Hi Forum friends. Thank you so much for all of the wonderful feedback on I See You......I was truly overwhelmed!! This is a ballad I wrote a while back. Earl did the vocal on it, and I was pretty blown away by his performance. Some songs just fill the space between the last one and the next one. This is one I'm proud of. I hope you like it. As always, would love to hear what you think. Take care all. Greg



What’s Love For?

True love don’t change with the tides
It grabs a hold of your heart
And shakes you up inside
It ain’t no whim, it ain’t no game
And I will never be the same without you

I know life with me aint been no easy ride
I’ve been short on understanding
And way too long on pride
But you know you mean the world to me
Baby, you’re the only one I see…….just you

If love can’t bring me back into your heart
And mend the broken pieces of our world that’s torn apart
If love can’t last eternally, and hold us close together evermore
Than baby what’s love for?

Without you, this world’s a lonely place
I can’t find a trace of joy inside…..only empty space
And the thought of living life alone
Chills me right down to the bone…..it’s true

If you want me to, I’ll get down on my knees
Crawl off to the ocean, and I’ll swim the seven seas
If you’re waiting for me on the shore
I would do all this and more for you and more

But if love….

What’s love for?

Earl does an excellent job on this. It's a relatively sparse arrangement, but manages to sound big despite that.

Everything works well, especially the small touches - the drum fills, the organ, the BGVs on "love".

Really nice!

Hi Greg,

Yes you are right Earl does a splendid job of the vocals.

Mix:
1. I like the sparse piano opening and initial verses.
2. As the vocals build they could do with more support in terms of drums and bass. He has a very high voice so lots more drums and bass would not overpower the vocals.
3. Not sure about the oohs - how about B3 organ?
4. How about an instrumental break for a bit of light and shade? The song could handle a very strong Pop guitar break with heaps of B3 under it (e.g. like Jimmy Barnes version of "When A Man Loves A Woman") and then ease right back for last vocal verse and all in again for the last chorus with lots of vocal repeats and guitar fills on the outro.

Best Regards
Nigel

This is indeed a song to be proud of.
Perfectly arranged to let your singer shine, and man, he really shines.
Good stuff!

Hello Greg,

What good vocals by Earl!
The song itself is also very good, sensitive piano, all beautiful.
Yes, I agree with you; a song to be proud of!
Although... think about what Nigel wrote. I think he is right.
Earls' vocals can handle that easily.
And the suggested solo guitar is really appropriate here.

But without all that, it's still a wonderful song to be proud of!
Hans

Hi Greg,

Beautiful song! Really well written, and I really like the arrangement.

Seems odd to not hear you do the vocal, but no question that Earl did a fabulous job for you.

Nice!

Fabulous song and vocals! Like this arrangement a lot, but would be fun to try out Nigel's ideas. Great listen for me, well done!

Greg,

That's a beautiful song... Earl has a wonderful voice and really puts everything into this performance.

The arrangement and mix are pro all the way. Really nice.

Loved it!

Bob

Nice one you two.

Vic

Greg:

Wonderful tune. Nice clean arrangement that really lets Earl’s vocal shine. Nice touches on the production throughout. Like the internal rhymes—catchy. Swoon worthy romance song. Well done!!

Deej

Greg and Earl, you both should be extremely proud of this one.
Earl, what a fantastic vocal.
Greg, what an outstanding arrangement.
Everything about this is professional.
Loved it

Hi Greg!

What a wonderful, magical musical journey! When I first started listening, I thought my internet radio had kicked in and I had to double-check to see that that wasn't the case. Earl's singing, and the arrangement and production are spectacular.

This is definitely a song to be proud of... immensely proud, in fact. It's beautiful. The meter and the rhyming pattern that you have used to write these verse lyrics work incredibly well. They amplify the emotional impact of the lyrics, and you have used these tools to perfection to get words to flow so easily and so comfortably on the ears that it's impossible to imagine the lyrics in any other format. Everything fits together exquisitely.

On a personal note... I love, love, love your rhyme scheme. It's a similar rhyme scheme to one that I once heard Steve Seskin describe as "very sophisticated."



Having that last, single poetic foot of lyric dangling in an unrhymed position (without you, just you, it's you) really strengthens the emotional significance of the "you" character and leaves no doubt in the listener's mind about how important "you" is to the singer. It's like a P.S. at the end of a love letter that emphasises just how much the letter-reader means to the letter-writer.

I'm so glad that I stopped by to hear this

All the very best for Christmas and the New Year!
--Noel

BE.A.U.TI.FUL.

Well....duh.

Gregg...exceptional ballad...Christmas isn't here yet and you've already filled up the Valentines quota for great love songs...Earls vocal is stellar...emotional and passionate...super arrangement and mix!

Greg, man this awesome!

Great vocals by your friend!

You are such an awesome songwriter.

Happy Holidays!!

Beautiful love song with great vocals and pleasant instrumentation. The first verse goes straight to the subject by grabbing and shaking, very nice. I was surprised you were not singing, but Earl is a strong replacement. I was missing some extra sparkle in the chorus, like strings.

Janne

This is a great write with exceptional vocals. It doesn’t get much better than this, Tom

Hi Greg and Earl
What a great song
Musically outstanding
And vocally incredible
Great work, gentlemen
Many greetings
Andi ;-)

You guys did superb.
A powerful write and pro all the way.
This is ready for the streaming services.
Great job.

Is there any BiaB content in this or did you also play the instruments?
If you played, then double the thumbs up.

Hi, Greg and Earl !

I like everything you write and compose !
This is no exception ! And Earl´s interpretation
is absolutely wonderful though I´d love to
hear you on this ol´friend !😍❤️😁😊✌️

Wonderful seems like an understatement ! ✌️

Happy Juletide and a most Happy New Year to
you and your nearest !

Cheers
Dani

Man, I started reading the comments and couldn't wait to hear the song.
It did not disappoint!!
Absolutely gorgeous song and performance!

I'm new here but guessing this is all done in Band in a Box?? Well, likely finished in a DAW?

This is a beautiful song and Earl sounds great with his smoky vocal reminiscent of Michael McDonald.

We like the sparse arrangement and the piano shines really well also.

Enjoyed it!

J&B