Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner - Non Classical James Booker Transcription Project

Even in his tremolos (Stormy) there was an astounding amount of intent - directionality and pattern. I left the three note (four?) chords simply notated as tremolos.

e.g. Ian Pallister does a good job of breaking down JB's 'shimmers' in Sunnyside transcription in his footnotes, inspiring to maybe do that one day as well?

id like to get on that list for stormy monday!

Anyone feel free to PM me with your email, I will send along what I have in PDF shortly. I'm held up with other projects, so far I have entered to measure 78 in sibelius (end of first voice, just into instrumental solo), I'd like to push through the instrumental this weekend. Look forward to hearing from everyone.

I'm in - interested to see how you got on, it's not easy!

OK, two takers so far. I already see a few corrections that could be made, it no doubt helped to print out. Anyone else want to contribute, PM me your email addy, I'll send it along. -p

Yep, I'm in too ... check your mailbox.

MuseScore is a nice software for transcription... and it's open-source !

I might try that out, I've been using sibelius. anybody need the digital file, let me know

I'm on measure 196/253. I should be wrapping up in the next 2-3 days; I'll send a 'final' version to everyone who has contacted me so far.

I just finished Goodnight Sweetheart, for those who wish to take a look, pm me and I will send it to you,
I probably be working on Junco Partner (with the brilliant solo in the "King Of The New Orleans Keyboard" album) now,

Justin

I'm a big fan of this style; and just do not understand - how can it be learn from the transcriptions!

Actually, I used to be overwhelmed by Booker's style and didn't really understand how he could play like that, but after starting transcribing or just analyze some of the licks and real fast solo, I realized it was really structured and coherent. The transcription process is as profitable for the transcriber as it is helpful for the players.
Once you have the note-for-note transcription, it gets easier to see all the tremendous amount of details JB put into his playing. Of course, you can learn by ear and quickly figure out the chords and structure of the piece, but the transcription allows you to see those details which make his style unique.

Except that the transcription really leaves out most of the important elements, the feel, the swing, the foot stomping or whatever. The notes aren’t really that important to the style, the feel is everything.
This is why I never bother with transcriptions (although doing them yourself is great ear training). Improvisation is all about living in the moment, that can't be reproduced in notation.

What count as important elements will depend on how far away a musician is from being able to realise an emulation of the style. So a musician who lacks the skills to figure out even the correct notes will probably see a notes-only transcription as being quite definitive and will see feel as a minor detail. Of course, we know that feel is a vital detail but given that we've no musical shorthand up to the task of depicting it, I think it's fair to say that the notes is all there ever is, all there ever can be. Beyond the notes, you're on your own.

A transcription can be useful to me simply as a time-saver although by not doing it myself I'm neglecting to hone an important skill.

Also, we can never truly emulate something as refined and excellent as James Booker (or any other musician who excels). We can either become a second rate mimic or we can use something of JB to become a first-rate version of ourselves with JB as inspiration.

That's more the way I would depict the use of the transcription. I know we can't transcribe the feel, the spirit of the song, but what I meant is that some licks are representative of JB's style and, instead of trying to figure out by yourself how to incorporate those into your improvisation, you can pick what you want from transcriptions.
Nobody can ever be as good as Booker in his own style, but it's not the goal here.

For instance, when Butler is playing "L'Esprit De James", he mixes Booker's left hand pattern with his own typical right hand solo. As an accomplished musician, he figured the left hand on his own (also probably because he is blind) but for people like me, a transcription is really helping.

All my life I've been doing transcription. When there was no real books, and when melodies were not in themselves real books; transcription of various improvisations and arrangements for big band. From that at age 35 I got perfect pitch.
However, when I worked with Memphis Slim, it was the best school of how to play the blues - better than any textbooks; and there was no notes. Since I am familiar with oriental music, I liken it and blues: both study only by ear. Instead of listening to a lot of times fragments of records to be written exactly in the notes, worth listening to over and over again the fragments which to be found on the keyboard - is a completely different work of the brain.

I can't really argue with that, playing the blues is a whole different thing. I clearly distinguish transcription work which is a listening training, and my interpretation/improvisation work, which is actual playing. But the more I listen, the more I get new ideas and the more I understand the way of presenting them.
I personnally don't know many good piano players, so I'm trying my best with the tools I have.

I came across this forum and project looking re Booker transcriptions as it is something I am considering tackling myself. It is a very daring and challenging project. I am open and willing to help and share were I can.

Transcribing and notation is like the way an actor is given a piece of text. The writer's text is the bare bones -
(ie the notes) but it is the actor (musician) who embellishes or interprets the text to give the performance. At least if you have the text (ie the notes) you can then work at becoming the next Olivier or be satisfied as being the amateur.

regards

trams88

Aye, just bringing this thread back to Booker transcriptions before it sidelines too far. Of course, I agree with a lot of the points above, as I do my own improv, but meanwhile...I'll be working on the revision of Stormy Monday in mid-June, when I'm back in the US. I still have a lot of work to do.

I'm eyeing another summer project, either "Please Send me Someone to Love" or "Let them Talk" - both of which on Piano Wizard Live. I have this album on vinyl, digitized makes a cleaner copy for using slow-down software.

Alas, "Slow Down Medley" will be on the backburner until I can get a cleaner copy (I'm too lazy right now). This might be crazy, but I am looking for the email of someone at Rounder to see if I can request a digital master. You just never know.

Anyone else currently working on transcriptions, let me (us) know. -pete

Is there a full transcription of Come In My House out there? There's an excerpt of the LH part at the beginning of this book:

http://www.amazon.com/The-James-Booker-Collection/dp/0793593379

And I came across this:

http://www.jazzinotes.com/en/come-in-my-house-live-james-booker-sheet-music-download.html

Has anyone ever used this site? I'm wondering if it's trustworthy. 1:15 is a big head start to figuring out this song.