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Song I wrote many years ago for my best friend from college and his wife. Never recorded it until now though. I play the main guitar (intro/ chorus riff and verse comping plus the quickie outro) and sing. The rest is BIAB: BRSOLC3 Country Rock Guitar. Lyrics in the description box at YouTube. Goin' For A Ride Goin' For A Ride (audio only)
Last edited by Mark Rhodes; 09/21/21 06:38 AM.
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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Nice fun song ... great groove ... kinda like Jerry Garcia. My only comment is the key maybe a bit low for your vocals, you may try raising it up a couple of steps. GOOD WORK!!
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The feel of the vocal, (and some of the timing), is different to the backing.
Both are good but different.
Nice playing .
Cheers
rayc
"What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
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Howdy Mark....I just happen to comment on your song in the TDRI forum. Thought I'd chime in here too with a copy/paste thing: "Sounds like you had some fun with this one. Yep....it's a peppy, up beat style and the arrangement isn't too busy. BIAB has many of those to choose from. I agree with studio that it has the 'pop/folk/country' vibe. I like your bridge at 1:50....its surprised me, in a good way.  The arrangement works. Even though this is not my genre I'd say this a good song. I do think things could be added to make it a more complete song but that's just my subjective observation....not a criticism." Carry on....
Last edited by chulaivet1966; 09/21/21 12:19 PM.
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Nice fun song ... great groove ... kinda like Jerry Garcia. My only comment is the key maybe a bit low for your vocals, you may try raising it up a couple of steps. GOOD WORK!! Thanks, Elliott. Funny you should mention the key. I get your point. This is the key I wrote the song in and that was 15 years ago, maybe more. (Traditionally, I write music first and then have to sing in whatever key I wrote the music in; not wise, but it's such a habit now I rarely consider alternatives.) From a vocal standpoint, it might sound better up a notch or so. From a musical standpoint, it sounds right just where it is. Which probably means I should have someone else sing it! ;o) Later I'll experiment singing it a bit higher. Thanks for the suggestion. I needed to hear it.
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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Nice song! I think the range is fine, but personally, I like melody to be a bit less "loosey-gooesy" and land on the beats. This is the sort of thing where I'd go into the DAW and fiddle with the timing of some of the syllables that are on primary beats, but leave everything else in place. I enjoyed listening.
-- David Cuny My virtual singer development blogVocal control, you say. Never heard of it. Is that some kind of ProTools thing?BiaB 2025 | Windows 11 | Reaper | Way too many VSTis.
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Cool tune Marty. Excellent backtrack and vocal. Well done
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Cool tune Marty. Excellent backtrack and vocal. Well done Thanks, Scott. (Btw, it's Mark, not Marty.) I have always been skittish about my vocals---never much of a singer, really. But over the years I've learned how to do a few things (and also not to force myself to sing things I just can't handle). It's September now. I set myself a goal of learning to use Reaper this year by putting out demos of a dozen songs. I'm on track for that. I think I've put out 9 so far. (Not all of them use BIAB, so those songs don't appear here.) Have several others in the works. I learn something with every project. (Unfortunately, I'm 62 and seem to forget something with every project...) Next year, I will aim to make things sound more professional and start circulating demos to people who might be interested in recording songs of mine. We'll see how that goes. One day at a time...
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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Nice song! I think the range is fine, but personally, I like melody to be a bit less "loosey-gooesy" and land on the beats. This is the sort of thing where I'd go into the DAW and fiddle with the timing of some of the syllables that are on primary beats, but leave everything else in place. I enjoyed listening. Thanks, David. You know, I've never thought about whether strong melody notes fall on the beat or not. It seems obvious to me that that would be a good thing, and perhaps something I do intuitively at times. I seem to be much more aware of that when playing guitar. (And my songs tend to start on the guitar.) I'll take more note of this going forward. Thank you for the suggestion! It should help me achieve better results.
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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mark...
just an idea...old big studio production triks are to double the traks. eg your vocs and that cute centered gtr.maybe double in places with another gtr sound picture.
this is a cute song.i just would suggest some added use
of production techniques.
best
om
my songs....mixed for good earbuds...(fyi..my vocs on all songs..) https://soundcloud.com/alfsongs(90 songs created useing bb/rb) (lots of tips of mine in pg tips forum.)
