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Note-for-Note Piano Transcriptions

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Most piano sheet music of hit recordings is very inaccurate, often including incorrect chords and almost never giving the exact keyboard part. For example, have you ever tried to find the sheet music for the piano part in The Beatles' classic, "Lady Madonna"? There's lots available, but none is correct; most piano transcriptions are not even close.

Over the years I've picked out precisely the keyboard parts for many classic recordings: for my own high-school cover band as a teenager, to the keyboard tracks in the hits by The Beach Boys, Ricky Nelson, and Rod Stewart, to perform onstage with them around the world. Also, The Beach Boys themselves taught me exactly the keyboard voicings that they used on their hit records, some quite ingenious.

All the piano sheet music on this page has been created by me, Elmo Peeler, a conservatory-trained professional rock pianist/arranger/conductor. My passion in life has been the piano - playing it and composing for it. Over the years I've toured the world, playing and arranging for three Hall-of-Fame rock artists: The Beach Boys, Ricky Nelson, and Rod Stewart. If you'd like to see me play, there are video links on the Boogie-Woogie Sheet Music page.

As a response to colleagues and students who have asked me to teach them those keyboard parts, I've created piano sheet music (or organ sheet music for "Green Onions", "A Whiter Shade of Pale", "The House of the Rising Sun" and others) that is note-for-note accurate - perfect piano transcriptions.

Whether you:

these note-for-note transcriptions will prove extremely helpful.

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Purchase any of this piano sheet music by clicking on the ADD TO CART button just beneath each piece's description. You do not need to have a PayPal account, only a debit or credit card (eChecks are also accepted). After your payment has been securely processed, you can download the PDF file, which can be printed out.

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If you need a note-for-note accurate piano transcription of a particular song - or just the keyboard solo, custom transcriptions, i.e., transcriptions-by-request, are available. See customer testimonials and contact me for pricing.

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The pianists and organists whose performances are available here in note-for-note accurate piano transcriptions include:

Question Mark & the Mysterians - 96 Tears - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock organ's greatest classics is "96 Tears" by ? & the Mysterians. Released in 1966 on a small Michigan-based label, it became a regional hit before it was picked up by Neil Bogart's Cameo-Parkway label and promoted nationally. Within months it reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The main instrument in the entire piece is a combo organ, most likely a Vox Continental, although some claim it to be a Farfisa or a Lowrey. Besides a catchy unison organ riff, the organ part has two other important sections, one with staccato chords and the other with an interesting chordal legato technique (that is never played correctly by cover bands). During the minor-key Bridge the organ repeats a specific rhythm found nowhere else in the song.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire organ part for "96 Tears" - all 91 measures of one of the greatest classics from the '60's. Part of the bass guitar line is also included. If you'd like to play "96 Tears" exactly like it was recorded, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is "96 Tears" by ? & the Mysterians on YouTube.

Adele - Someone Like You - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the most hauntingly beautiful songs ever written, Adele co-wrote this emotional song with Dan Wilson, who plays the beautiful, hypnotic piano on the recording.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 4:45, comprising 80 measures. You'll love playing this amazing hit by Adele exactly as it was recorded.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Adele's "Someone Like You" on YouTube.

Albert King - Crosscut Saw - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Crosscut Saw" is a twelve-bar blues classic, first released in 1941 by Mississippi bluesman Tommy McClennan. In 1966 Albert King recorded his own version, using Booker T. & the MG's as his backing band. Since then, it has become a blues classic, recorded by many artists, from Otis Rush to Eric Clapton to Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Albert King's recording, released on his "Born Under a Bad Sign" album, contains 7 verses and a wonderful piano part played by Booker T. Jones. Booker T.'s piano part uses rhythmic Right-hand chords over a New Orleans-influenced Left-Hand bass part, that is an excellent study in Left-hand/Right-hand co-ordination. True to form, Booker T. never overplays, playing just the right notes at just the right time to provide the perfect rhythmic foundation for Albert King's vocals and guitar-playing. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 2:35 - all 7 verses (it fades out during the 7th verse). If you'd like to study Booker T.'s piano style while further developing your own Left/Right coordination, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Albert King's "Crosscut Saw" on YouTube.

The Alan Price Set - I Put a Spell on You - Organ Intro, Solo & Coda (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the most important bands of the 1960's British invasion was The Animals, which was started when singer Eric Burdon joined the Alan Price Rhythm and Blues Combo in 1963. They changed their name to The Animals, and when "House of the Rising Sun" became a #1 transatlantic hit, the world took note of Alan Price's haunting, bluesy Vox Continental organ part that underpinned the entire song, complete with one of rock's classic organ solos.

After only 18 months of hit-after-hit recordings, Price tired of touring and left The Animals, starting his own band, The Alan Price Set. Their biggest hit was a highly creative arrangement of the old Screamin' Jay Hawkins blues classic, "I Put a Spell on You", driven by Alan Price's organ. Instead of a blues intro, Price plays a classical, Baroque organ Intro that could just as easily have led into a Bach fugue. Instead, the classical organ slowly evolves into a virtuosic rock/jazz solo, builds in intensity, then ends as it began - with a Coda in the Baroque style of J.S. Bach.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the three most important organ sections: the Intro, the Solo, and the ending Coda. It also includes a complete chord chart for the entire song. If you've always wanted to play this rock organ classic, this is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Click here to listen to "I Put a Spell on You" by The Alan Price Set on YouTube. The organ solo goes from 1:54 to 2:20.

Alicia Keys - Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down (Intimate 'Acoustic' Studio Performance) (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 2009 Alicia Keys released a video performance of a two-minute version of "Empire State of Mind", which she co-wrote, on the Deluxe edition bonus DVD with her "Element of Freedom" album. The first half of the song is a classically-influenced instrumental piano intro, building to a dramatic transition into the vocal section.

This is a transcription of the entire 1:59 performance. If you'd like to play this beautiful classically-inspired pop/R&B song just like Alicia Keys, this will allow you to do it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Alicia Keys - Empire State of Mind, Pt. II (Intimate 'Acoustic' Studio Performance) - Intro only

Alicia Keys - Wild Horses - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

On July 4, 2005, on MTV's "Unplugged" show, Alicia Keys performed one of the most beautiful performances of "Wild Horses" ever, in her duet with Adam Levine. Her piano begins the song, ends the song, and dominates everything in between - a haunting, achingly romantic, elegant reinterpretation of the Rolling Stones' classic.

This is a note-for-note transcription of every note that Alicia Keys plays - all 6:04 of the song!

Alicia Keys is a classically-trained pianist, with a refined touch and elegant style. If you've ever wanted to study Alicia Key's piano style, this transcription is perfect for you.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Alicia Keys' "Wild Horses" on YouTube.

Allen Toussaint - Early Professor Longhair Piano Style - Riff No.1 (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

New Orleans piano legend Allen Toussaint often said that by far the biggest influence on his playing was Professor Longhair. In various interviews Toussaint would play the actual 12-bar Professor Longhair piano riff that he heard and learned at the age of eight.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Toussaint actually playing that influential riff during an interview by Elvis Costello on NPR's "Piano Jazz" on 8-31-2012.

If you'd like to start learning Professor Longhair's syncopated New Orleans piano style, why not start where Allen Toussaint started? This simple, basic riff will get you started into that wonderful pianistic world of Toussaint and Longhair, and continued by Dr. John.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Allen Toussaint - "Professor Longhair Piano Style" (played by Allen Toussaint) 

Allen Toussaint - Later Professor Longhair Piano Style - Riff No.2 (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

New Orleans piano legend Allen Toussaint, in various interviews, would play the two Longhair riffs most important to his own development that he had heard and learned as a child.

He called the Longhair riff that he'd heard at age eight "early Longhair" and then would play a second, slightly more evolved riff that he called "later Longhair".

In 1988 Toussaint was interviewed by Terry Gross on NPR, and he played both the 'early' and 'later' Longhair riffs. Then in 2006 the BBC produced a video documentary called "The Allen Toussaint Touch", in which Toussaint again played both those two Longhair riffs. Then again in 2012 Elvis Costello interviewed Toussaint on NPR's 'Piano Jazz' program, and once again Toussaint played the two important Longhair piano riffs.

When playing riff #2 - 'later' Longhair - he would play it with subtle variations.

To best understand that important Longhair riff #2, I've transcribed note-for-note the examples that Toussaint played in those three interviews. One was in the key of C, another in F,and the third in G.

Then I 'distilled' all three down into one complete 12-bar phrase, keeping all the important commonalities. This transcription contains all four versions.

If you'd like to learn more about Professor Longhair's New Orleans piano style, this second riff will continue your exploration of that wonderful New Orleans piano-playing started by Professor Longhair.

Difficulty: Moderate

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This transcription contains all of these:

To listen, just click: Allen Toussaint - "Professor Longhair Piano Style - Riff No.2 (1988)" (played by Allen Toussaint)
To listen, just click: Allen Toussaint - "Professor Longhair Piano Style - Riff No.2 (2006)" (played by Allen Toussaint)
To listen, just click: Allen Toussaint - "Professor Longhair Piano Style - Riff No.2 (2012)" (played by Allen Toussaint)

To listen, just click: Elmo Peeler - "Distillation of Professor Longhair Piano Style - Riff No.2"

The Allman Brothers Band - Jessica - Piano Solo from Tutorial Video (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When The Allman Brothers Band released "Jessica" in 1973, suddenly the world knew about keyboardist Chuck Leavell, who improvised a classic piano solo on the recording. That solo became so famous that Leavell picked it out from his own recording and memorized it, so that he could perfectly replicate it in The Allman Brothers' live performances. In 2007, thirty-four years after recording it, Leavell released a tutorial video explaining the solo. It's 68-bar structure is:

1) Exposition
2) Descending Figure
3) Slide Down
4) Accents
5) Octaves
6) Hammered 4th's
7) Rolling Figure
then into the Guitar Solo...

This is a note-for-note transcription of Chuck Leavell's entire (1:27) "Jessica" piano solo - both hands - exactly as he plays it on current tours - very similar to, but not exactly the same as the original 1973 recording. Study this classic solo in detail, and learn to play it yourself, precisely as Chuck Leavell does.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: The Allman Brothers Band - Jessica - Piano Solo

The Allman Brothers Band - Jessica - Complete Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part as played by Chuck Leavell, note-for-note, taken directly from the 1973 single recording by The Allman Brothers Band.

"Jessica", one of the Allman Brothers' classics, has been a favorite since the 1970's, when my rock-and-roll band played it at almost every gig. "Jessica" is on the 1973 album "Brothers and Sisters," by The Allman Brothers Band, Capricorn Records CP 0111. Produced by Johnny Sandlin & The Allman Brothers Band, the album is "dedicated to a brother - Berry Oakley," their original bass player who died in a motorcycle accident near the location of Duane Allman's fatal motorcycle accident.

For the piano, the Allman Brothers brought in Georgian Chuck Leavell, who since then has played with The Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton ("UnPlugged"). This note-perfect piano transcription shows Leavell's solo in "Jessica" to be beautifully structured, containing a great section of over-the-bar-line type of phrasing, which leads into ascending and descending octave phrases, then into a section of "hammer-on" fourths, ending with an ascending broken-octave passage in unison with the rest of the band. There's lots of fun stuff in this piano solo to learn, and to learn from.

This complete transcription also shows exactly how Leavell comps during the Verses, the Bridge, the Out section - every 'lick' in perfect detail. If you've ever wanted to play "Jessica" just like the record, this is exactly what you need.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is the Allman Brothers Band's "Jessica" on YouTube.

The Allman Brothers Band - Jessica - Piano Solo - Album RH + Video LH (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is the Right Hand part of the original 1973 Allman Brothers album version, with the Left Hand part from Chuck Leavell's 2007 tutorial video. Although the 1973 and the 2007 solos are slightly different, the 2007 Left Hand works perfectly under the 1973 Right Hand solo.

If you'd like to play the original 1973 solo but include a genuine Chuck Leavell left hand part, this 'hybrid' will work perfectly for you.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: The Allman Brothers Band - Jessica - Piano Solo - 1973 Album Right Hand + 2007 Video Left Hand

Gregg Allman - Midnight Rider - Elec. Piano Riff (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Gregg Allman said that "Midnight Rider" was "the song I'm most proud of in my career". Written at a rented farmhouse on a lake near Macon, Georgia, the song came to him quickly and out of nowhere. He completed a rough draft in just over an hour of writing.

This is a transcription of just one particular 2-bar electric piano riff in Gregg Allman's own version, released in 1973 on his "Laid Back" album. The riff occurs about 15 seconds into the recording. This transcription also includes the immediately preceding two bars plus the immediately following two bars - a total of six bars (17 seconds). If you'd like to get the electric piano riff near the beginning of the song exactly right, this short transcription is what you need.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is "Midnight Rider" by Gregg Allman on YouTube. The electric piano riff begins at :13 and ends at :30.

Gregg Allman - Midnight Rider (Rehearsal) - Acoustic Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The original 1973 recording of "Midnight Rider" did not have an acoustic piano on it, only Gregg Allman's electric piano.

However, in 2019 a 2-CD Deluxe Edition was released that contained a rehearsal of "Midnight Rider" with Chuck Leavell playing acoustic piano. And sure enough, he takes a wonderful acoustic piano solo on it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Leavell's acoustic piano solo, recorded during a rehearsal. If you'd like to add a piano solo to your own performances of "Midnight Rider", this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Chuck Leavell's acoustic piano solo on "Midnight Rider" on YouTube.

The Allman Brothers Band - Ramblin' Man - Piano Part - Intro, 2 Verses, Chorus (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Ramblin' Man" was the only top 10 single by the Allman Brothers Band, peaking at #2 in 1973. The pianist, Chuck Leavell, was the newest member of the band, and only 20 years old. But the track he laid down was one of the most smokin' piano parts ever recorded.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Intro, the first two Verses, and the first Chorus - the first 1:12 of the song. Those sections contain everything you need to be able to play the entire song. Leavell, who also plays for the Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton, pulled out the jams on "Ramblin' Man", using a highly syncopated right hand part that creates terrific forward momentum, driving the entire rhythm section.

Throwing in everything from very rhythmic chords to single-note lines to sixths to twangy country-rock fills, Leavell created one of the best piano parts in Southern rock. If you've ever wondered how to play "Ramblin' Man", this is your chance to play it just as the Allman Brothers recorded it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the Allman Brothers Band's "Ramblin' Man" piano part on YouTube.

The Allman Brothers Band - Southbound - Complete Piano Part with Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When The Allman Brothers Band recorded "Southbound" in 1972 (it was released in 1973 on their Brothers and Sisters album), pianist Chuck Leavell was only 20 years old. Yet the young pianist laid down one of the most propulsive, driving piano tracks ever recorded on a rock song.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 157 measures (the 5:10 version) - including Leavell's terrific 24-bar piano solo, which starts with jazzy 9th-chords, evolves into single-note runs, syncopated octaves, cross-bar phrasing in 3rds, bluesy riffs, more octaves, and ends with two-handed cross-bar phrasing - 24 bars of virtuosic rock piano soloing at its best.

If you'd like to study how Leavell created such a powerful piano part that drives the entire band - and play it - this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is The Allman Brothers Band's "Southbound" on YouTube.

The Allman Brothers Band - Stormy Monday - Organ Solo - (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Stormy Monday", on the legendary 1971 album by The Allman Brothers Band, "At Fillmore East", is one of the classic recordings of this perennial 12-bar blues favorite, written in 1947 by T-Bone Walker. To add some contrast to the slow blues verses preceding it, Gregg Allman's B-3 organ solo is an up-tempo jazz waltz (179 Beats per Minute) that lasts for almost 50 seconds before the slow "Stormy Monday" blues resumes.

During these 50 seconds, Gregg Allman plays a jazzy, Jimmy Smith-influenced organ solo that takes good advantage of the Dorian mode, and throws in some fun B-3 techniques, such as holding one note while improvising around it (great way to build the tension), and repeated notes, augmented chords and seven-sharp-nine chords.

Underneath this wonderful organ solo, Berry Oakley plays some of the most creative walking-bass lines ever recorded in a 12-bar blues context. Instead of just outlining the chords, as many walking-bass lines do, Oakley uses lots of very clever and creative passing notes, sometimes in contrast to the chords played by the guitars.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire organ solo - all 48 measures. Plus, it also includes a transcription of the bass guitar line, so that the keyboardist can better understand what is going on underneath him/her in Berry Oakley's excellent part. This should also prove very helpful to bands that are working up this version of "Stormy Monday" and want it to sound exactly right.

This transcription is perfect for learning Allman's classic organ solo, and for studying his Hammond B-3 style.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen to the organ solo, just click: The Allman Brothers Band - "Stormy Monday" (organ solo)

The Allman Brothers Band - Whipping Post - Organ Part - (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Whipping Post" is one of The Allman Brothers Band's greatest recordings. Written by Gregg Allman in 1969 when the band was first formed, it is on Rolling Stone's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time."

Some sections of the song are in an odd meter, analyzed by some as being in 11/4 meter. However, Gregg Allman says he doesn't think of it as 11/4, but rather as having three groups of three beats followed by a group of two beats. This transcription reveals not only the exact organ notes and chord voicings but also makes clear the odd meters.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Gregg Allman's classic Hammond B-3 organ part for the entire studio recording - all 5:20 of it. If you've ever wanted to play "Whipping Post" exactly as Gregg Allman wrote and played it himself, here is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Whipping Post" on YouTube

Andy Kirk & His Clouds of Joy - Boogie Woogie Cocktail (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Boogie Woogie Cocktail, recorded in 1942 at the height of the boogie-woogie craze, is one of the best boogie-woogies ever - a true virtuoso showpiece. It contains seven different 12-bar Verses, each based upon a different boogie-woogie pattern, plus two different 20-bar Bridges and a 22-bar Out section. It was written and played by Ken Kersey, an extremely gifted jazz pianist who accompanied and recorded with Billie Holiday. It was recorded by Andy Kirk and His Clouds of Joy only months after Kersey replaced Mary Lou Williams in Kirk's band.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire boogie-woogie - all 154 measures. In the 1940's another "transcription" of it was released, but it only contained 64 measures, of which over 80% were highly inaccurate, not even resembling Ken Kersey's actual piano part.

If you like boogie-woogie, this is the ultimate show-stopper, guaranteed to amaze your audience - plus, it's a blast to play. Click on the link below to listen to it.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Andy Kirk & His Clouds of Joy's original 1942 recording on YouTube. Ken Kersey is the amazing pianist.

Animal Liberation Orchestra - Maria - 4-bar Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Maria" was written and played by Zach Gill of the Animal Liberation Orchestra, released on their 2007 album, Roses and Clover. This is a note-for-note transcription of just the the first four bars of the Intro, which has some fun Right Hand octaves plus a rhythmic interplay between the hands to create an excellent rocking feel used throughout the song.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Maria" by the Animal Liberation Orchestra on YouTube.

The Animals - Bring It On Home To Me - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Animals were very lucky to have had a very talented band leader, Alan Price, a versatile musician who played not just rock, but jazz and show music. Not only did he create the legendary haunting, bluesy organ part on "House of the Rising Sun" but he also provided the driving instrumental force behind The Animals subsequent hits, including a re-working of Sam Cooke's "Bring It on Home to Me".

This is a transcription of the entire piano part on The Animals' recording of "Bring It in Home to Me". From the piano solo Intro that starts it until the final bluesy fade-out - including the Left Hand octave solo in the middle - this will show you just how Alan Price played it on The Animals' original hit recording.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Click here to listen to "Bring It on Home to Me" by The Animals on YouTube.

The Animals - The House of the Rising Sun - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Recorded in just one take in 1964, The Animals' version of "The House of the Rising Sun" became one of the biggest hits in rock history, going to #1 in both the U.S.A. and the U.K. (plus Canada and Finland). Based on a sixteenth-century English folk song about a Soho brothel, it tells the story of a man's downfall in a New Orleans whorehouse.

In 1962 The Animals were formed by Alan Price, an excellent, self-trained organist, whose instrument of choice was the Vox Continental. Price's organ part on "The House of the Rising Sun" is one of rock's true classic keyboard parts. However, most keyboard players simply arpeggiate the chords, whereas Price's right hand part was more rhythmic and creative than just simple arpeggios. And his 34-second solo in the middle of the song is a textbook example of a 1960's combo-organ solo. The long version, released in the UK but not in the USA, also has a second organ solo - 30 seconds long - that comprises the Out Section.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the organ part for the entire song - the long version, all 4:29  - 172 measures long. It also includes a transcription of the Guitar part during the 8-bar Intro. If you want to play "The House of the Rising Sun" exactly as Alan Price recorded it in one take for The Animals, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "The House of the Rising Sun" on YouTube.

Aretha Franklin - Don't Play That Song - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The R&B classic "Don't Play That Song" was a hit for Ben E. King in 1962. Eight years later Aretha released her own version, powered by her own driving gospel-drenched piano. The brief Intro, a piano solo before the drums, rhythm section and vocals kick in, shows off her gospel piano style to full advantage. This is a note-for-note transcription of the brief 15-second piano Intro.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Aretha's "Don't Play That Song" on YouTube.

Artisti Uniti per L'Abruzzo - Domani 21/04.2009 - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Domani" was originally written in 2003 by Mauro Pagani. Fifteen days after the April 6, 2009 L'Aquila earthquake 56 leading Italian musicians converged at a recording studio in Milan to record their own version of "Domani", which became the best-selling single of 2009 in Italy. The recording was the brainchild of Italian singer Jovanotti, and co-produced by Pagani and Marco Sorrentino. The 56 artists that were involved in the recording included:

Zucchero, Ligabue, Tiziano Ferro, Enrico Ruggeri, Gianni Morandi, Franco Battiato, Massimo Ranieri, Max Pezzali, Eugenio Finardi, Carmen Consoli, Francesco Renga, Roberto Vecchioni, Giuliano Palma, Elio, Vittoria Cosma, Jovanotti, Caparezza, Frankie High Energy, Gianluca, Grignani, Giuliano Sangiorgi (singer with Negramaro), Claudio Baglioni, Ron, Luca Carboni, Baustelle, Samuele Bersani, Marracash, Albano, Laura Pausini, Nek, Antonello Venditti, Jovanotti, Fibra, J-az, Roi Paci, Giorgia, Giusy Ferreri, Piero Pelu, Morgan, Mario Venuti, Dolcenera, Gianna Nannini, Elisa, Manuel Agnelli, Mango, Niccolo Fabi, Pacifico, Antonella Ruggiero, and Bluvertigo.

"Domani" is a wonderful 6:12-long classic, reminiscent of "We Are the World," the 1985 charity single by USA for Africa. The pianist chosen for the project was Eros Cristiani, who plays with beautiful sensitivity and warmth, and an excellent sense of dynamics. The piano begins the song with a soft hymn-like solo, and slowly builds in intensity as the bass guitar enters in Verse 2, and later the drums in Chorus 1,  and builds to a powerful, rhythmic rocking climax. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 6:12 - 142 measures. If you'd like to play "Domani" exactly as it was recorded by Artisti Uniti, this transcription is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Domani 21/04.2009" on YouTube.


Asleep at the Wheel - Boot Scootin' Boogie - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Asleep at the Wheel is an Austin, TX-based band that specializes in country/Western-swing, of which "Boot Scootin' Boogie" is a good example. Moving along at a brisk tempo (148 BPM), it uses a shuffle rhythm characteristic of the genre. This boogie-based piano solo is a good example of how to combine the Major and minor pentatonic scales, with an emphasis on the Major pentatonic scale. Beginning with an effective use of a descending run in sixths, it quickly begins throwing in 'flips' (five in all), a couple of 'crushed' tones, and at least one broken, or 'yodeling', sixth - lots of fun piano riffs in a relatively short time.

Later in the song the piano throws in another fun riff, which incorporates yet more 'flips', thirds, and a blurring of Major/minor tonality by the use of grace notes. That riff is also included in this note-for-note transcription.

Also included is the exact Bass Guitar line that underlies both the solo and the later riff. Although the pianist does not play it on the recording, it'll just add to the effectiveness of this solo if you choose to add it to your own performance of this fun, classic Western-swing boogie solo.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen to the solo, and to the riff, click here: Asleep at the Wheel - Boot Scootin' Boogie (solo & riff)

Assembly of Dust - Second Song (Live) - Electric Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is a transcription of the very well-played Electric Piano Solo on "Second Song", released by Assembly of Dust on their 2016 live album, Tales from the Oregon Trail. The pianist, Jason Crosby, rips through a jazz-influenced uptempo solo with lots of running 16-notes plus three 'flips'.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the electric piano solo on Assembly of Dust's "Second Song (Live)" on YouTube.  

The Association - Never My Love - Both Organ Solos.pdf

During the last half of the 1960's, The Association, a pop group from California, were among the most respected bands of the day, because of their excellent vocal harmony and instrumental tracks. What the public didn't know was that the backing tracks were recorded by the Wrecking Crew, Los Angeles' leading session musicians. The keyboardist on "Never My Love" was the legendary Larry Knechtel, who had recorded the piano track on Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge over Troubled Waters" and Johnny Rivers' "Rockin' Pneumonia".

There are two organ solos in "Never My Love". This is a note-for-note transcription of both organ solos, containing several techniques from Larry Knechtel's bag of tricks, including double grace-notes, harmonizing the melody in thirds, 16th-note triplets, etc. The bass guitar part under the two solos is also included.

If you'd like to play the organ solos in "Never My Love" exactly as studio legend Larry Knechtel played them, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is The Association's "Never My Love" on YouTube. The first organ solo starts at 2:14.

Atlanta Rhythm Section - So Into You - Elec. Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Atlanta Rhythm Section started out as session musicians in Georgia, who in 1971 started their own band, and had hits with "Spooky", "Imaginary Lover", and "So Into You", their biggest hit. Released in 1976, the recording is built around a Wurlitzer electric piano, played by Dean Daughtry, a founding member who still tours with the band.

"So Into You" begins with a haunting, atmospheric 4-bar Intro played on a Wurlitzer electric piano, slightly detuned using a Lexicon Harmonizer H910. Although it's not a difficult part to play, the Intro can be a little tricky to pick out, as it uses some unusual chord voicings. Very rarely do cover bands get the Intro just right.

This is a note-for-note transcription of just the 4-bar electric piano Intro, exactly as recorded by Dean Daughtry. If you've never been able to get the voicings quite right, this will show you how to play it exactly as it is on the record.

Difficulty: Easy

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Click here to listen to Atlanta Rhythm Section's "So Into You" on YouTube. The Intro is just the first four measures, i.e., the first 13 seconds.

B.B. King - Blue Shadows - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Blue Shadows" was recorded during the same Los Angeles sessions for Kent Records that produced "Rock Me Baby", sometime between 1958 and 1961. The exact recording dates and personnel have been lost, but the recordings speak for themselves - simply some of the finest blues recordings made in the 20th century - with awesome piano parts.

Like the rhythm track in "Rock Me Baby", the piano is the main instrument in the "Blue Shadows" track; and the main piano riff is built in 6th's. However, that's where the similarities end, because the piano riffs - although both are in 6th's - are completely different in the two songs. The "Blue Shadows" piano part is high and tinkly, and never in the mid-register, whereas the "Rock Me Baby" piano part is always in the mid-register and never high and tinkly - wonderful studies in two different but very effective ways of using 6th's.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording. If you'd like to learn one of B.B. King's greatest classics and pick up some new ideas on how to structure a blues riff in general, and to use 6th's specifically, this is a great opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is B.B. King's "Blue Shadows" on YouTube.

B.B. King - Rock Me Baby - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Born in a sharecroppers' shack out in the country between two small Mississippi towns (Itta Bena and Indianola), B.B. King said that he plowed fields behind a mule six days a week for so many years in his youth that he could've plowed a furrow around the world. But it was a guitar, not a plow, that was to take B.B. around the world many times over.

He started recording singles in 1949, and somewhere between 1957 and 1961 - the date is unclear - he recorded "Rock Me Baby" for Kent Records. When it was finally released in 1965, it became B.B. King's first Top 40 hit. Finally white America knew what black music fans had known for years - that Riley "Blues Boy" King was simply the best at singing and playing real, authentic, Saturday-night juke-joint Blues.

The rhythm track of "Rock Me Baby" is anchored by a mid-register blues piano riff in 6th's underpinned by growly open fifths in the bass. Only when B.B. breaks into a guitar solo does the piano pattern change, and then to a terrific tremolo rolling pattern supporting the guitar lines. When the vocal re-enters, the piano reverts back to that classic, growling mid-register riff that began the song.

The piano track behind B.B.'s original Kent Records "Rock Me Baby" (he re-recorded it years later) is one of Blues' greatest piano parts. It works as a blues riff, and it works as a rock riff. The pianist (whose name has been lost to time) laid down a riff as original as the singer whose voice it supports.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording. Enjoy learning and playing one of B.B. King's - and the Blues' - greatest piano parts.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is B.B. King's "Rock Me, Baby" on YouTube.

B.B. King - The Thrill Is Gone - Electric Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"The Thrill Is Gone" was the biggest hit record of B.B. King's career. The album version, at 5:30 long, shows off B.B. King's guitar playing with an excellent low/mid-range string arrangement (heavy on the celli) and a beautiful electric piano accompaniment played by Paul Harris (also on Bob Seger's "Against the Wind" and "Betty Lou's Getting Out Tonight").

This is a note-for-note transcription of the album version's long, wonderful electric piano part, which is like a dialogue with B.B. King's guitar. The structure of the song is Intro, six Verses - two of which are guitar solos - and the Out section, which drops the 12-bar blues pattern of the Verses and vamps for almost two minutes over a B minor chord. The piano licks and the guitar seem almost like a duet in some places, with Harris and King reading each other's mind musically. And Harris throws in not only great lines but also some excellent chord voicings, including some cool rhythmic 'stabs' using a Bm7add 4 chord in the Out section.

If you'd like to play the electric piano part in the long version of "The Thrill Is Gone" (124 measures) precisely as recorded in 1969 - and study how to perfectly accompany a blues guitar solo - this transcription is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is B.B. King's "The Thrill Is Gone" on YouTube.

B.B. King - The Worst Thing in My Life - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Some of B.B. King's early works, from the 1950's and 1960's, had the best piano parts of any of his recordings. "The Worst Thing in My Life', from 1964, is one of those classics. Elegantly simple in conceptualization and beautifully executed, this piano part is a model of how old-style blues was played before becoming overly commercialized in recent decades - not too many notes, but every one perfectly placed.

The two contrasting sections compliment each other perfectly. In the A Section the rhythm pattern of the 4-note chords in the Right Hand is a textbook study in how to keep the forward momentum going without getting too busy, and uses classic blues voicings. The B Section never even uses chords, opting instead for tinkly thirds and using a higher register of the keyboard.

This is a perfect piece for anyone who wants to learn how to distill a blues piano part down to its essence, perfect for learning the original rhythms and voicings of that wonderful early blues style. It fits perfectly into the rhythm section, yet is also completely satisfying to play as a piano solo.

This is an exact note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 72 measures. Play along with B.B. King using the exact same notes that his own piano player is playing.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is B.B. King's "The Worst Thing in My Life" on YouTube.

The Babys -  Isn't It Time - 4-bar Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Babys, an English band, released "Isn't It Time" in 1977 on their Broken Heart album. Michael Corby, keyboardist and co-founder of The Babys, played the very distinctive and catchy piano intro, which can be a little tricky to pick out. This is a note-for-note transcription of just the brief 4-bar piano intro.

Difficulty: Easy

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To listen, just click: "Isn't It Time" (4-bar Piano Intro)

J.S. Bach - Violin Concerto - 2nd Mvmt - BWV 1042 - For Electronic Keyboard or Piano (arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Bach composed two concerti for violin and string orchestra, plus one concerto for two violins and string orchestra. This is the second movement - the slow movement - of his Violin Concerto in E Major, BWV 1042 - arranged for keyboard.

This slow movement, in C-sharp minor, is famous for its beautiful melodies/harmonies. This arrangement/transcription of the slow movement could accurately be called a transcription, in the sense that it accurately reflects Bach's original score - no non-Bachian notes have been added, no sections have been tampered with. It was created directly from a manuscript copy from about 1760; no autographed copy in Bach's own handwriting exists. The 1760 copy is the best, most authentic score that exists.

This completely accurate transcription of Bach's score was created for an electronic keyboard, such as a Korg Nautilus. It sounds excellent on any synth/sampler keyboard, as well as on a piano.

If you'd like to play Bach's beautiful slow movement from his E Major Violin Concerto, this is exactly what you need, regardless of what type of keyboard you have.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is the slow movement from Bach's Violn Concerto BWV 1042 on YouTube.

J.S. Bach - Double Violin Concerto - 2nd Mvmt - BWV 1043 - For Electronic Keyboard or Piano (arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In addition to Bach's two violin concerti, he also composed a concerto for two violins, his Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor, BWV 1043. This is a note-for-note accurate transcription/arrangement of the second movement, the slow movement from that concerto.

This arrangement/transcription of the slow movement could accurately be called a transcription, in the sense that it accurately reflects Bach's original score - no non-Bachian notes have been added, no sections have been tampered with. It was created directly from original hand-written manuscripts dating back to around 1735.

This slow movement is known for its extraordinary beauty, of which Albert Schweitzer said, "Every amateur should know the wonderful peace of the Largo Ma Non Tanto in F major" (he was referring to this slow movement). In the first volume of his Bach biography (1873), Philipp Spitta wrote, "In the middle movement, a very pearl of noble and expressive melody, the orchestra is used only as an accompaniment, as was usual in the adagios of concertos."

This completely accurate transcription of Bach's score was created for an electronic keyboard, such as a Korg Nautilus. It sounds excellent on any synth/sampler keyboard, as well as on a piano.

If you'd like to play Bach's beautiful slow movement from his Double Violin Concerto in D Minor, this is exactly what you need, regardless of what type of keyboard you have.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is the slow movement from Bach's Double Violin Concerto BWV 1043 on YouTube.

The Band - Caledonia Mission - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Like "The Weight", "Caledonia Mission" was included on the very first album by The Band, the 1968 classic "Music from Big Pink". Unlike most of their other recordings, Garth Hudson did not play piano on "Caledonia Mission" - this wonderful piano track was played by John Simon, sometimes referred to as the "sixth member" of The Band for producing and playing on "Music from Big Pink", co-producing and playing on "The Band", and playing on other songs up through The Band's 1993 reunion album "Jericho".

Not only is "Caledonia Mission" a lot of fun to play, but it's a wonderful study in "white funk" that incorporates:

This is an exact, note-for-note transcription of every note played in the entire 44-measure, 3-minute song, complete with the chords included above the staff.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: The Band - Caledonia Mission (This is the isolated piano track of just the 3rd Chorus)

The Band - The Weight - Complete Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Fifty years ago this month, in July 1968, The Band released their first album, Music from Big Pink. which went on to become one of the most influential albums of all time. And the best song on that historic album was "The Weight", ranked at #41 of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine.

In The Band's usual lineup Richard Manuel played piano and Garth Hudson played organ. However, when recording "The Weight" they reversed roles with Manuel on organ and Hudson on piano. Manuel's organ part wasn't used in the final mix; but Hudson's piano part became legendary, mostly for his octave fills during the choruses that are the signature licks in this classic recording - always different, never repeating exactly the same way, and perfectly reinforcing the gospel-rock flavor of the song.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part, not just the main riffs, from beginning to end. This includes the hard-to-hear Left Hand part during the Verses and the chordal voicings in the Left Hand during the Choruses.

Even though the song is in 4/4, there are several bars throughout the song that are in 3/4, making the structure of the song a little difficult to correctly memorize unless one understands where those 3/4 bars are. The entire song - 82 measures - is mapped out in a beautifully laid-out score showing those bars.

Not only is "The Weight" great fun to play, but practicing Garth Hudson's octave fills will also improve your octave technique. If you'd like to play "The Weight" exactly as Garth Hudson recorded it 50 years ago, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Band's "The Weight" on YouTube.

Barbara Higbie - Fortune Smiles - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Fortune Smiles" is a very haunting new-age recording for piano and voice, by Windham Hill pianist/singer Barbara Higbie.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part, exactly as played on Windham Hills' 1994 "Piano Sampler II" album.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Barbara Higbie's "Fortune Smiles" on YouTube.

The Beach Boys - California Girls - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The classic Beach Boys summer anthem, "California Girls" displays Brian Wilson's songwriting genius perfectly. Using a traditional two and a half minute pop song structure, Wilson creatively chose chords that are rarely picked out correctly - especially those in the Choruses and the Out section. It is a wonderful example of 'deceptively simple', i.e., something that appears simple at first hearing, but much more complex when examined closer. These are not only Brian Wilson's original chords but also the correct chord voicings.

It's easy enough for pop/rock beginners to learn the most basic Left Hand/Right Hand coordination, and yet great fun for more experienced players - the celeste-like keyboard 'lick' during the break just before the Out section begins is worth learning the entire song for!

When I played keyboards for The Beach Boys, they themselves showed me the correct keyboard parts that they wanted performed. This is the original Beach Boys' piano part - the only completely accurate transcription available - all 71 measures of the song. The Left Hand usually is playing the bass line, so this chart includes much of the exact bass guitar part also. And you may well learn a new chord progression or two from it - it, like many of Brian WIlson's compositions, contains some really creative chord progressions. If you've been wanting to play "California Girls" exactly as it was performed by The Beach Boys, here is your chance.

Difficulty: Easy

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The Beach Boys - Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) (Brian's Instrumental Demo) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Pet Sounds" is one of rock's truly classic albums, and includes some very advanced recordings by Brian Wilson at the peak of his genius. "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)" is one of Brian's most beautiful compositions, and contains some complex chord progressions which can be quite difficult to figure out. In 1997 a 4-CD compilation, "The Pet Sounds Sessions", was released, containing Brian Wilson's original piano solo demo of this remarkable composition.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Brian Wilson's original piano demo - all 2:22 of it - fifty measures total. If you ever wanted to study Brian's chords, their voicings, and play this harmonically advanced song just as Brian originally conceived it, this is your opportunity.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Beach Boys - Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) (Brian's Instrumental Demo - 1st Section Only)


The Beach Boys - Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) (Pet Sounds Version) - Piano (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The "Pet Sounds" version is different from Brian's Piano Demo, in that it includes different chords and bass lines plus a completely new Instrumental Bridge,  which is where the lovely string quartet comes in. Brian's Piano Demo contains no Bridge at all, just Verses and Choruses.

The version of "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) that appears on "Pet Sounds" has no keyboard part. However, I've carefully transcribed every note of the "Pet Sounds" version - chords, chord voicings, bass line (played by Carol Kaye), string quartet parts, etc. - and condensed them into a piano solo version. The only part that it does not contain is the lead vocal melody, making this a perfect piano accompaniment for a lead vocalist, or for anyone who just wants to be able to play the "Don't Talk" track on solo piano.

Students of The Beach Boys' songs will want both versions, in order to first study Brian's Piano Demo, and then compare it to the more evolved, final version that appears on "Pet Sounds". "Don't Talk" is harmonically one of Brian Wilson's more advanced compositions, using some very sophisticated chord progressions found in no other pop/rock music. This solo piano arrangement is the full, complete "Pet Sounds" version, perfect for studying the compositional genius of Brian Wilson at his creative peak.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the "Pet Sounds" versions of "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)" on YouTube.

The Beach Boys - God Only Knows - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Paul McCartney has said that "God Only Knows" is the best song ever written. Amazingly, it came to Brian intact, as a complete song, in about 30 minutes. A harmonically complex song, with a lot of chords and inversions, this piano arrangement has been transcribed note-for-note directly from the original Beach Boys' recording.

It's not very difficult to play, although the four-bar Instrumental Break can be challenging to learn. The Left Hand vs Right Hand coordination can be learned pretty quickly by most keyboardists.

When I toured with The Beach Boys, I played synthesizers on "God Only Knows", including beginning the song with the French Horn part. This arrangement of the original Beach Boys' piano part (played on the record by Don Randi) is the only completely accurate transcription available - all 74 measures of the song - and includes the exact bass guitar part in the Left Hand (played on the record by Carole Kaye). And you may well learn a new chord or two from it - it contains some really inspired chord progressions. If you've been wanting to play "God Only Knows" exactly as it was recorded, here it is.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To see a video of Rivers Cuomo (of "Weezer") playing and singing this transcription, click here. Rivers is one of my students. Get more info on how you, too, can improve your keyboard and musical skills with me via Skype lessons.

The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1976 Brian Wilson performed "Good Vibrations" on Saturday Night Live as a piano/vocal solo. There was no band or back-up singers accompanying Brian - just him singing and playing a grand piano. This is a precise, note-for-note transcription of Brian's piano part from beginning to end.

If you've ever wanted to play this great classic, the most complex of all the Beach Boys hits, but just didn't know where to begin, this is your solution. Here are Brian's own chord voicings and rhythms - play them exactly as the composer himself does.

Here is Brian's 1976 Saturday Night Live performance on YouTube.

Difficulty: Easy

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The Beach Boys - Sail On, Sailor - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This Beach Boys classic from their "Holland" album was the most fun piano part of all of their songs to play on-stage with them. The repetitive triplets in the right hand drive the song and sometimes change chords in anticipation of the beat, such as in the two Bridges, requiring a little more coordination and sense of rhythm than may be apparent at first hearing.

Another element that makes it such fun to play is the lush chord progression behind the lyrical hook, "Sail on, sail on, sailor" - extremely fat, lush chords, made so in part by the ingenious voicings that Brian Wilson used. You'll have every note spelled out for you, just like the Beach Boys themselves used. They taught it to me.

When I toured with The Beach Boys, on "Sail On, Sailor" I played their 9-foot Baldwin concert grand piano (yes, they carried it from concert to concert), starting the song off with the piano triplets. This is the original Beach Boys' piano part (played on the record by Daryl Dragon, better known as the Captain in the pop duo Captain and Tennille) - all 52 measures, note-for-note, beautifully laid out with chords above the staff and even tempo BPM.  If you've been wanting to play "Sail On, Sailor" exactly as it was recorded, here it is.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Beach Boys - Sail On Sailor (Track Only - Intro & Verse 1)

The Beatles - Come Together - Electric Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Come Together" was recorded by The Beatles in 1969 and released on their "Abbey Road" album. Written by John Lennon, there is some confusion as to who played the atmospheric, minor-key Electric Piano part. There is no dispute that McCartney composed the part, but some claim that Lennon played it on the recording after learning it from Paul. In an interview (Playboy magazine, December 1984) Paul has said that he himself played it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire Electric Piano part. Although a fairly simple part, it is rarely played accurately. Here is your chance to play it exactly as Paul McCartney composed and played it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Beatles' "Come Together" on YouTube.

The Beatles - Don't Let Me Down - Electric Piano Part by Billy Preston (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Recorded by The Beatles in 1969 during the "Let It Be" sessions, "Don't Let Me Down" featured Billy Preston on Fender-Rhodes electric piano. Issued as a single, the B-side of "Get Back", it was first released on an album in 1970 on "Hey Jude".

This is a note-for-note transcription of Billy Preston's classic electric piano part in "Don't Let Me Down", including all his 4ths & 5ths, the terrific flips, and his outstanding two-handed (2 octaves apart) solo in the final Coda.

If you'd like to play "Don't Let Me Down" exactly as Billy Preston, the "Fifth Beatle", played it, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Beatles' "Don't Let Me Down" on YouTube.

The Beatles - Get Back - Electric Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Beatles released "Get Back" as a single in 1969, and then released it on their 1970 album, Let It Be. Billy Preston, whom John Lennon called "the Fifth Beatle", played the electric piano part.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire keyboard part, including Preston's amazing solo. And during the verses Preston showed his remarkable ear (he was born with perfect pitch) by using an ingenious voicing of the staccato A7 chords by including both the major and the minor third, i.e., both C-natural and C-sharp.

If you'd like to play "Get Back" - one of The Beatles' most legendary songs - exactly as Billy Preston recorded it, this is just what you've been looking for.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is The Beatles' "Get Back" on YouTube. Billy Preston's electric piano solo starts here.

The Beatles - Hey Bulldog - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Hey Bulldog" was recorded by The Beatles in 1968 and released on their "Yellow Submarine" album in 1969. John Lennon was the primary writer of the the song and played piano on it, one of the few Beatles' recordings to revolve around a piano riff. Originally intended to be used in the animated film "Yellow Submarine", "Hey Bulldog" was cut from the American version but restored for the film's 1999 re-release.

