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Hi Ron, as always, I love your voice and the way you sing your songs. Sometimes you start with one word, like here, "She," then a short pause, followed by the words "...let me smile." I like that effect. And here, it adds to the cheerfulness of the song. The song itself is truly a typical Ron song! Great singing!
The five acoustic guitars don't have the effect you expect. It sounds more like a wall of sound.
I think you'd get more space in your song if you took out two or three of those acoustic guitars. I know, that sounds intense. I also have a habit of (wanting to) use a lot of instruments in my songs because I love all their sounds. But after a few days, I listen back and think: "What a wall of sound!" I lose the details of those guitars. Just like I'm telling you now. Of course, I don't know who's right, but there's a saying: "Less is more."
Let's make it a good, musical year!
Hans
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Hi Ron,
Great song!
Love the guitars. Also really like your vocal, especially the BGVs. Not so mad about the drums, too busy for my tastes.
But yeah, great way to kick off 2026!
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New RTs and a bouncy pop song is a great start for a new year, She Made Me Smile made me smile  A song with "serendipity" is always an unexpected surprise. Upbeat message with shining light and hope is more than needed in these dark days. What a nice groove and excellent mix, the bass is especially strong and the drums sound really tight. Those acoustic guitars support well the positive outcome and the happy new year status. Enjoyable vocals once again, the last high hey heys sound very clean to me. Those backing vocals work perfectly, your hard work is rewarded with a highly pleasant listening experience. Janne THANKS, Janne! Honestly, we have so few songs that could be interpreted as "happy" I couldn't NOT post this one. So for me, these lyrics were...Serendipity!
Last edited by DC Ron; 01/17/26 05:32 PM.
DC Ron
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Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Hi Ron
Resolution challenge completed. Really nice choice of style and the key change at the bridge(?) worked really well. Good vocals, you have a smooth delivery, you never seem to have blips or rawness like I do.
Another good'un, Kind regards Why, THANK YOU, Lee! Yes, OF COURSE I have blips and rawness in my vocal takes. But I edit them out, or try to. Have posted many times that *I can't sing*. But I do know how to shape a vocal performance so that it's not distracting for the listener. If I have a talent, that may be the one. Glad you enjoyed the tune! DC,
I'm listening with headphone so the hard panning seems VERY hard panned. For cans I suspect bringing the hard ones in to about 70 or 80 would sit better other than for psych.
The kick clicks a little too much for my ears - I know that tinnitus scoops my hearing in a way that accentuates the kick click.
I enjoyed the vocals - the harmonies are cool.
fabulous arrangement/dynamics and a fab song overall. THANKS, rayc! Understand about the hard panning. FWIW, there are six guitars, and I organized them in three pairs. The first two guitars are panned 100% L&R. The second two are panned 60%, and the last two are panned 40%. The first pair are more prominent in the mix, and are active over about 2/3 of the song. I could probably pull them all in a bit. But...100% of my songs use hard panned instruments, usually guitars. It's just my thing, for better or worse, and I like it myself, which is why I keep at it. Still, there may be some rebalancing in order, and I'll listen for this again. Am not hearing the kick clicks but I'll look at those as well. I have tinnitus as well. Crickets. All the time. Glad you enjoyed the vocals (blush) and the song overall. It's a trifle, but what's life without trifles?
Last edited by DC Ron; 01/17/26 05:47 PM.
DC Ron
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Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Happy indeed! A very good mix and production, and I really like your vocals throughout.
That last chorus builds nicely with extra impact from the BGV's.
Good job, both of you. Thanks, Scott! Yeah, with the arrangement I was doing the "boil the frog" thing and cranking up the energy as the tune progressed. Glad you enjoyed the tune!
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
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Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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This is my first visit to the User Showcase in a while and my first song to listen to. It's quite impressive. Overall everything is glued together in the mix, good lyrics and an admiral vocal and background production.
I like your first resolution and the fact you relied on the power of the Style unmodified. Enjoyed my listen.
Charlie
BIAB 2026:RB 2026, Latest builds: Dell Optiplex 7040 Desktop; Windows-10-64 bit, Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz CPU and 16 GB Ram Memory.
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Nearly happy R.W. Davis lyrics have the adverb removed when sung by such a happy vocalist. What a fun song, Ron, and I really like the vocals. Cool harmony. Good bouncey feel carrying a great band to the finish line. Excellent mix, too. I appreciate your consistencey, Ron, and have no doubt that you will resolve to do whatever needs done. Heck, you're already doing it. Ha! Thanks, Marty.
DC Ron
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Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Your vocals will always be the star in any song of yours but there were also some nice melodic turns in this that I really liked. This was great and went by too quickly, I had to go back and listen several more times. Guess that's how pop works. Nice work!! Thank you, Rob! Leaving you wanting more is the best compliment ever. Ron, resolution #1 complete and I rate it as an A++
Excellent vocal
Super groove, backing tracks, and mix.
My foot was a tappin' and my face a smile'n all the way through the song
Great job on this one. Appreciate that, Mario!
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
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That was fun. I really like the drum track
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.comAdd nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both. The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
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I love powerpop, and no one on the forum does powerpop better than you. Catchy as hell and would have been a hit in the 80s. The way you put the guitars together sounds awesome.
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Ron
Awsome song and lyrics. Vocals are a high point. You have style which you have made your own.
Excellent.
Izzy Thanks, Izzy. Yeah, it's not much, but it's all mine. Ha! Hi, Ron. Power Pop, indeed. Jangly guitars chugging away, busy drums, interesting cadences and your bright voice. It gives a breezy middle finger to expectations, but still hits your target "happy" sound. Fun listen, as always. Thank you, David. Love the concept of waving a "breezy middle finger". That should be a song!
