Monday Struggle Impro

[troffitte]

great Boogie playing! What a feeling - not far from the original Ammons - rolling and rolling and rolling and rolling.....

Thanks!

[SlackerKat24601]

Another good one Cam! :)

[Zengy1]

pure joy! guys like you make me sit and play my piano (not as nearly as good though)

[AnalgesicAgnostic]

Nice upright grand! :) Great playing too :)

[cam1987]

Thanks mate!  Its a Bluthner :)

[Someoneotherthanyou]

lol the things above him look like stop motion

[flopo90]

genius...i wish i could play that good..

[cam1987]

thank you! You can if you practice :)

[theloniousmonk81]

genio! cuanto woogie boogie carajo!

[theloniousmonk81]

yes man!!! you have rock! excelent basses

[az10101010]

this rocks like the real thing..

[Jetliner707]

yes, the bassline is very interesting...groovy!!

[thesupercam]

what bassline did you play?

[cam1987]

C C C-E C-F C-G C-G C-A C-G

Have fun! :)

[fatleader]

lol

[hyppoid]

So great!

[RobSchneeberger]

cam, how do you know where to go with the right hand during the chord changes?

[Gabel3DA]

its easy to

u feel the distance between the "buttons" (sry.. but i dunno the word for this)

so u can change the chord while playing the melodie with the right

its like playing blind but easier :p

[cam1987]

Message to everyone: Sorry about not replying...I've had a pretty hectic few months - moving house and stuff! :s

Well you can pretty much do anything with your right hand during chord changes...just make sure you know the basic 12-bar blues pattern. When you go from C up to F make sure your right hand moves to the key of F as well (and instead of using hitting E while in key of F hit Eb). When you go from C to G make sure your right hand goes to G as well.

[flopo90]

Brilliant!!!!!!

[flopo90]

That was BRILLIANT!!!!!!

[boogieman079]

yeah me to my left starts to follow my right.seems real difficult what can i do or practice to correct this.any help or advice would be great.execellent job.

[manuelvis10]

great¡¡¡

[ShuhYih]

you are sooo goood! cheers cam

[cam1987]

Thanks mate I'll get back to you tonight about the sheet music ;) (sorry about late reply just come back from holidays)

[sealerdave]

Cam what is the secret to keeping your left hand constant ? I've been trying for years, I get going with my left hand then when I play the riffs with my right hand my left starts to follow my right ...Guess my brain is screwed !!!!

[cam1987]

Hey Dave I sent you a message because my reply was too long :)

Cam

[gimmypage]

I've same troubles:-). Could You send me that message too? thx alot

[sealerdave]

Very good listen to Jon Cleary & the Dirty Rice band you will love it and get a lot of ideas

[cam1987]

Hey Dave thanks for the info I'll try and find a few recordings :D

[walking8]

Me too! Monday Struggle, Roll'em Pete, Boogie Woogie Prayer, Shout for Joy, etc. Hard to play them without adding stuff... but that's the fun of it!

Anyway... SOUNDS GREAT!

[cam1987]

Thanks! Yeah I agree with you...very fun to improvise on those classics.

Cam :)

[CADYBOB1960]

All I can say is,you've got the Ammons touch. Very well done. Thank you. 10 stars.

bob

[cam1987]

Wow thank you Bob...that is the ultimate compliment!! :D

Cam

[michaelwolfliu]

I really love your play.You are my hero.How could I get the Boogie woogie music sheet from the web.Coz I just can't wait to play B.W.:)

[NELLOARA]

Bravo!!!

[cam1987]

Haha thanks :)

[Shangas]

I are officially impressed by your cool playing...That is an awesome piano.

[cam1987]

Thank you :)

You're not a bad pianist yourself...keep it up mate!

Cam :)

[boogiemusicfan]

nice playing and a very original sound the old piano has, how old is the piano, what make is it and what is construction wise different to todays pianos? appreciate your comments. thans and keep on grooving!

[electricoven4]

i like the piano

[hbdavew]

Solid Left. Great playing. The open piano front makes a nice visual too.

