Well, dear readers, I am sitting here like so much tired fish, and if you’ve ever seen a tired fish you know EXACTLY what I look like, listning to my favorite George Shearing album, The Shearing Piano, which I had back when I was newly teenified. It was another discovery in my eighth grade music appreciation class, thanks to Mr. Williamson at Louis Pasteur Junior High School. The selection he played in class was a beautiful piece called A Tune for Humming by someone named Frank Loesser. It was my introduction to the genius of both Mr. Shearing and Mr. Loesser. At that point, I’d never heard of Mr. Loesser or his shows, although I had seen Hans Christian Andersen when I was young, but never looked at the songwriter’s name. Anyway, I went out and bought The Shearing Piano that very day – Capitol Records, mono only. Well, I was bowled over by the entire album – everything about it. I was amazed to find that Mr. Shearing was blind. It was the album that made me enamored of the piano and I’d site at our upright piano and press the keys but never quite came up with anything resembling a melody. Much later, when I was running the sheet music department at Wallichs Music City, I found a sheet on A Tune for Humming, which I never knew had a lyric – not much of one, since it was a tune for humming – but I learned how to play it and can still play it. Now, if you do not have this recording, you should. Not only was Shearing a brilliant pianist, he was a great arranger and these solo piano tracks are filled with great arrangements. The CD release has several bonus tracks that never made the LP, so it’s well worth it. Used copies on Amazon from $3.99. Or if you’d just like to hear the entire CD, it’s on YouTube. This link should pull up the first track and the other tracks should all be over on the right sidebar.
https://youtu.be/aA-kkWZRYHw?si=pGb4GaDrhv1AriUh
Mr. Shearing led me to Mr. Brubeck and Mr. Brubeck led me to Bill Evans. It doesn’t really get better than that. I can see me in my bedroom I shared with my brother, listening to The Shearing Piano over and over again on my Columbia House Stereophonic Record Player with detachable speakers – even though it was mono. If my brother was home I’d simply take it in the den and listen on our good high fidelity record player (not stereo).
I only got about four hours of sleep, got up, and a bit later got the great news of a modern major miracle, so that made the day a good one right away. Then I had to e-mail the errant and truant parents who hadn’t sent their photos and credits list for their kids – we finally have them all now, so that’s good. I did a bit of writing, chose no songs but will this weekend, I had Panda Express for food – very good batch – orange chicken and honey sesame chicken – dozed off for about thirty minutes, watched various YouTube videos, including an hour of the musical Annie, in honor of Mr. Strouse. A horrible production without a single laugh from the audience. Oh, and it was in Yiddish. I think the Yiddish lyrics to tomorrow translated as:
It’s Rosh Hashanah tomorrow,
And we’ll have gefilte fish tomorrow,
Matzoh, too.
Sandy was the best actor in it. The choreography was horrible and just made you appreciate the greatness of Mr. Peter Gennaro. A Tune for Humming is playing now – still gorgeous sixty-five years later. SIXTY-FIVE YEARS. Yikes. I dozed off several more times – no way to watch a motion picture.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, I’ll do whatever needs doing, I’ll do a quick Gelson’s run and get some of my favorite onion rolls, some turkey and I’ll make some turkey sandwiches with lettuce, tomato, avocado, and bacon – doesn’t that sound yummilicious – I’ll eat said sandwiches, I’ll choose songs, I’ll do some writing, and then at some point I can watch, listen, and relax.
Tomorrow will be more of the same except for the sandwich part and I think I’ll try for a nice dinner out somewhere, perhaps Barone’s, which I’ve been craving. Then next week is very busy.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, do whatever needs doing, do a quick Gelson’s run, have sandwiches for food, choose songs, write, and then watch, listen, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: Who were and are your favorite pianists – popular, jazz, and classical. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, where I shall be lulled to sleep with the Shearing piano.