John's catchy piano riff starts the song; and although the part changes in the first Verse, the entire piano track continues in the lower mid-register of the piano - a lower register than is usually used in rock piano parts.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 84 measures. If you'd like to play "Hey Bulldog" exactly as John Lennon recorded it, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Beatles' "Hey Bulldog" on YouTube.

The Beatles - I've Got a Feeling - Electric Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Beatles' "I've Got a Feeling" was recorded during their 1969 rooftop concert, their final public performance, with Billy Preston on Fender-Rhodes electric piano. It was released in 1970 on their album Let It Be. The song itself was a combination of two unfinished songs, Paul McCartney's "I've Got a Feeling" and John Lennon's "Everybody Had a Hard Year".

This is a note-for-note transcription of Billy Preston's classic electric piano part. If you'd like to play it exactly as Billy Preston played it on the 'rooftop' concert, just download it, print it out, and take it to your keyboard.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is The Beatles' "I've Got a Feeling" on YouTube.
And here is the isolated electric piano track on YouTube.

The Beatles - Lady Madonna - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Paul McCartney said, "'Lady Madonna' was me sitting down at the piano trying to write a bluesy boogie-woogie thing ... It reminded me of Fats Domino for some reason, so I started singing a Fats Domino impression. It took my voice to a very odd place." And although it's not exactly in the Fats Domino style, it has indeed turned out to be one of the great piano parts in rock history.

Even though "Lady Madonna" is not boogie-woogie, the left hand is in broken octaves. And during the choruses the right hand has a nice line that moves in contrary motion to the left hand - a line that is overlooked by most pianists trying to learn the piece, as are grace notes liberally sprinkled throughout the verses, along with wonderfully effective rhythmic 'bumps'. And of course the song ends with a classic honky-tonk type of figure, the perfect coda to end an outstanding piano part.

This is a note-for-note transcription of every note in this rock/pop classic - all 61 measures. I've never seen an accurate transcription of this piece before, but here is your chance to play "Lady Madonna" exactly as Paul McCartney recorded it.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Beatles' "Lady Madonna" on YouTube.
 

The Beatles - Let It Be - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock's greatest classics, "Let It Be" was written by Paul McCartney alone, with no help from John Lennon, and was inspired by a dream he had about his mother, who had died when he was fourteen. He said she was the inspiration for the "Mother Mary" lyric, and that "It was great to visit with her again. I felt very blessed to have that dream. So that got me writing 'Let It Be'." He said that in the dream his mother had told him, "It will be all right, just let it be."

McCartney played the piano on the track, using a Bluthner grand. "Let It Be" is almost always on the various lists of the top 10 rock piano songs, for good reason. It is a simple, but very effective piano track. McCartney uses several pianistic devices very effectively in this track, including grace notes in the Left Hand, contributing to its churchy/gospel feel, and a classic "walk-down" at the end of every Verse. During the two instrumental Verses and subsequent Chorus after the Bridge, he expands the three-note triad voicings in the Right Hand into larger, higher four-note chords, and adds a few more interesting rhythm patterns, before returning to the simpler triad voicing for the last two Verses and Choruses.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the complete song - all 71 measures. If you'd like to play "Let It Be" just as Paul did at his Bluthner on January 31, 1969, here is your chance.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Beatles' "Let It Be" on YouTube.

The Beatles - Lovely Rita - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Lovely Rita", the Beatles' classic 1967 recording from "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", contains a wonderful piano solo, performed by their classically-trained producer George Martin. Although a fairly brief piano transcription, only nine measures, it contains a number of fun elements: honky-tonk sixths and tremolos in both sixths and thirds, and a couple of classical runs, one a fast descending 7-note scale in tenths, and the other an even faster ascending 12-note diatonic scale that ends the solo. It's fun to learn and play George Martin's exact notes on this Beatles classic.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: The Beatles - Lovely Rita - Piano Solo

The Beatles - Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Beatles released "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" in 1968 on their double-album The Beatles, also known as the "White Album". It was written in India by Paul McCartney, and at first was an attempt at a ska-influenced recording. John Lennon played the piano part, although Paul overdubbed two bars of a second-piano part near the end.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part, not only including John's complete piano track but also the two higher-octave piano overdubs by Paul. If you'd like to play "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" exactly as John (& Paul) recorded it, you'll be happy with this. It's fun to play, and yet fairly simple to master.

Difficulty: Easy

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is The Beatles' "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" on YouTube.

The Beatles - The Long and Winding Road - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"The Long and Winding Road" was the twentieth - and last - number-one single issued by The Beatles. Written and played by Paul McCartney, it was recorded in 1969, and released in 1970 on their "Let It Be" album.

Two different recordings of "The Long and Winding Road" have been released. The first, which included a large orchestra overdubbed by Phil Spector, was recorded on January 26, 1969 and released in 1970. A different recording made five days later on January 31, 1969, was issued on "Let It Be... Naked" in 2003, without any of the orchestral overdubs.

I am providing three transcriptions: the original 1970 single, the 2003 "Naked" version, and both of those together in one score.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part on the original 1970 single release - all 59 measures, the entire song. If you've had difficulty in hearing McCartney's piano part clearly through the large orchestra, this is exactly what you need to play it precisely.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Beatles' "The Long and Winding Road" (1970) on YouTube.



This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part on the stripped-down 2003 "Let It Be... Naked" version of "The Long and Winding Road" - the entire song. Although similar to the 1970 version, the piano part is not the same. And the two Bridges are in fact quite different.

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Here is The Beatles' "The Long and Winding Road" (2003 "Naked" version) on YouTube.



This is a note-for-note transcription of both piano parts for "The Long and Winding Road" in their entirety: the original 1970 version plus the 2003 "Let It Be... Naked" version. The score for the 1970 version is placed directly above the 2003 version, so that the same measures can be easily and quickly compared, one over the other. If you'd like to study, play, and compare both piano versions, this double-score is what you're looking for.

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The Beatles with Billy Preston - Without a Song (jam) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Billy Preston played piano (or electric piano) on several recordings by The Beatles, including "Get Back", "Don't Let Me Down", "Long and Winding Road", "I've Got a Feeling", "One After 909", "Dig a Pony". He also played organ on “Dig It,” “I Want You (She’s So Heavy),” “Let It Be,” “Something” and a medley on the Anthology 3 album of “Rip It Up,” “Shake Rattle and Roll” and “Blues Suede Shoes.” His total contribution to The Beatles was ten songs plus a medley.

However, there is one more that many are not aware of, "Without a Song", which was a Gospel-flavored jam on acoustic piano with John Lennon and Ringo Starr. Recorded in January 1969, it was not released until October 2021 on the Super Deluxe version of Let It Be.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Billy Preston's terrific piano part in "Without a Song" and includes, of course, all his terrific Gospel-piano riffs and chords. If you like Gospel piano and want to learn more about Billy Preston's unique style, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here are The Beatles and Billy Preston performing "Without a Song" on YouTube.  

Big Pun - Still Not a Player - Main 2-bar Phrase (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1998 Big Pun, the first Latino rapper to have a platinum album, released "Still Not a Player". This is not a transcription of the entire recording, but is a precise transcription of the main, repetitive 2-bar phrase. If you'd like to be certain that your chords, rhythms, bass line, and kick-drum punches are exactly right, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is Big Pun performing "Still Not a Player" (1957) on YouTube. The main 2-bar phrase starts at :12.

Big Tiny Little - 12th Street Rag - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Big Tiny Little was the honky-tonk/ragtime pianist who appeared regularly on The Lawrence Welk TV show from 1955 until 1959, when he was replaced by Jo Ann Castle. The "12th Street Rag" was written by Euday L. Bowman in 1914 when ragtime was still the leading genre of popular music, and became one of the most famous and best-selling piano rags. Bowman had been a pianist in Kansas City bordellos, and he named "12th Street Rag" after a street in the redlight district there.

In 1979 Big Tiny Little recorded the 12th Street Rag with a small ensemble, including drums, bass and banjo. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 140 measures - for Big Tiny Little's 1979 "12th Street Rag" recording released on the album "Honky-Tonk Piano featuring Mickey Finn & Big Tiny Little" (GNP/Crescendo Records). If you'd like to play the "12th Street Rag" exactly as Big Tiny Little did in 1979, here is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, click here: Big Tiny Little - 12th Street Rag (1979)

Bill Payne - The Ballad of Davy Crockett (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Bill Payne, founder of Little Feat, has been a first-call L.A. session player since the early 1970's, recording with artists of every genre. When he was 5 or 6 years old he began lessons with Ruth Neuman, who would guide him through a study of the classics until he was 15. At his very first lesson he played for her the theme from "Davy Crockett", which had swept the nation because of the Disney TV shows and movies starring Fess Parker. At his second lesson she presented him with it handwritten, as he had played it for her. She encouraged him to play by ear but taught him how to read music also.

In an interview Payne discusses his history with "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" and plays a brief, 26-second improvisation that starts simple and child-like and quickly evolves into a Left Hand-octave-laden Gospel rendition quite unlike any childhood version.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Bill Payne's improvised version of "The Ballad of Davy Crockett". If you'd like to see how a simple child's song gets transformed into a Davy-Goes-to-Church display of Gospel piano, this is a great example. It's an excellent addition to any keyboardist's repertoire: short, sweet, well-known, effective and impressive - and fun to play!

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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To listen to the original recording, just click: Bill Payne - "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" (2014)

To listen to the MIDI file, just click: Bill Payne - "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" (MIDI)

Billy Currington - Growin' Up Down There - Piano Part for Verse 3 (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Growin' Up Down There" was released on Billy Currington's first album in 2003. An uptempo, very dance-able song, the piano, played by Nashville session player Gary Prim, is understated but in the third Verse the piano answers the lead vocal with the best piano part in the entire song.

This is a transcription of the piano part in the third Verse, plus the bass guitar part during that section. The piano starts in the low mid-register with a Charlie Rich-style riff, and proceeds into Johnny Johnson-style thirds and tremolos, goes into honky-tonk 'yodeling' sixths, and then ends the Verse with high thirds - lots of pianistic goodies thrown into a relatively short section.

If you're studying how to construct good, effective 'answers' behind a lead vocal, and how to effectively play 3rds and 6ths (both solid and broken), this is a good place to jump in.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Billy Currington's "Growin' Up Down There" on YouTube. The piano part in Verse 3 starts at 1:17. 

Billy Joel - Baby Grand - Piano Part - Intro & Out Section (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Baby Grand", written by Billy Joel and released in 1987, was an ode to the piano, generally, and to his piano hero, Ray Charles, specifically. The recording, produced by the great Phil Ramone, features both men playing two pianos at the same time - with Ray Charles' piano coming out of the left stereo speaker, and Billy Joel's piano in the right stereo speaker.

Ray Charles suggested to Billy Joel that they record a song together, and this is the song that Joel wrote for the occasion. It was very intelligently recorded, with each pianist careful not to step on the other's phrases (until the Out Section). The Intro and the Out Section have no vocals, and really highlight this wonderful interplay between the two master pianists. Ray Charles starts it off with a couple of chords, then Billy Joel plays a phrase, which Ray answers, then Billy answers - and that interplay continues. Ray's amazing perfect-pitch ear allows him to emulate Billy's phrases and answer them perfectly with his own wonderful gospel/blues/jazz stylings.

This transcription only contains the Intro and the Out Section, for that is where the pianistic interplay is uninterrupted by any vocals, showing off each man's skills to best advantage. And this is arranged for solo piano, based note-for-note on the original two-piano duet. Sometimes, especially in the Out Section, both men  were playing some complex ad libs at the same time, impossible to reproduce with only two hands, so the most important - and fun to play - riffs were used in this arrangement. If you want to play the two most fun sections of "Baby Grand" as a piano solo, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the entire "Baby Grand" on YouTube.

Billy Joel & Ray Charles - Baby Grand - Duo Piano Parts - Intro & Out Section (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Baby Grand", the 1987 hit by Billy Joel and Ray Charles, as described above, was recorded with two pianos, one piano coming out of each stereo speaker: Ray's on the left side and Billy's on the right side. Most of the song focuses on the vocal duets, except for the Introduction and the Out Section. The wonderful Intro perfectly sets the mood of this love song for the piano, and the Out Section lets each man show off his own blues/jazz pianistic skills. During the Intro each pianist is careful not to step on each other's phrases. That's not the case in the Out Section - each man cranks up the intensity and lays down some wonderful phrases at the same time as the other one is showing off.

This transcription is a note-for-note two-piano score that reveals every note played in both the instrumental Intro and Out Sections. One grand staff for Ray Charles' piano part, and a second grand staff for Billy Joel's piano - not a note is left out. And there are some very interesting notes indeed, including an awesome black-key glissando by Ray Charles in the Out Section, preceding the very last phrase in the piece, where Ray plays a G-chord riff in counterpoint to Billy's F-blues scale riff - and these two piano masters make it all work perfectly.

If you want to study in note-for-note detail Billy Joel's and Ray Charles' wonderful duo-piano interplay, this two-piano score of the Introduction and Out Section is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the entire "Baby Grand" piano duet on YouTube.

Billy Joel - New York State of Mind - Part of the Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In November 2009 Billy Joel performed his "New York State of Mind" at the Tokyo Dome. He began the piece with a long solo piano introduction. This is not the entire Introduction but a part of it - 10 bars at the end of the Intro, just before he starts singing. In free timing, it includes some classic Billy Joel chord voicings and a fun two-handed run. This is a transcription of those 19 seconds - a nice Billy Joel piano moment.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Billy Joel's 2009 Tokyo Dome performance on YouTube. :29 through :47 is the transcribed section.

Billy Joel - Piano Man - Intro (Studio) & Solo (Live) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1975 Billy Joel performed "Piano Man" live on "Old Grey Whistle Test", a British TV show, and played a solo that was different from his recorded version - a little bit 'jazzier', with some nice rippling 8th-note-triplet runs and octave flourishes. This is a note-for-note transcription of two important sections of "Piano Man": the brief, unaccompanied 3-bar piano Introduction from his original 1973 recording, and the 16-bar piano solo that he performed two years later live on "Old Grey Whistle Test".

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Billy Joel's 1973 "Old Grey Whistle Test" performance on YouTube: 3:18 through 3:33 is the transcribed section.

Billy Preston - Nothing from Nothing - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Nothing from Nothing", released in 1974, was Billy Preston's second #1 hit. He also performed it on the very first episode of Saturday Night Live in 1975. Starting with a very catchy - and rhythmic - piano lick, the song progresses through Choruses, a Verse and Piano Solo before fading out on the Intro piano riff.

The piano differs from most other pop piano parts in the way the Left Hand is used. Instead of playing rhythmic octaves mirroring the kick drum, Preston plays a non-stop series of Left Hand 8th-note chords. So that it doesn't get boring, the Right Hand throws in just enough syncopation to keep things interesting. And during the solo he breaks out into a very syncopated Right Hand part full of octaves, tremolos, rhythmic 'pushes', and honky-tonk voicings.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire recording, all the way through the very last, hardly-audible, notes. Few pianists have had the technique and rhythm of Billy Preston, who was born with perfect pitch. If you'd like to play "Nothing from Nothing" exactly as it was recorded, or study the style of one of rock/R&B's greatest keyboard talents, this is what you've been looking for.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Nothing from Nothing" on YouTube.

Billy Preston - Slippin' & Slidin' - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The month that Billy Preston turned 18, he recorded an album of Hammond organ instrumentals that raised the bar for rock organ playing from that moment on. At that young age he was already a seasoned veteran, having accompanied gospel singers such as Mahalia Jackson, Andrae Crouch, and James Cleveland in concert at age 10. Born with perfect pitch, Billy was self-taught but by eleven was appearing on the Nat King Cole TV show and at twelve in a movie about W.C. Handy (Billy played Handy at a younger age).

At seventeen he joined Little Richard's band as organist, met the Beatles, and within a year recorded Little Richard's "Slippin' and Slidin'" as a track on his on new album, The Most Exciting Organ Ever.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Billy Preston's complete organ part for "Slippin' and Slidin'". Starting at the very beginning with a growling, ascending palm glissando, Billy Preston uses the song to showcase his amazing bag of B-3 tricks, including his extremely 'fat' chords, 'crushed' notes, grace notes, tremolos, his amazing glissandi, etc.

If you've ever wanted to understand Billy Preston's style and be able to start incorporating some of his techniques into your own playing, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Billy Preston's "Slippin' and Slidin'" on YouTube. 

 

Billy Preston - Will It Go Round in Circles - Opening Piano Riff (trans. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Billy Preston was one of rock's true geniuses. No one has ever played better rock/R&B/gospel organ, and he was equally a monster on piano. The Beatles' asked him to play on some of their recordings, including "Get Back", "Something", and others; and he became known as "the fifth Beatle". "Will It Go Round in Circles" is one of his two #1 hits (the other being "Nothing from Nothing").

Brought up playing organ in church, Preston brought some of those gospel riffs into his rock and R&B tracks. "Will It Go Round in Circles" starts off with a terrific descending riff of gospel-style piano chords. As important as that riff is - it's played a number of times during the song, and is used a lot in R&B tracks in general - it is never played correctly by cover bands.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the nine descending piano chords that start the song. And because Preston doesn't settle on one consistent way of playing it until the third time, I've transcribed all three different versions of that riff that occur during the song.

If you've ever wondered just what Billy Preston was doing in that classic riff, and wanted to be able to play it yourself, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Billy Preston's "Will It Go Round in Circles" on YouTube. Check out the opening piano riff.

Billy Vera & the Beaters - At This Moment - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Billy Vera was born in Southern California but grew up in New York. His first success was a songwriter, writing for Fats Domino, The Shirelles, Ricky Nelson and Barbara Mason, including the garage band classic "Don't Look Back" by the Remains. However, in 1981 he and his band performed at the Roxy on L.A.'s Sunset Strip and recorded "At This Moment", a beautiful love song that was included on several episodes of the NBC sitcom Family Ties during the 1985-86 season. It went on to become his biggest hit, charting at #1 in early 1987.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part, which has a Gospel-influenced feel to it, including walk-ups, 4-note chordal licks, a strum, and several dramatic ascending arpeggios. If you'd like to play "At This Moment" exactly like the piano on the recording, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Billy Vera & the Beaters' "At This Moment" on YouTube.

The Black Crowes - Hard To Handle - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Hard to Handle" was written in 1968 by Otis Redding and covered by many other artists. In 1990 on their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the Black Crowes released their own version, which rose to number one on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. It proved to be their breakthrough single.

Chuck Leavell played the excellent funky, up-tempo piano and organ parts. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 83 measures. Leavell's track uses terrific rhythms and syncopated chordal punches, and starts each Chorus with ascending, syncopated octave runs with each one taking a full two bars - fun stuff pianistically.

Difficulty: Challenging

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is The Black Crowes' "Hard to Handle" on YouTube.

The isolated piano track can be heard on YouTube here.  

The Black Crowes - Remedy - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Black Crowes formed in 1989 without a keyboard player. For their first album they hired a studio musician, Chuck Leavell, to play piano and organ. The keyboard parts came out so well that the band hired their own keyboard player, Eddie Harsch. Their second album, "The Southern Harmony & Musical Companion", contained "Remedy", which reached the #1 position on the Billboard Album Tracks chart and stayed there for eleven weeks.

There is a brief, 12-bar piano solo in the song where Harsch plays some terrific rocking, rhythmic licks. This is a note-for-note transcription of this 18-second piano solo (plus the following four measures after the vocals re-enter).

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: The Black Crowe - Remedy - Piano Solo

Bob Dylan & Clydie King - Abraham, Martin and John - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1980 Bob Dylan created a music video singing a duet with Clydie King, perhaps Los Angeles' most in-demand back-up singer, singing "Abraham, Martin and John". The video shows just the two of them seated next to each other on a piano bench, looking warmly at each other as they sing - they were the best of friends.

Dylan plays the grand piano with no other instruments accompanying them - just Dylan's piano and their two voices in harmony a truly beautiful performance by two musical legends.

That video was released in 2017 in the Dylan concert movie Trouble No More - the very last scene.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Bob Dylan's entire piano part. Known for playing mostly on the black piano keys, this is, true-to-form, in D-flat. The structure is: Brief Intro, 3 Verses, Bridge, 4th Verse. If you'd like to play one of pop music's most poignantly beautiful songs exactly as Bob Dylan plays it - and study his piano style - this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to and watch Bob Dylan & Clydie King singing "Abraham, Martin and John" on YouTube.

Bob Dylan - Like a Rolling Stone - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1965 against the better judgement of the record company executives, one of the longest records ever was released, Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" - almost 6.5 minutes long. But it climbed to the very top of the charts, making history. And although the organist, Al Kooper, had only been invited to the session as an observer, not to play, it became one of the Hammond organ's most famous songs. The most important musical licks in the long recording were Kooper's indispensable Hammond organ lines.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire organ part in "Like a Rolling Stone" - all 154 bars. The album mix is 6:13 long, but my transcription goes an additional nine bars, until the musicians stop playing. Kooper has said in interviews that since he had no sheet music to read from, as the musicians played he'd listen to the next chord change and then play - listen and play, listen and play. This transcription details those 'upbeat' entrances - and the chords' cut-offs - precisely. And of course it also includes the rhythmic figure introduced in the first Chorus that recurs every Chorus more developed until the 4th Chorus when it is the dominant figure. Every organ note is included, exactly as on the record.

If you've wanted to play the organ part in "Like a Rolling Stone" just like the record, or just study how such a classic organ part was essentially improvised on the spot, this will show you how it was done.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" on YouTube.

Bob Dylan - Piano Mood (YouTube) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).zip

Around 1965 Bob Dylan was filmed while playing the piano, improvising a Gospel-influenced piece. It was never released on any album but has been posted onto YouTube here, with the title "Piano Mood". Dylan's entire ad lib was only about a minute-and-a-half long, but the piano part was so good that I've transcribed 50 seconds of it note-for-note, exactly as Dylan played it.

Dylan was apparently making it up as he went along, and consequently there are several places where he added or dropped an 8th-note - there are measures of 3/8, 5/8 and 7/8, even though the piece is in 4/4.

To "smooth it out" so that it could be played with a consistent, foot-tapping beat, I've created my own arrangement of Dylan's improv.

This is a ZIP file that contains two PDF's:

1) a note-for-note transcription of 50 seconds of Dylan's one-and-a-half-minute improv, exactly as he played it.
2) my own arrangement of that 50-second improvisation with the odd meters 'fixed'. I've kept Dylan's notes but smoothed-out the timing, with nothing but 4/4 bars in it.

If you'd like to see Dylan's 50-second Gospel-flavored improvisation - and play it yourself - you'll very much enjoy this note-for-note transcription, plus my own "smoothed-out" arrangement.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Bob Dylan's "Piano Mood" on YouTube. My transcription starts at :19 and continues to 1:09.
Click here
to listen to my arrangement of Bob Dylan's "Piano Mood".

Bob Dylan - Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" was the first track on Bob Dylan's 7th studio album, "Blonde on Blonde", released in 1966. Although the lyrics suggest that the title should have been "Everybody Must Get Stoned", Dylan realized that it would never get radio airplay with that title, and thus named it "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35".

Dylan was already working with Al Kooper, and flew from New York to Nashville to record "Blonde on Blonde" with mostly Nashville session musicians. It is not clear who played the legendary piano part on "Rainy Day Women", but to my ear it sounds like Paul Griffin. Whoever played it laid down one of rock's most recognizable and classic piano parts - a cross between the Salvation Army and honky tonk. This amazing piano part is built around tremolos in the Verses, which sound like they are simple tremolos in 6th's, but they're not - they use an ingenious voicing that gives them more body than simple 6th's would, but less than a full three-note triad. The Choruses also use similarly clever voicings that avoid full triads. Also incorporated are octave fills and some cool grace notes.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 4:36, which is 104 measures long. If you've ever been intrigued by Dylan's "Rainy Day Women", here is your chance to play it exactly as it was recorded.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Rainy Day Women" on YouTube.

 

Bob Seger - Against the Wind - Piano Intro & Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Bob Seger has written and recorded some of rock's biggest and best hits, and probably none better than "Against the Wind", recorded in 1980. Himself a pianist - he played on "Still the Same" - Seger has used some of rock's best session pianists on his recordings. For the "Against the Wind" piano part he used Paul Harris (whose credits include the classic Wurlitzer electric piano part on B.B. King's "The Thrill Is Gone").

The piano solo is beautifully constructed and builds very nicely, starting with just single notes, then progressing to thirds, then to octaves, then to sixths, throwing in quarter note triplets and pianistic flourishes along the way - a very effective, haunting piano solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of not only the Piano Solo but also the 4-bar Piano Intro and the first half of Verse 1, and the 4-bar piano break that immediately precedes the Piano Solo. Also included is a chord chart of the entire song. If you've ever loved the "Against the Wind" piano solo and wanted to play it yourself, this is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Bob Seger's "Against the Wind" on YouTube.

Bob Seger - Old Time Rock and Roll - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Old Time Rock and Roll" was released on Bob Seger's Stranger in Town album in 1978, has since then become the #2 most-played song on jukeboxes. The track was recorded in Muscle Shoals using the local session players, with Randy McCormick on piano. Seger liked the feel of the original demo so much that he recorded his voice over that demo, and the rest is history.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part, from the two famous 8-note opening piano phrases all the way until the very end of the fade-out. Plus everything in-between - the rocking, rhythmic Right Hand chords, the Left Hand octaves always struck in just the right places, the octave fills at the end of the Verses, Choruses and behind the sax solo. The piano part certainly lives up to the song's title - old-time rock and roll at its pianistic best.

If you want to play one of rock's most iconic piano tracks exactly as it was recorded, this transcription is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock and Roll" on YouTube.

Bob Seger - Roll Me Away - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Roll Me Away" was written and released by Bob Seger in 1982 on his 12th album, "The Distance". Used in three movies, Armageddon, Mask and Reckless, it is one of Seger's greatest rock classics, and one of his own favorites, used as the opening song on his Face the Promise tour in 2006-2007, his first tour in a decade. One of the reasons "Roll Me Away" sounds so good is the stellar choice of rhythm section musicians: Roy Bittan (of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band) on piano, Waddy Wachtel on guitar, and Russ Kunkel on drums.

The piano part is classic Roy Bittan. It begins with an 8-bar Intro with the piano being the lead instrument, using subdued triads in the lower mid-register of the keyboard (the highest note being an E above middle C, with most notes below middle C), with a minimalist Left Hand part. But as the song progresses and builds, Bittan begins using full 4-note chords - both solid and arpeggiated - supported by powerful octaves in the Left Hand's bass part. He throws in his characteristic octave fills, sometimes harmonizing them by adding a third below the top note of the octave. If Bittan is one of your favorite pianists and you enjoy his work with the E Street Band, you'll love his piano track on "Roll Me Away".

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 154 measures. If you'd like to play the exact notes that Roy Bittan plays and study his style, this is exactly what you're looking for. This is the 2021 updated/revised version.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Roll Me Away" on YouTube.

Bob Seger - Shame on the Moon - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1982 Bob Seger released "Shame on the Moon" (which some call "Blame It on Midnight") with Glenn Frey of the Eagles singing harmony and session pianist Bill Payne (Little Feat) on acoustic piano - an outstanding piano part.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part in the 4:44-long recording, including, of course, Payne's great solo - complete with all of his 'twangs', octave fills, and warm mid-register voicings. It even includes every piano note throughout the long fade-out, right up to the very last note of the recording, which is normally too soft to hear.

And because the piano doesn't enter until about 1:53, I've included the acoustic rhythm-guitar part until the piano starts. So if a pianist wants to play the song, he/she doesn't have to wait for almost two minutes - they can play the guitar part from the very beginning on the piano.

If you'd like to play "Shame on the Moon" exactly as Bill Payne plays it on the recording - and learn more about his terrific country-rock style - this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Bob Seger's "Shame on the Moon" on YouTube. The piano starts here.

Bobby 'Blue' Bland - I Take It on Home - Two Piano Flips (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1975 Blues legend Bobby "Blue" Bland recorded "I Take It On Home", three years after Charlie Rich recorded it. Written by a Nashville-based country songwriter, Kenny O'Dell, who also wrote "Behind Closed Doors", the song lends itself perfectly to the Bland's blues.

The recording begins with a cool, bluesy piano 'flip', then goes through the first two verses before modulating up a half-step and playing another, slightly different flip. This is a transcription of those two flips, plus a chord chart for the two verses between the flips.

If you're fascinated by piano 'flips' in general - and they are an important part of a pianist's bag of tricks - or just want to check out the unusual G#min half-diminished 7th (add 11) chord in the second bar of the first verse or the 9th-chord tremolos in bars 3 and 4 (they're spelled out in the chord chart), this transcription should be a big help.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "I Take It On Home" by Bobby Bland on YouTube. The second flip is over at 1:10.

Bobby 'Boris' Pickett - Monster Mash - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Monster Mash" was recorded in 1962 by Bobby 'Boris' Pickett and The Crypt-Kickers, which included 20-year-old session pianist Leon Russell. Over the years it has become the quintessential Halloween pop song. The piano is the main instrument in the rhythm section, and uses a wonderfully catchy piano riff that is almost never played exactly right.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 103 measures. If you'd like to study the way that early Leon Russell devised riffs and executed turn-arounds, or if you'd just like to play "Monster Mash" exactly as on the record, here is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Monster Mash" on YouTube.

Bonnie Raitt - I Can't Make You Love Me - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Some have called Bonnie Raitt's recording of "I Can't Make You Love Me" the most beautiful and heart-breaking song about unrequited love ever. It's Raitt's best-selling hit record not only because of the beauty of the lyrics and her performance but also because of the extraordinary piano part by Bruce Hornsby. There are actually three keyboard tracks on it - an acoustic and an electric piano by Hornsby plus a B-3 organ track by Benmont Tench.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the long album version, all 5:33 of it, with the two pianos merged together into one. Sometimes early in the song - during the Intro and part of the first verse - the acoustic piano is very sparse. The electric piano is very important in filling those gaps, plus it has important parts (riffs, licks, harmonies, etc.) throughout the song.

Hornsby's piano style is unique. A terrific jazz player, he knows how to create complex chords without ever making a rock track sound 'jazzy'. And this piano track is one of his very best. Phil Collins described it as instantly recognizable as Hornsby's work. Hornsby's own publicity material mentions his role on this "classic".

If you'd like to play "I Can't Make You Love Me" exactly as Bruce Hornsby recorded it - and better understand how he gets his instantly recognizable 'sound' - this is what you've been looking for.

Difficulty: Challenging

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available (listen to the MIDI file here):

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Here is Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me" on YouTube.

Here is Phil Collins discussing "I Can't Make You Love Me" on YouTube.

Booker T. & the M.G.'s - Chinese Checkers - Electric Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Booker T. Jones is known for his legendary Hammond organ classics, but "Chinese Checkers" shows his genius on the Wurlitzer electric piano. Released in 1963 as a single and then in 1965 on Soul Dressing, the second album by Booker T. & the M.G.'s, "Chinese Checkers" is one of the best electric piano instrumentals ever. It perfectly captures an 'oriental', Chinese-like sound while still keeping a great dance-able groove that Memphis-based Stax records was known for.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Booker T.'s electric piano part on "Chinese Checkers". Among other 'tricks', he cleverly uses a unique descending scale, C, B-flat, G, F-sharp, E, E-flat, C to create that "Chinese" sound.

Plus, his opening riff, right from the very beginning, is such an ingenious interplay between the hands. If you'd like to play "Chinese Checkers" exactly as Booker T. recorded it, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Booker T. & the M.G.'s "Chinese Checkers" on YouTube.

Booker T. & the M.G.'s - Green Onions - Entire Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Green Onions" has been a favorite of mine since the age of 14, when my high school rock-and-roll band played it at every gig. Though elegantly simple, it can be difficult to pick out. In many interviews Booker T. himself even jokes about how often it is played wrong by cover bands.

"Green Onions" was originally recorded in Memphis in 1962 by the Stax Records "house band", Booker T. & the M.G.'s. The line-up was Booker T. Jones, keyboards (Hammond M3 organ), Steve Cropper on guitar, Lewie Steinberg on bass ("Duck" Dunn joined the band three years later), and Al Jackson, Jr. (now deceased) on drums.

That rhythm section is the same group you hear on most Otis Redding records (including "Dock of the Bay") and some Wilson Pickett records ("In the Midnight Hour" was co-written by Steve Cropper) - basically most of the records by various artists at Stax in Memphis, Tennessee.

This is a brand new note-for-note transcription of the Hammond organ part for the entire song, including the organ solos. It also provides the Hammond drawbar and percussion settings, and shows which sections are played on the upper manual and which are played on the lower manual. You'll love playing this great old classic and having it sound just like the record.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Booker T. & the M.G.'s "Green Onions" on YouTube

Booker T. Jones & the Daryl Hall Band - Green Onions (Live) - 2 Solos (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Booker T. Jones, one of the key session players at Stax Records in Memphis, TN, has long been famous for his 1962 smash hit, "Green Onions". Almost fifty years later he was asked to jam with singer Daryl Hall's (of Hall & Oates) backing band on MTV's Palladia TV show, Live from Daryl's House.

During that jam Booker T. added two solos near the end that were much more dramatic than the minimalist approach he used on the original recording. Using both hands to voice fat 5-note chords he built the instrumental classic to a more intense level than his 1962 version with the M.G's version had been.

This is a note-for-note transcription of those two new solos - perfect to add onto the end of the original "Green Onions".

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here are the final two solos on YouTube of Booker T.'s live version of "Green Onions" as performed with Daryl Hall's backup band on Live from Daryl's House.

Booker T. & the M.G.'s - Hip Hug-Her - Organ (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Booker T. Jones, the leader of Booker T. & the M.G.'s, has always been a master of the B-3 organ, using relatively few notes and excellent voicings to create his own distinctive style. "Hip Hug-Her", released in 1967, was his biggest hit since 1962's "Green Onions". It was the first single on which Jones played a Hammond B-3 organ, the instrument with which he is most closely associated (he used a Hammond M-3 on all of the earlier recordings, including "Green Onions").

This is a note-for-note transcription of "Hip Hug-Her", including the exact Hammond drawbar registrations (for both Hammond organ manuals), plus the correct percussion settings. It also shows where the Leslie tone cabinet speeds up and slows down, so that you can exactly re-create Booker T.'s terrific recording. He also uses his left hand during parts of the recording, and those are also included. And although the single version fades out, an ending is included, transcribed from one of Booker T.'s live performances.

This transcription will show you how to play every note in "Hip Hug-Her" just as Booker T. plays it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Booker T. & the M.G.'s "Hip Hug-Her" on YouTube.

Booker T. & the M.G.'s - Pigmy - Organ (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Pigmy" was released in 1967 on Booker T. & the M.G.'s Hip Hug-Her album. In it, Booker T. used two different styles:

1) really fat chords

2) his usual minimalist approach - single notes with occasionally two notes at the time.

This is a note-for-note transcription of "Pigmy", which also includes very close approximations of his Hammond drawbar settings, plus indications as to when he changes the speed of the Leslie tone cabinet.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Booker T. & the M.G.'s "Pigmy" on YouTube.

Booker T. Jones - She Breaks - Organ (transcribed by Elmo Peeler)

"She Breaks" was released on Booker T.'s Potato Hole album in 2010, but it has the old retro classic M.G.'s sound from the 1960s.

It's all Hammond B-3 organ (no electric piano), and is 4:22 long - long enough to build to a great climax during the Bridge, about 2/3 of the way through. Booker T. holds down one high note while playing around that sustained note with other fingers - creating terrific Hammond B-3 tension until it finally resolves. Click here to hear that Bridge.

My transcription also includes the Leslie tone cabinet speed settings, i.e., when it speeds up or slows down. Plus, the drawbar registrations are included.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Click here to listen to Booker T.'s "She Breaks" on YouTube.  

Booker T. & the M.G.'s - Time Is Tight (Album Version) - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When asked what he feels is his greatest artistic achievement, Booker T. Jones said, "I would have to say 'Time is Tight'. Because of the simplicity of the melody. It's one of the hardest things to do, to write a melody that people don't forget." But despite the simplicity of the memorable melody, "Time Is Tight" is a much more complex composition than "Green Onions".

"Time Is Tight" starts with just the organ playing the main melody slowly, then adding ethereal B-3 chords behind Steve Cropper's guitar as it repeats the melody, still slowly. At that point Al Jackson Jr. breaks into an uptempo drum fill and the song rhythmically kicks off with Booker T.'s organ playing the melody at over twice the tempo of the Intro.

After a couple of uptempo Verses, the song modulates a 5th higher for the Chorus. After two Choruses in G and four Verses in C, it goes into a long 31-bar Bridge with several additional modulations and lots of new chords never heard before in the song.

Finally that extended 4-part Bridge breaks down into a bluesy solo organ for about 12 bars, appropriately ending the piece just as it had begun, with only Booker T.'s organ.

Although a shorter single version (3:14) was released, this is a note-for-note transcription of the longer version (4:55), released on the UpTight album. It includes Hammond organ drawbar/percussion registrations plus indications as to when the Leslie speaker speeds up or slows down. If you'd like to play "Time Is Tight" exactly as Booker T. & the M.G.'s recorded it, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Booker T. & the M.G.'s "Time Is Tight" (Album Version) on YouTube.

Boston - Smokin' - Organ & Clavinet Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Released in 1976 in Boston's very first album, "Smokin'" is one of rock's most important B-3 organ songs. From its first entrance at 1:24 until 3:56 when it lays out near the end, Tom Scholz' B-3 is the main underpinning, ranging from Jimmy-Smith-goes-rock lightning-fast runs and "Phantom of the Opera"-type pipe organ chords to some of the most exuberant palm glissandi on record.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire organ part in "Smokin'" - 127 measures - including the complete clavinet part (plus much of the bass guitar part). If you'd like to play "Smokin'" exactly as it was recorded, this is just what you're looking for. This score is a very clear way to study a great rock B-3 organ classic.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Boston's "Smokin'" on YouTube.

Brent Mason - Hot Wired - Piano Solo - Matt Rollings & Wil Houchens (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).zip

At the age of five Brent Mason taught himself to play guitar by ear, and went on to become one of Nashville's leading session guitarists. In 1997 he released his first album, "Hot Wired", an album of instrumentals.

The title song is an uptempo track (145 BPM) with virtuoso guitar licks, and an equally impressive piano solo by Matt Rollings, himself one of Nashville's A-list session players. Rollings' jazzy-C&W piano solo in "Hot Wired" is so remarkable that another Nashville session great, Wil Houchens, took the time to learn it and post his own version onto YouTube.

This includes two note-for-note transcriptions: Matt Rollings original solo in "Hot Wired" and Will Houchens' own version on YouTube. Certainly one of the most amazing piano solos ever recorded in Nashville, it's a virtuoso display of C&W-meets-jazz, with fast, 16th-note extended runs, great rhythms, and Left Hand chordal stabs propelling it forward. It also contains the brief piano riff that Rollings throws in later in the song.

If you'd like to play the "Hot Wired" piano solo exactly as Matt Rollings and Wil Houchens play it - and it's an excellent study in how to expand out from pentatonic scales and embrace more sophisticated chromaticism - this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Brent Mason's "Hot Wired" on YouTube (Matt Rollings' solo begins around :58).
And here is Will Houchens' version of the "Hot Wired" solo on YouTube.

The Browns - The Three Bells - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1959 Jim Ed Brown and his sisters, Maxine and Bonnie, recorded "The Three Bells", a song written in 1945 in France, with English lyrics added in 1948. Telling the story about the three stages in Jimmy Brown's life, it is a warmly sung recording with an excellent 'feel' to the Choruses, due in large part to the piano, which was played by Floyd Cramer, as told to me by Jim Ed Brown himself.

However, the piano part is hard to hear because of the accompanying instruments and vocals. This is a note-for-note transcription of Floyd Cramer's entire piano part on The Browns' now-classic recording, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard pop and country charts.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is "The Three Bells" on YouTube.

Bruce Hornsby - Boogie-woogie Improvisation from The Tree Man (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In the 2020 documentary about Chuck Leavell, The Tree Man, Bruce Hornsby improvises a short boogie-woogie using a Left Hand pattern that is not very common. He describes the right hand part as being played very freely rhythmically, while the left hand is played very solid. And he says that it's a split-brain challenge that he'd spent six months of hard work trying to perfect and make automatic.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Bruce Hornsby's boogie-woogie improvisation. The first nine bars have fairly normal boogie-woogie licks in the right hand. The next eleven bars have a very unusual right-hand part using odd off-kilter rhythms and chromatic note choices. The left hand repeats the one-bar boogie-woogie pattern over and over.

Although fairly short - twenty measures - it demonstrates Hornsby's creative approach to boogie-woogie, based upon a left hand pattern that stylistically is a throw-back to the Albert Ammons & Meade 'Lux' Lewis era. I've never heard this left-hand pattern before - a good one to add to one's repertoire.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Watch and listen to Bruce Hornsby's improvised boogie-woogie from The Tree Man (2020) here on YouTube.

Bruce Springsteen - Because the Night - "The Promise" Version - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith co-wrote the rock classic "Because the Night" in 1977. Springsteen was in the studio recording his "Darkness on the Edge of Town" album with producer Jimmy Iovine, and recorded a version of it. He wasn't happy with it, and Iovine, who was producing Smith's "Easter" album at the same time, gave a recording of it to Smith. She added some lyrics to it, and released it on "Easter", becoming the first single release from that album and rising to #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Although Springsteen would perform the song live, and released it on his "Live 1975-85" album, his 1978 studio version was never released until "The Promise" box set in November 2010.

Classic Springsteen in his prime, "Because the Night" features Roy Bittan playing his classic rock piano style on the track. Starting the song with a two-bar running 8th-note figure, almost classical in nature, the piano track contains Bittan's wonderful, powerful 4-note Right Hand chords, glissandi, a different two-bar classical-like running 8th-note figure in Verse 2, octave runs, a whole-step-up modulation three-quarters of the way through, and a strong Left Hand part, closely following Garry Tallent's bass guitar line.

If you want to study Bittan's style, and play his exact notes, you'll love this complete note-for-note transcription, which contains all 96 measures - the entire song.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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If you'd like to also have the bass guitar part, here is the piano score, just as described above, with the addition of Garry Tallent's bass guitar part:

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To listen, just click: Bruce Springsteen - Because the Night (from "The Promise" - Intro & Verse 1)

Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run - Album Version - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Born To Run" was Bruce Springsteen's very first worldwide single release, in 1975. It became a classic rock anthem, launching his legendary career. Rolling Stone considers it to be in the Top 21 of the Greatest Songs Of All Time.

Springsteen has said that although the beginning of the song was written on guitar around the opening riff, the song's writing was finished on piano. The track was recorded during a touring break in August 1974 and featured session pianist David Sancious on piano. This is the version that was the power-house radio hit for Springsteen. Beginning in June 1973 Sancious began to tour regularly with the E Street Band; and legend has it that the band took its name from the street in Belmar, New Jersey, where Sancious' mother lived, as she had allowed the band to rehearse in her home. Sancious left the E Street Band later in the same month that he recorded the track for "Born To Run".

This piano part has never been transcribed before, but here it is now, complete - all 160 measures of David Sancious' piano part, note-for-note. If you want to play Springsteen's radio smash hit with complete accuracy, here is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run (Album Version - Verse 1)

Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run - "Live In New York City" Version - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When pianist David Sancious left the E Street Band in August of 1974 after recording the album version of "Born To Run", he was replaced by Roy Bittan, who has played piano for the E Street Band ever since. If you've ever been to a Springsteen concert since 1974, you've seen and heard Roy Bittan performing "Born To Run", and Bittan's piano part is quite different from Sancious' radio-hit version, right from the beginning.

Bittan replaced Sancious' intro with his own part, which follows the famous electric guitar riff, and recurs every Chorus. For other parts of the song, Bittan sometimes references a Sancious part here and there, but always with his own spin on it, and often with his hands two octaves apart, which cut through better for live shows. When Clarence Clemons' sax solo begins, Bittan's part is quite different and during the Bridge is completely different from any of Sancious' parts - often using big fat classical-concerto chord voicings in both hands for a very dramatic effect. At the end of the Bridge where the off-beat descending chromatic line occurs, an entire section is inserted that is not on the album version at all - a slow, out-of-time, ascending chromatic line, building the tension until the final Verse kicks in, leading to the strongly rocking Out Section.