[cam1987]

Thank you :)

Yeah it's a great looking piano...got some real character!

[bobspanner]

You have a great feel. The piano sounds great.

Improvise away.

[cam1987]

Haha yeah thanks! :D

[howlingjim]

wow your too good man i wanna lern tp play boogie woogie piano

[cam1987]

Haha thanks :D

Yeah you should go for it mate! Post some vids to show us how you go.

[fanbks]

Thoroughly enjoyed your playing of this. My Mom used to play a mean boogie woogie. We used to love to listen to it. This rhythm can hold its own with any other kind of music.  You play very well. Keep it up.

[cam1987]

Thank you very much! :)

I agree with you, it's where rock & roll started :P

[christylez7682]

Wowzerz... well played... Good Job

[cam1987]

haha thanks :)

[nozerider]

Very nice, I'm learning the song now, I love your additions. Plus nice sounding old piano.

[cam1987]

Thank you mate!

I appreciate the compliments :D

Good luck with it!

[xxbatmanxx91]

haha i just read every comment on this video. i watched this video for the first time about 7 months ago. but i dont think i commented. i watch it over and over again. i love the sound. im learning your improv part by ear. taking quite a long time. haha. anyways, you are a great inspiration. Jay.

[cam1987]

haha thanks mate...I feel somewhat proud that someone's learning my impro bit haha! :D

[BlindDogFulton]

Sounds like the Johnny B Goode riff at the beginning.

[cam1987]

Ohh yeah...sometimes I use this 4 track recorder that you can add distortion effects to make it sound like a guitar! It's really fun! :D

[BlindDogFulton]

Awesome... Do you know the riff on the piano? Or do you know someone who does? I've been trying to figure it out...

[cam1987]

No unfortunately, I've never tried transcribing from guitar...could be fun.. :D

[siggileelewis]

That's bullshit. Silvan is great! Funny guy to chat with. Also today's Ammons. Hey, Great play man!

[cam1987]

Lol guess I'll just have to see for myself one day :)

Thanks for the compliment :)

[cam1987]

What!!!...really???!

I wouldn't have guessed that!....wow

Thanks mate ;)

[Flazzza]

Superb. I'd give my girlfriends right arm to be able to play like that. Best not give mine!!!!

[cam1987]

Lol yeah good point :D

Hope your girlfriend doesn't see your comment lol!

Thanks for the compliment!

Do you play any music?

[Flazzza]

No, just appreciate the effort put by people such as you.

Ever heard of Jools Holland?

[cam1987]

Yeah, he's one talented man :D

River Boogie is a masterpiece!

[tydonthil]

You are awesome!!!! I could listen to you all day.

You should play with Silvan Zingg, check out some of his videos on YouTube, You two could do a duet!!

[cam1987]

Thanks mate! :D

Don't worry I've checked out almost all of Silvan's vids :) I would love to play with Silvan....the only problem is I'm in Australia and can't fid anyone to play with :(

[cam1987]

Thanks!

Yeah I love my piano...never going to sell it! :D

Cam :)

[malak789]

almost all this boogie woogie crap sounds the same, like all the same structure and sound

[cam1987]

True, it does sound the same

Just depends on whether you like the style or not

If it's not in you then I dont blame you for not liking it

I suppose you could say that for any style of music - generally it sounds similar to the rest ;)

But you have to remember, this is one instrument here

Don't try and convince anyone that what they like is crap - it's all about personal taste. Have you heard Jean-Pierre Bertrand's boogie? He uses very different structures - sounds very different

Cam :)

[bluesmanrh]

Great response, Cam :-)

[unfairplay]

another fan from greece ;) i just started learning blues and boogie woogie piano some months ago on my own...you know collecting riffs and putting it together...i have a question. do you learn all those songs from a book or from the record??

[cam1987]

Hi, great to see you've started on your own! :D

If you've got the passion you will succeed!

As for your question, well, all of these songs I've learnt by sheet music (except Swanee River Boogie which I learnt my ear off the record).

The thing is, I would not be able to play them anything like I do without listening to the record also. You have to get the 'feel' from the recording. I usually cannot play something unless I hear what it should sound like.

