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Like Greg said "if it's FJ, then it's good"
Well, in our second year on this forum we come to the very same conclusion!
This is another great one, one of your best we think.
The transition to the chorus and the chorus itself lifts this song to a new level.
Again, Janice's backing vocals are as professional as they come.
Rob & Anne-Marie Thanks, guys... appreciate that.. Classic Floyd Jane. It's always easy to turn up to box, sit back and enjoy the show. Everything is spot on.
Charlie Thanks, Charlie.... Floyd,
Great selection of guitar tracks and drums. Strong lyrics. The latest batch of User Showcase tunes have really highlighted the background vocals and harmonies. Another top-of-the-line and radio ready production! Thanks, Jim... really appreciate that...
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Floyd, You have a knack for great hooks and on top of that the gift to write the story around it. You proved it once again! Oops. Double post, but worth repeating  Thanks, Patrick. Thanks, Patrick. LOL LOL floyd, so if you can't hear your heart, listen to mine
yeah if you can't hear your heart listen to mine
Wonderful lyrics, so poignant. I'm struggling to find words as this song, as I have said before about your works, is the sort of country I really, really like. Janice's voice matches yours so well SO I opened the back door, turned it up LOUD to let the neighbours have a listen as well!! It's gone 7.30 am here so I have given them a wonderful way to wake up on this miserable, wet morning!!!! GREAT SONG Alyn HA! Thanks, Alyn!!! LOve to part of a ruckus!!! Another good write.
This would have easily been a cut in the Nashville town in the heady days of the late 80's when country was really stating to move into the pop/rock genre. Your style keeps reminding me of those bands and artists.
Vocals are excellent. Nice harmony work. That vibraphone was a tasty decision and placed well in the song. Little things like that really set a song apart from the rest of the pack.
I would likely have used a bit more reverb on the lead fills. They sounded just a bit too dry and stiff to my ears. That could also be the real track as well.... I try not to use RT's for leads.
No real nits to pick on this tune. It all sounds good to me.
Keep on writing and recording.... you have a formula that works. Thanks, Herb. Appreciate all that...
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I've listened to this a few times since you posted it. I've said before that you remind me of those 80's/90's country artists who took the music to a new level. On this one I get kind of a Southern Pacific vibe from the RTs.
Excellent writing and song craft, obviously. Vocals/harmonies are tight and right...eous. Must be nice to have vocalists on staff, ready to sing whenever y'all need harmony:)
Your mixes and productions are always way, way up there, as is this.
I'm just curious to know if you heard those guitars when you wrote the song?
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Hi Floyd.
Backing vox in stereo? Nice solo too. Sounds great. Good on yer!
Terrific song. Isn't Janice just wonderful? Not to take anything away from your super lead vocal of course, I just love Janice.
Absolutely nothing to criticize here. Clever lyrics, great backing, a mix which hangs together LOUD and altogether a very professional package.
ROG. Thanks, ROG... always interested in your thoughts on the songs I post. And, YES! Janice IS wonderful! I feel lucky to be able to call both she and Bud, "friend"... Hi Floyd,
this is just another one I can't stop
listening to. I could only repeat what I and
others so often said.
Janice's voice is a great complement. The idea with
the vibes is great.
Thanks a lot for your appeal referring "Numb".
Very kind of you.
Guenter Thanks, Guenter - always appreciate your support... just wanted to make sure people knew there was "something new" to know about "Numb" - the recognition for that is huge and well deserved... Had a good "Listen"to this one.
Don't know how I missed this.
Great country rock.
Excellent composition.
Rob.
Thanks, Rob...
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...that may sound a bit "pushy", but...
It's actually the name of the song.
Ha ha. That is funny Floyd. Love, love Janice's harmonies on this one. Great write great production as usual.
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"...so if you can't hear your heart listen to mine..."
Great line. Another keeper.
Regards,
Bob
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Listen...a lot has already been said, and very well I might add! I look to help people where I can. I just don't know what I could offer. I really like it the way it is! I just didn't want to NOT comment. So the best I can offer at this point is, ditto! Above and beyond all the usual stuff that makes your songs so good, I like the catch phrase "if you can't hear your heart listen to mine" I have to agree! This is one of those phrases that when I heard it, I wished I would have written it! Great job! Thanks, Caaron... often that phrase that makes people think "why didn't I think of that?" is all it takes to have the right "stuff" needed to write a song that has "something to hold on to"... I had a brain malfunction for a minute thinking what in the heck is a vibraphone - then realized oh it's vibes. LOL! Added a nice touch to the arrangement.
