Somewhere South of Here....

Herb,

This is really nice, man. You've got a lot of cool stuff going on so let me just sort of list it out:

Very nice piano...tone and playing.

I like the clean 'dark' guitars a lot and the way they sort of morph into the overdriven parts

The steel guitar! I thought I heard it earlier in the tune but I love the section where it's featured more prominently.

Nice chord progression and overall vibe.

The mix sounds good to me. I enjoyed this very much.

Herb, this is a classic. I just love this - I could listen to this all day.

Man, you are good.

forgot to mention how soothing it is. very relaxing

Clean...Malaki....Bristol.... I'm glad you listened and thanks for the great reviews and comments. It had been some time since I recorded something just to satisfy my love of playing guitar..... can you tell I really love twin harmonies and colorful chords?

Thanks again.


I made this one downloadable right from the start.....

Daryl...yes I am.... South of you....  maybe next time I work on a "guitar based" instrumental.... in my world...is there really any other kind of instrumental??? I will consider a collab on the guitar with you.... I do like your playing.... good idea.  I get started on those tunes and the ideas and concepts start flowing and I'm like a kid in a candy store ......I don't need to tell you this.... you know what I'm talking about....

On the eq... it could probably stand a slight mid scoop.... it would "clean it up" a bit.....

Very nice, on several levels. And thanks for making it downloadable - this one's going into rotation on my pocket player.

The only suggestion I'd offer is a few EQ tweaks to give the instruments a little cleaner separation. The piano and bass are chafing against one another a bit, always a problem with two-handed piano. Try rolling a little bottom off the piano. The ride cymbals are a bit bright and hot, in places drawing too much attention to themselves, especially when you switch from hats to rides.

Consider adding a long-tail reverb to the last note in the song. It ends rather abruptly, and the synth strings suddenly pop out and sound too synth-y. Maybe look around for a smoother, more organic-sounding string patch. I'd tweak the volume envelope on that synth at the end, stretch the note and make it fade faster. Then a long reverb that only comes in at the very end, so the last note and the last cymbal hit fade away smoothly. It's such a mellow, relaxing tune; the listener should be let down gently at the end instead of just pulling the plug.

I don't comment on this forum often, and I only offer such nit-picky suggestions to songs that I think are truly on the verge of greatness. This one is really good as it stands, but with more attention to the mix it could rank among the all-time Songs forum greatest hits.

Very good Herb... I love the chord progression and arrangement...
Guitar playing is outstanding...
Well done...

I love the mix and production on this, so clear and lots of dynamics.  You've got some great guitar tones and i especially liked the solo that started at 1:50, really nice playing.

Not the sort of music i would normally listen to, but have to admire your talent creating this.

It seems nice, that ride cymbal was getting on my nerves though...

Herb, this is, well, everything everybody else is saying.  Who is playing piano?  Is that you?  I know those guitars!  Beautiful music.

Very very nice. Great arrangement, great, authentic piano tone. A couple of nits of feedback, or rather observations...

1. You've got a LOT of bass energy going on in this...and in ANY small room with a subwoofer, and not correction, or, on cans that go way down like Ultrasone Pros or AKG 701s or the better Senns, etc., and on cheapy phones that accentuate bass...you're gonna boom a bit on the lower notes.  A wee bit of High-Pass around 45 Hz could help...or even a bit of filtering with automation just on the lower notes might help a bit.
2. I seem to be in agreement with Robby lately...the ride is stealing my attention away from the rest of an otherwise lovely combination of sounds for me. I'd love to hear light tap on the bell in place of the loud brooming I am hearing.

Overall very well done indeed!

Thanks for posting!

Mark

Hey everybody.... thanks for listening.... I enjoyed writing and playing this song as much if not more than you have enjoyed listening..... Yeah...I know there's a few nits with this song.... heck any song I do will have them....

I really like writing music..... and whether it has words or not, doesn't matter to me. Instrumentals give me a certain freedom when I'm writing, because I can concentrate solely on the music I'm hearing in my head.....I'm not constrained by the lyric patterns and such.

BTW: I played this for my wife last night..... You guys are easy on me by comparrison...... good grief...my wife's tough......!

She nit picks.... didn't like the drums...wasn't thrilled with the guitar "sound" .... didn't think the steel guitar was appropriate.... said it went from jazz to country and back...... Aye Carramba!

I have a few more in the pipe line..... a few will be ...lets say...different...New grass influence...and texas swing just getting started...... but I have a few ideas cooking for more instrumental work.  Stay tuned..and be patient..!

I've got more song ideas than I have time to get them all down. It's really good to have the creative ideas flowing again..... since it was many years since I had written anything...... too long.

 
That was really good Herb! You've honed your mixing skills quite well! And your guitar skills are top notch as usual.
 
Pete