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

Streets of Minneapolis image 2 web

Streets of Minneapolis

March 5, 2026

Streets of Minneapolis (4:02) I’ve been furious since the shootings by ICE agents (United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement) in Minneapolis—especially since I first heard the song Springsteen wrote in the 24 hours after the killings of U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renée Good, then recorded and released just two days later. It landed like an emotional gut punch. Renée Good was shot three times in the head from point blank range on January 7 while in her car and turning away from ICE agents. The head of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension later disclosed that the FBI revoked their access to evidence related to the shooting—reversing an earlier understanding that the agencies would conduct a joint investigation. Leaders in the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division declined to open a constitutional investigation, prompting more than a dozen federal prosecutors in Minneapolis and Washington to resign in protest. Video evidence and widely reported preliminary accounts indicate that on January 24, federal agents fired 10 shots in roughly five seconds killing Alex Pretti after he was pepper-sprayed, tackled, and pinned to the ground. Several shots were reportedly fired after he was no longer moving. DHS officials also reportedly prevented local police from […]

Sugar Magnolia

Sugar Magnolia

January 11, 2026

Sugar Magnolia (3:13) As I mentioned yesterday, Weir’s “Sugar Magnolia” was the first Dead song that I learned on the guitar, and I took a folk guitar with me when I first drove cross-country from Philadelphia to California when I was 18 (in my brand new emerald green AMC Gremlin) – and must have sung it for many dozens along the way. So today, as promised, I worked up a version of “Sugar Magnolia” for you. I literally haven’t played this song for at least 30 years and wasn’t sure if my fingers would remember how to play it, but here it is. OK. Here’s my Bob Weir story about the time when I physically protected Bob Weir from his fans on-stage during an encore of “One More Saturday Night” at a concert in LA. I had found myself alone in the wings for the encore (how I got there is a story for another time, but it had to do with our mutual interest in supporting efforts to cure international blindness). Anyway, anyone who has ever been to a Grateful Dead show knows that there is a lot of dancing, including many ‘whirling dervishes.’ Well,  during the encore some of the more uncontrolled dancers jumped […]

Sweet Emily with play button

Sweet Emily

December 13, 2025

  Sweet Emily (3:05) Leon Russell “Sweet Emily” was on Leon Russell’s second solo album Leon Russell and the Shelter People released in 1971, my second year of college at NYU. He has earned six gold records and he received two Grammy Awards from seven nominations. In 1973 Billboard named Russell the “Top Concert Attraction in the World”. In 2011, he was inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Russell collaborated with pretty much everyone of note in the music business, to name a few: Joe Cocker, the Beach Boys, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison,  Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra, Ike & Tina Turner, and the Rolling Stones. One of his early fans, Elton John, said that Russell was a “mentor” and an “inspiration”. Believe it or not (it’s true! – see the meeting flyer below), I once put on an international multi-specialty medical conference in Deer Valley and I got Leon Russell to perform. Pretty crazy, eh? So here is a version that I dedicated to my patient Emily earlier this year. Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Some info from Wikipedia

The Long and Winding Road with play button

The Long And Winding Road

December 8, 2025

It’s always nice to start off the week with a Beatles song. I’ll let the Clavinova ‘sing’ for me (I’m certainly not going to compete with Paul). The Long and Winding Road(2:22) Paul McCartney “The Long and Winding Road” is a Beatles piano ballad written by Paul McCartney from their 1970 album Let It Be. It was one of the first songs released after the band’s breakup and their final number one hit as a group on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Brian Wilson considered it his favorite Beatles song. Many thought that Phil Spector massively overdubbed the original version. My version is closer to a non-overdubbed recording later released on Anthology 3.  Everyone sees different meanings in songs. Whether you view it as a nostalgic look back, an allegory for our lives, or even a quest toward God or spirituality – it’s one of my favorites. Enjoy, Dr. Weiss PS  Anyone wanting to attempt to fabricate a Christmas goose this season?(45 min – not for the faint of heart!) Related Weiss Beatles Posts:   Across the Universe  3:50) We Can Work It Out (2:14) Maybe I’m Amazed  (2:26) Something  (2:58) I Will (1:53)

