Welcome to my music blog - The Soundtrack of My Life!

Many of you have asked me “What’s with all the music, Dr. Weiss?” Well, as I’ve told some of you:

I personally call every surgery patient on the evening of surgery just to make sure they are doing well and have no questions that need answering. Occasionally, I would be at the piano and play a song that we had listened to that day. I gradually realized that I wanted to go through all the music that I had played during my life and at least start making a list of the songs that I had recently played.

Well, there are now about 600 songs on the list and I realized that it in a way it represented the ‘soundtrack of my life’! And that’s how I got the idea to record these songs and share them with my patients, friends and family. After I record them they will reside here, for easy access.

Music is truth. It’s honest. It’s really the first social media, where in a way, people could share their souls directly. And isn’t that what the purpose of social media is and why it’s so popular - trying to share who you really are, as completely and directly as possible?

Finally, it has been (and will continue to be) a genuine pleasure sharing these different songs with you and I really appreciate all of your positive feedback!!

Musical Genres

Since it cost a lot with play button

Deal – Grateful Dead

February 15, 2025

Deal (3:39) Deal is a rowdy and rollicking song from the Grateful Dead, written by Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter. Always a crowd pleaser! The story behind the AI generated video (WARNING: READ NO FURTHER UNLESS YOU WANT THE DETAILS). Note: The terms AI and chatgpt are used interchangeably below. Back in December, when I read that the Grateful Dead would be honored at the Kennedy Center, I decided to experiment with some AI text or image to video software that had just come out to go along with some music that I had just recorded. So… First I asked Dall-E (ChatGPT text to image service) to create 18 cartoon images (enough for about 18 10-second videos in a 3 minute song) to accompany the song’s lyrics: Since it cost a lot to win and even more to lose You and me bound to spend some time wondering what to choose Goes to show you don’t ever know Watch each card you play and play it slow Wait until your deal come round Don’t you let that deal go down I been gambling here abouts for ten good solid years If I told you all that went down it would burn off […]

Angel eyes with hands 30 percent and button

On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever)

February 11, 2025

On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever)(3:58) This is my version of how the great jazz pianist Bill Evans would have played this song by Alan Jay Lerner and Burton Lane from the 1965 Broadway show. A 1970 film adaptation directed by Vincente Minnelli starred Barbra Streisand, Yves Montand, Bob Newhart and Jack Nicholson. (That one might be worth checking out!)  AI Chat of the Week: The Art of Jazz Improvisation and Cosmetic Eyelid Surgery Me:   “Write a blog linking a musical improvisation of ‘On A Clear Day’ to the qualities needed to perform delicate cosmetic eyelid surgery – and vice versa” ChatGPT: “Harmony in Precision: Connecting Musical Improvisation and Cosmetic Eyelid Surgery In both art and science, mastery demands a blend of precision, intuition, and adaptability. Whether it’s an improvised rendition of On A Clear Day, with its fluid melodies and dynamic emotional shifts, or the meticulous artistry required in cosmetic eyelid surgery, the parallels between these seemingly disparate disciplines are striking. Both require a keen awareness of structure, a deep understanding of form, and the ability to adapt gracefully in the moment. 1. The Art of Improvisation: A Delicate Balance When a musician approaches On A Clear Day, they enter a space where technical proficiency meets artistic expression. The jazz-inspired nature of […]

Shallow with play button

Shallow

February 1, 2025

Shallow (2:56) Lady Gaga sang this song the other night as part of her set to close out FireAid LA. It won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song in 2018. (The entire show is still available on YouTube.) Click below to keep the donations going!

Chim Chim Cher ee

Chim Chim Cher-ee

December 13, 2024

Chim Chim Cher-ee (0:47) “Chim Chim Cher-ee” is a song from Mary Poppins, the timeless classic 1964 Walt Disney musical film starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. The song won the 1964 Academy Award for Best Original Song and was written by Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman (the “Sherman Brothers”), who also won an Oscar and a Grammy Award for the Mary Poppins score! Bert was a chimneysweep played by Dick Van Dyke and this was his theme song. This song must have a sort of universal appeal, attested to by the covers from diverse artists including Burl Ives, John Coltrane, David Bowie, Wes Montgomery, Bing Crosby, Duke Ellington, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Louis Armstrong, Mannheim Steamroller, and Esperanza Spalding! Here is my very simple version in tribute to Dick Van Dyke on his 99th birthday, who also has universal appeal. Happy Birthday, Dick! Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Some info from Wikipedia PS This recording is also another example of my theory that many memorable and unforgettable complete musical ideas can be expressed in less than 60 seconds (in this case, 47 seconds)– thus, Weiss Musical Minutes.