The very best recording of this live version is Springsteen's double-CD, "Live in New York City" (2001). Bittan's wonderful, dramatic performance on it has been transcribed note-for-note - all 178 measures. If you've ever wanted to study Roy Bittan's wonderful, rocking style, here it is, complete with his octave runs, punchy right-hand chords, and high tinkly voicings - everything precisely notated.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

To listen, just click: Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run ('Live in NYC' Version - Verse 1)

Bruce Springsteen - Hungry Heart - Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Hungry Heart" was Bruce Springsteen's first Top Ten single, in 1980, and was voted Best Single of the year by various polls and critics. Originally written by Springsteen for The Ramones, he decided to keep it for himself. The title is drawn from a line in Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous poem "Ulysses": "For always roaming with a hungry heart". The Turtles, later known as Flo and Eddie, sang back-up on the recording.

The keyboards on the song are outstanding, both Roy Bitten's piano and Danny Federici's organ part. Although in the key of C, the song modulates up to E-flat for the organ solo, providing a tonal 'lift' that Federici takes wonderful advantage of in his solo - one of the catchiest, and most uplifting organ solos ever recorded - a Hammond B-3 classic.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Danny Federici's B-3 organ solo on "Hungry Heart", and also includes a transcription of the bass guitar part during the 8-bar solo. If you'd like to play Federici's exact notes and really nail one of rock's greatest B-3 solos, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Hungry Heart" on YouTube. The organ solo begins at 1:40.

Bruce Springsteen - Jungleland - Live 1980 - Piano Interlude (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

On "Jungleland" Clarence Clemons takes a great sax solo. After it's over but before Bruce Springsteen resumes singing, pianist Roy Bittan plays a solo piano Interlude. In live performances this piano Interlude varies from the album version, and one of the better performances was "Live at the Nassau Coliseum" on December 29, 1980.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Roy Bittan's 28-second, 16-bar solo piano Interlude as played Live on 12-29-1980. Although brief, it incorporates some nice pianistic techniques to wind down from the preceding intense sax solo, setting the stage for the return of the lead vocal: octaves, cascading 16th-note arpeggiated runs, alternating 3/4 and 5/4 meter, plus rubato.

If you'd like to play this brief but important part of "Jungleland" exactly as Roy Bittan has performed it, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is this piano solo Interlude in Bruce Springsteen's "Jungleland" (Live at Nassau 12-29-1980) on YouTube.

The Capitols - Cool Jerk - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Cool Jerk" by The Capitols is one of the great 1960's R&B classics, recorded in Detroit in 1966 using Motown's legendary rhythm section, the Funk Brothers. Earl Van Dyke, the leader of the Funk Brothers, was probably the pianist. It is simply one of the most dance-able records ever, propelled by the amazing piano part. Even before the drums come in, the bass guitar and piano kick off the song, setting forth the syncopated, foot-tapping 'groove'. And even though the piano has already been a prominent part of the recording since the beginning, halfway through the song the piano is given a solo when the singer says, "Now give me a little bit of bass with those 88's". And those ivories just continue to play a very important role in this classic recording.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the complete piano part in "Cool Jerk", complete with all the very cool riffs, tremolos, chord voicings that the Funk Brothers' pianist laid down. And the riffs are not limited to just blues-scale notes. During the 'solo' (and other places) some very cool chromatics are thrown in, showing that the pianist was not only a master of swinging R&B but also knew jazz, using just enough to add unexpected 'color' and funk into the track.

This is R&B piano-playing at its finest. If you've wondered how to play "Cool Jerk", or just want to expand your own knowledge of R&B piano riffs, this transcription will show you how it's done.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Click here to here The Capitols' "Cool Jerk" on YouTube.

Carrie Underwood - Undo It - Elec. Piano Riff (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Released in 2010, "Undo It" became Carrie Underwood's 7th biggest hit, selling 1.6 million copies in the U.S. alone.

The recording starts with a repetitive 2-bar funky, rhythmic guitar/bass/electric piano riff that uses unusual chord voicings. The riff is used not only during the Intro but also during the Verses.

This is a transcription of that 2-bar, 4-chord pattern. It can be tricky to pick out, so this should prove very helpful if you'd like to play it just like the original record.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Carrie Underwood - "Undo It" - 2-bar Electric Piano Riff

The Cars - Bye Bye Love - Synth Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1978 The Cars released "Bye Bye Love" on their debut album. Although the song was not released as a single, it has received regular airplay ever since. Perhaps one reason is the very cool synthesizer solo played by Greg Hawkes.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Hawkes' 8-bar synth solo, which can be tricky to pick out because of the digital delay FX applied to it. This score will demystify the solo and let you play it exactly as it was recorded.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Cars' "Bye Bye Love" on YouTube (the Synth Solo starts at 2:12)

Cat Stevens - Morning Has Broken - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock's most beautiful piano parts was performed by Rick Wakeman - Cat Stevens' 1972 classic, "Morning Has Broken". Prior to the actual recording, Stevens heard Wakeman play something in the recording booth, a rough sketch of what would later become "Catherine Howard". Stevens told Wakeman that he liked it and wanted something similar. Wakeman told Stevens he could not as it was his piece destined for a solo album, but Stevens persuaded him to adapt his composition.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part. Play it exactly as Rick Wakeman recorded it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Morning Has Broken" on YouTube.

Cattanooga Cats - Stop Right There - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler)

"Stop Right There" is a 1969 BubbleGum-style song aired on the Cattanooga Cats, an animated (cartoon) TV series produced by Hanna-Barbera from 1969 to 1971. It depicted the adventures of a fictitious rock band similar to The Archies and The Banana Splits.

"Stop Right There" was the second song featured in the 12th episode of the show, and is in the style of English bar-room or dance-hall music, complete with Right Hand octave runs plus a honky-tonk piano solo complete with a tremolo in sixths.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI File

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Click here to listen to Cattanooga Cats' "Stop Right There" on YouTube.

Charlie Daniels - The Devil Went Down to Georgia - Chorus - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

From its inception, The Charlie Daniels Band always used only one pianist, Taz DiGregorio. In fact, Taz actually joined Charlie Daniels' band, The Jaguars, in 1964, six years before changing its name to The Charlie Daniels Band. Taz DiGregorio played and recorded with Charlie for 47 years, until his passing in 2011 (ironically, driving on his way to join the tour bus).

Taz was born in 1944 in Massachusetts, where he taught himself to play by ear after being inspired by a Ray Charles concert. As part of Daniels' working band, Taz co-wrote "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and played a wonderful, up-beat piano part on it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Taz' piano part during the First Chorus of "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" - 13 bars total. The Chorus contains the main piano part for the song, so this section is the key to being able to perform it accurately. Of special interest are the booming low Left Hand octaves DiGregorio uses (he uses the very lowest note on the piano), while his Right Hand is playing a fast banjo-like, 16th-note figure.

If you'd like to play "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" exactly as it was recorded - or to study fast, rhythmic Country/Pop piano-comping (accompanying) in general - this Chorus is a good place to start.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Charlie Daniels Band's "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" on YouTube (the Chorus goes from :50 to 1:14).

Chris Higbee - Living the Dream - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Chris Higbee was the leader of The Hillbilly Way, a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania country music band chosen by the Steelers football team as their official band. In 2013 as a solo artist he released his own eponymously-titled album, which contained "Living the Dream". This is a transcription of the brief 8-bar piano solo, which uses both hands in the treble register to create a very rhythmic, syncopated, flashy-looking piano 'ride'.

Listen to the solo on the link below and see if the choppy two-handed technique is something you'd like to learn. It can be applied to other songs when you need a rhythmic solo that'll look good to the audience (as well as sound great).

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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To hear the piano solo in "Living the Dream", click here on YouTube.

Chuck Berry - It Wasn't Me - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Many of Chuck Berry's recordings are known for their terrific piano parts, often played by Johnnie Johnson. "It Wasn't Me" is one of the very best, and has been aired in 2020 as the track on Amazon Prime's 2-hour grocery delivery service TV commercial.

Although it's not as well known as "You Never Can Tell" and "Nadine", "It Wasn't Me" has a piano part that's every bit as remarkable. At first listen it sounds like Johnnie Johnson's high-register tinkling, but research indicates that it was Sonny Thompson, a very strong Chicago-based session player.

The entire recording is underpinned by a terrific boogie-woogie piano part that happens to be almost completely in thirds in the right hand, spanning the registers from below middle C to the highest octave. Occasionally the thirds are flipped and sixths are used, but it could well be titled "boogie-woogie in thirds".

One of this track's defining characteristics is the detached, bouncy touch. Although never a sharp staccato, the right hand part is always detached, never legato, and very 'bouncy'. Its feel is one of the best of Chuck Berry's recordings, and that's saying something.

This note-for-note transcription contains the entire recording - all 98 measures - not just the 30 seconds used in the Amazon commercial.

If you'd like to study how one of Chuck Berry's best piano tracks is constructed, and perhaps incorporate some of the licks into your own playing, this transcription is an excellent tutorial.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Chuck Berry's "It Wasn't Me" on YouTube.

Chuck Berry - You Never Can Tell - Piano Part by Johnnie Johnson (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The day that Chuck Berry meet Johnnie Johnson was a good day for rock-and-roll - that was December 31, 1952 to be precise. And between Berry's lyrics and Johnnie's fabulous piano-playing, some of rock's seminal songs were written and recordings were made. They began recording for Chess Records in Chicago in 1955 and continued a string of amazing records for ten years.

In 1964 their recording of "You Never Can Tell" had as much rock-and-roll energy and pure joie de vivre as any piano-based rock recording, before or since - a study in bouncy, uplifting, foot-tapping piano boogie-meets-rock.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Johnnie Johnson's entire piano part in "You Never Can Tell". Full of tremolos, thirds, hammered 4ths, octaves, 3-against-2 triplets, and other pianistic goodies, the entire track is underpinned by Johnson's wonderful boogie-woogie Left Hand part. And every note is precisely written out, even the tremolos - no detail is left out.

If you'd like to play Chuck Berry's classic "You Never Can Tell" exactly as Johnnie Johnson recorded it, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Chuck Berry's "You Never Can Tell" on YouTube.

Coldplay - Clocks - Piano Part (transcribed & arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Released in 2002, "Clocks" is one of Coldplay's biggest hits. The entire song is piano-driven, and starts off with Chris Martin's famous piano riff that recurs throughout the song. Later in the song a different arpeggiated piano riff is introduced that leads into the Bridge. Immediately after the Bridge, the first piano riff is heard again, followed by the second piano riff, which begins the Out Section, eventually fading out. "Clocks" begins with one distinctive piano riff and ends with another.

This is a transcription of the entire song - all 169 measures. If you'd like to play "Clocks" from beginning to end, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Clocks" on YouTube.

Coldplay - The Scientist - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Recorded in 2001 and released in 2002 on their "A Rush of Blood to the Head" album, "The Scientist" is perhaps Coldplay's most hauntingly-beautiful ballad. Piano-based, it begins with eight bars of only Chris Martin's piano, playing its signature 4-bar phrase twice.

The chord voicings are not the common pop/rock voicings, where usually there is a chord in the Right Hand with an octave in the Left Hand. The Left Hand in "The Scientist"  does not play octaves but usually full chords and two-note intervals in voicings that can be a little tricky to pick out. They have never been accurately transcribed before. The Right Hand part also uses some chord voicings that are not commonly found, including some Brian Wilson-influenced inner voicings using Major 9th chords and Major 6th chords.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire album-length (5:08) version - all 91 measures. If you'd like to play the haunting piano part on "The Scientist" just as Chris Martin recorded it, here is your chance to do so.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is a video of "The Scientist" on YouTube.

'Crazy' - Piano Solo by zzipizape (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest songs of the 20th century, 'Crazy' has been a hit for both pop and C&W artists since Willie Nelson wrote it in 1961. Artists as wide-ranging as Patsy Cline, Linda Ronstadt, LeAnn Rimes, Elvis Costello, Julio Iglesias and Don McLean have recorded it. Nelson's favorite recorded version was that of Patsy Cline, who, ironically, absolutely hated the song upon first hearing it. It became her biggest hit.

A pianist named zzipizape has recorded and posted onto YouTube his own solo piano arrangement of 'Crazy'. This is a note-for-note transcription of zzipizape's entire recording/arrangement of 'Crazy'.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is a video of zzipizape performing his arrangement of 'Crazy' on YouTube.

Dan Fogelberg - Same Old Lang Syne - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Dan Fogelberg, one of rock's most talented writer/musicians, wrote "Same Old Lang Syne" based on a true experience that he had on Christmas Eve of 1976, and it went on to become one of pop music's most beautiful love songs. After graduating in 1969 he and his high school sweetheart had gone to different colleges, and then moved to different states, losing touch with each other. By pure coincidence seven years later they ran into each other at a convenience store in their home town, which they were both visiting for the Christmas holidays. They bought a six-pack of beer and talked in her car for two hours, and although the spark was still there, she had married. Five years later, in 1981, she heard the song on the radio that he'd written about their encounter, and although she had since divorced, kept quiet about it until after his death, concerned that it would disrupt Fogelberg's marriage. Fogelberg himself refused to reveal her identity.

On the recording Fogelberg played all the instruments except drums (Russ Kunkel) and soprano sax (Michael Brecker). His piano part is a true classic. The piano intro starts out almost like a music box, then drops down to the mid-register for the first verse, where it stays for most of the remainder. It is a long song, almost 5 and a half minutes, comprising 122 measures: an Introduction, ten Verses, three Choruses, and an Out section. The piano part sounds simpler than it is, ingeniously divided between two hands, although much of it sounds like one hand - reflecting his wonderful talent as a multi-instrumentalist.

If you'd like to learn one of pop's most beautiful love songs exactly as it was recorded and at the same time increase your knowledge of how a pop piano part can be excellently constructed and performed, "Same Old Lang Syne" is a textbook example. The intro itself is one of the most instantly recognizable piano intros in pop/rock music. Treat yourself to the only precisely accurate transcription available anywhere of Dan Fogelberg's "Same Old Lang Syne" - all 122 measures!

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the complete Dan Fogelberg's "Same Old Lang Syne" on YouTube.

Dave 'Baby' Cortez - Rinky Dink - Organ (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Dave 'Baby' Cortez, formerly the Musical Director for Little Anthony and the Imperials, recorded "Rinky Dink" in 1962, and it became an organ instrumental classic, reaching #9 on the R&B chart and #10 on the Pop chart. To this day it is one of the most widely-played "Oldies-but-Goldies" by cover bands.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Hammond B-3 organ part on "Ricky Dink". The very catchy melody is deceptively simple, often played incorrectly. It has seven verses which change registers, some up an octave, others in the mid-register with the rhythmic chords on the lower manual. And every verse changes the lead line, which many players don't catch.

Plus it contains two choruses that combine major and minor pentatonic scales that also are often mis-played. This also includes the Hammond drawbar settings for the upper and lower manuals and the Leslie tone cabinet speed. If you'd like to play "Rinky Dink" exactly as Dave 'Baby' Cortex recorded it, this will show you how.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Dave 'Baby' Cortez' "Rinky Dink" on YouTube.

Dave Edmunds - From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come)" is a rock song originally written and performed by American singer and songwriter Bruce Springsteen. It was recorded in 1979 during The River sessions, but it was not released on the album. The song was covered by Dave Edmunds in 1982, and his version of the song peaked at position #28 on the Billboard Rock Chart.

Edmunds' recording contained a terrific boogie-woogie piano solo by Geraint Watkins. This is a note-for-note transcription of that rocking 20-bar solo, complete with flips, crushed notes, 'yodeling' sixths and other pianistic goodies.

If you'd like to perform this piano solo just as recorded, this will show you exactly how to play it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the piano solo in Dave Edmunds' "From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come)". on YouTube.

Dave Mason & the Quarantines - Feelin' Alright (2020) - 1st Minute, Solo & Breakdown (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock's most famous recordings is Joe Cocker's "Feelin' Alright", written by Dave Mason. Last year, when everyone was having to "socially distance", Mason got some of his friends together to re-record a brand-new version - a video using split-screen technology - and WOW! does it rock!

The players include Dave Mason, Michael McDonald (piano), Mick Fleetwood (drums), Sammy Hagar, and John McFee, Tom Johnston & Pat Simmons from The Doobie Brothers.

This note-for-note transcription contains the first minute plus the piano Solo and the Piano breakdown, played by Michael McDonald. It's a terrific, rhythmic piano track that is a bit more R&B than Joe Cocker's version, with different chord voicings and a style influenced by Richard Tee.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Feelin' Alright" by Dave Mason & the Quarantines on YouTube.

Delaney & Bonnie - Don't Deceive Me - Piano Part by Leon Russell (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Motel Shot", the 1971 album which contains "Don't Deceive Me", is one of rock's legendary albums. Recorded during late-night jams while touring, the band was comprised of rock's finest musicians: Leon Russell on piano, Jim Keltner on drums, and bassist Carl Radle.

"Don't Deceive Me (Please Don't Go)" is a slow 12/8 blues sung by Bonnie with Leon's piano the main supporting instrument - and what support! After kicking the song off with an atmospheric piano Intro, Leon conjures up a smokey, swampy accompaniment straight out of Southern churches, building from soft passages to aggressive gospel.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire recording - almost 4 minutes long. If you like blues and gospel, and want to learn how to play it better - like Leon Russell - this is exactly what you need to play it exactly as the Master of Space & Time recorded it.

Difficulty: Medium

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Here is Delaney & Bonnie's "Don't Deceive Me (Please Don't Go)" on YouTube.

Delaney & Bonnie and Friends - Faded Love - Piano Part (Leon Russell) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Delaney & Bonnie fell in love with Leon Russell's gospel playing (who hasn't?) when they recorded their very intimate, mostly acoustic "Motel Shot" album. "Faded Love", a Western swing song written by Bob Wills, had became a big hit for The Texas Playboys in 1950. Later Patsy Cline had a hit with it in 1963. But somewhere along the line Leon Russell envisioned it in a 'white gospel' style, very different from either Wills or Clines' versions.

This version is stripped down to primarily Leon's gospel piano and Delaney's plaintif voice (the other instruments are kept very sparse and subdued), with Leon starting the song with his Oklahoma/Southern-gospel style with fat chords, then octaves, then a walk-down to set up Verse 1. During the piece Leon uses lots more octaves, plus a few two-handed runs, very sweet 6ths, and some lovely chord changes.

Recorded in 1971 when he was in his prime, this is full of Leon's slow-gospel stylistic licks. This is a note-for-note transcription of Leon Russell's entire piano part - all 4:03 of it. If you want to learn how Leon played, this is a good piece to play and to study.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Delaney & Bonnie's "Faded Love" on YouTube with Leon Russell on piano.

Delbert McClinton - Going Back to Louisiana - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Delbert McClinton plays and writes roadhouse-style rock. He's been nominated for eight and won four Grammy Awards. In 1980 he recorded Bobby Osborn's "Going Back to Louisiana" and has included it into his live sets ever since. One of his best performances was on opening night of the 2018 Sandy Beaches Cruise. He chose to use Kevin McKendree on piano, a Nashville session player who has at times been McClinton's bandleader.

"Going Back to Louisiana" is a hard-rocking roadhouse blues with a terrific piano solo. This is a note-for-note transcription of the 16-bar piano solo (two 8-bar phrases), with its terrific blues riffs, 32nd-note runs, tremolos, hammered 3rds & 4ths - a wonderful panoply of blues elements, very well executed.

If you'd like to include this excellent piano solo into your own performances of "Going Back to Louisiana", or would just like to study how a well-done blues solo is constructed, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Going Back to Louisiana" on YouTube (the piano solo starts at 1:34).

Dennis Wilson - Piano Variations on Thoughts of You - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock's greatest tragedies is Dennis Wilson, one of the founding members of The Beach Boys - a tragedy not only because of a man's life cut short in his prime, but also because of a talent not fully appreciated during his lifetime. Although rich and famous as The Beach Boys' drummer, Dennis never felt that his real musical 'voice' had been realized. He heard music in his head that did not sound like that of his brothers, Brian and Carl. Similar to Brian, he had musical visions larger and more epic than just short pop ditties.

Recorded in 1977, "Piano Variations on Thoughts of You" was not released until twenty-five years after Dennis' death, on "Pacific Ocean Blue & Bambu - 2 CD Deluxe Legacy Edition" in 2008. An introspective three-minute (3:03) piano solo loosely referencing another of his songs, "Piano Variations" starts with gentle arpeggios, evolves through a classically-influenced Bridge, and ends ethereally with an ever-softening decrescendo to quadruple-piano (pppp) in the piano's higher registers.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire song - all 54 measures - to the very last note (which is almost impossible to hear on the recording). If you'd like to precisely re-create Dennis' sensitive performance and/or study the music of the least-appreciated Wilson brother, this is exactly what you need.

To see a customer's comment, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Dennis Wilson's "Piano Variations on Thoughts of You" on YouTube.

Derek & the Dominos - Layla - Piano Part (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock piano's most classic recordings. An amazing piece of music, and an amazing behind-the-scenes tale. Apparently written by Rita Coolidge when she was dating drummer Jim Gordon, it was overheard by Eric Clapton when he came upon Gordon playing it in the studio during the Derek and the Dominos sessions. The band recorded it; producer/engineer Tom Dowd spliced it onto the end of a song Clapton had written for Patti Boyd, the wife of former Beatle George Harrison; and "Layla" was born.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire last half of "Layla" - the piano half - all 3:52 of it, 108 measures in all. Starting with the forceful, attention-getting opening statement by the solo piano, continuing through the many sections with their wonderful octaves and that special 'Layla' chord, all the way to the very end when the last thing you hear is Duane Allman's high-pitched 'bird call'.

If you've ever wanted to play one of rock's most amazing piano instrumentals just as it was recorded, this is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Layla" on YouTube. The piano part starts at 3:11.

The Dillards - There Is a Time - Lead Sheet (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The legendary bluegrass group, The Dillards, would occasionally perform on The Andy Griffith Show as The Darlings. On December 7, 1964 on the episode "The Darling Baby", they performed "There Is a Time" with Maggie Peterson singing the lead vocal (in the character of Charlene Darling).

This is a lead sheet transcribed note-for-note from the TV show. It contains only the melody line of the lead vocal and the chord symbols of the entire TV performance - all 65 measures.

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Here are The Dillards (aka The Darlings) performing "There Is a Time" on The Andy Griffith Show.

Dolly Parton - Sittin' on the Front Porch Swing - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

ln 1993 Dolly Parton recorded an album with Tammy Wynette and Loretta Lynn, "Honky Tonk Angeles". "Sittin' on the Front Porch Swing" was included on that album. It is not clear who the pianist is, as the album credits both Floyd Cramer and Hargus 'Pig' Robbins.

A gentle, nostalgic solo piano introduction - with classic Floyd Cramer slip-note 'licks' - sets the mood for the song. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - a beautifully simple, classic C&W piano track.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Dolly Parton's "Sittin on the Front Porch Swing" on YouTube.

Don Henley - You Don't Miss Your Water (Live) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Don Henley, the co-founder of the Eagles in 1971, was their drummer until they broke up in 1980, whereupon Henley started a solo career. His band included pianist Jai Winding, son of jazz trombonist/composer Kai Winding. A talented pianist with a good flair for gospel/rock, Winding eventually became one of Los Angeles' most successful real estate agents.

In 1986 Henley's set list included the 1961 Stax Records R&B classic by William Bell, "You Don't Miss You Water". Jai Winding played a wonderful gospel/rock piano part on it. In 9/8 meter, it's similar to a waltz within a waltz. Winding made good use of tremolos in 3rds and 6ths, octaves, and other gospel-piano techniques, including a solo halfway through. This song has never been included on a Don Henley album, but sometimes appears on YouTube.

This is a transcription of Jai Winding's entire piano part for Don Henley's live performance of "You Don't Miss Your Water", as performed at the Bridge School Benefit on October 13, 1986 at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, California.

If you'd like to play this R&B classic exactly as Winding and Henley performed it, with a strong gospel-rock feel, this is just what you've been looking for.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file is also available:

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To listen, click here to hear just the piano solo in "You Don't Miss Your Water" (the transcription is of the entire song, including the solo).

Here is a recording of the MIDI file.

Don McLean - American Pie (Long Version) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"American Pie", simply put, has the most amazing piano track ever recorded for a pop song. Performed by the #1 session pianist in New York City, Paul Griffin, the track is as creative as it is long - 8:33 - going from majestic opening chords to highly-rhythmic calypso-influenced sections with tremendous 'bounce'.

Learning as a child by watching his Harlem church's pianist, Griffin was the keyboard genius that recorded for decades with a wide range of artists: from the Isley Brothers, the Shirelles, and Chuck Jackson to Bob Dylan, Dionne Warwick, Van Morrison, Paul Simon and Steely Dan to Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Stitt, Stanley Turrentine and Cal Tjader.

This is a precise note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the longest version of "American Pie" - 8 minutes, 33 seconds - all 241 measures - quite an epic journey of pianistic tricks - great licks/riffs, excellent voicings, highly-syncopated rhythms, very creative Left hand lines, even a unique slide-off technique for playing a grace note with a 4-note chord - really the ultimate seminar in how to create a very long, yet always interesting piano track.

Because of its 8:33 length this transcription is a little more expensive than others, but on a per-measure basis, it's actually one of my least expensive. This "American Pie" transcription is the most important transcription I've done. In 2017, McLean's original recording was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or artistically significant".

If you've wondered what the brilliant pianist on "American Pie" is really playing, this is your chance to learn and play it exactly as it was recorded.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Don McLean's "American Pie" (the long version) on YouTube. 

Donald Fagen - Standard 12-bar Blues (in A Major) (transcribed/arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1993 Donald Fagen, co-founder, lead singer and keyboardist for Steely Dan, made a tutorial video, Concepts for Jazz/Rock Piano, that includes him playing a 12-bar blues pattern on an acoustic piano. Warren Bernhardt played the Left Hand part on a Fender-Rhodes electric piano.

I've transcribed both parts and combined them into a two-hand piano arrangement.

Donald Fagen says that this is similar to "Chain Lightning" from Steely Dan's Katy Lied album (1975). It demonstrates the two most common chord substitutions in Blues and Rock, i.e., the minor vi and the minor v chords over the root of the chord. If you'd like to learn how to use these two important substitutions in your own playing - and see how Fagen himself uses them - this transcription/arrangement should prove very helpful.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to the MIDI file of my transcription/arrangement.

Here is the video of Donald Fagen's "Standard 12-bar Blues (in A Major)" on YouTube.

The Doobie Brothers - What a Fool Believes - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Written by Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins, "What a Fool Believes" was a #1 hit for the Doobie Brothers in 1979. The song is largely based upon McDonald's distinctive-sounding piano 4-bar piano pattern, which starts the song.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 8-bar Intro, which contains the main piano part for the song. Also included are the first four bars of Verse 1, to show that the main piano riff continues during the Verse. If you'd like to learn "What a Fool Believes", this will show you the exact voicings to get that great Michael McDonald piano sound.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Doobie Brothers' "What a Fool Believes" on YouTube. This transcription covers the first 25 seconds.

The Doobie Brothers - World Gone Crazy - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler)

In 2010 The Doobie Brothers released their World Gone Crazy album, with Bill Payne (founder of Little Feat) playing piano on the title track. This is a transcription of just the short, 12-second Gospel Piano Intro, which is chock-full of Gospel techniques, including some cool chromatic chord changes kicking it off in the very first bar, Left Hand 'ruffs' (grace-noted LH octaves), a Right Hand 'flip', ascending arpeggio, etc.

When you listen to it, check out the free timing (rubato). Metronomic markings (BPM) are included in every measure.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Click here to listen to The Doobie Brothers' "World Gone Crazy" on YouTube.  

Dr. John - Pine Top Boogie - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Dr. John is simply one of the best piano players of all time, a true master of the New Orleans-boogie style. In 1988 he videotaped a video tutorial called "Dr. John Teaches New Orleans Piano" (released by Homespun Tapes) in which he played "Pine Top Boogie" to illustrate his legendary boogie style - his version of "Pine Top's Boogie Woogie", recorded in 1928 by Clarence 'Pine Top' Smith.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piece - all 70 measures. In a minute and fifty seconds Mac Rebennack (Dr. John's real name) shows off many of his trademark tricks: octaves, double-fisted chord tremolos, tremolos in sixths, 'flips', and swirling rhythms, all grounded by a low, growly, rhythmic bass line in the Left Hand - so low that it often goes down to the next-to-the-lowest note on a piano, low B-flat.

If you've ever wanted to see exactly what Dr. John is doing to create his 'sound', this transcription is just what you've been looking for. 

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Challenging

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To listen, just click: Dr. John - Pine Top Boogie

Dr. John - Right Place, Wrong Time - Electric Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

During the summer of 1973 Dr. John had his biggest hit ever, "Right Place, Wrong Time". Produced/arranged by New Orleans genius Allen Toussaint, the song starts out with an electric keyboard adjusted to sound like a dirty harpsichord, playing a rhythmic, repetitive single-note pattern. That evolves into very rhythmic chords that drive the entire rhythm track.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the main electric keyboard part, exactly as it was played by Allen Toussaint (yes, Toussaint played that part, not Dr. John). Unlike most songs, where the keyboard will establish a pattern and repeat it consistently, this wonderful keyboard part never repeats itself exactly, but is always changing and evolving - and always extremely rhythmic/danceable.

If you'd like to play this Dr. John classic exactly as it was recorded, with all the wonderful New Orleans 'voodoo' rhythms, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Dr. John's " Right Place, Wrong Time" on YouTube.

Dr. John - Take Me Out to the Ballgame - Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Ken Burns produced his 1994 PBS documentary, "Baseball", he asked Dr. John to record the most famous song associated with the game - "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". In true Dr. John fashion, he knocked it out of the ballpark.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 32-bar (54 seconds) Hammond B-3 organ solo, full of Dr. John's organ techniques, from single-note lines to fat chords, from staccato notes with percussion to sustained notes. Also included are suggested drawbar and percussion settings.

If you'd like to study Mac Rebennack's (Dr. John's real name) organ style and play the solo in baseball's most famous song exactly as the good New Orleans doctor recorded it, here is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Dr. John's recording of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". His organ solo begins at 1:02.

Duke Ellington - Black Beauty - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest musical minds of the 20th century was that of Duke Ellington, pianist/arranger/composer extraordinaire. Unfortunately the Duke never made many piano solo recordings; most were orchestral. However, very early in his career, in 1928 at the age of 29, Ellington wrote and recorded one of his very best compositions, "Black Beauty", a piano solo written as a memorial to Florence Mills, one of the era's leading young entertainers who had passed away unexpectedly.

"Black Beauty" is classic stride piano, showing Duke Ellington at his pianistic best: broken Left-hand tenths, sparkling Right-hand voicings, great rhythms. Compositionally it draws from many influences, including Debussy and Ravel (who was still alive and in his prime) - Impressionist whole-tone scales - and George Gershwin - chord voicings, grace-noted flat-7th's ('Rhapsody in Blue' was only four years old) - and even Scott Joplin. The song's structure was also more complex than any song of its time, even though it is all packed into a wonderfully concise three minutes.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Duke Ellington's solo piano recording of "Black Beauty", recorded in New York City on October 1, 1928, released on the Okeh label as Okeh 8636. If you'd like to study the Duke's piano style, and play this timeless piano classic exactly as the Duke himself played it, treat yourself to a very special experience and download "Black Beauty" now.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Duke Ellington's 1928 recording of "Black Beauty" on YouTube.

Eagles - Desperado - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the Eagles' most famous songs, "Desperado" was released in 1973 on their album of the same name. The piano plays the very first notes heard - a solo piano Intro that has itself become a classic, immediately identifying the song to most listeners. And the piano remains the most important rhythm section instrument in the entire song; indeed, the other rhythm section instruments (bass, guitars & drums) don't even come in until the song is over half-way over. After the Intro, the piano continues its solo accompaniment of the voice throughout several sections. After almost a minute the string section enters and joins the solo piano, but long before the other rhythm instruments finally come in, two minutes into the three-and-a-half minute song.

So the piano carries most of the song. And although it sounds fairly simple at first listen, the piano chords - and voicings - are a little more complex than one might think. To do this classic song justice, one should perform the piano part just like The Eagles recorded it. This note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire 51-measure song will show you how to play the exact same piano notes that Glenn Frey played on the record.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Eagles - Desperado - Piano Intro

Eagles - Please Come Home for Christmas - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Please Come Home for Christmas" was released as a holiday single by the Eagles in 1978, and has become one of the most popular Christmas rock songs ever recorded. Originally written by blues singer/pianist Charles Brown and released in 1960, the Eagles' version stays close to the original, except that the V chord at the end of every section was made into a V augmented.

This is a transcription of the entire piano part, as played by Glenn Frey, including the gospel-influenced Left Hand octaves. If you'd like to play one of rock and R&B's greatest Christmas songs exactly as the Eagles recorded it, here is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the Eagles' recording of "Please Come Home for Christmas" on YouTube.

Eli 'Paperboy' Reed - Come Back Baby - Elec. Piano & Ac. Piano Score (transcribed & arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

A native of Massachusetts, Eli 'Paperboy' Reed moved to Clarksdale, Mississippi after graduating from high school to immerse himself into the juke joint culture of the Deep South. After spending a year there he moved to Chicago where he played piano and organ in the South Side Chicago church of soul/gospel singer Mitty Collier. "Come Back Baby", a slow blues song written in 1940 by blues singer/pianist Walter Davis, was recorded by Ray Charles in 1954, peaking at #4 on the R&B singles chart.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Reed's entire bluesy Wurlitzer electric piano part on "Come Back Baby", exactly as in the video on YouTube. Also included is my own arrangement for acoustic piano of Reed's Wurlitzer part. Although staying close to the original, it throws in a couple of new licks, including one from the B-3 player accompanying the Wurlitzer in the YouTube video.

If you'd like to improve your ability to play the blues, this will help.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Reed's Wurlitzer electric piano part plus my arrangement of it for acoustic piano

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2) my arrangement for acoustic piano only

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Here is Eli 'Paperboy' Reed's "Come Back Baby" on YouTube.

To listen to my arrangement for acoustic piano of "Come Back Baby", just click: Elmo Peeler - Piano Arrangement of Eli 'Paperboy' Reed's 'Come Back Baby'

Elmo Peeler - A Whiter Shade of Pale - Arranged for Piano.pdf

This is an arrangement for solo piano of Procol Harum's "A Whiter Shade of Pale". It uses the original organ lines from the classic rock recording, and re-voices them to make them more 'pianistic', taking advantage of the greater range of the piano keyboard.

The organ lines are enhanced by sometimes putting them into octaves and chords, and occasionally (in the middle section) adding rock-style 'twangs' (slip-notes).

Also, a nice, flowing Left Hand accompaniment has been added, making it perfect for a pianist to perform without needing a rhythm section accompaniment. However, if you play in a band, this can also be used as a very effective piano solo between the sung verses.

If you like the original "A Whiter Shade of Pale" recording, you'll enjoy learning and playing this version for solo piano.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this arrangement is also available:

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To listen, just click: Elmo Peeler - A Whiter Shade of Pale (arranged for piano)

Elmo Peeler - Ashokan Farewell - Arranged for Piano.pdf

In 1990 PBS-TV broadcast Ken Burns' 9-part documentary, The Civil War, which won two Grammy Awards, including for Best Traditional Folk Album. The musical highlight was the haunting, wistful, slightly melancholic melody of "Ashokan Farewell", which was woven liberally throughout the 11-hour documentary.

Composed in the style of a Scottish lament by violist Jay Unger in 1982 (although it sounds like it could've been from the Civil War era), documentarian Ken Burns heard it in 1984, fell in love with it, and used it as the main theme when he produced The Civil War several years later. Ungar himself describes the song as coming out of a sense of loss and longing.

This is my own version, arranged for piano, of Ungar's composition, which was originally for viola. The most important of Ungar's melodic embellishments - mordents, flips, etc., which are responsible for a lot of the atmosphere and period charm of the piece - are included in this arrangement.

If you'd like to play this beautiful musical lament, my piano arrangement of "Ashokan Farewell" should prove helpful.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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To listen, just click: Elmo Peeler - Ashokan Farewell - Arranged for Piano

I'll Fly Away - Old-Time Gospel Piano Style (arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is an arrangement of the most-recorded Gospel song ever, "I'll Fly Away", written in 1929. It was used in the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou (released in 2000 starring George Clooney), and has been recorded by many artists, from George Jones and Alan Jackson to Alison Krauss and Gillian Welch.

After searching the Internet, including all the versions on YouTube, I couldn't find any that really captured the style found in the Southern churches of my youth. So I decided to arrange it and recapture the old Gospel sounds that I heard as a very young child in Mississippi.

"I'll Fly Away" has one of the catchiest and most singable melodies in any Gospel hymn. And when the melody is played in the lower mid-register, as it is during the third Verse & Chorus, the Left Hand crosses over the Right to keep that old-time Gospel feel going - some fun piano-playing in it.

If you'd like to play Gospel piano like it was played many years ago, this arrangement is exactly what you've been looking for.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To hear it on a modern Steinway, just click: "I'll Fly Away" - Old-Time Gospel Piano Style - arranged by Elmo Peeler

To hear it on an old country church-style piano, just click: "I'll Fly Away" - Old-Time Gospel Piano Style - arranged by Elmo Peeler

Leaning on the Everlasting Arms - Old-Time Gospel Piano Style (arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is an arrangement of one of the most famous hymns, written back in 1887 - an old-time Gospel version of "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms".

After searching the Internet, including all the versions on YouTube, I couldn't find any that really captured the style found in the Southern churches of my youth. So I decided to arrange it and recapture the old Gospel sounds that I heard as a very young child in Mississippi.

The melody is one of the best hymn melodies - very 'catchy' and singable. And in the last half of the third verse (there are four) by splitting the lower-mid-register melody between the hands you'll hear a three-hands effect.

If you'd like to play Gospel piano like it was played many years ago, this arrangement is just what you've been looking for.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To hear it on a modern Steinway, just click: "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" -- Old-Time Gospel Piano Style - arranged by Elmo Peeler

To hear it on an old country church-style piano, just click: "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" -- Old-Time Gospel Piano Style - arranged by Elmo Peeler

Elmo Peeler - Love Me Tender - Arranged for Piano.pdf

This is an arrangement for solo piano of Elvis Presley's "Love Me Tender", one of pop music's most beautiful, heart-touching songs, which was a huge hit for him in 1956, early in his career. However, the music - the melody and chord progression - had already been around for almost a hundred years, since 1861, when published under the name "Aura Lea". During the Civil War it was adopted by soldiers on both sides, and was often sung around campfires.

"Love Me Tender" was my favorite song when I was a child, so I've arranged it for solo piano, requiring no other instruments to accompany it. For me, it is simply one of the most beautiful melodies ever.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this arrangement is also available:

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To listen, just click: Elmo Peeler - Love Me Tender (arranged for piano)

The Fleetwoods - Mr. Blue (Arranged for Piano by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1959 The Fleetwoods were the first group to have two #1 Billboard hits in the same year. Their second #1 hit was "Mr. Blue", one of the most beautiful pop songs ever. This is my own arrangement of it for piano.

The original 1959 production was fairly minimalistic, using only guitar, bass and drums to back-up the vocal trio (two females and a male). The first step in my arranging process was to transcribe the important lines: lead and 2-part background vocals, bass (which has an important chromatic passing note), guitar and trumpet.

All those important elements have been incorporated. The 2nd Verse is enhanced with Floyd Cramer-style voicings, and the beginning of the 3rd Verse has the melody in 4-note chords.

It is true to the original recording, just translated it onto the piano with a few Elmo-isms. If you'd like to play one of pop/rock's most beautiful recordings on the piano in a true-to-the-original arrangement, you'll love learning and performing this.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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To listen, just click: The Fleetwoods - Mr. Blue (Arranged for Piano by Elmo Peeler)

To listen to the same piano part but with Fender-Rhodes Electric Piano and Hammond B3 organ added, just click: The Fleetwoods - Mr. Blue (Arranged for Piano by Elmo Peeler) - with Elec. Piano & B3

Elton John - Honky Tonk Women - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Elton John broadcast live (on the radio) his 11-17-70 album, it was one of rock piano's greatest tours de force. Using only drums and bass to accompany his piano, there was no guitar - only his extraordinary piano-playing to convey all the chords, rhythms, licks/fills. If you want to hear the pinnacle of rock piano, 11-17-70 isn't a bad album to start with.

The set list included the Rolling Stones' classic "Honky Tonk Women", which the Stones had recorded in 1969 without a piano solo. With no guitarist, Elton had to play the instrumental solo himself, and thus gave the world the first recorded piano solo in "Honky Tonk Women".

Years later when the Rolling Stones hired Chuck Leavell, they added a "Honky Tonk Women" piano solo to their own live performances.

As one would expect, Elton's piano solo is quite different from Chuck's barrel-house approach - more energetic, faster (145 BPM vs 117 BPM), and in-your-face, with machine gun-fast repeated chords, rhythmic 4-note chords jumping octaves, and always using octaves-with-a-fifth in the left hand - a big, aggressive sound. If you want to compare the two solos, here is my transcription of Chuck Leavell's solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Elton's 16-bar piano solo (plus four bars of the subsequent Chorus).

If you'd like to learn exactly how Elton plays the piano solo in "Honky Tonk Women", this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to Elton John's piano solo on "Honky Tonk Women" on YouTube.  

Elton John - Levon - Chord Chart & Important Piano Fills (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Elton John is one of rock's greatest pianists, and "Levon" contains some of Elton's greatest piano-playing. Recorded in 1971, the song was inspired by the founder of Elton and Bernie Taupin's favorite band at the time, The Band - Levon Helm. Jon Bon Jovi has even said that "Levon" is his favorite rock song of all time.

Yet for all its greatness, the piano part has never been accurately published. One reason, perhaps, is that after the second Verse other instruments take prominence in the mix, obscuring much of the piano part. However, the most important piano piano parts can be heard well enough to notate: the Intro, the first two Verses, the Choruses, and the beginning of the Out Section.

Taken from the original hit recording (5:22 in length) from the "Madman Across the Water" album, this transcription contains the entire song - 80 measures - mapped out in a beautifully laid-out chord chart showing all of the important piano licks and some of the string lines. When the piano is obscured by the orchestra and other instruments, such as in the Pre-Choruses, the exact piano rhythms are notated so that you can study Elton's wonderful, signature rhythms and re-create them exactly.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Elton John's "Levon" on YouTube.

Elton John - Rock and Roll Madonna - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Two months after 22-year-old Elton John recorded "Your Song", which made him famous, he recorded "Rock and Roll Madonna". But it took 25 more years, until 1995, before it was finally included on the eponymous album that included "Your Song". It was truly a hidden gem.

"Rock and Roll Madonna" embodies the free-spirited and rebellious nature of the rock-and-roll movement that defined an era. This song pays homage in general to the energy, passion, and vitality of the genre, and specifically, to Little Richard. Elton said, "I always wanted to write one song, a nostalgic song, a rock and roll song which captured the right sounds... I’m more a Little Richard stylist than a Jerry Lee Lewis, I think. Jerry Lee is a very intricate piano player and very skillful, whereas I think Little Richard is more of a pounder. I think his rock and roll records are the best rock and roll records ever made, as far as just the genuine sound on them goes. I heard Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis and that was it. I didn't ever want to be anything else."

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire song - all 143 measures, 4:17 in length - that shows the tremendous energy, syncopated rhythms and varied chord voicings that typify young Elton. Every single note is included; I had the advantage of working from what was essentially a multi-track, so every note - and duration of the notes - was clearly audible.

Whether you'd like to study Elton's rhythms and chords in order to better understand his piano style, or just want to play an over-the-top rocker, this will help you to do so.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is Elton John's "Rock and Roll Madonna" on YouTube.

To listen to Elton's isolated piano track, just click: "Rock and Roll Madonna" (Piano + Drums).

Elton John - Still Uses This Tip Leon Russell Gave Him in 1970 - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Elton John's hero on the piano was Leon Russell, who was in the audience at Elton's 1970 U.S.A. debut at the Troubador nightclub in Los Angeles. Elton said, "I saw him and my knees went zzzippp!. He invited me up to his house and I thought he’s going to invite me up there and tie me to a chair and whip me and say, “This is how to play the piano!” I was really scared. I (had) heard the Delaney and Bonnie album [1969’s Accept No Substitute] and I just went through the roof. I nearly retired at that point. I figured there wasn’t much point in playing anymore."

Elton also said, "It was the most magical of times because here was my idol accepting me. Actually, he could eat me for breakfast [playing piano]. I came from England and being a huge fan of someone like him and to have him accept me and kind of take me under his wing and be really fantastic to me the whole time. It meant the whole world to me that someone could show me that generosity that you admired so much. It helped validate me by saying, "Well if he thinks I’m alright then I must be alright because he’s my hero."

