Tom, thanks for listening.
 
I have posted a new, hopefully the final version on Soundclick with the lyrics and notes.
 
In the final version I have leveled the EQ on the master with a slight bump in the mids to warm it up a bit. I have also cut the lows on the piano to lighten it up, as I thought it was a bit heavy sounding. I also pulled the strumming guitars out of the intro and lowered the finger picked guitar and the piano in the intro by a db or so.
 
JC likes this version and hopefully you will too.   None of the tweeks were major things... very subtle changes.

I felt it had a "live" feel to the mix. I could've been at the gig, not far from the bins, with the bass hitting me in the chest. The more I listened, the more I was drawn into the song. I like it a lot.

I'm getting an error message from the Soundclick site, which is too bad because I wanted to hear this mix warmed up a bit.  Otherwise, this is a terrific song with a compelling message.  Congrats to all involved.

Lynn  ......   Sorry about the error.... try it now.
 
I was uploading a different version....I had neglected to trim the ending by 3 measures earlier when I posted it. SC was not letting me upload so I had to delete it and reload an entire new one..... new link.
 
Rebel... I agree, this kinda draws you in.... I have heard this tune dozens of times perhaps hundreds as I have worked on this..... I still get chills in a few places knowing what this song is about.
 
 
Edit: and somehow, despite my careful (or so I thought) selection of the proper mp3 file..... on soundclick, I still managed to get the long ending version..... oh well... just imagine it to be 3 measures shorter and we're good.  The second link for Box.com does have the shorter ending version.... in case you really need to hear it.
 
 
 
 

You are really coming out with songs that not only sound great but have some very poignant lyrics.  The mix also sounds "spot on"  to me.

Freddy... thanks for listening.
 
Yes.... this is hopefully the final mix that I posted today.  Minor changes except for the bass track which is totally new and lends a different feel to the groove of the song.

Hey Herb,
this is a great song, nicely done.  great vox
 
there are a couple of places her vocals are slightly out of time.
 
you've got some digital distortion going on, tho.
0:43, 1:01, 2:02, 2:10, 2:32, those are just some of them.  always every time she sings "scars", but throughout other places as well.
 
it's on the vocals. 
 
cheers

Great emotional impression from this tune. Lead voice is close and interesting. Mix sounds great to me. There is something a little strange about the bgv. Sounds a little like an autotune artifact or something but maybe its only in my ears. Outstanding work here Herb, you just get better every time I hear you ...Bravo..............Ron

Thanks for the listen and the great ears.
 
Regarding the vocals. I did not record the vocals. The tracks were recorded in a studio in Bali and unfortunately, they are what they are. There was to be no second take on them.  I cringed a bit when I first heard them on my speakers.  There's a harshness to them that I tried to tame but could not get rid of. I used Ozone on EQ and had them lower in the mix. There's very little tuning on the main vox and none on the BGV.   I was mixing this under the direction of the author of the song and the lead vocal as well as the BGV are considerably louder than my original and preferred mix. Some of the issues mentioned are from the fact that the lead and BGV are up so loud and the harshness of those tracks combined are creating the distortion artifacts sound that I believe you are both referring to.
 
Beagle mentioned the "out of time" aspect. She tends to sing behind the beat as I hear it. There were a few places where I was tempted to edit the vox a bit but JC ( not the singer BTW) was liking the character of the flaws so the timing was left alone and I had to go to bat for myself to get the several tuning fixes approved.  Au-natural was the preferred method.
 
I think we're done and this one will be going on the CD project. 
 
I love the folks in this forum.... you all have really good ears for details and know how to express in words the things you hear. This is not the case in all the music recording forums out there..... thanks.