The Chicken, arr. Kris Berg - Score & Sound

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The Chicken
By Alfred James Ellis / arr. Kris Berg
Item: 00-JEM01050
Series: Jazz Band Series
Level: 3
Whoa, hold on to your feathers! If you want energy and excitement and a funky groove, then check out Kris Berg's chart, The Chicken. The legendary electric bassist Jaco Pastorius recorded this powerhouse tune and arranger Kris Berg has adapted it for the Jazz Band Series. If you have a strong electric bass player, then you have found yourself a showstopper with this arrangement. The tenor sax solo (written solo provided), the optional guitar solo, and the solo bass line will showcase your soloists. Your ensemble will totally devour The Chicken. Guaranteed to pluck the audience right out of their seats! (4:37)
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[@Youngy]

When the jazz band teacher plays a recording of this before rehearsing it, and you're sitting on the drumset, and u hear the fills at the start...and then notice the entire jazz band has turned around and is now staring at you.

[@everettbanks5844]

Lol this was every song at my school. All the wind players thought they could do better lol.

[@reesearoni4606]

OMG that is so relatable, it happens every.time.

[@liamscott1582]

It's because we know the drums are about to pop off

[@hashiispep]

I HA TE THAT. IM SORRY I CANT LIVE UP TO YOUR EXPECTATIONS I ALREADY SCREW THE BAND UP SO MUCH IM SORRY PLS--😭

[@calebcole8407]

And you totally nail it and everyone thinks you’re a god

[@EagleScout2019]

I love how there’s a written solo for tenor 1 and he improvised the whole thing instead. True jazz

[@Halmir4126]

It's pretty much required to have a written in solo for compositions at this level

[@Xavi3rKR]

Improvisation telling me what to do? Lol no

[@Charlie-wq1ce]

It literally says on the score “as written or ad lib” meaning improvised

[@asianwat3r814]

This just makes me mad because I’m trying to learn the solo part of the song and I can’t bc it’s improvised. Don’t get me wrong it’s cool but I just wish that the soloist did the written solo.

[@henrikloeffler9823]

Thats how it works lmao no solo is played after the lyrics thats the definition of Jazz basically

[@krol6282]

The only piece where 1st trumpet gets it easier than 3rd.

[@flyinpanda6960]

First trumpet has a high freaking f 🙀

[@astre7904]

For all fellow junior high/high school bassists that are playing this song: This score is pretty terrible if you want to sound like Jaco - it's mostly just the main riff with a few measures of sauce added scarcely throughout. I found that by watching covers of some of his live concerts with tabs and watching some videos about his playing style, you can improvise/recreate much more of Jaco's signature style... more fun to play and more fun for the audience!

[@abeahmed2581]

That soli took so long to learn

[@Nicg1606]

Abe Ahmed I’m assuming if you’re talking about the one at 47 then i feel your pain

[@bartsimpson9894]

Duuuuude

[@bartsimpson9894]

I fell u

[@jaco3445]

Fuck that Soli, Played trumpet 2 so i cant imagine the pain lead trombone has when playing

[@mitchellhart182]

@@jaco3445 my jazz band director looked at me and said good luck he handed this to us to sight read for the first time... didn’t go so hot

[@jerkface69]

I had a bass solo where the brass solo was! First and probably ONLY standing ovation I'll EVER get ( this was when the school held their reward ceremony circa 2020 )

[@Cujohhh]

you are one lucky person you know that

[@maxrobz2352]

yooo thats so cool. Our middle school Jazz Band also did a bass solo with the trumpet instead and it sounds amazinggggggg

[@TrashCanBoiBoi]

Yoo that made me feel all warm inside congratulations

[@dixiemcgee8535]

Do you mean at 2:10 ? Not a bad idea, could ask my director if I could play along with them

[@livestronger925]

That bass line during the solo of the saxophone was so tough for me, it’s so fast and gets funky

[@edwardjones1045]

"Designed for high school and advanced junior high school band" Edit: I’m now a freshman in high school playing this song with my school’s top jazz band. How the turntables 😅

[@ddeadroachh]

lol i played it in highschool as a freshman

[@tjmusser4148]

i’m playing this for my 2nd time. first in 7th grade and now as a sophomore in high school

[@bobby9655]

i a m a d v a n c e d j u n i o r h i g h 😰

[@oliviaw734]

i quit high school band because of this song

[@jeffrybobbingson7376]

I finna suggest it to my teacher next year.

