I Will. https://soundcloud.com/lawrence-olivier/i-will

I also made a video for this one (my first). https://vimeo.com/99469973


Inspired by a line from a documentary about Mark Twain. About building his family a strong house.


Janice Merritt pitched in with some beautiful vocals! And I wish to express my gratitude!



I Will (2-2-13)


I will build you a strong house to spare you heartache
and to keep you from drowning a sturdy new boat
I will search for good omens to guide through life
I will sing you jubilees for your everlasting soul


when scallywags call I will turn them away
for your hunger pangs I will dig you a row
I will rock you to sleep from a long day of strife
and when you curse my name my silence I will hold


I will kiss you goodbye cause I know you can't stay
I will swallow my tears until I'm alone
I will sleep with your pillow all through the night
If I can't be your rock let me be your stone


may the love that I woven warm you someday
then memories of me might stave off the cold
may the lessons I've taught you fit you just right
and the old house I built you, will you one day call home


****** Song Summary *************
Title: I Will
Key=G , Tempo 120, Length (m:s)=4:10
Style is _RKWALTZ.STY (Hard Rock Waltz)

RealTracks in style: 1189:Bass, Electric, HardRockWaltz Ev 140
RealTracks in song: 860:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm HardRockWaltzSustainA-B Ev 140
RealTracks in song: 1815:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking CelticSlowWaltz Ev 110
RealTracks in style: 854:Guitar, 12-String Acoustic, Rhythm RockWaltzA-B Ev 140
RealTracks in song: 856:Guitar, 12-String Acoustic, Rhythm RockWaltzStrumming Ev 140
RealTracks in song: ~1179:Fiddle, Background PopWaltz Ev 120
RealDrums in style: RockModernWaltz^5-a:Snare, Ride , b:Snare, Crash Ride

Great song!! Very unique and spiritual! Reminds me of Richard Thompson who is on my borderline genius list. As much as I hate to make any criticism, I think Janice's vocal is a bit late (especially on the first half of the tune). She has a beautiful voice (and I loved your vocal-awesome), and I think you guys could blend very well but I would try to tighten up the sync (probably just a mix thing) and maybe put her voice a bit softer and maybe a little more verb and a little less high end. Absolutely beautiful song and great arrangement!! Take care. Greg

Hi Laurence and Janice. Really enjoyed it all. There is a fine strength and a biblical feel to the lyrics and Janice vocals are great. I like the interplay between the two voices. The dynamics develop nicely. Enjoyed the video, clinker dinghy and rifle toting cat. Nice one. Cheers.

I really enjoyed this. The lyrical imagery is fantastic and the performance is very good but I have to agree with Greg that the vocal mix needs to be tweaked. I like what you are doing with this.

Charlie

Hi Lawrence and Janice,

We tend to agree with some of these responses.
We like the song and we're definitely in favor of a video to go with it.
As for the arrangement:
Lawrence, your voice should probably be a bit louder here and Janice's voice a little less loud.
We also think (but that's just our opinion) that Janice's second voice shouldn't be present all the time, considering the song's build up.

Regards,
R & AM

Hi Lawrence and Janice,

I enjoyed the video.

Guenter

Greg, c_fogle, R &Am thank you for listening and commenting, the two vocals are out of sync by design. I had sent Janice a copy of a melody that is no longer a part of the final version, and she sang a perfect lower 3rd to that. I then wrote a different melody for me (the one that is in the song now). One that moves around what Janice is singing. And while the vocals (both) may be a bit too hot, I am of the opinion that with this style of song a certain emphasis on the vocals is appropriate. Thank you again for taking time to comment on what you are hearing and what you think. It is very much appreciated.


RichMac, thanks for stopping in for a listen. I'm glad you liked it.


Guenter, thank you for listening and commenting. Glad you liked it.

Hi Lawrence & Janice !!:))


This is a very nice duet by
you two skilful singers !
I enjoyed it very much !:))

Cheers
Dani

Lawrence,

This is brilliant.

A beautifully written song. Elegant. The production builds nicely.

I am in awe of how you weaved your vocal around Janice's. I think it works spectacularly. Very organic beginning to end. Never quite sure who has the lead and who has the harmony. And not needing to. It's alive. It's mesmerizing. It's perfect in its imperfection. Masterful.

