It is a Spanish word that can mean several things, but perhaps the best translation in this case would be “spiral shell”, like that of a conch or any type of seashell. Like a caracol, this song repeats different sections. In the image above, the different sections are marked with the letters A, B, and C, in square boxes. To begin the song, vamp on a D7#9 chord for about 8 bars or so, in a somewhat funky style (think Sly & the Family Stone, for example), and then on the last two beats, play the two pickup notes that lead into the first “A” section. The chords come mostly from the key of Eb, but also from Bb. It turns out that the song is actually in Bb. As with the other songs discussed here, liberties can be taken with the melody. Note that under the first Dm7 chord suggested “harmony” notes are given. Overall this is a rough sketch of the song, but hopefully it can serve as a somewhat useful lead sheet. At the end of the “1st” ending, the same notes and chord (although here it is written as a Dm7+, or sharp 5: an A sharp, which is the same as Bb) bring the tune back to the beginning of the “A” section.
The “A” section is played through again, and then goes to the “2nd” ending and into the “B” section. After the first F in the second ending is played, there is a quick stop notated by the “//” and the “N.C.”, or 'no chord'. The second F quarter note is optional; a quarter note rest may take its place. The 16th note run is simply a Bb major scale, and can be played by any combination of instruments, solo or in unison. It is an approach to the “B” section, which makes use of repetition, in that the melody uses the same quarter-note-triplet pattern over the succeeding chords. The “%” symbol means to repeat the previous measure (note its use in the second measure of the “A” section – this means the first half of that measure is also an Ebmaj7 chord). Again a Dm7+ chord leads us into another take of the “A” section, before proceeding to the “3rd” ending and the “C” section.
The “3rd” ending is a descending chromatic approach to the Gmaj7 chord that begins the “C” section. Note that there is no melody written here. This section is purely improvised. All that needs to be done is to carry through the indicated changes in time, but even this can be done freely. Also note that the chords are all major7's, and in groups of two measures, the root moves up a fourth. For improvisational purposes, it may be easy to treat these as being in the lydian, or fourth, mode. Once again, a Dm7+ returns the song to the “A” section, which can go to the “1st” ending and back for one more repeat.
The song can end in any number of ways. The suggestions above may serve. I like to use the coda pictured below:
Hopefully that is legible enough. The main idea is to slow down, and end on a simple Bbmajor chord. So, is it a bossa or a samba? Even I don't know. It's something.
“Sprial shell,
Spiral shell,
From the windy street
that used to exist in my mind and now
you can hear my song.”
Here is a link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNFxQV2v9WU
