Geoffrey Keezer

  • Swing in the new year with new charts galore

    It’s been a great year here at jazzleadsheets.com: we celebrated Blue Note’s 75th Anniversary, launched our Minus You audio features, and introduced handfuls of new composers and more great music. We’re still working with our developer on the improved version of jazzleadsheets.com which will feature a more visually-exciting interface and a better checkout experience. To keep you swinging into 2015, we’re topping you off with one last group of lead sheets for the year with some picks we know you’ll love.

    GIGI GRYCE: Boxer’s Blues
    A different type of altered blues! This Gigi Gryce piece moves back and forth from a double time groove to a laid-back swing. Gigi’s intriguing quintet arrangement is captured in each of our lead sheet editions; his original recording featured trumpet and alto sax alternating lines, but both are notated in all editions so you can choose how you want to approach it.

    TINA BROOKS: Miss Hazel
    A bright, brassy Tina Brooks composition full of fun II-V changes. This uptempo swing is also available as a quintet arrangement; we have a concert condensed score available (featuring the melody, counter-melody and rhythm section hits), lead sheets for all instruments and second parts.

    LUCKY THOMPSON: Once There Was
    A perfect example of Lucky Thompson’s masterful ballad writing and interpretation. To show both sides of Lucky’s talent, composing and performing, all editions include a transcription of everything he plays on the form: the head in, a short solo over the bridge, and the last A section out.

    WALTER DAVIS, JR.: Scorpio Rising
    “Walter Davis, Jr., loved to play this piece to get his adrenaline going,” remembers Don Sickler. This wild medium-up swing with a strong rhythmic pulse will get you going, too!

    KENNY DREW, JR.: Nelson Avenue Morning
    A light, breezy, constantly evolving medium swing melody from a virtuoso pianist-composer. This unusual ABABC form of this piece is a refreshing twist on typical song forms — the way Kenny only uses four measures of the B section when it returns and the unexpected new themes at the end keep everyone on their toes.

    ROY HARGROVE: The Mountaings
    Keep things spicy with this Cuban son-jazz hybrid. The 2/3 clave groove gives The Mountaings an authentic Cuban vibe, but Roy Hargrove’s melody is modern jazz-oriented. This composition comes from Roy’s Grammy-winning album HABANA and is sure to be a winner for you, too.

    GEOFFREY KEEZER: Pierce On Earth
    A personal, sensitive ballad written for saxophonist Bill Pierce. Geoff weaves together contemporary jazz idioms with soulful licks in this tender composition. Geoff’s own solo piano arrangement is also available.

    DONALD BROWN: The Moment You’ve All Been Waiting For
    This stately ballad features an unusual abbreviated form with just four measures for the A sections and three measures for the B. The dramatic sustained chords under the main theme define the character of this Donald Brown composition.

    Start your 2015 the right way with jazzleadsheets.com!

  • April showers bring new composers

    It’s a new month, a new batch of lead sheets, and most exciting of all, two new composers added to our roster!

    We’re very excited to be welcoming GEOFFREY KEEZER and VALERY PONOMAREV to the jazzleadsheets.com family. These two virtuosos represent all that is great about the jazz scene today — not only are they two of the most talented musicians on their respective instruments, but their compositions are out of this world. We’re starting off with one piece from each of their first solo releases.

    Geoffrey Keezer’s first album as a leader was recorded when he was only 17 — a fact that is all the more incredible when you hear his complex, edgy, irresistible composition Babes In McCoyland. With elements of Latin, rock, and gospel all mixed together, this piece is nothing short of addictive.

    Valery Ponomarev’s first solo release came a bit later in life, but his composition Take Care is equally impressive. It fits in perfectly with many of our hard-bop compositions even though it was recorded years later — that’s how much soul and style Valery has as both a composer and a player.

    But the new releases from our other composers are just as enticing. If it’s a ballad you need, look no further than Myles. This sensitive, haunting composition by Billy Pierce is simply breath-taking. If it happens to make you tear up a bit on the first listen, you’re in good company.

    It’s been a while since we’ve treated you with a composition from maestro Al Cohn, and there’s no better piece to come back with than Danielle . This versatile composition (recorded as a bossa, slow swing, or ballad) has a plaintive, nostalgic quality to it and a melody so lovely you’ll be humming it for days.

    And singers: we’ve got a great pick for you, too! Over The Brink comes from Judy Niemack’s fantastic tutorial book, Hear It And Sing It: Exploring The Blues, but it’s a great chart in its own right. The instrumental composition, Push Come To Shove, is by Julian Priester, and Julian and Judy make quite a team. Over The Brink is a sultry, unusual, exciting blues (complete with a minus you audio track) that will push your ear and really work your chops.

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