lord and the bongo man

Hi,

Here's a song I've been working on...sort of a mash-up of stolen calypso/soca and soukous riffs I've been carrying around in my head for awhile.

If you've got a few minutes and you're so inclined you can check it out here:
http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=11983667


As always comments, suggestions, complaints, rants, etc. are encouraged. 

Thanks!

love this Gary - perfect for a dreary November morning - tons of fun and great playing.

Excellent, Gary.  What a lively feel and feel good song.  I love the horns on my speakers, but when I put the speakers in my ears they're a little too loud.

The Band19: Hi Robbie, how are ya'? You kids and your crazy 'ear buds'...what'll they think of next? Anyway, I took your advice ( thank you! ) and lowered the horns a bit and also put a limiter on them so, hopefully, they're not too loud anymore. BTW, did you ever get that dobro capo? How'd it work?

daryl1969: Hi Daryl. Thanks for checking out the tune...glad I could brighten your day a little Just listened to you and your lovely wife's beautiful version of 'Titanium'...wonderful job!


notnat: Hi Frank...thanks so much, man...you totally made my day  Love your latest, "The Best I Ever Had", and am looking forward to the next cd. Thanks again!


Lynn: Hi Lynn. Man, I don't know how you find the time to create so much great music and also listen/comment on practically every song posted here...but I sure do appreciate it and I'm sure everyone else does, too! Thanks for listening and for the helpful comments on the volume of the horns. Hopefully the current version is more headphone/earbud friendly


Starise: Hi Starise...yea I'm pretty much done "working" on it Thanks very much for listening and taking the time to leave a comment. Glad you liked the tune!

Catchy and upbeat.  Great stuff.

Excellent!!!  What a great Afro-Carib number.  Great arrangement, playing, etc., etc.
I have been searching to get that guitar sound that you achieved and have failed miserably.
Great stuff.
Freddy J
 

Hey, Gary,
 
Very cool combination of styles fused together with excellent tones and tasty playing, and arranged and mixed to a pro sounding gem!
 
I really love how well textured the mix is, and the clarity and separation of all the instruments is perfect.  Fantastic stuff, Gary!
Bob

Hey Gary,
     
I'm not a big fan of Calypso music but your playing can change that.  The structure and arrangement of this piece is very well thought out. You are the king of short solo riffs that flow so nicely together.  Nice job on getting the horn synths to play along with the two or three different tones of the guitars.
Again. . . your guitar performance is the star of this piece IMO.  Crazy, clean & smooth!  If you don't mind me asking how do you get that Nashville country/chicken pickin tone.  It sounds just like a Fender Deluxe Reverb classic and clean.  I know about 80% of the sound is the performance but man that tone is perfect. 
Mix sounds great on my end but I do have a nit.  The snare or maybe the drums are sitting a bit to much in front of the mix.  The snare hit itself has a brittle/paper high snap.  It almost sounds like the standard snare in EZdrummer. 
That said and done I would kill to have a mix/performance as sharp as this. KUDOS, Gary!
 
Oh Gary, Please. . . if you ever get the chance go see Kenny Vaughan your techniques and styles are very similar.  Plus he is one hell of a nice guy there in Nashville.



Later
Kev

timidi: Hi Tim. Thanks very much for checking out the tune. I appreciate the positive comments, especially in light of the fact that you're not a fan of the style. Thanks again!

Old55: Hi and thanks for listening and taking the time to leave a comment. Glad you liked it!

The Band19: Hey Robbie, thanks for the ears and your help!

Freddy J: Hi Freddy. How are you? Great to hear from you and I'm happy to hear you liked the tune and the guitar tone. I really enjoyed "Cruisin' 7th Avenue" with you and Mark...your guitar tone sounded fine to me!

darylcrowley: Hey Daryl, thanks for stopping by. If you thought the guitar was like dropping Nashville into the Caribbean you should have heard it when the lead instrument was the pedal steel! haha! Didn't work out, obviously, but I always have a wealth of bad ideas that I at least have to try out Thanks for checking it out and I'll be looking into the drum issues.


Bob Oister: Hi Bob. As always, you are too kind, man. Thanks for checking out the song and for your gracious comments...always appreciated. Also, outstanding job on "Lucky Day"...classic Oister!

Beagle: Hi Reece. Thanks for listening and for your suggestions. I'll see what I can do to boost the low end and reduce the highs...I appreciate the help. Thanks!

drumstixkev: Hi Kev. Great to hear from you, as always. Thanks for listening and for the positive comments. As for the guitar tone...I don't actually have a working amp anymore. I use a Line6 POD but I do generally use the Fender Deluxe and/or Vox models. I also think that using slightly heavier strings and using your fingers also helps. In case you're interested, the string gauges I use are .011 - .049. Good ear on the snare...that is actually the EZdrummer snare 'cause...that's what I've got It's been buggin' me too so I'm gonna have to go back and do something with it. Thanks again for your suggestions.


Mesh: Hi Mesh. Thanks very much for the listen and kind comments. Years ago I tried to put together a Soca band but couldn't find enough people interested. So, I'm grateful that now I'm able to do some of this stuff on my own! Thanks again, Mon!

Wow--this is just fantastic!  Makes me wanna go south even more.  :) 

Janet: Hi Janet. Thanks for listening...glad you liked it. Really enjoyed "Indecision", btw.

alkie: Hi Alan, great to hear from you! Thanks for checking out the tune and for your kind mix comment. Great job on your Tea Party cover.

Fun!  Now someone give me some sun and a cerveza!

Gary this is awesome!

 I like the mix and the song just makes me want to go on vacation. It projects a light easy going feel. Awesome job on the composition and the mix.

Marcus Curtis: Hi Marcus. Thanks very much for the kind words. Much appreciated. I really enjoyed 'Cold Wind' and appreciate your willingness to share your recording techniques.

evadianepug: Hey Warren! How are ya'? Great to hear from you. Thanks for checking out the tune...glad you liked it and I'm glad it made you feel good  Great job by the Pugtones on 'Big Boned Betsy'...