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You're not butting in, Jer. I always find your musical ideas to be interesting and instructive. "If I Give My Heart To You" is a straightforward 32-bar AABA tune written in 1953. One issue with it is its diatonic, scalar melody which doesn't lend itself to interesting harmonic motion. Because...

Although I sometimes complain about iRP's shortcomings, I feel a need to support the developers of this wonderful app. iReal Pro was developed as a practice aid and has evolved into a full-scale practice and performing band for a soloist. Yes, the sounds are sometimes cheezy. However, the rhythm...

Bob, thanks for reminding me of this fine song from the 1950s. I plan to add this to the list of tunes I play at my gigs. I have a lead sheet for this tune and I'll whip up a chord chart and post it. As an aside, I met Kitty Kallen about thirty years ago, long after she retired from singing...

I've posted before about the use of the Ballad Swing style at faster tempos than the developers envisioned. I like the sound of brushes and I think that a swing style (with four bass notes to the bar) and a two/four style with brushes would both sound great.

I do this all the time. I go to the bottom line and use the text feature. I insert the style and "xx bpm" and display it under the left-most measure.

I'm pleased to have re-introduced this tune to you. There are so many great tunes of the 1950s and 1960s that have been forgotten. I've got some more coming… Regards from NJ, Keith

"Lollipops And Roses" was composed by Tony Velona. It is a waltz, first recorded by Jack Jones in 1961, with sweet lyrics appropriate to its time. Jones won a grammy in 1962 for this performance, which can be found on YouTube. It has a AABA form, with interesting changes in the bridge. It is...

It depends on the song and the chords. Often, they are more interesting; they may be tritone substitutions or reharmonizations. They may be a different turnaround or a ii-V-I in the relative minor or something like that. It is a matter of your taste and preference. I sometimes use alternative...

Hi Bob, I generally play my ballads faster than 60 bpm. Most are at least 80 or 90 bpm and the Ballad Swing style really sounds good here. I really love the idea of the two-four style at tempi slower than 180, but I cringe every time I use it. I suggest that the algorithm of the Ballad Swing...

"I've Told Every Little Star" is a 1932 composition by Jerome Kern with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein from the musical "Music In the Air." Unfortunately, it suffers from many poor performances, particularly the awful Linda Scott 1961 hatchet job which changed both the melody and words to attract a...

I have complained in the past about the "two" part of the Swing Two/Four style being rhythmically dead. Therefore I arranged this song specifically to be used with the Ballad Swing style by writing in a walking bass line in the bridge of the tune. For those who haven't noticed the difference...

Steve, thanks for posting this song. I had never heard of it until now. The chord chart should be changed to reflect that Jimmy Webb is the composer. There are so many fine vocal performances: Radka Toneff, Judy Collins, Linda Ronstadt and by the composer himself. I think that the duo of Pat...

G-7 = G Bb D F C7 = C E G Bb F7 = F A C Eb Nine varieties of seventh chords: major 7 chord = major third - minor third - major third ex: C E G B minor 7 chord = minor 3rd - major third - minor third ex: C Eb G Bb dom 7 chord = major third - minor third - minor third ex: C E G Bb minor 7 b5...

"It Only Takes A Moment" is another of the unjustly underperformed tunes of the 1960s. A lead sheet can be found in the Ultimate Broadway Fake Book published by Hal Leonard. Thanks for posting this very nice arrangement.

Brian, I play several tunes (The Boy Next Door, Fascination, Someday My Prince Will Come) using Ballad-Swing at 130 bpm. Note, however, that I'm a pianist and always mute the chord instrument, which means that I'm happy with the way the drums and bass are rendered. You may like another style...

The issue is that the lead sheet is a transcription of the head from Steve Kuhn's recording, not from the original score by Ravel. That's where there might be a copyright issue.

"Gypsy In My Soul" with interlude After having posted the chart above, I listened to versions by Ella Fitzgerald and Doris Day on Youtube. In both versions, there was an eight-bar interlude followed by a repeat of the last A section. After having heard these versions, I extended my chord chart...

"Gypsy In My Soul" is a tune from 1937 with music by Clay Boland and lyrics by Moe Jaffe. Below is a simple chord chart for the tune. Note that I have not used the standard chords in in bridge as I prefer my version. The standard chords for the first two measures of the bridge are: |Gm C7 |Gm...

Several days ago, Jerry Engelbach posted a chord chart of a jazz piano version of "Pavane For A Dead Princess" by Maurice Ravel. This version was almost certainly by Steve Kuhn which can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTSV0T_URJo. Although I am a fan of Ravel and Kuhn, I had never...

Was it the Steve Kuhn version? I find his playing to be extremely tasteful. Or, as I suspect, the Art Farmer swinging version? Hello from NJ, Keith