Notes_Norton

The vocals for C.C.Music Factory, Black Box and a few other groups were done by Martha Wash and they had a model pretending to sing the vocals on the videos and their shows. Martha was in "Two Tons Of Fun" and "The Weather Girls" and doesn't have a slim, sexy model look (but what a voice!!!). I suspect there is a lot more of that going on as well.

I just noticed this - so I'm late to the party, and I have and early set-up for tonight's gig, so excuse me for not having time to read all the posts and perhaps I'm drifting out of the current flow......... I think when the strive for near-perfect technology gets in the way of emotionally expressive music, we are caring too much. I've heard some muddy recordings with bad intonation and a lot of soul that are better to my ears than some technically excellent but uninspired performances. Me? If I'm going to record my own album, I prefer all the band members and the vocalists to record at the same time. They should be prepared before the session so that a minimum of takes due to glaring errors are needed (preferably they will all be one-take-jakes - but even with the best of the best an occasional big flub happens). If it can't be recorded in 2 or 3 takes either the band or the engineer isn't prepared enough. The advantage of everyone at the same time is group interaction. The vocalist might turn a phrase, the drummer picks up on it and supports it, whoever is playing countermelody responds to that and supports it either by something similar or contrasting but enhances the lead lick, and so on. These things don't happen when you record one track at a time. Also, the session should be done in the evening, because I think the voice is best after being up all day. I think 9 or 10 PM is perfect. Any technology that kills dynamic expression, intonation, or other human elements should be avoided. If you can't sing without auto-tune, get a day job -- if you can't use mic control to eliminate the need to compress your vocals, get a day job or stick to night clubs. There is an art to recording and The Wrecking Crew, Funk Brothers, Swampers, and the other great studio bands knew how to get a song out quickly with expression and limited amount of the types of technology that kill expression. Not that all technology is bad, we have wonderful new tools, better mics, better FX units and extremely high fidelity recording tools. Use the good tools, but don't abuse the expression limiting ones. I also think most songs go through 3 stages (1) when it is new, it's very exciting, and you are experimenting on what works well and what doesn't work too well (2) you've been playing it a while, you know what works, but you haven't worn it out yet, you soar through the song like you are riding a wave - it's peaking (3) you still enjoy playing the song, but it's past peak. It's comfortable like lunch in your favorite restaurant with a good friend. Stage (2) is when you need to do the recording. ------ Although I've done a fair amount of session work, I'm predominantly a live performer. Interacting with the crowd through music is the most fun I can have with my clothes on. Due to the rigors of the road, especially doing one-nighers the available technology is less. I use good dynamic mics, a mixer, good fx unit, sonic maximizer and good powered speakers. I have a good saxophone, good guitar, good wind synth, and other instruments. The main thing is bring your energy, your passion, be prepared, and have a good time entertaining the audience. And isn't that what it's all about. Insights and incites by Notes

As a gigging musician, I need two of everything. Because if something fails, the show must go on. Makes me glad I'm not a Hammond B-3 player

Perhaps. But I had a good friend who died a couple of years ago and left his wife about 100 guitars, from the rare 1950s gems to parts-casters he built himself. He had a couple of old Les Pauls and pre-CBS Fenders in the collection. Now THAT'S a collector. I miss him, he was a nice guy, a great guitarist, and the kind of teacher that pushed his students to their personal limits, instead of just milking them for lesson after lesson.

Yes I took the survey. And since when is an objective analysis of the survey a problem? Isn't that what forums are all about?

I thought the survey, like the music industry itself was too focused on gear. But then, perhaps that is what they were predominantly interested it. Of course, without constant gear lust, the manufacturers would not be as profitable. I've never been a gear junkie. I think expression comes first and I work on the nuances of expression. Next is technique, not for the sake of technique itself, but to serve the music and allow you to play what you feel trough your instrument. Thinking of sax players like Stan Getz and Stanley Turrentine. They had monster chops, but you didn't hear the chops but instead you hears music. After that gear. I usually buy good gear, but at my point of diminishing returns, where X amount of money starts to return a less and less significant amount of improvement. I have a good, solid, pro guitar (Parker USA DF model) which I had customized with my choice of pickups, and a good solid pro sax (MacSax Texas/Taiwan) which I had finished in nickel because it's durable and they don't relacquer brass anymore in Florida. Like all the gear I've had in the past, I'll probably play them until either I wear them out or they become undependable or unsuitable for the music I'm playing. Gear companies don't love me, they just like me. I spend most of my money on consumables (reeds, strings, music, etc.) and most of my non-gigging time learning how to be a better musician. I'll never be a collector. I have the instruments I gig with, a back up for each, a couple 'at home' for practice and a couple of old instruments that are worn out, but have so many of my skin cells in them that I just havn't gotten around to parting with them. I gig one nighters, I play hard, and the combination of both is very hard on gear. Insights and incites by Notes

Free Falling - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Are puns OK "Last Night" the Mar-Keys

"Brown Eyed Girl" - Van Morrison

"Jeff The Muff Diver" - Barefoot Man sorry, I spent a few years gigging on cruise ships in the Caribbean

Do the Funky Chicken - Rufus Thomas

Boogie Chillen' - John Lee Hooker If this doesn't count as the Chill above, please ignore

"Another Star" - Stevie Wonder One of my favorite Stevie songs

"Oh Boy" - Buddy Holly

"Going Back To Miami" - Wayne Cochran & The CC Riders

Breaking Up Is Hard to Do - Neil Sedaka (and Howard Greenfield - a great pop songwriting team)

"Avalon" - Al Jolson (Now a jazz standard. Composed by Al Jolson, Buddy DeSylva and Vincent Rose) The opening melody of the tune is actually a lift from Giacomo Puccini’s aria “E Lucevan Le Stelle,” from the opera Tosca. Rose merely changed the melody from minor to major and added some melody bits of his own. But it was an obvious enough lift that Puccini’s publishers, G. Rocordi, sued the composers and the publisher in 1921 and were awarded $25,000 in punitive damages and all future royalties.

Touch of Grey - Grateful Dead

"Space Is The Place" - the talented and weird Sun Ra

"Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea" - Cab Calloway (now a jazz standard, with words by Ted Koehler and music by the prolific Harold Arlen)

The most influential rock group of the era that most people never heard of. There is a great documentary on them that I rented from Netflix years ago. I forgot the name, but it was mostly abut Roky Erickson.

"1-2-3" - Len Barry OK, I got the 1 and the 3 but couldn't of anything with 3 repeated words.

"These Words (I Love You)" - Natasha Bedingfield triple word score (Of course that wasn't very difficult to do)

"Alright, OK, You Win" - Count Basie orchestra featuring Joe Williams

"Summertime Blues" - Eddie Cochran