Robby - Thanks a lot!  I'm glad you hear the singing in the guitar.  I tried to do that with all my instrumental tunes.  Interesting you heard Scorpions in that.
 
thalweg - Thank you.  you're right about the rhythm - kind of a funky reggae as the back drop of a rock instrumental.
 
Tim - you're absolutely right!  Thank you.  I just listened quietly and even on headphones I can hear the lead leaping out too much during the beginning.  It is actually the same level the whole way through, but it takes its place in the mix as the arrangement gets denser.  I need to turn it down at the beginning and during the more sparse parts of the mix.  That's the benefit of you listening through your laptop speakers.  I'll try and make the changes tonight.
 
Daryl - thanks.  I agree with you - I can connect with 10x more people with vocal tunes than with instrumentals - so I just stopped altogether with the instrumentals.  My guitar has taken a permanent back seat to vocals.

 I listened all the way through and I have to say that the guitar work is phenomenal. I like the tone you got here on the guitar. I like the mix overall., although not as much air as some it didn't hinder. I didn't hear the earlier version of this so I can't compare it to this mix. I listened on a pair of ATH50s so the translation should have been decent. The bass is really nice. The organ is sitting just right. I am glad you resurrected this number. It was a pleasant listening experience.

Yea, sorry Gino. I sort of was focused on the level thing and maybe didn't say the positive stuff that the performances are excellent. Sort of mind boggling actually. did you give Danzi lessons?????? 
 
Anyway, yea, the laptop is like my auratones. Pretty good for levels and basic frequencies and balance. 
 
I was also thinking since you said the guit is all the same level, that maybe there is some overcompression somewhere. Cause when the meat of the song kicks in, things would get squashed to a nominal level but not at the beginning. Maybe a buss compressor that clamps down on everything which pulls the guit down lower.

Tim - no problem - I really do appreciate the feedback.  I took the very beginning down about 2.5db, and then the first couple verses I took it down about 1.5db, then the first chorus seemed a good spot to leave it where it was.  I also sculpted out a little at 500hz and threw a tiny bit of multiband compression at that frequency too.  The new mix is up on Soundclick now.
 
Funny thing is I noticed that my guitar Solo which was on a different track was down .5db from the main verses.  I don't know why - should have been the same level.  So the main verses maybe are simply too hot.  Those levels were probably from my original mixing back a few years ago.
 
Yeah - I suspect the over-compression is my Ozone limiter.  It makes up for my haphazard mixing!  It seems to tame the guitar a bit when everything is full. 
 
(and Danny is way better than me!)

I didn't really hear the Scops in your melodies, I could just picture vocals like theirs along with the song for some reason as I was humming along in my head (which is high praise)
 
"that lead is way too loud (and a little thick 250-500 hz)." And THAT is how I like my women? And my rock...
 
But yeah, Mr. Timaaaaaaaay has taught me more than a thing or two about the mix. I still don't know **** about it? But he's like Yoda to me (a young padowan) Wise to listen you are...

Geno, You asked what kind of Gibson's I have - I have a 1989 Les Paul Studio with the gold hardware and tabacco burst finish, 2008 guitar of the month, limited edition SG3 tabacco burst finish with 3 hi-def rod pick-ups, 1971 limited edition SG1 cherry gloss finish with single P90 pick-up and a 2008 Gibson Custom Shop ES339 semi-hollow body,57 alnico pick-ups in a triple burst finish. They are all in excellent condition and I do play them all, but not as much as I'd like to, and have to do it quietly, because they have changed the rules in our condo assoc. about playing music here, because of disturbances with others that live here. It's a long story. Anyway, they are really nice guitars, but then so are my other 6 guitars. I just have fun with them anymore, when I can. I use a Digitech GNX4 guitar processor that I play them through and 3 Marshall amps.
 
Listened to this instrumental of yours again, awesome!!
 
Peace and Blessings, John

Robby - I see what you mean about the Scorps vocals.  And yeah, Tim is like Yoda - he knows what he's doing!
 
John - You've got some very cool collectible Gibsons.  I'd love to add a Hollow Body and an SG to my collection some day.
 
Tim - I adjusted some more  - instead of reducing the volume just in the beginning, I reduced it throughout.  Seems to work better that way.  Any time I touch the mix and then listen back I hear more things.  I'll probably go back and forth a couple more times before it's all said and done.  Thanks for your valuable feedback.

good levels in the body of the tune now.
The front doesn't seem any different to me. Lead is still way loud.
Nobody else seems to notice though so, maybe I'm just old......
 
Do you have all the guits running thru one compressor? seems like when the lead comes in (front) that the rhythm gets pushed down. 
 
Sure you don't have like a clone somewhere that you forgot to mute...?
 

Tim - thanks for continuing to evaluate.  I checked - no cloned tracks.  All the leads (main lead, harmonies, and Solo) go through a Lead Buss.   The lead tracks themselves have nothing on them.  Recorded straight out of my PODX3.  And the PODX3 had only a guitar amp - no compression or other effects at all.  The lead buss has EQ and only 2 bands of multiband compression to control the low end.  Sometimes my guitar pumps way too much lows depending on the pickup and where I'm playing on the neck.  So I put the multi-band to control that - it only comes on when necessary.  This Lead buss goes directly to Master - and the only thing on the Master is Ozone with slight multi-band compression and limiting.  The other guitars go through a Rhythm buss.
 
I tried soloing the lead buss a various points in the song and it seems that the levels are the same when soloed - doesn't seem like its being pulled down?  When the arrangement is full there is a lot of sonic competition so I keep the lead up to make sure it cuts through.  But... I pulled down the lead a couple more db in the beginning and took the rest of the lead down .5 db.  Seems to work cut through fine even with all the other tracks.  New mix is posted.  I'm mixing on headphones so that might be part of my problem.

Geno,
 
Fantastic guitar work.   Great from start finish.    Mix sounds really good too.
 
Regards