I'll Be Seeing You

I’ll Be Seeing You

November 12, 2024

Image by Dr. Weiss and Dall-E I’ll Be Seeing You (1:42) “I’ll Be Seeing You” is a popular song published in 1938 which was written for an unsuccessful Broadway show (by Irving Kahal & Sammy Fain) that closed after 15 performances. Lucky for us, the 1944 recording by Bing Crosby became a nostalgic wartime hit (especially poignant and emotional as soldiers were away fighting and sweethearts were separated, perhaps forever). Frank Sinatra’s version further added to its popularity, and Billie Holiday’s 1944 recording of the song was even used as the final transmission sent by NASA to the Opportunity rover on Mars when its mission ended in February 2019! As I have been playing this for the last 2 weeks after listening to it with a patient during her eyelid surgery, I was struck by the thought that it was as beautiful as any classical music theme.  Then I read on Wikipedia that someone had already noticed the resemblance between the main tune’s first four lines and a passage within the theme of the last movement of Gustav Mahler’s Third Symphony (1896). Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Some information from Wikipedia Dedicated to TZ PS Clavinova sample is Yamaha CFX Grand Piano […]

Corcovado a serene night scene inspired by the bossa nova song Corcovado The image features a quiet, starry night sky over a calm moonlit landscape

Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars)

October 1, 2024

Corcovado (1:43) “Corcovado” (known in English as “Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars”) is a bossa nova song and jazz standard written by Antônio Carlos Jobim in 1960. English lyrics were later written by Gene Lees. The Portuguese title refers to the Corcovado mountain in Rio de Janeiro. Considered as one of the great exponents of Brazilian music, Jobim merged Samba with Cool jazz in the 1960s to create Bossa nova, with worldwide success. As a result, he is regarded as one of the fathers of bossa nova. In fact, “The Girl from Ipanema”, composed by Jobim, has become one of the most recorded songs of all time, Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Info from Wikipedia Bösendorfer piano sound: for this recording I’m playing a Yamaha Clavinova – which has the same keyboard action as a traditional acoustic piano, but there are no strings. Pressing a key activates (in this case) a sound which was sampled from a Bösendorfer Imperial Concert Grand piano. Try listening to it with a good set of headphones!

Andrea Miller photo

Summer’s Almost Gone – (Andrea Miller vocal)

September 21, 2024

Andrea Miller Summer’s Almost Gone Well, today you are in for a very special treat!  First, we have a guest jazz vocalist, my friend Andrea Miller (www.andreamillersings.com). I imagined an arrangement of Jim Morrison’s ‘Summer’s Almost Gone’ with a haunting, lyrical female vocalist and Andrea came up with a version that far exceeded my imagination!  She has such a lovely voice – I hope you like this delicate, beautiful audio recording as much as I do! Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Dedicated to my friend Leonardo

Summer's almost gone sunset

Summertime

September 21, 2024

 Summertime (Summer officially ends Sunday, September 22, 5:44 AM PST) Here is a special Weiss Music Minute (1:07) – Summertime, written by George Gershwin 90 years ago for the opera ‘Porgy & Bess’ – a song that needs no special introduction! Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Dedicated to my friend Leonardo

Tea for Two Bugs and Daffy

Tea For Two

June 10, 2024

Tea For Two! Published 100 years ago today!!  “Tea for Two” is a 1924 song composed by Vincent Youmans (More Than You Know), with lyrics by Irving Caesar (Swanee, Just a Gigolo). It was published exactly 100 years ago today (June 10, 1924!) When I started this music blog, I was trying to show that many complete musical ideas can be expressed in one minute or less. This is a perfect example. It is instantly recognizable and is one of the most recorded songs in popular music. I’ve linked to two versions: Bugs and Daffy doing a soft shoe routine, and an amazing version by Art Tatum – one of the most talented jazz pianists who ever lived! Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Bugs and Daffy version Art Tatum version