Smell of a Glove

Been to busy to post or even read lately but always find time at 1:30 in the morning....

Story behind the song...My nephew got a nice ball glove for his birthday and when I asked to see it, the first thing I do is smell the leather. Someone ask what I smelled and I said a thousand memories. My daughter said you should write a song about that. So.......here it is. First attempt but working on it.

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6355796

I know the singing ain't that good but give me a break, I'm old!

I've been jonesing for baseball season to begin, so I had to give this a listen.

I don't have much trouble with the singing - I think it works fine for the style of music. The chord structure is basic but pleasant. If I were you, I'd focus on vocal melody.

Take another listen to your tune, focusing solely on the pitches of your voice and the chords of the guitar. One of the first things I noticed is that with one exception - the word "Crackerjack" - the pitches you're singing are exactly what you're playing on guitar. When you change chords, your voice goes up or down accordingly.

There's nothing wrong with that per se (it's exactly what you'll hear at 95% of Open Mic Nights, often done quite pleasantly) but it's just not memorable. Take a listen to any song you consider "great" - regardless of genre - and listen to how the vocal melody changes independantly of the chords. Sure, there's still a connection, but the vocal melody is usually more dynamic and interesting than the chord progression. You don't need to be jumping octaves or anything - Springsteen and Dylan are two examples of guys who crafted great vocal melodies that were relatively linear - but even their simplest melodies are compelling.

I'd like to hear this with the same chords and lyrics but a rethought melody. Good start!

Thanks for the reply. I've never sang before and started playing the guitar at age 50. I kinda play what I know so I keep it simple. As for my singing, my daughter told me the exact same thing you did but I have a hard time getting away from the chords. It seems as though I want to naturally follow them. Thanks again....

It's all fun.

Thanks for the reply. I've never sang before and started playing the guitar at age 50. I kinda play what I know so I keep it simple. As for my singing, my daughter told me the exact same thing you did but I have a hard time getting away from the chords. It seems as though I want to naturally follow them. Thanks again.... It's all fun.

It's supposed to be fun - so you got that right!

I agree with the previous poster about the melody following the chords. Some great insight and examples of writers who are able to move in a more melodic direction. Reading his post does remind me of their prowess in that regard...

If I'm writing songs I find I follow the notes within the chords also - so you are not alone! Just keep in mind the comments for the future and keep on writing. There's quality in your work, and if you keep working on it your songs will get stronger. Congrats for picking up guitar at 50. I'm just starting to fiddle on piano and my style could be considered "elementary" at best but I'm working on it...

ido1957

"Smell of a glove" is very close to the title of the Spinal Tap album Smell the Glove. That might cause some confusion.

Heh I thought of that too redshoes - very similar language with a quite different meaning!

Anyway, Saig - don't worry about having trouble at first with crafting melodies. For me, that's always been the single hardest thing about songwriting. Usually I can come up with a chord structure I like and an idea for some lyrics before I find a vocal melody I'm happy with.

I read some interesting advice on melody from Conor Oberst (singer, guitarist and songwriter for the group Bright Eyes). He explained that he actually composes his melodies first, by singing in the shower or in the car or whatever, then goes back and fits chords around his melody. It shows in his music, too - often I've sat down to figure out one of his songs that sounds fresh and unique only to find that he's actually just singing a great melody over G - C - D.

It sounds like a great way to work, although I havn't reached that point yet. For me, it's usually just about fiddling with pitches until I find something that I like.

For your song, a good first step might just be to mess around with the majors thirds and perfect fifths in each chord. (For non music-theoryists, the third is four half-steps (four frets up) and the fifth is seven half-steps (seven frets up). So if the chord is an E, try playing around with E, G#, and B in your singing. If you're playing a G, try G, B, and D. That will give you some basic variation in the melody, and you can always complicate it from there.

Nice. Can you post the lyrics?

KAC

This is EXACTLY what came to mind when I saw the title of the thread.

Well, I never thought I would be confused with Spinal Tap. :eek:

I wrote the all the lyrics then tried singing them how I thought they should go. The lyrics were easy because they are what I remember clearly.

Great advice and I believe it's mostly inexperience on my part. I never studied music and just decided to learn a few chords and go forward. It has definitely been an adventure and really is fun.

Here are the lyrics...........

Smell of a Glove

The smell of a glove and the crack of the bat

Seventh inning stretch and a box of crackerjacks

From old to young in the blink of an eye

We

One small suggestion. 'Cracker Jack' is the actual product.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cracker_Jack

doesn't mean you can't take poetic license, but...

KAC

So, what did Spinal Tap mean by "smell the glove?"

My imagination reels everytime I consider the possibilities.

It can't be good.