In a Howard Stern interview (on YouTube) Elton talks about being blown away by Leon's piano-playing on Joe Cocker's recordings and immediately launches into an 8-bar improvisation in Leon's style - it's Leon Russell as heard and perceived through the ears and fingers of Elton John (and few musicians have ears as discerning as Elton's)! A couple of the chords seem to be Leon/Elton hybrid chords - not your average triads or seventh-chords - so I created this note-for-note transcription of "Elton playing Leon" to see exactly how Elton perceives Leon's style.

If you'd like to gain insight into the pianistic genius of both Elton John and Leon Russell, this brief but insightful improvisation should help.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is Elton John's improvisation in the style of Leon Russell on YouTube.  

Elton John - Tiny Dancer (Studio) - Piano Part with Fingering (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Tiny Dancer" was released in 1971 on Elton John's fourth album, "Madman Across the Waters". Taupin wrote the lyrics about the many beautiful California women that he'd met there. Elton's piano is based around a particularly melodic riff that repeats throughout the song with many small variations.

Starting with just solo piano, the production builds with the rhythm section entering, then strings and choir. The piano part evolves from the sweet main one-bar riff to full 4-note triads during the Chorus, and then back to just the melodic riff, and then the build begins again - with lots of dynamics (all indicated in the transcription).

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 6:12, which is 112 measures long - twice as long as the average 3-minute pop/rock song. If you've ever wanted to study Elton's amazing piano style - almost Brahmsian in his dense voicing of chords - this is an excellent place to begin, containing a number of his signature voicings, rhythms, compound chords, etc.

Fingering is also included.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" on YouTube.

Elton John - Tiny Dancer (Live TV) - Piano Part with Fingering (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Four months after recording "Tiny Dancer" with a rhythm section, orchestra and choir, Elton performed it on live TV, "The Old Grey Whistle Test", with only his own solo piano. He didn't edit it at all, and in fact added three additional bars to the studio version, keeping the length to over six minutes - twice as long as the average pop/rock song.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 6:02 in length, 115 measures long. This live version differs in a few ways from the studio version, although only four months more evolved. It is harmonically richer, using fat Dm7 chords where simple F triads had been used, consistently starting the Pre-Chorus with a pretty A-flat major 7th chord instead of an Ab6, etc.

If you'd like to study Elton's style, this piano solo version of "Tiny Dancer" is an excellent place to start. Fingering is also included.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Elton John's live TV performance of "Tiny Dancer" ("Old Grey Whistle Test", 1971) on YouTube.

Elton John - Wonderful Crazy Night - Live (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 2016 Elton John released a new album, Wonderful Crazy Night, whose title song was written for Disneyland's 60th Anniversary. Elton performed it live at Disneyland Park's Plaza on January 15, 2016; the TV broadcast, The Wonderful World of Disney: Disney 60 was aired February 21, 2016 on ABC.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part for the Live version - all 89 measures. Elton uses great syncopated rhythms, excellent Right-Hand riffs thrown in between phrases, a change of keys for the Choruses (from C to E-flat), lots of fat, powerful 4-note Right-Hand chords, plus a wonderful honky-tonk-influenced solo in the middle.

If you'd like to play this uptempo song exactly as Elton performed it live at the Sleeping Beauty Castle, this is exactly what you need. It's excellent for studying Elton John's classic rhythms that have defined his style since the 1970s.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Elton John's live performance of "Wonderful Crazy Night" on YouTube.

Elvis Presley - I Really Don't Want To Know - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Elvis recorded "I Really Don't Want To Know" twice: in 1971 in the studio, on "Elvis Country", and again in 1977 live, on "Elvis in Concert". The pianist on the studio version, recorded in Nashville, was probably Floyd Cramer. It is certainly his style. The pianist on the June 21,1977 live version in Rapid City, South Dakota is Tony Brown, the son of a preacher who frowned on pop music. Gospel music was his early inspiration, which shows in the gospel-flavored piano on this track.

This note-for-note transcription merges the two versions, using the 4-bar piano Intro on Elvis' studio version and all the rest from the live version. So in the transcription, Floyd Cramer plays the Intro, and Tony Brown plays all the rest - the best of both worlds, pianistically. If you'd like to play "I Really Don't Want To Know" with Floyd's unique slip-note style in the Intro and then with Brown's more gospel-flavored piano, you'll love learning this transcription.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Elvis' live version of "I Really Don't Want To Know" (1977) on YouTube.

To listen to the 4-bar piano Intro, click here: Elvis - "I Really Don't Want To Know" (1971) - Intro

Emerson, Lake & Powell - Lay Down Your Guns - Piano Part + Synth Solo (trans. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1986 Keith Emerson formed Emerson, Lake & Powell, and released only one album, which included "Lay Down Your Guns" - one of his most beautiful recordings.

Although Emerson is often associated with very fast playing of a zillion notes, really showing off his spectacular keyboard technique, "Lay Down Your Guns" concentrates more on lush chords/harmonies, a dramatic chord progression and a beautiful melody soaring over it all.

Don't misunderstand. Beginning in the third Chorus there are three different ascending arpeggios that can be a bit challenging at first (but a lot of fun to play). But overall its main focus is on creating atmosphere and harmonic color.

This note-for-note transcription includes not only Emerson's entire piano part, but also the SynthBrass solo plus the Tubular Bells in the Out section. If you'd like to play "Lay Down Your Guns" exactly as Keith Emerson recorded it, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Emerson, Lake & Powell's "Lay Down Your Guns" on YouTube.

Emerson, Lake & Powell - Lay Down Your Guns - Piano - Instrumental Demo in G (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1986 Keith Emerson formed Emerson, Lake & Powell, and released only one album, which included "Lay Down Your Guns" - one of his most beautiful recordings, concentrating more on lush chords, harmonies and beautiful melodies than his usual virtuoso display. I've transcribed that recording.

However, while I was doing research into the piece, I came upon an earlier, instrumental recording that, although it had similarities, it had enough differences to prove quite interesting. It also happens to be in a different key, a Major 3rd higher than the album version (G instead of E-flat).

This is a note-for-note transcription of Keith Emerson's earlier-recorded (perhaps 1985) "Instrumental Demo". If you'd like to study Emerson's creative process, how the composition evolved, or would just like to learn Emerson's own slightly different version of "Lay Down Your Guns", this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is a similar, but not identical, 'Instrumental' version on YouTube, in A-flat.

Engelbert Humperdinck - Am I That Easy To Forget - Piano Solo & End Tag (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Engelbert Humperdinck's 1968 recording of "Am I That Easy To Forget" had a wonderful Floyd Cramer-style piano solo, probably played by Floyd himself. And at the end of the entire song there is a very tasty Country/Blues piano flourish.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Floyd Cramer-style 8-bar piano solo in "Am I That Easy To Forget", plus the ending piano Tag.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen to the 8-bar piano solo, click here: Engelbert Humperdinck - "Am I That Easy To Forget" (Piano Solo)

To listen to the End Tag, click here: Engelbert Humperdinck - "Am I That Easy To Forget" (End Tag)

Eric Clapton - Cocaine - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Eric Clapton has always surrounded himself with the very best musicians, often using the great Chris Stainton on keyboards. On his 2008 and 2009 concert tours Clapton used Stainton, and assigned piano solos to him on songs that didn't have a keyboard solo on the original recordings -"Cocaine" being one of them. And what a solo Stainton devised for those live performances - a two-minute, three-section tour de force!

Starting the solo with an atmospheric two-handed double-trill in fourths, he progresses into Aeolian-mode arpeggiations, which evolve into a brief machine-gun-articulate ascending/descending minor pentatonic run, ending the section with a hands-two-octaves-apart Latin break. Immediately the next section begins, an alternating-hand rhythmic pattern (playing drums on the keyboard) that transitions into a virtuoso display of Right Hand octave runs, then into Right Hand glissandi with the Left Hand continuing a rhythmic pattern even during the glissandi. That second section ends with descending grace-noted octaves and a keyboard-long descending glissando. The third and final section begins at the lowest part of the keyboard in an ascending, alternating-hand chromatic run all the way up to the top of the keyboard (and no, it's not a straight chromatic run, but does have a definite, repetitive pattern) and ending the entire solo with an extended two-hand trill. Wow! You feel like you've been on a journey when it's finally over!

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire two-minute solo - all 108 measures. If you want to re-create Chris Stainton's truly remarkable "Cocaine" solo or just to study it for its choice of notes and structure, here is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Eric Clapton - "Cocaine" (Live) on YouTube. Stainton's solo begins around 4:26.

Eric Clapton - Lay Down Sally - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Even though none of Eric Clapton's recorded versions of "Lay Down Sally" contain a piano solo, in 2011 some of his live concerts did, with no less than Chris Stainton - Joe Cocker's longtime piano man - playing the piano part. Fortunately, someone in Denmark captured it on video and posted it onto YouTube.

Stainton throws in plenty of great rock piano tricks, including 'walking sixths', hammered-on fourths, creative use of thirds, and even an ascending chromatic scale.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Chris Stainton's 40-second piano solo on "Lay Down Sally", as performed live in concert in Hernin, Denmark on June 11, 2011. Also included is the bass guitar part.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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See the YouTube video of this performance here.

Eric Clapton - San Francisco Bay Blues - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Of all the songs Eric Clapton has recorded, probably none is more 'honky-tonk' than "San Francisco Bay Blues", highlighted and made 'extra-honky' by Chuck Leavell's wonderful piano. Written and recorded by Jesse Fuller in 1954, Clapton chose it for his "Unplugged" video in 1992.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 120 measures. If you want to study how Leavell creates his honky-tonk magic, and to play it yourself exactly as he does, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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See the YouTube video of this performance here.

Ernesto Lecuona - Por Eso Te Quiero - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Ernesto Lecuona was one of Cuba's most prolific composers, most famous for "Malaguena". A child prodigy, he graduated from the National Conservatory of Havana at 16, and was the link between the virtuosic pianistic tradition of the 19th-century and the modern age, incorporating jazz and Latin American dance rhythms.

In 1954 Lecuona recorded an original piece that he never notated - a beautiful, impassioned Romantic ballad for solo piano, "Por Eso Te Quiero" ("That's Why I Love You"). I've carefully transcribed it note-for-note, exactly as Lecuona himself recorded it sixty-two years ago.

If you perform "Malaguena", a wonderful virtuoso piece, this beautiful Romantic ballad is a perfect compliment to it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Ernesto Lecuona - "Por Eso Te Quiero" ("That's Why I Love You")

Ernie K-Doe - Hello My Lover - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Hello My Lover", recorded in 1962, was one of the series of hits that Allen Toussaint produced on Ernie K-Doe that began the preceding year with "Mother-in-Law". And like "Mother-in-Law" Toussaint included a terrific, New Orleans-style piano solo in it that has a particularly slinky feel to it. Included in the solo are a number of pianistic tricks from Toussaint's bag of tricks, including "yodeling sixths", 'crushed' chords (containing a minor second), Left Hand tenths, double grace-notes, a tremolo, and more of Toussaint's own chord voicings - a New Orleans pianistic cornucopia.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Allen Toussaint's 16-bar piano solo - one of his best. If you'd like to play it exactly as he did, and hopefully learn some of his 'tricks' in the process, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Ernie K-Doe - "Hello My Lover" - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint

 

Ernie K-Doe - Mother-in-Law - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

A native of New Orleans like Allen Toussaint, Ernie K-Doe began recording in 1955 as a solo artist, but it would be 1961 before he teamed up with Toussaint, a pairing that produced "Mother-in-Law", a #1 hit on both the Billboard pop and R&B charts. The song was written and produced by Toussaint, who also played piano on it, including one of the most iconic piano solos in all of pop music. Toussaint recorded a sound that many pianists have tried to imitate.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Allen Toussaint's 16-bar piano solo in "Mother-in-Law", plus the first two bars after the vocal re-enters. A study in New Orleans' ultra-cool piano style, it includes Toussaint's use of both 3rds and 6ths, single- and two-note grace notes, octave fills, his own unique voicing, just the right amount of syncopation - and all with a terrific Left Hand part, supportive and complimentary without getting in the way.

If you've wanted to study Allen Toussaint's piano style and learn to play it, this classic solo is your chance. .

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Ernie K-Doe - "Mother-in-Law" - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint

Ernie K-Doe - Popeye Joe - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Popeye Joe" was one of the most danceable of Ernie K-Doe's hits, written by K-Doe to take advantage of a current dance craze with the same name. Allen Toussaint produced it and worked his magic with the inclusion of a terrific piano solo, a formula that had worked for his hits with K-Doe since the first one, "Mother-in-Law".

In this solo Toussaint uses syncopated octaves, tri-tones, 'crushed' chords (containing a minor second), octave grace-notes, and a New Orleans-style 'flip'.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire 16-bar Piano Solo, plus the measures immediately before and after the solo - 18 bars total. If you love Toussaint's piano style and want to play exactly his notes, this is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Ernie K-Doe - "Popeye Joe" - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint

Ernie K-Doe - She's Waiting - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"She's Waiting" was another Allen Toussaint-produced hit for Ernie K-Doe in the early 1960's. Like K-Doe's biggest hit, "Mother-in-Law", Toussaint not only produced it but also played a terrific New Orleans-flavored piano solo. Beginning and ending with a classic turn-around figure (with Toussaint's unique voicings), the solo incorporates terrific use of thirds, sixths, octaves, and 'crushed' notes (minor seconds) - and as usual, a creative, understated Left Hand.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Allen Toussaint's entire 12-bar piano solo, plus the two bars preceding and following it, for a total of 16 bars. If you're studying Toussaint's style - one of the greatest piano styles that New Orleans has ever produced - this is exactly what you need to play the solo just as he did.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Ernie K-Doe - "She's Waiting" - Piano Solo by Allen Toussaint

Ethel Caffie-Austin - Amazing Grace - Solo Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest players of authentic old-time gospel piano plays one of gospel's greatest hymns - that is Ethel Caffie-Austin playing "Amazing Grace". Born in a rural West Virginia town to a Pentacostal preacher father, Ethel began playing piano at age six and by age nine was accompanying Pentacostal church services. She has been appointed the Minister of Music for the State of West Virginia, and is known as the First Lady of Gospel Music. There are very few, if any, better players of this terrific old joyous, uplifting style.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Ethel Caffie-Austin's wonderful solo piano (no vocals) performance of "Amazing Grace", complete with walk-ups, walk-downs, octaves, arpeggiations, gospel chords, stride-like Left Hand, plus Ethel's "signature lick" as she herself calls it. Ethel 'swings' this old gospel classic effortlessly, making all the complex gospel elements seem as easy as breathing. If you have ever wanted to play authentic old-style gospel piano, it doesn't get any better than this.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is a Ethel Caffie-Austin's "Amazing Grace" on YouTube.

Etta James - At Last - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"At Last" is simply one of the most beautiful romantic ballades in R&B and Pop history. Etta James' version, released in 1961, is the definitive version of this classic, originally written in 1941 by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren for the movie "Orchestra Wives". Celine Dion covered it in 2002, as did Beyonce in 2008, but no version has ever had the pure magic that Etta James' recording did (an excerpt of which was used as a Jaguar commercial in the 1990's).

The piano is very difficult to hear under the other instruments and string orchestra, but this is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part from Etta James' version. The song has some tricky, difficult-to-hear chord changes, but every one is of course notated precisely in this note-for-note transcription of the entire song - all 41 measures - including augmented chords, Major ninth chords, seven-flat-nine chords, sharp-nine chords, ninth chords, thirteenth chords, and various inversions.

And although this is not a transcription of the entire string arrangement, it does include the main string line that begins the recording before Etta's vocal enters (and ends the piece in the Out Section).

If you've ever wanted to play "At Last" but just couldn't get it to sound right - or just wanted to study the amazing chord progressions in it - here is your chance to play it exactly as Etta James recorded it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Etta James' "At Last" on YouTube.

If you want not only the piano part but also the bass guitar part (it may be an upright bass on the recording), a transcription is also available that contains the bass part note-for-note - every single bass note of the entire Etta James' recording. This transcription contains both the piano part and the bass part (three staves):

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Faces - Stay with Me - Main 2 Electric Piano Riffs (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock's classics, "Stay with Me" (1971) by Faces had a particularly distinctive keyboard part, an electric piano played by Ian McLagan. This is a short transcription of just the two main Right Hand electric piano riffs - about 11 seconds total - that occur at :28 and 3:56 in the song. However, they will be useful to players wanting to precisely re-create that 'sound', or to perform it in their own band.

This is short, and thus, inexpensive - $3.95.

Difficulty: Easy

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To listen, just click: "Stay with Me" - Riff 1 and Riff 2.

Floyd Cramer - Could I Have This Dance - Piano Part - Verses 1 & 2 (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Floyd Cramer was the most important Country/Pop pianist of the 20th century. After moving to Nashville in 1955 at the age of 22, Cramer revolutionized C&W piano-playing with his 'slip-note' style, which he said he got from Mother Maybelle Carter's guitar stylings. He quickly became Nashville's #1 session pianist, recording with everyone from Elvis to Roy Orbison to The Everly Brothers. "Could I Have This Dance", while not as famous as "Last Date", illustrates his wonderful slip-note style, showing in detail exactly how every embellishment was played on the recording.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Intro and the first two Verses - the first 39 seconds of the song (20 measures). If you've been wondering exactly how Floyd gets his unique sound, this will show you how to play it yourself.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Floyd Cramer - "Could I Have This Dance" (1st 2 Verses)

Floyd Cramer - Last Date (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Floyd Cramer was the top session pianist in Nashville from 1955 until his death in 1997, recording with Elvis Presley, The Everly Brothers, Roy Orbison, and a long list of other top artists. He created the 'twangy' slip-note style that so many other pianists have tried to emulate - a style that he said was influenced by Mother Maybelle Carter, although she was a guitarist and autoharpist. In 1960 he wrote and recorded "Last Date", which became the largest hit of his own career as an artist. "Last Date" inspired a whole new generation of pianists to copy his slip-note technique.

I've transcribed the entire song and added a Left Hand part that allows the song to be performed as a solo piano piece, not requiring a rhythm section accompaniment. If you've ever wanted to study Floyd Cramer's style and really learn just how he created his unique slip-note style, this transcription/arrangement is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Floyd Cramer's "Last Date" on YouTube.

Floyd Cramer - One Day at a Time - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is a note-for-note transcription of Floyd Cramer's beautiful recording of "One Day at a Time (Sweet Jesus)", released on his Gospel Classics album in 1990. It contains not only his famous 'slip-notes' but also at least six other types of embellishments that comprise his classic piano sound.

It also includes his Left Hand part, of course, which is usually difficult to hear on his recordings. If you'd like to play a Gospel classic exactly as it was recorded by the genius of Nashville piano, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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To listen, just click: Floyd Cramer's "One Day at a Time".

The Gaithers - Victory in Jesus - (transcr/arranged for Piano by Elmo Peeler.pdf

"Victory in Jesus" is a popular Protestant hymn written in 1939 by Eugene Bartlett in Tennessee. This arrangement is loosely based upon a performance of it by the Gaithers (on YouTube here).

The best licks from the original piano part were kept, including the bluesy ones, but then greatly expanded upon. An additional Chorus (and modulation up) has been added, with completely new material. There is much more of me in this arrangement than the Gaithers. Just listen to the example(s) below to compare.

My goal in this arrangement, slightly over 4 minutes long, was to recreate the Southern "white gospel" piano sound that I grew up with in Mississippi. At the end of every Sunday's church service, the Music Director, a portly baritone who played piano by ear magnificently, would play various hymns on the grand piano as the congregation would file out - filling the church to its rafters with his large, full, glorious piano sound. From the balcony above I would watch his hands, and marvel at his octave runs - in both hands - that propelled the music along.

This is my recreation of that early Baptist piano sound still in my head, while still keeping some of the elements of the Gaithers' pianist, who was more bluesy than my portly Musical Director.

If you enjoy gospel piano, which has so many overlapping elements of rock/pop/C&W, this arrangement should help you better understand how to play it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: "Victory in Jesus" - arranged for Piano by Elmo Peeler

To hear it on an old country church-style piano, just click: "Victory in Jesus" - arranged for Piano by Elmo Peeler - on church piano

Garth Brooks - Squeeze Me In - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood released "Squeeze Me In" in 2002 on Brooks' Scarecrow album. It charted at #16 on Billboard's Hot Country Singles chart and was nominated for a Grammy.

An uptempo C&W song with a honky-tonk barroom feel, the "Squeeze Me In" piano part was played by Memphis session veteran Bobby Wood. The piano track is an eclectic mix of styles, containing elements of rockabilly, honky-tonk and R&B. This is a transcription of the version that was on Brooks' Scarecrow album.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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The Scarecrow version of "Squeeze Me In" is not available on YouTube, but here is a similar version on YouTube. The piano part is similar but not identical to that on the Scarecrow album.

George Michael - Freedom 90 - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

George Michael released "Freedom 90" in 1990 on his Listen Without Prejudice, Vol. 1 album. After 8 bars of percussion, the piano comes in and plays a 32-bar Intro before the vocals begin. That piano part utilizes the hands in a Left-Right-Left-Right pattern very much as though the keyboardist is playing conga or bongo drums on the piano. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire 32-bar piano Intro, including the double-glissando (in thirds).

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: George Michael - "Freedom 90" (32-bar Piano Intro)

George Winston - Cloudy This Morning - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

George Winston is simply the most talented New Age pianist/composer on the scene. The first time I saw him was on TV playing a guitar duet with the late, great Chet Atkins. When they were finished, Winston put down his guitar, went to the piano, and played an amazing New Age piece of his own. When the camera showed his hands on the keyboard, they looked absolutely terrible - very bad hand position, almost claw-like, as though he'd never had a lesson in his life. If the sound had been turned down, one would have thought that it must sound amateurish. But the sounds that came out were quite the opposite; the piano playing was terrific. Winston displayed a very high level of creativity and it was clear that he was a creative force to be respected and admired. Clearly Chet Atkins was proud to share the stage with him.

One of the things Winston is good at is creating music that is not just pretty, but goes beyond that to paint a picture - a true soundscape. And "Cloudy This Morning" does just that. Although it's not particularly easy, it's a lot of fun to play, and will take the listener - and the performer - into Winston's own colorful world - a kaleidoscope of tones.

Although some of Winston's compositions have been transcribed, "Cloudy This Morning" (from his album "Forest") has never been made available before. This note-for-note piano transcription will let your own hands recreate just what George Winston's hands must feel like as he paints a picture of a cloudy morning, and the moods that go with it. This is your opportunity to not only play his music precisely as he recorded it, but to also study it and understand better the wonderfully creative mind that conceived it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is George Winston's "Cloudy This Morning" on YouTube.

Georgia Satellites - Whole Lotta Shakin' - Piano Solo & Out Section (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When the Georgia Satellites decided to cover Jerry Lee Lewis' classic "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" they hired Ian McLagan to lay down the piano track. Even faster than Jerry Lee's version (177 vs 161 BPM), McLagan takes a high-energy 12-bar piano solo (13 including the pick-up) complete with octaves, hammered 4ths, two-handed triplets, and classic boogie riffs. Then the entire Out section is another piano solo, continuing the high energy of the first Solo. By careful electronic processing, the Out section was able to be transcribed all the way through the fade-out to the very end, 19 bars.

This is a note-for-note transcription of both the main piano solo and the piano solo during Out section - a total of 32 bars of the legendary Ian McLagan's rollicking, high-energy piano-soloing. If you'd like to play the solos in "Whole Lotta Shakin'" exactly as Ian McLagan did, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the Georgia Satellites' "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" on YouTube.

Gerry & the Pacemakers - How Do You Do It - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"How Do You Do It" was the debut single by Gerry & the Pacemakers, released in the UK in 1963 and in the US in 1964. It went to #1 on the UK Singles Chart. This is a note-for-note transcription of the excellent tack piano solo.

Although the song itself has a Major Key sound, the piano solo is decidedly minor-key bluesy, complete with several 'flips' plus six 'crushed' notes where the D and E-flat (in the key of A) are played simultaneously to really enhance the bluesy effect.

This Piano Solo transcription also includes the two bars immediately preceding and the two bars immediately following the solo, so that you can get into and out of the solo just as it was recorded.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is the piano solo on Gerry & the Pacemakers' "How Do You Do It" on YouTube.  

Gilbert O'Sullivan - Clair - Harmonica Solo with Bass (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1972 Gilbert O'Sullivan had a hit with "Clair", a song about a three-year-old girl for whom O'Sullivan had baby-sat. It contains a hauntingly beautiful harmonica solo, played by three-year-old Clair's father, Gordon Mills, who happened to be Gilbert O'Sullivan's manager and an award-winning harmonica virtuoso.

This is a transcription of just the 8-bar harmonica solo. It also contains the bass guitar part during the harmonica solo.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is the harmonica solo in Gilbert O'Sullivan's "Clair" on YouTube.

Gin Blossoms - Found Out About You - Main Guitar Riff (transcribed & arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the Gin Blossoms' catchiest guitar riffs is the 4-bar phrase that starts "Found Out About You". This is an exact transcription of that guitar riff - just those four measures. If you're a keyboard player, this is what you need to double that guitar line or to devise your own accompaniment. If you're not sure how to create your own accompaniment to the guitar riff, a 4-bar piano part is also included that can be used as a starting point.

Difficulty: Easy

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To listen, just click: Gin Blossoms - "Found Out About You" (Guitar Riff)

Glenn Frey - Route 66 - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Route 66" was composed in 1946 by Bobby Troup, and first recorded by Nat King Cole, for whom it was a big hit. Since then it has been recorded by many other artists, including Bing Crosby, Chuck Berry, and the Rolling Stones. Glenn Frey of the Eagles recorded it in 2012 with a Western swing feel and released it on his After Hours album. The pianist was Michael Thompson, a touring member of the Eagles, Don Henley's band and Glenn Frey's band.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part, which contains the equivalent of two solos - the actual 12-bar piano solo plus a 23-bar Instrumental Tag at the end. And the Left Hand supports the Right Hand lines with excellent 'jazzy' Western swing chords, including 9th & 13th chords, flat-9 chords, sharp-5 sharp-9 chords, and others. Plus, the two hands together are often voiced in nice, fat block chords reminiscent of the tightly-voiced block chords found in the horn section of a big band.

If you'd like to study "Western swing" in general, and learn the exact part on Glenn Frey's recording, you'll love this.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Glenn Frey's "Route 66" on YouTube.  

Groundhog Day - Medley - Phil's Piano Solo & 18th Variation (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The 1993 movie Groundhog Day won numerous awards, was one of the highest-grossing films of the year, and has since become respected as one of the best comedy movies ever made. Bill Murray was its star, playing Phil, who in the movie learned through arudous practice to become a virtuoso pianist. The director was Harold Ramis, who had previously directed Murray in two very successful movies, Caddyshack and Ghostbusters. Ramis wanted to focus more on the comedic aspects of the script, while Murray wanted to accentuate the philosophical aspects. This led to a falling out between the two, and they never spoke again until shortly before Ramis' death in 2014.

In the movie Murray's character Phil performs an impressive uptempo medley which starts out with a terrific piano boogie and then segues into a jazzy version of Rachmaninoff's 18th Variation from his Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire medley, not just the piano boogie. The official title was "Medley: Phil's Piano Solo/Eighteenth Variation from Rapsodie (sic) on a Theme of Paganini" and was arranged and played by Chicago-based studio musician Terry Fryer.

If you've ever wanted to play Phil's entire piano medley exactly as Bill Murray's character played it in the movie - including his version of the 18th Variation - this transcription is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Phil's Medley from Groundhog Day on YouTube.

Guns N' Roses - Sweet Child of Mine - Piano Arrangement/Chord Chart (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Guns N' Roses' 1988 classic, "Sweet Child of Mine", has no piano in it. This is a simple arrangement based on the exact guitar and bass guitar notes. If you want to play "Sweet Child of Mine" in a band, or to accompany a singer, this is what you need.

The exact guitar notes that open the song, all the way up to when the vocal enters, are included in the Right Hand Part. The Left Hand is the Bass Guitar part, note-for-note. Please note that after the Intro, the Right Hand chords are represented by slashes with chord names above them, so you do need to have a working knowledge of chords and the ability to improvise. This is perfect as a "road map" of the entire song.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Guns N' Roses "Sweet Child of Mine" on YouTube.

Hank Williams Jr. - La Grange - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Based on a timeless blues-shuffle riff (also used in Canned Heat's "On the Road Again"), "La Grange" was written and originally recorded by ZZ Top in 1973. In 1983 Hank Williams Jr. recorded it on his "Strong Stuff" album, complete with a more-rock-than country piano solo. The Nashville session pianist threw in lots of rocking goodies: hammered tritone-based power chords, octaves, thirds, very-rapid-note Billy Powell-style repeated riffs.

This is a transcription of the 33-bar solo - 50 seconds of driving blues/rock piano soloing with a slight country edge. If you'd like to study this style of rock piano, and play the solo just like Hank Williams Jr.'s piano-player, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "La Grange" by Hank Williams Jr. on YouTube. The piano solo begins at 3:13.

The Highwaymen - Me and Bobby McGee - Piano Solo & Riffs (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When four legends of country music - Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson -  decided to go on tour together, they hired one of Memphis' long-time session players, Bobby Emmons, to do the job. One of the songs that featured Emmons in a piano solo was Kristofferson's "Me and Bobby McGee".

And Emmons' solo does not disappoint. Throwing in lots of thirds, and ending in a descending two-octave run, the solo is a fun, tasteful 16-bar country/rock romp.

Also included are two important piano riffs that occur earlier in the song than the solo. One riff is two bars long, and the other a three-bar riff.

This is a note-for-note transcription of all sixteen bars of Bobby Emmons' piano solo - both hands (plus the five bars of the two riffs). Here is your chance to learn and study a wonderful, well-constructed rock-a-billy piano solo.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here are The Highwaymen performing "Me & Bobby McGee" on YouTube. The piano solo is from 3:42 to 4:08 on the video. The riffs occur around 1:51 and 2:17.

Horace Silver - Senor Blues - Opening 2-bar Piano Riff (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Señor Blues" is a composition by Horace Silver, American jazz (hard bop) pianist, composer, and arranger. It is a 12/8 Latin piece with a dark, exotic flavor that recalls no other jazz composer as much as Duke Ellington. The first two chords are E-flat minor and B7, resembling (whether consciously intended or not) one of Ellington's favorite harmonic gestures.

Please note that this is just the 2-bar Intro - the first 22 atmospheric notes - a tantalizing snippet to get you started on the right track. Someone asked me to transcribe this short phrase from a 1959 Horace Silver video, so I thought it might be of help to others.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is Horace Silver performing "Senor Blues" in that same 1959 video.

Howard Jones - No One Is To Blame (Live) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Welsh musician Howard Jones wrote "No One Is To Blame" and released two different versions of it on his 1985 and 1986 albums, Dream into Action and One to One. The single became Jones' biggest hit in the United States, reaching #1 on the adult contemporary chart in 1986. A song with a lovely melody and chords, it contains thoughtful, poetic lyrics about love, both spiritual and carnal, and human limitations.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the beautiful piano part from his live performance with just piano and vocal on the Ken Bruce TV Show on June 5, 2015 in Glasgow, Scotland. One of Jones' pianistic strengths is his control, i.e., his ability to bring out the top melody line while subordinating the 'accompaniment', both in the Right Hand. Another strength is his chord voicings, e.g., his use of Dsus2, E7sus4 and E7(no 5) chords. This gives him a different piano 'sound' than the vast majority of rock pianists, who use less creative voicings.

All in all, he has a very impressive piano style that sounds simple at first listen but upon closer examination reveals itself to be quite evolved/sophisticated - a very talented musician indeed, not just an outstanding songwriter.

If you'd like to learn how Howard Jones plays this wonderful, very touching song, this transcription is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Click here to watch Howard Jones performing this version of "No One Is To Blame" on YouTube.  

The J. Geils Band - Give It to Me - Piano & Bass Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When The G. Jeils Band released "Give It to Me" in 1973, they gave pop music one of its most danceable hits, fueled by an infectuous rhythmic  2-bar piano phrase that rides atop a wonderfully-syncopated reggae bass line.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part for the radio version - a little over three minutes long - all 90 measures. Also included is the bass guitar line, so this transcription will be very helpful for those that might be playing this song with a bass player.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The J. Geils Band performing "Give It to Me" on YouTube.

Jackson Browne - I Thought I Was a Child - Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

A first-rate songwriter, Jackson Browne is also a talented pianist, whose style is quite recognizable but not well understood among keyboard players. "I Thought I Was a Child" (from his "For Everyman" album) starts off with a nice long piano introduction that displays his classic piano sound - clangy, almost guitar-like in its use of open 4ths, suspensions, and added seconds.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano Introduction from "I Thought I Was a Child" - all 44 seconds of it. This is a wonderful chance to study Browne's piano style and play his exact notes.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jackson Browne's "I Thought I Was a Child" on YouTube.

Jackson Browne - Looking into You - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jackson Browne's very first album, self-titled "Jackson Browne", contained some great songs, including "Jamaica Say You Will", "Doctor My Eyes", and "Rock Me on the Water". However, Browne says that his favorite songs on that album are the "low-intensity" songs, including "Looking into You".

On some of his recordings he preferred to use session pianists, often Craig Doerge. However, on this song, one of his earliest, Jackson himself played piano. Not a flashy pianist, he plays an understated style that is usually in the warm mid-register of the keyboard, and gets a lot of music out of relatively few notes. The key to his style is all about being sensitive to register and voicings. Also, his left hand doesn't always play the the root of the chord, subtly sneaking in unexpected inversions.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire song - all 179 bars - 4:20 long. If you like Jackson Browne's style but can't quite figure out what his voicings are or what his left hand is doing, this is exactly what you need to play "Looking into You" just as Jackson Browne himself recorded it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jackson Browne's "Looking into You" on YouTube.

Jackson Browne - Rock Me on the Water - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of Jackson Browne's biggest hits was "Rock Me on the Water", released in 1972. The track is unusual in that there is no guitar, only a top-notch three-piece rhythm section: Russ Kunkel, drum; Leland Sklar, bass; and Craig Doerge on piano. David Crosby sang harmony.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire album version - all 4:13 of it - 105 bars of terrific rock/gospel piano by one of L.A.'s best session players, emulating Jackson Browne's own piano style while adding Doerge's professional touches. Full of gospel-like rolls, church-like voicings, and the tasteful use of 6th's, the piano part starts with simple 3-note chords and builds to a terrific Out section with fat, 4-note chords rockin' so much that the absence of guitars isn't even noticed.

If you like the piano style on Jackson Browne's recordings, you'll enjoy learning the terrific, fun licks on this rock classic.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jackson Browne's "Rock Me on the Water" on YouTube.

Jacob Tolliver - Boogie Woogie Country Man (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jacob Tolliver, a piano-player from Portsmouth, Ohio, lives and breathes Jerry Lee Lewis' music. After his YouTube video of "Whole Lotta Shakin'" went viral, he was cast in the Las Vegas show Million Dollar Quartet, and from there he went on to be the opening act for Jerry Lee. There are at least a couple of videos on YouTube of Jacob performing for The Killer at his home on his 85th birthday. Jerry Lee definitely gave Jacob his blessing and really enjoyed Tolliver's performances.

A video of Jacob playing "Boogie Woogie Country Man" in the original hardware store setting has gotten about a million views on YouTube. This is a note-for-note transcription of that performance, in which Tolliver uses five different Jerry Lee Lewis left hand patterns plus a bridge section where he does the very-highly-raised lifting of his hands like The Killer himself used to do.

If you'd like to study Jerry Lee Lewis' style, learning to play Jacob Tolliver's versions is a good way to learn some of Jerry Lee's pianistic tricks. This is a fun boogie-woogie that has great visual appeal for the audience.

Difficulty: Challenging

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is Jacob Tolliver performing "Boogie Woogie Country Man" on YouTube.  

Jacob Tolliver - Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

A couple of years a video was posted onto YouTube titled "Crazy Random Guy Rocks Out in Hardware Store", and has received almost 3,000,000 views! The pianist with the backwards red cap wailing on "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" is Jacob Tolliver, and the hardware store is Market Street Hardware in Portsmouth, OH.

He is currently performing in the Las Vegas production of the Million Dollar Quartet, portraying Jerry Lee Lewis. In late 2014 Jerry Lee was asked by Keyboard Magazine about Jacob Tolliver, and the Killer replied, "He's pretty good isn't he? I think he's great."

Because Tolliver really is talented and his version of "Whole Lotta Shakin' has made so many ripples, from YouTube to American Idol to Las Vegas, I've transcribed his entire Hardware Store performance.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Jacob Tolliver ("Crazy Random Guy") performing "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" on YouTube.

James Taylor - Steamroller Blues (Live) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

James Taylor wrote "Steamroller Blues" in 1969 and released the studio version in 1970. In 1975 he recorded a Live version at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles and released it in 1976 on his Greatest Hits album. The Live version added an acoustic piano part played by L.A. session musician Clarence McDonald, including a terrific, very bluesy piano solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano solo in "Steamroller" (Live), complete with all the Left Hand chord voicings, of course. The solo starts with descending chords in the Richard Tee R&B style and proceeds into wonderful "flips", Gospel-flavored licks, a bluesy tremolo, octaves, and builds into large two-handed chords, ending with a descending glissando - a concise seminar on blues licks that all pianists should have at their fingertips.

If you'd like to study how this excellent solo was played, and perform it exactly as it was recorded, this transcription is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the piano solo on James Taylor's "Steamroller" (Live) on YouTube.

Jason Mraz - The Woman I Love - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Jason Mraz recorded "The Woman I Love" in 2012, he chose one of Los Angeles' best session keyboardists to play the acoustic piano part, Jeff Babco. The track has a terrific up, happy feeling, with a wonderful 8-bar piano solo in the middle of it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the excellent acoustic piano solo in "The Woman I Love".

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Jason Mraz - "The Woman I Love" (Piano Solo)

Jay McShann - Going to Kansas City - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1982 Blues Hall of Famer Jay McShann, based in Kansas City since he was twenty, recorded one of the most memorable performances of the uptempo blues classic, "Going to Kansas City". Released on his "Best of Friends" album with guitarist Al Casey, the recording contains three guitar solos before McShann's three piano solos.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - 4:29 in length, all 143 measures. Plus, I transcribed Casey's three guitar solos and arranged them for piano in McShann's style. So this includes six piano solos, back-to-back - full of wonderful blues 'rolls', flips, tremolos, chordal stabs, classic Kansas City-style fills, and four different Left Hand patterns.

If you've wanted to play "Going to Kansas City" with an authentic K.C. blues feel, or just want to learn more about uptempo blues playing in general, this transcription is exactly what you need. Let Jay McShann be your teacher.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jay McShann's "Going to Kansas City" on YouTube.
Click here to listen to my transcription, which contains the three guitar solos arranged for piano.

Jeff Beck Group (Nicky Hopkins) - Girl from Mill Valley - Piano Part (Transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Nicky Hopkins was rock's greatest session piano player, recording with The Beatles, the Who, the Kinks, Jeff Beck, Jerry Garcia, Cat Stevens, Jefferson Airplane, Joe Cocker and many others. Classically trained, Nicky always brought an elegance to his rock playing, nowhere embodied more beautifully than his own original composition, "Girl from Mill Valley", recorded with the Jeff Beck Group in 1969.

In 9/8 meter, it's a gospel-rock waltz within a waltz. Written for an unrequited love, this emotional ballade uses some of Hopkins' most effective techniques: tremolos, melody in sixths, creatively-voiced 'walk-downs', IV-chord bumps, high tinkley strums, octave runs - and on top of it all, starting about halfway through, he overdubs a second piano part with even more gospel riffs.

This is a note-for-note transcription of both piano parts combined into one - nothing has been left out. If you've wondered how Nicky Hopkins achieved his legendary sound - how he voiced chords, how he constructed his licks, his rhythms - this extraordinary transcription is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Nicky Hopkins' "Girl from Mill Valley" on YouTube.

The Jeff Beck Group - Going Down - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jeff Beck is certainly one of rock's greatest guitarists. In 1995 when I was conducting/arranging/playing all of Rod Stewart's 'Unplugged' concerts, he was our opening act at The Gorge. I had the pleasure of watching his extreme virtuosity from the side of the stage just feet away - quite amazing musicianship.

Beck, who has always worked with only the finest musicians, has described Max Middleton as his most significant collaborator during the most commercially successful period of his career. Middleton's fluency in jazz chords forced the blues-rock guitar virtuoso to extend himself and his music in new and unexpected directions.

"Going Down", released in 1972, contains one of rock piano's most recognizable descending-octave riffs, underpinned by a driving Left Hand boogie pattern. The song begins with a strong solo piano Intro - Middleton by himself - that sets the tone for, and leads into, that classic descending riff.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 23-bar piano Intro in "Going Down", starting with a brief out-of-time free-form section, then riffing through several strongly-rhythmic sequences and modulating, after which Middleton establishes the Right Hand tremolo figure supported by a powerhouse boogie-woogie Left Hand pattern rarely used since the 1930's (perhaps because of its difficulty). If you've ever wanted to play "Going Down" just as it was recorded by the Jeff Beck Group, this Intro is a perfect place to start.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is The Jeff Beck Group's "Going Down" on YouTube (the piano Intro is the first 34 seconds).

The Jeff Beck Group - Going Down - Left Hand Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1972 The Jeff Beck Group released their version of the blues classic, "Going Down". The pianist was Max Middleton, who was classically-trained. His right hand parts are more easily copied than his left hand pattern, which was influenced by Jerry Lee Lewis' left hand patterns. Very few pianists play this challenging 24-bar Left Hand pattern correctly, which is difficult to pick out but necessary to play correctly to accurately capture the feel of the recording.

This note-for-note transcription does not include any Right Hand parts, but is precisely the 24-bar Left Hand pattern, which, at 175 BPM, is challenging to get up to speed, but a lot of fun to play. If you'd like to learn it, here it is, exactly as Max Middleton recorded it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the Jeff Beck Group's "Going Down" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Breathless - Piano Part with Guitar Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Breathless" was the third record by Jerry Lee Lewis, released in 1958 when he was 22. At the peak of his pianistic powers, the song is full of his youthful energy and exuberance. Recorded with just guitar, bass, and drums as accompaniment, Jerry Lee's piano is the driving force.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part, including the energetic 12-bar piano solo, filled with pounding chords, tremolos and glissandi. Also included is the guitar solo (on a 3rd staff over the piano part). If you'd like to play "Breathless" just as Jerry Lee recorded it in 1958, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' "Breathless" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Cold, Cold Heart (1958) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis first recorded Hank Williams' "Cold, Cold Heart" in 1958 but it wasn't released until many years later, 1983, on "The Sun Years" compilation on Charly Records. It included an excellent 10-bar early-Jerry Lee piano solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Piano Solo, plus the 2-bar turn-around and lead-in, and the first two bars of subsequent verse (to show how he accompanies himself during the Verse) - a total of 14 measures of early, classic Jerry Lee. Even the tremolos are written out, note-for-note. If you're studying The Killer's style, this will be very helpful - plus it's a lot of fun to play, exactly as recorded in 1958.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "Cold, Cold Heart" (1958) on YouTube. The piano solo starts at 1:44.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Cold, Cold Heart (1961) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis first recorded Hank Williams' classic "Cold, Cold Heart" in 1958 but it wasn't released (until 1983). In 1961 he re-recorded it with a different, faster arrangement and released it as a single.

The piano Intro starts immediately with serious right-hand tremolos and sets the stage for classic Jerry Lee comping and soloing throughout the song.

The 19-bar solo starts with a series of tremolos that lead into a virtuosic ascending/descending scale/arpeggio run ending with an ascending/descending glissando. More tremolos follow, punctuated by runs and cool rhythmic figures, and ends with a recap of the tremolos that began the song's Intro. Really terrific country-rock piano-playing by a master still at his peak (26 years old).

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording - all 90 measures. Listen to the YouTube link below and notice that the tremolos for the most part aren't the plain & simple variety but are more elaborate and 'fancy-fied'. Every note is written out, including the tremolos, so that you can learn it exactly as it was recorded. If you study Jerry Lee's piano-playing and would like to better imitate his style, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "Cold, Cold Heart" (1961) on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Cold, Cold Heart (1969) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1969 Jerry Lee Lewis recorded Hank Williams' "Cold, Cold Heart" for the third and last time. This version had a different arrangement than the previous two (1958 & 1961), and was released on his "Sings the Country Music Hall of Fame Hits, Vol. 2" album.