Sounds great, well sung, cool stereo harmonies too.
Josie Thanks, Josie. Hope you are doing okay...
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Hi, Floyd !
Forgive me this belated
comment to this asolutely
wonderful piece of music !!
You and Janice are just
gettin´better and better
all the time if it was
possible - that is !!!!
Thank you for the music !
Cheers
Dani
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I've listened to this a few times since you posted it. I've said before that you remind me of those 80's/90's country artists who took the music to a new level. On this one I get kind of a Southern Pacific vibe from the RTs.
Excellent writing and song craft, obviously. Vocals/harmonies are tight and right...eous. Must be nice to have vocalists on staff, ready to sing whenever y'all need harmony:)
Your mixes and productions are always way, way up there, as is this.
I'm just curious to know if you heard those guitars when you wrote the song? Thanks for all those compliments, Scott.. Interesting question... the answer is pretty much "no" - as I write something like this, I'm mostly just hearing how the vocal "sings" - the singer and the song being all that exists if that makes sense - the underlying production doesn't begin to form until I'm done writing..
...that may sound a bit "pushy", but...
It's actually the name of the song.
Ha ha. That is funny Floyd. Love, love Janice's harmonies on this one. Great write great production as usual. Thanks, Josie.. "...so if you can't hear your heart listen to mine..."
Great line. Another keeper.
Regards,
Bob Thank you, Bob.... where in the world ya been lately???? Hi, Floyd !
Forgive me this belated
comment to this asolutely
wonderful piece of music !!
You and Janice are just
gettin´better and better
all the time if it was
possible - that is !!!!
Thank you for the music !
Cheers
Dani Dani - thanks, buddy...we appreciate all that..
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Hi floyd,  The first thing that stood out to me when the song started playing was just how brilliant the arrangement, the instrumental line-up and the mix are. The clarity of this production is way better than any superlative I can some with. It's like listening to sunshine – it's bright, it sparkles, and it resonates full of energy. This song sounds as professional as anything from a dedicated studio; it's a production masterpiece in fact. Music really doesn't get better than this. After listening to “Listen”, I realised just how much I still have to learn in the mixing arena. In relation to the lyrics, I really like the way that you've used rhyming couplets throughout the song. Whenever I've tried writing lyrics using rhyming couplets, I seem to get a kind of 'forced' quality to my words. By comparison, these lyrics of yours flow as easy as conversation and the rhymes seem so natural that the lyrics slip by without drawing attention to anything other than the story. This is what I call black-belt songwriting As a 'set the tone of the song' verse, Verse 1 is terrific. The image of a woman being alone, frustrated, angry and despairing was vivid. For some reason, your Verse 1 reminded me of the lyrics of Mike Reid's and Allen Shamblin's “I Can't Make You Love Me” and the power of the imagery in its opening verse.
Turn down the lights, turn down the bed
Turn down these voices inside my head
It's worth noting that Reid and Shamblin used an odd number of phrases (i.e. three) while working within the boundaries of a couplets approach with rhyme. Your first verse also uses an odd number of phrases (i.e. five) and, as already mentioned, the constraints of couplets. If I reconfigure your Verse 1 so that it's easier to see the couplets, it's interesting to see how you've rhymed 'again' with 'listen'. i know the last time your heart told you where to go
you took a wrong turn and ended up alone
right then and there you swore you'd never love again
the next time your heart talks to you, you just won't listen
To my mind, the effect of this consonant rhyme using the 'n' sound is one of the most notable features of the first verse. Because this type of sound relationship has a very 'door left open' feeling to it, it pushes the listener straight into the second verse due to the fact that the listener is still waiting to hear a more concrete rhyme like go/alone. Such a rhyme doesn't happen though. In finishing Verse 2, the listener is aurally satisfied by a more solid rhyme that indicates that the Verse1+Verse2 sequence is complete. The effect of the lack of closure at the end of Verse 1 seemed very appropriate for a Verse, Verse, Chorus, Verse song format. Nice! The melody is outstanding. I particularly like the timing and the melodic phrase for “listen to mine”. It's musical characteristics really make it stand out and so easily identifiable as the title. Also, the vibes were a very inventive, creative touch. Yep, black-belt songwriting meets black-belt song-producing meets black-belt PG Music technology! All the best, Noel P.S. Janice's and your voices work incredibly well together. If the two of you keep this up, like Guenter, you're going to win something somewhere!
