Alegria
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/30 16:24:57
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After many listens over the past 3 days and A/B'ing against the original, I have 2 comments and lot's of praise. One, a suggestion and two, a small nit. Contrary to Frank's comment above about the acoustic lead, I thought this was a nice touch and well done. But I guess this would be a good example of relativity at work.  Although I would seriously consider omitting the last few notes of the acoustical lead @ the 2:26 to 2:29 mark approx. At the 1:50 mark, there's a short piano chord progression (in the lower register) that dosen't sound right. My humble ears have a problem with it every time, cans or speakers. The strange thing about it, is that it's not noticeable in the original. I know James, you did mention that you used Robby's existing piano track without any changes and I am seemingly the only one to have noticed. So this is to be taken with a boulder of salt. I love the vocal processing (or lack of) and the drum patterns. Although it did take a few listens before I could appreciate these patterns fully. The bass is very well done also. The mix is stunning in it's clarity and balance (no left-hand side heaviness) and overall this production shines. Bravo James for such impressive results. Take a bow!! 
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rockinrobby 
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/30 17:48:12
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He's the man :-) Thanks JC! And I think I hear something in the piano there as well? If I recall, I was having a mushroom pizza that day? Hummmmm..... Sometimes I forget and leave the record button on for one track while I'm working on another :-( That may have been what happened there... That's most surely what happened on a lot of those tracks that were filled up with multiple clips.
post edited by rockinrobby - 2011/01/30 17:51:38
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jamesyoyo
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/30 22:03:39
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Alegria
At the 1:50 mark, there's a short piano chord progression (in the lower register) that dosen't sound right. My humble ears have a problem with it every time, cans or speakers. The strange thing about it, is that it's not noticeable in the original. I know James, you did mention that you used Robby's existing piano track without any changes and I am seemingly the only one to have noticed. So this is to be taken with a boulder of salt.
I did indeed change the piano and lowered the second verse an octave. See my mix notes for the explanation. I love the vocal processing (or lack of) and the drum patterns. Although it did take a few listens before I could appreciate these patterns fully. The bass is very well done also. The mix is stunning in it's clarity and balance (no left-hand side heaviness) and overall this production shines. Bravo James for such impressive results. Take a bow!!
Don't kid yourself, JC: there is a ton of processing on his vocals. Just hopefully done so that it cleans up the mud but leaves most of the warts, IYKWIM! Glad you liked the bass...I pretty much did it in two takes, so when the Mojo is working, she's working, I guess. The l/r balance between guitar and piano I worked quite hard to get, so I am glad yo noticed it.
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jamesyoyo
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/30 22:04:41
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BIABDude
kick needs lower EQ thump
Really? I thought I was hearing too much of it!
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jamesyoyo
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/30 22:14:56
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Cian:
Listen to it a few hundred times...I am sure the drum pattern will work for ya then!
Frank:
More bass? I always think i am going too far with the low end, so just goes to show ya...glad you liked it, though everything pales in comparison to your take of this tune.
Josh, Bob, Randy, Wook, Warren:
Thanks for the kind words.
Bub:
Let me know how it goes on the monitors.
Bobby:
Kinda confused by your honesty and real playing comments. The only thing unreal was the drums, which believe me are completely full of slop. I spend a lot of time making sure it doesn't sound like a metronome.I never touched anything else timing-wise, nor did I quantify any midi. I also believe there is a huge gulf between polish and over-produced. Here I took a more minimalist approach and got rid of a lot, so that Robbie's clear voice could carry the load, and not be weighed down by extraneous tracks. Please read my production notes to get my philosophy behind it.
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rockinrobby
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/30 22:48:43
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Bub
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/30 23:11:29
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jamesyoyo
Bub:
Let me know how it goes on the monitors.
Hi James, Just listened to it on my HS-80m's. The snare at the beginning still seems loud to me. Also the vocals seemed loud on them, but not on my headphones. Could be my room acoustics. Other than that it sounded like a great mix. Bub
"I pulled the head off Elvis, filled Fred up to his pelvis, yaba daba do, the King is gone, and so are you."
