mp3 audio

At various times over the last 20 years I've put musical ideas down on tape (and later, on hard drive). Here is a sampling of some of those efforts with details as best I remember them.

The Kindness Of A Stranger 9/2011
This song was written and recorded in the summer of 2011. As the song came together I started to work out the harmonies to propel the song forward (much like the early Elvis Costello tunes I grew up on) and this demo was recorded to aid in writing them and then to hand off to my sometimes collaborator, Dave Newman to learn so we could perform it (which we did, at First Saturdays in August.).

I Believe 6/2011
This song was written sometime in 2009 and recorded with guitar and vocals going into one mic in GarageBand. At some point in 2010 I programmed a simple drum beat to introduce midway into the first verse and, later, layered some strings with overlapping vocal lines for the ending. This performance was always considered a "scratch" but as I worked it grew on me and, even with the odd overtones in the guitar at 58 seconds in, I've aborted all efforts to improve it and call it "done".

It Makes No Sense 5/2011
My 15 year old daughter Julia and I took an older song and arranged it for 2 voices and acoustic guitar. After performing it at an Open Mic we decided to record it. Played on a 1986 Taylor Jumbo mic'd with my Blue Baby Bottle Mic and recorded and (minimally) mixed in GarageBand.

Moments In Between 3/2009
After more than a year without a new composition (my energies were redirected towards developing my chord melody solo jazz repoitoir) I found myslef with a new song. After playing it a few different ways on acoustic guitar I enlisted the help of my friend Dave Newman to accompany me on piano (I was thinking early Coldplay) and we tossed this off in one take (with backing vocals added later that day).

All Of Our Memories 10/2007
With my former collaborator settled in Seattle with a new wife, new job, and a baby on the way, I needed to learn to write music for 1 voice and 1 guitar again... especially now that I was running a monthly Open Mic that I often opened with a few songs of my own. This song was somewhat inspired by a Kings Of Convenience song that I was listening to a lot. It was recorded and mixed using only Apple's GarageBand.

I Could Be Home 9/2006
This was written for Thomas & Gavin with harmonized voices, Gavin's acoustic solo, and an a capella ending to show off our strengths as a duo. It was recorded live in Gavin's living room one afternoon on a laptop with a Blue Snowball USB mic. We later added the audience to further emphasize the live feel.

In His Sleep 9/2003
I was writing this song while recording it one holiday afternoon. I had to break for dinner where a nice Merlot was served. I credit the vocal devilery to the wine... it's the closest thing to a rock song I ever recorded. (NOTE: This song had some slight adjustments made to the break at 1:13 and a final chorus tacked on at 1:56 in 2007)