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Three years ago I bough my first piano because I wanted to play Pinetop's Boogie Woogie...

I got Colin Davey's transcription (+ his great Boogie Woogie book) and of course... I failed! :-)

So I bought almost all the Books, CDs, DVDs, internet lessons available and I became a Golden Member of a good internet site, but...

I was feeling that all those bass lines, blues scales and tons of riffs lacked a good harmonic approach.

So one year ago I went to a piano teacher -a good one, who could play some great Blues- but I already told you how I had to study and practice a lot of things that (at age 57) I didn't think to have the time to learn... :-)

Then I saw Tim Richards' Improvising Blues Piano. At first glance I told myself "No, not another book... Furthermore it's to difficult for you, poor guy without a classical training...!"

But last month I could not resist, I got it and... my Blues life has canged! :-)

Of course sometimes I go back to other sources I have, but Tim Richards' book has almost everything I need at the moment.

Included a Pinetop's Boogie Woogie excerpt that now I'm studying and (maybe...) learning!

And I feel a small part of that great Blues and BW tradition I have loved all my life!

Hi boogieman52...Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and take charge of your life on your own terms ...and you will succeed at what your doing ..even though it may take a little longer to achieve your goal..This is a great forum to help each other even if it only gets you try playing only simple pieces ..it will give a sense of achivement..Pinetops Boogie is achievable and its just about plodding along at your own pace.....Doug

Great posts Doug and b-52!

You know what? I'm going to loosen up a bit, forget the teacher and go along for the IBP ride with you guys.

"Pinetops Boogie Woogie" (THE original Boogie Woogie) is one of my favourites too, along with "Just a closer walk with thee" (Blues and Boogie versions).

I'm going to spend some time on "Closer walk" and maybe post a recording later.
Mike

Thank you Doug and Mike for appreciating this Topic!

Glad to hear that you Mike are going to loosen up a bit: yeahhh... go along with this IBP ride with all of us! :-)

I am very excited to study Pinetop's BW: it's going quite well and I like to integrate the IBP excerpt with some bars from the Colin Davey's transcription.

Another transcription is available here http://boogie-online.npage.de/ but Colin Davey has done a good job, so I don't think to need it.

Well, now let me go back to my piano and the Pinetop's climbdown!

Hi boogieman52...Having a go at Pinetops boogie is a challenge that will a feather in your cap once achieved
..I have been learning Albert Ammons ..Monday Struggle ( April 16 1939 version)for four months and can play the first 3 pages..out 10...there are 6 solo patterns through out the piece and the rest is reoccurring ups and downs..Its just a matter of keeping at it....I also use Smartscore ..Scan the sheet of music and it will convert it into midi ..It also allows me slow down to 30 bpm and I can loop 4 bars to repeat so I can play along at this speed and learn those bars..anything to help overcome this music...It will give me great satisfaction when I can sit down at the keyboard and play it right through..still a year away !!..Doug

Hi cruiser....Great to hear you are going to take a more layed back approach..I feel if one is relaxed you will defiantly achieve more..I was very ill for part of my life and found meditation and yoga got me through ..Life is far to short not to be enjoying something you want to achieve and enjoy..you can do it...Doug

Wise words indeed, Doug... thank you!

Yes, as I fast approach my 60th birthday in January next, I'm very conscious of life's fragility and impermanence - we're just dust in the wind of eternity, here for a fleeting moment, then gone.

Interestingly my wife and I are also into Yoga as one of the ways we try to make the most of our lives whilst also trying to cope with the madness in this world of ours.

You know, one of the reasons I've stepped back from the Classics and the lessons I was having is that, most of the time, I simply wasn't enjoying it! I always seemed to be struggling and putting myself under pressure to master the next piece, which was usually too difficult for me anyway. Curiously, I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders.

My wife always says "The path unfolds as we walk it". I'm glad that my path has led me in a new musical - and spiritual! - direction towards the freedom (In improvisation) and joy of Blues, Boogie and Jazz.

My best to you, b-52 and all IBP-ers
Mike

Dear Doug and Mike,

your words make me so happy.

Here we are, from different parts of the world, different stories, different cultural backgrounds... and we share the same feelings!

It's really a pity that English is not my first language, because I would like to tell you better what I'm feeling now.
But I'm not sad, because I know you can understand me.

So let's play this wonderful, soulful and happy (yes... happy) Music and if it takes more than a year to learn a tune we love... well, that's fine! :-)

My best to you and -as Mike says- all IBP-ers!
b-52 Adalberto

Hi boogieman52..&..cruiser...I have had a quiet afternoon just listing to Tim's CD that comes with the book ..played it through 2 times with the book in hand and just relaxed listing to all the pieces..I have a theater room with great seating and its easy to relax and listen to it through the sound system..Tim has done a great job of this book and if followed anybody should be able to play some great blues or boogie if you desire to follow his instructions..Sometimes you have to revise the way your trying to approach things..but still take it easy ...I tend to want to learn to much.. mainly r/h riffs..and after a few days its slips to one side while you are concentrating on the major pieces you are trying to master....Doug

Hi boogieman52...Nothing wrong with your English..and expressing your feelings about what you are achieving is great...you will get only get support and encouragement from me right through the thread while its active ....keep at it .. Doug

+1 from me b-52.

