Reaching back a ways...

Wrote this with Danny "Bear" Mayo.

At the time, it was demoed using a female singer.
The song was written so it could be done as either a male or female song.
So I figured... what the heck... give it a go.

Comments encouraged.


I WISH IT WAS MEANT FOR ME

i found a letter taped to the door
of the place i moved into a few days before
simply addressed to "my only love"
i knew it wasn't for me but still opened it up
the note said "hi, darling, i wish you were home
days feel like years whenever you're gone
i long for your touch, your tenderness
forever yours" and "sealed with a kiss"

oh how i wish it was meant for me
if only it was my heart she needs
love so strong should not go unanswered
but all i can do is dream
oh how i wish it was meant for me

last night i answered a knock at my door
but it wasn't me she was looking for
she was surprised that he wasn't here
i watched as she tried to hold back the tears
i gave her the letter and i touched her hand
to see her heart break was more than i could stand
i said "wait just a minute" as she walked away
something inside me was dying to say

oh how i wish it was meant for me
if only it was my heart she needs
love so strong should not go unanswered
but all i can do is dream
oh how i wish it was meant for me

all i can do is dream
oh how i wish it was meant for me



I did vocals and harmonies.

... and here is the Band...
RealDrums in style: NashvilleEven8^1-a:Sidestick, HiHat , b:Snare, Ride
RealTracks in style: ~518:Bass, Electric, Pop HalfNotes Ev 085
RealTracks in song: ~365:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking Ev 085 (x 2)
RealTracks in song: ~703:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Spirited Ev 085
RealTracks in style: 1856:Cello, Background PopCountry Ev 085
RealTracks in song: 2336:Viola, Background, Pop Ev 085 (1TrackStringSection)

MIDI SuperTracks in song: 2066:Piano, Rhythm NewAgeAnswers Ev16 110
Hi-Q 001 01 Piano, Acoustic, Grand SampleTank.tgs


Have at it.

floyd

Hi Floyd.
That is simply wonderful. Beautifully sung and beautifully produced. I love the short guitar intro. When I use only guitar it sounds so thin but yours sounds grand and full. The cello and viola work very together.

Hi, Floyd !

I gladly echo all that Josie said before !:))
The tune is just great as are your vocals too.
I just loved those sweet harmonies !:))

Cheers
Dani

Love the song, and really love the arrangement. You're a master at adding those bits of flavor to a mix.

Another one for the bootl.....I mean....unauthorized CD.

Joanne - thanks! there are 2 acoustics - panned left and right - that may be what is providing the "fullness"...

dani - thanks - appreciate it...

Bob - you rascal, you...

Hi Floyd. Are they exactly the same generation of the same Realtrack panned left and right? Or are they a different generation of the same realtrack or are they different realtracks. Hope that makes sense to you (makes perfect sense to me!!) Sorry for all the questions.

Hi Floyd,

a great story again, wonderfully produced.
A perfect mix. Can't stop listening.

Guenter

Powerful song Floyd. I really enjoyed the lyrics and your strong voice.
The whole thing really. Cheers.

Floyd,

Damn, what a beautiful song. Another impressive feat of imagination, musicianship and storytelling. And it all seems to flow out of you as naturally as tears from the eyes of the guy with that letter.

I know that getting performance after performance to hit this level of quality isn't easy, but you sure make it sound that way.

Dean

Beautifully done.....Again!! A moving story with a great delivery, melodically and vocally! I too love the way the strings worked. Great stuff!! Take care. Greg

Questions are good!

There are actually 3 acoustic guitar tracks (4 if you count the strum that occurs later). The opening "licks" are from
2051 Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking CountryBrent Ev 085
A single measure that I copied and pasted a few places throughout - that was all I used from that.
During the rest of the verse, it is 2 of the same RT:
365:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking Ev 085
If you generate the 2 at the same time (say, one in the Guitar slot and the other in the Strings slot) BIAB will attempt to play different stuff between the two as they go - so they aren't playing the same thing. This is a fairly "subtle" type track, so the differences are not huge, so they blend nicely - the same but different. Pan one left and one right and you get a nice, full sound. You will hear that done a lot in Nashville productions if you listen closely (headphones) - almost a doubling of the acoustic track - but subtle differences - because it is separate recordings....

Floyd,

This one really has it all - loved the song, production and great vocal. Excellent sound!

Bob

Thanks Floyd. I had never really thought of doing that! Am doing in on some of my backing tracks and will be using it quite a bit from now on. I like simple intros but get put off when they sound so spindly. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.

Floyd, ho hum, just another masterpiece!

Your unique voice is so refreshing. Clear, distinct, and powerful. Always a pleasure to hear.

The production was absolutely flawless. A wonderful lesson from "the master" for all of us to glean from.

The intro did exactly what it should do...capture the listeners' attention.

It's difficult to improve upon perfection.

Thanks for another beautiful pattern in "How it should be done!"

floyd, Another in a long line of beautifully crafted songs. I really liked the drum editing in the verses. Nice touch. Nobody gets those acoustic guitars to sound like that. Perfect placement of the instruments. The viola and cello work well here. George Strait should have had you on retainer. That well you draw from never runs dry. I think your overall sound is getting fuller it seems to improve a little more with each production. Looks like Danny made some nice mailbox money. Those are some good tunes in his catalogue. I always look forward to hearing your latest post. You never disappoint. Great job! Tom

Hi Floyd...

