Author Archives: Greg Scheer

Mysterious Lee

Last night’s new tune is a vibey, vampy tune that’s great for improvising. That’s the thing about jazz: it’s not just about writing a catchy tune; a jazz tune is also a launching pad for soloing. You can have a … Continue reading

Posted in Jazz, Live | Leave a comment

Big Bottom Blues

Spinal Tap’s song “Big Bottom” is a classic. And classy. But as a bass player, I feel the world needs more songs featuring the bass, not less. Enter “Big Bottom Blues.” Similar to Miles Davis’ iconic “So What,” the bass … Continue reading

Posted in Jazz, Live | Leave a comment

Slowly

Today’s jazz offering is “Slowly.” It is a song about approaching a new relationship cautiously after being hurt in love. Of course, what do I have to say on this subject that hasn’t been said more eloquently and succinctly by … Continue reading

Posted in Jazz, Live | Leave a comment

Mr. McFunkypants

It all started with a bass line played into my phone. It was a deep enough groove that it merited further attention. I began filling out those initial four bars with a bona fide melody and an ABAC form. Voila! … Continue reading

Posted in Demos, Jazz, Rock and/or Roll | Leave a comment

Slow Changes

In honor of my birthday*: a song about getting older and slower. The song is something of a musical pun. One of the standard song forms in jazz is “Rhythm Changes.” This form uses the chords from Gershwin’s “I’ve Got … Continue reading

Posted in Jazz, Live | Leave a comment

Rising and Falling

Now that my weekly gig at Euro Bistro is back after a summer hiatus, I’ve returned to the discipline of writing a new tune each week. Don’t worry: I won’t be so OCD about it that I ignore life’s other … Continue reading

Posted in Jazz, Live | Leave a comment

The Gospel Truth

It’s not often that I pen something happy. I mean, just happy, with no twinges of melancholy, conflict, or nostalgia. I’m a content person, generally, but enough of a realist to understand that light needs shadow to have any meaning … Continue reading

Posted in Jazz, Live | Leave a comment

Fight or Flight of the Bumblebee

It may seem like I haven’t been composing lately. Don’t you worry, I’ve just been composing things that are too difficult for me to record by myself. But I’ll try to scratch together a few recordings in the coming weeks. … Continue reading

Posted in Demos, Jazz | Leave a comment

Psalm 54: Save Me, O God (with Doug Gay)

Update: Sheet music for this song is now available at gregscheer.com. February 2022 proved to be too short to achieve my goal of 14 Psalm collaborations. (You can hear a concert of the 12 songs I completed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBiORFbDulE) However, … Continue reading

Posted in 2022 Psalm Collaborations, Church, Congregational Songs, Demos, Psalms | Leave a comment

Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies

Update: Sheet music for this song is now available at gregscheer.com. Charles Wesley originally titled this text simply “Morning Hymn.” Indeed, the text is filled with images of morning, light, and day. Of course, Jesus Christ, the Light of the … Continue reading

Posted in Church, Congregational Songs, Demos, Retuned hymn | 2 Comments