This is a note-for-note transcription of just the 10-bar Piano Solo, which is similar to the solo in his 1961 recording but different enough to warrant its own transcription. In it he transitions smoothly from a tremolo in 3rds to one in 6ths, then follows them with an excellent right-hand walkdown in 'yodeling' 6ths before concluding with a final tremolo and glissando.

If you're studying Jerry Lee's style, you should get all three transcriptions (1958, 1961, 1969) of his "Cold, Cold Heart". They each bring something different to the table.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "Cold, Cold Heart" (1969) on YouTube. The piano solo starts at 1:34.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Crazy Arms (1956) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In November 1956 21-year-old Jerry Lee Lewis and his daddy, Elmo Lewis, sold 30 dozen eggs to pay for the drive from their home in Ferriday, Louisiana to Memphis, to meet Sam Phillips, the Memphis-based producer of Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, and Elvis Presley. Before the year was over, young Jerry Lee had his very first single released on Sun Records, his own version of Ray Price's song, "Crazy Arms".

In this very early recording - and his early recordings show his playing at its best - Jerry Lee uses a Country-and-Western/honky-tonk swing piano style. Occasionally he uses a Left-Hand-then-Right-Hand style that he would use on his next single, "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On", but without the 12/8 'swing' of "Crazy Arms".

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire 1956 piano/vocal recording of "Crazy Arms", complete with Jerry Lee's terrific 16-bar honky-tonk rockin' piano solo in the middle. If you've wondered what Jerry Lee does with his Left Hand, or how he voices his tremolos, turn-arounds, and chords, and what notes he uses during his single-note runs, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing a 1956 version of "Crazy Arms" on YouTube with drums and bass - not this transcribed version, which is unfortunately not on YouTube. The piano-playing is actually better on the transcribed version, including the piano solo.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis, one of rock-and-roll's very best pianists, played in public for the very first time when he was 14, sitting in with a local C&W band in a Ford dealership parking lot, playing "Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee". When later, at the age of 21, he began recording for Sam Phillips' Sun Records in Memphis, his first releases were "Crazy Arms" (1956) "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" (1957), and then "Great Balls of Fire" (1957). In 1957 while still at the peak of his pianistic powers, he recorded "Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee", although it would not be released on an album until 1970.

"Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee" is one of Jerry Lee's best recordings, piano-wise. With his chops being in top form, it contains not just one but two piano solos, full of his signature boogie-woogie riffs, hammered open-5th chords, tinkling high notes in the piano's highest octave, fast descending thirds, tremolos, and three different Left Hand patterns - all in one song!

Also, the guitar player takes a very fast solo using lots of triplets (against Jerry Lee's 4/4 background). I've transcribed the guitar solo and modified it into a virtuoso piano solo, keeping many of the guitarist's original licks.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Jerry Lee's entire 1957 recording of "Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee" - all 119 measures - plus the guitar solo arranged for piano. If you'd like to study The Killer's piano style, this early recording is an excellent textbook example of what made Jerry Lee Lewis the rock-and-roll piano legend that he is.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' "Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee" on YouTube. 

Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire (1957) - Complete Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

By late 1957, Jerry Lee Lewis had already released two singles, "Crazy Arms", and "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On". When his third single, "Great Balls of Fire" was released in November 1957 it went through the roof, selling a million copies in ten days, and eventually almost six million records - his biggest hit ever. The piano part was a high-energy pumping, rocking piano style that had never been heard before. And when Jerry Lee played it live, his hands were a blur, setting a new standard for piano technique in rock music. He had shown pianistic talent at age five, and had practiced diligently when his parents bought him his own piano.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part in the original 1957 recording of "Great Balls of Fire", including the 16-bar piano solo, complete with rolling riffs in thirds, tremolos in 6ths, boogie-woogie-type chord voicings, and lots of glissandi and repeated,pounding high 6th's. If you've ever marveled at the energy and pure drive that Jerry Lee Lewis achieved on "Great Balls of Fire", this is your opportunity to learn and play the entire song exactly as he recorded it at the age of 22.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI File of this transcription is available here:

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "Great Balls of Fire" (1957) on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire (1989) - Both Piano Solos (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Great Balls of Fire" was a huge rock-and-roll hit for Jerry Lee Lewis in 1957, But by 1989 when Dennis Quaid was starring in a movie about The Killer's life story, Jerry Lee had pretty much abandoned rock-and-roll for Country & Western twenty years previously. However, the movie's producers convinced Jerry Lee to re-record a number of his biggest hits to be used in the soundtrack of the movie, which was titled Great Balls of Fire!.

This is a note-for-note transcription of both piano solos in the 1989 re-recording of "Great Balls of Fire", which was performed at a faster tempo than the 1957 original recording, perhaps as Jerry Lee's way of saying that despite being 32 years older, he was gonna ramp it up a notch - 14 BPM faster, to be precise. This later performance is more driving, and less 'rolling' than the earlier version.

The first Piano Solo is 16 bars long, and then the second Piano Solo starts at the Out Section and lasts for 18 bars, until the end of the song.

If you'd like to see exactly how Lewis' playing evolved over those three decades, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "Great Balls of Fire" (1989) on YouTube. The first piano solo begins at :51 through 1:13, and the second piano solo begins at 3:54 and continues until the end.

Jerry Lee Lewis - It'll Be Me (1957) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1957, one year after Jerry Lee Lewis burst onto the music scene, he released his biggest hit, "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On". Completely overshadowed by the A-side smash hit, the B-side was "It'll Be Me", a wonderful high-energy rocker that blazed at 220 BPM, complete with a terrific 16-bar piano solo. The odd thing is that when Jerry Lee's first album was released a year later in 1958, it contained a completely different, less exciting version of "It'll Be Me", slowed down a bit, with a less-virtuosic piano part.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire original 1957 recording of "It'll Be Me" - all 160 measures, including The Killer's terrific 16-bar piano solo. If you enjoy studying, learning and playing Jerry Lee's songs, this transcription of "It'll Be Me", is just what you need to play it exactly as it was recorded.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "It'll Be Me" (1957) on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Lewis Boogie - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis wrote only two of the hundreds of songs that he's recorded, and this is one of those two. Written in 1956, a year before his first hit, "Lewis Boogie" was recorded in 1957 and released in 1958. One of his earliest recordings for Sun Records, it has the youthful energy and exuberance of a young man singing about - and showing off - his ability to play boogie-woogie on a piano.

One of the most fun parts is the Killer's piano solo, which starts with four bars of consecutive thirds in the Right Hand, as if to say, "OK, now do I have your attention?" To make it a little easier, I've included my own suggested fingering for those four bars.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire "Lewis Boogie" as recorded in 1957. If you love playing Jerry Lee's style but couldn't quite figure out his namesake boogie, this is exactly what you need to play it perfectly.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' "Lewis Boogie" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Mean Woman Blues (Live) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1964 Jerry Lee Lewis traveled to Hamburg, Germany to perform at a famous night club. The record that was issued of that legendary performance, "Live at the Star Club, Hamburg" is generally regarded as one of the greatest live rock and roll albums ever made, showcasing Lewis's phenomenal skills as a pianist and singer, which had been honed by relentless touring.

AllMusic said of the album: "Words cannot describe - cannot contain - the performance captured on Live at the Star Club, Hamburg, an album that contains the very essence of rock & roll... Live at the Star Club is extraordinary - the purest, hardest rock & roll ever committed to record... He sounds possessed, hitting the keys so hard it sounds like they'll break, and rocking harder than anybody had before or since... Rock & roll is about the fire in the performance, and nothing sounds as fiery as this; nothing hits as hard or sounds as loud, either. It is no stretch to call this the greatest live album ever, nor is it a stretch to call it the greatest rock & roll album ever recorded. Even so, words can't describe the music here — it truly has to be heard to be believed."

Rock writer Joe Bonomo calls "Mean Woman Blues", the opening number on the album, as "nothing short of a concert in itself".

This is a note-for-note transcription of "Mean Woman Blues" - all 4:01 - the complete 184 bars. If you've ever wondered how Jerry Lee achieves that great sound of his, from the Left Hand voicings to the Right Hand solos, this is just what you need to play "Mean Woman Blues" exactly as Jerry Lee played it Live at the Star Club in 1964.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' "Mean Woman Blues" (Live at the Star Club) on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - No Headstone on My Grave - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler)

Jerry Lee Lewis recorded "No Headstone on My Grave" during his 1973 London sessions, using a lot of celebrity session musicians, including Peter Frampton, Alvin Lee, Chas Hodges, Gary Wright, Matthew Fisher, Klaus Voorman, Kenney Jones, and others. The album title was literally The Session...Recorded in London with Great Artists.

But unhappy to be recording in London instead of Tennessee, and unhappy with the musicians, whom he didn't know, he was drinking a lot and taking pills. All of those factors made him angry - sort of like a petulant child - and that anger came out as very aggressive piano-playing, as seen in the piano solo especially.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire long (5:20) piano part in "No Headstone on My Grave". If you love playing Jerry Lee's technically-challenging solos, you'll enjoy learning this transcription.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Click here to listen to Jerry Lee Lewis' "No Headstone on My Grave" on YouTube  

Jerry Lee Lewis - Real Wild Child - Piano Part (transcribed & arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis was never better than he was in his earliest days, a rock-and-roll dynamo that played the piano - rocked the piano - like it had never been before. He recorded three different versions of "Real Wild Child", also called "Wild One", as far back as 1958.

This version contains a classic, rocking Jerry Lee piano solo, brimming over with The Killer's extraordinary pianistic energy. Part of the solo sounds at first like he's just hitting rhythmic clusters of notes, but upon close listening, they can be notated.

This is a transcription of the entire recording - all 90 measures. If you'd like to become better at imitating Jerry Lee's unique style, learning this transcription/arrangement of "Real Wild Child" will be a good step in the right direction.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' "Real Wild Child" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - She Was My Baby (He Was My Friend) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis is one of the founding fathers of rock-and-roll piano-playing, and "She Was My Baby" is 'The Killer' at his honky-tonk best. Released in 1964 when his piano chops were still near their peak, this very danceable track throws in all of Jerry Lee's tricks: tremolos, single note runs, glissandos, a pumping Left Hand - plus a terrific solo.

This is a note-perfect transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 65 measures. If you'd like to rock the 'juke joint' like Jerry Lee did, here is your chance to play "She Was My Baby" exactly as he recorded it. Everything is included except the sawdust on the floor.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Medium

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "She Was My Baby" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - That Lucky Old Sun - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest rock-and-roll pianists of all time, Jerry Lee Lewis was the subject of a movie in 1989 about his life, "Great Balls of Fire", starring Dennis Quaid. For the movie soundtrack, Jerry Lee re-recorded three songs, including "That Lucky Old Sun", which features just his piano and his voice - no other instruments.

Although Jerry Lee was known for his up-tempo piano-pounding - really great rock virtuoso playing - this song is an example of the slower side of Lewis - the slow-dancing-at-the-honky-tonk side. Filled with his signature tremolos, glissandi, and bursts of scale/arpeggio runs, "That Lucky Old Sun" is 'The Killer' at his classic, slow-tempo best, complete with an instrumental Piano Solo section.

This is a note-for-note transcription of every note that Jerry Lee played in the entire song - all 73 measures, 4:36 long. If you'd like to recreate Jerry Lee's honky-tonk style, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "That Lucky Old Sun" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Trouble in Mind - Both Pianos (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1973 Jerry Lee Lewis, who had never recorded outside of Tennessee, recorded an album in London using some of the finest UK session musicians: Albert Lee, Alvin Lee (Ten Years After), Peter Frampton, Gary Wright ("Dream Weaver"), Matthew Fisher (Procol Harum), Klaus Voorman, Kenny Jones, and Tony Ashton. The album, "The Session...Recorded in London with Great Artists" included the 1924 blues classic, "Trouble in Mind". Quite long, at 5:47, it has Tony Ashton playing a second piano along with Jerry Lee's main piano.

The result is a powerhouse of a recording, with three piano solos - the first by Jerry Lee, the second by Ashton (with Lewis' help), and the third one by Jerry Lee, a real showstopper - and some terrific blues playing by both pianists. Jerry Lee starts it alone, and Ashton slowly eases some right hand fills into the mix, finally bringing his left hand in about a quarter of the way through (in the first Solo). Jerry always maintains the upper hand, and after the last, ivory-melting solo - one of the most virtuosic of any solo he ever recorded, with rapidly alternating hands - the Killer gloats to Ashton, "What do you think about that piano break, my boy?". The Killer was never known for taking prisoners.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording - every note of both piano parts (the most notes of any of my transcriptions - this is a big one). Included is the master score, which contains both piano parts together, plus Jerry Lee's individual part and Tony Ashton's individual part - a total of 3 PDF files.

If you want to study Jerry Lee's style on slow 12/8 blues - plus his great solos - this extraordinary transcription is just what you need.

I've also created an arrangement that includes the best licks of both pianists, merged into one piano, without adding any new material. If you'd like to play "Trouble in Mind" and sound like both Jerry Lee and Ashton together, this arrangement is what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

Three options are available:

1) transcription of the original 2-piano recording - Sheet music (3 PDF's: score + individual parts)

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2) 2-pianos-in-1 arrangement - Sheet music

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3) 2-pianos-in-1 arrangement - MIDI file

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "Trouble in Mind" on YouTube, with Tony Ashton on 2nd piano.

Here is a recording of the MIDI file of my 2-pianos-in-1 arrangement.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Trouble in Mind - 2 Pianos in 1 (transcribed-arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis' historic 1973 recording of "Trouble in Mind" used a second piano, played by Tony Ashton. This is an arrangement that combines the best of both piano parts into a Solo Piano part, without adding any new material.

Difficulty: Challenging

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is a recording of the MIDI file of my 2-pianos-in-1 arrangement.

Jerry Lee Lewis - What's Made Milwaukee Famous - Piano Part (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"What's Made Milwaukee Famous" was recorded by Jerry Lee Lewis in 1969, and by Rod Stewart in 1972. In 2006 they recorded it as a duet on Jerry Lee's "Last Man Standing" album with only Jerry Lee's piano accompaniment, which is so honky-tonk that you can almost feel the sawdust on the floor.

Jerry Lee uses a different Left-Hand pattern than his uptempo rock songs use, opting for a near-waltz Left Hand pattern. His Right Hand uses almost every honky-tonk technique imaginable, from tremolos to glissandi to 'strums' to 4-note chords during the Piano Solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part. If you'd like to learn Jerry Lee's honky-tonk tricks, this C&W classic is a great place to start.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here are Jerry Lee Lewis and Rod Stewart performing "What's Made Milwaukee Famous" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - When the Saints Go Marching In - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).zip

In November 1956 21-year-old Jerry Lee Lewis traveled from his Louisiana home to Memphis to meet Sam Phillips, owner of Sun Records. Less than three months later Jerry Lee recorded "When the Saints Go Marching In" at Sun Records, which would appear on his very first album in 1958.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Jerry Lee's piano part - a textbook study in "Southern white gospel" - from the Intro's arpeggio to the very last high F6 chord at the end, including his terrific piano solo halfway through. And the solo is a good one - classic Jerry Lee - with a creative use of an F13 chord in the right hand, three glissandi, and a terrific extended run - 55 fast 8th-notes in a single run without a break!

If you'd like to play "When the Saints Go Marching In" exactly as 21-year-old Jerry Lee Lewis recorded it - or just study The Killer's style in general, including what he does with his Left Hand during a solo - this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' "When the Saints Go Marching In" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis had been performing "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" in his stage act and recorded it at his second recording session for Sun Records in February 1957. He later said, "I knew it was a hit when I cut it. Sam Phillips thought it was gonna be too risque, it couldn't make it. If that's risque, well, I'm sorry."

Originally recorded in 1955 by Big Maybelle (produced by Quincy Jones), Lewis's version was based on a propulsive boogie-woogie piano pattern. His second release (after "Crazy Arms"), it became an immediate hit, catapulting Jerry Lee to rock-and-roll stardom.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire 1957 recording, including the now-classic droning Left Hand/Right Hand pattern that kicks off the song, and Jerry Lee's electrifying piano solo with hammered 6ths, pounding triplets, glissandi, single-note runs, dissonant 2nds, and octave fills. If you've wondered how to play "Whole Lotta Shakin'" just like the original record, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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A MIDI File of this transcription is available here:

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - You Win Again (1957) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis recorded "You Win Again" in 1957 when he was 22, and released it as the B-side of "Great Balls of Fire". At the peak of his pianistic powers, he performed an excellent 16-bar piano solo that was a dialogue between his hands. Starting with a melody in the bass with the left hand, the right hand answers with chords, which are themselves answered by a left hand line. Tremolos ensue, followed by a further left hand/right hand dialogue, a slow upward glissando, more tremolos, and more left-right dialogue before ending with a classic Jerry Lee turnaround.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire song. Listen to the YouTube link below; and if you like all those classic Jerry Lee Lewis piano licks and would like to learn them - and in the process better understand his style - this is exactly what you need to play it exactly as The Killer recorded it in 1957.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis performing "You Win Again" (1957) on YouTube.

Jerry Lee Lewis - You Win Again (Live TV - 1979) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jerry Lee Lewis first recorded Hank WIlliams' classic "You Win Again" in 1957. Twenty-two years later in 1979 he performed it live on the TV show Pop Goes the Country (hosted by Ralph Emery) with one of his very best - and most virtuosic - piano solos.

This is a note-for-note transcription of that 1979 live TV performance - the entire piano part, complete with two-handed arpeggiated runs, lightning-fast right hand runs, two-handed tremolos, regular tremolos, karate-chop bass notes using the side of his left hand, and even a fast right-hand ascending run while his left hand simultaneously plays an ascending glissando. In this live TV performance Jerry Lee is in top form and shows why he was nicknamed The Killer.

If you'd like to play "You Win Again" exactly as Jerry performed it, or study his amazing piano technique, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Jerry Lee Lewis' 1979 live TV performance of "You Win Again" on YouTube.

Jethro Tull - Locomotive Breath - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of Jethro Tull's most classic recordings is "Locomotive Breath" (from the "Aqualung" album), complete with a very creative piano Intro composed by classically-educated pianist John Evan in the studio while the other band members were out to lunch.

The Intro starts out slowly in free timing, with lots of minor-key atmosphere, and proceeds through some creative chord progressions/voicings and a fast run, until the second half of the Intro, when the steady beat kicks in and the piano riffs with the guitar for the remainder of the Intro.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano Intro - all 1:20 of it. If you've wanted to play the "Locomotive Breath" piano Intro exactly as it was recorded, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jethro Tull performing "Locomotive Breath" on YouTube. The piano Intro lasts until 1:20.

Jimmy Buffett - Son of a Son of a Sailor - 2nd Chorus Organ + Harmonica Solo (transcribed. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Son of a Son of a Sailor" is the title track on Jimmy Buffett's eighth studio album, recorded in 1977 and released inn 1978. This is a transcription of the organ part during the second Chorus, plus the harmonica solo by Greg 'Fingers' Taylor.

Also included is the bass guitar line for those two sections. The organ part can be a little difficult to hear on the recording. If you'd like to get it just right, plus play the harmonica solo on your keyboard, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is the second Chorus and harmonica solo on Jimmy Buffett's "Son of a Son of a Sailor" on YouTube.

Jimmy Hall - Too Tall To Mambo - Piano Intro & Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Born and raised in Alabama, Jimmy Hall is the lead singer, sax and harmonica player for Wet Willie. His 1996 album, Rendezvous with the Blues, included "Too Tall To Mambo", a New Orleans-influenced uptempo track featuring Clayton Ivey on piano.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 5-bar piano Intro and the 24-bar Solo (plus two bars immediately before and after the solo). The piano solo includes octaves, tremolos, blazingly-fast runs, cool-voiced flat7/sharp5 chords, 'jazzy' left-hand chord stabs - lots of terrific New Orleans-style piano elements.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jimmy Hall's "Too Tall To Mambo" is on YouTube.

Joe Cocker - Delta Lady - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Originally written by Leon Russell - and inspired by Rita Coolidge - "Delta Lady" was released on Joe Cocker's second album, "Joe Cocker!", and is one of Cocker's greatest recordings. His electric vocal part and Leon Russell's gospel-influenced piano created a timeless rock classic.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire studio version - all three minutes of Leon's amazing, rocking piano part, that drives the track from the very first opening piano chord. And the inspired sequence of descending quarter-note chords halfway through each Verse is never played correctly by cover bands/pianists.

If you'd like to study Leon Russell's chord voicings and church-influenced rhythms on Joe Cocker's "Delta Lady" - all 95 bars of the entire song - here is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Joe Cocker performing "Delta Lady" on YouTube.

Joe Cocker - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood - Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Released on Joe Cocker's very first album in 1969, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" had an inspired Hammond organ solo by Tommy Eyre, a keyboard player from Cocker's hometown of Sheffield. In Cocker's original Grease Band, Chris Stainton played bass and Eyre played keyboards, and it was he who also played the organ intro on "With a Little Help from My Friends". Years later he played piano on Gerry Rafferty's "Baker Street", and served as keyboardist/musical director for most of the hits by George Michael's Wham!.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Eyre's highly-creative, jazz-influenced 24-bar organ solo - a full minute of inspired soloing, choosing many notes quite outside of the standard 'blues scale'. If you'd like to study how a master performer solos for a full minute over just two chords, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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To listen, just click: Joe Cocker - "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" - Organ Solo

Joe Cocker - Feelin' Alright (Live) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Feelin' Alright" is one of rock's classic dance songs. If an audience is going to ever get out of their seats and dance, it will be to "Feelin' Alright". Although written by Dave Mason of Traffic, Joe Cocker's 1969 recording is the definitive version.

The following year when Cocker kicked off his Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour with two nights at Bill Graham's Fillmore East night club in New York City, the concerts were recorded and released as an album. Leon Russell was Musical Director for the tour, and played guitar on "Feelin' Alright". Chris Stainton, who'd been with Cocker since 1966, played piano on this track.

Stainton's piano part throughout the entire song draws heavily from the studio version, played by Artie Butler, but with Stainton's own ideas. His piano solo near the middle of the song resembles Butler's solo very little, except the notable use of the same classic C9 and F13 voicings in the Left Hand. Stainton has his own bag of tricks, with liberal use of octaves, including an octave run that begins on the highest C-octave on the piano and descends over four bars, using the C minor pentatonic scale, until it's in the mid-register. Another octave run, this time an ascending chromatic scale, builds the solo into the piano breakdown. At that point everything stops except the piano (and percussion), which plays eight bars of funky riffs, before the singing and other instruments resume.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Chris Stainton's 32-bar piano solo - all 45 seconds of it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Joe Cocker - "Feelin' Alright" (Live) - Piano Solo

Joe Cocker - Feelin' Alright (Studio) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1968 the very first song on Joe Cocker's very first album was "Feelin' Alright", an electrifying performance by both Cocker and the rhythm section, that would propel Cocker to the heights of rock superstardom. Originally written and recorded by Dave Mason, the song was the choice of Cocker's producer Denny Cordell, who hired 26-year-old pianist Artie Butler to lead up the rhythm section. After thinking about the piano part for a few days, Artie evolved a rocking, Latin-influenced piano part, and then hired Carole Kaye to play bass and Paul Humphrey on drums. The rhythm track is one of the greatest rhythm tracks in rock history - musical magic just happened that day.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Artie Butler's piano part for the entire song - all 93 bars, over four minutes long, including the amazing 12-bar solo and piano breakdown. One of the remarkable aspects of the piano part is that the Left Hand and Right Hand rarely play at the same time. It's similar to playing conga drums on a piano keyboard.

Even though "Feelin' Alright" (or "Feeling Alright") is one of the most frequently-played songs by cover bands, no keyboard player ever gets the part right. If you'd like to play "Feelin' Alright" exactly as Artie Butler plays it on Joe Cocker's studio version - an amazing study in keyboard rhythm, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Joe Cocker performing "Feelin' Alright" on YouTube.

Joe Cocker - That's Your Business Now - Piano Solo with Bass Guitar (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Joe Cocker's right-hand man for years since early in his career was Chris Stainton, who teamed up with Cocker in 1966, three years before Cocker's first album. An extremely talented and creative musician, Stainton at first played bass and later piano for Cocker. When Joe Cocker and Rod Stewart shared the bill during large European open-air concerts in the 1990's (I was there as Musical Director for Rod's 'Unplugged' orchestra), Chris was still Cocker's pianist.

"That's Your Business Now" appeared on Cocker's second album, "Joe Cocker!", and was co-written by Cocker and Stainton, who plays a wonderful honky-tonk tack piano solo during it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Chris Stainton's piano solo in "That's Your Business", including, of course, all the fun tremolos, octaves, and grace notes. Also included is the Bass Guitar part, played by Alan Spenner, during the piano solo. Some adventurous pianists may want to incorporate parts of the bass line into the Left Hand part.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Joe Cocker - "That's Your Business Now" - Piano Solo

Joe Cocker - The Letter - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"The Letter" is one of Joe Cocker's biggest hits, and many musicians are aware that the extraordinary piano part was played by The Master of Time & Space himself, Leon Russell. What many are not aware of is that shortly before the famous live version was recorded in 1970 at the Fillmore East, a studio version was also recorded, with Leon leading the band and playing piano, as he did on the live version.

The studio version was not released until 2005, on the Deluxe Edition of the 35th Anniversary release of Mad Dogs & Englishmen. For rock pianists this was a God-send, as it allowed Leon's riffs to be heard much more clearly than on the live recording. The arrangement is the same; the piano riffs are largely the same, just more of them (because they can now be heard).

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part - all 182 measures. This is an opportunity to study Leon's classic swamp-rock style and play one of Joe Cocker's most rocking songs, exactly as Leon Russell himself played it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Joe Cocker performing "The Letter" on YouTube.

Joe Cocker - You Are So Beautiful - Piano Part by Nicky Hopkins (transcribed by Elmo Peeler)

Recorded by Joe Cocker in 1975 "You Are So Beautiful" is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful rock ballads ever. Billy Preston wrote the music for the song, and for Joe Cocker's version Nicky Hopkins played piano and Jimmy Webb arranged the string section - an extraordinary meeting of brilliant musical minds. The recording is essentially just Cocker's vocal, Nicky's piano, and Webb's string section. Although there's also a bass, there are not guitars or drums - just the beautifully exposed piano and vocal.

Joe Cocker himself said, "I couldn't believe this piano part; that's when I did the vocal that stayed on the record. I sang it to wrap around that piano line. It would not have been that song without that piano part. Nicky's thing and the vocal just kissed each other; it was special."

And Nicky, who'd recorded the piano track without Cocker even present, consistently picked "You Are So Beautiful" as one of his own all-time favorite performances.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Nicky Hopkins' classic piano part on "You Are So Beautiful". The chord choices in Billy Preston's composition are beautifully lush, and the voicings that Nicky Hopkins uses are terrific - from subtle understatement to dramatically sophisticated. For example, have you ever tried to pick out the chromatically-altered chord near the end (2:03) when Cocker sings "You're everything I need" - the chord under "need"? Great stuff from those magical hands of Nicky Hopkins.

If you'd like to play "You Are So Beautiful" exactly as recorded by the great Nicky Hopkins, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Joe Cocker's recording of "You Are So Beautiful" on YouTube.

Joe Zawinul - Zawinul's Jazz-Blues Improvisation (1963) - Piano & Bass (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Joe Zawinul is probably best known to the wider public for his composition "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy". But professional musicians and jazz connoisseurs know him as the genius jazz-fusion-rock player/composer who began his studies at age seven at the Vienna Conservatory and went on to record two albums with Miles Davis (In a Silent Way & Bitches Brew), founded Weather Report with Wayne Shorter and helped create the jazz fusion genre. He was named "Best Electric Keyboardist" twenty-eight times by DownBeat magazine.

In 1963 at the age of 31, Zawinul performed as a trio (acoustic piano, drums, bass) with two other members of the Cannonball Adderly Sextet. One of those performances was videotaped, a nice long (4:17) improvisation on an 8-bar jazz/blues phrase alternating with a second 8-bar jazz/blues phrase. That 16-bar 2-section grouping repeats five times.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire 4:17-long jazz/blues improvisation - all 84 bars. It shows Zawinul playing with the meter, crossing the line from 12/8 into 4/4 and then back again, all very organically, never joltingly. And it shows his wide range of articulations: legato, staccato, tenuto, portato, etc. And, of course, his left hand voicings exactly as performed on the video.

Also included is a transcription of the string bass part, as played by Sam Jones. Three PDF files are included:

1) Piano & String Bass
2) Piano only
3) Bass only

The MIDI file package includes a MIDI file of the Piano plus a MIDI file of the String Bass.

If you'd like to study the way that Joe Zawinul improvised jazz/blues on an acoustic piano in his pre-Weather Report days, this transcription is just what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI files (includes a MIDI file of the Piano plus a MIDI file of the String Bass)

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Here is Joe Zawinul's Jazz-Blues Improvisation (1963) on YouTube  

John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band - On the Dark Side - Intro Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1984 "On the Dark Side" was propelled to the #1 spot on U.S. charts by its appearance in the movie "Eddie and The Cruisers". Overnight The Beaver Brown Band, which had been a bar band in the Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island region, had the Number One record in the country. Bobby Cotoia, the band's pianist, suddenly found his opening riff being learned, or at least attempted, by almost every aspiring young keyboardist.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part during the song's Intro - about the first minute of the song, which includes the atmospheric piano part followed by the rhythmic chords, until the vocals for the verse enter.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band - "On the Dark Side" (Intro)

John Lennon - Imagine - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

John Lennon thought that "Imagine" was as good as any song he ever wrote with The Beatles. Certainly one of the greatest rock songs ever, a true Classic, Rolling Stone considers it to be in the Top 3 of the Greatest Songs Of All Time.

The piano part - one of the most recognizable piano riffs ever conceived - was first played by John Lennon; but he wasn't completely happy with his own performance so he asked Nicky Hopkins to record over it, using the same notes, but with a more polished performance. The result is that the piano part is a bit murky and it's difficult to hear every note with precision. No sheet music has ever accurately notated it.

However, in 2003 "The Lennon Legend" DVD was released. For the audio part of the remastering of this DVD-project, instead of using the 2-track (mixed) tapes as normally used in these cases, the producers went back to the original multi-track session tapes and remixed the songs from scratch. This resulted in a much clearer piano part that can be transcribed note-perfectly. If you'd like to perform this wonderful, minimalist piano part precisely as John Lennon conceived and Nicky Hopkins performed it, here is your opportunity.

This is the piano part for the entire song - all 56 measures, note-for-note.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Easy

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To listen, just click: John Lennon - Imagine (Instrumental Version - Verse 1)

Johnny Rivers - Rockin' Pneumonia & the Boogie Woogie Flu - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1972 Johnny Rivers hired the Wrecking Crew, the legendary L.A. rhythm section, to record his version of Huey 'Piano' Smith's classic "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu". Larry Knechtel, the pianist who had won a Grammy for the piano part in "Bridge over Troubled Water", nailed it on the first take, and gave the world one of rock's most rockin' tracks.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part, from the opening piano Intro to the very last note buried deep in the fade-out, including the two piano solos. From the New Orleans-style piano 'flips' to the honky-tonk tremolos (voiced with a tritone), to the descending thirds in the fade-out, this transcription is just what you need if you've always wanted to play "Rockin' Pneumonia" like the great Larry Knechtel, or if you just want to study how outstanding piano solos are constructed.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Johnny Rivers' "Rockin' Pneumonia" on YouTube.

Here is just the fade-out that is normally inaudible.

Jon Cleary - Po' Boy Blues - Ascending Chromatic Run (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jon Cleary is an Englishman who has lived and made music in New Orleans for over twenty years, mastering the piano styles of Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, and Dr. John. His band, Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, won the Grammy Award in 2016 for Best Regional Roots Music Album, "Go Go Juice".

In "Po' Boy Blues", released in 2016 on his "Live at Chickie Wah Wah" album, Cleary throws in a remarkable highly chromatic, ascending run, where his Left Hand reaches over his Right Hand, leading the way up the keyboard.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Cleary's ascending chromatic run in "Po' Boy Blues". Whether you want to learn it in order to use it in your own improvisations, or to study as a challenging technical exercise to improve your ability to play chromatic-style runs, this will show you exactly what Cleary is doing.

Difficulty: Challenging

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To listen, just click: Jon Cleary - "Po' Boy Blues" - ascending chromatic run

Jon England - I'll Take Manhattan (Eddy Duchin Style) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest popular pianists of the 1930's and '40's was Eddy Duchin, known for his elegant style and velvet touch. "I'll Take Manhattan" is one of the songs associated with Duchin, a version of which (played by Carmen Cavallaro) is in the biographical movie, "The Eddy Duchin Story" (1956).

As his own homage to Eddy Duchin, English pianist Jon England has recorded "I'll Take Manhattan", which incorporates a number of Duchin's pianistic techniques: rippling two-hand arpeggios, 2-octave-apart melody line, lush five-note block chords, sparkling grace notes, and others.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Jon England's "I'll Take Manhattan" in the style of Eddy Duchin. If you'd like to study the pop piano style of high society in the 30's and 40's generally, or Eddy Duchin in particular, this should prove very helpful.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jon England performing "I'll Take Manhattan" on YouTube (from the beginning up to 1:28).

Jonathan Edwards - Shanty - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Most people remember Jonathan Edwards for his 1971 hit, "Sunshine (Go Away Today)", but another hit of his, "Shanty", deserves to be remembered for its excellent piano part and solo, played by session wizard Jeff Labes, who also recorded a number of Van Morrison's hits, including "Moondance".

This is a note-for-note transcription of Labes' wonderful 8-bar piano solo, which combines rock licks with a fluid, jazz-influenced sense of rhythm. If you'd like to play the "Shanty" piano solo exactly as it was recorded, or if you just want to study an excellent rock solo, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jonathan Edwards' "Shanty" on YouTube. The piano solo starts at :53.

Jonny Lang - Still Rainin' - Piano Part (transcribed-arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jonny Lang, a talented blues/rock guitarist from North Dakota, heard his first blues band at age 12. Afterward, he asked the lead guitarist to teach him guitar; and after only a year of lessons, the band asked him to join them, changing their name to Jonny Lang & The Big Bang. At 15 he recorded his first blues album, and at 17 his third album, "Wander This World", was nominated for a Grammy.

"Still Rainin'", written by outstanding pianist Bruce McCabe, is the first track on "Wander This World", and has a fun piano part, played by McCabe. Starting off with funk/rock piano fills (through a synchronized digital delay), the song progresses to driving, rocking piano "power chords" (open fifths), octave fills, and more blues/rock licks.

This is a transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 119 measures, 4:49 long. If you'd like to play "Still Rainin'" just as it was recorded, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Jonny Lang's "Still Rainin'" on YouTube.

Jools Holland - Rotten Row Revisited - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Jools Holland is an English pianist who hosts two TV shows: "Later... with Jools Holland" and "Hootenanny". A founder of the 1970's band "Squeeze", he now tours with his own band, "Jools Holland's Rhythm and Blues Orchestra". One of Holland's favorite musical genres is boogie-woogie, and he has recorded a number of songs in that style.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Holland's "Rotten Row Revisited", from his 1995 CD, "Boogie Woogie Piano" - the entire song, all nine verses. A fast (194 BPM), up-tempo piano boogie, "Rotten Row Revisited" is full of various boogie-woogie licks, including chord stabs, single-note runs, thirds, trills, and others. If you'd like to play "Rotten Row Revisited" exactly as Jools Holland recorded it, or just study a spirited 1985 version of classic boogie-woogie, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Jools Holland - Rotten Row Revisited (First 3 Verses)

Journey - Feeling That Way - Intro & Verse 1.pdf

"Feeling That Way" was originally composed by keyboardist Gregg Rolie as an instrumental but was shelved, rewritten a couple of times, and finally released in 1978 on Journey's Infinity album.. After a 2-bar piano Intro, Rolie sings the first Verse, and then Steve Perry comes in for the Pre-Chorus.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Gregg Rolie's piano part for the Intro and the first Verse. The first two bars of the Pre-Chorus are also included, for a total of 13 bars.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Journey's "Feeling That Way" on YouTube.

Kid Rock - All Summer Long - Piano Tag (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Two years before his death, Billy Powell, the original keyboardist for Lynyrd Skynyrd, played the piano part on Kid Rock's "All Summer Long". Much of the piano part on that recording was sampled from Powell's "Sweet Home Alabama" part, but he added a very brief tag onto the end of "All Summer Long". This is a note-for-note transcription of just that very brief piano tag by Billy Powell - one of the last things he recorded.

This is short, and thus, inexpensive - $3.95.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Kid Rock - All Summer Long - Piano Tag

Kid Rock - Cowboy - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Kid Rock's "Cowboy", released in 1999 on his Devil Without a Cause album, contains a honky-tonk/saloon-style piano solo, played by Jimmie Bones, a regular band member of Twisted Brown Trucker, Kid Rock's regular backing band.

Complete with tremolos and twangy fills, the piano solo is perfect for those that like sawdust on their bar-room floor.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the honky-tonk piano solo on Kid Rock's "Cowboy" on YouTube.

The Kingsmen - Louie Louie - Elec. Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock's greatest classics - in fact, the world's most recorded rock song with over 1,600 versions. Written by Richard Berry, who sold the rights to it for $750 in 1959, it was inspired by Chuck Berry's "Havana Moon".

In 1963 a Portland, Oregon band paid $50, split among themselves, to record the song, which contained a couple of errors: the singer came in early after the guitar solo, and the drummer yelled an obscenity (at :53) when he dropped a stick. Nevertheless, it went from a regional hit to a national tidal wave - no high school dance or Frat house party was complete without the band playing "Louie Louie".

Since it only contains three chords, why transcribe the electric piano part? Primarily because of the rhythms. There are a couple of places in the 3-chord riff that are never played exactly right, one being the rhythm in the last half of the Verse pattern. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire electric piano part for "Louie Louie" - all 83 bars. Also included, for comparison, is that last half of the Verse pattern as played by The Kingsmen on 'Shindig' in 1965, after their original keyboardist, Don Gallucci, had left the band.

If you'd like to play "Louie Louie" exactly as The Kingsmen recorded it - not just close, but precisely correct - this will show you how.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is The Kingsmen's "Louie Louie" on YouTube.

Lari White - Lead Me Not - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1993 when Rodney Crowell produced Lari White's debut album, "Lead Me Not", he used Bill Payne to play piano on all but one of the tracks - a wise choice to use the veteran Little Feat founder and experienced session musician.

Payne's solo gospel piano begins the title song and continues as the only accompanying instrument for the first 1:16 of the song, when the rhythm section enters. Throughout the song the piano remains the main instrument, complete with lots of walk-ups, octave fills, #IV-diminished chords, high strums and other gospel techniques, plus a whole-step modulation.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Bill Payne's entire piano part for "Lead Me Not" - all 125 measures (4:06). If you enjoy gospel piano and would like to play "Lead Me Not" exactly as it was recorded, while learning more about Payne's clean, professional approach to the genre, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Lari White's "Lead Me Not" on YouTube.

Laurent Callens - Adiemus (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Adiemus", a World-music song written in 1994 by Welsh composer Karl Jenkins, premiered in a 1994 Delta Air Lines television advertisement, and was also used in some Delta in-flight videos. It was officially released on Adiemus: Songs of Sanctuary in 1995. The main idea was to create a modern song using classical forms, such as rondo and ternary. Written in D minor, it's a mix of African-tribal and Celtic-style melodies.

A remarkable self-taught French pianist, Laurent Callens, the 3rd-most-listened-to French musician with more than five million views, has posted onto YouTube his own piano solo arrangement of "Adiemus" - a very Romantic version with flowing arpeggios, tasteful rubato, and a wide dynamic range from pianissimo to fortissimo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Callens' version of "Adiemus". Starting softly with the melody in single-notes, it builds to a very dramatic fortissimo climax with Left-hand arpeggios supporting Right-hand octaves and full 4-note chords, which then slowly ebbs away into a subdued Coda, ending with a whisper.

If you'd like to play "Adiemus" exactly as Laurent Callens plays it, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Laurent Callens performing "Adiemus" on YouTube.

Led Zeppelin - All My Love - Synth Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"All My Love" was composed by John Paul Jones and Robert Plant in memory of Plant's 5-year-old son. Recorded in 1978, it was released in 1979 on Led Zeppelin's "In Through the Out Door" album. Jones arranged the string section, then played the string parts on a Yamaha GX-1 synthesizer. He also used the GX-1 to record the SynthBrass solo.

Led Zeppelin performed "All My Love" only 14 times - all during their last European tour in 1980. In concert Jones would play different string parts during the String Section Solo and the last (5th) Chorus than on the studio recording. By contrast, he'd play the SynthBrass solo live the same as the studio version.

This is a note-for-note transcription of all the string parts and also includes the SynthBrass Solo - exactly as played by John Paul Jones. If you'd like to play the String Orchestra parts exactly as recorded, plus the SynthBrass Solo, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) All synth parts from the studio recording (Strings and SynthBrass Solo) Here is Led Zeppelin's "All My Love" on YouTube.

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Here is Led Zeppelin's "All My Love" (studio version) on YouTube.

2) All synth parts from the studio recording plus Strings from Live Performance and some Bass Guitar lines. My second score contains those studio synth parts plus the live-concert SynthString lines from the 1980 tour and key parts of Jones' very melodic Bass Guitar track (studio version), essential to recreating the song effectively in a cover band.

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Here is Led Zeppelin's "All My Love" Live in Concert on YouTube.

Led Zeppelin (Ian Stewart) - Boogie with Stu - Piano Part (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Ian Stewart was one of the best rock pianists ever, not because of great technical ability but because "his left hand came out of the Congo" as Keith Richards described Stewart's ability to play primal boogie-woogie. "He blew my head off when he started to play. I never heard a white piano like that before."

One of the founders of The Rolling Stones, along with Brian Jones, Stewart loved above all else the music of the original boogie-woogie masters of the 1930's and '40's: Albert Ammons, Pete Johnson, and Meade 'Lux' Lewis. Before passing at age 47 he had recorded with not only The Rolling Stones but also the Yardbirds, Pete Townshend, Howlin' Wolf, Led Zeppelin, and others.

The opposite of flamboyant, he didn't like the spotlight and preferred being part of the rhythm section to being the star. And although he recorded a lot, it was almost never as solo piano (with the exception of "Key to the Highway"). As Jimmy Page said, "Stu wouldn't record; he wouldn't do solo stuff."

However, when Stu, as his bandmates called him, was engineering a recording session with Led Zeppelin in 1971, he started to jam on an old, dilapidated, out-of-tune piano that "was totally unplayable," according to Jimmy Page. Liking what he heard, Page tuned his mandolin to the piano and the band recorded an almost-4-minute jam, which was a 12-bar blues pattern repeated nine times. After adding vocals and other overdubs, it was released as "Boogie with Stu" on Led Zeppelin's "Physical Graffiti" album in 1975.

The good news for Ian Stewart fans is that when the vocals and all the other instruments are removed, "Boogie with Stu" stands by itself as a terrific - sensational, really - boogie-woogie piano solo! Without the drum Intro and Outro, the piano boogie itself is 3:15 long, and full of Stu's own licks/riffs, which may have started with Ammons/Johnson/Lewis but evolved into one of the most creative rock piano styles ever.

"Boogie with Stu" is filled with pianistic tricks: tremolos (3rds, 6ths, octaves), 'crushed' minor- and major-second dissonances, highly-syncopated rhythms, great octave passages, 'hammered' 3rds & 4ths, flips, etc. - plus a wonderful, thumping, driving, 'out-of-the-Congo' Left Hand boogie pattern.

Ian Stewart's piano style has never been revealed in this detail before. If you'd like to study Stu's unique boogie-rock style, this note-for-note transcription of the entire "Boogie with Stu" - all 108 measures - is the perfect opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Boogie with Stu" on YouTube.

Led Zeppelin - Your Time Is Gonna Come - Organ Part (transcribed/arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

A classic from Led Zeppelin's very first album, "Your Time Is Gonna Come" is a tour-de-force for the group's brilliant bassist/organist, John Paul Jones, beginning with an atmospheric, free-form organ Intro that is actually two organs playing different parts at the same time - a pipe organ with pedals plus a Hammond organ through a Leslie speaker.

After almost a minute, drums and vocals enter and kick off the next 3:44 of the song. The chords of the Intro are never used in this second section, which is based on an entirely different chord progression. The end result is that it's almost like two songs in one - definitely a treat for rock organ lovers.