Man Smart, Woman Smarter

Man Smart, Woman Smarter

December 4, 2025

  Man Smart (Woman Smarter) ( 3:03) “Man Smart (Woman Smarter)” was first recorded and probably composed by Norman Span (King Radio) in 1936. It’s a cool song that works into many different musical genres and was first made famous by Harry Belafonte in 1956 (on Billboard’s Top Pop Albums chart for 31 weeks.)   I first learned this song from the Grateful Dead repertoire who play it with a New Orleans ”Iko Iko” type of arrangement. In any case, I’ve always liked their version, and the lyrics resonated with me because I’ve always felt the world would probably be a little kinder if the women had more say. One of the more unique versions is performed by Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz), Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball), Fred Mertz (William Frawley) and Ethel Mertz (Vivian Vance) in the 1957 episode of I Love Lucy entitled “Ragtime Band”. Check it out on youtube. Anyway, here is my version, recorded live at one of our Patient Appreciation Parties a while back.  Interestingly, I spent a little time recently overdubbing parts of my vocal to improve on the mix. As usual (see my song parody “Mr. Botox Man” of Johnny Rivers “Secret Agent Man”), I start it out on […]

Glad

Glad

December 3, 2025

Glad (1:43) I was going to do a blog showing you a behind-the-scenes look at multi-track digital recording, which enables me to create an entire soundscape. But then this post morphed into another AI blog, when I was astounded by chatGPT’s detailed analysis from my very simple prompt, and also helped me come up with this amazing creative illustration. Me: Analyze Steve Winwood’s song, Glad ChatGPT: “Glad” is an instrumental piece by Steve Winwood’s band Traffic, featured on their 1970 album John Barleycorn Must Die. The song showcases Winwood’s exceptional musicianship, blending rock, jazz, and blues into a compelling jam. Here’s a breakdown of key elements in “Glad”: 1. Musical Style and Structure Jazz Influence: “Glad” heavily incorporates jazz, featuring complex rhythms, extended chord progressions, and an emphasis on instrumental interplay. It has a jam-like feel typical of jazz-rock fusion, a genre gaining traction in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Blues and Rock Elements: Though jazz is dominant, the song retains rock and blues underpinnings, with its groove and rhythmic patterns coming from a rock-oriented perspective. Improvisation: There’s a sense of fluidity and improvisation, which is common in jazz but less so in mainstream rock, giving the song a spontaneous, […]

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 […]

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

Jim Morrison The Doors 1 1

The Crystal Ship

March 2, 2024

Jim Morrison The Crystal Ship (3:53) Yesterday we listened to some classical Chopin waltzes.  Today let’s listen to some classic rock. I sent out this video last year, but I enjoyed playing around with the special effects and watching it so much – here it is again for all you Doors fans! We were BIG Doors fans in my Philadelphia neighborhood when I was in high school! In fact, I went to the Philadelphia Doors concert that was recorded live instead of going to the senior prom! ‘The Crystal Ship’  is a good example of “classic” psychedelic rock, a rock music genre (consisting of a variety of different styles) that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelic culture, the peak years of which were between 1967 and 1969. ’The Crystal Ship’ was released in April 1967 – 57 years ago! The music incorporated new electronic sound effects and recording effects, extended solos, improvisation and the incorporation of jazz. In fact, it’s the first time that I’ve ever started a jazz arpeggio improvisation on the very  highest key of the piano (1:29), actually twice! Psychedelic video effects start a little earlier (0:21). Enjoy, Dr. Weiss Some information from Wikipedia The Crystal Ship dedication: Larry S., with whom […]

Botox Man Weiss Music Minute

Botox Man

November 13, 2023

Botox Man – Weiss Music Minute   Today I want to share an incredible coincidence that has linked me and Botox Cosmetic: we have the same birthday (April 15)!  In fact, I was being interviewed on the radio about the product on my birthday on the very day of the FDA approval (Botox Cosmetic’s ‘birthday’.)   Please enjoy this parody of Johnny Rivers song “Secret Agent Man” entitled, “Mr. Botox Man” that I wrote back in the day. We literally recorded it in a garage by the beach!