Hey Guys and Gals,

This is a ballad Charlene and I wrote that was recorded years ago by one of Nashville's most well known producers for an indie country artist. It's one of my favorite songs of ours and I thought why not have some fun....so....

Using all RTs, I did a new arrangement. I had in mind an enwrapping slightly orchestral ensemble vibe. I used cello, a fiddle I edited to play along with and counter to the cello, a single fingerpicking guitar, sparse big sounding drums and me singing. I really wanted some of the drums with no cymbals but wasn't able to get that so the cymbals are there and toned down. Mixed in Reaper.

Here Comes The Night

As always, thank you for listening and comments welcome.

Josie

RTS: Fiddle #787, Guitar #365, Cello #1856, Drums - for some reason I changed the track name in RB to "drums" now not sure which set I used. LOL! <blush>

Josie, That must have taken a long time to get that drum part like that. Great vocal! I would have brought the vocal up and dropped the cello volume.
I'm on my second listen. I think maybe I would bring the cello in and out to compliment the beautiful vocal even more. I would also consider a second acoustic fingerpicking, like counterpoint. If you do go back don't touch the vocal except a volume bump. I really liked the write and the melody. Nicely done! Tom

Hi Josie...

What a beautiful song...and arrangement! Simply gorgeous!!!

Loved the drums..the cymbals are barley audible. We're not sure what else to say except, again...what a wonderful and beautiful song. Your voice is so engaging and softly powerful. Kudos!!!

Al & Di

Hi Josie:

I really like the lyrics and feel of the song. Very nice.

I think I agree with tommmyad. Your vocal is getting a bit lost in the cello.

Otherwise, it sounds good. I hope things are going well for you in Reaper.

I look forward to hearing more.

John

Josie
A really nice ballad, and presented with lovely feeling. The strings gave it a matching 'forlorn' sound.
Nice work
Trevor

Beautiful.

The drums are so low that they , in my opinion, almost could be discarded and the song would then be extremely haunting with acoustic pickin' and "orchestra"
Maybe bring them in at 2.16 ish

your voice is as good as ever

Alyn

Josie,

Beautiful ballad... Loved the lyric and arrangement. Also, a great vocal and delivery.

Bob

The RT's sounds great and the strings so support the vocal that I'd suggest (as did Gibson) to just toss the drums. The song is so airy and delicate that the drums just seem a bit heavy even when down in the mix. I'm probably the odd person out as I've done a lot of songs w/o drums and am used to the feel.

I wouldn't change another thing. You did a wonderful job of surrounding a great vocal with an effective just right lush arrangement. Very, very, nice!

Beautiful song, Josie. (A lyric sheet?)

Very nice vocal. Comfortable, relaxed, in the pocket. It does need to come up out of the mix a bit - or the other tracks down a bit. I thought the same thing that Alyn did... drop the early drums and bring them in (full) at 2:18... And how about those cool Josie harmonies - would love to hear them come in at the same point (2:20) to finish out the song.

Cool song.

floyd

Hi Josie,


With or without drums, this is a beautiful song.
Enjoyed listening.

Guenter

Loved it Josie. Your vocal is great as always but I do agree with Floyd that it could come out a bit more infront so we can hear it more.

Such a gentle and reflective mood nicely put together. The cello mixed with the fiddle suits it perfectly.

Precious Josie B, apparently you have taken it down for editing...nothing there. You have a very beautiful voice and I am eager to hear what you'll do with this one.

I have previously hinted at the idea that our two Josies should colab on stuff. That would be osmosis!

Will check back again on this one.

Okay, it's back.

What a beautiful story concept. Riveting!

I certainly agree that your beautiful voice needs to come forward some.

For me, I liked the instrumentation. The cello is especially tasty.

I think the only editing I would do would be to bring the vox forward.

Thanks for a wonderful listen.

Hi Neighbor,

Beautiful in every aspect Josie, a well written great story. I might also mention that you really "sold it" lady.

My new Josie favorite for sure.

Later,

Hi Tommy!

Actually I've been fiddling around with the arrangement for some time and I tried two guitars and cutting out more cello among many other things - this arrangement most closely fit the vision in my head.

The drums are a real track, I like them too sans some of the cymbals. I'll post the numbers of all the RTs.