This is a transcription/arrangement of the 'A' section, the 50-second organ Intro, that combines the two organs into an arrangement for one organ, plus a note-for-note transcription of the 'B' section, i.e., the last 3:44 of the song.

Also included are suggested Hammond organ drawbar registrations to approximate those on the recording.

If you'd like to play "Your Time Is Gonna Come" exactly as John Paul Jones recorded it - a textbook example of classically-influenced rock organ playing - this is exactly what you need, the entire song, all 90 measures.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Led Zeppelin's "Your Time Is Gonna Come" on YouTube.

Lee Michaels - Tell Me How Do You Feel - 17-bar Organ Phrase (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Lee Michaels was one of rock's greatest Hammond B-3 players. Born in Los Angeles, Michaels began his career with The Sentinels, formed with drummer Johny Barbata (later of The Turtles, Jefferson Airplane & Jefferson Starship).

After moving to San Francisco in the 1960's Michaels - called "the ultimate power organist" - began doing session work, including for Jimi Hendrix, and performing as a two-man band: himself on organ and playing bass on the pedals, and a drummer, 'Frosty'.

His most legendary album, 'Lee Michaels' (1969), was recorded live in the studio with just organ and drums, and includes a 20-minute version of Percy Mayfield & Ray Charles' "Tell Me How Do You Feel".

This is a note-for-note transcription of a 43-second section from that recording which contains some of Lee Michaels' signature organ licks. This transcription, which includes the bass pedals, will help you to better understand this organ virtuoso's style and 'sound'.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Lee Michaels - "Tell Me How Do You Feel" (17-bar Organ Phrase)

Leon Russell - A Song for You - Piano & Baritone Horn Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Leon Russell is not only one of rock-and-roll's greatest piano players, he is also one of pop/rock's very best songwriters. Released in 1970 on his very first album, "A Song for You" is one of the very best love songs ever written - touching, romantic lyrics and a great piano part. Leon combines classical techniques, such as minor key scales/chords and chromatic runs, with pop/rock piano voicings, including the tasteful use of warm, supporting bass octaves in the lowest registers of the piano keyboard. And he uses far more creative chords/harmonies than are ever published in lead sheets of this song.

This is a transcription of the piano part for the entire song - all 4:08 of it, including the wonderful solo, of course. The brass instrument (probably a baritone horn) that accompanies the piano so hauntingly is also transcribed note-for-note. If you'd like to learn how Leon Russell voices chords, and what notes he chooses in his playing/compositions, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Medium

Two options are available:

1) piano part only

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2) piano part plus the baritone horn part

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Here is Leon Russell performing "A Song for You" on YouTube.

Leon Russell - Crystal Closet Queen (Studio) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Out of great respect for one of his musical heroes, Richard Penniman, Leon Russell wrote "Crystal Closet Queen", his homage to Little Richard. He often performed it in concerts, and recorded it twice, a studio version in 1971 and a live-concert version in 1973.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Leon Russell's piano part in the 1971 studio version "Crystal Closet Queen", from his Leon Russell & the Shelter People album.

This track demonstrates Leon's rocking/driving style perfectly, including his use of octaves and Little Richard-style pneumatic drill-fast repeated chords, which are notated in detail, of course. Every note is included, from the first grace-noted V chord to the last notes in the fade-out.

Leon intended to honor Little Richard not only through clever tongue-in-cheek lyrics but also by using elements of Richard's own piano style mixed with his own. He succeeded beautifully. Terrific rock-and-roll piano-playing. If you'd like to play Leon's classic rocker about Little Richard, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Leon Russell's "Crystal Closet Queen" on YouTube.

Leon Russell - I Put a Spell on You - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1970 Leon Russell released his first solo album, titled "Leon Russell". One of the now-classic tracks on that album was "I Put a Spell on You", which starts off with a couple of 'false starts' that proceed into a solo piano Intro to the song. Although the Intro is only 21 seconds long, it is full of classic 'Leon' piano licks: cool runs, Left Hand octaves, and that 'Leon sound'.

This is a note-for-note transcription of just that 21-second Intro. Although brief, it is an excellent study in what makes Leon Russell's piano-playing sound like it does. If you'd like to kick off Leon's "I Put a Spell on You" exactly as he recorded it, here's your chance.

Difficulty: Medium

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Here is Leon Russell performing "I Put a Spell on You" on YouTube. The Intro is from :35 through :56.

Leon Russell - It's All Over Now, Baby Blue - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf.pdf

In 1970 Leon Russell was at his pianistic peak, recording his eponymous Leon Russell album and then releasing his Leon Russell and the Shelter People album the following year. If you want to hear Leon at his swamp-rock best, it's hard to beat that time period and those two albums. During that time he also recorded his own version of Bob Dylan's classic song, "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue". However, it was not released until 1989, almost two decades later, when it appeared as a bonus track on the CD re-issue of Leon Russell and the Shelter People in 1989.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Leon's complete piano part in that rarely-heard but outstanding recording of a Dylan classic, interpreted by one of rock's greatest pianists. It includes Leon's crushed-grace-note technique, where he'll hit a three note cluster, and then immediately release two out of the three notes - just one of his important swamp-rock techniques. It also includes his use of a modified "IV-chord bump" technique where he substitutes a suspended chord for the IV-chord in the 'bump', plus his excellent left-hand octaves and other Leon pianistic 'goodies'. If you're trying to learn to play more like Leon Russell - and who isn't - this should be a good help.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Click here to hear Leon Russell's version of "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" on YouTube.

Leon Russell - Old Masters (Masters of War) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1963 Bob Dylan wrote "Masters of War", comprised of eight verses (with no chorus). About seven years later Leon took just the first verse, sang it to the melody of "The Star-Spangled Banner" and called it "Old Masters". Intended to be on Leon's eponymous 1970 album, it was removed at the last minute, and not released until 1989 on the Gold CD version of the Leon Russell album (along with other rare tracks, such as the piano solo version of "Shootout on the Plantation").

The track is just Leon's piano and vocal; this is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part. The first half is in 4/4, and then about halfway through, Leon breaks into a Gospel-influenced 12/8. If you'd like to play Leon Russell's powerful version of Bob Dylan's most famous anti-war classic, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file (with Tempo Map)

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Here is Leon Russell's "Old Masters" on YouTube.

Leon Russell - Roll Away the Stone - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Leon Russell had a very good year in 1970: he led Joe Cocker's "Mad Dogs & Englishmen" tour, he met Elton John, and he released his first solo album, Leon Russell. "Roll Away the Stone", included on that album, is simply Leon at his rocking/driving best - full of the octave fills and syncopated rhythms that defined Leon's style.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the studio version of "Roll Away the Stone" - all 92 measures - and contains detailed notation of all of Leon's "smudged octaves", when his right hand's 4th finger slightly catches a note adjacent to the 5th finger's note. Of course there's also precise notation of the totally cool alternating-hands descending-chords riff that is unique to "Roll Away the Stone", never used in any other song by Leon (or anyone else). Every note is included, including the Left Hand part (of course) and the glissando-in-thirds.

If you'd like to play the amazing piano part in "Roll Away the Stone" exactly as Leon Russell recorded it in 1970, this is just what you need. It really is one of his very best piano parts.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Leon Russell's "Roll Away the Stone" on YouTube.
Here is that unique alternating-hands descending riff on YouTube. And again here.

Leon Russell - She Belongs to Me - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest rock piano players of all time, Leon Russell grew up in Oklahoma, in the heart of the Bible Belt. Exposed at an early age to Southern gospel music, he incorporated gospel rhythms and licks into his own rock-and-roll piano playing.

"She Belongs to Me", written by Bob Dylan, is normally performed as a smooth, relaxed ballade. Leon's version, by contrast, rocks it like a Pentecostal church service, complete with a driving Piano Solo in Leon's classic style.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part, from the gospel piano Intro, to the octave-filled Solo, to the instrumental Out section - this is Leon Russell at his gospel-rock best.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Leon Russell's "She Belongs to Me" on YouTube.

Leon Russell - Shoot Out on the Plantation (Studio version on 1970 Album) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is the original version of "Shoot Out on the Plantation" that was released in 1970 on Leon Russell's first studio album, Leon Russell. It had all the elements that defined his unique style: the syncopated rhythms, the blurring of the line between major and minor tonality, the clangy Perfect 4ths, the terrific octaves. If one had to choose only one song of Leon's to study his style, it could be this one.

This version, recorded in the studio with his rhythm section, has a completely different piano part than the rare Gold CD bonus track Solo Piano version released in 1989. Both tracks show Leon's piano-playing at its best - great rhythms, great chords, great octaves.

If you want to study Leon's iconic "swap rock" piano style, you should get both transcriptions - this version plus the Solo Piano version. They both are Leon in his prime.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Leon Russell's "Shoot Out on the Plantation" on YouTube.  

Leon Russell - Shoot Out on the Plantation (solo piano version - Bonus track on 1989 Gold CD) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Shoot Out on the Plantation" came out on Leon Russell's first studio album, Leon Russell, in 1970, and had all the elements that defined his unique style: the syncopated rhythms, the blurring of the line between major and minor tonality, the clangy Perfect 4ths, the terrific octaves. If one had to choose only one song of Leon's to study his style, it could be this one.

However, what most people don't know was that around the time that he recorded "Shoot Out", he also recorded another version, one that had all the elements distilled down to just his solo piano and voice. Called the "Solo piano version" it wouldn't be released for almost twenty more years. In 1989 on the Gold Audiophile CD (GZS-1049) version of the same Leon Russell album, it was included as a Bonus Track.

This is a note-for-note transcription of that very rare "Solo piano version" of "Shoot Out on the Plantation". Recorded in the studio on 1970 it has Leon putting all the elements of a rhythm section right onto the 88's - it's Leon's style on steroids. I know of no other piano/vocal recording of his that captures all of his pianistic bag of tricks as well as this version - great rhythms, great chords, the best octaves in the business, and not just in the Right Hand. Without a drummer or bass player, he more than makes up for their absence with a great Left Hand part, including the best Left Hand octave runs of his entire discography.

If you want to duplicate Leon Russell's amazing style at its very peak, and to study just how he pulled off his amazing rock-piano feats, this transcription is exactly what you've been looking for.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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To listen to the MIDI file, just click: Leon Russell - "Shoot Out on the Plantation" (Solo piano version)

Leon Russell - Tryin' To Stay 'Live - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Between 1967 and 1969 Leon Russell recorded the tracks for "Asylum Choir II", released in 1971. One of those tracks, "Tryin' To Stay 'Live", starts off with a 16-bar, 25-second Intro that is classic, text-book Leon Russell piano-playing: an entire series of Right-Hand octaves (plus a few chords and grace-notes) accompanied by thumping octaves in the Left Hand.

This is a note-for-note transcription of just that 16-bar Intro, and reveals exactly how Leon got that classic Leon Russell-octaves type of sound that so many other pianists have tried to copy. If you'd like to study just how Leon could construct the gospel-rock piano parts that he's famous for, this is a classic, unbeatable example of the piano master's famous style.

Difficulty: Medium

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Here is Leon Russell performing "Tryin' To Stay 'Live on YouTube. The Intro is from :05 through :30.

Liberace - Boogie Woogie - from "Here's Liberace" - Piano Solo (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Liberace became famous because he could play, with a capitol P. Possessing the technique of a classical concert pianist, he loved showing off his technical prowess, especially in that most pianistic of styles: boogie-woogie. One of his favorite boogie-woogies was one very loosely derived from Pinetop Smith's "Pinetop's Boogie". He played this showy, technically challenging boogie since the early 1950's at least, and perhaps as early as the 1940's.

This is a note-for-note accurate transcription of Liberace's "Boogie Woogie" that was recorded live at the London Palladium and released in 1980 on the album, "Here's Liberace". It was part of a three-song medley, "Jalousie/Boogie Woogie/You Made Me Love You".

To play this extroverted Liberace classic well, one must have a strong left hand capable of playing two different classic boogie-woogie left hand patterns (the left hand pattern in Verse 1 is different from the left hand pattern found in all the other verses), plus an extremely articulate and fluid right hand.

Difficulty: Challenging

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To listen to Liberace play this boogie-woogie solo, click here: Boogie Woogie (from 'Here's Liberace')

To see Liberace play a very similar version of this boogie on YouTube, click here: Boogie Woogie (from a 1969 TV show)

Liberace - Bumble Boogie - Solo Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Of all the compositions inspired by Rimsky-Korsakov's "The Flight of the Bumble Bee", none is more virtuosic than Liberace's own arrangement - a blur of fingers. On his own very successful TV show in 1953 Liberace performed his "Bumble Boogie" for the first time on live TV. At 34 and at the height of his pianistic powers, both his arrangement and performance were sensational. "Bumble Boogie" and "Chopsticks" became two of his most-requested pieces at his live concerts.

An accurate version of Liberace's "Bumble Boogie" has never been available before - until now. This is a note-for-note transcription of that classic 1953 TV performance, complete with Liberace's own fingering (as seen in a blur) - all the 5-octave chromatic runs where 1 out of every 12 chromatic notes is flashily played with his left hand, the 2-handed low-register "buzzing", the fast right hand octaves during the Bridge, the driving, locomotive-like left hand patterns, and of course, the main right hand bumble-bee chromatic figures.

Also included is my own technical exercise to help you master the difficult right hand main pattern.

If you ever wanted to study Liberace at his prestissimo best, this is just what you need. Play Liberace's "Bumble Boogie" exactly as he did.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Liberace performing his "Bumble Boogie" on his 1953 TV show on YouTube.

Liberace - Chopsticks - Piano Solo (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of Liberace's greatest show-stoppers was his virtuoso arrangement of "Chopsticks". Starting with the simple two-handed pecking that every school child knows, Liberace's "Chopsticks" proceeds through classical references to Franz Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2, to Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C-sharp minor, to other Liszt, then a re-statement of the original simple Chopsticks theme before ending with a dramatic, piano concerto-like descending double-octave arpeggio.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piece - all 115 measures, 9 pages, and who-knows-how-many notes - in fact, this probably contains more notes than any other transcription. Liberace's technical 'tricks' are many: shimmering 'strums' and other embellishments in the higher registers, elegant 'society' two-handed chord voicings, lightning-fast octaves, blazing 16th notes (178 BPM), lots of arpeggios that could be played with only the Right Hand but are instead played with both hands alternating, and other wonderful techniques - all packed into two and a half amazing Liberace minutes.

This is your chance to learn the most amazing arrangement of Chopsticks ever, precisely as Liberace himself played it.

Difficulty: Challenging

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A MIDI File of this transcription is available here:

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To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

To see Liberace play this exact version of "Chopsticks" on YouTube, click here.

Linda Ronstadt - Back in the U.S.A. - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Linda Ronstadt's version of Chuck Berry's classic "Back in the U.S.A." was released on her ninth studio album, Living in the U.S.A., which went double-platinum (over 2,000,000 in sales). Ronstadt had heard Berry's original recording while riding around Los Angeles with Glenn Frey, who had it on a home-made cassette tape. She liked it immediately, telling Frey, "Boy, that would be a great song to sing. I think I'll do that one."

For her own version Ronstadt used pianist Don Grolnick, whose piano track was heavily influenced by Johnnie Johnson's style in Berry's original. This is a note-for-note transcription of Don Grolnick's 12-bar piano solo. Although only twelve bars, Grolnick packs it full of great boogie-woogie riffs: hammered 4ths, thirds, octaves with octave grace-notes, tremolos-with-a-fifth-added, and other pianistic goodies. It's not the easiest solo to play but it definitely rocks.

If you've ever wondered exactly what the licks are in this solo, or just want to continue learning how to play boogie-woogie, this will be a big help.

Difficulty: Challenging

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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To listen to the piano solo, click here on YouTube.  

Little Big Town - Girl Crush - for Piano (Transcribed & Arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Girl Crush" is a beautiful love song, with very clever lyrics, that has been a huge hit for Little Big Town; and the rhythm section is built around a flowing, arpeggiated guitar riff - there is no piano on the track at all.  So the problem for keyboard players is what to play.

How can a pianist play an effective piano/vocal accompaniment for a singer on this song? Or what should a pianist in a band play?

To create a nice piano accompaniment that stays true to the original recording, I've transcribed the guitar part note-for-note throughout the entire song, and then given that line to the piano. The Left Hand uses some subtleties found in the bass guitar part on the recording. And near the end when the organ and guitar play a nice line, those riffs are also incorporated into the piano part.

This transcription/arrangement does not play the melody at all. It is intended as a piano (or electric piano) accompaniment for someone singing the lyrics, or as an effective, good piano part to play within a rhythm section in a band.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is Little Big Town's "Girl Crush" on YouTube.

To listen to my transcription/arrangement of "Girl Crush", click here.

Little Feat - Willin' - Piano Solo & End Run (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Bill Payne, co-founder in 1969 of Little Feat, is one of the most respected session players in the business. Born with perfect pitch and possessing excellent rhythm and technique, his solos are consistently done with taste and precision. His piano solo in "Willin'" is a textbook example of his keyboard artistry.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Bill Payne's piano solo in Little Feat's "Willin" from their 1972 album "Sailin' Shoes". Also included are four different piano 'riffs' that occur during the song, including the run at the very end. If you'd like to study and play a beautifully-constructed solo from a master, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Little Feat - "Willin" (Piano Solo)

Little Richard - Great Gosh A'Mighty (Live) - Piano Part (transcr. & arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1985 after seven years of only performing gospel music, Little Richard returned to rock and accepted a role in the movie Down and Out in Beverly Hills. He and Billy Preston wrote the faith-based rock-and-roll song, "Great Gosh A'Mighty" for its soundtrack.

A high-energy rocker, "Great Gosh A'Mighty" contains many of the same elements of his earlier dynamic hits: a droning, pounding Left Hand, a driving, mid-register Right Hand, and occasionally using the high registers for pneumatic-hammer-fast octave triplets and runs.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Little Richard's piano part for the entire song, as performed live on the Joan Rivers TV Show. If you've ever wanted to study Little Richard's dynamic, high-energy piano style, this is a good place to start.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Little Richard's live performance of "Great Gosh A'Mighty" on YouTube.

Little Richard - Lawdy Miss Clawdy (Live) - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Little Richard was 23, he had been recording for four years without a hit. Fortunately, his friend Lloyd Price, who'd written and recorded a #1 R&B hit "Lawdy Miss Clawdy", encouraged him to send a two-song demo to Price's record company, Specialty Records. Nine months later Little Richard had his own smash hit, "Tutti Frutti". Almost 40 years later, in 1994, the two appeared together on the Sally Raphael TV Show and performed "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" - just the two of them - no band, just Richard seated at the grand piano and Lloyd standing beside the piano trading verses.

With no rhythm section and only a piano to propel the song, Little Richard throws in many of his trademark techniques: a driving boogie-influenced Left Hand, pounding high-register chords, cascading clusters, and glittering glissandi.

This is a note-for-note transcription of that 1994 Live TV performance - the entire piano part (with even the clusters notated). If you've wanted to better understand Little Richard's driving, electric piano style, this will prove very helpful.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Little Richard's live 1994 performance of "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" on YouTube.

Little Richard - Slippin' & Slidin' - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The mid-1950's saw an electrifying singer/piano-player burst onto the R&B and rock-&-roll scene - the flamboyant, irrepressible Little Richard. In the short space of three years he had 18 hit singles, including "Slippin' and Slidin'" from his very first album (1955), which was released as a single in 1956.

The song contains ten 12-bar phrases, only four of which are with vocal, the other six being an instrumental Intro plus five sax/piano sections. Little Richard's piano kicks it off with energetic octaves and boogie-woogie licks, and ends it with driving high-register repeated chords (with some good accents - all notated, of course).

This is a note-for-note transcription of Little Richard's entire piano part in his original version of "Slippin' and Slidin'" - it's hard to get much better early R&B/rock&roll. If you'd like to re-create "Slippin' and Slidin'" on the piano yourself, or just want to study the style of an historic player and recording, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Little Richard's "Slippin' and Slidin'" on YouTube.

Loggins & Messina - Your Mama Don't Dance - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The most important instrument in Loggins & Messina's biggest hit, "Your Mama Don't Dance" (1972), was the terrific piano part, driving the rhythm section and answering the vocal phrases with great licks. The L.A. session ace who played it, Michael Omartian, went on to become the first record producer to have #1 records in three consecutive decades - the 70's, 80's, & 90's - and has contributed his talents to over 350,000,000 albums sold worldwide as a producer, composer, arranger, artist or musician - including seventeen Grammy nominations.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the complete piano part in "Your Mama Don't Dance", from the very first tremolo in the Intro until the very last 2-handed tremolo during the final chord. By electronic processing even the normally inaudible piano part during the Sax and Guitar Solos was able to be brought out and notated.

If you'd like to learn how to play the piano part in "Your Mama Don't Dance" exactly as it is on the recording, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Loggins & Messina's "Your Mama Don't Dance" on YouTube.

Loggins & Messina - Your Mama Don't Dance - Sax Solo & Bass - for Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1972 Loggins & Messina released "Your Mama Don't Dance", which included a terrific sax solo, played by Jon Clarke on a baritone sax in its higher register. This is a note-for-note transcription of that 12-bar sax solo, written out for piano with the bass guitar part in the Left Hand.

Also included is the transposed score for sax in case you want to play it on the sax. And in addition to the bari sax score, scores for both tenor and alto saxes are also included for a total of four scores: piano/bass, bari, tenor and alto saxes.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Loggins & Messina - "Your Mama Don't Dance" - Sax Solo

'Long John' Baldry - Conditional Discharge - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1971 Rod Stewart mentioned to his friend Elton John that he had been asked to produce an album on the British blues singer 'Long John' Baldry, in whose band Rod had sung in 1964. In 1966 Elton - when he was Reggie Dwight -  had been the keyboardist in Baldry's band, Bluesology. And when Reggie changed his name, it was Baldry's first name that Elton used as his own last name. So Elton talked Rod into sharing production duties on Baldry's album, "It Ain't Easy", with Rod producing the 'A' side and Elton producing the 'B' side.

Baldry was used to performing with the best rock keyboardists, starting in 1963 with Nicky Hopkins (the Cyril Davis R&B All Stars), in 1965 Brian Auger (Steampacket), and Reggie Dwight (Elton) in 1966 (Bluesology). In 1964 a fabulously talented Scot, Ian Armitt, joined Baldry's band, Hoochie Coochie Men, and stayed with him throughout Baldry's various bands well into the 1970's.

The first track on the album is a 3:16-long solo piano accompaniment to Baldry's spoken words, a humorous tale of being busted by the London cops for singing "boojie-woojie" while panhandling on a public sidewalk. Armitt improvises an amazing boogie/rock piano accompaniment that is nine verses long, and continues without pause into the second album track, "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie Woogie on the King of Rock & Roll", which has rhythm section accompaniment.

The first track is titled "Intro: Conditional Discharge" and is full of wonderful pianistic techniques: boogie Left Hand bass lines, great turn-arounds, tremolos of all sorts - in thirds, fourths, tri-tones, sixths, octaves, and triads - and relaxed, killer boogie-woogie riffs in the Right Hand. This is really top-notch boogie-rock piano-playing that all pop pianists can learn from. Even if you never perform this piece with a vocalist, the piano track stands on its own as a wonderful piano solo.

If you have never heard this recording but love piano-playing, do yourself a favor and click on the link below to listen to it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piece - all 3:16 of it - 110 measures - nine verses! If you've ever heard this piece and just marveled at the piano playing but thought you could never possibly play it, this transcription will let you play it exactly as Ian Armitt played it. Here is your chance to study one of rock's classic piano tracks.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI File of this transcription is available here:

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Here is 'Long John' Baldry's "Intro: Conditional Discharge" on YouTube (the first 3:16).

'Long John' Baldry - Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie on the King of Rock & Roll (trans. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

'Long John' Baldry was one of the first British musicians to fall in love with American blues. A close friend and bandmate of Rod Stewart and Elton John (known then as Reggie Dwight), Baldry had the distinction of having not one but two albums co-produced by both Rod and Elton (each produced one side of those two albums).

On the sides that he produced, Elton played the piano tracks. However, on the sides produced by Rod Stewart, Baldry's regular pianist, the amazing Ian Armitt, was used.

Out of those sessions came one of rock's classic recordings, "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie on the King of Rock & Roll".

Actually two songs in one, with no break in-between, "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie" is preceded by "Conditional Discharge", a very relaxed boogie-woogie solo piano accompanying Baldry telling a humorous story. After about 3:16 "Conditional Discharge" swells in intensity and segues without a break right into "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie" which continues for another 3:23.

One of rock piano's most legendary tracks, "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie" contains a wide gamut of pianistic tricks, from boogie riffs to power chords, from tremolos and 'flips' to Left Hand jazz chords - plus a terrific, driving 35-second piano solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording - all 3:23 - exactly as played by Ian Armitt. If you'd like to learn 'Long John' Baldry's "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie on the King of Rock & Roll", this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is 'Long John' Baldry performing "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie on the King of Rock & Roll" on YouTube.

Here is 'Long John' Baldry performing both "Conditional Discharge" and "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie-Woogie on the King of Rock & Roll" (without a break) on YouTube.

Lyle Lovett - I've Been to Memphis - Piano Solo Sections (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"I've Been to Memphis" was released in 1992 on Lyle Lovett's "Joshua Judges Ruth", and contains one of the most remarkable rock/funk/R&B piano tracks ever recorded. The song is heavily structured around the piano, starting and ending with long stretches of solo piano, plus a piano solo in the middle - and 'solo' as in everything else drops out except the piano: really solo.

Cleanly and virtuosically played by Matt Rollings, these three solo piano sections total about 95 seconds in a style that's a mix of Bill Payne ('Little Feat') and Richard Tee. Highly rhythmic and harmonically inventive, each section gets more complex - and difficult - than the preceding one.

This is a note-for-note transcription of all three solo piano sections in "I've Been to Memphis" - a chance to study and play an exceptional track exactly as it was recorded.

Difficulty: Challenging

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To listen, just click: Lyle Lovett - "I've Been to Memphis" (3 Solo Piano Sections)

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Call Me the Breeze - Piano Solo & End Run (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is another great example of Billy Powell's Southern-boogie-rock style at its best. A little over a minute in length and the equivalent of two full verses, the piano solo, from their "Second Helping" album, is packed full of Powell's pianistic tricks: streams of fast, high, filigree single notes, two-handed glissandos, across-the-barline phrasings, tremolos, hammered-on fourths - and all at the very rapid clip of 194 BPM.

Also included in this precise note-for-note transcription is the bass guitar line that supports the wonderful, flashy piano solo. Although it's meant only as a guide as to what the bass is playing during the solo, some adventurous pianists may want to actually play the bass line in the Left Hand while the notes are flying in the Right Hand solo. And some bass players may just want to double-check that they are in fact playing exactly the bass line that Leon Wilkeson recorded.

At the very end Powell plays a wonderful run just to add a cherry on top of this fun, musical sundae. That end run is also included here. The "Call Me the Breeze" solo and end run have never been transcribed before, so take advantage of this opportunity to study exactly how it was played by one of rock's greatest pianists.

To see customers' comments about this transcription, click here and here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Lynyrd Skynyrd - Call Me the Breeze - Piano Solo & End Run

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Call Me the Breeze (Live) - 1st 3 Verses - Piano (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In addition to their studio recording of "Call Me the Breeze," Lynyrd Skynyrd also released a 'Live' version on their 1976 album, "One More from the Road". This is a transcription of Billy Powell's wonderful, 'swinging' piano part during the Verses/Choruses. He uses essentially the same piano part on both the Live and the Studio versions - a terrific, driving, rhythmic pattern divided between the hands, similar to a conga- or bongo-drum style. Powell is essentially playing drum paradiddles on the piano keyboard.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Intro and first three Verses - more than enough to learn Billy Powell's piano pattern, which is repeated throughout the song. This provides you with everything you need to play the song exactly as Billy himself did, except for the solo.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Lynyrd Skynyrd - "Call Me the Breeze" (Live) - Verse

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird (Live) - Piano Intro by Peter Keys (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is a note-for-note transcription of the classic piano intro in "Free Bird", complete with the Left Hand crossing over the Right Hand, the dramatic "strums", the rippling triplets, and fun octaves, as played live by Billy Powell's successor, Peter Keys - a very similar version to Powell's own.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" on YouTube. The piano Intro starts at 1:17 and continues until 2:07.

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird (Live) - Piano Solo by Peter Keys (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

After Billy Powell passed away, Lynyrd Skynyrd selected Peter Keys as his successor. Keys plays the piano solo in "Free Bird" similarly to Powell's version in two of the four 8-bar sections (the 1st and the 3rd), but quite differently in the other two (the 2nd & the 4th - lots of cool octaves).

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 32-bar "Free Bird" piano solo, as played by Peter Keys with Lynyrd Skynyrd in concerts.

Even if you already know or are learning Billy Powell's original solo, you'll find this version of his successor's to be interesting and helpful. Combine the two versions to come up with your own original solo.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" on YouTube. The piano solo starts at 4:27 and continues until 5:34.

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird (Live) - Piano Solo by Billy Powell (transcribed. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Free Bird" is considered Lynyrd Skynyrd's signature song, often used in concert as their finale. The studio version does not contain a piano solo, but the 1976 live version on their "One More from the Road" album does indeed contain a terrific, classic 32-bar Billy Powell solo, full of his trademark 6th's, rippling triplets, and arpeggiated chords.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Powell's entire 32-bar piano solo, plus two bars after the vocal re-enters. If you'd like to play Billy Powell's classic "Free Bird" solo exactly as Lynyrd Skynyrd recorded it, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" (live) on YouTube. The piano solo starts at 4:14 and continues through 5:22.

Lynyrd Skynyrd - I Know a Little - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Billy Powell's piano solo in "I Know a Little" is a terrific study in fast single-note lines. The song flies along at 200 BPM (Beats Per Minute); and although the piano solo is only about 15 seconds long, Powell manages to squeeze in 139 Right Hand notes, without any chords and not counting the glissando! Although it sounds impossible, that is about 9 notes per second in just his Right Hand!

This solo can be a challenge to get up to speed, but like "Sweet Home Alabama" it's great fun to play Billy Powell's exact notes.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Lynyrd Skynyrd - I Know a Little - Piano Solo

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Poison Whiskey - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Billy Powell's piano solo in "Poison Whiskey" - from Lynyrd Skynyrd's very first album - is full of Powell's bag of tricks: tremolos. hammered-fourths, fast 32nd-note runs, left hand crossing over the right hand, and others.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Powell's 13-bar solo in "Poison Whiskey". If you'd like to study the style of the late, great Billy Powell, this is an excellent chance to learn his licks precisely.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Lynyrd Skynyrd - Poison Whiskey - Piano Solo

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Simple Man - Intro - Arranged for Piano Solo (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Simple Man is one of Lynyrd Skynyrd's greatest songs - a true classic. The three-chord progression was written by Gary Rossington (the only remaining original member of the band), and the words were written by Ronnie Van Zant. Shortly after Van Zant's grandmother and Rossington's mother passed away, they got together in Van Zant's apartment and in about an hour they wrote this song about advice their mothers had given them. Current lead singer Johnny Van Zant has said that it's one of his favorite songs to sing.

The intro is hauntingly beautiful and sets the mood perfectly for the entire song. Beginning with an arpeggiated 16-note figure on just a solo electric guitar, the bass enters in measure three and plays a counterpoint line for four measures. In measure seven the bass increases the counterpoint to an almost Bach-like counter-line to the continued guitar arpeggios, setting the stage perfectly for the vocal entrance in measure nine.

There is no piano part at all in the original recording. But when played on piano, the guitar and bass parts create an almost classical sound - beautiful in its own right, and completely capable of standing alone with no other accompaniment. This piano arrangement is a note-for-note transcription of those guitar and bass parts during the Intro. If you're a guitarist or a bass player, this transcription can help you, too, by showing you the exact notes played on the original recording. If you're a keyboard player, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how wonderful this Lynyrd Skynyrd classic can sound on your piano or organ.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Lynyrd Skynyrd - Simple Man - Intro (Arranged for Piano Solo)

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Sweet Home Alabama - Complete Piano Part with Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of rock's greatest recordings is "Sweet Home Alabama", with one of rock's greatest pianists, Billy Powell, at his best. This is a brand-new (August 2016) note-for-note transcription of Powell's piano part for the entire recording - all 4:45 - 119 bars (not just the solo).

The piano solo in the Out Section of "Sweet Home Alabama" is a wonderful study in sixths, including 'yodeling sixths' (in the key of C, a 'yodeling sixth' would be, from lowest note to highest: D-sharp, E, and C). And although the solo feels wonderful, Powell sometimes plays a bit loose with the timing, not always being metronomically precise, thus making it challenging to exactly notate all the rhythmic subtleties.

The studio version fades out after 14 bars of the 16-bar piano solo. However, this transcription adds those final missing bars from their live version on the "Collectybles" CD, recorded eight months before the release of the studio version. So this transcription does not "fade out", but is Billy Powell's complete "Sweet Home Alabama" from the beginning to the very end.

This piano part and the solo are rhythmically challenging as well as finger-wise, but it's great fun to play Billy Powell's exact notes.

This is the definitive transcription of the complete piano part for "Sweet Home Alabama".

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" on YouTube.

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Sweet Home Alabama (Live) - Piano Solo by Peter Keys (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

After Billy Powell passed away, Lynyrd Skynyrd selected Peter Keys as his successor. Keys plays the piano solo in "Sweet Home Alabama" similarly to Powell's version, but with some differences.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 16-bar piano solo that ends "Sweet Home Alabama", as played by Peter Keys.

Even if you already know or are learning Billy Powell's original solo, you'll find this version of his successor's to be interesting and helpful. Combine the two versions to come up with your own original solo.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" (live) with Peter Keys on YouTube. The solo begins at 4:25 and continues through 5:02.

Lynyrd Skynyrd - T for Texas - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"T for Texas" is Billy Powel playing live, from Lynyrd Skynyrd's first live album, "One More from the Road" - and not only live but also lively! This song blazes away at the speedy tempo of 226 BPM, and uses lots of three-note tremolos, octaves, and broken octaves, with a glissando thrown in for good measure.

This is a note-for-note transcription of all 40 measures - about 36 smokin' seconds - of Billy Powell's piano solo in "T for Texas". You'll love playing this one.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click : Lynyrd Skynyrd - T for Texas - Piano Solo

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Tuesday's Gone - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Tuesday's Gone" was recorded in 1973 and released on Lynyrd Skynyrd's first album, "(pronounced 'lĕh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd)", produced by Al Kooper. The lyrics are about a relationship that has ended because of the stresses of constant touring. Billy Powell, their classically-trained pianist who had majored in college in Music Theory, composed and played a wonderful 39-second solo that then evolves into a string-and-piano dialogue that lasts for an additional 37 seconds.

Powell's solo incorporates some classical elements: a flowing, arpeggiated Left Hand part in the style of the Romantic era, and Right Hand scale runs and broken chords reminiscent of Mozart's Classical era style, along with Beethoven-style octaves in the String Section part. Because of the flowing, supportive Left Hand part, this solo sounds great even when played alone, without a rhythm section.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Billy Powell's piano solo, plus the piano part that continues under the string orchestra's lead. If you enjoy Billy Powell's piano style, you'll love learning his classic solo from "Tuesday's Gone" exactly as he played it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Lynyrd Skynyrd - Tuesday's Gone - Piano Solo

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Workin' - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Workin'" (also known as "Workin' Man") is the first track on Lynyrd Skynyrd's tenth studio album, "Edge of Forever", recorded in 1999. The Hammond B-3 organ part was played by original member Billy Powell. A driving, classic Southern boogie/rock song sung by Johnny Van Zant, "Workin'" is primarily driven by the guitars, with Powell's organ part remaining in the background, and consisting of only chords and occasional palm glissandos.

This transcription of the entire song - all 127 measures - is not a literal transcription of the organ part, but is similar to a Master Rhythm chart and will enable an organist to play the song even better than just the organ chords would allow. This chart contains not only all the chords and the rhythms of those chord changes, but it also contains a note-for-note transcription of the main guitar parts. These are included so that an organist can play some or all of those parts along with the guitarist to make the organ part more interesting than just chords alone.

Also included are Performance Notes suggesting techniques to improve upon the recorded organ part, e.g., pedal tones to make the Out Section more exciting, and how and where to play "power chords" (open fifths where the third of the chord is omitted).

If you're a keyboard player who wants to play this song but doesn't know how to construct an organ part that's perfect for this guitar-driven Lynyrd Skynyrd classic, this is exactly what you need.

To see a customer's comment about this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Workin'" on YouTube.

Lynyrd Skynyrd - Workin' for MCA - Electric Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

By the time Lynyrd Skynyrd recorded "Workin' for MCA" they had already released "Free Bird" and "Tuesday's Gone", showing off pianist Billy Powell's unique keyboard style. And his Wurlitzer electric piano solo in "Workin' for MCA" doesn't disappoint.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the electric piano solo in "Workin' for MCA", showing the details of Billy Powell's brief 8-bar mini-masterpiece: a tremolo evolving into a fast (32nd-note), repeated 3-note chromatic riff, rhythmic triads, heavily grace-noted Dorian-mode ascending lines, rhythmic thirds, etc. Lots of great rock piano-playing in a short amount of time.

It also includes the bass guitar part during the solo.

If you'd like to play Billy Powell's "Workin' for MCA" solo exactly as he did, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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To hear the piano solo in "Workin' for MCA", click here on YouTube.  

Manfred Mann - Blinded by the Light - Organ & Bass Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1977 Manfred Mann's Earth Band had a No. 1 hit with "Blinded by the Light", written by Bruce Springsteen. It was included on their 1976 album, "Roaring Silence", and featured Manfred Mann playing keyboards and Colin Pattenden on bass guitar.

The opening organ lick is a classic, although few players get the exact chord voicings correct. This transcription includes not only that classic organ riff, but the entire organ part in the Intro, 1st Chorus, 1st Verse, and 1st Pre-Chorus - all precisely as recorded by Manfred Mann himself on keyboards. This transcription ends after those four main sections, and it includes the first 47 bars of the song.

The exact bass guitar part for those sections is also included in this note-for-note transcription. Mann is playing nothing with his left-hand, so if you want to play the organ part on a piano or electric piano (or even organ for that matter), this bass part will help it to sound more complete. And if you're a bass player, this precise transcription of the bass part will let you sound just like the recording, complete with the bass slides.

If you're a keyboard player and have wanted to perform Manfred Mann's classic opening riff exactly as he recorded it, this transcription will let you do it.

Difficulty: Easy

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To listen, just click: Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Blinded by the Light (Intro, 1st Chorus, 1st Verse, and 1st Pre-Chorus)

Marc Cohn - Walking in Memphis - Original Piano/Vocal Demo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1991 Marc Cohn had a huge hit with "Walking in Memphis", which had a particularly atmospheric piano part, evocative of a warm rain while walking around Memphis at night. The piano part was so strong that just a piano/vocal demo landed Cohn his first recording contract, with Atlantic Records. Although the hit record used a full rhythm section, twenty-five years later in 2016 a 6-song EP was released, "Evolution of a Record", which contained the original piano/vocal. And that piano part is a gem, very similar to but even more atmospheric than the hit record.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part exactly as Marc Cohn played it on his original piano/vocal demo - all 139 measures. Though the Verses are pretty easy to play (and sound great), the Choruses have a wonderful, rhythmic, island influence that is not readily heard on the hit-record version. And the Bridge also has a more interesting piano part than the radio/album.

If you'd like to play "Walking in Memphis" - one of the great iconic songs of the 1990's - exactly as March Cohn himself plays it, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Marc Cohn's original piano/vocal demo of "Walking in Memphis" on YouTube.

The Marshall Tucker Band - Stay in the Country - Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Stay in the Country" was released in 1990 on The Marshall Tucker Band's 15th album, "Southern Spirit". One of the highlights of the song is Don Cameron's excellently constructed Hammond B-3 solo. Cameron, who played keyboards on three MTB albums, including "Still Smokin'" (1992) and "Walk Outside the Lines" (1993), packs a lot into the solo, including classic B-3 techniques such as holding a note like a pedal tone to build tension while playing other notes around it, quick flat-fingered glissandi used like grace notes, and perfect fourths for power. The chord progression underpinning this solo is D, A minor, C and G; and Cameron's choice of notes is very creative, especially over the C chord.

The exact bass guitar line is also included in this note-for-note transcription of the organ solo.

If you'd like to learn how to play better organ solos, this one is a good example to study.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen to the organ solo, click here: The Marshall Tucker Band - "Stay in the Country" (organ solo)

Mary Chapin Carpenter - I Feel Lucky - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1992 Mary Chapin Carpenter released her fourth album, "Come On Come On," that contained the single "I Feel Lucky," which reached #4 on the charts. Co-written by Carpenter and Don Schlitz, "I Feel Lucky" has a piano solo near the end of the song that is a Country/Pop knucklebuster. Played by Jon Carroll, the solo uses octaves, country cliches, cross-bar phrasing, and "Rockin' Pneumonia"-style flips to end the song with quite a flourish.

This is a note-for-note-transcription of Jon Carroll's piano solo, and also includes the bass guitar part under the solo. If you'd like to study a terrific, challenging Country/Pop solo and learn a couple of new pianistic tricks, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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To listen, just click: Mary Chapin Carpenter - "I Feel Lucky" (Piano Solo)

Mastedon - Shine On - Piano Solo, Outro & Chord Chart (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

John Elefante, the lead singer and songwriter of Kansas from 1982 through 1984, left the band to form his own band with his brother Dino - Mastedon. "Shine On", released in 1989 on their "It's a Jungle Out There" album, was one of their biggest hits, with an ABBA-influenced sound.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Piano Solo (the Instrumental Bridge) and the Piano Outro plus a detailed chord chart with the Bass line and some Choral parts - everything you need to play "Shine On" exactly like the record.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Mastedon's "Shine On" on YouTube.

Mavis Staples - Hard Times Come Again No More - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

As recorded in 2004 by Mavis Staples with Matt Rollings on piano, "Hard Times Come Again No More" sounds like a very soulful R&B song, which in her version it certainly is. And during the 1930's it became the theme song for the American Depression. But it was actually written in 1854 by Stephen Foster (Bob Dylan's favorite American songwriter).

Mavis Staple's beautiful, heart-felt recording is very sparsely accompanied, primarily by Matt Rollings' amazing piano track, with a little dobro, Hammond organ, and bass guitar (no drums). This is a note-for-note transcription of Rollings' gospel-influenced piano part, starting with a piano-only Intro, then gradually building as the song progresses, complete with his piano solo about two-thirds of the way through, then ending with the final notes from the piano.

If you enjoy gospel-style piano and R&B soulfulness combined into a remarkably beautiful piano track, you'll enjoy learning and playing "Hard Times Come Again No More". It's a gem.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here are Mavis Staples and Matt Rollings performing "Hard Times Come Again No More" on YouTube (including clips of them recording it together in the studio).

Meat Loaf - Bat Out of Hell - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell album (1977), one of the best-selling albums in history, has proved to be one of the most influential albums ever recorded. Written by Jim Steinman and produced by Todd Rundgren, it has sold over 43 million copies and continues selling about 200,000 copies per year. One critic characterized it as "Grand Guignol pop - epic, gothic... elevating adolescent passion to operatic dimensions".

The title song is 9:48 - the longest transcription I've ever done. It's magnificent piano part was played by Roy Bittan, who really pulled out all the stops on this track. The song has many sections and many tempo changes, and Bittan plays a lot of different styles during this extraordinary composition.

Because of its 9:48 length - three times the average pop/rock song - this transcription is a little more expensive than others, but on a per-measure basis, it's actually one of my least expensive. This "Bat Out of Hell" transcription is one of the most important transcriptions I've done - right up there with Don McLean's "American Pie".

If you'd like to play the amazing original, long version of "Bat Out of Hell" exactly as Roy Bittan recorded it, this transcription is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Meat Loaf's "Bat Out of Hell" on YouTube - almost ten minutes long.

Meat Loaf - Paradise by the Dashboard Light -- Piano & Clavinet Parts (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Paradise by the Dashboard Light" is a long, complex rock masterpiece that is almost symphonic in its scope and drama. Recorded in 1976 and released in 1978 on Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell album, at 8:28, it's one of the longest transcriptions that I've done, up there with "Bat Out of Hell" (9:52) and "American Pie" (8:42), and longer than "Green-Eyed Lady" (6:53).

