Mack The Knife

[mahayana]

This is the first jazzy thing I've put in here, mostly just been looking around so far. Do you think the "staff" will notice a new thread, hah.

Anyway, I like this song. It was a gangster song, back in the early 60s that Bobby Darin made a hit out of. Kind of like the Sopranos, you know, about extortion and murder. It's a slow tune, people can dance to it, it's fun to goof with.

Not a bad lesson either, it has 6 or 7 "jazz" chords, chromatically descending bass (like Hotel California), a turnaround chord at the end of each verse that moves you up one fret, so on the record it goes from key of F all the way up to key of B flat by the end. Really, two verses in F, one in F#, one in G, one in A flat, one in A, one in B flat. The horn and keyboard players get a workout, but it's simple for the guitar. Really.

Heres the chords, I'll draw them next post, fill out the progression.

F6...Gm7...C9/G...F/A...A flat dim7...F#7...turnaround chord is C#7

[mahayana]

Here's what those chords look like, in case you want to play them or something. They are Mickey Baker style, bass note and top.

F6 1x021x Gm7 3x3333 C9/G 3x2333


F/A 5x353x Abo7 4x343x F#7 2x232x


C#7 x4342x


I'd be happy to share the fingerings, if anyone is puzzled. I don't use a pick for this stuff, either.

[mahayana]

OK. Did anybody bite? Have you played the chords yet?

Do you know the song? "When the shark bites...with his teeth, dear...scarlet billows...start to spread..." It's a strong 4/4, you know, 1+2+3+4+, actually the 4+ is the beginning of each phrase, pick-up notes, so "when the' is 4+, also 'with his', 'scarlet', 'start to' and so on through the whole song.

The progression goes

(4+)ll: F6 l Gm7 l Gm7 C9/G l F6 l

F/A Abo7 l Gm7 l Gm7 F#7 l F6 :ll

I'll put in the turnaround/key change next post, after you play this through a couple of times, OK?

[mahayana]

OK, if anybody is with me so far, you're playing the first two verses of MTK in F.

The turnaround chord to move up to F# is C#7, played on beat 3 of the last measure of verse 2. x4342x just like a regular open C7, just played one fret up, frets 2-4 instead of 1-3.

Then verse 3 starts out with F#6, 2x132x . Now you have all moveable forms, and the rest of the song moves up one fret every verse. For verse 3, you're in the key of F#. I'll write it out for you, it's really what you were playing last post, everything moved up one fret. "up" means towards you, higher note, not down towards the tuners. Here goes (I know the chord names look weird, don't worry, they are exactly what you were playing, except for the F#6).

l F#6 l Abm7 l Abm7 C#9/Ab l F#6 l

F#/Bb Ao7 l Abm7 l Abm7 G7 l F#6 D7 l (to verse 4)

G6 l Am7 l etc...

[mahayana]

I'm going to take a break before I put in the ending. If anybody reads this, please hit reply and give me feedback. Did you get the song? Do you like it? I'll write out the verses, scan in the melody, if you want. Really, just say hi, I'd appreciate it.

Let me know if there's another tune you're wanting to learn. If I can help, I will try.

[mahayana]

The ending is just some dominant sevenths back and forth, while your singer is holding the last note, then some variety of 13th struck once and sustained.

The last verse is sung twice, once in A, then once in Bb. (Jenny Jiver...Sookie Tawdry...Miss Ah Lyna Lane Yah...and old Lucy Brown...Yeah, the line forms...on the right, babe...now that Mackie's...back in town)

So you play the Cm7 for two measures on the last "Mackie's" then "town" is the note held three measures while you play Bb7
Eb7 l Bb7 Eb7 l Bb7 Eb7 l "Good God, old Mackie is back!" Hit the Bb13 on "back!"

That's it, more or less.

[mahayana]

I started to put the verses in, over at the last "new" site, before it had the plug pulled. I'm better at lyrics with chords over them now (you write a reply, then use preview to see what the program does to it, then make changes in the new reply box below that. It can take awhile to get it to show correctly).

Anyway, I want to get this song where everyone can perform it. The whole thing is already in (except the verses), but I'm still trying to help you learn it. You'll have it memorized before you play it through twice, promise! It's an easy one.

[mahayana]

-----------F6-------------------Gm7
1. Oh, the shark, dear, has such teeth, babe

-------Gm7-------C9/G--------F6
and he shows them....... pearly white.

-------F/A---Abdim7---------Gm7--------------------------(play 5X353X 4X343X 3X333)
just a jack knife....has old Mackie, babe,

--------Gm---F#7-------F6--------------------------------------( 3X333 2X232X 1X021X )
and he keeps it.... out of sight.

----------------------F6
2. You know when the shark bites

---------Gm7---------------Gm7---C9/G--------F6
with his teeth, babe, scarlet billows........start to spread.

--------F/A---Abdim7------------Gm7
Fancy gloves, oh...... has old Mackie, babe,

-----------Gm7--F#7-----------------F6------C#7-----------------------------------------------------(X4342X)
So there's never........ never a trace of red.

(note- every verse moves higher one fret from here on, with the use of this simple transition chord)

[mahayana]

---------------F#6-------------Abm7---------------(play F#6 2X132X)
3. Now on the sidewalk, Sunday mornin', uh-huh

-----Abm7----C#9/Ab-----F#6
lies a body........ just oozin' life.

-----------F#/Bb--Adim7----------Abm7-----------( 6X464X 5X454X 4X444X)
Someone's sneakin'..........'round the corner.

----------Abm7----G7---------------F#6------D7-( 4X444X 3X343X 2X132X )
Could that someone......be Mack the Knife?

------------G6-------etc
4. There's a tugboat...down by the river, don't you know,


with a cement bag...just a'droopin' on down.


Oh, that cement is just...there for the weight, dear.

----------------------------------------------------Eb7
Five'll get you ten, Mackie's back in town

[mahayana]

----------------------------Ab6
5. Now you heard 'bout Louie Miller, he disappeared, babe, after drawin' out all his hard-earned cash.
And now Mackie spends, just like a sailor. Could it be our boy's done somethin' rash?---E7
------------A6---------------F7
6. Jenny Jiver...
------------Bb6
7. Jenny Jiver...
------------Bb7 Eb7 Bb7 Eb7 Bb7 Eb7 Bb7 Bb13
back in town...

[kawe]

Oh, a song of the "Three Penny Opera"!
Well done, Mr. Kurt "mahayana" Weill!

kawe

[mahayana]

Thank you, kawe. A lot of effort for such a simple tune, but maybe somebody will pick it up and have fun with it.

I heard a "live" version of Bobby Darin doing it, on the radio, last week. You could hear the keys change, just like this, and he only messed up the words once ( he started verse 3 with "Sunday morning" instead of "on the sidewalk").

I know a lot of the old "crooner" tunes, Frank Sinatra, Pat Boone, Tony Bennett kind of stuff. You can jazz up any pop song, or make up new ones, but the old standards always go over well.

[geetarman]

I enjoyed the work you did on this. I'm still a bit new to this chord, F/A.
Is the an F chord with a low A root?

Thanks.

[mahayana]

F/A 5x353x

Glad you liked it, G-man. "Slash" chords indicate a bass note played with a chord, as you surmised. Of course, there are lots of different ways to name any given chord.

[sardonic]

mahayana said:

F/A 5x353x

isnt that an F6/A ?

F root, A 3rd, C 5th, D 6th