Thomas "Fats" Waller: The Great Solos 1929-1941

Rating:
Summary: Take it all in stride...piano, that is...
Review: If you are at all familiar with Fats Waller, you undoubtably have been in awe of his work. His keyboard mastery, his compositions, his "tickling tricks"...all combined with his irrepressable humor made him the genius of his time. And deservably so.Noone could touch his ability on the keys. This book, beautifuuly put together, gives you the music of Fats. My hat is off to Posnak. I have no idea how he was able to transcribe some of this material, as some of it is quite complex in harmonies and rhythms. Posnak himself must be a thrill to hear. The world of stride piano fanciers and admirers owes him a world of thanks for this labor of love. Here you will find one of Fats' signature pieces- "Handful of Keys". Folks, this is not for the faint of heart, as the chords are full and rich, and the "tricks" are numerous. I only wish that he had also included James Johnson"s "Carolina Shout", as Fats also had a winner with his interpretaion of that one, written by his teacher. "Ain't Misbehavin'" is great, and sounds just like the recording that Posnak transcribed it from. If you know this piece and are able to play it already, do yourself a favor and augment your rendition with some if not all of this version. I have already gleaned much from it, and indeed, play this version in it's written form, as you would have a hard time improving upon it without muddying it. "The Viper's Drag" and "Keeping Out of Mischief Now" are, once again, so faithfully brought back to life that it is eerie. It is as if Fats himself is sitting there just GIVING this material to you, as Posnak delivers the true sounds and life of the pieces. If you have guessed that I think the world of this book, you got it! If you love stride piano, or for that matter, just damn good piano, and have the patience to sit and work on the material, you will have treasures in your hands. But I will warn you just a bit- the material isn't for the beginner or even novice; this IS going to take some experience, reading ability and comprehension. Most of us will have to spend some time working out the fingerings and rhythms. as a learning aid, try purchasing several good Fats Waller tapes or CDs that have these pieces on them.Knowing how they are supposed to sound can be of benefit. Just try not to compare your ability with Fats.. we are all not worthy!!! So turn on your piano lamp, get a cold glass of tea (or your favorite adult beverage....Fats would be proud), and work at it. It is surely worth it.

Rating:
Summary: Take it all in stride...piano, that is...
Review: If you are at all familiar with Fats Waller, you undoubtably have been in awe of his work. His keyboard mastery, his compositions, his "tickling tricks"...all combined with his irrepressable humor made him the genius of his time. And deservably so.Noone could touch his ability on the keys. This book, beautifuuly put together, gives you the music of Fats. My hat is off to Posnak. I have no idea how he was able to transcribe some of this material, as some of it is quite complex in harmonies and rhythms. Posnak himself must be a thrill to hear. The world of stride piano fanciers and admirers owes him a world of thanks for this labor of love. Here you will find one of Fats' signature pieces- "Handful of Keys". Folks, this is not for the faint of heart, as the chords are full and rich, and the "tricks" are numerous. I only wish that he had also included James Johnson"s "Carolina Shout", as Fats also had a winner with his interpretaion of that one, written by his teacher. "Ain't Misbehavin'" is great, and sounds just like the recording that Posnak transcribed it from. If you know this piece and are able to play it already, do yourself a favor and augment your rendition with some if not all of this version. I have already gleaned much from it, and indeed, play this version in it's written form, as you would have a hard time improving upon it without muddying it. "The Viper's Drag" and "Keeping Out of Mischief Now" are, once again, so faithfully brought back to life that it is eerie. It is as if Fats himself is sitting there just GIVING this material to you, as Posnak delivers the true sounds and life of the pieces. If you have guessed that I think the world of this book, you got it! If you love stride piano, or for that matter, just damn good piano, and have the patience to sit and work on the material, you will have treasures in your hands. But I will warn you just a bit- the material isn't for the beginner or even novice; this IS going to take some experience, reading ability and comprehension. Most of us will have to spend some time working out the fingerings and rhythms. as a learning aid, try purchasing several good Fats Waller tapes or CDs that have these pieces on them.Knowing how they are supposed to sound can be of benefit. Just try not to compare your ability with Fats.. we are all not worthy!!! So turn on your piano lamp, get a cold glass of tea (or your favorite adult beverage....Fats would be proud), and work at it. It is surely worth it.

Rating:
Summary: This book is a must have for all stride pianists!
Review: Mr Posnak has given the piano community a valuable source of information on how to play stride piano. For those who can't pick up music by ear, here are 15 solos from the great Fats Waller in note-by-note transcription. Order the book and start playing!

Rating:
Summary: Great book!
Review: Posnak has faithfully transcribed Fats exactly as originally played by going through a painstaking listening and transcribing process. You too can sound like Fats if you can manage to play these tunes up to tempo. The harmonies are rich, the stretches in the left hand are wide, and the tempos are not for the faint of heart. But you can always play them a little slower and still sound great. This book is like having an old player piano roll of a great artist. If you want to learn stride style, this is the book to have.

Rating:
Summary: A Giant "Stride" Forward For Musicians!
Review: Simply put - this book is a monumental endeavor and no less of a tribute to "Fats". After long hours on end trying to pick out these fabulous solos myself with my all-too-imperfect musical ear, this work is a dream come true. If only more musicians of this calibre would pick up the torch as well and transcribe other solos for "Fats" (unfortunately, his marvelous rendition of "Tea for Two" is not included here), as well as other pianists (Art Tatum, for one)! The accuracy in transcription here is astonishing. Two copies are recommended, because you will be wearing the first copy out in no time!

Rating:
Summary: A Giant "Stride" Forward For Musicians!
Review: Simply put - this book is a monumental endeavor and no less of a tribute to "Fats". After long hours on end trying to pick out these fabulous solos myself with my all-too-imperfect musical ear, this work is a dream come true. If only more musicians of this calibre would pick up the torch as well and transcribe other solos for "Fats" (unfortunately, his marvelous rendition of "Tea for Two" is not included here), as well as other pianists (Art Tatum, for one)! The accuracy in transcription here is astonishing. Two copies are recommended, because you will be wearing the first copy out in no time!