Hope this helps!

Cam :)

[unfairplay]

thx. but where did you find the sheet music? i've searched all over the internet and i cant find anything good...i've found one or two books with boogie woogie originals, but they werent written by any1 good so i don't rly trust them..

[cam1987]

Lol..thanks! :D

At 1:50 I suddenly stop, hesitate and start playing something else...that's when I start ;)

Cam :)

[Trypsonite]

cOOL!

[thyagomoraes]

Good job mate, you have a fan in Brazil.

[cam1987]

Thanks! Wow...all the way from Brazil!! :D

Do you play piano?

Cam :)

[wowdad7]

nothingn wrong with improv when you can make it work like you can , great

[cam1987]

Lol thanks...it worked unusually well that day lol :)

[blatherwick2]

like a mix between otis span and jellyroll mortin, keep it up.

[cam1987]

Thanks mate!

That's an interesting mix! :D

Cam :)

[goldenballsdetecting]

Cracking playing cam, better than the original.Ron.

[cam1987]

Thanks Ron, Albert would be proud! :D

Cam :)

[johnab7]

wicked. love it

[cam1987]

Thanks mate :)

Cam

[spassgamer]

Nice job! Its quite near to the original. This is a binär and not a ternär kind of rhythm - am I right there?

Bye,

Paul

[cam1987]

Thanks Paul!  I'm not quite sure what you mean by that rhythm thing...lol :)

Cam :)

[fjorderstyle]

You know what pisses me off more than anything? When you're just casually glancing off into the distance and not even looking at your hands when your playing some complicated amazing section. Damn it! :D You're my hero. Lol.

[cam1987]

Lol...I actually find it easier to improvise when not looking at my hands. It sort of distracts me if I look at my hands when improvising. If I'm not looking at my hands then I can concentrate more on getting the sound that I want out of my head and on to the keyboard - I try to get a 'feel' of the music. That's just how I work! :)

Cam :)

[consigliere57]

I wish I could play the paino that good

[cam1987]

Thanks!! :)

Well you can still do it, start practising. It's never too late!

Cam :)

[fjorderstyle]

Hey cam, could you explain what you did at 1:10? I really like the sound you produced there. Would be eternally appreciated. -Xander-

[cam1987]

Thanks Alexander

First hit G 3 times

Then slide from D to Eb to E which is the starting point of the tremolo of E & G (play the tremolo like: E G E G E G...)

Straight after finishing the tremolo hit D and then straight into the next tremolo of Eb & Gb

Straight after finishing that tremolo hit C then straight into the next tremolo of D & F.

Straight after finishing that tremolo go straight into the next tremolo of C & E.

If you have any trouble understanding just ask

Good luck!

Cam :)

[fjorderstyle]

Sweetness. I'll start working on that. :) Also your instructional videos on Boogie Woogie Stomp are sooooo useful. I've learned a lot just from observing those. Thanks for sharing so much about your skill.

[cam1987]

No worries Xander, I enjoy sharing knowledge!

Cam :)

[fjorderstyle]

I love it when the strings are uncovered. Ima do that to my piano someday.

[cam1987]

Yeah me too. It sounds much better too!

Cam :)

[fjorderstyle]

Man, I am just in love with boogie. I've watched all of your videos with deep envy. I just started studying piano (I'm 22) and it kills me that you're only 19. :D You really are amazing. Must pull some hot trim at parties, aye? Cheers, sir!

[cam1987]

Thanks a lot Alexander!! :D

You know it's never too late to start learning - I saw 50-60 year olds just starting out when I was having classical lessons!

Unfortunately theres not much of a chance to play a piano at the parties I go to yet, and even if I did not many Australians really appreciate boogie woogie. :( It's sad but true.

Cheers,

Cam :)

[58Crash]

Cam! This is so great. You really got the rythm! And what a steady beat.

Steamboat Willy pays his respect too... Tooh Tooh

[cam1987]

Lol...thanks Jan! :D

Yeah only occasionally I get the right feel for this sort of beat (I have to be in a good and energetic mood)

Cam :)

[paullongball]

Great, Cam!