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mark...
just an idea...old big studio production triks are to double the traks. eg your vocs and that cute centered gtr. maybe double in places with another gtr sound picture.
this is a cute song.i just would suggest some added use
of production techniques.
best
om Thanks, OM. Such production techniques would surely help. I try to add one new thing every time I made a demo. (When I make 3 more, that will be a dozen this year: then, I'll listen to them all and try to figure out what works and what doesn't, take a break over Christmas, and start the new year committed to more professional results. My hope is that someday others will record some songs of mine. I think that could happen. I would need to get them into better shape first but before that I need to figure out how my voice works (or doesn't) and how best to write songs that suit its limitations.
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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Mark.
re doing vocals.
even big name vocalists are helped along by studio "tricks" and engineering.
which is why when one hears a band live they sometimes "dont sound like the hit record."
i sincerely hope the following little tricks help you in your quest.
1. confidence is a VERY big thing. say to yourself "i can do it".
breath in measured amounts matching the song phraseing.
get one phrase right at a time. before going on to the next phrase. ie bite sized chunks.
2. try different "personas". for example recently i was doing a song with a normal vocal persona.
it wasnt working. so i tried a "evil persona", and suddenly the song came alive.
i n summary experiment with different personalities. if a loud voc isnt working try a whispery vocal.
then try subtle stuff like a whisper behind a louder vocal.
3. doubling vocs i mentioned. the beauty of doubles is they add vocal "character" and charm.
just listen to major hits , and doubles are used in lots of songs.
try and mix it up. maybe a simple voc for verse, but doubles or even triples for choruses.
sorry mark my time is limited, i am recovering/tired from a minor medical procedure this evening.
for further info there is lots of vocal info/triks on the net. also spend time carefully listening to hit records.
cos you can pick up lots of ideas.
just trying to help you a little, and god bless.
i wish you every success with your songs.
om
my songs....mixed for good earbuds...(fyi..my vocs on all songs..) https://soundcloud.com/alfsongs(90 songs created useing bb/rb) (lots of tips of mine in pg tips forum.)
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Mark.
re doing vocals.
even big name vocalists are helped along by studio "tricks" and engineering.
which is why when one hears a band live they sometimes "dont sound like the hit record."
i sincerely hope the following little tricks help you in your quest.
1. confidence is a VERY big thing. say to yourself "i can do it".
breath in measured amounts matching the song phraseing.
get one phrase right at a time. before going on to the next phrase. ie bite sized chunks.
2. try different "personas". for example recently i was doing a song with a normal vocal persona.
it wasnt working. so i tried a "evil persona", and suddenly the song came alive.
i n summary experiment with different personalities. if a loud voc isnt working try a whispery vocal.
then try subtle stuff like a whisper behind a louder vocal.
3. doubling vocs i mentioned. the beauty of doubles is they add vocal "character" and charm.
just listen to major hits , and doubles are used in lots of songs.
try and mix it up. maybe a simple voc for verse, but doubles or even triples for choruses.
sorry mark my time is limited, i am recovering/tired from a minor medical procedure this evening.
for further info there is lots of vocal info/triks on the net. also spend time carefully listening to hit records.
cos you can pick up lots of ideas.
just trying to help you a little, and god bless.
i wish you every success with your songs.
om
Thanks, OM. Godspeed in your recovery! Those all seem like good ideas. Some I've heard before. Of course, hearing about them is the easy part---making them habits is what matters. I've discovered that I need to sing softly. (If I sing loud, my pitch-accuracy goes out the window.) Thanks, again. I'll definitely work on the doubling (and add other tricks in due course.)
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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Well done, Mark. "Write about what you know." Man, you guys had some fun, and me and my crew were out there with you. My best friend and co-writer died 7 years ago and I'd love for him to hear this. We were always goin' for a ride. Your vocal sounds perfect.
"High school highs
Low-rent lows
Lots of Mac 'n' cheese
And Sloppy Joes"
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Hey Mark,
I'm glad you got around to finally putting it together. I'm not all clever at analysing production and performance aspects of a song so I'll leave that to the highly competent people above me.
I just wanted to say, I enjoyed the listen.
All the best,
Noel
MY SONGS...Audiophile BIAB 2026
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Well done, Mark. "Write about what you know." Man, you guys had some fun, and me and my crew were out there with you. My best friend and co-writer died 7 years ago and I'd love for him to hear this. We were always goin' for a ride. Your vocal sounds perfect.
"High school highs
Low-rent lows
Lots of Mac 'n' cheese
And Sloppy Joes" Thanks, Marty. That makes my day!
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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Filled with nostalgia.
Well done.
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Filled with nostalgia.
Well done. Thank you, Captain Moto.
"If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often." Leonard Cohen
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