Along with Dave Brubeck, Vince Guaraldi was one of the leading pianists to rise to prominence from the California Bay Area scene. Originally a Latin jazz musician, his recording of "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" is one of the best-selling jazz records of all time. Guaraldi later composed the beloved and timeless music for the Peanuts television specials. This folio spans Guaraldi's multi-faceted career, with note-for-note transcriptions of 9 terrific songs: Cast Your Fate to the Wind * Christmas Time Is Here * Greensleeves * Linus and Lucy * Manha De Carnaval * O Tannenbaum * Outra Vez * Samba De Orfeu * Star Song. Includes a biography and a discography.

If you want to play the music from Peanuts note-for-note, this is the resource for you! I am always happy when I find true transcriptions and this is it. There are a few minor errors on some pieces (e.g. an incorrect note in a chord for instance) but they are easily corrected if you have a semi-decent ear and/or study the rest of the chart and see what is played later when the progression repeats itself. Get this book and have fun playing along with Vince!

Wish there was a way not to rate the item, but still give the review. I'm sure this is a fine book, but it music arranged for "Easy Piano." I read this warning in another review after making the purchase. Don't know why the description isn't more specific.

When reading the previous reviews, I was happy to see that these piano arrangements were not at the beginner level. HOWEVER... I didn't notice that the reviews were for the WRONG BOOK!!! =( If you look carefully, the reviews say that they are for The Vince Guaraldi Collection: Piano (Artist Transcriptions) (Paperback)... THIS IS NOT THAT PIANO BOOK! This is the EASY version... if you look carefully in the picture, you can see "Easy Piano" in the upper right corner. I believe that the other reviewers were reviewing the "Artist Transcriptions" book which was what I was lookin for. I'm not sure why the reviews don't match the book shown... I wish I would have looked at things more closely before ordering and now having to return the easy version.

Please note that these are accurate jazz trio transcriptions. They won't stand alone unless you rearrange the pieces to include a bass line. They are perfect for practicing with the original recordings. And some are quite difficult when played at original tempos. It's an absolute blast to read (and play) what Guaraldi imagined - especially the "Black Orpheus" pieces. I'm so glad these finally became available!

These are real transcriptions, note-for-note from the recordings. Everything is quite accurate. Vince Guaraldi was an amazing pianist; if you want to study his style, you'll want this book.