What a great song and listen! You have such a strong, powerful and stunning voice. Everything about this is top shelf...perfect mix and fabulous vocal delivery. Heck, if I could sing only half as good as you, I'd be twice as good as most.

Totally enjoyed it! Another great song!!!

Al & Di

Floyd:

This is very good. The lyrics and production are fine.

Thanks for posting.

John

Hi floyd,

I've been away from this forum for so long that the list of songs I need to listen to is at least a mile long. I'm presently working through that mile, or 1.6 kilometers as we'd say here in Australia, step by step.

I'm coming back to this one when I have enough time to give it my full attention

See you again sooner or later!
Noel

Guenter - thanks for those kind words!


Richard - glad you liked it


Dean - thanks for that..you know...you do something enough, eventually you start fooling people into believing you know what you are doing

Greg - thanks - always nice to have someone acknowledge the melodic side of things... the cello is always so easy to fit into things. I tried the quartets for this, but they didn't quite work, but the viola by itself (with the cello) fill in nicely..


Bob - I do appreciate you saying those things... thank you.

Joanne - always happy to help! (you know that!)


Don - you are just way too kind! I am always so please to find that you have enjoyed something that I've posted. Thank you!

Floyd,

Beautiful.
Don Gaynor said it all for me so +4 for his comments.

Also thanks for the info re acoustic guitars, I never thought of generating 2 tracks of the same RT at the same time.

Another Floyd classic!

Alyn

Floyd, hope you don't mind but I linked Hayley Oliver, nominated Best Country Female Vocalist In Britain by BCMA. She absolutely loves it! I think it would survive a gender change if Hayley decides to sing it.

You are an extremely talented gentleman.

Hey Don.. of course I don't mind... I have the original Nashville demo which was a female demo - so I can send that somewhere if you let me know...

I'll send ya a PM....

Tom - Glad you noticed the drums - I knew you would... don't often need that particular pattern, but when you do, you have to build it.. The cello and viola do "play nice together" and I would think that for most things, not much more is needed - the quartet strings violins are a little too busy for this type background work.. The acoustics always seem pretty easy to me - don't really do much to them - just the panning - occasionally a bit of eq on one side..
"mailbox money" - I like that! - yeah, Danny made his share - once when we were writing, his daughter Aimee dropped by for a few minutes - and he suggested to Aimee and I that we needed to get together and write some. Not following up on that one was a BIG mistake - Aimee went on to be huge... oh, well... one more "miss"..
Thanks for the listen...

"Big studio sound" is a term that's getting a bit over worked I guess in this day and age with the power of our PC's and Mac's. Janice and I listen to a LOT of music of all genres (with the exception of rap and opera). We shuffle songs that play throughout the day whether we are streaming from the pod or pandora. I have good sound systems in the home and in the vehicles. I'm not an ace mixer but I've had off and on involvement in mixing since the mid 60's. Bottom line -- I listen to the mix. And your country mixes compare extremely well to those of Alan Jackson and George Strait and Garth Brooks and Lee Ann Womack and others. This speaks volumes re your ability and the quality of RT's. When you were in Nashville you must have paid huge attention to some of best producers, arrangers and engineers.

We all have access to the same RT's and we all have access to powerful DAW's and effects. But I've quickly learned that there is a heckuva lot more to it than "access." This production is a great demonstration of what I'm trying to articulate. Listen to it loud or low. Listen to the soundstage. Listen to how the vocal sits. I want to be able to do this when I grow up. Do I mention that it's a great write and vocal?

Al & Di - Thanks, y'all! Do appreciate all the nice comments...


Thanks, John.




We miss ya, buddy! Life gets in the way sometimes... but, we'll leave the dogs tied up and the latch string out...

Floyd,

I've listened to this about 5 times now. I echo all of the compliments you received on the song and on your fine vocal performance, and I can't get over how well it is produced.

I find myself drawn to the mix continually asking, 'How did he do that?'

Hi Floyd
Its all been said, my friend - another top song from you.
I will admit to being a little confused (OK - it doesnt take much) with the lyrics of the last two lines in V2. Did he actually say it to her and if he did did she turn around and if she did - where's the verse 3 happy ending?
LOL
Wonderful work, Floyd
cheers
ian.

Alyn - Thanks for the +4's - now I can play golf! I guess someone should have asked about those acoustics a long time ago - I've been doing that right along - it works especially well for that 356 RT


Geez, Bud.... music to my ears! Humbling comparisons there. As you know, so much of the credit goes to the PG family and the incredible tools that they have created to allow us to do this... I certainly do appreciate such praise coming from you - you ain't no slouch, yourself, buddy...

Scott - appreciate that. If there's anything in particular... I've got a few secrets but most of the mixing stuff is fair game - ask away...



Ian - perhaps we find out in a later episode... thanks for the listen, buddy...

Wonderful song and story. Really like your arrangement, singing and harmonies. Thanks for sharing.
Ray

Hi Floyd great production plus +10 you a very talented man thanks eric

Ray - Thanks. Appreciate you dropping in for a listen...



eric - thanks, man... do appreciate it.