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Musical Performances With Myself On Keyboard

All are links to mp3 music tracks performed by myself alone or with other musicians. Please note that these are not perfect recordings, but taken in as is, in real life acoustics with no editing except normalization to a standard volume level. The Sony solid state recorder was usually placed next to the keyboard. Exceptions are some solo piano pieces where the recorder was plugged into the digital piano.

PLEASE NOTE: Page under development. Browser behaviour might be unstable. The way in which the music is played depends upon the particular settings in your own computer. I'm working on it.                                            

SOLO PIANO PIECES

Meditation 1 Relaxed little melody.  Improvisation by me.
Stride Time 1 In a standard jazz stride style.  Improvisation by me.
Bossa Nova 1 Exercise in standard "bossa nova" style.  Improvised by me.
Blue Monk 1 By Thelonius Monk  A well-known jazz standard, written in close to a basic "blues" set of chord changes.
I'm Confessin That I Love You Standard jazz ballad.  This is a nice set of chord changes with which to solo.
Skating In Central Park By pianist Bill Evans.  Charming little jazz waltz with which I like to improvise.
Sunday Morning Bossa By Australian pianist Steven Jewell  A nice, relaxed bossa style composition by a friend.
I'll Remember April A 1942 tune by Gene de Paul.  This has become a popular jazz standard, played in a nice up-tempo style, often with a Latin sound.


JAZZ TRIO - Piano (Bill Leithhead i.e., myself), Double Bass (Milosh Vosmansky) & Drums (Rob Milligan)

Baubles, Bangles and Beads Medium tempo jazz waltz.  Often played as a vocal, being from the 1953 musical show Kismet.
Skating In Central Park Another modern jazz waltz.  From the repertoire of the Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ).
Sweet and Lovely Jazz standard played at a slower pace.  This is often used as a vocal number.
Harlem Nocturne Jazz classic, written for a "big band".  A slow brooding mood, using major minor chords for dissonance.
I'm Getting Sentimental Over You Faster version of a jazz standard.  A 1932 tune often played by Tommy Dorsey's orchestra.
No Moon At All Jazz ballad standard.  Features interesting changes from minor to major key.
Well You Needn't A signature tune by NY pianist Thelonius Monk.  Characteristically whimsical semitone chord changes.
Cherry A jazz standard from 1928.  We've played this at the original tempo, but these days it is often played more slowly.


JAZZ TRAVELLERS - Piano (Bill Leithhead i.e., myself), Tenor Saxophone (Colin Garrett), Double Bass (Milosh Vosmansky), Drums (Rob Milligan), and Vocals (Annie Smith).
All recorded sometime in 2012.

Bag's Groove Composed in 1954 by Sonny Rollins, recorded by Miles Davis.  Instrumental.
I Got Rhythm Composed 1930 by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin.  This version includes a verse, not often heard, and because this is an authentic rehearsal, a real-time re-organizations of bass and drum solos.
Just In Time Jazz standard by Jule Styne, 1956.  Sung by Judy Holliday and Sydney Chaplin in the musical "Bells Are Ringing".
The Lady is a Tramp Up-tempo jazz standard.  From the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical "Babes in Arms".


Tony Harling's CLARE CASTLE JAZZ BAND This seven-piece Dixieland band was playing at an annual outdoor social evening on 17th Feb., 2012, at St. Stephen's Anglican Church, Mt. Waverley, Melbourne, Australia. It was recorded by my digital recorder placed close to the keyboard, causing the prominence of the keyboard sound. I have been playing with this good-time "trad" band on and off since 1997. Trombone and band leader (Tony Harling), Digital piano (Bill Leithhead i.e., myself), Cornet (Richard Desmond), Double Bass (Rob Evans), Drums (Neil Davidson), Banjo and Clarinet not known for certain.

Angry A 1925 popular song adapted to trad jazz.  This song was also often used for Barbershop Quartets.
Deed I Do Written in 1926, this vaudeville song soon became a jazz standard.  It was the first song recorded by clarinetist Benny Goodman's orchestra.
Everybody Loves My Baby Composed in 1924, it soon became a jazz and pop favourite.  Recorded by many jazz stars.
Frankie and Johnny Jazz version of a widely-performed traditional American song, thought by some to date back as far as 1830!  It tells the story of a woman, Frankie, who finds that her man Johnny was making love to another woman and shoots him dead. Frankie is then arrested. It is thought to be based on a variety of notorious crimes of this sort. There are many variations of the lyrics.
Back Home Again In Indiana Well-known lively trad jazz tune.  Written in 1917, it quickly became popular and is widely played.
Just A Closer Walk With Thee Trad jazz version of popular gospel song.  Of unknown origin, dating perhaps to early African-American churches, a published and recorded version in 1940 made it known world-wide. It's been adapted to many different styles of presentation.
Just a Little While To Stay Here Medium pace standard 'spiritual'.  Written by Eugene Monroe Bartlett around 1900.
My Bucket's Got A Hole In It This is a blues-based novelty song from the early days of jazz.  Its origin is obscure, but the melody is also used for Keep A-knockin' But You Can't Come In.
Along the Road to Gundagai. Popular Australian jazz standard by Jack O'Hagen in 1922.  Well-known Australian folk tune, referring to the country town of Gundagai in central New South Wales.
Runnin' Wild A popular song first composed and recorded in 1922.  Played by trad bands as well as swing. Sung by Marilyn Munroe in the film "Some Like It Hot".
Saint James Infirmary Blues Slow blues usually played in a minor key, often used in New Orleans funerals.  The "infirmary mentioned was apparently in London, and the song is based on an 18th century English tune called "The Unfortunate Rake", being the story of a soldier, or a girl, whose loose life leads to an early death from venereal disease, or gambling debts, etc. There are many, many variations in the tune, the words, and the context - adaptations to the USA are common.
Shine A peppy jazz standard from tin Pan Alley days, before 1910.  Widely played in many tempos, by most jazz greats, especially Louis Armstrong. Said to refer to a man called Shine who was badly injured in NY race riots in 1900.
Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie A very popular song standard from about 1905.  In a long-standing tradition, floor traders at the New York Stock Exchange sing this song on the last trading day of every year and on Christmas Eve. The song has been the stock exchange anthem at least back as far as 1934. It is also a popular song in barbershop music.


 
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