You could not have picked a better duet partner. The different colors/textures of your voice and Janice's make this simply explode with emotion.

Brilliant.

floyd

Lawrence, what makes this so memorable is that it is so unusual. I applaud your inventive approach to redoing the vocal around the harmony part. The melody weave keeps the listener on his or her toes. The write is really solid. Two killer voices in one song. What's better than that. I understand some of the previous comments, but the loose feel and the changing melody map combine to get across the message. A unique contribution from two gifted singers and one talented songwriter. Tom

Hi Lawrence.

I'm with Floyd and Tommy all the way on this one.

Extremely inventive, both lyrically and melodically. Excellent arrangement and production, enhanced by very emotive images in the video. Certainly the best thing I've heard you do so far and one of the most original tracks on the forum. Great vocals from you both.

I think congratulations are due for this one.

ROG

Interesting blend of styles. The poetic lyrics and melody remind me of a traditional folk song. Nice video.

The individual vox are lovely and quite distinctive. If you ever revisit the mix I'd adjust the vox volumes which I think would enhance that better. JMHO.

Very creative.

Josie

Floyd, thank you for the kind comments. It was a struggle for me to arrange and record this song. I wanted to try and capture the organic nature (as you put it) of the live version and I went down several paths with the instruments and arrangement to no avail. When I heard what Janice had done, I knew I had something immediately. I modified one of the versions I was working on and this is the result.



Tommy, thank you. It's kind of difficult to go wrong with Janice's help ain't it.


Rog, thank very much for the kind words. I'm am glad that you liked it and the video was a matter of matching the words to photos that I googled. It was fun to put together.


Sundance, thank you for listening, glad you like it. I am revisiting the mix and making some minor adjustments. When time permits I will replace the post on soundcloud. Thank you for your observations and comments.

Dani, thank you and I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed it!

Thanks y'all. I'll defer to Lawrence's explanation of how this arrangement came about but I really like the way he took a straight harmony and built something completely new around the one solo harmony part. It's certainly different but for me it's much more
expressive of the lyrics than the original tight harmony version. I do appreciate everybody's insightful comments.

Janice



Thank you! He wrote a heckuva tune. I was thrilled to be invited in.

I'm late to the party but glad that I came.

The vocal being loose like this makes the song sound like it is a live performance in some local bar. Great job on that.

Thank you so much floyd, I'm also in awe of where he took it. I'm happy that you felt the voices worked together. I appreciate the encouragement!

Janice




Tom, we also applaud Lawrence for stepping out of the boundaries with this one. It was fun and will be memorable for sure.

Janice




Thanks ROG!! I'm excited to be a part of a production that you think so well of. Your comments are always meaningful to us.

Janice

Thank y'all very much for listening and comment. I do appreciate it.
Janice

MarioD, I'm glad you stopped in for a listen and glad you enjoyed the song. Thank you.

My goodness
I have no words. Well maybe just one. AWESOME!

JoiseC, you have brought a smile to my face. Thank you for the kind words.

Hypnotic, very captivating, original. First class. Reminded me a little of the mood Leonard Cohen can evoke.
Well done both.

John

John, thank you for your kind words. Happy to hear you liked it.

Thank you John. I really do appreciate you saying that!

Janice




Thanks Joanne -- that is very kind of you!

Janice

Great work, thanks for sharing!

This is a beautiful piece of music and I like how it builds up. I can imagine it with you two in conversion, answering each other one line to the next. Great choice of styles and as I said before, how it builds. Patrick

PgFantastic, glad you enjoyed thanks for listening


nobilis, yes the conversation was the idea. I see the song as a sort of letter to a child and I thought it might work to have the "father" and the "mother" deliver the message individually and at the same time. Instead of two songs one from each parent or each parent alternating verses, why not try it as a collage of two voices?

Well, i thoroughly enjoyed it. You have quite a tune there. Looking forward to more. Thanks for posting it here. Patrick

Patrick, thank you very much. I was so surprised and pleased to hear how Lawrence arranged the vocals.

Janice



Thank you!

Janice