What is your current Set List.

[Rayblewit]

For those who play covers . .
What set are you playing?

I aspire to play a solo gig pretty soon (my first) and planning the following . . a mixture of Pop, Country, Ballads, Latin etc..

Apache
Perfidia
Alley Cat
Smile
Spanish Harlem
On the Street Where You Live (my jazzy version)
Time is Tight
The Lonely Shepherd
Spanish Eyes
Whiter Shade of Pale
La Bamba
Girl from Ipanema
Blue Bayou
Bye Bye Blackbird ( my jazzy version)
My Way

And if I am successful, I will follow up with themed sets. Country, Rock, Musicals, Latin and so on.

 

[Biggles]

Impressive set Ray.

Know your audience and have a Setlist applicable to them.

If you are playing at a home for seniors, do they want to sing along, or do they have activities like chair dancing (yep there is such a thing),

Do you sing along?

 

[ghostler]

Ray, you got a good list going for starters.

Those 15 songs, depending length figure each to be roughly 2.5 to 3 minutes long with say 2 minutes between to set up for the next makes for about 5 minutes per song x 15 songs gives about an hour and 15 minutes concert.

Your list is similar to the ones I did in nursing homes. This was on one of my saxes and a portable sound system as my backing band. My list would be like:

Autumn Leaves
In the Mood
My Girl
Tuxedo Junction
Does Anyone Know What Time It Is
There Will Never Be Another You

A String of Pearls
Bye, Bye, Blackbird
My Guy
The Nearness of You
Out of Nowhere
How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)

But each month I had a new set with maybe a few of these but rest all new.

If you are playing at a home for seniors, do they want to sing along, or do they have activities like chair dancing (yep there is such a thing),

Good point. About 8 years ago I did a concert at an assisted living facility in their dining room / universal room. I put on a Glenn Miller jazz tune on my bari sax, think it was In The Mood. A few couples got up and started to ball room dance to it.

 

[Rayblewit]

If you are playing at a home for seniors, do they want to sing along, or do they have activities like chair dancing (yep there is such a thing),

Yes, I am pretty sure I know my first audience. It is where I live. There is a mixture of dancers and singers.

I personally do not sing. But my wife dances.

Your list is similar to the ones I did in nursing homes. This was on one of my saxes and a portable sound system as my backing band. My list would be like:

Amazing!
I love all your tunes Gus and do play many of those too.

Ray

 

[ghostler]

Amazing! I love all your tunes Gus and do play many of those too.

Actually it is George. To give you an example of something I would play, below is a practice recording I did of String of Pearls. I got it in audition mode because I was using a worn out reed that developed a chirp, but will give you an idea of the playing I do. This was on my 1952ish (closest year I could nail down its serial number) Beauginer Vito (France) Model 37 low Bb baritone saxophone:

2016-09-15 George Bari String of Pearls HD

Listen to 2016-09-15 George Bari String of Pearls HD by Ghostler81 #np on #SoundCloud

on.soundcloud.com

 

[Rayblewit]

Sorry George, I don't know where I got Gus from!

 

[johnincolorado]

My current "set list" is actually the songs that I am doing recordings of at the moment. I just finished a version of Spencer Davis Group's "Gimme Some Lovin", I have half-finished a version of Dizzy Gillespie's "Birk's Works", and just pulled the charts for Kenny Garrett's "Sing a Song of Song". How's that for all over the board?

 

[ghostler]

How's that for all over the board?

There's nothing wrong with that. Variety is the spice of life.

 

[Rayblewit]

I did of String of Pearls. I got it in audition mode because I was using a worn out reed that developed a chirp, but will give you an idea of the playing I do.

"I think you passed the audition"
That chirp you mentioned . . Is that what they call harmonics?

A friend of mine was a huge jazz enthusiast and recently passed away. Her funeral started with the Glen Miller version.
It brought tears to everyone's eyes.
It inspired me to learn the tune. I have a cool sax sound in my keyboard. I also alternate verses with a trombone sound.

Awesome tune, I will include it in my jazz themed set . . .when I get to that level.

Ray

 

[Jon80]

For those who play covers . .
What set are you playing?

I aspire to play a solo gig pretty soon (my first) and planning the following . . a mixture of Pop, Country, Ballads, Latin etc..

Apache
Perfidia
Alley Cat
Smile
Spanish Harlem
On the Street Where You Live (my jazzy version)
Time is Tight
The Lonely Shepherd
Spanish Eyes
Whiter Shade of Pale
La Bamba
Girl from Ipanema
Blue Bayou
Bye Bye Blackbird ( my jazzy version)
My Way

And if I am successful, I will follow up with themed sets. Country, Rock, Musicals, Latin and so on.

Think you’ve been looking at my playlist, Ray Actually I do a few of those as part of a medley. For example, I’ll start out with Killing Me Softly in a Bossa style, float into Quiet Nights, One Note Samba, Wave, and end up with Ipanema. And with La Bamba, I’ll start with Do Yo Love Me, then Twist and Shout, and end with that one. I can usually find songs of similar tempos/keys to run together; though, just a piece of each. Country Roads always gets ‘em singing, too. Food for thought, I guess. ~Jon

 

[Rayblewit]

. Food for thought, I

Yes! Good food and good thinking

 

[ghostler]

That chirp you mentioned . . Is that what they call harmonics?

Err no, and it doesn't even meet the criteria by the late TV scenery canvas painter, Bob Ross: "We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents." That was no "happy little accident". And, I wasn't even using a "paint peeling" mouthpiece.

