This song began as a Pat-Pattison-based, lyric exercise that I set for myself.

• Walk With Me

During the course of creating this work, I read a forum comment from Mike (aka cubanpete) where he said “...always envy the ability to create lyrics”. That got me thinking and it occurred to me that if I could show Mike how I set about putting these lyrics together, it might give him an insight that could be useful for his own works; so I documented some of the main aspects of the process. The document can be found via the below link as a pdf. (This document might also be of interest for those in the forum who have taken Pat Pattison's songwriting course at http://coursera.org .)

• How these lyrics were assembled (pdf)

(link no longer valid)


"Walk With Me" was created in Band In A Box and additional tracks were added in Realband using multiriff. Reaper was used to add vocals and polish the mix.

Please feel free to comment on any aspect of the song whatsoever.

All the best,
Noel


BAND IN A BOX TRACKS
Base Style: _CRICH2.STY (Electric Guitar Ballad (85 RS))
PianoCustom Synth is Hi-Q 001 01 Piano, Acoustic, Grand SampleTank.tgs

RealTracks 1546: Bass, Electric, CountrySwing Sw 085
MIDI SuperTracks 2240: Piano, Rhythm EZListening Sw 085
RealTracks 530: Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Hank Sw 085
RealTracks 971: Guitar, Electric, Rhythm CountrySwingGrittyA-B Sw 085
RealTracks 2027: Piano, Acoustic, Soloist CountrySwingJohn Sw 085

RealDrums: NashvilleShuffle^02-a:Sidestick, HiHat , b:Snare, HiHat


LYRICS
© 2015 Noel Adams. Words and music, all rights reserved.

Hold my hand and walk with me
I know a journey just for two
You'll travel footloose and fancy free
Strolling along with me

Hold my hand and walk with me
We'll greet adventure every day
You won't regret it, I guarantee
Dreams 'll come true when you walk with me

If it's stormy
And it pours with rain
I'll be a rainbow and push the gloom away
And if it's dark
Because the sun forgot to shine
I'll be a sunbeam
And I will decorate the sky

Hold my hand and walk with me
We'll travel a trail that never ends
Wherever we wander, just wait and see
Stars will align when you walk with me

[Instrumental]

If it's stormy
And it pours with rain
I'll be a rainbow and push the gloom away
And if it's dark
Because the sun forgot to shine
I'll be a sunbeam
And I will decorate the sky

Hold my hand and walk with me
We'll travel a trail that never ends
Wherever we wander, just wait and see
Stars will align when you walk with me
And the future will smile
Destination, whatever will be
Please walk with me

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Noel,

I like so many things about this.

Your vocal is so uniquely....Noel! Like a Randy Newman vocal. Or Tom Waits. Identifiable! Cool.

This song "took me back" - as your songs often do. So many of them sound like they were lifted right out of the great musical movies of the past. I could not help but see/hear Gene Kelly performing this (sauntering as he did, of course). Tin Pan Alley all the way.. Cool.

"footloose and fancy free" Nice!

(I did not read your lyric pdf. I prefer to let a song speak for itself)

Your chorus is delightful. Thematic and demonstrative! Cool.

Terrific mix! LOVE your harmonies. The piano solo is inspired. Interesting mix of instruments.

A pleasure to listen to.

floyd

Hi, Noel.

Nice work, I enjoyed it very much.

Thanks for the music,
Dan

Hi Noel,

Very, very cool song! Really good vocals and harmonies.
This could be a song from one of musicals that were popular in the 60's or 70'. It invites you to sing along!

Hey there Brother Adams, There is a lot to love about this one. Stellar mix and choice of real tracks. Extremely well sung. I love the harmony near the end. That was inspired. Of course the lyrics are crafted with great expertise. I have not yet read the PDF. I certainly am coming nowhere close to expressing how much I enjoyed and admire this piece. Standing O and Bravo! Tom

Hey Noel,

You really know how to capture the vibe and feel of the standards from the 50s & 60s. I could hear Danny Kaye singing this immediately. Excellent all around - perfect vocal and arrangement.

The lyrics pdf was a very nice touch - love the insight into your process.

Bob

Hi Noel,

Great song with a wonderful period feel to it.

Yes, I did read the PDF after listening to the track and found it both fascinating and bewildering. I'm full of admiration for the amount of detail which went into these lyrics - my own method is very much the antithesis of yours.