[@theimprovedbore550]

this song's so fun to play on the drums dude

[@ryanramjattan8714]

It truly is so much fun!!

[@findlay180]

It's a lot of fun but I can't figure out how to play the fills in the beginning

[@shackledallegiance1091]

Yea we are playing this and YYZ

[@incarnatemus]

true gangggg 🤪🤪🤪

[@UncleYOURUNCLEUNCLE]

Fun but agony

[@alexandermaldonado6947]

I was gonna play this on a drum set. But due to covid the concert got canceled (,:

[@ab7207]

rip brother

[@oliviaw734]

lucky

[@aidanprendergast4521]

Me too bro

[@ryanramjattan8714]

Awe that sucks. No crazy drum fills. I also got cancelled

[@founboy78]

I was going to play in pit for a musical but it also got canceled because of covid.

[@captinsmig668]

I was gonna play THE CHICKEN, CARAVAN, AND THIS OTHER SONG CALLED BLUE BONES in 2020 for festival in middle school on bass BUT COVID cancelled all concerts. From there my skill went down hill, but im applying to this art high school and im auditioning with this piece in hope of making it in. Wish me luck yall ✌️

[@drewpowwild6971]

did you make it?

[@user-kx4qt1yq1q]

I played Caravan too, but along with a song called Watermelon Man.

[@jackthecommenter2768]

Bro that is actually tragic

[@pinkapple3619]

1 year ago, how'd it go?

[@cacawsthelaw]

Playing this in jazz band as bass trombone! Let's go.

[@ALTMedia-Official]

This song has THE BEST Bass Trombone part

[@nathanshank4164]

Im gonna die of anxiety playing this for everyone in jazz band

[@jackp-w3886]

Never before has an F that high appeared on a grade 3 Alfred chart

[@bosaki8244]

That's the best part

[@AComplexMex]

That my part

[@zackwoods5077]

It is optional at least but a high F is usually reserved for grade 5 songs.

[@TrashCanBoiBoi]

What part? Like instrument?

[@spncrprkr]

@@TrashCanBoiBoiprobably lead trumpet

[@arihrico646]

Saw him perform yesterday at Northwest Jazz festival in Powell wyoming. My friend Even got to ask him questions about his chicken charts. Incredible musician and will always be one of my favorites. An honor to be in his presence.

[@WillTheBassPlayer]

Wait, did you mean Kris Berg or Jaco Pastorius

[@ezraaboy9469]

@@WillTheBassPlayer well not Jaco bc he’s dead

[@drewpowwild6971]

Playing it this year 🙌🏾

[@mallgothgf]

playing this rn as a guitarist in my high schools jazz band !! get to play a solo after the tenor sax, im very excited

[@stone1488]

Just got to sight read this in jazz and even though it’s my first year of doing jazz in school, Ngl this is so good

[@mikedelilahweiss5472]

I love it ❤

[@williamsanborn9195]

Where was this when I worked at the jazz club as the sound guy?! They played this ALL the time and I woulda loved to join in! 😭

[@KubikDezimeter]

Wow, thanks for all those great recordings 👍🏾 We're playing three of the songs (Moon Dance; Sing, Sing, Sing; The Chicken) in our school Bigband :D

[@danyy8747]

Do u know wombat combat?

[@alyssawall7061]

Playing this on the vibes for melody and piano wish me luck 😀..

[@jonconboi]

Yesterday, my high school jazz banf had a performance where we had the honor to play with Ed Calle for this song. I don't think I'll ever experience the energy and emotions I had yesterday, it was incredible.

[@gruselhaus]

Drumer rocks

[@shampoo5039]

I play bari saxophone and I’m playing this song for my up coming jazz concert and festivals and I really like it

[@jaxwilliams2754]

god i love this piece man, so glad you got to play it. also it’s bari, not berri. best of luck

[@malaki1212]

thisll be fun to fill in as the guitarist

[@wwemario12345]

2:13 - lmao Hal Leonard would've said there nO dA tRoMbOnE cAn'T pLaY dAt DaT tWo HaRddddddddd

[@M4tth3wC]

LOLOLOLOL

[@RyanMA23]

I have now listened to this song 6 times in a row 😂 miss playing jazz

[@TrashCanBoiBoi]

Why don't you try again? It's soo fun

[@grantcardenas734]

2:13 I love this part

[@aryanravi8164]

quite the opposite for someone who has to play it tomorrow in a school concert! Wish me luck.

