Jump Blues Chart
Tempo: Swing 120 BPM
Key: C Major
Form: Intro – Verse – Chorus – Verse – Bridge – Chorus – Outro
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[Intro – 4 Bars]
| C7 | F7 | C7 | G7 |
Piano swing chords, walking bass line: C–E–G–A / F–A–C–D / C–E–G–A / G–B–D–F
Horn Riff: (Trumpet/Sax)
C7 – E7 – F7 – G7 short stabs on off-beats
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[Verse 1 – 8 Bars]
| C7 | C7 | F7 | F7 |
| C7 | A7 | D7 | G7 |
Well, I just got the boot, man, they kicked me outta school,
Don’t wanna play the game, I ain’t no phony fool.
The streets of New York City, yeah, they shine and they lie,
But I’m lookin’ for somethin’ real, man, a kid who won’t cry.
[Verse 2 – 8 Bars]
| C7 | C7 | F7 | F7 |
| C7 | A7 | D7 | G7 |
Met a dame downtown, she said, “Baby, what you need?”
I said, “Don’t got no money, girl, just my thoughts and my speed.”
Adults, man, they’re laughin’, laughin’ at the world they fake,
I’m tryin’ to catch the little ones before they break.
Walking Bass:
C–E–G–A / F–A–C–D / C–E–G–A / G–B–D–F
[Chorus – 8 Bars]
| C7 | F7 | C7 | A7 |
| D7 | G7 | C7 | G7 |
Lyrics (Swing delivery):
I’m the catcher in the rye, yeah, I’m tryin’ to save their souls,
From the dirty, fake, old world, and all its lousy roles.
I’m ramblin’ through the city, lookin’ for somethin’ true,
If you see a kid fallin’, well, I’ll be catchin’ you!
Horn riff: Syncopated on beats 2 & 4:
C7 – D7 – G7 – C7
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[Verse 3 – 8 Bars]
| C7 | C7 | F7 | F7 |
| C7 | A7 | D7 | G7 |
Lyrics:
Phoebe, little sister, man, she’s all that’s bright and fair,
Kids don’t know the sorrow adults sneak in the air.
I wanna shield ’em from the nastiness that makes me blue,
But even I’m a mess, man, don’t know what to do.
Horn riff: Answer lines with short bluesy slides
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[Bridge – 8 Bars – Spoken Over Swing]
| F7 | F7 | C7 | C7 |
| D7 | G7 | C7 | G7 |
Spoken Lyrics / Improvisation:
New York’s a jungle, man, fulla phonies and liars,
I’m just a kid in the rye, tryna dodge the fires.
They don’t get me, man… nobody ever does,
But Phoebe… Phoebe gets me… she’s the realest buzz.
Bass walks, horns softly answering every 2 bars
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[Chorus – Repeat – 8 Bars]
| C7 | F7 | C7 | A7 |
| D7 | G7 | C7 | G7 |
Lyrics:
I’m the catcher in the rye, yeah, I’m tryin’ to save their souls,
From the dirty, fake, old world, and all its lousy roles.
I’m ramblin’ through the city, lookin’ for somethin’ true,
If you see a kid fallin’, well, I’ll be catchin’ you!
[Verse 4 / Outro – 8 Bars]
| C7 | C7 | F7 | F7 |
| C7 | A7 | D7 | G7 |
Lyrics:
Now I’m sittin’ here, doc says, “Take it slow, son,”
Mental ward or not, man, my story ain’t done.
Still dream of the rye field, kids laughin’, free, and high,
Even if I’m broke inside, I’m still catchin’ in the rye.
Final Horn Punch: Call-and-response fade:
“Hold on, kid! / Yeah, hold on! / Catch ’em all… before they fall!”
