 1 Cómo improvisar y tocar JAZZ Spanish edition | |
Aebersold Vol. 01 – Jazz improvisation A New Approach To Jazz Improvisation | Aebersold Vol. 01 – Jazz improvisation | |
Aebersold Vol. 60 Dan Haerle & Mark Levine – Jazz Piano Voicings | ||
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – All complete Chick Corea | ||
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 02 – Nothin’ But Blues | Jazz Play Along Vol 002 – [Nothin’ But Blues] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 03 – The II-V7-I Progression | Jazz Play Along Vol 003 – [The II-V7-I Progression] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 04 – Movin’ On | Jazz Play Along Vol 004 – [Movin’ On] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 05 – Time To Play Music! | Jazz Play Along Vol 005 – [Time To Play Music!] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 06 – Charlie Parker | Jazz Play Along Vol 006 – [Charlie Parker – All Bird] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 07 – Miles Davis | Jazz Play Along Vol 007 – [Miles Davis] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 08 – Sonny Rollins | Jazz Play Along Vol 008 – [Sonny Rollins] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 09 – Woody Shaw | Jazz Play Along Vol 009 – [Woody Shaw] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 10 – David Baker | Jazz Play Along Vol 010 – [David Baker] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 100 – St. Louis Blues | Jazz Play Along Vol 011 – [Herbie Hancock] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 101 – Secret of the Andes | Jazz Play Along Vol 012 – [Duke Ellington] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 102 – Jerry Bergonzi | Jazz Play Along Vol 102 – [Jerry Bergonzi] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 103 – David Sanborn | Jazz Play Along Vol 103 – [David Sanborn] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 104 – Kenny Werner | Jazz Play Along Vol 104 – [Free Play – 13 Musical Landscapes] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 105 – Dave Brubeck | Jazz Play Along Vol 105 – [Dave Brubeck] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 106 – Lee Morgan | Jazz Play Along Vol 106 – [Lee Morgan] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 107 – STANDARDS FOR SINGERS | Jazz Play Along Vol 109 [Fusion] Jazz Play Along Vol 110 [When i Fall in Love] Aebersold – Vol 107 – IT HAD TO BE YOU | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 108 – Joe Henderson | Jazz Play Along Vol 108 – [Joe Henderson] – C-Bb | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 109 – Fusion | Jazz Play Along Vol 109 [Fusion] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 11 – Herbie Hancock | Jazz Play Along Vol 011 – [Herbie Hancock] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 111 – J.J. Johnson | Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 111 – J.J. Johnson | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 112 – [Cole Porter] | Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 112 – [Cole Porter]_compressed | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – vol 115 – Ron Carter | Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – vol 115 – Ron Carter | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 12 – Duke Ellington | Jazz Play Along Vol 012 – [Duke Ellington] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 13 – Cannonball Adderley | Jazz Play Along Vol 013 – [Cannonball Adderley] | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 14 – Benny Golson | Aebersold – Vol 14 – Benny Golson | |
Aebersold, Jamey Jazz Play Along Book + Audio Mp3 – Vol 15 – Payin’ Dues | Aebersold – Vol 15 – Payin’ Dues |