[@thebrotato642]

I'm playing this too and that part alone took me an hour to get it under my fingers 😅

[@crabbostabbo6898]

Bro imma get early stage carpal tunnel from this

[@TrashCanBoiBoi]

Ikr, same

[@Abelii]

at the expense of my fingers :/

[@benjokomo]

Love this arrangement! Could I use this recording during a live stream, or is it protected by copyright?

[@truebelieverof7117]

I'm the lead trumpet at my school and would love to play this, and as much as I love my section I don't think either my 2nd or 3rd trumpet could handle this song, I already have to spoon feed them most grade 2's and 3's

[@Halmir4126]

Still weird hearing it without the tenor sax opening solo

[@LeotheTiger1234]

It begins in 3/4 and goes to 4/4, but it's not the song I was thinking of; my high school's jazz band played a different selection entitled "Tastes Like Chicken." That one also begins in 3/4 and goes to common time, 4/4.

[@kitlitteken7835]

that’s also arranged by kris berg and the concept of it was to be like this song but different and easier.

[@LeotheTiger1234]

@@kitlitteken7835 Gotcha.

[@walker_VR]

I'm playing this in jazz band

[@rascencio9452]

so most of us are here are on drumset too?

[@ethandabassman]

BASS!

[@rubenburci157]

Playing this as BARI SAXXXXX

[@whiterunguard9320]

Why is this not grade 4.5? I couldn't play a high f on trumpet until freshman year. Might as well write a double c (which I can squeak and annoy people with).

[@bartsimpson9894]

Revolutionary GFX really? I can play on Octive over high C... and I am in 7 th grade.. I also play like very day a lot

[@whiterunguard9320]

@@bartsimpson9894 with two ledger lines? Or like 6? Bevause double c has at least 6 ledger lines, high C is a little above the staff.

[@bartsimpson9894]

Ya 2 ledger line

[@bartsimpson9894]

I’m not tiring to brag, honestly,I can hit hit for 3-4 seconds

[@bartsimpson9894]

I’ve been working on it

[@jesseininparx1560]

2:11 just putting this as when to practice lol

[@stone1488]

Instead of the drum solos at 0:41 the teacher had a soprano sax do a solo and Ngl it was like gold

[@tomduval1274]

We played this piece remotely during the confinement, here is the link. (en) Nous avons joué ce morceau à distance lors du confinement, voici le lien. (fr) kzbin.info/www/bejne/kGTVmnmiatCtrcU

[@michellaffon6589]

🎉🎶🥳❤

[@hyperstargaming6150]

I was handed trumpet 2 because I was the best technical trumpet. The trumpet who played first was great, but range and technical playing weren’t her strong suit. This is the one time I didn’t play lead in jazz band, literally because I could play it the best.

[@PropellerFactory]

Playing this on the bass kinda hard but awesome

[@dinocoder1281]

How is this grade 3

[@jackp-w3886]

dinocoder ya it’s a lil difficult

[@kennyr1161]

Probably just because funk rhythms are harder to read than most other music so for students it’s gonna take a while tryna figure the rhythms out

[@dinocoder1281]

@@kennyr1161 its way too difficult the lead trumpet range isnt supposed to go that high for that long on a 3

[@kennyr1161]

dinocoder I don’t know too much about brass I’m just a woodwind player but does that really justify the grade going up just for that? Edit: maybe a 3.5 is more sensible

[@jackp-w3886]

harem god the lead trumpet has the lead line for not just the trumpets, but most or all of the band. If you’re tpt 1 player can’t play the lead line of the song it sounds like shit

[@ThanosJr1209]

This is a 10/10 song for jazz band.

[@aaryabandi8667]

I love the chicken even more than my own chicken

[@lyramcgames2711]

great piece arranged by Kris Berg but I feel like its just a little too difficult to be grade 3, it should be more of a grade 3.5 song.

[@bobthepickle3232]

Listening on 1.5x speed is a whole new experience

[@bowenwang8572]

0.75x is amazing

[@livestronger925]

Is there any bass player here that can hit every note starting on the first solo of the saxophone? Bro that bass riff was pretty tough back when I was playing because it’s so fast, and gets real funky. Basically I would just play whatever as long as it went with the song’s scale.