One thing which I did notice is that the chorus appears to be blank verse, that is, it has no rhyming scheme at all. What struck me as strange is that I didn't notice it whilst listening to the song, only when reading the lyric sheet.

Thanks for providing so much detail - I'm always interested in other people's methods.

ROG.

All around terrific Noel.

Especially love the chord progression and the harmony is fabulous.

Josie

Hi Noel

Loved this one from the first note. Love the swing feel. I think this one could be used in an upbeat çommercial. The little piano riff in the middle is simply gorgeous.

I had a look at the PDF and I can relate to a it. I have done the coursera course used Pat Pattisons techniques quite a bit. I am not quite as patient as you are.

Thanks for sharing your methods. Very informative

Hey Noel

What a great arrangement. And thanks for the efforts you went to to describe the songwriting process.

Very thorough.

Clever lyrics, great melody, perfect mix. Fabulous piano break.

Thanks for sharing

Trevor

This was quite a trip to 'walk with you' through your lyric writing process in creating such a wonderful song. This has all the right elements present, good lyrics, nice, catchy melody, a great mix, arrangement and production.

Thanks for sharing your techniques and your song with us.

Enjoyed both.

Charlie

Hi Noel,

let me quote Trevor: "Clever lyrics, great melody, perfect mix. Fabulous piano break." and add great vocals and harmony.
The description of your writing process looks like a lot of work is going on.
Enjoyable listen.

Guenter

Love the piano solo and you have a wonderful musical lift in arrangement in the back half of the song.

I read the pdf and appreciate your effort in sharing it. I'm glad to hear that you have and are finding your writing voice utilizing the techniques that you have learned.

Keep up the good work and I will be listening to your next song and keeping an eye out for your underlying approach.

Wonderful song!! Love the happy, care-free, simple and sweet sentiment. I could see Ringo covering this if he was still doing solo records. Also, would make a great song for a scene in a feelgood movie! My favorite of yours so far!! Love it! Take care. Greg

floyd,

Thank you for listening and for the feedback! It seems that I'm destined to sound like Tin Pan Alley! Oh well, there are worse things in life On the upside, it's definitely the period of popular music that appeals to me so I can live with it comfortably enough.

The harmonies came about by accident. Because of the key I was in, and the melody I'd chosen, if I sang a vocal line below the melody, it worked but it didn't do much to enhance the overall sound. The same thing happened if I sang a voice above. When I tried adding both above and below vocals, the sound was too full for what I wanted. At that point, I decided to leave the song without harmony. Then it occurred to me that I hadn't tried a classical counterpoint approach. It's been a decade or so since I last thought about counterpoint. Anyway, I grabbed Melodyne, took the vocal line that I sang below the melody and changed the pitch of the notes so that they followed the principles of First Species Counterpoint. I couldn't believe it when I played it back. It worked.

So what you're hearing in the harmony is actually my vocal part below the melody that's been pitch shifted to give a counterpoint melody against the original melody (if that makes sense). I didn't re-sing the second part because the Melodyne pitch-shifted notes seemed to do the job.

The piano solo (RT 2027) is the result of probably 50 regenerations. Whenever I came across something I liked in a (re)generation of the track, I saved it. This particular RT seems to have many possible variations. I then hunted through the saved files and compiled a track from the bits I liked best.

Thanks again for dropping in. It's always great to see/read you.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hey Dan,

It's great that you've become part of our community! Thank you for jumping into my thread and having a listen. I appreciate your comments.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Noel. This is definitely up to your usual standard of excellence.
I like that you have a really good melody in your songs also.
This one makes me think of the Muppets.
I could imagine Kermit singing it.
Will go read about it now.
Great. Cheers.

Hi Rob and Anne-Marie,

It looks like all the years of listening to musicals, playing songs from Tin Pan Alley and growing up in the 60s influenced me more than I realised! LOL

Thanks for taking time and listening. Now if I could only sing counterpoint like Anne-Marie and lead vocals like Rob, I'd have it made! You're both amazing.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hey Tom!

LOL!!!! Yep it's a great family name there! When I was in primary school, half a century ago, I really hoped that I'd get a teacher one year who never did things alphabetically. Just once would have done. Didn't happen!

