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!!

Categories


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Nobody Knows You When You’re Down And Out – Live!

March 1, 2026

Sometimes we just like to say thank you to our awesome family of patients and friends, hang out, and have a little fun. And that’s exactly what we did at this event! We couldn’t invite everyone (at least not until the SuperDome rent drops a little), but some lucky folks got to eat, drink and be merry with a little accompaniment by the fabulous live music of Dr. Weiss and Nutty Jazz. Thanks for the memories!! Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Dedicated to all my friends, family and patients. I hope that you are all doing well.   You can find more about Nutty Jazz and their music here: http://nuttyjazz.com/

Sinatra singing

That’s Life

December 12, 2022

That’s Life In Memory of Frank Sinatra Frank Sinatra was born on this day (December 12) in 1915. I guess I gotta actually sing this one! My father took my brother and me and some friends to see Sinatra at Resorts International Casino, the first casino that opened in Atlantic City, at one of the first shows, if not the first. I’m from Philadelphia, and we spent our summers in Atlantic City, so my father had some good connections. We had a table literally adjacent to the stage and carte blanche! It was all very exciting, and I’ll never forget the look of satisfaction on my Dad’s face because he was able to take us all out in such a manner! And in the casino itself, it was like there was electricity in the air. Here’s to a great singer and bon vivant!  Happy Birthday, Frank! Enjoy Dr. Weiss Related Posts: The Things We Did Last Summer – my attempt at a ‘trumpet’ solo (I love this song!) (Or enter https://youtu.be/gHWa2CjyZFg in your browser, if you don’t like clicking on hyperlinks) All The Way – dedicated to my dear friend Pat D, who danced with Sinatra at her wedding! ( or enter https://youtu.be/Nyh4bOAXJEg in […]

An old image of Basin St, in black and white.

Basin Street Blues

January 6, 2020

“Basin Street Blues" is a song often performed by Dixieland jazz bands, written by Spencer Williams (words and music) in 1928 and first recorded that year by Louis Armstrong. (Williams also wrote the music for “I Ain’t Got Nobody”, popularized by Louis Prima.) It’s one of the greatest of all blues songs. Named after the main street of the famous Storyville district, the red-light district of early 20th-century New Orleans, north of the French Quarter. It became a red light district in 1897. Notable recordings: Lous Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Cab Calloway, Bing Crosby, and Fats Waller. Sam Cooke, Dr. John, Willie Nelson, Ella Fitzgerald and Miles Davis. This performance is dedicated to my friend Todd B, with whom I’ve shared many good times in the Crescent City. Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Related post: Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans P.S.  For anyone wanting to read more about this quintessential jazz song: Pianist and composer Spencer Williams titled this number after the street where he lived as a youngster with his aunt. But the house he lived in was Mahogany Hall, probably the most famous brothel of Storyville. Williams composed the tune in 1928, eleven years after Storyville [...]
James Taylor, with his arms resting on a tree stump.

The Blues is Just A Bad Dream

December 30, 2019

James Taylor’s ‘The Blues Is Just A Bad Dream’  was on his first album in1968. He was one of the first artists released by the Beatles’ newly formed Apple Records and was recorded at the same time they were recording the White Album. The key to this song is in the bass.  This is the standard three chord blues structure but the bass at a certain point is the hook that drives this song. This is one of the songs where I first learned the blues. Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Bosendorfer 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! It sounds better than any piano I've ever owned!!
Boogie Woogie on St Louis Blues pic

Boogie Woogie on St. Louis Blues

August 2, 2019

"St. Louis Blues" is a popular American song composed by W. C. Handy in the blues style and published in September 11, 1914. It was one of the first blues songs to succeed as a pop song and remains a fundamental part of jazz musicians' repertoire. Louis Armstrong, Bing Crosby, Bessie Smith, Count Basie, Glenn Miller, Guy Lombardo, and the Boston Pops Orchestra are among the artists who have recorded it.  This arrangement is close to the way it was played by Earl Hines, one of the most influential jazz pianists ever. Although I had heard the name, until recently I didn’t know much about Hines. I didn’t know that … OK, there is too much to say here about Hines or Handy, for that matter - just go to Wikipedia if you’re interested.  However, a few quotes:  the trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie (a member of Hines's big band, along with sax player Charlie Parker) wrote "the modern piano came from Earl Hines." Erroll Garner said, "When you talk about greatness, you talk about Art Tatum and Earl Hines”. Count Basie said that Hines was "the greatest piano player in the world". As a matter of fact, he does sound pretty [...]
If Dogs Run Free 1