[@poptarts9677]

i can, we sight read it today and i’m able to hit the notes

[@thetreejet6149]

What kinda chicken is this, I need one

[@tromboneJTS]

At 2:12

[@ALTMedia-Official]

The arranger definitely had a nice few plates of beef with the lead trumpet

[@thegreatmr.e1376]

It's only an E like just play the 8ve

[@jadenhoule5719]

Has anyone transcribed the piano comping. I'm new to transcribing and I've been having a hard time figuring out the chords

[@imoginger2263]

Did you ever find a transcription??

[@jadenhoule5719]

@@imoginger2263 no

[@brianrepeta]

one of the great things about transcribing: you can only learn by doing!

[@trippboi]

I like the bum bum bum bun

[@arise8078]

Kris berg seems to love chicken

[@kaylayin9766]

2:11

[@user-fb4kx1ks2t]

Literally me when I’m in jazz band

[@FCACCREATOR]

was able to improvise a trombone solo, and I fucking loved it

[@GalacticRat3541]

I have the Tenor 1 solo. Tips for improvisation on this particular chart?

[@ignacio3084]

pray

[@froogmaster7869]

Play outside

[@captainwinky8353]

1:01

[@user-fb4kx1ks2t]

So true 😂😂😂

[@ahmedal-zamzami9683]

No shot this is grade level 3 lmao what?

[@muse8850]

2:12 for practice

[@lewis2775]

2:08

[@UltraZombie-nk4nz]

Any tips for learning it on the bass?

[@aidenjohnson3100]

Practice hahaha

[@blacktoad2425]

I'd say practice the riff til it becomes muscle memory. Then start making adjustments after it's natural to you.

[@OneDumbDude]

If it’s hard, just learn it at a slower tempo first. If there is a certain measure that’s hard, write down the tabs for that measure.

[@alexlogan124]

Learn Jaco’s picking technique and watch some instructional videos by him

[@HdidjfHdhdhdu]

I had to play the solo on drums and after that I felt neim from whiplash

[@cadenm316]

Does anyone know who the drummer is? And/or have any tips for drummers in this insane song?

[@cadenm316]

-signed a highschooler who only started on drums this year

[@minos9017]

2:10 unison

[@natedean9576]

2:13 Stop Time, Unison thingy

[@mattkins752]

solo for my bookmarking 2:13

[@istalri-1092]

Im playing this in middle school 😬

[@_sandpaper__2515]

loser🥱

[@stefceusplays8551]

It might just be me but the bass part is like hard? The solo section i cant get down but everything else i can 😢

[@wwemario12345]

1:01 - really? Tbn.4 opt tacet?

[@jaygoooood]

3:59 1:37

[@jaywestg9248]

4:02

[@aaazzziiieee5559]

What does loco mean in measure 59?

[@blah703]

0:04 2:11

[@elijah_herrera]

3:59

[@coffesiamang3178]

2:39

[@ExistingPerson26]

I’m a third trumpet Send help

[@aryanravi8164]

We all clowned one our third trumpet until our band director had the excellent idea to have everyone in the band play the soli section in unison

[@miniongeorge60]

I was wondering why people said 3rd trumpet part was hard until I finally saw it. . .

[@IdiotismInc]

This song would be perfect if it used the solo from the Mike story arrangement, which is arguably one of the best written solos of all time.

[@jesseininparx1560]

3:12

[@zackwoods5077]

Sheesh, the arranger must've really had a bone to pick with lead trumpet players or doesn't have a clue how endurance works for high brass notes. Putting that many high C's in a grade 3 is asking too much at that level.

[@flix5121]

why did it cross the road tho??

[@snakycarnival9119]

dangit. I'm the drummer

[@isaacmcken7983]

Me too It’s not that hard

[@smashytails6089]

At Last

[@RikardPeterson]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rWS2qGOdjsR1abM :)

[@Calebs_Aviation]

🐓

[@crowdnine7771]

Bo burnham 😱😱😱

[@rcbautista9567]

2:12 Soli at 47

[@rcbautista9567]

2:21

[@user-ct2cl9ne4e]

0:54 0:54 0:55 0:55 0:55 0:55

[@ilaitianakautoga480]

this sucks too good

[@mattsondasax]

Lol i played this in 6th grade, had a solo and all. Won the contest.

[@zacharywoodward4769]

But hear me out, Son of The Chicken

[@jacks.6042]

Andrew played it better

[@cvm2378]

2:07

[@danielm-k7393]

1:00

[@captinsmig668]

2:44

[@ViperousViolet]

2:12

[@kurt7536]

2:10

[@atmochi2344]

2:46