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guitartrek
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 00:15:27
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Wow does that sound great! The mix is so clear and punchy and the vocals are processed really nice. The song is great and vocal performance is fantastic. Really nice. I know where BIABDude is coming from on the kick thud. That was the first thing I thought - the kick thud could be lower in freq. But that's just a stylistic choice and sounds great where it is. The only critique I would have is that the background instruments Ac Guitar, piano, organ all seem to be playing in the same octave and can make it busy especially at the very beginning when they all come in at the same time.
I also just converted from AD to SD2 and struggled with the cymbals for a while. The Avatar rides don't have that bite like the AD ride. But I've got them working pretty well now. The room mics sound fantastic but they can goof up the cymbals if too loud. I'm going to work on bringing in the Ride as an X-drum so I can have it on it's own channel. Superior Drummer is quite an impressive program.
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Slow Marching Band
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 08:16:28
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I didn't A-B this with the original, 'cos I think it's better to judge this new production on it's own merits - of which it has many! I like this a lot James, there's a lovely open, breezy feel to the sound. The organ and piano give it a Shawn Mullins feel to my ears, just right for Robby's voice. Speaking of which, this is the best I've heard his voice mixed, right up front and clear, where it should be. Excellent.
James
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No How
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 09:45:50
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Not my fave of mr.robby's but this is a much improved mix for sure. The EQ alone is more than redeeming let alone the newer drums and spacial touches.
I'm going to be the bad guy but the acoustic break struck me as foreign. In itself it's quite lovely but it kind of jumped out of the genre and the rest of the mix.
Vocals sound great and overall a vast improvemtent.
s o n g s – Beauty lodged in a bad hotel has no value. Raymond Lull
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jamesyoyo
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 11:20:18
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No How
I'm going to be the bad guy but the acoustic break struck me as foreign. In itself it's quite lovely but it kind of jumped out of the genre and the rest of the mix.
Vocals sound great and overall a vast improvemtent.
That is interesting, since I thought it fitted in perfectly. I was thinking of the Wallflowers Sixth Avenue Heartache for the whole mix actually, and it seemed a natural direction to go in.
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jamesyoyo
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 11:22:21
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Slow Marching Band
Speaking of which, this is the best I've heard his voice mixed, right up front and clear, where it should be. Excellent.
James
He does have some great qualities to his voice, and all it took was ten hours of auditioning various processing settings to get it right! 
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No How
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 11:46:27
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jamesyoyo
No How
I'm going to be the bad guy but the acoustic break struck me as foreign. In itself it's quite lovely but it kind of jumped out of the genre and the rest of the mix.
Vocals sound great and overall a vast improvemtent.
That is interesting, since I thought it fitted in perfectly. I was thinking of the Wallflowers Sixth Avenue Heartache for the whole mix actually, and it seemed a natural direction to go in.
Hello Doctor I love the riff. i love the tones. I love the wallflowers. it just kinda jumped out. was wondering if you could slip bits of that playing in the rest of the piece (ever so sublty) might diminish the foreignenss. PITA fer sure but that's why I'm here!
s o n g s – Beauty lodged in a bad hotel has no value. Raymond Lull
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Thatsastrat
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 16:42:45
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James,
I have come to expect ear pleasing mixes from you. This delivers as expected.
I did not listen to the original. What I did appreciate the most was your in-depth explanation of your process.
My biggest surprise was your often use of the Pod Farm pre-amps in your process.
I have the Pod Farm and must admit I have not used the pre-amps often. To see this I have to ask,
what is it that you like about using the pre-amp models in your process. As someone that is trying to learn
I would like to know your thoughts.
Thanks!
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dlogan
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/01/31 16:57:55
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Well this remix has definitely highlighted how the mixing/production can take a song in different directions... and how different of opinions people have on things!!!
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jamesyoyo
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 18:05:53
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Thatsastrat
James,
I have come to expect ear pleasing mixes from you. This delivers as expected.
I did not listen to the original. What I did appreciate the most was your in-depth explanation of your process.
My biggest surprise was your often use of the Pod Farm pre-amps in your process.
I have the Pod Farm and must admit I have not used the pre-amps often. To see this I have to ask,
what is it that you like about using the pre-amp models in your process. As someone that is trying to learn
I would like to know your thoughts.
Thanks!
