"Jordu" is a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

standard written by Irving "Duke" Jordan in 1953. This song was first made popular by

Clifford Brown Clifford Benjamin Brown (October 30, 1930 – June 26, 1956) was an American jazz trumpeter, pianist and composer. He died at the age of 25 in a car crash, leaving behind four years' worth of recordings. His compositions "Sandu", "Joy Sprin ...

and

Max Roach Maxwell Lemuel Roach (January 10, 1924 – August 16, 2007) was an American jazz drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered one of the most important drummers in history. He wo ...

, but many other jazz musicians have performed or recorded renditions of it, including

Stan Getz Stan Getz (born Stanley Gayetski; February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wis ...

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

, and

Charlie Byrd Charlie Lee Byrd (September 16, 1925 – December 2, 1999) was an American jazz guitarist. Byrd was best known for his association with Brazilian music, especially bossa nova. In 1962, he collaborated with Stan Getz on the album '' Jazz Samba' ...

. It has a traditional AABA jazz form. The A section is composed of two measure patterns, the first being a non-chordal pick-up measure in which the lead player starts a phrase on the "and" of beat 1 and leads right into the second half of the two measure phrase in which the rhythm players and the lead players both hit on 1, 3, and the "and" of 4. The B section is a circle of fourths pattern built on dominant seventh chords. The ending of the song contains a vamp on the last two bars of the A section followed by an alteration of the initial pickup measure ending on a minor-major seventh chord.

Floyd Cramer Floyd Cramer (October 27, 1933 – December 31, 1997) was an American pianist who became famous for his use of melodic "whole-step" attacks. He was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His signatur ...

performed the song on the

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

on his 1962 album "Floyd Cramer Gets Organized" in which one half of the album was piano and the other half organ. Lyrics for this song were written by

Karrin Allyson Karrin Allyson (pronounced ''KAR-in''; born Karrin Allyson Schoonover on July 27, 1963) is an American jazz vocalist. She has been nominated for five Grammy Awards and has received positive reviews from several prominent sources, including the ' ...

with the title "Life is a groove". She recorded it on her 2006 ''Footprints'' CD as a duet with Nancy King. An earlier vocal version was recorded by

Ann Richards Dorothy Ann Richards (née Willis; September 1, 1933 – September 13, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995. A Democrat, she first came to national attention as the Texas State Treasurer, ...

with the title "Where Did You Go?" which she released in 1960 on her album "

The Many Moods of Ann Richards ''The Many Moods of Ann Richards'' is the 1960 solo album recorded by Ann Richards and her second release for Capitol Records (Capitol T-T-1406, stereo). The arrangers for the sessions are Ralph Carmichael, Bill Holman, and Tak Shindo.Bruyninckx, ...

". The song was also included on her ''The Many Moods of Ann Richards/Two Much'' 2004 compilation.

Early Recordings

Duke Jordan Irving Sidney "Duke" Jordan (April 1, 1922 – August 8, 2006) was an American jazz pianist. Biography Jordan was born in New York and raised in Brooklyn where he attended Boys High School. An imaginative and gifted pianist, Jordan was a regul ...

- Duke Jordan Trio (Duke Jordan, piano; Gene Ramey, bass; Lee Abrams, drums. Recorded in NYC; January 28, 1954.) - Swing (Vogue) Catalog: M. 33.323 (1954). Recorded under the tune's original title, "Minor Escamp". *

Roy Haynes Roy Owen Haynes (March 13, 1925 – November 12, 2024) was an American jazz drummer. In the 1950s, he was given the nickname "Snap Crackle" for his distinctive snare drum sound and musical vocabulary. He is among the most recorded drummers in ja ...

- Roy Haynes Modern Group a/k/a Roy Haynes Sextet (released under the title "Minor Encamp") - Swing (Vogue) Catalog: M. 33.337 (1954) *

Julius Watkins Julius Watkins (October 10, 1921 – April 4, 1977) was an American jazz musician who played French horn. Described by AllMusic as "virtually the father of the jazz French horn", Watkins won the ''Down Beat'' critics poll in 1960 and 1961 for Mis ...

- '' Julius Watkins Sextet'' - BLP 5064 (1955) *

- '' Clifford Brown & Max Roach'' - MG 36036 (Capitol Studios, Los Angeles, CA, August 3, 1954) *

Hampton Hawes Hampton Barnett Hawes Jr. (November 13, 1928 – May 22, 1977) was an American jazz pianist. He was the author of the memoir ''Raise Up Off Me'', which won the Deems-Taylor Award for music writing in 1975. Early life Hampton Hawes was born on No ...

- '' All Night Session! Vol. 1'' Contemporary C3545 (1956) *

Barney Kessel Barney Kessel (October 17, 1923 – May 6, 2004) was an American jazz guitarist. Known in particular for his knowledge of chords and inversions and chord-based melodies, he was a member of many prominent jazz groups as well as a "first call" gu ...

- '' The Poll Winners'' - C3535/S7535 (1957) *

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...

- ''

Birks' Works ''Birks' Works'' is an album by trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie recorded in 1957 and released on the Verve label.

'' - Verve MGV 8222 (1957) *

- '' Stan Meets Chet'' - MGV 8263 (1958) *

- '' Blues Sonata'' - OLP 3009, RM 453 (1961)

References

1950s jazz standards 1953 songs Hard bop jazz standards Compositions in the Real Book {{1950s-jazz-composition-stub