However Bob was correct with this comment: “Ever make mistakes in life? Let’s make them birds. Yeah, they’re birds now.” Charlie Parker who often played alto sax was oft nicknamed, "The Bird". That is what he is known as in sax circles, but he was no mistake.

I’ll start out with Killing Me Softly in a Bossa style, float into Quiet Nights [Corcovado], One Note Samba, Wave, and end up with [Girl from] Ipanema. [...] Country Roads always gets ‘em singing, too.

I've occasionally done Killing Me Softly and the others mentioned in your list. I've also done Gentle on my Mind. Another I like is I Heard It through the Grapevine, Desafinado, Triste, How Insensitive, Witchita Lineman, Lookin' for Love (in All the Wrong Places), Light My Fire (Doors), I'll Remember April, Autumn in New York, Sign, Sealed, Delivered, Heatwave, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted, etc.

 

[Jon80]

Err no, and it doesn't even meet the criteria by the late TV scenery canvas painter, Bob Ross: "We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents." That was no "happy little accident". And, I wasn't even using a "paint peeling" mouthpiece.

However Bob was correct with this comment: “Ever make mistakes in life? Let’s make them birds. Yeah, they’re birds now.” Charlie Parker who often played alto sax was oft nicknamed, "The Bird". That is what he is known as in sax circles, but he was no mistake.

I've occasionally done Killing Me Softly and the others mentioned in your list. I've also done Gentle on my Mind. Another I like is I Heard It through the Grapevine, Desafinado, Triste, How Insensitive, Witchita Lineman, Lookin' for Love (in All the Wrong Places), Light My Fire (Doors), I'll Remember April, Autumn in New York, Sign, Sealed, Delivered, Heatwave, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted, etc.

Yep, done some of those, for sure. Just musing, if I were doing a solo spot today, I’d probably start off with Autumn Leaves a bit up tempo on guitar (Gm) and run it into Moondance on kb then back to guitar. Depending on the age group, I might do Moonlight Serenade into Moonglow followed by Picnic at some point. Otherwise, it might be an F medley of Boardwalk, Save the Last Dance, Will You Still Love Me, Cupid, etc, until all that wears thin. Just about everybody likes the uke version of Over the Rainbow, too. A capo at the fifth fret works for that. As a disclaimer, I think I rely on medleys, as I’m more musician than performer. And not being much of an MC, I try to limit dead air. Though I fully understand the listener’s ears do tire of constant “noise”, so not all my mixups are 15+ minutes long

 

[ghostler]

I think I rely on medleys, as I’m more musician than performer. And not being much of an MC, I try to limit dead air. Though I fully understand the listener’s ears do tire of constant “noise”, so not all my mixups are 15+ minutes long

Most jazz play from Aebersold and Leonard starts off with the melody, then 2 rounds of improv, then finish out with the melody. This provides from about 2 minutes to 3, sometimes 4 minutes of music.

There were a few times that I also brought my keyboard during Christmas. (My old Behringer KX1800FX keyboard amp, a decent one, weighs 44 lbs. (20 kg.) with a 4 input mini-mixer and 12 inch woofer, makes adding the keyboard and if someone has an electric guitar, that too. In this case I was using my powered speaker. This example I didn't use my keyboard.)

The Salvation Army had one of their older members dress up as Santa. I played the backing to traditional Christmas carols. O Holy Night works well with a slow rock 6/8 style. (If you will notice, when a celeb singer on TV does this song, the backing band is doing a slow rock beat to give it a contemporary feel.)

2016 photo, I'm on the left with my straight soprano sax, backing band is my white netbook with mp3's on top my Gemini 15-in. (380 mm - diameter of woofer) portable powered speaker. Officers Kelly and Natalia Berggren gave the invocation and short message of encouragement. I played background jazz music while gifts were being distributed to the patients.

 

[Rayblewit]

I'm on the left

I can see a rather suave looking gentleman.

 

[ghostler]

I can see a rather suave looking gentleman.

Not much of a dancer and been married over 4 decades to the same woman.

 

[Rayblewit]

The singing group has asked me to play another set for them next Thursday.

I pick out a few tunes from their lyrics song book. I am learning these from scratch.
I have challenged myself to learn these in just 6 days. What do you think?

Hello Mary Lou
Sailing
Walking My Baby Back Home
Diana
Green Green Grass
All My Loving
Jamaica Farewell
Chanson D'Amour
Love Letters in the Sand
Under the Boardwalk

and I will play some other tunes that I know quite well to make up an hour.

I do practice playing EVERYDAY without fail. I do 2 hour sessions with head phones as my wife watches movies or reads or prepares my dinner lol.

Ray

 

[Biggles]

Which version of Sailing is it?

Gavin Sutherland’s composition made famous by Rod Stewart

or

Christopher Cross’s totally different song tgat happens to have the same name.

 

[Rayblewit]

I am playing Rod Stewart's version.

I do like CC's version too.
But it's not in the song book.
I am limited to playing just the tunes of which the singers have the words in their song book.

I am also limited to what sheet music I have.

I selected a mixture of genres in my set so to keep keep all of the singers happy.
There are some 90 years old, most are in their eighties and some my age seventies.

Picking out the tunes to play is the easy part. Then assigning the tune to a suitable style is a difficult decision.

It keeps me busy.
Playing my keyboard is a passion.
It is an addiction.
"Love Music Love Life"

 

[Biggles]

Thought I’d ask just to make sure you are learning the right song.

BTW the writer of Sailing was Gavin Sutherland, he and his Brother Iain were
The Sutherland Brothers Band and their album of the same name is superb.

They had a hit with “Arms of Mary”.