DC Ron
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Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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Hi Ron. This has a neat British Pop feel and I like your vocals. Nice harmonies. Good mix and production. Thanks for posting.
Paul
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Hi Ron, as always, I love your voice and the way you sing your songs. Sometimes you start with one word, like here, "She," then a short pause, followed by the words "...let me smile." I like that effect. And here, it adds to the cheerfulness of the song. The song itself is truly a typical Ron song! Great singing!
The five acoustic guitars don't have the effect you expect. It sounds more like a wall of sound.
I think you'd get more space in your song if you took out two or three of those acoustic guitars. I know, that sounds intense. I also have a habit of (wanting to) use a lot of instruments in my songs because I love all their sounds. But after a few days, I listen back and think: "What a wall of sound!" I lose the details of those guitars. Just like I'm telling you now. Of course, I don't know who's right, but there's a saying: "Less is more."
Let's make it a good, musical year!
Hans Thanks for the nice (happy!) review, Hans! On those guitars, a "wall of sound" is exactly the effect I was going for. For this song, the guitars are more of a jangly texture than anything else. That being said, you only hear more than four guitars for about :40, and there are a couple of sections with only two guitars. The intent was to provide a shifting backdrop while demoing the breadth of sounds available in this RealStyle. May be a fail though...it's still HAPPY! ![[Linked Image - Only viewable when logged in]](https://www.pgmusic.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=download&Number=32214&filename=Screenshot 2026-01-18 173430.jpg)
Last edited by DC Ron; 01/21/26 04:53 AM.
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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“Elements of laughter
Bouncing down the street
Outside the café
Where we would meet
Serendipity
Or my destiny
I just can’t afford to stop
Outside the ice cream shop
Under the midday heat”
What a great start to a great lyric!
This reminded Janice of one of her favorite quotes:
“Be so happy that when others look at you they become happy too.”
And listening to your song made us happy.
We always like your vocal arrangements and this one is excellent.
The early 60’s band feel and groove is most cool.
Stellar in mix, write, vocals and the session guys.
Enjoyed it!
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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Hi Ron.
What an excellent listen! I love everything about this... music, lyrics, your singing, the arrangement and the final mix. Everything fits together so perfectly and it's a pleasure to sit back, enjoy and smile. I'm a fan of feel-good songs and this definitely had me feeling good and feeling entertained in a satisfying and pleased way.
--Noel
MY SONGS...Audiophile BIAB 2026
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Hi Ron,
Great song!
Love the guitars. Also really like your vocal, especially the BGVs. Not so mad about the drums, too busy for my tastes.
But yeah, great way to kick off 2026! Thanks, Dave. Yeah, those drums seems to be divisive, though I've decided I like them in this song. Glad you enjoyed the tune! This is my first visit to the User Showcase in a while and my first song to listen to. It's quite impressive. Overall everything is glued together in the mix, good lyrics and an admiral vocal and background production.
I like your first resolution and the fact you relied on the power of the Style unmodified. Enjoyed my listen.
Charlie Whew! Glad I didn't wreck your Showcase forum revisit experience. Welcome back! 100% of our songs start with a RealStyle (or MIDIstyle), and probably 90% will only use the instruments in that style. I know a lot of folks augment BiaB with different drums, pianos, guitars, etc, and their stuff sounds great. But I can usually get the textures I'm looking for by manipulating a single style, especially if there are more than four instruments in the style.
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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That was fun. I really like the drum track Thanks, Dave. Well, there's that dang problematic drum track again. I like it too though. I love powerpop, and no one on the forum does powerpop better than you. Catchy as hell and would have been a hit in the 80s. The way you put the guitars together sounds awesome. Thank you, Scott! The 80s went by WAY too quickly. I like the guitars, too. All BiaB with a little encouragement.
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 Ron. This has a neat British Pop feel and I like your vocals. Nice harmonies. Good mix and production. Thanks for posting. Thanks, Paul! I do have an affinity for Brit Pop. “Elements of laughter
Bouncing down the street
Outside the café
Where we would meet
Serendipity
Or my destiny
I just can’t afford to stop
Outside the ice cream shop
Under the midday heat”
What a great start to a great lyric!
This reminded Janice of one of her favorite quotes:
“Be so happy that when others look at you they become happy too.”
And listening to your song made us happy.
We always like your vocal arrangements and this one is excellent.
The early 60’s band feel and groove is most cool.
Stellar in mix, write, vocals and the session guys.
Enjoyed it!
J&B J&B, thanks you as always for the listen and gracious review. Love Janice's quote. We definitely need more of that. Hi Ron.
What an excellent listen! I love everything about this... music, lyrics, your singing, the arrangement and the final mix. Everything fits together so perfectly and it's a pleasure to sit back, enjoy and smile. I'm a fan of feel-good songs and this definitely had me feeling good and feeling entertained in a satisfying and pleased way.
--Noel THANKS, Noel! "Feeling good and feeling entertained in a satisfying and pleased way" is maybe the ultimate compliment in my book-of-well-loved-complements. Glad it touched you in a positive way!
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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Ron, nothing wrong with resolutions! Without setting some goals, we end up being stuck where we are and wondering why! This song has such a powerful driving sound thanks primarily to that thumping bass, it really provides a lot of energy to the song!
Your vocals are always so good and blend great with those harmony bgd vocals!
Great tune and performance! Enjoyed all the way through!
TB
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Hey, Ron,
Another ace job! You are so talented.
I got a strong Gary Lewis and the Playboys vibe as I listened. And for me, that's a good thing! This is one of your best vocals - spot on. Just more proof here, that you never disappoint!
Best to you,
Alan
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