That was interesting. Not exactly what I was expecting to hear. Yep, it definitely has your signature sound and vocals. In places, it reminded me of the songs Glen Campbell used to record, as well as a number of other artists of that time.....lots of chords and changes in the music. Not exactly country, not exactly rock, but back then GC wasn't known as a country artist.

Observations on the song. It is what it is... however, when writing country....at least at first, experiment with straight up chords. The opening chord told me right from the start "this isn't a country song".

There's a saying that country is 3 chords and the truth. Try writing a country song using simply the basic chords.... for example C F G and Am. Of course choose whatever key you like. The basic 1,4,5 and occasionally the use of the minor 6th is all you need for a country song. Avoid the use of the flat fifths, and sharp 9ths and the other colorful chords for the most part. They're cool for a one time use in a creative way..... but don't write a country song with them as the main chords. As you write more country songs and get used to the genre, then, once you know your way around the genre, jump in and use some cool chords. It's not illegal to use cool chords in country music...so please don't misunderstand me..... but it helps to understand the genre a bit before using them.

Poor Brent..... in the solo, that was one hard chord progression to play a creative country solo against. Again....less is more when it comes to using different chords. Think 1,4,5 and you can't go wrong. If I was asked to play a solo against that progression I would say "No way".... fix it. There's not enough room to explore a melodic lead especially towards the middle to end where the changes come quickly and unpredictably. A solo should have some level of predictability to it. The guitarist needs it and the listener expects it.

Your voice fits well into a country song.... lots of singers had smooth, quiet voices.... "Whispering" Bill Anderson was one who had a big career singing that way, the great Merle Haggard was often smooth, Conway, the list goes on...... so your voice works well. You just need to get a grasp on what country music is..... either in the past or now, or anywhere in between. Listen to some of the old country folks and write something similar to that. 75% or so of the old country from the 60's through the early 80's was 3 chord songs.


All that said.... I like the song, the things it talks about, and the creativity it displays..... just some tweeking in the writing process and you'll be writing country music in fine fashion.

You can find my music at:
www.herbhartley.com
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