Thanks for plunging into the song. All your positive comments made me blush a bit and smile a lot. Appreciate it.

For what it's worth, the approach I used with the harmony is a classical technique called "First Species Counterpoint". I put a link to a Wikipedia article in my reply to floyd (up a couple of posts).

It's a great technique and is not nearly as complicated as it sounds.

Once again, thanks brother Adams
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Bob,

I always smile when I see your name pop up in a thread It's good to see you. Thanks for finding time to listen to "Walk With Me".

I've just zipped over to Youtube and had a listen to a couple of Danny Kaye songs. I've always found him very entertaining. It was great revisiting memories.

Thumbelina from 'Hans Christian Andersen' is one that has stayed in my head since I first heard it back in the 60s. Such a great, happy song. My style completely! *LOL* The backup harmony is excellent.

Thanks again for passing by.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

From the opening notes of this song just totally grabs your attention, love the style the instrumental layout, and you voice does it proud, a great song overall, would be totally in place in a movie about the forties or fifties or could fit in for any period.

I had a look at how you put it together Noel, thanks for taking the time to make this PDF. Sure is plenty of ideas in there to keep anyone going.

Musiclover

Hi ROG,

I'm glad you found the pdf worth the read. As I said in the document, it was only going to be a couple of pages long to begin with but then, as I wrote it, more information seemed relevant so I included it.

Thank you for the feedback. I always value your perspective. Especially so since I found this song quite a challenge to mix. In the end, I simply decided to draw the metaphorical line under it and say "done".

Regarding the bridge section, the reason you didn't hear blank verse when you listened was because there is some assonance happening at key locations. These locations are rain/away and shine/sky. Because I wrote the lyric as the phrases that I sang, this assonance is not obvious. When I write this section as couplets, though, it becomes a little clearer. That is...



Pat Pattison calls rain/away and shine/sky subtractive rhymes because the syllable that completes the rhyme is one sound short of the syllable that starts the rhyme. In my case, and in both instances, the 'n' is missing from the second rhyming syllable. You've got mighty good ears to have picked this up! I'm impressed.

All the best,
Noel

P.S. I envy you being able to write good songs so easily. My method must seem very convoluted by comparison

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Josie,

Without exception, it always brightens my day to see you appear in one of my threads! Thanks for taking a listening and for the positive comments. If you're interested in knowing a bit more about the harmony, I explained it more fully in my post to floyd (a couple up from here). It was more good luck than good management.

In relation to the chord progression... When I first listened to the demo of the style I chose, it reminded me of the 50s so I hunted through my music books of 50s songs and looked for the types of progressions that were used at that point in time. What you hear comes from that investigation.

Thank you again for taking the time to review "Walk With Me".

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Noel, I think we've said this before but your
songs remind us a LOT of Paul McCartney's
songs....not the hard rocking Paul but the
ones more like "Your Mother Should Know"
from Magical Mystery Tour. This song is
no exception to that impression. I won't
attempt to parse out all the reasons that
I think they are similar but overall arrangement
and the vocal delivery and the lyric stand out
the most.

Suffice it to say that it fills one with joy. What
more can you wish for?

I did read your process taken for the writing
of the tune. Like you I try and put down
ideas initially in the order for which I'd like
them to follow. This is sans consideration
of rhyme or beat, etc. Often that is a point
where I put them aside for a few days and
return to often wonder what the heck I was
thinking...but sometimes to continue on them.

But our approach is systemically different from
that point on because I write the lyric complete
with rhymes and sense of meter but Janice
develops the chord structure and melody on
her own. Sometimes I'll rough out an idea
for the chords but all of that is pretty much
her bailiwick. And for that I am lucky!

Regardless, it was fascinating to be along
for that journey regarding the development of
the song. Thanks hugely for taking the time
to do that and again for the wonderful song.

Your attention to all the aspects of songwriting
and the ensuing arrangement and production
is unsurpassed.

We continue to enjoy our listens.

J&B

Noel,

Someone else compared this to some of Paul McCartney's work. While I appreciate the lyrics and the effort you put into them, your mix, arrangement and the joyful sound of your singing is what makes this special for me.

Two BIG thumbs up from me!

Noel,

Every time you raise the bar from your last song with your new offering.

I totally agree with the previous posters about the era this song should be from but I like Richmac's idea of Kermit singing it. No disrespect intended only praise given.

