Originally Posted By: Charlie Fogle
I really enjoyed both songs and the back story of the song itself. It all comes together as a strong testament for the song itself. It works for a superstar to record, for a newcomer to record, as a demo; whether recorded in a major company studio or a home studio, and as a single. It works with a female vocalist, a male vocalist, with female or male and BGV's and as a duet.

Wonderfully written, arranged, produced and performed both times. Enjoyed the many journey's the song took me on.


Charlie - I am always interested in hearing how you perceive a song... THanks for the nice comments on this one...


Originally Posted By: Al-David
Hi Floyd ...

I listened to both songs day before yesterday. I wrote a long, detailed comment. I clicked onto the "Submit" button, and like two other comments I wrote ... it disappeared into the dark regions of cyberspace. I'd bet there's a lot of cyber junk out there!

Anyway, I sat and thought about each recording for quite sometime ... perhaps an hour total, before writing that comment. I'll try to recapture what I wrote that vanished as best as I can remember.

The demo version: Loved it! That lady can sing ... should be a star. It had all the elements looked for in a demo ... a demo of that time and era. In my opinion, it's about as good a demo as could have been recorded anywhere by anyone. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Your version: Super! It's my opinion that few singers, demo or otherwise, can fully infuse the emotion of the writer. The emotion may be as strong but not necessarily express the exact mental/emotional state of the writer. You know what you wanted and man ... did you ever deliver! Your vocal and all the backing tracks were simply super. There's a certain "begging for gut emotion" in your version that does not exist in the demo.

In summation, it's very difficult to compare the two because they were recorded many years apart and the wants and taste of Nashville and the listening public changed noticeably during that time frame. I think the demo was perfect for the era (early 90s?) of country music in which it was recorded. There's little doubt in my mind it would have been a monster hit had Reba put on her CD. In today's country music world, I don't think the demo would get a lot of second listens. Not because it's an inferior song (it's a GREAT song), but because it doesn't fit the image of today's country music. And producers, A and R folks, etc., listen through today's ears.

So, for me, it's not a matter of which do I think is the better delivery of the song. It's a matter of which version fits the mold of country music at the time of recording. I think your version would have a much better chance in today's marketplace, but the demo would have been a better fit for the era in which it was recorded. They're both fabulous. It just depends upon which hole you're trying to plug into.

I hope that made sense. if not, let me know and I'll try to better explain.

Regardless, it's a super fantastic song, regardless of when it was recorded. Best to you,

Alan


Alan - thanks for taking the time to write up your thoughts a second time!! And I really appreciate the things you had to say. Thoughtful, perceptive. I agree that tastes have changed (the sound that is expected) and they do fit their era. It would, of course, take a "slightly more mature" artist to record a song with this message - and there are so few of those these days...

Thanks for the wonderful discussion...


Originally Posted By: beatmaster
…….beatmaster - glad you enjoyed this. I disagree with the idea that we cannot get a full studio sound using the tools that we have available. I think there are a number of people on these forums who are doing just that....


Your welcome for the comments, what I meant was it is damn close to what we achieve in the home studio and I was no way intending to put anything down but I meant comparing to the eagles, pink Floyd etc in multi equipped studios.. well I try and thrive to get close that's what keeps me going but...do I get the same as ?.

Anyway what we do get on here is brilliant quality to me for home studio sound so big round of applause.


Got it. Thanks...



Originally Posted By: MarioD
Originally Posted By: dcuny
I'm not gonna lie - I liked the "sheen" and production of the Nashville version. There were bits that seemed a better match in the Nashville version, like the climb into the first chorus.

Plus, louder is always better, right? wink

But... your vocals sold the song to me in a way the demo didn't, pulling harder on the heartstrings. And that's the most important part, because (to me) the really good songs evoke a strong emotional response.

There may be any number of reasons Reba passed on the song, but listening to both versions, I think lyrically the song tips a bit more to the male perspective. From the start:

the day you came into this world
was the proudest of my life

seems a bit more like something a guy would say. "Proud" isn't a word I've heard a mom use to describe childbirth.

Similarly,

i prayed to god to help me
teach you wrong from right

sounds (to me) like a dad sort of thing.

The POV just seemed a better fit with a male singer.

Then again, I'm from California, so what do I know about traditional values? grin

Love the story, excellent song. Thanks for posting this!


I'm late to the party but glad that I came. I listened to both versions and Dave said exactly what I was thinking.

This should be on the radio.


Thanks, Mario. Glad to have you stop by....

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