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"Standing Outside in the Rain" - As I have gotten older, it's hard to remember various details of how songs were written and recorded. However with this song I recall in detail most of the process. I can still remember playing the bass parts and spending the day with Peter White recording the vocal. I went home thinking I was finished and decided after dinner to go back and re-record the vocal by myself to see if I could get it better. I used a different microphone that lent a smoother sound that influenced my performance. This experience led me on the path to where I am today with microphone technologies and development that I do with my company, Blue Microphones. As a small side note, at the end of the song there is a wailing vocal in the background buried in echo, I did this as an off-the-cuff thing that wound up being used in the end. I always am drawn to hear this in detail as the song fades, though most listeners never seem to notice it at all. |
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"Where I Began" - During the recording of Peter White's second album, one morning I rolled into the studio early to play around with this song. The studio was outside my backdoor, so this was easy process. Not expecting Peter for an hour or two I laid down the basics of the song and was just finishing the guitar parts when Peter showed up early. I felt a bit embarrassed, as I should have been working on setting up some mixes of his song to work on. Peter never commented on what I was doing and I figured he did not think much of it. I shelved the song for a few months only to discover when I was working on it with him for my second vocal album, he thought it was quite good. Apparently it had concerned him that I was able to get a good track in an hour when he had been laboring on one of the songs from his album for a few weeks. Funny how things can be misunderstood. If it was not for Peter most of my vocal songs would never have been recorded. This song was based on my memories of growing up in the central part of Los Angeles, California near the Fairfax area. |
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"Chicago" - I remember how easily this song came. Les Pierce and I wrote the lyrics over the phone while I was sitting at the console in the recording studio with the basic track playing in the background. Rhassan Patterson was only 18 years of age when he came in and sang this song down in about hour. I was totally taken by the maturity and deep emotions he put into this track. Derol Caraco, who has been involved with almost everything I have ever done in music, played guitar parts that followed the same path of emotion. To this day it is one of the most memorable moments I have ever experienced in music. |
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"The Cultures of Jazz" - This song best described what Les and I were doing with Colour Club. All the elements are here. Gary Meek was brought in to play Sax on this one. I have always considered Gary one of the most highly skilled players at his craft. When Les handed him the solo section that he charted for the center of the tune Gary bemoaned the difficulty. I remember thinking, 'What in the hell did Les write?'. I had not heard this part of the tune yet as it was a blank rhythm section. I believe this section describes his incredible talent down to the bone. Here we had this Myles Davis influence going along and Les drops in a bebop unison part to die for. Art Good of JazzTrax called this song and the album the new direction of smooth Jazz at the Catalina Jazz festival of 1994. I remember nothing at the time on the radio sounding like us. In fact we were considered way to aggressive for the radio formats that were playing any type of jazz. Of course if you listen to this type of music today you cannot miss that what were doing has come into mainstream Jazz. I have always admired Art for taking the risk to speak his mind freely. |
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"Elbow Room" - I don't think I have ever spent more time on recording one song. It was mixed by three different people before we wound up with Ross Hogarth's production and mix. The basic track was cut in one hour and the rest of the song took 4 months to finish. I recently looked over the original track sheet and discovered there are 8 different saxophone parts mixed to create the unison line of the song. Richard Elliot came in and played the lead and solo parts on sax. In the end the song came out the way Ed and I intended. A big sounding live production that only Ross could have pulled off. |
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"The French Laundry" - This was our first album for Cypress/A&M, and we had this song sitting around as the last track to record. I had become friendly with Al Stewart around this time through Peter White¹s introduction. That year during Christmas, Al asked if I could go with him to pick up an Xmas tree for his house. I had a four-wheel drive car at the time that could transport the tree. I asked Al at his home if he would sing the song as a duet with me. He said he would give it a shot but he was leaving on the road. Back in the studio I laid down my vocal parts and mailed the two inch master tape and lyrics off to Peter White who was leading Al's band on there road. Both Al and Peter found a studio in New York City recorded the vocal and sent me back the tape. Of course I should have known Al would rewrite a few lyrical lines here and there to the betterment of the song. During a New Years Eve Party at Steve Chapman's house, both our manager at the time, I asked Al whey he had changed the lyrics. In typical Al fashion I received a long lecture of the importance of Lyrics and the value to the song they create. I have not forgotten his words and to this day am always reminded of that value when I write. |