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A dark but hopeful tune contemplating the remnants of a failed relationship. Have been tweaking this song for years but figured if I posted it here I could be done with it at last. Ha! As if... Thanks in advance for any listens or comments. Memories (In Darkenss) R.W. Davis: Lyrics D.A. Hughes: Vocals, harmony/BGV arrangement Me: Music, arrangement, production, mix, master Style is ELTON2.STY (Elton 2 - Ev. 16ths Rock) Style MIDI Instruments are : Acoustic Piano (1) with Waves Grand Rhapsody Strings (49) with Cakewalk Studio Instruments Strings RealTracks in song: 1759:Bass, Electric, Pop16ths Ev 085 RealTracks in song: 1761:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Pop16ths Ev16 085 RealDrums will be substituted :RockEven16: a: Snare, HiHat b: Snare, Ride Sometimes I lay in darkness Haunted by past occasions How we acted so heartless And lied in conversations I can’t close my eyes at all I just lay there awake And I try not to recall Just learn from my mistake Well, the memories are all we have It’s all we can remember Baby, oh, baby, it would be good If we could just surrender Falling back to the good times They just feel a part of me I re-read all the best lines In our well-read history I just try to close the book Forget what I had read Then I take another look To see what else you said Well, the memories are all we have It’s all we can remember Baby, oh, baby, it would be good If we could just surrender I wave the white flag I cease my attack I lay down all my weapons Raise my arms to the heavens And plead for another chance At some kinda romance Well, the memories are all we have It’s all we can remember Baby, oh, baby, it would be good If we could just surrender
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
Presonus Studio One
ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM
Presonus Faderport 16
Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Journeyman
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"Me: Music, arrangement, production, mix, master" .
You did a good job which provided an enjoyable listen.
"I just try to close the book
Forget what I had read
Then I take another look
To see what else you said"
Yeah, It's trap.
"I wave the white flag
I cease my attack
I lay down all my weapons
Raise my arms to the heavens
And plead for another chance
At some kinda romance"
Oh NO...DON'T DO IT!
That good ol' romantic Merle Haggard said "old flames can't hold a candle to you" (assuming you have a current partner)
Yeah, be done with it - rekindlling an old flame can start a forrest fire. She's Long Gone.
Good song, I enjoyed it.
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Very good work DC Ron. I liked everything.
Laurent
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Ron,
Wow! Great, great song. Love the lyrics and vocal. The piano is also a standout, as is the mix.
I love when older songs return for a refresh or to finally be finished. This one was well worth it.
Bob
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I like that piano opening. Right from the lyrics of the first verse we can tell that this singer was the smart one in the relationship. Good write and those lyrics are perfect. Love this: "re-read all the best lines In our well-read history" --guess the book was better read than written. Exxellent vocal, too. Man, if every failed relationship ended with a song this good, we'd have to say they were actually very sucessful.
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Ron,
LOVE the way you used the piano - and how you processed it.
A Strong Arrangement.
Bass and Drums sound Great.
COOL strings!
DA's vocals are Excellent. And really well mixed.
A Production tour-de-force. Chops.
Kudos
fj
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This is a really good song, and so well sung with excellent vocal harmonies.
And the arrangement and production in general are as good as it gets, Ron.
Enjoyed my listen a LOT!
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"Me: Music, arrangement, production, mix, master" .
You did a good job which provided an enjoyable listen.
"I just try to close the book
Forget what I had read
Then I take another look
To see what else you said"
Yeah, It's trap.
"I wave the white flag
I cease my attack
I lay down all my weapons
Raise my arms to the heavens
And plead for another chance
At some kinda romance"
Oh NO...DON'T DO IT!
That good ol' romantic Merle Haggard said "old flames can't hold a candle to you" (assuming you have a current partner)
Yeah, be done with it - rekindlling an old flame can start a forrest fire. She's Long Gone.
Good song, I enjoyed it. Izzy, thanks for the listen! Glad you enjoyed the song and have a solution to the narrator's predicament all wrapped up. 
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
Presonus Studio One
ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM
Presonus Faderport 16
Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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WOW ... this one is AWESOME !! Your vocalist is excellent ... so good I thought it was an AI Vocal SynthV
The piano sounds great crisp clear playing great licks, the strings, and overall production is spot on, lyrics are wonderfully imaginative.
GREAT !!!
