Charlie Brown's Greatest Hits

Rating:
Summary: Two Versions
Review: Buyer beware - there are two versions of this book listed under the exact same title, and nowhere on Amazons' description does it mention this. The "Blue cover" contains more advanced arrangements, the "Yellow cover" is for beginning players (try clicking the "see larger photo" link on the yellow copy - notice at the top of the image it says "Easy piano solos"). Since Amazon fails to mention this, make sure you get the one you want. I bought the "blue" copy and am reasonably satisfied, especially given the price. Don't however be mislead that the "blue" book will be too advanced for you if you have been playing piano for more than a little while. The arrangements in the "blue" book are themselves quite easy.

Rating:
Summary: Two Versions
Review: Buyer beware - there are two versions of this book listed under the exact same title, and nowhere on Amazons' description does it mention this. The "Blue cover" contains more advanced arrangements, the "Yellow cover" is for beginning players (try clicking the "see larger photo" link on the yellow copy - notice at the top of the image it says "Easy piano solos"). Since Amazon fails to mention this, make sure you get the one you want. I bought the "blue" copy and am reasonably satisfied, especially given the price. Don't however be mislead that the "blue" book will be too advanced for you if you have been playing piano for more than a little while. The arrangements in the "blue" book are themselves quite easy.

Rating:
Summary: If you are looking for Vince Guaraldi's jazz version
Review: check out "A Charilie Brown Christmas: Piano Solo", USBN number 0634029797. I can't rate this particular item though...

Rating:
Summary: A Good Book, But If You Want The Real Music, Look Elsewhere.
Review: If you're like me, you just can't get enough of Vince Guaraldi's "Peanuts" music, and if you're like me, you've been searching for a while to find the "real" music, and not some watered-down children's version. I ordered this book expecting advanced jazz arangements, and while the songs in this book are better than most I have found, they are still simplified to a certain degree. However, the real arrangements are available in "The Peanuts Illustrated Songbook". "The Peanuts Illustrated Songbook" contains the full, authentic, advanced jazz arrangements of many Guaraldi "Peanuts" songs including "Linus & Lucy" (except one improved piano solo), most of the songs from "A Charlie Brown Christmas", and many others from the various other "Peanuts" specials. If you are a reasonably experienced piano player, then "Charlie Brown's Greatest Hits" is a good book, but if you are an advanced piano player with impeccable rhythym and a desire for unsimplified Guaraldi "Peanuts" songs, then "The Illustrated Peanuts Songbook" is a much better buy.

Rating:
Summary: A Guaraldi enthusiast
Review: The "Blue Copy" of this book is quite good and should satisfy most advanced/intermediate players. The contents contain many of the standard Peanuts pieces. I was disappointed to find, however, that it does not contain "The Great Pumpkin Waltz", which was one of the main reasons I purchased the book.

Rating:
Summary: Two Versions
Review: The key words on the cover of this book are "Arranged By." This is not the actual music that you hear on "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and the other magical Guaraldi CD's and on the TV specials; it is "arrangements" of that music; which means simplified versions.

However, for pianists who want to take a first step towards seeking out the hippest cat who ever touched a keyboard, this collection of sheet music is a good start. I haven't yet found a better collection, and there are moments of magic in the chords. To really go further, however, you'll have to listen to the CD's, run back to the piano; listen to the CD's, run back to the piano, until you've worn a trench in your carpet between your stereo and the bench.

Rating:
Summary: A good starting place
Review: The key words on the cover of this book are "Arranged By." This is not the actual music that you hear on "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and the other magical Guaraldi CD's and on the TV specials; it is "arrangements" of that music; which means simplified versions.

However, for pianists who want to take a first step towards seeking out the hippest cat who ever touched a keyboard, this collection of sheet music is a good start. I haven't yet found a better collection, and there are moments of magic in the chords. To really go further, however, you'll have to listen to the CD's, run back to the piano; listen to the CD's, run back to the piano, until you've worn a trench in your carpet between your stereo and the bench.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome Book
Review: There is some information that Amazon really should put in their descriptions of the products, especially music books.

Two Versions:
There are 2 versions of the book. The BLUE book is a Piano Solo book. The YELLOW book is an Easy Piano Solo book.

Difficulty:
The BLUE book is rated about a 6-7 on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being the easiest and 10 being the most difficult. This book is for late intermediate to beginning advanced pianists.
The YELLOW book is rated a 4-5 on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being the easiest and 10 being the most difficult. This book is for late beginners to beginning intermediate pianists.

Keep in mind that these have been ARRANGED for piano solo, so they aren't going to sound exactly like the music from the Peanuts specials. I believe that music on the specials was performed by the Vince Guaraldi Trio, not just a piano.

Rating:
Summary: A must-have for any beginner pianist!
Review: This music book is GREAT! Eventhough the songs are not in their original arangement, they still sound great and are not too hard to play. A must-have for any beginner pianist who wants to experience some fun, light-hearted jazz! (Pianists in the intermediate level should try to find the 'blue copy' of this; that has the same songs, just in their original form!) My personal favorites are "You're in Love, Charlie Brown," "Charlie Brown Theme," and "Peppermint Patty." If you're looking for a very good arangement of "Linus and Lucy," however, look eleswhere. Other than that, I very HIGHLY recommend this musicbook!