I read your pdf and thought WOW what a process but then I sat years back with a rhyming dictionary to hand as I wrote my songs so the process is the same, but different.I also once read a book about the development of poetry over the ages, forget the name and the book has long gone sadly and this was the closest I ever got to a songwriting course. I decided then that rules were to meant to be broken otherwise they would not exist.

Always interesting to see how other people write.

Wonderful song, good harmonies.
Thoroughly enjoyed

Alyn

Hi Joanne,

Thank you. I appreciate the uplifting comments. The swing feel is what appealed to me, too, when I first heard the demo of this style. It's relaxing to listen to.

I think I must have been having a lucky day when I stumbled across the RT piano. It's great. I'll definitely be using that one again sometime. It seems to have a large number of regeneration permutations too. That's always handy.

All the best with your new project. Judging by the posts on here, it's going to be a great success!

Regards,
Noel

P.S. Thanks for reading through the pdf too.

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hey Trevor,

Thanks for taking time out to give "Walk With Me" a run through. I appreciate your comments. I also appreciate the smile they brought my way. As I said in an above post, I found mixing this one really challenging so I'm glad you commented on that. It's good to know that it worked for you!

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Charlie,

I'm glad the document I put together was of interest to you. There are a few other things that I do, too, when I'm in the lyric writing phase of a song. Next time, if circumstances permit, I'll see if I can put together some added insights and I'll post those as well.

I appreciate your generous comments. Thanks for giving my day a boost!

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Guenter,

I appreciate your dropping in and having a listen and I'm glad you enjoyed it. For me, writing lyrics and putting them against a melody is a bit like doing a jigsaw puzzle. It usually doesn't fall into place easily but I enjoy the process of creating and it's a good feeling when it all finally comes together.

Thanks again!

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Lawrence,

Thank you! I agree. That RT piano is terrific. I'm pretty sure that I'll find something else to use it in a little further down the track. Also, thank you for looking through the pdf. I hadn't thought about it as "finding [my] voice" before, but you are right. Following this process does allow me to bring some aspect of me to the work table and to use it creatively.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Thanks Greg. I appreciate all the positive comments. It must just about be time for a new work from you! I always look forward to hearing your songs.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hey Richard,

It's always good to see you. Thanks for finding time to have a listen and to comment. Appreciate that. I, too, can hear Kermit singing it. LOL! That would be excellent to see

All the best,
Noel

P.S. I see you've got a new song happening that I need to comment on. You're a speedy writer indeed! I envy that ability.

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Musiclover,

Thank you for the smile your comments brought my way. I'm also glad that the pdf was of interest to you. If time permits when I next write a song, and I do anything different from this time around, I'll post another pdf!

Best wishes,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Janice and Bud,

I really appreciate that amount of time your must taken with my song. First to listen to it and then to write such a comprehensive post.

Every time I read a post of yours, I enjoy what you have to say because, without fail, I always learn something new in the process. Amongst other things, today, I discovered the word 'bailiwick'. I have never had a close encounter of any kind (third or otherwise) with that one. I like it! I can see that I'll be introducing that to my students for sure.

Thank you for all your supportive comments. They were absolutely the best way to start a day.

Best of everything to you both,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hi Jim,

You really know how to make a person have great day! Thank you for listening and thank you for passing on such positive feedback bother here and on Soundcloud. I'm very grateful.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Hey Alyn,

Thank you for listening and commenting. Like you and Richard, I have no problem at all hearing Kermit sing this. Wouldn't that be something. If only I knew someone who could do Kermit impersonations!

Thanks, too, for reading through the pdf. I'm pleased that it was interesting. I imagine all of us who post songs here have different processes that we use to create them. With music, I can play by ear as well as read and I have no problem creating melodies or improvising. With words, though, I'm very slow. Grass grows faster than I can assemble the final lyric draft. I know this because I usually mow the lawn at least once during the course of a song's creation. As I see it, the important thing is that I get there in the end. The method I presently use helps.

All the best!
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Writing WHILE mowing is a GREAT way to write songs. Really. Or driving (but it has to be a truck - an F150 works great)...

Seriously.... writing while doing some other "mindless" activity is a great way to "get out of your own way" - and write a very SINGABLE song... (careful in the truck, though).