I didn't want the vocal too far out front. On the wave file it's louder - why that is I have no clue - so I may have over compensated. I'll try changing the volume this weekend when I'm off and not tired.

Thank for your thoughtful suggestions and nice compliments.

Josie

Josie,
Beautiful song and great arrangement. I'd keep the drums. Thanks for sharing.
SD

Beautiful song Josie, truly. An emotional performance too. Impressive!


(Would love to know whatever became of the demo?)

Hi Josie !

This is a very, very beautiful ballad indeed !:))
I think it is one of your absolutely best
and one of my favourite Josiesongs !:)))
So, sweet, so lovely .......


Cheers
Dani

you've created a wonderful sound here, I love what you did with the strings!

much enjoyed!

Josie ... I listened to a whole bunch of your songs ... I like them all. Nice vocals, good production, good lyrical content, very nice job overall.

This is a beautiful set of lyrics, and Josie your vocal is perfect for it. Mix sounds outstanding! Thanks for sharing!

Al and Di,

Thank you! I appreciate that very much. Made my day.

On the drums I used a drum preset in Ozone 4 called "less mud and irritation" to tone the cymbals down a little bit on the drum track.

Josie

Thank you John!

Reaper is getting more comfortable the more I use it. There are so many features I haven't tried them all yet. In many of my songs I do a lot of RT editing which is easier than it was in Tracktion so I'll be buying Reaper when my evaluation time is up next month.

Josie

Trevor,

"Forlorn" - great description! It was time consuming but I enjoyed editing the string ensemble together almost as much as singing it.

Thank you,

Josie

Late to the party on this one. Nice song, well produced. Glad you're getting on with Reaper.


Regards,

Bob

Josie B, I took the liberty of passing "Here Comes The Night" to my blind Brit friend, Hayley Oliver (qv), I know she's looking for material for her next album, especially crossover songs. We shall see.

I think it's your best work to date, little lady.

Really Beautiful!! Love the song-sweet and melancholy! Cello works perfectly. Love it. Greg

I'm sorry to take so long in getting back to all of you. It's been a hectic week. I appreciate the compliments and your thoughtful suggestions.


Alyn thank you. On the drums, I also tried that prior to posting the song. I've done that on songs in the past - it's a cool arranging technique.


Bob, thank you. Always good to see you.


Bud and Janice, Thank you. Appreciate that very much. I'll probably just raise the vocal track a notch.


Floyd, Thank you. Yeah, pretty unusual for me to not have some kind of harmony but I felt a lone lead best matched the feel of this one.


Josie

I really appreciate that Guenter, thank you.


Thank you Joanne. Appreciate that very much. (BTW, sorry not on SJ much anymore - just too busy lately.)


Thank you Don, I had a feeling my sentimental wee Irishman would love this one. And thanks for the forward to Hayley.


Hey Danny, What a great compliment. Thank you.


Thank you SD. Arranging with the RT's is like a musical treasure hunt for me. I really enjoy it except for that stage I usually go through where I get all OCD and have to try almost every RT to make sure I don't "miss" something I might like better.<grin>


Josie

Thank you Scott. Appreciate that very much.

What happened to the demo... The original studio demo sang by me they used to pitch the song has been long lost.

The record that was released of the song was picked by Billboard magazine as a Billboard Recommended Country Single. We were pretty thrilled over that. Then it didn't make the chart. So that was a let down.

But it's really hard for an indie artist to break through even back then. It takes a great team with the right contacts and a HUGE investment. I guess the artist's team dropped the ball or ran out of money or both - who knows.

Josie

Hi Josie,

The very first thought that came to me was "What a beautiful opening". And, from thereon, the gentle journey was relaxing and an absolute pleasure to listen to. You and Charlene should feel proud of this one. It's wonderful.

For what it's worth, as I listened, I could hear conga drums in my head for the first section. I thought I'd pass that on in case it's useful information The drums I had in mind are part of the BossaRockPerc Realdrums.

I've already played the song a few times and the journey is just as good now as it was that first time. Beautiful work!

All the best,
Noel

P.S. You're really getting Reaper under control now

Listened to this first thing this morning...a great way to start the day.

hi sundance love this vocal is outstanding great job thanks eric