The extraordinary piano part was played by Roy Bittan (pianist for Bruce Springsteen's E-Street Band), with Jim Steinman (composer of the song) and Todd Rundgren (producer of the album) helping to 'sculpt' the long, evolving masterpiece. Jim Steinman said that he wanted to write "ultimate car/sex song in which everything goes horribly wrong in the end".

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part. It also includes the complete clavinet part, plus extensive Performance Notes. Also, in the places where the piano doesn't play anything, the guitar part has been notated. This is exactly what you need to perfectly recreate the terrific keyboard parts in "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" and to study Roy Bittan's wonderful, rocking piano style.

Because of its 8:28 length - nearly three times the average pop/rock song - this transcription is a little more expensive than others, but on a per-measure basis (333 measures), it's actually one of my least expensive.

Difficulty: Challenging

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is Meat Loaf's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" on YouTube.
And here are the isolated piano and clavinet tracks on YouTube.  

Merle Haggard - I Think I'll Just Stay Here and Drink - Piano Solo (trans. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Merle Haggard's 26th No.1 hit on Billboard's country singles chart was "I Think I'll Just Stay Here and Drink", from his 31st studio album, Back to the Barrooms in 1980. It contained a terrific piano solo, played by one of the best session players of the time, Larry Muhoberac, who'd played with Elvis Presley in the early 1960's and went on to become one of the most in-demand session players on the West Coast.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 8-bar piano solo exactly as Muhoberac played it on Haggard's #1 hit record - full of terrific licks. It also includes the measure immediately preceding the solo, plus the first measure right after the solo, to help you get into and out of the solo just as it is on the recording.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the piano solo on ""I Think I'll Just Stay Here and Drink" on YouTube.

Merry Clayton - Grandma's Hands - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

If there were a Hall of Fame for background vocalists, Merry Clayton would be in it. She sang a duet with Mick Jagger on "Gimme Shelter", sang backing vocals on Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama", sang on Ringo Starr's "Oh My My", and was one of Ray Charles' Raelettes - plus many others. In 1971 she released her own eponymous album, which contained "Grandma's Hands".

This is a transcription of the 24-bar piano solo in Merry Clayton's "Grandma's Hands" - sort of an R&B/funk mashup that contains chords in the Left Hand, as opposed to the usual octaves. If you'd like to learn a funky R&B piano solo and then apply some of its elements to your other solos, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Grandma's Hands" by Merry Clayton on YouTube. The piano solo starts at 1:56 and ends at 2:30.

The Meters - Cabbage Alley - Piano Part - Intro & Verse (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Meters were one of New Orleans best bands, and are generally considered to be one of the originators of funk.

"Cabbage Alley" was inspired in part by Professor Longhair's "Hey Now Baby". One New Orleans musician described the actual Cabbage Alley as being "around Perdido Street. They had a lot of musicians down there—it was almost like a [red light] district—fast women. Near the battlefield."

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Intro and 1st Verse, i.e., the first 1:11 of the recording - 28 bars total. Pianist Art Neville uses some excellent Professor Longhair rhythms plus some complex chromatically-altered chords during the chromatic walk-down from B-flat to F. The later sections are largely repetitive, so these 28 bars should be enough to learn the entire song.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is The Meters' "Cabbage Alley" on YouTube.

The Meters - Cissy Strut - The Two Main Organ Riffs (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In the early 1960's The Meters were Allen Toussaint's house band for his New Orleans productions. Founded by singer/keyboardist Art Neville, the band had a strong sense of tight rhythmic grooves; and over time their style came to represent New Orleans funk, influencing many other bands.

"Cissy Strut" was released in 1969 on their first album, and has become a classic of the groove/funk genre. "Cissy Strut" is composed of two different 8-bar sections, which repeat. Art Neville's B-3 organ part consists of two 2-bar patterns, one for each of the two sections of the song, plus a solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the two B-3 organ patterns, but it does not include the organ solo. If you'd like to play "Cissy Strut" exactly like the record, and add your own organ solo, or just study Art Neville's rhythmic style, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Meters' "Cissy Strut" on YouTube.

Michael Jackson - Earth Song - Piano Part (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Written in a hotel room in Austria, and released in 1995 on "HIStory", "Earth Song" was Michael Jackson's attempt to raise the consciousness of the world regarding the environment and animal welfare. He purposefully kept the melody simple, in a way that many different cultures around the world could relate to and sing.

A solo piano begins "Earth Song", and is soon covered by other instruments and Andrae Crouch's Choir. This is a simple piano part for the entire song - all 89 measures. The piano part is note-for-note accurate until the piano is completely covered by other instruments and the large choir. From that point on, the piano continues in exactly a logical extension of what the pianist might have played. The Left Hand always closely follows the bass line, just as the studio pianist would have done.

If you'd like to perform the piano part for "Earth Song" just as originally recorded, this is perfect for you.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is Michael Jackson's "Earth Song" on YouTube.

Michael Martin Murphey - Wildfire - Piano Intro, Coda & Chord Chart (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Michael Martin Murphey's 1975 classic hit had a beautiful, atmospheric extended piano solo Intro that set the tone for the poignant lyrics that followed. And then at the very end, the piano plays a Coda, similar (but not identical) to the Intro. The piano Intro is 32 seconds long, and the piano Outro is 38 seconds, for a total of 1:10 of hauntingly lovely solo piano.

The pianist on "Wildfire", Jac Murphy, had composed a "Prelude", that was 'inspired' by a Prelude by Russian Romantic-era composer Alexander Scriabin. He then used part of his own Prelude in "Wildfire" after Michael heard him playing it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Piano Intro and Outro from the long version (the album version), plus a chord chart of the entire song.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Michael Martin Murphey's "Wildfire" on YouTube.

Nicky Hopkins - Interlude a la El Hopo (Flying Trapeze) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1969 while Nicky Hopkins was recording the Let It Bleed sessions with the Rolling Stones, Keith Richards was inexplicably absent from some of the sessions. During those absences Nicky lead some of the other bandmates in jam sessions, which producer/engineer Glyn Johns recorded - Mick Jagger (harmonica), Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman & Ry Cooder. Three years later, in 1972, the tracks were released as the Jamming with Edward! album.

One of the tracks is the oddly titled "Interlude a la El Hopo", which consists of several rather disjointed parts. The first section is Nicky jamming on "The Flying Trapeze", which he prefaces with an aggressive, rhythmic, rocking Intro. This is a note-for-note transcription of that Intro and Nicky's entire jam on "The Flying Trapeze", which includes some fun tremolos.

If you'd like to play the first section in "Interlude a la El Hopo" exactly as Nicky Hopkins recorded it while jamming with members of the Rolling Stones, this will show you exactly how to play it.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to only Nicky's isolated piano part in "Interlude a la El Hopo" ("The Flying Trapeze").

Click here to listen to Nicky Hopkins' "Interlude a la El Hopo" on YouTube.

Nicky Hopkins - Jenni - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Nicky Hopkins was the ultimate session musician, recording amazing piano tracks for the Rolling Stones, The Who, the Kinks, Jefferson Airplane, the Beatles, Joe Cocker and many others. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest studio pianists in the history of popular rock music.

When he was twenty-two (1966) he recorded his first album, The Revolutionary Piano of Nicky Hopkins, which included "Jenni", an instrumental ballad that he composed. Unfortunately the producer (Shel Talmy) added other instruments and background voices that detracted from the beauty of the piano composition itself.

When all the other tracks are removed, the solo piano itself is revealed as a beautiful stand-alone solo piano composition, with a lovely melody and chord voicings, sensitive dynamics, and creative chord changes. The structure is: Two verses, Chorus, Two verses, Chorus, Recap of the main theme.

If you'd like to play Nicky Hopkins' own composition - a beautiful piano ballade - exactly as he recorded it, this note-for-note transcription will show you exactly how to do it.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to only Nicky's isolated piano part in "Jenni".

Click here to listen to Nicky Hopkins' "Jenni" on YouTube.  

Norah Jones - If You've Got the Money - Piano Solo with Bass (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 2003 Norah Jones joined with some fellow country-classic lovers and formed The Little Willies. Their second album, released in 2012, featured a Lefty Frizell classic, "If You've Got the Money, I've Got the Time", on which Norah plays a very tasty 10-bar piano solo.

This is a transcription of her 10-bar solo and also includes Lee Alexander's bass part that underpins the piano solo.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Little Willies' "If You've Got the Money, I've Got the Time" on YouTube. (Norah's solo goes from :29 to :46)

Orleans - Love Takes Time - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Orleans was a band formed in Woodstock, New York in 1972 that played a lot of New Orleans music, so they named themselves after that Louisiana city. Their co-founder was Larry Hoppen, who played keyboards and co-wrote "Love Takes Time", which reached #11 in 1979.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 16-bar Piano Intro, which has some chord voicings that can be difficult to pick out exactly. While this is only the Intro, it does reoccur later in the song. If you want to play the Intro precisely as it was recorded, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Orleans' "Love Takes Time" on YouTube.

Pat Benatar - Looking for a Stranger - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Looking for a Stranger" was released in 1982 on Pat Benatar's fourth album, "Get Nervous", her first album to use Charles Giordano on keyboards. From Brooklyn, New York, Giordano played on Bruce Springsteen's 2006 album, "We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions", and in 2008 became the newest member of the E Street Band, after the death of Springsteen's longtime organist Danny Federici.

The organ part in "Looking for a Stranger" is a wonderful, rhythmic, bouncy track that uses several classic rock/pop organ techniques: full-palm glissandi (that Billy Preston pioneered twenty years earlier), rhythmic hand 'slaps' (effectively used by Jon Lord on Deep Purple's "Hush"), a classic Hammond percussion setting during the Verses, and clever pop chord substitutions (A minor over C and B minor over D, in the key of G).

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire song - all 140 measures. If you'd like to study how one of rock's best organists has constructed and recorded an outstanding keyboard part, and learn how to play it yourself, this transcription is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Pat Benatar - Looking for a Stranger (Intro, 1st Verse & 1st Chorus)

Paul Brandt - The Highway Patrol - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Paul Brandt is a Canadian country music artist who had a hit in 2011 with "The Highway Patrol". His co-producer, Steve Rosen, happens to be a crack pianist who laid down a virtuosic piano solo on the the track.

After leaving Berklee College of Music in 1991 and moving to Nashville, Rosen worked as a music producer, songwriter, and keyboardist for over fifteen years with three CCMA Album of The Year Awards, two number one singles, two top five singles and four top ten singles. He has worked with Reba McEntire, Neil Diamond, Keith Urban, Johnny Cash, Dave Matthews, Debbie Gibson, and Martina McBride. 

 

This is a note-for-note transcription of Rosen's blazingly-hot piano solo in "The Highway Patrol", full of honky-tonk octaves, ninth-chord riffs, and chromatic passages. Here's your chance to learn exactly how a terrific studio pianist creates a hot, exciting, up-tempo piano solo.

 

Difficulty: Challenging

 

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To listen, just click: Paul Brandt - "The Highway Patrol" - Piano Solo

Paul McCartney - Maybe I'm Amazed - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Maybe I'm Amazed" was written in 1969 by Paul McCartney shortly before the breakup of The Beatles, and was released in 1970 on his first solo album, "McCartney". Later, in 1977, his band, "Wings", released a single of a live performance of the song from the band's 1976 tour of America, which became a top-ten hit in the United States. This is a transcription of the 1970 studio version.

Although most people don't think of McCartney as being a great piano player, he certainly has recorded some outstanding piano parts: Lady Madonna, Let It Be, and this song. In fact, on Maybe I'm Amazed he played all the instruments: guitars, drums, organ and piano. The piano part includes lots of pianistic goodies: gospel-influenced grace notes, creative use of inversions, chromatic runs, effective dynamics, and unusual chord voicings (sometimes adding a minor third into a Major chord). If you want to study Paul McCartney's piano style, this is an excellent example.

This is a note-for-note transcription of piano part for the entire song - all 73 measures - 3:49 in length. A little of the Hammond B-3 organ part is also included (in the third Chorus). If you want to play "Maybe I'm Amazed" precisely as Paul McCartney recorded it, this will show you how.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Paul McCartney's "Maybe I'm Amazed" on YouTube.

Paul Simon - Still Crazy After All These Years - Chord Chart (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Still Crazy After All These Years" is one of Paul Simon's masterpieces, and contains lots of chords, some of which can be difficult to pick out precisely.

This is not a transcription but is a perfectly accurate chord chart, and shows every chord and inversion. If you'd like to play "Still Crazy" but can't quite figure out all the chords, this chart is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Paul Simon's "Still Crazy After All These Years" on YouTube.

People! - I Love You - Organ & Piano Solo with Bass Guitar (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"I Love You" was the big 1968 hit for the one-hit wonder band from San Jose, California, People! (yes, the exclamation point is part of their name). It sounds similar to The Zombies because it was written and recorded by them. However, the People!'s version came out right afterward and became the bigger hit.

It has a Rod Argent-influenced (The Zombies) Hammond organ solo that has been doubled by a piano playing precisely the same notes (until the last bar, when they diverge). The organ is the dominant instrument, but they're both there.

This note-for-note transcription of the Organ/Piano Solo contains three parts: the organ, the piano, and the bass guitar. If you enjoy 1960's keyboard parts, you'll enjoy learning this one.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is People!'s "I Love You" on YouTube. The organ/piano solo starts at 3:06.

Percy Sledge - When a Man Loves a Woman - Intro - Organ & Bass (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Percy Sledge entered a recording studio in Muscle Shoals, Alabama in 1966 he had no idea that he was about to make history. With a couple of band mates, he had written a song about a broken relationship, originally called "Why Did You Leave Me Baby". That recording would reach #1 on both the Hot 100 and the R&B Singles charts, and become one of the most widely-performed love songs ever, re-titled as "When a Man Loves a Woman".

The recording starts with an 8-chord, 4-bar Intro, played on a Farfisa organ by Spooner Oldham. To most, it sounds like a simple descending bass line-type of chord progression, albeit with an interesting choice of chord #4 (of the 8). However, chord #6 in the progression is not your average V chord, as many incorrectly play it, nor does the bass guitar play an A-flat (the V) there, as many think. Also, all the chords are not whole notes. There is a 16th-note passing tone on the recording.

Since this organ Intro is almost never played exactly as Spooner Oldham played it on Percy's record, this note-for-note transcription of just the 4-bar Intro should prove very helpful if you really want to get it right. Also included is a precise transcription of the bass guitar part in the Intro, because it is also often incorrectly performed and is essential to the Intro sounding like the record.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is Percy Sledge's "When a Man Loves a Woman" on YouTube. The Intro is the first 15 seconds.

Peter Frampton - Baby, I Love Your Way (Live) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Baby, I Love Your Way" was first recorded in 1975 in the studio with Peter Frampton playing electric piano. However, shortly afterward Frampton met the terrific keyboardist/guitarist Bob Mayo, asked him to join his band, and the song was re-recorded 'Live' in 1976 with Mayo on Fender-Rhodes, becoming one of Frampton's biggest hits.

Mayo's Fender-Rhodes electric piano solo in "Baby, I Love Your Way (Live)" is less technically challenging than his complex solo on "Do You Feel Like We Do (Live)", but a lovely, highly creative solo in its own right. Although it includes a 32nd-note run and a chord built in 4ths, its highlight is Mayo's excellent use of thirds, adding a lot of color.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the electric piano solo in "Baby, I Love Your Way (Live)", exactly as played by Bob Mayo. If you'd like to learn the solo just as it was recorded, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the electric piano solo on "Baby, I Love Your Way (Live)" on YouTube.

Peter Frampton - Do You Feel Like We Do (Live) - Elec. Piano Solo (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Although Peter Frampton had recorded four studio albums and one live album with Humble Pie, when he went solo in 1971 his albums had little success. However, that changed in 1976 with his huge hit, "Do You Feel Like We Do", recorded live in 1975 at SUNY Plattsburgh's Memorial Hall. The album it was on, "Frampton Comes Alive", was the biggest selling album of 1976, and has been certified as six times platinum.

In 1975 Bob Mayo joined Frampton's band as keyboardist and guitarist, and within months recorded the now-legendary electric piano solo in the live version of "Do You Feel Like We Do". He began studying music at age five, focusing on classical piano, and developed formidable jazz skills along the way.

His Fender-Rhodes solo in "Do You Feel Like We Do" is over a minute long, and incorporates about as many jazz elements as possible without becoming a straight-ahead jazz solo. Venturing far away from the home key's mode or scale, Mayo at times uses left-hand chords built in 4ths, alternating right-hand/left-hand conga-like rhythms, inverted left-hand voicings, and wonderful jazz scales and substitutions.

This is a note-for-note transcription not only of the entire 24-bar (68 seconds) electric piano solo but also of the preceding 5-bar Intro to the solo, plus the 8-bar section immediately after the solo when Frampton's vocal re-enters. It is 38 bars long, and covers almost a minute-and-a-half of Mayo's outstanding performance. If you've wanted to play, or at least to study and to understand, this outstanding keyboard solo, here is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is "Do You Feel Like We Do (Live)" on YouTube. The electric piano solo begins at 4:09, and continues through 5:35.

Plum Nellie - A Love Like Yours - Piano & Organ Parts (trans. & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Plum Nellie is a two-man band from the UK - a great singer, Sam Dean, and an outstanding pianist/B-3 player, Joe Glossop, whose natural style is heavily influenced by Leon Russell and Ray Charles. In this Holland-Dozier-Holland classic first recorded by Martha & the Vandellas in 1963 and later by Ike & Tina Turner (produced by Phil Spector) in 1966, Glossup accompanies Dean with only an exquisite, gospel-rock B-3 part - no other instruments to distract from the great Hammond/Leslie accompaniment.

You've probably never heard of Plum Nellie (not to be confused with the 1970s psychedelic band), nor of Joe Glossop, a highly-respected London-based session player whose specialty is B-3 organ and 1960's R&B styles. If not, you should listen to their 2-man YouTube videos - wonderfully tasteful, solid keyboard playing.

This is a transcription of Glossop's Hammond organ part on "A Love Like Yours". If you'd like to learn how to play the church-influenced licks just as he plays them, this is what you need. Also, this is actually a double-score that contains not only the original organ part but also my own arrangement of it for gospel-rock acoustic piano. The organ part sounds great by itself, as does the piano arrangement, which is based very closely on the original organ part. They also sound terrific played together (listen below).

So whether you play organ or piano, you can play "A Love Like Yours" just like Plum Nellie recorded/videotaped it.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) organ & piano score

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2) piano arrangement only

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Here is Plum Nellie's "A Love Like Yours" on YouTube.

To listen to my piano arrangement, click here: "A Love Like Yours" (with piano)

Plum Nellie - That Lucky Old Sun - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Plum Nellie is a two-man band from the UK - a great singer and an outstanding pianist/B-3 player. The two perform "That Lucky Old Sun" as an homage to Ray Charles, who often performed it.

Joe Glossop, whose natural piano style is influenced by Ray Charles (& Leon Russell), lays down a beautifully understated gospel/blues piano part on this old classic, using many of the gospel techniques that Ray Charles himself used: grace-notes deep in the Left Hand, tremolos, octave fills, Left-Hand 10ths, a 3rd-up modulation, and others. And in the Out section Glossop throws in licks straight out of Ray's own vocabulary.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Joe Glossop's entire piano part in Plum Nellie's performance/video. If you enjoy the gospel-blues piano styles of Ray & Leon, you'll love learning and playing this outstanding version of "That Lucky Old Sun".

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Plum Nellie's "That Lucky Old Sun" on YouTube.

Procol Harum - A Whiter Shade of Pale - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest Hammond organ parts ever recorded is Matthew Fisher's Bach-influenced performance on "A Whiter Shade of Pale". In 2003 Procol Harum performed an even longer, absolutely terrific version in their "Live at the Union Chapel" concert. The original recording was 4:03 in length; the "Live at the Union Chapel" performance is 7:02, three minutes longer! Matthew Fisher plays not only his classic original parts, but adds about three minutes of equally awesome new material!

If you'd like to have all the intricacies of Matthew Fisher's organ parts revealed to you, so that you can study them, learn them, and perform them yourself exactly as he does, this note-for-note transcription of both hands - every organ note - is your solution. It's really an amazing organ part - all 123 measures!.

To see a customer's comment on this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Procol Harum's 2003 "Live at the Union Chapel" performance on YouTube.

 

The Ramsey Lewis Trio - The 'In' Crowd - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Ramsey Lewis recorded "The 'In' Crowd" at a live Washington, D.C. gig, it was as an afterthought. His trio had needed a new, fun 'up' song, and had just learned it. Having almost finished their set, his drummer prodded him to play that new song. They did. It was recorded live, and made history in becoming one of the best-selling 'jazz' instrumentals of all time. "The 'In' Crowd" is a textbook of 1960's R&B funk piano, with terrific Right Hand piano riffs supported by a softer, rhythmic Left Hand, often playing inversions (letting the upright bass play the roots).

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire single recording - all 115 measures, 3:12 in length. If you've ever wondered just how Ramsey Lewis achieved his unique, R&B/jazz piano style on "The 'In' Crowd", this will show you how to play it exactly as Ramsey Lewis did in 1965.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the Ramsey Lewis Trio's "The 'In' Crowd" on YouTube.

Ray Charles - Boogie Woogie (1953 Instrumental) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1953 Ahmet Ertegün put 22-year-old Ray into the studio and recorded "Boogie Woogie" - almost two minutes long, a total of seven amazing 12-bar-blues stanzas of nothing but Ray on piano - no vocals, no other instruments. During those seven 'chapters' Ray raises the roof.

Gifted with perfect pitch, Ray Charles was a spectacular improviser, as comfortable in jazz as in R&B. During that session Ray recorded an instrumental piano solo version of "Boogie Woogie" that would not be released until 52 years later, on a 2005 compilation, Pure Genius: The Complete Atlantic Recordings (1952 - 1959).

Based upon a bouncy, propulsive left hand boogie pattern, "Boogie Woogie"'s right hand includes lots of great piano tricks: from exquisitely dissonant quarter-note triplets to bluesy sixths to hugely fat 6-note chords. And one chorus (the 3rd, at 1:04) swaps the normal 5ths-based L.H. pattern for a broken-octave walking arpeggio that really lifts the roof.

Every phrase is classic Ray Charles - a boogie-woogie piano seminar, demonstrated in 88 bars.

If you like Brother Ray, it's hard to do better than this rousing classic, hidden for 52 years.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording - all 88 bars, complete with Performance Notes explaining the nuances and suggesting fingering for those huge 6-note chords. If you'd like to learn to boogie-woogie exactly like Ray Charles did, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Ray Charles' 1953 solo piano version of "Boogie Woogie" on YouTube.

Ray Charles - Heartbreaker (1953 Instrumental Version) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1953 Ahmet Ertegün put 22-year-old Ray into the studio and recorded "Heartbreaker", which was the B-side to "Feelin' Sad", his fourth single for Atlantic Records. Gifted with perfect pitch, Ray Charles was a spectacular improviser, as comfortable in jazz as in R&B. During that session Ray recorded an instrumental piano solo version of "Heartbreaker" that would not be released until 52 years later, on a 2005 compilation, Pure Genius: The Complete Atlantic Recordings (1952 - 1959).

Ray's piano improvisation is about 2:08 long, a total of seven amazing 12-bar-blues verses of nothing but Ray on piano - no vocals, no other instruments. During those seven verses Ray plays in a gospel-infused R&B style with some jazz-influenced chords and runs thrown into the bluesy mix.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording - all 84 bars, complete with Performance Notes explaining some of the nuances. Every 2-bar phrase is a classic Ray Charles piano riff - an R&B piano seminar, demonstrated in 37 licks. If you've loved Ray Charles' piano-playing, use this transcription to study his style and see how he achieved his classic jazz-influenced R&B sound. This will show you exactly how he did it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Ray Charles' 1953 solo piano version of "Heartbreaker" on YouTube.

Ray Charles - Makin' Whoopee - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In November 1964 Ray Charles released a single of a classic jazz/blues song from 1928, "Makin' Whoopee". The 'A' side contained Ray's vocal version and the 'B' side contained his Instrumental version, recorded before a Live audience. As with all of Ray's recordings, he made this one sound like he'd composed it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire instrumental version of "Makin' Whoopee" - about 2:37 long. If you're a student of the blues or would like to learn more about Ray's unique piano style, you'll enjoy seeing what Left Hand chords and their voicings that he uses to support his classic Right Hand riffs, which even include a tremolo in 10ths. And the Chorus has some great, fat two-handed chords that contrast perfectly with the riffs during the Verses.

This transcription also includes an alternate way to voice the Chorus chords, more like Billy Preston or a Gospel pianist might play them. So you have Ray's own notes exactly, plus the alternate version.

This comes in a ZIP file that contains the same transcription in two different formats. One has two bars per line, and the other has some passages with only one bar per line, making them a little more legible. The only difference is the number of pages. They both contain the Alternate Chorus at the very end.

If you like Ray Charles' piano style, this transcription will show you exactly how he gets that Ray Charles 'sound'.

Difficulty: Challenging

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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To listen, just click: Ray Charles - "Makin' Whoopee" Instrumental version.

Ray Charles - Mess Around - 1953 Rehearsal (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Ray Charles started recording at the age of 19 in 1949 when he charted his first single, "Confession Blues", which reached #2 on the R&B chart. In 1952 he signed with Atlantic Records and a year later released "Mess Around", which reached #3 on the R&B chart.

Before he recorded it, Ray and Ahmet Ertegun (who wrote the song) rehearsed "Mess Around" with just Ray playing piano and Ertegun singing.

The left hand is a classic broken-octave boogie-woogie pattern, with the right hand being Ray's own bluesy style. It was an historic recording that wasn't released for 52 years, until 2005 on The Complete Atlantic Recordings (1952 - 1959).

This is a note-for-note transcription of that 1953 rehearsal recording, which contained a piano solo. This transcription also includes Ray's piano solo from the studio recording of "Mess Around" released later that year. So this transcription not only contains every note that Ray played in the 1953 rehearsal but also has two piano solos, the one from the rehearsal performance plus the solo from the studio-recorded single version.

If you'd like to play "Mess Around" exactly as Ray Charles did, this is exactly what you need. It's an excellent way of studying Ray's inimitable, unique piano style.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Here is Ray Charles' 1953 rehearsal version of "Mess Around" on YouTube.

And here on YouTube is the piano solo from Ray Charles' 1953 single release of "Mess Around". This solo is also included in the transcription.  

Ray Charles - Sweet Sixteen Bars - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1957 Ray Charles recorded one of the greatest slow gospel-blues instrumentals ever, "Sweet Sixteen Bars", a long (4:07), completely instrumental performance of wall-to-wall Ray Charles' piano.

The sparse instrumentation of only piano, bass and drums allows Ray's piano to stand out and shine, with no distractions. There are no vocals whatsoever, and no other solos - no bass solo, no drum solo - only the genius himself transforming his piano into a slow acoustic piano sermon, speaking from his very soul.

And slow it is - Not to get too technical, but the piece is in 6/4, which by definition contains two beats per measure, each beat subdivided into three quarter notes. His tempo begins at a very slow 36 BPM and actually slows down further over the course of the four minutes until it reaches a molasses-slow tempo of 31 BPM!

If you want to study Ray Charles' amazing gospel-blues piano style, there is no better recording than this classic.

To see customers' comments on this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Ray's 1957 performance on YouTube.

Ray Charles - What'd I Say - Electric Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1959 Ray Charles recorded one of the classic keyboard parts  - the Wurlitzer electric piano part on his "What'd I Say". He had improvised it - a 12-bar blues progression - on-the-spot in December 1958 to fill time at the end of a concert, and the crowd went wild. He started performing it at subsequent concerts, always with overwhelming audience responses. By February Tom Dowd had engineered it on Atlantic Records' new 8-track recorder, and the rest is R&B and rock-and-roll history.

Ray Charles' Wurlitzer electric piano starts the song, playing all 12-bars of the intro with just a very catchy, rhythmic single line (although played with two hands). Then at the beginning of Verse 1 the rhythm section comes in and he changes the piano part to a rhythmic pattern of thirds and single notes, while his left hand is helping to accent the "2&" push - the pattern that continues throughout the song.

The second Verse starts with a piano solo 4-bar breakdown, then the piano resumes the same pattern established in Verse 1. Ray begins singing in Verse 3.

Since the first two Verses are instrumental and define exactly what the piano will continue to play throughout the rest of the song, there is no need to transcribe more. This note-for-note transcription ends when the vocal comes in at the beginning of Verse 3.

Although performed by many bands over the years, the piano part is almost never played correctly. The 12-bar intro is relatively easy to pick out, but after that no one ever gets the Wurlitzer electric piano part exactly right. Here it is, note-for-note.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Ray Charles - What'd I Say (Intro, Verses 1&2)

Restless Heart - Hummingbird - Keyboard Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Restless Heart's "Hummingbird" was released in 1986 on their Wheels album, and contains a terrific running-16th-note synth solo.

Played by Dave Innis, the synth solo trades licks with the electric guitar, and is mostly a series of fast (135 BPM) 16th-note runs that sometimes imitate a guitar by using the modulation wheel on the synth (an Emulator 2+).

The bass guitar part under the synth solo is also included.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the synth solo on Restless Heart's "Hummingbird" on YouTube.

Richard Tee - Contemporary Piano - First Piece (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Richard Tee, the leading session player in New York City until his untimely passing at the age of 49, influenced a generation of players with his R&B style. Known not only for great chord substitutions, he had a terrific sense of rhythm, and would often perform with only a drummer, usually Steve Gadd, not needing any other rhythm-section instruments to achieve an amazing, propulsive sound out of the piano. In 1984 he released a tutorial video, Contemporary Piano, where he demonstrated some of his techniques.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the very first piece in that video. It concisely demonstrates that "Richard Tee sound" that so many have tried to copy - both his chords and his rhythms. A virtuoso improvisation, it's very fast, using an alternating-hand technique punctuated by right-hand accents and rhythmic 'pushes'.

If you'd like to better understand how Richard Tee achieved his 'sound', this transcription will prove very helpful.

Difficulty: Challenging

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Watch this video of Richard Tee performing this piece on YouTube.

Richard Tee - Happy Birthday (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Richard Tee was New York's top session player for many years, a master of R&B/Gospel. In 1984 he videotaped an hour-long tutorial, in which he plays "Happy Birthday" simply and basically as it would be played at a children's party. Then he says he's going to play it not in its original 3/4 meter but in 4/4, plus add some substitutions. He then plays it again in his own inimitable R&B/Gospel style and this is the result - a wonderful distillation of some of his most exquisite pianistic elements.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Richard Tee's wonderful 34-second performance of "Happy Birthday", complete with his own rich chord substitutions and syncopated rhythms, ending with an arpeggiated chromatic walk-down that he calls a 'Ray Charles ending'.

If you've ever played "Happy Birthday" for a friend but felt that your version was a bit on the bland side, here's your chance to come prepared next time with the coolest version of "Happy Birthday" ever played - this Richard Tee version is not your grandfather's "Happy Birthday".

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Richard Tee - "Happy Birthday"
To watch, here is Richard Tee's "Happy Birthday" on YouTube. "Happy Birthday" starts at approximately 35:39.

Richard Tee - Happy Birthday - Version 2 (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1984 Richard Tee videotaped an hour-long tutorial (please see the preceding description for more info).

This is a note-for-note transcription of another, second wonderful performance of Richard Tee playing "Happy Birthday" on his tutorial video. This version includes a quintessentially-gospel #iv diminished-7th chord not found in his other version.

Richard Tee's versions of "Happy Birthday" are not your grandfather's "Happy Birthday", unless your grandfather was an old-school Gospel/R&B pianistic genius.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Click here to watch Richard Tee's "Happy Birthday" Version 2 on YouTube.

Richard Tee - Happy Birthday Boogie-Woogie (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1984 Richard Tee videotaped an hour-long tutorial, Contemporary Piano (please see the two preceding descriptions for more info).

This is a note-for-note transcription of another, third wonderful performance of Richard Tee playing "Happy Birthday" on his tutorial video. This version is flat-out old-school boogie-woogie with an amazing broken-octave left hand.

If you've ever wanted to add a rousing, up-tempo version of "Happy Birthday" to your repertoire, Richard Tee's energetic boogie-woogie version is a great choice. BTW, it could personalized by memorizing Tee's left hand pattern and then improvising your own right hand choruses.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to watch Richard Tee's "Happy Birthday Boogie-Woogie" on YouTube.

Rick Wakeman - Ave Maria - Solo Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1825 Franz Schubert composed "Ave Maria", one of the most hauntingly beautiful songs ever written. In 2010 Rick Wakeman recorded it on his "Always with You" CD.

This is my note-for-note transcription of the complete recording of Rick Wakeman's "Ave Maria" - all 4:23 of it. If you'd like to re-create Schubert's masterpiece exactly as Wakeman recorded it, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Rick Wakeman's "Ave Maria" on YouTube.

Rick Wakeman - Morning Has Broken - Solo Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1971 Cat Stevens hired session musician Rick "One Take" Wakeman to play piano on his recording of "Morning Has Broken". In 2017 Wakeman released a CD, Piano Portraits, with his own solo piano version - no band, no vocals, just piano - recorded on a perfectly-tuned Steinway D (9') concert grand.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Rick Wakeman's 2017 version of "Morning Has Broken" - all 158 measures. In this beautiful performance Wakeman uses a rainbow of his pianistic effects: rippling arpeggios similar to (but not the same as) those in Cat Stevens' version, high-register ethereal 'tinkling', warm mid-register arpeggiations, and sensitive dynamics (notated in the transcription).

If you've ever wanted to play "Morning Has Broken", this most recent recording of Wakeman's is the definitive version. And this transcription will show you how to play it perfectly.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Rick Wakeman's version of "Morning Has Broken" from his 2017 "Piano Portraits" CD on YouTube.

Ricky Nelson - Hello Mary Lou - Piano (transcribed & arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Hello Mary Lou" was Ricky Nelson's 13th record to hit the Top 10 during the first four years of his singing career. Released in 1961 on his sixth album, Rick Is 21, "Hello Mary Lou" was written by Gene Pitney, and starts off with a distinctive cowbell Intro played by legendary arranger/producer Jimmie Haskell.

When Ricky Nelson asked me to join his Stone Canyon Band, I listened to his recordings and picked out the original piano parts. At our first rehearsal I proudly told Ricky that I'd picked out the piano part in "Hello Mary Lou". To my astonishment he said that there was no piano part in "Hello Mary Lou", but that what sounded like a piano was in fact his dad Ozzie playing a tenor banjo! We proceeded to try my banjo-piano part and it worked like a charm, bringing a feel to the song that it had lacked for years in live performances. He loved it, and that's the way we always performed it.

This is a note-for-note transcription of my piano part based upon Ozzie Nelson's rhythmic banjo track, exactly as Ricky and I played it in every concert and on Saturday Night Live. If you'd like to recreate the sound of "Hello Mary Lou" this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Ricky Nelson's "Hello Mary Lou" on YouTube.
Click here to see Ricky and me perform "Hello Mary Lou" on Saturday Night Live. Skip over to 6:35.

Ricky Nelson - Travelin' Man - Piano (transcribed & arr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Travelin' Man" was a #1 smash hit for Ricky Nelson in 1961, and may have been the first music video, produced by Ozzie Nelson and tacked onto the end of a TV episode of The Adventures Of Ozzie And Harriet.

When Ricky Nelson asked me to join his Stone Canyon Band, I listened to his recordings and picked out the original piano parts. Ricky loved my version of "Travelin' Man", probably because it's based very closely on the original 1961 piano part - a wonderfully "tinkly" (high register) piano track that adds propulsion to the song.

This is a note-for-note transcription of my piano part that I played in Ricky Nelson's Stone Canyon Band in every concert and on Saturday Night Live. It uses all the important licks from the original recording. If you'd like to study a classic old piano style - a wonderfully upbeat, bouyant style - and play "Travelin' Man" the way Ricky and I performed it, you're going to have a lot of fun playing this transcription.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Ricky Nelson's "Travelin' Man" on YouTube.
Click here to see Ricky and me perform "Travelin' Man" on Saturday Night Live. Skip over to 9:06.

Ricky Skaggs - Country Boy - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1984 Ricky Skaggs released his sixth studio album, "Country Boy". The title track was a #1 country music hit in 1985, and contains some very virtuosic instrumental solos - the piano solo is smokin'! Although only 15 seconds long, the piano solo blazes away at 167 BPM (Beats Per Minute) with a steady, machine-gun stream of 16th notes.

The pianist incorporates lots of showy pianistic techniques: repeated notes, 'yodeling' sixths, ragtime flourishes, ascending octaves - a total of 172 notes in the right hand alone - that is averaging almost 12 notes every second!

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire 10-bar piano solo - a textbook study in flashy country/bluegrass piano.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Ricky Skaggs - "Country Boy" (Piano Solo)

Rod Stewart - Handbags and Gladrags - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Handbags and Gladrags" contains the best piano part of any Rod Stewart recording. Played by the songwriter himself, Mike D'Abo, the piano part is a true classic of late 1960's rock. D'Abo, who was lead singer for Manfred Mann ("Mighty Quinn", etc.), not only played the piano part on Rod Stewart's recording, but he also wrote the lovely oboe/French horn/string section arrangement.

I arranged and conducted "Handbags and Gladrags" for all of Rod Stewart's live "Unplugged" concerts - about 200 around the world, from Wembley Stadium to the palace of the Sultan of Brunei to Madison Square Garden.

This is a note-for-note transcription of every single note of the entire piano part - all 84 measures, the complete song - the long 4:26 version that contains the instrumental seven-bar piano coda stuck onto the end.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click Rod Stewart - "Handbags and Gladrags"

The Rolling Stones (Ian Stewart) - 2120 South Michigan Avenue - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

If you want to hear one of the giants of rock-and-roll keyboards, "2120 South Michigan Avenue" is not a bad place to start. Ian Stewart not only played the Hammond B-3 organ part for this track, plus keyboards on many other of The Stones' recordings, but he is also credited by Keith Richards as being the founder of The Rolling Stones. Stewart was a very strong boogie-woogie player whose favorite pianists were Albert Ammons, Pete Johnson, and Meade 'Lux' Lewis - the three boogie-woogie titans that heavily influenced his own playing.

"2120 South Michigan Avenue" is a three-part jam session, with the organ taking the lead for the first third, then Brian Jones' harmonica for the second third, and Keith Richard's guitar solo for the last third. The organ part is a low- to mid-register growly, dirty-sounding Hammond B-3 that not only displays great licks during the organ solo that comprises the first third of the piece, but also has great licks while backing up the harmonica and guitar solos. Particularly, Stewart's use is 6th's is one of the most creative of any rock instrumental.

And all the licks are there, everyone of them. This is a complete, note-for-note transcription of the entire organ part, the long version - all 3:38 of it - 133 measures. If you'd like to study and play one of the classic Ian Stewart organ parts, this is exactly what you're looking for.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Rolling Stones' "2120 South Michigan Avenue" on YouTube.

The Rolling Stones - Around and Around - Piano Solo (incl. Chorus 1) (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Released on the Rolling Stones' second studio album, "Around and Around" is classic early (pre-1965) Stones, complete with Ian Stewart on piano (Nicky Hopkins had not yet recorded with them).

The piano doesn't come in until the first Chorus (after two Verses), but when it does, it's blazing boogie-rock from Ian Stewart's very first tremolo. The piano part sounds more like a piano solo than an accompanying part, and continues from the Chorus right into an energetic 24-bar boogie-rock piano solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Ian Stewart's wonderful piano solo (including Chorus 1) - a total of 36 bars of tremolos, sixths, thirds, crushed tones, octaves, and rocking rhythms.

If you want to play the piano solo in "Around and Around" exactly as it was recorded, or just study how outstanding boogie-rock is played, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the Rolling Stones' "Around and Around" on YouTube (starting with Chorus 1, where the piano enters, & continuing until 1:20).

The Rolling Stones - Cool, Calm and Collected - Intro & 1st Two Verses - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Cool, Calm and Collected" was released in 1967 on The Rolling Stones' "Between the Buttons" album, and featured a remarkable barrelhouse/ragtime piano track played by Jack Nitzsche, recorded in November 1966. A remarkably talented musician, Nitzsche wrote pop songs, "Needles and Pins", "Up Where We Belong" (for which he won an Academy Award for Best Song), arranged a number of pop/rock hits, including "River Deep and Mountain High" by Ike & Tina Turner and the choral arrangement for The Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want", and also composed movie scores, including those for "The Exorcist" and "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest".

Nitzsche's piano part in "Cool, Calm and Collected" starts the song out with a rollicking barrelhouse piano solo, with the Left Hand full of octaves descending into the lowest registers of the piano while the Right Hand has fun with ragtime-influenced rhythms and voicings. When the vocals enter in the First Verse, the Right Hand piano voicings change to fistfuls of octaves with the Left Hand thumping away in the low registers. There is even a strong reference to Jerry Lee Lewis's style in the first two measures of the Second Verse before resuming an exotic ragtime flavor.

The Rolling Stones used a number of pianists over the years, including Ian Stewart and Nicky Hopkins, but few of their recordings display such a wonderful, eclectic piano part as does "Cool, Calm and Collected". This is a note-for-note transcription of the Intro and first two verses of this early Rolling Stones classic (there is no piano part in the Choruses).

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: The Rolling Stones - Cool, Calm and Collected (Intro & 1st two Verses)

Rolling Stones - Honky Tonk Women 1995 - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The original 1969 Rolling Stones "Honky Tonk Women" track had no piano solo. Fortunately, Chuck Leavell has been playing a solo on it during all the Stones' tours for decades. A particularly good one was videotaped in 1995 in Paris, and released on a three-LP set, Totally Stripped (Paris L'Olympia 1995).

Chuck throws in lots of fun barrel-house techniques, including tremolos in both 6ths and octaves, flips, chromatic runs; and near the end Keith Richards reaches over from the non-keyboard side and starts playing rapidly repeating Little Richard-style clusters. All the while Leavell keeps playing, so there are three hands going. All three hands have been transcribed, including Keith's clusters.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Chuck Leavell's 16-bar piano solo in "Honky Tonk Women". BTW, Elton John also played a piano solo on "Honky Tonk Women" on his 11-17-70 album which you may want to compare with Leavell's; click here for my transcription of Elton's solo.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to watch Chuck Leavell's piano solo on "Honky Tonk Women" on YouTube.  

The Rolling Stones (Ian Stewart) - Key to the Highway - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Ian Stewart, a wonderful boogie-woogie pianist, was the founder of The Rolling Stones, as explained by Keith Richards in his 2010 autobiography, Life: "Ian Stewart. I'm still working for him. To me the Rolling Stones is his band. Without his knowledge and organisation ... we'd be nowhere."

When Stewart died unexpectedly in 1985 shortly after the end of recording The Rolling Stones' "Dirty Work" album, an untitled, hidden, uncredited eleventh track was included on the album. That track, the 33-second "Key to the Highway", is the only solo piano track of his of which I'm aware.

Recorded in 1964 at Chess Studios in Chicago when Stewart was 26 years old, it was never released until the "Dirty Work" album in 1986.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire track (including all of the fade-out) - a wonderful boogie-woogie piano solo that draws very heavily from the late-1930's and early-1940's styles of Pete Johnson, Albert Ammons, and Meade "Lux" Lewis, which were Ian Stewart's favorites.

If you love boogie-woogie, and would like to play Ian Stewart's only recorded solo piano piece exactly as he recorded it, here is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: The Rolling Stones - "Key to the Highway"

The Rolling Stones - Loving Cup - Piano Part by Nicky Hopkins (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Nicky Hopkins recorded the extraordinary piano part for the Rolling Stones' "Loving Cup" in late 1971, when he was at the peak of his pianistic capabilities. The result is a textbook-perfect Rolling Stones piano track incorporating rock, gospel and country - one of the best tracks on their Exile on Main St. album.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Nicky Hopkins' wonderful piano part on "Loving Cup", including his terrific octave runs, tremolos, twangs, and rockin' rhythms - the entire song.

If you'd like to play one of rock's classics exactly as it was recorded by the legendary Nicky Hopkins, this is just what you need. This transcription should be sitting on the music stand of every rock keyboardist's piano.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is the Rolling Stones performing "Loving Cup" on YouTube.

The Rolling Stones - She's a Rainbow - Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When The Rolling Stones recorded "She's a Rainbow" in 1967 for their album Their Satanic Majesties Request, 23-year-old session pianist Nicky Hopkins was to lay down one of rock's most classic, enduring piano parts - an almost Mozarteanly-graceful classically-influenced phrase.

