Is You Is, Or Is You Ain’t (Ma Baby)?: Journey Through The Real Book #189 (Jazz Piano Lesson)

A jazz piano lesson to help you learn Louis Jordan's jazz standard “Is You Is, Or Is You Ain’t (Ma Baby)?” This tune has been famously covered by Dinah Washington, B.B. King, Joe Jackson and Dr. John. Take your LH playing to the next level with my free ebook: Jazz Piano Left Hand Techniques: https://keyboardimprov.com/jazz-left-... You'll find my book, The Inner World of Piano Improvisation, on Amazon. Learning the historical context of jazz standards 0:00 The year 1943 in American popular music 0:25 The musical form of “Is You Is, Or Is You Ain’t (Ma Baby)” 0:58 Using blues licks 1:25 The musical world where jazz, rock, and blues meet 1:41 A background “lick” to play on “Is You Is, Or Is You Ain’t (Ma Baby)” 2:08 What key is “Is You Is, Or Is You Ain’t (Ma Baby)” in? 2:38 Jazz with a backbeat 3:59 Starting with the tune’s verse 4:48 Ascending chromatic substitute chords 5:19 Boogie-influenced left hand octaves 5:28 Using the background lick from Louis Jordan’s recording 5:33 Block chords, a la Milt Buckner and George Shearing 5:42 A hint of stride piano 6:02 Beginning the first solo chorus with a walking bass line 6:53 Leaving lots of space between improvised phrases 7:12 Left hand tenths 7:31 Bluesy tremolos 7:48 A relaxed, 1930s jazz feeling during the bridge 8:08 Imitating a Swing Era big band 8:13 Blues, then bebop 8:25 Repetition and variation 8:52 Sustained left hand chords 9:31 Syncopation, for contrast 9:44 Digging into the groove 9:47 Unison between the two hands 10:09 Returning to the melody 10:14 An Art Tatum-inspired run 10:29 Extending the “tag” 11:28 A typical blues-type ending 11:34 Improvising a few chords to conclude the arrangement11:44 Getting a broad range of musical experiences 12:23 Here are some more Free Jazz Piano Lessons for you at the KeyboardImprov website: https://keyboardimprov.com/free-begin... Thanks for joining me on this musical adventure, and please LIKE, COMMENT and SHARE this video with your musical friends. If you'd like to start my full video course, you'll find it here: https://keyboardimprov.com/get-starte... For Zoom and Skype lessons, please email me at [email protected]. Enjoy the journey, and "let the music flow!" Ron