There are some absolutely terrific vocal setups in POD Farm that are my go-to plugs in every mix. I really don't like to fiddle with knobs...I like when I can get 90% there with a patch. Plus, I can put a ton of them on before my system starts belching.
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ohgrant
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 22:09:23
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oops
post edited by ohgrant - 2011/02/01 22:22:25
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Janet
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 22:11:51
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(Grant, you just might be in the wrong thread.) :-)
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ohgrant
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 22:21:57
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Thanks Janet I did Sorry. Bump +1
post edited by ohgrant - 2011/02/01 22:25:01
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Janet
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 22:24:51
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gdugan
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 22:27:41
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Excellent re-imagining, James! This really sounds good, and Robby's vocal is spotlighted as it should be. The pdf info was fantastic - wonderful detail and well presented. Maybe it'll help me fix some problems with my mixes...
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rockinrobby
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 22:32:21
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Yeah, it would have been better if it showed me as less of a dumbass? LOL!
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RockingChair
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 22:50:04
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JamesYoYo, I apologize, I should not have made comparisons like I did, especially when the Artist "Robby" liked the newer version better.
I forgot and thought it was Robby's post, that's the reason for my response, sorry.
Anything you Mix James ends up sounding great on the sound quality. And you have a nose for the content also so to speak.
I like the new version, but I like the old version also, I'll leave it at that.
AWESOME!
Bobby
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rockinrobby
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/01 23:03:18
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Jim is the man... I'd like to do an album with him :-)
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jamesyoyo
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/02 18:39:47
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Gary; Hope it helps... Bobby: No harm, no foul. Robby: I don't think that is possible!
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jimmyman
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/03 00:52:59
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This mix/production within no time had me thinking "pro". In and by itself that
could sound cliche to say that but, when I think about how "things get done"
in many of the great songs produced out there that "that" particular producer
combined with great talent turns out a "quality" product in those cases.
Everything in this is so well done and placed. The instruments all serve a
purpose like "you dotted your I's and crossed your T's. capturing the feel of the
performance at it's best, which, in one way to put it is the "sum" is "greater than
its parts".
I think the "very tasteful" subject is at its best here. My perception is that
things weren't just simply "played" but that there is a quality in each instrument
for "listening pleasure" (as well as) enjoying the completed song as well,
like an "all star" setup.
I think the piano work and its tone really makes the song. I could say
the same for bass (as if it was (the bass) that makes the song. Or the drums
or any given instrument or vocal part. So that would have me saying that each
and every part/performance is what makes the song. A very "lush" sounding
mix.
Body, character, sweet and many other words could be used to define
this mix. Those terms are not "tech" in the way of definitions but they are
a way of using them as general terms. James, you did a totally awesome
job with this.
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rockinrobby
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/03 01:23:14
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Thanks Jimmy, we're all thinking about you and praying for you. Peace.
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vechung
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/03 10:06:45
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Awesome! I like this one more than the original. You are the master at the mix board.
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geeare1
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/03 15:26:07
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Great job, gentlemen!
I kind of missed the original tempo/groove at first but, after listening a few times, I'm over that now.
Always loved this song and Robby's performance but now, with James' expert guidance, it seems to have reached it's full potential.
Also, many thanks to James for the production notes...beyond the call of duty and definitely appreciated!
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jimmyman
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Re:Robby's "Missing Person": re-mixed and re-imagined by your friends at Factory Yoyo
2011/02/03 17:20:41
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rockinrobby
Thanks Jimmy, we're all thinking about you and praying for you. Peace.
Thank you Robby. It might be that the emphasis on my remarks previously were more in "the light" of what James did, that really was the intent. In a way it's like me instead of thinking of it as a callab, it's more as if it's artist/producer. I've always considered you an extreme talent but all that time was telling myself that the "amount" of talent that you have hasn't yet been brought to the front. That was the main focus on my remarks about what James did. (now) that I have done that I feel it's time to remark on "the talent" in this case you. On this I've never heard your vocs sound so good, not just good as in "hey that sounds good" but WOW! And then the way the vocs are arranged and what is done etc is another factor that makes things the way they are. I don't know what you two did, or such things as how much creative control that you let James have (or even if that was a part of it) the outcome is awesome. The vocs really "shine" and as well the other parts "do too" without interfering, actually those other parts (the players) really do (add to) the already great voc parts.
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