Cherokee — chords & grille (gypsy jazz)
Cherokee by Ray Noble — key of B♭ (swing), form A A' B A'. Below is the full chord grid; on Haute Gitanerie you can play along with a scrolling chord ribbon, transpose to any key, set the tempo, and switch on a rhythm backing (la pompe) to practise your solos over the changes.
About
Cherokee was written in 1938 by British bandleader Ray Noble as part of an Indian Suite. Bebop players seized on it as a fast blowing vehicle — Charlie Parker built his Ko-Ko on its changes — and it is a classic test piece.
The sound — a bright, driving standard in B♭ major. The famous bridge is the challenge: it drops into B major and climbs back through a chain of descending ii–V's across several keys.
Practising it — master the B♭ material first, then woodshed the bridge slowly, ii–V by ii–V, in each passing key. Arpeggiate every dominant and target thirds and sevenths. Only push the tempo once the bridge is clean.
Cherokee chords — the grille
A : | B♭ | B♭ | B♭7 | B♭7 | E♭ | E♭ | A♭7 | A♭7 | B♭ | B♭ | C7 | C7 | Cm | G7 | Cm | F7 |
A' : | B♭ | B♭ | B♭7 | B♭7 | E♭ | E♭ | A♭7 | A♭7 | B♭ | B♭ | C7 | C7 | Cm | F7 | B♭ | B♭ |
B : | C#m | F#7 | B | B | Bm | E7 | A | A | Am | D7 | G | G | Gm | C7 | Cm | F7 |
Chords used
B♭ · B♭7 · E♭ · A♭7 · C7 · Cm · G7 · F7 · C#m · F#7 · B · Bm · E7 · A · Am · D7 · G · Gm
Videos — Cherokee
Watch it played
- Cherokee | Jazz Violin in Paris — Marta Sierra
Play along
Open the interactive grille for Cherokee: loop any section, transpose to any key, set the tempo, and play over a rhythm accompaniment — with a real recorded pompe on featured tunes. In the browser, free.