Countdown (John Coltrane song)

"Countdown" is a hardbop[1][2][3][4] jazz standard composed by American jazz saxophonist John Coltrane that was first featured on his fifth studio album, Giant Steps, in 1960. The song is a contrafact of Miles Davis's "Tune Up", which is reharmonized to the Coltrane changes.[3][5] The original recording has been described as having "resolute intensity . . . [that] does more to modernize jazz in 141 seconds than many artists do in their entire careers".[6]

"Countdown"
Composition by John Coltrane
from the album Giant Steps
Released1960 (1960)
RecordedMay 4, 1959
StudioAtlantic Studios, New York
GenreJazz, hard bop
Length2:25
LabelAtlantic Records
Composer(s)John Coltrane
Producer(s)Nesuhi Ertegün

Composition
Chord changes
E-7 F7 B♭Δ7 D♭7 G♭Δ7 A7 DΔ7
D-7 E♭7 A♭Δ7 B7 EΔ7 G7 CΔ7
C-7 D♭7 G♭Δ7 A7 DΔ7 F7 B♭Δ7
E-7 F7 B♭Δ7 A7[note 1]
Head out
E-7 F7 B♭Δ7 D♭7 G♭Δ7 F7 B♭Δ7 A7
DΔ7 B♭Δ7 G♭Δ7 DΔ7 B♭Δ7 G♭Δ7 D♭Δ7

The song is a 16-bar form. Each four bars incorporates the same tonal centers of "Tune Up", which are D major, C major, and B♭ major.

Each tonal center begins with the ii chord but then cycles through two different keys before arriving at the I chord. The ii chord is followed by a dominant 7 chord that is a half step above—using the first four bars as an example, this would be Em7 and F7. This dominant 7 chord resolves in a V-I manner—F7 to B♭Δ7. The next key center is cycled to by playing the dominant 7th chord a minor third up from the last key center—D♭7 to G♭Δ7 to A7 to DΔ7. The next four bars, and new key, starts by making the I chord the ii of the next key.[7]

Notable recordings

See also

Notes
  1. Some charts also have the final chord as an E♭7(♯11).

References
  1. "Jazz Standard Repertoire - Countdown". standardrepertoire.com. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  2. "John Coltrane "Countdown" — The Jazzomat Research Project". jazzomat.hfm-weimar.de. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  3. Coltrane, John (1980). The jazz style of John Coltrane : a musical and historical perspective. Studio 224. OCLC 1043347491.
  4. altrockchick (2014-01-08). "John Coltrane – Giant Steps – Classic Music Review". altrockchick. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  5. Nicholson, Stuart (2021-10-11). "How John Coltrane made Giant Steps". Jazzwise. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  6. Planer, Lindsay. "Giant Steps Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
  7. "Countdown". Learn Jazz Standards. 2014-04-23. Retrieved 2022-05-30.
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