[cam1987]

Thanks Paul! :D

[KawhackitaRag]

Excellent, again! I'm sure Carl Sonny Leyland would get a kick out of hearing you play!

[cam1987]

Thank you, again! :) Carl Sonny Leyland is quite a talented musician.

I read that you play Ragtime, you should post some videos :)

Cam

[goldenballsdetecting]

Hi cam from the uk. That playing is terific. 10 out of 10.Your up there with the best of them, regards. An Old timer.

[cam1987]

Thanks very much!! :D

[fred21037]

kick butt  sounds great what kind of piano is that? its gourgous

[cam1987]

Thanks!! :) It's an old Bluthner 'Upright Grand', with an unusual over-damper system, which is about 100 years old. It has a very light touch but it needs a full rebuild (it's never had one - has only been tuned) the felts on the dampers are buggered and the felts on the hammers are very hard, but it gets me by.

[Krinkels]

hey! nice playin' if youre going to watch my boogie woogie vid, i just want to let you know that those clips are very old.. more new vids are comeing!!

[cam1987]

Thanks! :) I'll have a look at your vids. Drop me a message when you post your new vids as well

[ronaldinho10maestro]

you're soooooo good, AWESOME keep it up, and post some more vids plz... thx

[cam1987]

Thanks very much! :D I'll get right into it & post some more vids in a couple of months :P, EXAMS are coming up :(

[b33p]

Awesome! That's all I have to say. Nice piano!

[cam1987]

Thanx!! :D

[thisbebonnie]

heyy cam its bonnie! lol you are so good at piano i want to play now :( even though ive heard you a million times before.. but thats awesome!! you sohuld post when you put your feet on the strings because i haven't seen anyone else do that. andd... PLAY AT SCHOOL!!!!!!!! because cam, koonnug cannot be represented by craig mattingly as a good piano player.. they really have no idea. ok ill stop now.. but its awesome and keep posting! FAMOUS ONE DAY, YES! lol byee xx

[cam1987]

LOL!! WOW... I can't believe it's you!! :D :D Thanx sooo much for the comment! When I'm feeling flexible I might try recording me with my feet on the strings - got to find some time off schoolwork first :( . You should start playing piano Bonnie!... It's never too late, I've seen 50-60 year olds just starting out! And believe me Bonnie I wish I could play at school, :) but I think I would turn into a nervous wreck before I went up! :(

Thanx for the compliments! Cya at school ;)

[Terryasp]

So true in what you say, I was 60 when I bought my first piano and have not looked back. Just love. this site and people like you have inspired me to stick with it. Love your playing and keep it comeing for us learners Cheers Terry

[cam1987]

Good on you Terry! Glad you have been inspired! :) You know, I almost gave up playing piano when I was in grade 5 classical once, but my dad wouldn't let me give up... I didn't like it at the time, but now I can't imagine my life without it!

[BigMrC]

Hi, excellent playing, loved it. Is there any chance you can shoot the video from a different angle so I can see what your right hand is playing?

[cam1987]

Thank you very much! :) The next video I do I'll try and mount the camera above me somehow ;)

[wisedup]

Thank You!..love it. freayhead20 and I (wisedup) are great boogie fans. For me as a 6yr old (1946) I watched my dad and brother play boogie duets, with a double left hand and they put newspaper behind the hammers for a drum effect. Nothing like a Upright sound.

[cam1987]

Thanks for the comment! :) I'm a great boogie fan aswell... can't get enough of it. Wow that's an interesting story, I wish I would have been there to see it. And I've never heard of putting newspaper behind the hammers :O ...It's a clever idea... I must try that!

One thing I sometimes do is take off the bottom cover of the piano and put my feet on the bass strings while playing... quite awkward... It makes it sound like a really big, deep acoustic guitar. :)

[Terryasp]

Hi a friend of mine in England way back in the 50s used to stick drawing pins on the hammers giving it a metalic sound, but great at the time

[cam1987]

That would be an interesting sound! I don't think I'll try that one though... I'm scared it will ruin my felts... I'd like to hear it though :P