Noel - I enjoy your PG song blogs!!!

I watched with the biggest interest your channel on vimeo and I'd say : "It's exactly that I want to do ! " the perfect "chemistry" between sounds and images, here's the thing that I want to do modestly.

Concerning your last song, Walk with me, what I generally like in a song (variety, jazz, etc., no matter) is the harmony ; I particulary appreciate the chord ...mb5, that we call in France "diminué", (I don't know how to say in english), this chord is used on the "two", isn't it ?

I know a journey just for two

that gives a bluesy taste to your song, I like it

I agree with above.
Nice work.

Excellent song, arrangement, and performance. The mix is perfect.

Noel,

I almost missed this one. I've been out of touch too much the past few months. So glad I heard this today!
This is classic "Noel" - every lyric fits in place, and the progressions are spot on. Really good job on the arrangement, and your harmonies really shine on this one!

Really enjoyed it!

Steve

What he said!

The opening piano draws you in and the energetic and interesting song throughout makes you stay. Excellent Fx on that acoustic guitar, smooth.

Really enjoyed it.

Hey floyd,

I'm embarrassed.... This post of yours slipped past me for some reason!!! I wasn't even mowing the lawn at the time!

Sometimes words and/or music do come to me when I'm driving along. It's not all that often, though. Driving a Mazda 3 rather than an F-150 probably doesn't help. In addition, when I'm working on a song, I change the words and the music around so many times that I lose the ability to keep the latest creations in my head. For what it's worth, Craig Bickhardt once told me that he likes to work on lyrics when he's swimming. For Cynthia Weill ("You've Lost That Loving Feeling", a co-write with husband Barry Mann), similar to you, she works on lyrics while driving. I remember reading that she even goes driving so that she can purposefully stimulate lyrics. Seems that your theory is in good company!

If I ever get the chance to drive an F-150, I'll let you know if creativity came along for the ride!

Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Bonjour PRADON,

Thank you for having a look at my videos and for listening to my songs. If you want to see some really great videos, have a look at the Youtube channel of RnAM. Anne-Marie puts together some amazing visuals!!! She and her partner post some terrific songs in this forum.

You have very well-tuned ears! The chord on 'two' is a diminished chord (mb5). Diminished chords are not used all that often these days. They're great to keep in mind, though, whenever you're after something a little bit different.

Once again, thank you for taking time to listen to my music and to write a comment. I appreciate it.

All the best,
Noel

• previous song: Just A Little After Midnight

Thanks for listening Rob. I appreciate it. Now if only I had the Elvis edge that you've got...

All the best,
Noel

• 90dB's version of my song, Brighter Than Any Star

Thanks, Fred. I appreciate your passing through the thread. Now all I need to do is to be able to mix and produce as well as you...

All the best,
Noel

• 90dB's version of my song, Brighter Than Any Star

Hi Steve,

It's great to see you again! Thank you for taking time out to have a listen. I appreciate the positive comments. They really do make the day shine brighter!

All the best,
Noel

• 90dB's version of my song, Brighter Than Any Star

Hi Scott.

Thank you for dropping by. I appreciate your thoughts. Band in a Box makes designing songs incredibly easy. I've never enjoyed making music as much as I do these days.

Regards,
Noel

• 90dB's version of my song, Brighter Than Any Star

Exactly what Steve said!

Noel you are outstanding at composing and singing songs in this genre. Please never stop.

Thanks, Mario. I always smile when I see your name pop up in a thread. I appreciate the vote of support. I'm still not sure that anyone would class me as a singer if they heard me sing live! I'm a huge supporter of what technology makes possible.

All the best to you and Linda,
Noel

• 90dB's version of my song, Brighter Than Any Star

Hi, Noel !:))

I am late as usual but don´t mind !
You have come up with another masterpiece
Something that seems to come natural with
you ! Did I tell you i liked this very
much !:))

Cheers
Dani

Hey Dani!

Thank you for taking time out and for having a listen. I appreciate it. I don't think that I'd go so far as to call this a 'masterpiece'! Thanks for the compliment, though. Glad you liked it.

Has the warm weather come along to Helsinki yet? We're heading into winter here. Mind you, winter in Melbourne is still an awful lot warmer than winter in Finland!

All the best,
Noel

• 90dB's version of my song, Brighter Than Any Star