“But Not for Me” was written by George and Ira Gershwin for the 1930 musical Girl Crazy. Its bittersweet lyric about love passing someone by has drawn singers for decades, and jazz players love it for its smooth, logical chord changes. Chet Baker’s vocal version and John Coltrane’s reharmonized take on My Favorite Things are both essential listening.
The form is a 32-bar ABAC, usually played in Eb major (F is also common). The tune opens with a ii-V to the IV chord, then moves through a series of ii-Vs and secondary dominants before settling in Eb. The second half follows a similar path and ends with a classic turnaround. Most of the harmony stays close to home, which makes it a great tune for working on swing feel and clean voice leading.
For improvisation, Eb major will carry you through most of the tune. The key is to bring out the secondary dominants. When a C7 heads to Fm7, play the E natural on the C7 and resolve it to F. When a G7 heads to Cm7, use the B natural. Those half-step resolutions are what make a solo sound like it’s following the changes. Coltrane’s version replaces some chords with his “Coltrane changes,” and studying that reharmonization is a great advanced project.
Practice by singing the melody and playing it in two keys. Then improvise one chorus using only guide tones (thirds and sevenths) as half notes, and another chorus in eighth notes. Play along with Chet Baker’s relaxed recording to work on phrasing at a medium tempo.
Using the But Not for Me Lead Sheet PDF on gigs: keep a concert-pitch copy and a copy in your instrument’s key, label the intro and ending on the page, and note the tempo and feel the band usually plays. Small notes like these keep you calm when a tune gets called on the spot.
Common mistake: playing everything at the same dynamic. This tune has a gentle, wistful character, so let your sound reflect it. Learn more about the composer on George Gershwin’s Wikipedia page, and explore more Gershwin standards on Minedit.