This month’s free tab is an arrangement of another classic Tin Pan Alley era tune. Composer Larry Shay had just completed work on his first big hit “When You’re Smiling” in 1928 (see the free tab entry for June 2025). Later that same year, he collaborated with lyricists Charles Tobias and William Jerome to come up with “Get Out and Get Under the Moon”. The song captures the carefree spirit of the Jazz Age, encouraging listeners to shake off their worries and bask in the glow of moonlight — a sentiment that resonated deeply during a decade of both exuberance and uncertainty.

Read More

"When You're Smiling" is a classic tune from the Tin Pan Alley era, first published in 1928 by composers Larry Shay, Mark Fisher, and Joe Goodwin. The song quickly gained popularity, with early recordings by Seger Ellis and Louis Armstrong, the latter of whom helped cement its status as a jazz standard. Over the years, the song has been interpreted by a diverse array of artists, including Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett, and Michael Bublé. The sentiment of its simple yet uplifting lyrics has resonated with audiences for nearly a century.

Read More

Tamezō Narita (1893-1945) was a Japanese violinist, composer, and teacher. While attending the Tokyo Music School, he concentrated his studies on European classical music, and began creating some of his own compositions in the style of those masters. He was especially influenced by the Austrian composer Johann Strauss II. One of Narita’s earliest compositions was a waltz melody he named “Hamabe no Uta”, or “Song of the Seashore”. It was inspired by the words of a poem written by Kokei Hayashi, which evokes the serene and reflective feelings of gazing at the vast expanse of the sea.

Read More