“In Walked Bud” was composed by Thelonious Monk as a tribute to his friend, pianist Bud Powell, and recorded in 1947. It’s a contrafact based on the chord changes of Irving Berlin’s “Blue Skies,” with a quirky Monk melody on top.
The form is a 32-bar AABA. The A sections use the “Blue Skies” changes, opening with a descending minor line before moving to the major key. The bridge offers contrast before returning. Monk’s melody is angular and rhythmic.
For improvisation, outline the descending minor line in the A sections and then brighten for the major resolution. Use Monk-style ideas: repetition, space and surprising intervals.
Practice the head until you can play it with Monk’s accents. Learn “Blue Skies” too, to hear the original harmony.
Section by section: in the A sections, outline the descending minor line with notes that move by half step, then brighten your phrases when the harmony turns major. The bridge offers a contrast; use Monk-style rhythmic ideas, repeated notes and space. In the final A, return to the descending line before resolving. Monk’s quartet with Charlie Rouse recorded memorable versions full of playful interaction.
Practice tip: play “Blue Skies” and “In Walked Bud” back to back. Hearing both melodies over the same harmony shows how bebop composers built new tunes on old progressions, a technique you can use in your own writing.
Using the In Walked Bud 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.
Is it hard to play? It’s intermediate. Recordings to study: Monk’s 1947 recording and his later quartet versions. Learn more about the composer on Thelonious Monk’s Wikipedia page, and find more Monk lead sheets on Minedit.