I think your English is great and that you express yourself more than adequately, if I may say so. Great to have and Doug as "cyber friends"!

ok, back to IBP for me

Thank you, Mike and Doug!

Back to IBP:
I don't find each single bar in Pinetop's BW very difficult, but it's difficult to put the tune together!

I play the first 6 bars (tremolo) from the Colin Davey's transcription, then the last 6 bars of the chorus according to Tim Richards.

In the second chorus I play the nice riff with all those grace notes (Chorus F in the original Pinetop's BW by Davey) + again the last 6 bars by Tim.

At this point I play all the IBP excerpt, but when I come to the climbdown I'm so excited that my fingers do the mess around... Well, actually this is not the mess around suggested by Pinetop Smith in his spoken lyrics! ;-)))

This morning I feel like playing some easier tune, so I'm back to Sixth Blues and I really enjoy to play it and improvise.

P.S. Yesterday I got my brand new Clavinova CLP 370PE and now I have to live up to it!
b-52

Hi boogiemman52..Congraulations on your new piano..very nice!!..I think you are going the right way about how you are going to attack Pinetops boogie..you will have a unique start and this is the way to go if you want to improvise and attach you own signature...Its easy just to swap and change to start with and if you feel good about it..go with it..I have the Colin Davey copy so I will be able to follow what you are doing...I have found the same with Monday Struggle I can play it through perfect with right hand up to where I have studied..put both hands together and parts of it is woefull to say the least but other sections I can coordinate quite well..Theres no doubt about it just persistence and eventually it will all come together....Doug

I just wanna say I really enjoy reading this thread. Slowly getting back into piano playing and IBP myself, and I'm currently working on "Down Home Funk", "The Other Side" and "St Louis Blues". I usually to a few bars of one song hands togheter as slowly as possible over and over again, and when I get tired of that I switch to the next song and do the same. If I do that over time I know the breakthrough eventually comes.

I've pretty much gone through the book up to where I am now, but have skipped a few songs and gone back and done most of them. I've boughth a lot of books before I found IBP and was trying to learn to much and to difficult pieces in the beginning. If it hadn't been for IBP I don't think I would have played the piano today. It's systematic approach and well explained nature has learned me more than I ever thought would be possible. I remeber 2 songs I really struggled with. "Blues for Booker" and especially "Back In The Alley". Once I've managed to play "Back In The Alley" I was sure that if I can do this one, I'm able to play any song in the book (and some) if I practice enough. What a nice feeling

Hi Bullitt..Your doing well if your playing "The other side"..this is a great Blues-jazz piece with great chord comping sections..you have a great outlook at approaching your commitment to playing Blues --ie:(I was sure that if I can do this one, I'm able to play any song in the book (and some) if I practice enough)---just keep at... Doug

Welcome aboard, Bullit!
Glad to hear you enjoy reading this thread!
Actually here we have just a few people writing and many people reading, so maybe in the future more people like you will share their thoughts about IBP. Keep on playing and posting!

Doug, my new CLP 370PE is amazing and I can't stop playing it.
Today I keep working on Pinetop's Boogie Woogie: I have added a riff similar to Chorus 2 in PBW Take 1. I already played it, so it fats the tune without a great effort!

In these days I'm not studying new tunes, but I'm practicing the "old" tunes I love the best, such as Barrelhouse Blues, Blues with Pick-ups, Ninth Blues and so on. I'm trying to dig into these tunes and get a better and more solid sound, in particular when I improvise.

A good week to everybody!
b-52

Welcome Bullitt and congratulations b-52 on your new CLP 370PE... great piano!

I've been spending some time on Pinetop's Boogie too but I'd like to learn it in its more recognized piano solo version eventually, i.e. without the the spoken intro part. Maybe I should get hold of a transcription to help.

Hi boogieman52..What have you done with your other piano's !!!...the 370 would have a great feel and sound about it..your on the right track playing the old tunes as they soon disappear from the repertoire they get hard to play if you don't play them regular ..I learned a few extra riffs and if I don't keep including them in the practice boogie ..I soon loose the momentum to play them smoothly...
There sure have been a lot of hits on the thread...a pity we haven't got a few more participating ..great to see there is an interest in the Tim Richards ..Blues Piano.. just keep at it...Doug

Hi cruiser...You can acquire the recognized transcription from Colin Davey ..at his learn how to play boogie woogie site..in fairness to Colin you need to buy it from him as he has done the work in transcribing it...there is a copyright on it anyway..its only about $10.00 US..which is cheap in Euros...you have another option..there is a site in Germany..WWW.Boogie-online.npage.de his name is Wolfgang and is very easy to deal with... He has a lot of boogie transcriptions and are priced in Euros..They range from 15 to 25 Euros and are downloaded PDF to your computer.. this might suit better as your currency is Euros..When you go to the site you will see in the left hand index.. catalog/prices..you'll have to email him for the catalog..I would post it but it has a security lock and stops you from copying it..I have brought his Yancy Special..(Albert Ammons may 18 1942) its spot on..it is a future project....Doug

Thanks for the info Doug, I've contacted Wolfgang
Mike