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Hi, Ron. The piano caught my ear, and then the drum kicked in and you had me hooked. Nice work on the keys, I'm really liking the strings and harmonies. Excellent arrangement. Engaging pop production.
-- 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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You made me log in! I love this. The melody is unexpected. Vocals and band sound great. Really nice build.
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Excellent mix, vocal and well written, DC.
Call me picky but you may want to revisit the phrasing on "Haunted by" in verse 1.
e.g:
Haunted (space) by past occasions or Haunted by (space) past occasions .
Not a big deal though.
Vic
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Very good work DC Ron. I liked everything.
Laurent Laurent, THANK YOU for the listen! So pleased you liked it. Ron,
Wow! Great, great song. Love the lyrics and vocal. The piano is also a standout, as is the mix.
I love when older songs return for a refresh or to finally be finished. This one was well worth it.
Bob THANKS, Bob! Yeah, I got stuck in the "I can make this better..." do loop for far too long. On reflection, I'm glad I did not let it go earlier. But it feels SO good to have it done. Glad you enjoyed the tune! That piano VSTi is the best $29 piano out there IMHO...
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
Presonus Studio One
ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM
Presonus Faderport 16
Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Hi DC Ron,
Again not my genre but excellent song, production, lyrics and vocals.
Well done
Best Regards
Nigel
Nigel Spiers
Christchurch, New Zealand
info@nzacoustics.com
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I like that piano opening. Right from the lyrics of the first verse we can tell that this singer was the smart one in the relationship. Good write and those lyrics are perfect. Love this: "re-read all the best lines In our well-read history" --guess the book was better read than written. Exxellent vocal, too. Man, if every failed relationship ended with a song this good, we'd have to say they were actually very sucessful. Thanks, Marty! Unhappy endings can sometimes leave a good song behind, can't they? Appreciate the listen! Hi, Ron. The piano caught my ear, and then the drum kicked in and you had me hooked. Nice work on the keys, I'm really liking the strings and harmonies. Excellent arrangement. Engaging pop production. Thank you, David! The BiaB MIDI tracks for the piano and strings were quite solid, and only required minor editing. The VSTi settings were presets with just a little tweaking, too. It was the mix that slowed me down and trying to get everything in balance. Glad you liked it!
Last edited by DC Ron; 11/13/24 05:36 PM.
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
Presonus Studio One
ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM
Presonus Faderport 16
Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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So you're responsible for the melody? Excellent! Beatlesque, and that's the highest of compliments. This is one of the best vocals I've heard from your singer.
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Wow too.
I agree with Bob Dean. This is a stellar song. Amazing arrangement and performances. Love that style and the strings are so perfect. The lyrics are phenomenal.
Man, this is GOOD.
Great job.
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Ron,
LOVE the way you used the piano - and how you processed it.
A Strong Arrangement.
Bass and Drums sound Great.
COOL strings!
DA's vocals are Excellent. And really well mixed.
A Production tour-de-force. Chops.
Kudos
fj Thanks, Floyd! Appreciate the review and the complements on the production. It did not sound like this straight away, even though the BiaB parts were excellent. WOW ... this one is AWESOME !! Your vocalist is excellent ... so good I thought it was an AI Vocal SynthV
The piano sounds great crisp clear playing great licks, the strings, and overall production is spot on, lyrics are wonderfully imaginative.
GREAT !!! Thank you, Elliot! Dusty is a superb vocalist, isn't he? I'll isolate his vocal tracks in the studio just to appreciate all the nuances. Glad you liked the tune!
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
Presonus Studio One
ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM
Presonus Faderport 16
Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Had a listen a couple of days ago but didn't have time to comment. Giving it another spin now.
Absolutely love the piano! And man, Dusty is such a great singer.
Everything about this sounds great, I'm a big fan of your mixes. Only thing I would do is strip some of silence from the beginning, there is 5 seconds or so before the song starts.
Good one, enjoyed very much.
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Ron...that piano is very cool and fits the arrangement perfectly...D.A.'s vocals are so great as usual...it has a British feel to it (which is very nice)...man I really enjoyed the string's arrangement and tonal quality...nothing wrong here my friend...this is a great mix on a very well constructed and performed song!
www.soundclick.com/firesongBiaB 2024, Steinberg Cubase Pro 13, Wavelab 11.2, SpetraLayers Pro 10, Audacity, Steinberg UR44 Interface, Yamaha Genos, Roland FP60 and FP10, Windows 10 You are who you are because you do what you do because of what you believe.
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