MY SONGS...Audiophile BIAB 2026
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Thank you so much for inviting me in on this GREAT song!
It was fun.
Janice
Our albums and singles are on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Pandora and more. If interested search on Janice Merritt. Thanks! Our Videos
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Thank you so much for inviting me in on this GREAT song!
It was fun.
Janice You are invited to EVERY ONE of my songs. In a just world, you would be famous. Rich. A star. A diva. In tabloids. We might not like you then... image that...  ;0
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Hi floyd, The first thing that stood out to me when the song started playing was just how brilliant the arrangement, the instrumental line-up and the mix are. The clarity of this production is way better than any superlative I can some with. It's like listening to sunshine – it's bright, it sparkles, and it resonates full of energy. This song sounds as professional as anything from a dedicated studio; it's a production masterpiece in fact. Music really doesn't get better than this. After listening to “Listen”, I realised just how much I still have to learn in the mixing arena. In relation to the lyrics, I really like the way that you've used rhyming couplets throughout the song. Whenever I've tried writing lyrics using rhyming couplets, I seem to get a kind of 'forced' quality to my words. By comparison, these lyrics of yours flow as easy as conversation and the rhymes seem so natural that the lyrics slip by without drawing attention to anything other than the story. This is what I call black-belt songwriting As a 'set the tone of the song' verse, Verse 1 is terrific. The image of a woman being alone, frustrated, angry and despairing was vivid. For some reason, your Verse 1 reminded me of the lyrics of Mike Reid's and Allen Shamblin's “I Can't Make You Love Me” and the power of the imagery in its opening verse.
Turn down the lights, turn down the bed
Turn down these voices inside my head
It's worth noting that Reid and Shamblin used an odd number of phrases (i.e. three) while working within the boundaries of a couplets approach with rhyme. Your first verse also uses an odd number of phrases (i.e. five) and, as already mentioned, the constraints of couplets. If I reconfigure your Verse 1 so that it's easier to see the couplets, it's interesting to see how you've rhymed 'again' with 'listen'. i know the last time your heart told you where to go
you took a wrong turn and ended up alone
right then and there you swore you'd never love again
the next time your heart talks to you, you just won't listen
To my mind, the effect of this consonant rhyme using the 'n' sound is one of the most notable features of the first verse. Because this type of sound relationship has a very 'door left open' feeling to it, it pushes the listener straight into the second verse due to the fact that the listener is still waiting to hear a more concrete rhyme like go/alone. Such a rhyme doesn't happen though. In finishing Verse 2, the listener is aurally satisfied by a more solid rhyme that indicates that the Verse1+Verse2 sequence is complete. The effect of the lack of closure at the end of Verse 1 seemed very appropriate for a Verse, Verse, Chorus, Verse song format. Nice! The melody is outstanding. I particularly like the timing and the melodic phrase for “listen to mine”. It's musical characteristics really make it stand out and so easily identifiable as the title. Also, the vibes were a very inventive, creative touch. Yep, black-belt songwriting meets black-belt song-producing meets black-belt PG Music technology! All the best, Noel P.S. Janice's and your voices work incredibly well together. If the two of you keep this up, like Guenter, you're going to win something somewhere! Once again, Noel, your review is as interesting as the song you are reviewing... but this one is especially interesting.... Greg and I often exchange emails about songs "worth listening to"... things that we find written at a level worth noting... Not more than a couple of week ago, I sent Greg an email with a link to Mike Reid's version of “I Can't Make You Love Me”!!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlA3tMaX9GAIt gives me chills. I had not thought about it for YEARS. After I found it recently, I listened to it over and over and over... Songwriting at it VERY BEST. I dig that you get that. floyd
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As usual, I'm late coming to the party! Been working pretty much 7 days a week for several months now. But I am so glad I got to hear this one! Up to your usual standards. Great write, great hook, great production, etc. And Janice did a great job on the backup vocals as well.
Really enjoyed it!
Steve
Steve Young Music"In order to compose, all you need to do is remember a tune that nobody else has thought of." - Robert Schumann
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