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Hi Forum friends. Have not posted in a bit but I have been checking in as often as possible and hearing some GREAT stuff!! This is such an amazing collection of great writers and cool people. This is a song about heartbreak in the heart land. All fictional. It was inspired by the sound of the RTs. It is amazing how inspirational BIAB can be. Hope you enjoy. Would absolutely love to hear what you think. Take care. Greg

https://soundcloud.com/gjohnson-2/sutherlandroad


SUTHERLAND ROAD

We drove my father’s truck that night, on Sutherland Road

Our hearts were filled with passion, emotions exposed

We swore undying love we never would forsake

The starlight dancing off of the lake



You left for college far away, later that year

I asked some friends about you, but never did hear

I joined the army and soon shipped out for the war

Still don’t know what the hell it was for



I got my discharge, came home last May

I heard you’d married, moved away

Guess your dreams were bigger now than this small town could hold

A world away from Sutherland Road



I heard your father passed away

I know you were home from just one day

I was drinkin’ at Eddie’s Bar and watched you walk on by

I nearly choked on the tears I couldn’t cry



Last night I found myself up on Sutherland Road

The soft grass glistened still, from the last time it snowed

I took my clothes off and I dove into that lake

Trying not to feel my frozen heart break

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Ok Greg I'll tell you what I think......It's beautiful!! I feel you are one of the best vocalists here on the forum! But beyond that, you always seem to present us with such great quality material! This song is fantastic with an excellent selection of instruments! You seem to have put into this track just what is needed to make it pop!! Getting back to the vocal, I was at the end before I realized there were no background vocals and that speaks to the great quality of your voice on this! I always admire your work and you did not disappoint! Thanks, Torrey

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Absolutely beautiful and powerful melody. I'd sacrifice three goats for that range. So sad, I wanted to reach out and smack you. DUDE! GET OVER IT! Sucks to have a friend like me.

Great stuff wrapped up in a small package. The strings were a sweet addition and the chording piano moved it along. Yes, indeed, just listening to what the "band" has to say is often all the inspiration one needs.


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Greg

We are blessed with some wonderful vocalists on this forum. This is a stunning vocal performance a lovely song and a top quality composition.
A sparse and lovely backing - truly top class.

Peter

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Greg astounding song with awesome lyrics and just enough on piano and strings to move this along, your voice just could not have been any better raw, real and emotional.


My wee nit. You did not list what piano ?, what strings ?l.o.l..

well done on this a ballad in a ballad.

Last edited by beatmaster; 10/09/18 11:47 PM.

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Terrific narrative and your voice is right for it too. There's an occasional essing that might be tamable.
The arrangement is nice - sparse and I excepted it to build.
My only nit is in the lyric - "... off of..." doesn't work for me but I'm a retired teacher so ignore me.
Lovely stuff.


Cheers
rayc
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Man! You had me hanging on every word.

I think the stripped down arrangement is a perfect vehicle for your (beautiful!) vocal, anything else would have got in the way.

One of your best, Greg, loved it!

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Wow - you really outdid yourself here smile As mentioned by others, this is truly beautiful. You can tell you really bared your soul on this. Every note, and every vocal line is filled with emotion and sincerity. Not a single thing I'd change here.

Great work, and thanks for sharing!


Cheers,
Deryk
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Greg,

Here are my favorite lines:

"We drove my father’s truck that night, on Sutherland Road
Our hearts were filled with passion, emotions exposed
We swore undying love we never would forsake
The starlight dancing off of the lake

You left for college far away, later that year
I asked some friends about you, but never did hear
I joined the army and soon shipped out for the war
Still don’t know what the hell it was for

I got my discharge, came home last May
I heard you’d married, moved away
Guess your dreams were bigger now than this small town could hold
A world away from Sutherland Road

I heard your father passed away
I know you were home from just one day
I was drinkin’ at Eddie’s Bar and watched you walk on by
I nearly choked on the tears I couldn’t cry

Last night I found myself up on Sutherland Road
The soft grass glistened still, from the last time it snowed
I took my clothes off and I dove into that lake
Trying not to feel my frozen heart break"
.