Hopkins' 8-bar phrase shows up four times during the song, each time slightly different. This is a note-for-note transcription of the very first 8-bars - Hopkins' first and most defining statement of this now-famous piano phrase. If you'd like to learn this classic piano phrase exactly as Nicky Hopkins recorded it, including the difficult-to-pick-out Left Hand part, this is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is The Rolling Stones' "She's a Rainbow" on YouTube (this Piano Intro is the first 18 seconds of the video)

The Rolling Stones - Shine a Light - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When the Rolling Stones were recording Exile on Main St. at Sunset Sound Recorders in Los Angeles in 1972, Billy Preston immersed Mick Jagger into gospel music by taking Jagger to the AME (African Methodist Episcopal) Church in South L.A. and exposing the Englishman to some of Preston's own gospel roots. Then when it came to recording the piano part for "Shine a Light" Billy brought a wonderful R&B/Gospel feel to the track.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Billy Preston's entire piano part in "Shine a Light", complete with all his fat 4-note chords, syncopated R&B/Gospel rhythms, octaves, etc. If you're studying Preston's style, this should help you to better understand his amazing bag of keyboard tricks.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is the Rolling Stones' "Shine a Light" on YouTube.

Chuck Leavell - Sympathy for the Devil - Half Chorus (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Rolling Stones have used some of rock's best pianists on their recordings, from Nicky Hopkins to Chuck Leavell. In the new (2024) documentary about Nicky Hopkins, The Session Man, Chuck Leavell plays eight bars of the Chorus in "Sympathy for the Devil" - originally recorded by Nicky Hopkins.

This is a note-for-note transcription of those eight bars, where Leavell gives his own take on the "Sympathy for the Devil" licks played by Nicky Hopkins. Besides the chord voicings and rhythms, this transcription shows how Leavell uses his Left Hand thumb to add rhythm to his Right Hand licks while sustaining lower bass notes with the 5th finger of his left hand.

If you'd like to see how Chuck Leavell plays part of the "Sympathy for the Devil" chorus, this transcription will show you exactly.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to watch Chuck Leavell play those eight bars from the chorus of "Sympathy for the Devil".

Rolling Stones - Sympathy for the Devil - Two 8-bar Verse patterns - Nicky Hopkins (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is a note-for-note transcription of two different 8-bar Verse patterns in "Sympathy for the Devil", recorded by the Rolling Stones with Nicky Hopkins on piano. These two were chosen because of all the piano patterns in the long (6:18) recording, these were the most similar to the two played by Chuck Leavell in the new (2024) documentary about Nicky Hopkins, The Session Man. I wanted to compare Leavell's with Hopkins' 1968 original.

There are a lot of similarities but Nicky's was still quite different - more rhythmic, more notes, different use of the left hand, some different riffs - well worth transcribing, studying and learning.

If you'd like to play "Sympathy for the Devil" well, study both this transcription and that of Leavell's two 8-bar patterns.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to Nicky Hopkin's piano patterns on the Verse of "Sympathy for the Devil" on YouTube.

Click here to watch Chuck Leavell play these two 8-bar Verse patterns in the new (2024) documentary about Nicky Hopkins, The Session Man on YouTube.  

Sam Cooke - Bring It On Home to Me - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Sam Cooke recorded "Bring It On Home to Me" in 1961, he used Ernie Freeman on piano. Freeman was an extremely versatile studio musician/arranger whose recorded work spanned numerous styles, including the gorgeous string arrangement for "Bridge over Troubled Water" as well as the tack piano on "Bumble Boogie" by Bee Bumble & The Stingers. Freeman was a master of all styles of music.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part in "Bring It On Home to Me" - every single measure including all of the fade out. Freeman's piano track is influenced by several different styles, from several Floyd Cramer-style licks to Leon Russell-style octaves to fat, two-handed rhythmic chords. The 4-bar Intro alone is a study in grace-notes, with single-note and two-note grace notes plus a couple of 'flip'-style grace notes. Freeman was a musical genius who brought a lot of different piano techniques to his "Bring It On Home to Me" track.

If you'd like to play this 1961 classic recording exactly as Ernie Freeman played it, or perhaps study some of the piano techniques used on early 1960s recordings, this will show you how it's done.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to Sam Cooke's "Bring It On Home to Me" on YouTube.

Click here to listen to a mix that brings out the piano part.

Santana - Black Magic Woman - Elec. Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Black Magic Woman", one of Santana's biggest hits, was sung by Gregg Rolie, who co-founded the band and also played keyboards. Early in the song Rolie takes an 8-bar Fender Rhodes electric piano solo that sets the minor-key mood perfectly.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Gregg Rolie's now-classic 8-bar electric piano solo in "Black Magic Woman". If you'd like to recreate it exactly as Santana recorded it in 1970, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is Santana's "Black Magic Woman" on YouTube (this solo begins at 1:11).

Santana - Evil Ways - Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

'Evil Ways' is one of Santana's biggest hits, appearing on his 1969 album, "Santana". The organ solo, one of the most famous B-3 solos ever recorded, was performed by Gregg Rolie, who later founded "Journey".

Most keyboardists know that the solo starts on the 9th (an 'A' in the key of G minor), but rarely get it right after that. This is a note-for-note transcription of Gregg Rolie's classic organ solo on Santana's 'Evil Ways' - about a minute long. Now you can play it exactly as Rolie does on Santana's hit recording.

To see a customer's comment on this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Santana - 'Evil Ways' (Organ Solo)

Santana - Oye Como Va - Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Oye Como Va" and "Black Magic Woman" were the big hits on Santana's 1970 "Abaxas" album. And they were both sung by keyboardist Gregg Rolie, who would become a founding member of "Journey" three years later.

Rolie's B-3 organ solo in "Oye Como Va" has become one of rock's classic B-3 solos. Few organists have as good a command of their instrument as Rolie, who builds the solo from a simple tremolo to a climax of full chords moving in Latin rhythms over a tension-building sustained pedal tone.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the full B-3 organ solo, plus the eight bars leading into the solo as well as a couple of bars after the vocal re-enters - 38 bars total. If you'd like to play the "Oye Como Va" solo exactly as recorded, here is your chance to learn it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Santana's "Oye Como Va" on YouTube (this transcription begins at 1:53).

Santana - Smooth - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of Santana's biggest hits, "Smooth" had a scorching-hot rhythm track, with Chester Thompson's wonderful piano part a vital element. Before joining Santana, Thompson played keyboards for Tower of Power.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire song - all 145 measures. If you'd like to play the piano part for "Smooth" exactly as it is on the original studio recording, this is perfect for you.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the video of "Smooth" on YouTube.

Saving Mr. Banks - Richard Sherman demos from "Mary Poppins"

The new Disney movie "Saving Mr. Banks" is about the making of the 1961 movie musical classic, "Mary Poppins". The composer of the songs in "Mary Poppins" was Richard Sherman, who is still alive and well and living in Beverly Hills. In the new (2013) movie "Saving Mr. Banks," actor/musician Jason Schwartzman plays the part of composer Richard Sherman. To authentically recreate the role of Sherman, Jason Schwartzman was given the original demo recordings from 1959 and 1960 from the Disney vaults to study. Disney hired me to transcribe those Richard Sherman piano demos note-for-note so that Jason could play them exactly as Sherman himself had played them during the pre-production  of "Mary Poppins".

Jason described the process in an interview:

I gave those demos to my piano teacher — he’s this guy Elmo Peeler, he’s the greatest.  He sat down for days and days and days and listened to some very crude recordings — at times — and transcribed all of the music as it would’ve been played in 1961 as opposed to ’66 or ’65.  I learned all the songs in that style, so they’re a bit more raw and they’re voiced differently. (The entire interview can be read here on Collider.com.)
 

I gave those demos to my piano teacher—he’s this guy Elmo Peeler, he’s the greatest.  

He sat down for days and days and days and listened to some very crude recordings—at times—and transcribed all of the music as it would’ve been played in 1961 as opposed to ’66 or ’65.  I learned all the songs in that style, so they’re a bit more raw and they’re voiced differently.


Read more at https://collider.com/jason-schwartzman-saving-mr-banks-interview/#i864PsizCqW9gQ4B.99

These are my note-for-note transcriptions of Richard Sherman playing his own wonderful, now-classic songs from the 1961 Disney classic, "Mary Poppins". In "Saving Mr. Banks" Jason Schwartzman plays only small portions of these songs - brief, tantalizing snippets. If you'd like to play the full versions of these songs precisely the way that Sherman conceived them and played them himself, this is your opportunity to do so.

A Man Has Dreams  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.
A Spoonful of Sugar  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.
Chim Chim Cher-ee (Re-Harmonized Version - only 8 bars)  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.
Chim Chim Cher-ee (Slavic Version)  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.
Feed the Birds (Tuppence)  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.
Fidelity Fiduciary Bank  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.
Let's Go Fly a Kite  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.
The Perfect Nanny  Add to Cart  - To listen to a MIDI file of this transcription, click here.

Sister Sledge - We Are Family (Long Version) - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"We Are Family" went platinum, becoming the #1 R&B and #2 pop song on the American charts in 1979, and reaching #1 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs. It the first song that Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards wrote for any act other than their own band Chic.

Two edits of "We Are Family" by Sister Sledge were released, the single edit at 3:35 and the album version at 8:06. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire acoustic piano part for the long version of "We Are Family".

This transcription is from the 24-track multitrack master's isolated piano part, thus making a perfect note-for-note transcription possible. Starting simply, it gradually adds notes, building slowly. Some of my favorite parts are the Left Hand/Right Hand drum paradiddle-type licks occasionally thrown into the turn-arounds. They are all included, of course.

On the album version the rhythm section breaks down for 32 bars with the entire rhythm section muted (except bass and electric piano pads), including the acoustic piano. But during the recording session, the pianist didn't stop playing. His part during those 32 bars was just muted in the final mixdown. Those missing 32 measures of acoustic piano are included in this 208-measure complete transcription.

If you'd like to play one of R&B/Pop's biggest hits exactly as it was recorded, and/or study how a first-rate piano part is constructed, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Sister Sledge's "We Are Family" (Long version) on YouTube.

Smiley Lewis - I Hear You Knocking - Piano Intro by Huey Smith (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Smiley Lewis, a New Orleans R&B singer/guitarist, was the first to record "I Hear You Knocking", later to become a hit for Fat Domino. In 1955 Dave Bartholomew wrote it and produced Lewis' version at J&M Studios in New Orleans, using Huey 'Piano' Smith on piano.

In 1955 Smith, who two years later would write/record "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie-woogie Flu", was a busy 21-year-old session pianist in New Orleans, becoming the piano player with Little Richard's first band in sessions for Specialty Records, plus recording with Lloyd Price, Earl King and Smiley Lewis. "I Hear You Knocking", Lewis big hit, starts out with Smith's rollicking, tremolo-laden piano Intro, heavily influenced by Fats Domino's style.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano Intro exactly as Huey 'Piano' Smith played it. Also included are the first two bars of the Verse, which establish the main piano pattern for the song. If you'd like kick off "I Hear You Knocking" with the exact Intro on the record, or learn how New Orleans tremolos can be played, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Medium

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Here is Smiley Lewis' "I Hear You Knocking" on YouTube.

Sopwith Camel - Hello, Hello - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Sopwith Camel, remembered as part of the San Francisco psychedelic rock music scene of the late 1960's, was the second San Francisco-based band to be signed by a major record company, right after Jefferson Airplane and just before the Grateful Dead. And they were the very first San Francisco-based band to have a hit record -  "Hello, Hello", in January 1967. Their producer, Erik Jacobsen, also produced The Lovin' Spoonful, and later Norm Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky". Although they disbanded after less than two years, during their short life they set attendance records that surpassed such groups as the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead and Quicksilver Messenger Service.

Founding member Terry MacNeil composed "Hello, Hello" and played one of rock's greatest tack piano parts on it - a wonderful ragtime/vaudeville/honky-tonk track that he created in the studio in only one night. The intro was a loose translation of a song MacNeil had learned on guitar, Chet Atkins' "Trambone". The boom-chuck Left Hand part was influenced by MacNeil's mother's piano style, herself an excellent pianist from an earlier era. The classic tack piano track is a textbook study in honky-tonk/vaudeville piano techniques, incorporating tremolos, minimalistic Right Hand & Left Hand voicings rarely playing more than two-notes at the time, and ragtime/honky-tonk rhythms.

This is a note-for-note precise transcription of the tack piano part for the entire song - all 79 measures. If you'd like to recreate a classic 1960's flower-power song exactly as it was played on the record, and study a textbook-perfect tack piano track at the same time, here is your chance.

To see a comment about this transcription from the original pianist that recorded the track, click here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen to the first part of the song, click here: "Hello, Hello" (Intro, Chorus & Verse only)

Steely Dan - My Old School - Verse 1 - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In Steely Dan's second studio album, "Countdown to Ecstasy"in 1973, Donald Fagen (keyboards) and Walter Becker (bass) continued their highly-polished jazz-rock sound. Their arrangements often use chords and rhythms more associated with jazz than pop or rock.

In the Verses in "My Old School" Fagen takes a very common chord progression (I-vi-IV-V), and transforms it with very creative not-so-common chords and rhythms. And unusually, Fagen's left hand is not the same as Becker's bass line.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Donald Fagen's piano part during Verse 1 (all Verses are essentially the same). If you'd like to play the Verses - an important part of this song - exactly as on the recording, this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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And if you'd like to study how Becker's bass part works with Fagen's piano part, note-for-note transcriptions of both the bass part and the piano part during Verse 1 are available for only $1 more.

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Here is "My Old School" on YouTube. The Verse is from :08 to :24.

Steely Dan - Your Gold Teeth II - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Steely Dan's "Your Gold Teeth II" is one of their most musically complex recordings, released on their 1975 album, Katy Lied, with the extraordinary Michael Omartian on piano.

Famous for using chord progressions and harmonies that explore the area between traditional pop sounds and jazz, they are known for their use of add 2 chords, which they nicknamed the "mu major", and "slash chords". This track contains lots of both, along with meter changes, including 3/8, 6/8 and 9/8 measures.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano part. If you'd like to play "Your Gold Teeth II" exactly as Steely Dan recorded it, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Steely Dan's "Your Gold Teeth II" on YouTube.

Stevie Nicks - Rhiannon - 'Live in Chicago' (2008) - Extended Piano Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 2008 Stevie Nicks performed a version of "Rhiannon" that contained an extended solo piano Intro, over a minute-and-a-half long, performed by jazz pianist/composer Darrell Smith. This very atmospheric Intro - in 6/4 and full of minor-ninth and Major-ninth chords - feels complete enough to stand on its own as an independent composition.

Also included are an additional eight measures of the piano part - after the extended Intro - in "Rhiannon" before Stevie Nicks' vocal begins. So this entire transcription contains the first 1:47 before the vocal enters.

Because of the extended piano Intro this is perhaps the very best version of "Rhiannon", released on Stevie Nicks' 'Live in Chicago' (2008) DVD. If you'd like to play this exquisite 'miniature' (evocative of a Chopin Prelude) exactly as it is on the DVD, this note-for-note transcription is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is this very special version of "Rhiannon" on YouTube.

Stevie Ray Vaughan - The House Is Rockin' - Piano Intro & Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1989 Stevie Ray Vaughan recorded his 4th and last album with Double Trouble, "In Step", which included the classic "The House Is Rockin'". Reese Wynans' piano kicks off the song during the Intro with a series of driving descending-chords, later returning to the spotlight with a terrific honky-tonk solo, which includes riffing in 3rds on 9th chords, concluding with a wonderful walkdown in 'yodeling' 6ths.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the Piano Intro and the Piano Solo. The bass guitar part for the Intro & Solo is also included. If you'd like to study honky-tonk piano riffs generally, or would like to play the solo in "The House Is Rockin'" exactly as Reese Wynans recorded it, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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To listen, just click: Stevie Ray Vaughan - "The House Is Rockin'" - Intro & Piano Solo

To listen to a recording of the MIDI file, just click: Stevie Ray Vaughan - "The House Is Rockin'" - Intro & Piano Solo - MIDI

Steppenwolf - Magic Carpet Ride (Live) - Organ Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Magic Carpet Ride", a true rock classic, was Steppenwolf's second-biggest hit (behind "Born To Be Wild"), released in 1968 on their album "The Second". The studio version does not have an organ solo for an Intro. However, Steppenwolf's later live performances do begin the song with a flashy, gothic B-3 Hammond organ solo by Michael Wilk, using free-timing, palm glissandi, and some fun runs using the Dorian mode.

This note-for-note transcription starts at the very beginning of the piece (a low-pitched palm glissando), and continues through the entire Intro (which is an organ solo), and then ends right after the vocal enters at Verse 1 - about 49 seconds into the song. In addition to the entire organ Intro, the main 2-bar pattern that kicks off the first verse is also included.

If you'd like to play this rock classic exactly as Steppenwolf themselves perform it - or just to study how Michael Wilks constructed this wonderful, virtuosic B-3 solo - here's your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the video of this Live performance of "Magic Carpet Ride" by Steppenwolf on YouTube.

Styx - Fooling Yourself - All Keyboard Parts - Complete Song (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Originally on Styx's seventh studio album in 1977, The Grand Illusion, "Fooling Yourself" was released in 1978 as a single and reached #29 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Dennis DeYoung, a self-taught keyboardist, played all the keyboard parts, including synthesizers and B-3.

This is a note-for-note transcription of all the keyboard parts in the entire song - and at 5:29 it's a long song - including both synth solos and the B-3 organ part. Also, it includes the ending exactly as performed in live concerts (the hit record fades out). If you'd like to play "Fooling Yourself" exactly as it was recorded and performed, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Styx' "Fooling Yourself" on YouTube.

Styx - Fooling Yourself - Synth Solo No.1 (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Originally on Styx's seventh studio album in 1977, The Grand Illusion, "Fooling Yourself" was released in 1978 as a single and reached #29 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It contained two outstanding synthesizer solos by Dennis DeYoung, performed on an Oberheim Four Voice synth. The first synth solo is unusual in that part of it is played in 7/4 time. It's in three sections, each with a different guitar rhythm.

This is a note-for-note transcription of that first Synth Solo, and also includes the guitar rhythms and chords. If you'd like to play Dennis DeYoung's exciting and challenging synth solo exactly as he recorded it - including the terrific 16th-note runs - this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Fooling Yourself" on YouTube. (The synth solo goes from 3:10 to 4:01).

Styx - Fooling Yourself - Synth Solo No.2 (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Eight seconds longer than the first synth solo (50 seconds vs. 42 seconds), Dennis DeYoung's second synth solo on "Fooling Yourself" is even more involved and more virtuosic than the first solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the second Synth Solo, exactly as it was recorded - including blazing 32nd- and 64th-note runs. This also includes the guitar rhythms and chords.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is "Fooling Yourself" on YouTube. (This second synth solo goes from 4:45 through the fade-out).

Sugar Chile Robinson - Numbers Boogie - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Sugar Chile Robinson was a blues/boogie child prodigy at the age of three, but he never sounded like a child. His boogie-woogie used terrific chords, great lines and rhythms, and often employed excellent chromatics. It was like he came fully formed, musically, right out of the box.

In 1949 at the tender age of ten he recorded "Numbers Boogie" that reached the R&B chart. This is a note-for-note transcription of "Numbers Boogie", as he performed it on a short film that also included Billie Holiday and Count Basie - pretty musically-exalted company, indeed.

This transcription not only contains all of his chords, rhythms and notes, but it also shows where he was playing with his closed right fist and with his right elbow - he not only 'swung' like crazy but he was also quote a showman.

If you like boogie-woogie from its heyday in the 1940's, you'll love learning and playing this old classic from a very young piano genius.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Watch and listen to Sugar Chile Robinson perform "Numbers Boogie" on YouTube here.

 

And if you want to take Sugar Chile's "Numbers Boogie" up another notch, I've re-arranged his Left Hand part into broken octaves, sort of like Liberace might have played it, creating quite the virtuoso boogie-woogie. The Right Hand is still exactly like Sugar Chile played it, but the Left Hand is now even more blazing.

Difficulty: Moderate to Challenging

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A MIDI file of this transcription/arrangement with the Left Hand in Broken Octaves is also available:

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Click here to listen to Sugar Chile Robinson's "Numbers Boogie" with a broken-octave Left Hand part.  

Sugarloaf - Green-Eyed Lady (Long Version) - Organ & Clavinet Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Recorded in 1970, "Green-Eyed Lady" is one of rock's most important Hammond B-3 recordings. The brain-child of keyboardist Jerry Corbetta, "Green-Eyed Lady" uses the B-3 to create atmosphere and color in ways never before heard, including pitch-bends in the Out section. And a clavinet is also a very important instrument, especially in the extraordinary full-length album version.

This is a note-for-note transcription of both the organ and clavinet parts in the longest version (the album version) of "Green-Eyed Lady" - all 6:53. In terms of measures this is my longest transcription, at 254 bars (by comparison, the long version of "American Pie" is 'only' 242 bars long). Also, this transcription includes more Performance Notes than any other, eighteen. Because of its length this transcription is a little more expensive than others, but on a per-measure basis (and of two different instruments), it's actually one of my least expensive.

The organ and clavinet parts stand out for several reasons. They're much more chromatic than most rock keyboard parts, in both its single-note lines and chords. The single-note lines do not stick to just the E minor pentatonic scale during either the main riffs or the solo. And the chords are not just diatonic but sometimes chromatically altered.

The long version, which this is, contains a longer organ solo than the shorter radio edit, plus the clavinet has a terrific run in the long version that was edited out of the radio version. If you've always wondered exactly how "Green-Eyed Lady" was played, this is just what you need. It's a terrific study in fairly advanced rock musical theory, as well as how to get a great deal of color and atmosphere out of a B-3.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Sugarloaf's "Green-Eyed Lady" (Long Version) on YouTube.

Supertramp - School - Electric Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"School" is the first track on Supertramp's third album, "Crime of the Century" (1974), and remains one of the band's great classics. A major part of Supertramp's sound is the extensive use of a Wurlitzer 200A electric piano, and "School" is no exception, containing a terrific minute-long (62 seconds) electric piano solo. Although Roger Hodgson wrote the song, Rick Davies composed the electric piano solo, and it is quite the solo, with a second, different electric piano part entering about two-thirds of the way through the solo.

This is a transcription of the entire 62-second electric piano solo, including both electric piano parts. Also included is the bass guitar part during the solo, so that the keyboardist can better understand what is going on underneath him/her during Rick Davies' excellent solo. This should also prove very helpful to bands that are working up "School" and want it to sound exactly right.

If you'd like to play Supertramp's "School" exactly as it was recorded, it is now available to you.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Supertramp - "School" (Electric Piano Solo)

Tedeschi Trucks Band - Come See About Me - Clavinet Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 2011 the Tedeschi Trucks Band released its debut album, Revelator, which would go on to win the Grammy Award for Best Blues Album. The very first track, "Come See About Me", includes an excellent clavinet-with-wah-wah solo, played by Kofi Burbridge, a brilliant player born with perfect pitch. This is a note-for-note transcription of that brief but blazing 9-bar clavinet solo.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the clavinet solo in "Come See About Me" by the Tedeschi Trucks Band on YouTube. 

Three Dog Night - One Man Band - 8-bar Organ Intro (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"One Man Band" was released in 1970 on Three Dog Night's "Naturally" album, with keyboards played by Jimmy Greenspoon. The song begins with eight bars of a harmonically-rich (fat chords) Hammond B-3 organ part that either uses both hands on two manuals or was double-tracked. This is a transcription of the B-3 organ part in those eight bars that kick off the song.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Three Dog Night - "One Man Band" (Organ Intro)

Them (Van Morrison) - Gloria - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1963 a just-turned-eighteen Van Morrison wrote "Gloria" with one of his first bands. Less than a year later, his next band, Them, recorded it. Released as a B-side, it went on to be Van Morrison's first hit record, and to become a garage-band classic, covered by The Doors, AC/DC, Patti Smith, Rick Springfield, Jimi Hendrix, and Grateful Dead.

The producer of the recording session felt that the keyboard player for Them was too inexperienced, so he hired an older, professional pianist/arranger, Arthur Greenslade, to play on the date. Although most organists play "Gloria" using only three basic Major triads, Greenslade used a few creative chord voicings during the Choruses.

This is a transcription of the organ part for the entire organ part to "Gloria". If you'd like to play it exactly as it was recorded on Van Morrison's first hit, this is your chance.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Gloria" on YouTube.

Toby Keith - American Soldier - Chord Chart & Important Lines (transcr. by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 2003 Toby Keith's "American Soldier" reached #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. This is a chord chart for the entire song, and also includes some of the more important instrumental lines, such as strings, chimes, guitar and piano. This chord chart is perfect if you're in a cover band and would like to accurately perform the song.

Difficulty: Easy

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Here is Toby Keith performing "American Soldier" on YouTube. The song starts at 25 seconds into the video.

Tom Waits - I Can't Wait To Get Off Work - Piano Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

There are a lot of ways to say "I love you", and the prolific Tom Waits says it in his own way, such as in the title of this infrequently-heard classic: "I Can't Wait To Get Off Work and See My Baby on Montgomery Avenue", released in 1976 on his "Small Change" album. He can't wait to get off work to see the love of his life, and he creates a nightclub atmosphere with the music, while telling his love story.

The recording uses only piano and upright string bass to create a perfectly smoky nightclub sound. The key is Waits' choice of chords and voicings. He uses chords that are often found in jazz performances but rarely found in rock songs, such as an exquisitely-voiced G7(b13#9). To reinforce that intimate nightclub-trio sound, he also chooses voicings closer to jazz than rock or pop, often by leaving out the root of the chord completely and having the upright bass to play it instead.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano part for the entire 3:17 song - all 58 measures - exactly as Tom Waits himself played it. If you'd like to study some really wonderful jazz chord voicings of a master rock composer, this is your opportunity.

To see customers' comments about this transcription, click here, and also here.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "I Can't Wait To Get Off Work" on YouTube.

If you want not only the piano part but also the upright bass part, a transcription is also available that contains the bass part note-for-note - every single bass note of the entire Tom Waits' recording. This transcription contains both the piano part and the bass part (three staves):

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P.S. A bit of trivia. Another of Waits' songs on the same "Small Change" album is "Tom Traubert's Blues", which I arranged and conducted almost every night on Rod Stewart's "Unplugged" concert tours.

Toto - Africa - Synth Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1982 Toto released their fourth, and most successful, album, Toto IV, which won four Grammies. "Africa" was one of the hit singles from that album. David Paich, co-founder of Toto, had seen a moving TV documentary about the suffering of the people in Africa, and tried to imagine how he would feel if he were there and what he'd do. So he wrote a song about a man's love of a continent.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Paich's 7-bar synth solo, which begins at 2:57 into the recording. Quite virtuosic, it is primarily in double-notes: double-3rds, 4ths, and 5ths. Also included is the bass guitar part during the synth solo. If you'd like to play the synth solo in "Africa" exactly as it was recorded, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Toto's "Africa" on YouTube. The synth solo starts at 2:51.

Toto - Rosanna - Synth Solo & Piano Out Section (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Released in 1982 on Toto IV, "Rosanna" won three Grammies: Record of the Year, Best Vocal Arrangement for Two or More Voices, and Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocals. It was Toto's biggest hit.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the 8-bar triple-synth solo that begins at 2:54 into the song. Also included are seven bars of the Hammond B-3 organ part that starts at 3:28; plus a 1-bar horn riff 2:24 that reoccurs during the song.

The Out section of Toto's "Rosanna" is essentially a 36-bar acoustic piano solo played by David Paich. This new, updated transcription includes the terrific piano part that comprises the Out section, all the way down to the the very last note of the fade-out. It also contains the nine bars of the B-3 organ part that immediately precedes the Out section.

If you'd like to play the synth solo in "Rosanna" as well as the entire 36-bar Out section piano solo, this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Rosanna" on YouTube. And here is the piano solo in the Out section.

The Tractors - Baby Likes To Rock It - Piano Intro & Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Tractors formed in 1994 and had their first album go double-platinum. The single from it was "Baby Likes To Rock It", which hit #11 on Hot Country Songs.

Walt Richmond plays a rockin' 4-bar piano Intro to kick off the country-boogie song, and then later in the song takes a driving, honky-tonk piano solo, full of "yodeling 6th's", driving octaves, and a boogie-woogie Left Hand.

This is a note-for-note transcription of both the 4-bar Piano Intro and the 10-bar Piano Solo.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Baby Likes To Rock It" on YouTube. The Piano Intro starts at :51 and the Piano Solo starts at 2:39 on the video.

Travis Tritt - T-R-O-U-B-L-E - Piano Solo by Hargus 'Pig' Robbins (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Travis Tritt recorded his "T-R-O-U-B-L-E-" album in 1992, he used the most legendary session pianist in Nashville, Hargus 'Pig' Robbins, on most of the tracks, including the title track. When Floyd Cramer cut back on his session work in favor of live concerts after his 1960 hit instrumental" Last Date", 'Pig' Robbins became the most in-demand pianist in country music. Blind since childhood, Robbins had perfect pitch and recorded some of the most legendary C&W tracks over a 60-year period, from Charlie Rich's "Behind Closed Doors" to Crystal Gayle's "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue" to Bob Dylan's Blonde on Blonde album.

"T-R-O-U-B-L-E" is an uptempo song - 181 BPM - with a brief, 11-second piano solo. This is a note-for-note transcription of that blazing piano solo, played by 'Pig' Robbins. Although it is brief, it is essentially in three sections: 1) octaves plus a fifth 2) boogie-woogie thirds 3) glissandi.

This transcription also contains the bass guitar line throughout the solo.

If you'd like to play 'Pig' Robbins' piano solo exactly as he did - or just study his wonderful style - this is just what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to hear the piano solo on Travis Tritt's 'T-R-O-U-B-L-E" on YouTube.  

U2 - With or Without You - Infinite Guitar Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

When Daniel Lanois was producing U2's The Joshua Tree album in 1987 he turned the Edge (Dave Evans) onto a new invention called the Infinite Guitar. Immediately upon receiving and setting it up, the Edge laid down two tracks with it on "With or Without You" and put it down. Lanois used both those tracks in the final mix, where they sound like an eerie blend of synthesizer and guitar. It became U2's first #1 hit in the USA.

This is a note-for-note transcription of both Infinite Guitar tracks, exactly as played by Edge. If you'd like to play these parts on your synthesizer, this is exactly what you need - perfect for synth players as well as for guitarists.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is U2 performing "With or Without You" on YouTube.

Usher - Mercy Mercy Me/What's Going on Medley (Acoustic Cover) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

R&B singer Usher has had tremendous success, selling 80 million albums worldwide, in addition to winning 17 Billboard Music Awards; eight Soul Train Music Awards; five Grammys; and nine awards from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. His smooth, soulful vocal style is sometimes compared to Marvin Gaye, one of his musical heroes.

Usher has recorded a medley combining two Marvin Gaye songs, "Mercy Mercy Me" and "What's Going On". And it includes an excellent, tasteful, piano solo in the Motown style, played by Arthur 'Buddy' Strong. This is a note-for-note transcription of that 14-bar piano solo, including tremolos, octave grace-notes, left-hand voicings and beautiful lush chords. If you'd like to to study and play that Motown style, this is exactly what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is that piano solo on Usher's "Mercy Mercy Me/What's Going on Medley (Acoustic Cover)" on YouTube.

Van Morrison - Ain't Gonna Moan No More - Organ Intro & Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Van Morrison has always loved jazz, and on his 2018 album, The Prophet Speaks, he invited perhaps the greatest jazz organist in the world, Joey DeFrancesco, to record with him. "Ain't Gonna Moan No More" is one of the tracks from that album that prominently features the Hammond B-3 organ.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Joey DeFrancesco's organ Intro and Solo, plus the first six bars of the organ part during the subsequent guitar solo - a total of 23 bars of terrific B-3 playing by a true master.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is Van Morrison's "Ain't Gonna Moan No More" on YouTube. The organ solo begins around 1:38 into the recording.

Van Morrison - Benediction - Piano Part + Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Benediction" is a strongly Gospel-influenced song from Van Morrison's 2017 album, Roll with the Punches. The very first line that Van Morrison sings is "My message this evening..." and the entire song feels like a sermon from the pulpit. The pianist was Jason Rebello.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire recording - 3:12 long - all 88 measures, including an excellent B-3 organ solo. It starts with only piano, playing church-style licks in free timing, until the rhythm section kicks in and the first verse begins. The piano part contains Gospel-voiced walk-downs, tremolos (Left Hand and Right Hand), and Richard Tee-style Gospel riffs. At the very end it doesn't fade out, but ends with a brief piano Blues-Gospel Coda.

If you like Gospel-rock, this transcription will help you to play it exactly as it was recorded. Say 'Amen' somebody.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription (just the piano part, without the organ solo) is also available:

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Here is Van Morrison's "Benediction" on YouTube.  

Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl - Organ Part (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1967, three years after his first hit - "Gloria" with Them - Van Morrison recorded "Brown Eyed Girl," that became one of rock's classic recordings. Originally titled "Brown-Skinned Girl," the song has a lilting Jamaica/Calypso feel to it. Legendary writer/producer Bert Berns produced the track, and hired session musician Paul Griffin to play keyboards on it. Griffin, one of the greatest keyboard players of his generation, recorded the piano tracks on Don McLean's "American Pie", Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone", "Positively Fourth Street", and "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35", and many others.

This is a transcription of the organ part for the entire song - all 116 measures. Parts of the song have the organ mixed so low that it is very difficult to hear. If you've wanted to play "Brown Eyed Girl" exactly as it was recorded, but couldn't hear the organ well enough to pick it out, here is your chance to learn it exactly as Paul Griffin recorded it.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is "Brown Eyed Girl" on YouTube.

Van Morrison - Moondance - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Moondance", the title song on Van Morrison's 1970 album, is the most frequently-played song by Morrison in concert,  the only song he's performed over a thousand times. The piano solo, played by Jeff Labes, combines elements of jazz and rock, and is one of the most important piano solos ever recorded because of its successful fusion of those elements.

The piano solo is 16 bars long, and is followed by a sax solo. This is a note-for-note transcription of the entire piano solo, plus the first four bars of the piano part behind the subsequent sax solo - both hands. The piano solo incorporates two-handed arpeggios, sixths, thirds, pentatonic and modal runs, broken octaves - lots of wonderful pianistic techniques, in just 16 measures.

If you've ever wanted to learn Van Morrison's "Moondance" piano solo exactly as it was recorded, here is your opportunity.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, Just click: Van Morrison - "Moondance" Piano Solo

Vince Guaraldi - Christmas Is Coming - Improv Section (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1965 the Charlie Brown Christmas was broadcast for the first time - the first TV special based on the Peanuts comic strip. It would become a Christmas TV staple, airing every Christmas season for 56 years. The soundtrack album sold over 5 million copies, making it the second-best-selling jazz album in history (behind Miles Davis' Kind of Blue). On November 18, 2021, it was ranked as the No. 1 Greatest Holiday 200 album of All Time by Billboard.[ In the album's "Christmas Is Coming" track Vince Guaraldi improvises a piano solo, about 1:20 long.

This is a note-for-note transcription of that improvised piano solo, and includes a few bars before and after the solo. If you'd like to play Vince Guaraldi's ad-libbed "Christmas Is Coming" piano solo exactly as he played it - or just study his style - this is what you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

Two options are available:

1) Sheet music

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2) MIDI file

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Click here to listen to Vince Guaraldi's ad-libbed "Christmas Is Coming" piano solo on YouTube.  

Warren Zevon - Lawyers, Guns and Money - Intro (transcribed & arranged by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Warren Zevon released "Lawyers, Guns and Money" in 1978 on his Excitable Boy album. Although there is no keyboard on the recording, I've transcribed the rhythm guitar and the bass guitar parts for the Intro exactly as played on the record, and arranged them for piano. This is a note-perfect transcription of the 6-bar Intro.

Difficulty: Easy

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To listen, just click: Warren Zevon - "Lawyers, Guns and Money" (6-bar Intro)

Warren Zevon - Werewolves of London - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Werewolves of London" contains one of the most famous piano riffs in pop music - a repetitive two-bar phrase that never changes in the Right Hand, with slight variations in the Left Hand. This is a note-for-note transcription of the first twelve bars, which allows one to learn not only the main two-bar pattern but also to understand the Left Hand variations. If you'd like to play the piano part in"Werewolves of London" just as Warren Zevon recorded it, this is all you need.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London" on YouTube.

Widespread Panic - Disco - Piano Solo No. 2 (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

The Georgia-based jam band Widespread Panic first released "Disco" in their first live album, "Light Fuse, Get Away". Keyboardist John 'Jo-Jo' Hermann played a couple of piano solos on that recording. This is the second of those two solos, an eight-bar solo of running sixteenth-notes utilizing some important Southern-rock techniques: ascending 6th's, which Billy Powell of Lynyrd Skynyrd often used, and 'slide-off's', when the 2nd finger slides-off a minor third into the Major third of a chord.

This is a transcription of the 8-bar second piano solo, starting about :53 into the song. Also included are the following eight bars, when the piano solo has technically ended but an atmospheric, contrasting section continues.

Difficulty: Medium

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Here is Widespread Panic performing "Disco" on YouTube. This second piano solo starts at :53 seconds.

Willie Nelson - Good Hearted Woman (Live) - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

Willie Nelson performed this Waylon Jennings song live on Austin City Limits in 1990. His sister, Bobbie Nelson, who has been his pianist since the mid-1970's, played a high, tinkly, 8-bar piano solo that incorporates several country and country-swing techniques. This is a note-for-note transcription of Bobbie Nelson's 8-bar piano solo. If you'd like to learn from Willie's sister how to play better country-style solos, this is a good place to start.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen, just click: Willie Nelson - "Good Hearted Woman" - Piano Solo

Woody Woodpecker Theme - Piano Solo by BrasilianMusician (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

There's a terrific piano solo version of "The Woody Woodpecker Theme" posted onto YouTube by "BrasilianMusician" in a wonderful, honky-tonk style. Apparently BrasilianMusician's real name is Fabricio Paulo (or Fabricio Vinheteiro),  a talented South American professional pianist who has his own web site where he plays a wide variety of styles and pieces, from other TV show themes to Chopin.

This is a note-for-note transcription of his arrangement of the "Woody Woodpecker Song", which first appeared in Woody Woodpecker cartoons in 1948. This arrangement for piano solo incorporates a lot of the honky-tonk piano techniques used by saloon pianists in Western movies and TV shows, including a stride-style Left Hand, and three-note voicings of the melody where the Right Hand plays octaves plus a third note voiced a third under the top note, giving the piece a honky-tonk/ragtime style - sort of a Woody-Woodpecker-Meets-Miss-Kitty-in-the-Longbranch-Saloon feeling.

If you want to learn a short (just under a minute in length) but virtuosic piece to show off to friends that's guaranteed to bring a big smile to the face of everyone who hears it, this is perfect. It's a blast to learn and to perform!

To see a customer's comment on this transcription, click here.

Difficulty: Challenging

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Here is the Woody Woodpecker Theme as played by "BrasilianMusician" on YouTube.

Young-Holt Unlimited - Soulful Strut - Piano Parts (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1969 "Soulful Strut" was released and became one of the most successful instrumentals ever, reaching #3 on the charts in the U.S. and #1 in Canada. The story behind it is an interesting one. The track was first recorded in 1968 for Barbara Acklin's "Am I the Same Girl", using session musicians identified only as the Brunswick Studio Band. However, before it was released, producer Carl Davis removed Acklin's voice and hired a studio musician, Floyd Morris, to record the instrumental piano lead. "Soulful Strut", an instrumental, was released in November 1968, and Acklin's vocal song, "Am I the Same Girl", was released three months later in February 1969, reaching only #79 on the pop charts.

The original piano track from "Am I the Same Girl", a wonderful R&B-style piano part, was kept and mixed softly under the new piano part played by Floyd Morris, so "Soulful Strut" is one of the very few pop recordings with two piano tracks. If you'd like to play the precise piano part on "Am I the Same Girl", the second piano part on this transcription is exactly what you're looking for.

Young-Holt Unlimited was drummer "Red" Holt and bassist Eldee Young, formerly members of Ramsey Lewis' jazz trio. Neither Young nor Holt actually played on "Soulful Strut".

This is a note-for-note transcription of both piano parts for the entire song. If you'd like to play "Soulful Strut" exactly as it was recorded, this two-piano score is just what you need.

Difficulty: Medium

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Here is Young-Holt Unlimited's "Soulful Strut" on YouTube.

Richard Zimmerman - Waiting for the Robert E. Lee - Piano (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"Waiting for the Robert E. Lee" was composed in 1912 and later featured in the first 'talkie' movie, "The Jazz Singer", in 1927. Recorded by Al Jolson, Benny Goodman, and many others, this version is a ragtime piano solo arranged by virtuoso ragtime pianist Richard Zimmerman.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Zimmerman's own version, recorded on his "Ragtime Favorites" in 1993 - all ten Verses. If you enjoy ragtime piano, this virtuoso ragtime showpiece will be a lot of fun to learn and to perform.

Difficulty: Challenging

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To listen, just click: Richard Zimmerman - Waiting for the Robert E. Lee (First 3 Verses)

The Zombies - She's Not There - Electric Piano Solo & Main Riff (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

One of the greatest keyboard solos in the 1960's was certainly the electric piano solo from "She's Not There" - The Zombies' 1964 hit. Played by Rod Argent on a Hohner Pianet. the solo perfectly captured the nebulous, minor-key feel of the song. And instead of staying within the confines of the pentatonic blues scale, Argent creatively used the Dorian mode before most other keyboardists of the day. However, this solo is difficult to pick out precisely and is never played correctly by cover bands.

Also difficult to pick out correctly is the main two-bar electric piano riff that begins the song and is played during both verses - it is also included. This is not a transcription of the entire song.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the electric piano solo, and of the main 2-bar riff.

Difficulty: Moderate

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To listen to the electric piano solo, click here: The Zombies - "She's Not There" (piano solo)

The Zombies (Rod Argent) - She's Not There - 1998 Organ Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

In 1998 Rod Argent was interviewed in his home studio for a Dutch documentary about his classic song, "She's Not There". During the interview he played an instrumental version of "She's Not There" on a Hammond B3-type organ. When he got to the keyboard solo he improvised an entirely new and different solo than his 1964 classic solo.

This is a note-for-note transcription of Rod Argent's newer, 1998 organ solo in "She's Not There" (both hands). If you're a keyboard player in a cover band, this gives you the opportunity to include not one but two genuine Rod Argent solos in your performances. Or perhaps you'd just like to study how Argent continues to creatively utilize the Dorian mode in his improvisations 34 years later. Take advantage of the opportunity to learn both of Rod Argent's "She's Not There" solos, note-for-note.

Difficulty: Moderate

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Here is the Dutch "She's Not There" documentary on YouTube. This solo begins at approximately 11:20 into the documentary.

The Zombies - This Will Be Our Year - Piano Solo (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

"This Will Be Our Year" was recorded by The Zombies in 1967 and released on their second studio album, Odessey and Oracle, in 1968. Rod Argent was the pianist.

This is a note-for-note transcription of the piano solo. Instead of the fast, single-note, minor-key type of solo in "She's Not There", this Zombies' solo is chordal, with Rod Argent using full, fat chords in both hands simultaneously to achieve a different sound than many of the other Zombie classics.

Rod Argent is one of the most respected rock pianists ever. If you'd like to study his eclectic style, this solo provides a nice contrast to his other solos.

Difficulty: Moderate

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A MIDI file of this transcription is also available:

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Here is Rod Argent's piano solo on The Zombies' "This Will Be Our Year" on YouTube.

Other Great Piano & Organ Parts:
(consider commissioning their transcription)
 

The Crusaders - Put It Where You Want It (Electric Piano Part)

Ben Harper - Say You Will (Piano Part)

The Beatles - Rocky Raccoon (Honky-tonk Piano Part)

George Winston - Before Barbed Wire

Ray Stevens - Everything Is Beautiful (Piano Part)

The Doors - People Are Strange

If you'd like me to create a note-for-note transcription of a particular song, send me a request for a piano transcription.
 


Free Sheet Music
 

Coldplay - Clocks - Main Piano Riff (transcribed by Elmo Peeler).pdf

This is the main 4-bar piano riff that starts the song. Some pianists aren't clear as to what the left hand is supposed to do during this riff, so it is notated precisely in this accurate piano transcription. In addition to the original left hand part, an alternate left hand part is provided that has a better, fuller sound than the original part.

Difficulty: Easy

To get this free sheet music, just send me a request.

If you need the entire song, not just the main piano riff, click here.
 


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Last modified: December 1, 2024