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Wow, this was an ordeal!! It started out as an attempt to re-make a song that was recorded in the early 1980's with my lyricist partner--originally called "Queen Bee"--and really needed a female vocal. I had re-arranged it from a folksinger/guitar style to a more jazzy one with a sax section idea that I really liked. I hired a horn player off of Fiverr to play the sax sections--really great. But, try as I might, I just couldn't get the female vocal to do justice to it. So I took the wrecking ball to the lyric and melody and re-made it so that it pointed to the sax parts. Also spent a lot of time trying to get either Suno or Audimee to sing it with a husky, soulful voice, but finally decided that I better do it myself. I'm glad to get this off the WIP pile and push it out so I can think about other things. Interested in any feedback/suggestions. -------------------------------- REED MAN "Tell you what I need, man-- You see that empty chair? You seem to have it in your grip. Right behind the lead man, Go join the section there; Read the charts and never slip." And so I found my seat and joined the band; Set my horns up on the stand; Got my fake book right at hand; I'm happy as a clam. And every night I'm hanging with the tenos and we swing; But tonight They're gonna let me do my thing. Goin' to rip, man! Don't try to hold me back; Time to step on up and go all out and wail. That was a taste, man. I'll give you plenty more; Feelin' like a mighty lion's roar. At the coda I can break it out; Fills and trills and screams and shouts; Alto solo's overdue; Call it my debut-- I'm your REED MAN. Now's the time to give it all; Right up front to rock the hall; Take the spotlight, standin' tall; Show 'em what I am-- I'm your REED MAN. ======================== Didn't really use a style...RT's: 2930 Guitar Acoustic FolkRock, 1255 Bass Elec PopShining, 456 Sax Alto (small solo portion) Midi: E Piano, Drum bits Main Drum part is a stem from the original "tape" recording circa 1995 Sax Parts: Dan Gribbin (Fiverr)
Windows 11, Intel Core i5-8600T 2.3Ghz, 16 gig ram, BIAB 2025 MegaPak, SampleTank 4, Keystation49 Kybd, Neewer NW-800 mic
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Tom, I'm glad you reworked then shared this song. You did a fantastic job on the vocal; I much prefer a human vocal over an AI vocal. You hired the perfect sax player for this song. The backing band was also really good.
A fantastic song about a saxophonist.
Life is short so make sure you spend as much time as possible on the Internet arguing with strangers.
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Hi, Tom. I really like the introduction: catchy! Glad you figured out a way to make this work. Some suggestions to ignore, because you asked.  The line "I'm happy as a clam" feels a bit cliche. Some of the line require specific knowledge of the listener: At the coda I can break it out;
Fills and trills and screams and shouts;
Alto solo's overdue;
Call it my debut--
I'm your REED MAN.I think they might work better with something more generic: Waiting 'till I can break it out;
Fills and trills and screams and shouts;
My solo's hot 'cause I paid my dues;
Call it my debut--
I'm your REED MAN.
-- 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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Mario and David..thanks for listening and for your feedback. And David--I really appreciate that you paid close enough attention to be able to make those suggestions..I'll take them under advisement!
Windows 11, Intel Core i5-8600T 2.3Ghz, 16 gig ram, BIAB 2025 MegaPak, SampleTank 4, Keystation49 Kybd, Neewer NW-800 mic
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Hi Tom.
Wow! This is excellent. Everything about it had me smiling. The way the lyrics, melody, vocals, and backing worked to create such a fine song is a credit to you. Dan Gribbin did a brilliant job with his tenor sax. It really provided the polish to a fine creation.
--Noel
MY SONGS...Audiophile BIAB 2026
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This was a great listen, such good horn work, wow.
Donny G
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Hi Tom!
I like how you’ve got the lyrics and sax interplaying - the singing setting it up and the sax doing it.
The outro - I’m not sure the right term, but in guitar land we’d call it a riff - that repeated phrase by the sax - I loved that!
Andrew
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Tom,
This turned out great. Love the feel of this one. Definitely one of your best!
Bob
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Tom, very creative and cool. Everything works really well for me in a polished, old-school format. The brief unison sections with the vocals and sax are nice touches. The fade ending is nice, too. Great job on the vocals! AI vocals will catch up to you one day, but you do these much better, at least for now. Super mix for a super duper song. 
DC Ron
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Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Fun project, kinda reminded me of a 70s/80s sitcom theme. Liked the tenor you hired. Good work.
Windows 11, Intel Core I5 10400, 16 gig ram, Scarlett 2i2, Sony Acid Music Studio 10, BIAB 2020 UltraPlus Pak
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All, thanks for the kind comments and feedback!!
Windows 11, Intel Core i5-8600T 2.3Ghz, 16 gig ram, BIAB 2025 MegaPak, SampleTank 4, Keystation49 Kybd, Neewer NW-800 mic
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Tom,
Cooooool.
Love the bass/guitar/drum combination.
An excellent vocal.
Good mix.
Original. Very "today".
Enjoyed this.
fj
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Love it! It's so fun! Your voice sounds awesome. Makes me want to dance...which I was. Just glad no one was lookin'. 
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Enjoyed reading the backstory of this one. Good choice to do the vocal yourself, sounds good to these ears. Nice sounding track, excellent job on the horns especially! Good one, Tom, my favorite of yours (so far )
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What a creative endeavor. And I can certainly relate to song projects turning into ordeals. Glad you were able to finish it and share.
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Beth/Dave/Scott..thanks for listening...The sax phrasing has been in my ears for 20+ years...glad I finally put it to work!!
Windows 11, Intel Core i5-8600T 2.3Ghz, 16 gig ram, BIAB 2025 MegaPak, SampleTank 4, Keystation49 Kybd, Neewer NW-800 mic
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Man, we love a sax. So close to a human voice we've long thought.
Lester Young is our fav.
Wow, your fiverr guy Dan is, as Gregg Allman used to say, hittin' the note! Great
That is one excellent write, vocal, mix and arrangement.
And we much enjoyed our listens,
J&B
Our albums and singles are on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Pandora and more. If interested search on Janice Merritt. Thanks! Our Videos
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Tom, I love this song. Reminds me of my youth (a long time ago ) , when I used to play chamber music with friends . It's so well written, alike all of your songs. You are a musician's musician, and it shows (and how). The sax is excellent, your voice sounds immaculate. Bravo, hats well and truly off for you.
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Hi Tom, I'm glad you decidaded to sing it your self! Those AI vocals miss the interpretation or rendition, even tho they may be perfect acording to melody. That's why they're not human and miss the emotional part of the vocals. I decided not to comment those posts with AI made vocals, because I would be repeating my issue against AI vocals.
Your song also have a good groove and exceptional sax parts. I have to use BB RealTrack solos and because they're made according to chord changes, they miss also the interpretation of the melody or story told. So I try to play the solos myself with the instruments I can play (mandolins, banjos, guitars) or with virtual instruments (like Uillean pipes or cathedral organs lately) with a keyboard, even tho I'm not a piano player.
Thanks for sharing this enjoyable jazzy song.
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J&B/James/Arri,...thank you for taking the time to listen..I appreciate all the comments and feedback!
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