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My New Years resolution... try to record at least 1 song per week.

This week... "Seoul Purpose", by me, Steve Mohacey. I wrote this song right after I returned home after a year long assignment to the Eighth United Sates Army Band. I was stationed at Yongsan Garrison in Seoul, Korea from 1998-1999. It was supposed to be a "hardship tour". For those who don't know, when Soldiers are assigned to Korea, we do not take our families (hence the hardship part of the tour). What could have been a truly miserable year turned out to be one of the best assignments I ever had.

This was due to 3 things: 1. My command team was fantastic, 2. The Soldiers I was serving with were fantastic, and 3. The Korean people were fantastic. If you have the time and means, I highly recommend visiting Asia.

I hope you enjoy "Seoul Purpose".

Saxophone was recorded using a Sennheiser 441 with the "FETHEAD" to boost the gain. The Sennheiser 441 is a dynamic mic. The Fethead gives it a 27db bump via the pre-amp built into my Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 Gen 4. Dynamic mics do not require phantom power. The FETHEAD uses phantom power to boost the gain and just plugs into the XLR out on my mic.

Backing tracks via Band In A Box 2024 ultrapak for Mac.

Recorded in Logic Pro 11.

Selmer Reference 54 Tenor sax. Mouthpiece- Dave Guardala MB1 (handmade). Reeds- Boston Sax Shop Black Box 3.5 (BEST REEDS EVER!!)

Filmed on iPhone 15 Pro Max.

This video was edited using Final Cut Pro

All stock video is royalty free and was taken from:

https://www.pexels.com/search/videos/...
Memo: A slow and modern R&B style that comines reggae and smooth jazz elements. Instruments are steel drum, electric guitar, electric piano, electric bass, and synthesizer smooth jazz drums. -Examples: Babylon Too Rough, No More Trouble, Genre "Intensity" Score=60/100
_YALLAHS.STY. Yallahs Modern Smooth Island RnB
All RealTracks. Quintet. Tempo=75 (65-90)
Instruments: El.Bass, El.Piano, El.Guitar, Steel Drum, Drums
RD: ElecSmoothCoolJeffSw16: a: Snare, Busy b: Snare, BusyKick :Jeff Lorber
RT902: Bass, Electric, SmoothCool Sw16 075 , Vernon Barbary
RT904: Piano, Electric, Rhythm SmoothCool Sw16 075 , Jeff Lorber
RT1158: Guitar, Electric, Rhythm ReggaeSlow Sw 075 , Sandy Williams
RT3615: Steel Drum, Rhythm ReggaeSlowSwing Sw16 075 , Todd London

Excellent easy-listening track and smooth tones from that sax.

Steve, excellent track..really liked how you designed/managed the BIAB components to support your primo sax work. Totally enjoyed listening!

Wow, you make that Sax sing so sweetly.
What a fantastic arrangement. The Electric Piano sits beautifully throughout. Sensational mix.
Yes, sweet - very.

Steve, nicely done. Very smooth. Can't beat a cool bass and EP for a relaxed backing. Like the EP solo, too. Sweet composition and on point playing.

Camp Humphreys is shiny and new and awesome, but Yongsan was a unique little enclave in the heart of Seoul. Love my too brief time in Seoul...

Super playing, lot of choice licks! Never met a military musician that wasn't first rate. I'm not familiar with FEThead, but I know Cloudlifter. I never got one, though, because the Shure SM57 dynamic mic that I use (besides being inexpensive and indestructible) removes some of the problems of recording in an untreated room. And the latest Scarlett preamps got a pretty good db boost, so I think I'm good. 27more db might make my recordings a nightmare. Seems to be working well for you. Maybe I should try one, after all.

Thanks Ghostgum. I'm glad you liked it.

Well... I'm still getting the hang of making videos. When I originally put the video together, I used a bunch of "free to use" video footage I found on a site. Well... one video was apparently NOT "free to use". So, this is the "new and improved, free of video copyright infringement" version.

I hope you all enjoy it.

Steve,
Pleasant arrangement & excellent playing. Excellent composition skills. Clear mix and listens very well.
Thank you for sharing,
Misha.


P.S. Seoul is definitely on my list. I have a relative living there, which gives another reason to visit.

Thanks Tano Music!

Electric Piano works so well with just about any groove. Thanks for giving my song a listen. Still learning the in's and out's of BIAB and Final Cut Pro. I'm feeling much more confident with Logic Pro (at least with how I mic and record the tenor sax. Alto sax... that is another story).

Good groove and excellect sax and electric piano keeping wake and wanting to get more. Reminds me of the nice sunny summer days in the 1970s lying in the grass at the Pori Jazz Festival listening to the great jazz musicians.

DC Ron-

You were at "The Hump"? I only got there 1 time for a change of command ceremony. Yes... Yongsan and the surrounding areas were a cool vibe.

Great selection for the BiaB rhythm section. Love the saxophone!

Hi, Steve.

The band sounds good - nice mix - and I enjoyed watching you play.

I tried pushing the gain up through Logic Pro, but it just sounded really noisy. The FetHead seems to be doing the trick with the Sennheiser 441. The FetHead can boost "up to" 27db. I'm not really pushing it that hard. Maybe 3-5 db max. But it's quieter than trying to do it through the Scarlett or Logic (not sure why, but it works so I don't wonder too much).

Misha-
Thanks for the nice review. I do hope you get an opportunity to visit Seoul sometime. Really cool city.

Great title turns into a terrific sound. Masterfully done, Steve. Man, you have talent with those reeds and pads. Excellent composition, too. I like the backing band --well picked.

Steve, first and foremost thanx for your service.
Fantastic chops and backing tracks.
Outstanding original composition.
One of my favorites from you.

Yep, was there in 2016 when Humphreys was still building out and Yongsan was going strong. Flew to Humphreys in a Chinook with the rear ramp open. That was a blast, too...