———–
The tail was sung off today. I made use of every non-work second and wrote and recorded six (6), that’s SIX vocals today. The song above is the first of those to be mixed, and the 19th song posted to the 50/90 page.
My head is spinning with all the progress I made today.
Actual, real live percussion. There’s a little monkey drum that I bought at a Ren Faire many years ago, and a pair of finger drums I bought at the Moroccan Pavilion at Epcot Center even more many years ago. It’s the first time since I had an actual real live band in a real studio that I have recorded actual real live percussion.
The lyrics are in first person, but it’s not about me. Some one close to me is being shown an alarming lack of respect at work. This is about that person’s situation.
The guitars are all Strat, and it’s my first time messing with the pitch shifter in GarageBand. Not sure I like the results. Next time I’ll go all Trevor Rabin and shift the leads up a minor seventh. Sah-Weet.
I finished three songs tonight. None of them are particularly good, but what can you do?
This one was the first idea I came up with for 50/90. I literally woke up, grabbed my iPad, and jotted this down in GarageBand. Why then did it take nearly a month to finish? Well, maybe because I don’t particularly like it. Perhaps.
——-
The second song is only interesting in that it’s in 6/8 time. GarageBand for iOS is pretty limited in time signatures. I expect I’ll be using the Mac version to get myself some 7/8 and 5/4 before long. Prog babie. The lyrics are about a universal topic for those of us in Greater Boston… Traffic.
——–
The third song is kind of about Market Basket. Who would have thought that if you stand by your people, they will stand by you. It’s just amazing to even consider it.
——
There you have it. 50/90 is now 36/62.
We came back to the hotel a little early tonight. Both kids wanted to stay up late. I had all my pictures from the day sorted and uploaded. What to do? How about mix a song for 50/90?
The lyrics are about Patches the cat. Honestly.
Recorded in the USA, mixed in Canada. kewl
There was a post on the 50/90 forum where one user questioned the artistic integrity of everyone else, saying that none of the songs he heard were pushing any artistic boundaries.
My response was, how do you know? Why do you think the pushing of boundaries is going to be audible for anyone? Take me for example. I’m actually letting people listen to my god awful singing voice. I’m writing lyrics! Every once in a while I actually try to express an opinion or, even worse, a feeling! Hell, I am a Gibson guy playing a Strat! Is there any bigger artistic wall to climb than that?
Not that I consider the garbage I write and record to be anything even resembling art. I’m not that self deluded. You get the idea though. I record all of this crap because it’s fun, but that doesn’t mean sharing it is easy. I mean, there is a reason I wait for the house to be empty before I record myself singing, you know?
Tonight’s entry in the 50/90 post pile is a schmaltzy little sucker with lyrics inspired by the Red Sox cutting A.J. Pierzynsky.
Yup, I sure can come up with those groovy ideas, eh?
The first idea I had for 50/90 turned out really heavy. So heavy that I haven’t really felt like coming up with a vocal and finishing it off. In reaction to Mr Heavy Song, the second idea I came up with was this goofy little funk fest.
Even a redhead like me wants to get funky now and then. All of the guitars here are the ES 335.
Five songs… that’s 10%! I’m 1/10th of the way though 50/90!
This was a last minute kind of thing on Sunday. I had to go out and run an errand, and I had spent quite a bit of time on two ideas that weren’t really doing much for me (but after listening to one of them today it’s better than I thought at the time). I tried to sneak in one more idea before I went out. That idea became this song.
I tagged this on the fiftyninety page as hyperactive. I think this is as close as I will ever come to sounding like The Police. I know the three members of The Police were just insulted mightily, but I mean no offense to them.
I actually kinda like this one.
Not sure I like this one. At least I liked it more before I mixed it. I don’t know…
Three solos, the first is the Les Paul, the last is the Strat, the middle starts out on the Strat then switches to the Les Paul. Today was ES 335 day, but the Les Paul was there so I used it instead. So much for alternating days, eh?
I’d tell you what the lyrics were about if I knew, but I don’t so I won’t.
Has this been the most productive three day weekend of my musical life? It very well could be. Two songs finished. Two songs ready to mix. Five other songs in progress. Today’s songs are definitely weaker than yesterdays, but they don’t ask how good, they ask how many. Am I right?
It’s now 41/87.
Inside the Red Head's Head 