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Ever wonder what it's like to work with your ex?  The lyrics from every song on Rumours might give you a little insight.  Apparently, Lindsey kept the lyrics to the third track, Secondhand News, all to himself until it was time to lay down the vocal tracks.  He knew what Stevie's response might have been, and he wanted to avoid a blowup.  Other than the drama his lyrics may have created, there's a treasure trove of hidden sounds in this song.  We highly suggest listening with good headphones.  Fleetwood Mac's Rumors album, released in February of 1977, created a tidal wave of enthusiasm for the band following the earlier release of their self-titled album in 1975.  Still fresh to America, with the addition of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham; Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, and Christine McVie started feeling the pressure to meet the expectations of their new fans. Most of the research came from Ken Caillat's book, Making Rumors: The Inside Story of the Classic Fleetwood Mac Album 

Fleetwood Mac's Rumors album, released in February of 1977, created a tidal wave of enthusiasm for the band following the earlier release of their self-titled album in 1975.  Still fresh to America, with the addition of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham; Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, and Christine McVie started feeling the pressure to meet the expectations of their new fans.  In this episode of Web Piano Teacher's artist series we will break down the first track of Rumors and try to answer why this song is great and what it's contribution was to one of the greatest albums of all time.  So much to discuss with this album.   Most of the research came from Ken Caillat's book, Making Rumors: The Inside Story of the Classic Fleetwood Mac Album. 

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What a great song!  Web Piano Teacher was built on Billy Joel's Piano Man, as one of our very fist lessons to film and upload.  This song is great not just for it's superb quality as one of the best sing alongs of all time, but the timeless story and soaring chorus, will keep people listening for generations to come.  Listen along as Shawn performs Piano Man from start to finish. Most people know about this song, Joel himself talks about its origins often, but reminisce with us on this awesome piano classic. 

What is the intrigue of Joni Mitchell's music?  Certainly her pitch perfect, beautifully controlled vocals have something to do with it, but is there another reason?  We think there is. Listen to us perform (or attempt to perform) and dialogue about why her music grips so many people's interest.  Check out Morning Morgantown on Joni Mitchell's Ladies of the Canyon album released in 1970.  

Does the mention of the Goo Goo Dolls bring up nostalgic memories of your teens or twenties during the 90's?  It does for us, but we have very different reactions.  What memory is dragged up for you when a song by the Goo Goo Dolls shuffles through your playlist?  Listen with us to the Goo Goo Dolls iconic hit, Name from their first commercially successful album, A Boy Named Goo. Can you help us answer a couple of questions?  Is the Goo Goo Dolls a band for soccer moms, and just how far did they fall from their original roots?  For all things Web Piano Teacher, visit webpianoteacher.com and sign up for a free membership.  You will find lessons for this song as well as many other favorites across all genres and skill levels.  

In this week’s episode, listen with us to Hugh Laurie’s version of Swanee River from his 2011 Blues album, Let Them Talk. Shawn and Shawna perform the song as arranged by Hugh, and discuss a brief history of the song itself. If you’re interested in blues piano, Shawn has some great tips on how to get started. Before working on this song, we had no idea that actor Hugh Laurie was a musician - and an accomplished one at that. We hope you enjoy listening to and learning about this song as much as we did.

In this episode of Web Piano Teacher's Artist Series Carole King's compositions, musicality, and creativity is highlighted through her most popular album - Tapestry.  Shawn identifies five distinct characteristics of King's music that give her the signature sound we all know and love.  Once again, the music and life of Carole King inspired an original song titled "She Goes Before".  This was our most collaborative song to date and in this episode you can hear all about the approach we took in attempt to mirror and honor her legacy of songwriting.  Our whole family got to know the Tapestry album and I'll always hold dear the memory of watching my daughter in the rearview mirror of our car sing her heart out to "Beautiful".  Our hope, is that you will listen to King's music with a new curiosity for all the musical gems she weaves into each and every measure of her songs.  

In this episode of Web Piano Teacher's Artist Series we turn all our attention to the life and songs of Willie Nelson.  Willie Nelson, the ultimate story-teller, uses his unique resonate voice to weave timeless stories we not only hear, but feel as if he wrote it just for our life too.  After reading his memoir It's A Long Story, we were struck by his strong poetic prose in the re-telling his life story.  Shawna imagined the recollection of his memories as a beautiful song and tried to honor the foundational relationship between him and his sister Bobbie.  This episode focuses more on the storytelling, which we believe is Willie's signature sound.  Learn how Willie came up with a few of his most popular songs and why writing a Willie Nelson style song proved to be more difficult that writing an Elton John style song; imagine that. 

In this episode of Web Piano Teacher's Artist Series the spotlight is on Elton John's music.  What makes Elton John's music distinctly recognizable as something that keeps generations of people interested and intrigued?  After learning about his unique song writing technique with Bernie Taupin, we decided to put ourselves in their shoes and write a song separately together.  Throughout this episode you'll hear a live performance of an original song written in the style of Elton John as well as examples of his techniques and genius played on the piano by Shawn. In the end, we hope you learn something new about Elton and walk away with a better understanding of his music with a fresh appreciation for his God-given talent.