Wonderful Chuck Leavell Tutorial --Jessica

[EscapeRocks]

I've been off and on working out the wonderful Allman Bros 'Jessica', when I stumbled upon Chuck's 20 minute tutorial on it.

 

As I was watching, the geek in me spotted something on his piano:  The Hanon book!

 

 

Here's the tutorial for those who may like to see it

 

[bill5]

Big big Chuck/Sea Level fan. So wasted on the Rolling Stones, but I guess he isn't complaining about the money.

[Al Coda]

27 minutes ago, bill5 said:

So wasted on the Rolling Stones, but I guess he isn't complaining about the money.

 

like Darryl Jones ...

 

☺️

 

A.C.

[Outkaster]

Sounds SO much better at this tempo.  I was in my 20's trying to learn this.  I got about 70% of it right.

[stoken6]

8 hours ago, bill5 said:

So wasted on the Rolling Stones

 

7 hours ago, Al Coda said:

like Darryl Jones ...

Provided both are bringing their A game to the Stones gigs, and not phoning it in, I'm cool with that. (And btw I'm sure these two consummate professionals would not do anything but their best).

 

Cheers, Mike.

[davinwv]

Benmont Tench posts pictures of his open Hanon book on Instagram all the time. He uses it to get back in shape for big gigs/sessions when he hasn't played in a while.

[Outkaster]

1 hour ago, davinwv said:

Benmont Tench posts pictures of his open Hanon book on Instagram all the time. He uses it to get back in shape for big gigs/sessions when he hasn't played in a while.

Yeah I saw that. I asked him about it once.   I have done the first 20 in three different keys

[mcgoo]

12 hours ago, bill5 said:

... So wasted on the Rolling Stones, but I guess he isn't complaining about the money.

 

I'm not sure I've ever seen a comment on this forum I disagree with more. 

[AnotherScott]

Hearing it played just on piano, it made me think of vince guaraldi's peanuts stuff... also, in a way, inspired by little kids... you can kinda hear the innocence in it.

[bill5]

50 minutes ago, mcgoo said:

 

I'm not sure I've ever seen a comment on this forum I disagree with more. 

The Rolling Stones aren't exactly a keyboard-oriented band; he's more important as a manager than a player. Chuck himself has noted as much and no doubt would disagree with your disagreement.

[Outkaster]

2 hours ago, mcgoo said:

 

I'm not sure I've ever seen a comment on this forum I disagree with more. 

Me too.

1 hour ago, bill5 said:

The Rolling Stones aren't exactly a keyboard-oriented band; he's more important as a manager than a player. Chuck himself has noted as much and no doubt would disagree with your disagreement.

Manager? No musical director is more like it.

[Theo Verelst]

Listening to the first part of the video on a phone (with decent sound) that is a great piece of composition, of unusual lyric exuberance I don't recall from the R.S. except from Jagger.

 

T

[MathOfInsects]

I've seen that before. He comes across as an incredibly gracious musician. It led me to watch the "Tree Farmer" documentary, which features more of his "effortless" playing (which never actually is, of course). 

 

Theo, the song he is referring to is by the Allman Brothers, not the Stones.

However, like others, I do not view the gig playing piano for and music-directing the Rolling f'ing Stones as slumming. 

[Al Coda]

23 hours ago, stoken6 said:

On 9/17/2022 at 3:47 AM, Al Coda said:

like Darryl Jones ...

Provided both are bringing their A game to the Stones gigs, and not phoning it in, I'm cool with that.

 

I´m cool w/ that too !

It´s for sure one of the best gigs one can get and I cannot say anything against making good money quick.

Once you can eat and pay all the bills, there´s enough time left over for idealism, further education, training, jamming w/ friends and so on.

Life is much easier that way.

 

☺️

 

A.C.

 

 

[Steve Nathan]

Such a great player.  The Floyd Cramer influence here is inescapable.  

[El Lobo]

Yes, especially the solo is very Cramer-esque. Chuck Leavell even explains that in the tutorial. 

[mcgoo]

On 9/17/2022 at 11:03 AM, bill5 said:

The Rolling Stones aren't exactly a keyboard-oriented band; he's more important as a manager than a player. Chuck himself has noted as much and no doubt would disagree with your disagreement.

 

His role evolved into that of music director because he has been meticulous over the years of charting everything and became the go to person to ask how particular songs went during rehearsals. And yes I do think he would agree with my assessment that you're wrong to consider his talent wasted on the Stones. How many people could walk in to a gig and effectively cover the stylings and parts of Ian Stewart, Nicky Hopkins, Billy Preston, Ian McLagen and whoever else I'm forgetting, and then contribute to that legacy of excellence with their own voice on newer material? Not everyone rates the value of a gig on how many solos you get to take. 

[pinkfloydcramer]

I've seen another Jessica tutorial where his (or his pupil's, don't remember which) left hand plays the full band version bass part the whole time. That's a little tricky, esp. during the quarter note triplets. 

 

RE unwanted opinions on his Stones gig, mine is that CL's style (and personality/image too) was a better fit with Eric Clapton during the MTV Unplugged days. And I say that as a huge fan who has tried to lift every lick and solo Chuck ever did.

 

[Shamanzarek]

The 2020 documentary Chuck Leavell: The Tree Man was being shown on HDNet last night. There were plenty of appearances by members of The Stones, Allmans, and many others.

 

 

[Outkaster]

Video is blocked

 

[MathOfInsects]

When I watched it it was free on Amazon Prime.

[MAJUSCULE]

I'm trying to set up a screening here. Hopefully a double feature with Bayou Maharajah, just cause I've wanted to see both for a while.  

[Phil Aiken]

On 9/17/2022 at 11:03 AM, bill5 said:

The Rolling Stones aren't exactly a keyboard-oriented band; he's more important as a manager than a player. Chuck himself has noted as much and no doubt would disagree with your disagreement.

Hopkins, Nicky   Preston, Billy   Stewart, Ian

Some of, if not the best rock piano playing ever, IMO.    

[JohnH]

Excellent Doc I watched last year. Some of the stuff I didn't know such as he's playing on that newer song ? I won't spoil it.

[stillearning]

On 9/17/2022 at 7:03 AM, Outkaster said:

… I have done the first 20 in three different keys

About where I’m at. At one time, many decades ago, finishing the Hanon book was on my bucket list. I better live a loooong time!

[D. Gauss]

Not my opinion, so don't shoot the messenger...

https://www.pianistmagazine.com/blogs/this-is-why-hanon-exercises-are-a-waste-of-time-and-possibly-dangerous/

[MAJUSCULE]

Just found an isolated piano track of the original. Mm mm good.

 

 

[J_tour]

Well, for my part, having learned most of Chuck Leavell's parts, even writing down a bunch of it, from the "Brothers and Sisters" album, I knew I heard the Doctor influence on all those octave walk-ups, but I didn't learn until recently that CL actually played with the Night Tripper on tour when...he must have been not even a teenager but like a teenager without a draft card or something.

To me that explained some of what he was doing on the Allman Bros. record.

[Polkahero]

1 hour ago, MAJUSCULE said:

Just found an isolated piano track of the original. Mm mm good.

 

 

 

Is that a mistake at 3:08 during the octaves section?

[zxcvbnm098]

Chuck is a wonderful player of course, but a thoughtful and good human....