To the 80’s is a lesser-known piece composed by my musical hero, Chuck Mangione. Chuck recorded this tune on his 1982 album Love Notes, and it has always been a favorite.

Here we have my note-for-note transcription of Chuck’s improvised flugelhorn solo, which I play in the video above in tribute to Chuck.

Chris Vadala’s incredible improvised sax solo is not for the faint-hearted to pen or play, so for a transcription, I enlisted the services of Curtis at saxsolos.com. The sax solo is available for download from Curtis’ site, which I recommend for study and to satisfy any curiosity as to Chris’ greatness. My buddy Jimmy did an amazing job to incorporate many elements of Chris’ solo in his own performance.

The video above was skillfully created by my good friend Frank Gtrmn. Frank makes awesome videos, and I’m so grateful for his fine work here!

Update: I was honored beyond belief to learn that Chuck Mangione saw and heard my video tribute. After sharing the video on Facebook I received the following comment from Chuck’s niece, Sweet Cheryl Lynn:

Resources:

• Chuck Mangione – To the 80’s Bandhub collab video.
• Chuck Mangione – To the 80’s flugelhorn solo transcription.
• Chuck Mangione – To the 80’s Chris Vadala’s tenor sax solo transcription at saxsolos.com.

Flugelhorn solo transcribed by me and free for you to use. The sax solo was transcribed by Curtis and is available for download at saxsolos.com.

Fans of Chuck Mangione’s music may be interested in joining the Chuck Mangione Facebook Group, where I’m a member of the admin team.

Be sure to check out my other Chuck Mangione transcriptions!

What do you think? Please leave a comment and let me know.