If Dogs Run Free

May 24, 2019

If Dogs Run Free - Happy Birthday Bob! On this day in 1941, Bob Dylan was born.  I first heard this song from the album New Morning when I was 17 and a freshman at NYU. This song fragment contains one of my favorite lines: 'Just do your thing, you’ll be king.'  This beat jazz homage featured Bob Dylan’s spoken word poetry, scat-singing Maeretha Stewart and Al Kooper on piano. Kooper was known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears, providing studio support for Bob Dylan when he went electric in 1965, and bringing together guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills to record the Super Session album (BTW, if you haven’t listened to this album, then do!)  I thought the jazz intro was just so cool, and Dylan’s mysterious and, as always, inscrutable words were among his best (where to start?) such as ‘my mind weaves a symphony and tapestry of rhyme’ and ’to each his own, it’s all unknown’.  Anyway, Happy Birthday Bob! Enjoy, Dr. Weiss This was dedicated to Luis. Related video: Forever Young - On This Day Bosendorfer piano sound - For this recording I’m playing a Yamaha Clavinova – which has the same keyboard action as a [...]
Tell Me More and More pic wplay

Tell Me More and More (and Then Some)

May 16, 2019

Billie Holiday is tied with Ella Fitzgerald for my (and probably many others) favorite female vocalist.  What you may not be aware of is that Billie was also a composer who not only wrote this song, but others including God Bless the Child (who’s got his own), Lady Sings the Blues, and (Hush Now) Don’t Explain.  Nicknamed "Lady Day”, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills. She is totally unique and instantly recognizable. I won’t even begin to get into her tragic childhood and life (for this, see her wikipedia article.) It is an understatement to say that she had a right to sing the blues.  One devastating example: Holiday's New York City Cabaret Card was revoked, preventing her working anywhere that sold alcohol for the last 12 years of her short life. Our loss. Another almost unbelievable example: as she lay dying (at age 44) in the hospital suffering from heart and liver problems, she was arrested and handcuffed for drug possession, her hospital room was raided, and [...]
Do You Know What It Means pic

Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans? (lyrics)

April 29, 2019

Well, as a matter of fact, I do find myself missing New Orleans, one of my favorite cities, at one of my favorite times of the year in the Big Easy: Jazz Fest!  For a nice summary of Jazz Fest history, read this summary in the New York Times from a couple of days ago. One of my most emotional times in New Orleans was attending the first jazz fest after hurricane Katrina in 2006. I described this moving experience here. This one is dedicated to the many friends and family with whom I’ve shared this unique experience over the years, including: Todd, Alfred, Will, Donna, Portia, Jonathan, David, Katrine and Jay (who, by the way, has the sweetest perfume store in the French Quarter: Madame Aucoin Perfume, around the corner from the Hotel Montelione.)  Let the good times roll! Dr. Weiss Bosendorfer 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! It sounds better than [...]
Cars Hiss photo play e1555954338446

Cars Hiss By My Window

April 19, 2019

On this day (April 19) in 1971 the Doors released their sixth studio album, L.A. Woman, which included this song, Cars Hiss By My Window. We were BIG Doors fans in my Philadelphia neighborhood! This is the song where I first learned to play the blues.  (I didn’t realize at the time that it was a very common but slightly altered  I/IV/V blues progression, borrowed from generations of black blues musicians, originating in the Deep South of the United States around the 1870s.) Another interesting thing I didn’t suspect at the time (pre-Google in our pockets!) were the other musical influences: for this recording, the Doors hired Elvis Presley's bassist Jerry Scheff and Leon Russell’s rhythm guitarist Marc Benno to round out their sound. The band began recording without much material and needed to compose many songs, including this one, on the spot in the studio!  Keyboardist Ray Manzarek recalled that "Jim said it was about living in Venice [Beach], in a hot room, with a hot girlfriend, and an open window, and a bad time…” Listening to this song, I can easily imagine the cars, waves, headlights and beaches of Venice. The ending’s pretty dark, but he was obviously [...]
Bessie Smith, original singer of "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out"

Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out

March 3, 2019

On this day in 1925, Jimmy Cox passed away after giving us the immortal Roaring Twenties hit “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out,”  written for Bessie Smith (one of the most popular blues singers of the 1920s and 1930s) who originally made it famous back in the day, before being widely re-popularized in 1992 by Eric Clapton on MTV Unplugged.  Interestingly, Clapton had previously recored the song with his band, Derek and the Dominos, for their first album (Layla). It was Duane Allman’s first song with the group and was recored live, vocals and all, with no overdubs on the first take! The song’s lyrics, told from the point of view of a one-time millionaire during the Prohibition era, reflects on the fleeting nature of material wealth and the friendships that come and go with it. Tragically, it wasn’t recorded and released by Bessie Smith until 1929, just two weeks before the Wall Street Crash that ushered in the depression, and 4 years after Jimmy Cox died at the age of  42. So Cox never even knew of his enduring legacy! I was fortunate to first be exposed to this song at a long closed Greenwich Village supper [...]