This is songwriting at the highest level.
The lyric is incredible.
The melody is incredible.
The piano/cello treatment is perfect.
The vocal COULD NOT BE BETTER.

As. Good. As. It. Gets.

Period.

fj

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Wow, a solid Homerun!

everything is top notch

Love the storytelling in this

Instrumentaion and mix are so good

the vocal is great even by your standard of always having good vocals

one to really be proud of,

Kenny

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Originally Posted By: Torrey Bliss
Ok Greg I'll tell you what I think......It's beautiful!! I feel you are one of the best vocalists here on the forum! But beyond that, you always seem to present us with such great quality material! This song is fantastic with an excellent selection of instruments! You seem to have put into this track just what is needed to make it pop!! Getting back to the vocal, I was at the end before I realized there were no background vocals and that speaks to the great quality of your voice on this! I always admire your work and you did not disappoint! Thanks, Torrey


Thanks so much for the kind words Torrey. They mean a lot to me! Loving your songs!! Take care. Greg

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Greg,

There`s a level of honesty in your writing that sets many of your songs apart.Matters not whether the lyric is fictional or factual- you get inside the story and make us believe.
This one carried me away - loved it, and if it were a movie I`d just have to stay in my seat awhile as the credits roll and let it sink in.

Robert

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This is absolutely and positivity the best tearjerker that I have ever heard. Your instrumentation was perfect! Your vocal and lyrics were outstanding. This is one of the best songs that I have ever heard on this or any other forum. You have raised the bar extremely high with this one.


I got banned from Weight Watchers for dropping a bag of M&Ms on the floor.
It was the best game of Hungry Hippos I've ever seen!


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Geez Greg what a beautiful vocal. Sound a lovely vocal. The lyric was so special. Loved the backtrack and feel of the song. The violin was such a nice touch. Well done...


Scott Collingwood
https://soundcloud.com/scottt709
https://soundcloud.com/spiritlevel-ca
https://www.youtube.com/@SpiritLevel-ge3hm/
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The sparse arrangement goes great with the poignant story and makes the vocal even more touching and intimate. Great to hear you again Greg.

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This may be the weirdest set of comments you will get. Keeping in short, I hate and love this song! An explanation...

It's such a sad song. I hate that I feel this song to the extent I do. I feel the sense of loss because your writing is so strong. I really don't like feeling that way, and yet...

It makes me SO thankful for what I have in my life. To realize it's just a song. It didn't actually happen to me; and yet I felt it. It's sort of a "Miracle on 34th Street" thing going on."

Thank you so much for sharing it and giving life a certain perspective. smile

Of course the writing, music and killer vocal are all what put us there!

Lyrically, to pick the lines I really like makes no sense. What would be the point of copy and pasting the whole song? wink

Really great song Greg!

Last edited by HearToLearn; 10/11/18 04:18 PM.

Chad (Hope that makes it easier)

TEMPO TANTRUM: What a lead singer has when they can't stay in time.
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Everything about this is stunning - lyric, vocal, arrangement, instruments, mix. It's all fabulous.


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My virtual singer development blog

Vocal control, you say. Never heard of it. Is that some kind of ProTools thing?
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Originally Posted By: Tangmo
Absolutely beautiful and powerful melody. I'd sacrifice three goats for that range. So sad, I wanted to reach out and smack you. DUDE! GET OVER IT! Sucks to have a friend like me.

Great stuff wrapped up in a small package. The strings were a sweet addition and the chording piano moved it along. Yes, indeed, just listening to what the "band" has to say is often all the inspiration one needs.


Thanks so much for your nice words. Much appreciated!! I've enjoyed your presence on the forum and your songs....some nice work! Take care. Greg

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Hi, Greg !

One of your absolute best
without doubt !!!!
Liked everything about it
and your sweet vocal most !

Cheers
Dani

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Love ypur vpoice and the feeling ypou convey. I wish I could sing high notes like you! Lovely restrained arrangement. Definitely conveys heartbreak in the most touching way.

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