I thought I'd try something a bit more Country this time. I've played lots of country sessions over the years, but never written much, because my voice doesn't really suit the genre. Anyway, this is what I did. Some songs can be on my computer for months, but this one took a little over an hour from starting to write to the finished product, partly because I'm using some RTs at last!

The pedal steel is an RT and the drums are RD. The piano is a midi supertrack with bits of my own playing spliced in and the guitars are mine - acoustic for a change. All the vocals are me, as you can probably tell and the BVs are me too, as the girls are still in exam mode.

I don't know if my pal Floyd would call it country, but here it is -

MEMORY
Years keep rolling by and my memory gets a little lazy
The days run one into another and sometimes they get a little hazy
My friends say I'm doing ok, but sometimes I think I'm going crazy.

Sometimes in conversation, I forget what it is I want to say
I forgot to gas the car up and got stranded way out on the freeway
Then I switch on my computer just to see what day it is today

But since you went and left - and left the house without a trace
I still remember what it felt like and every feature of your face
I can't forget your golden hair, or your careless laugh that filled the place

I can't forget your brown eyes, I only wish I could
And the softness of your skin as you put your hand in mine I know I should
And If I could erase the memories, I still don't think I would.

Always interested to hear what you all think. Oh, and it's not autobiographical!

ROG.

Hi Rog!

I like the brief delay at the end of each verse before you sing the last word. It builds tension slightly before the payoff which in turn makes the conclusion of the verse more satisfying to my ear.

I also really liked the parallel between all the things the main character forgets as opposed to the one thing he can never forget. Well done.

Two verses in a row start with the phrase "I can't forget your...", and that might be more powerful if you found an alternative phrase for one of them.

I like your unique voice too.... its perfect for this song!

Good mix of RTs and your own playing... the combination is mutually enhancing.

Anyway, I just woke up and my brain is having a hard time finding words, so I'll stop there. I thought it was a very impressive one hour production! I'd be happy to come up with something as interesting after a week or more!

ROG,

excellent as usual.
An hour eh! I thought half a day was fast for some of my songs but an hour...I am impressed and I like the vocal slide at the end of the lines.

Your genre is Country and Eastern (side of England):>)

I thoroughly enjoyed the song

Alyn

Enjoyed the song. Good choice of instruments. The lead seemed a little low (or the backing tracks too hot)in the intro of the song but mixed in better as the song went along. Your vocals fit the song very well and I think you did excellent on the backing vocals.

Charlie

"...And If I could erase the memories, I still don't think I would."

What a great ending!

A solid write, ROG. Let's call it Alternative Singer-Songwriter...

Love your vocal (as always). Nice instrumentation. Excellent fills with the acoustic. I'll go with Charlie - that the lead could come up a hair... Everything else about the mix is spot on.

Great OOOOOOOhh's!!!!!!

Thoroughly enjoyable - has several listens, phones and speakers...

floyd

Hey Rog, as you all know by now I,m mostly a fan of Jazz and some Pop, but also I'm able to recognize a well done tune when I hear one no matter the genre. This one is a keeper all around!

Regards

Mike B.

+1

This sounds like a cross between Dylan and county and I mean that in a very good way!

Hi Rog,

nice arrangement.
I like the Oohs and Aahs.

Guenter

Hi, Rog !:))


A really nice tune you´ve written !
And your handling of it was most
enjoyable both playing and vocals !:))
I liked it very much !


Cheers
Dani

I see someone else made a Dylan comparison. That was the first thing that came to my mind. This is a great combo of playfulness and depth, which I love!! I once heard a successful songwriter say at a conference "Everybody sings and everybody writes, but not everybody tells the truth, and the truth is what moves people." This may not be autobiographical but it has an honesty about it which is touching and really works! Great work! Take care. Greg

An interesting parody Rog. Quite fun. Amazingly written and produced in one hour. Wish I could do that! Cheers.

Wow! I really love this one! I just love your vocals here, that sort of drawl, rough thing you've got going on; and the lyrics are tight.

And the vibe of the acoustics with the piano and the perfect drums to drive it!

And the "Ohhh's".

It has a wonderful throwback sound - a great nostalgic vibe!

much enjoyed!

What a cool and original song!
The lyrics, the tone of your voice and your way of singing kind of reminds me of Tom Petty...

Regards,
Rob

Ditto to:

1) Dylan
2) great Ooohs
3) nice pauses before adding last word of phrase

Great vibe and production.
-patrick

Hi Pat. I'm always pleased to see your name on the list. Working so fast on this one, I hadn't realised I'd used that phrase twice, or I'd have done as you suggested. Glad you noticed the little delay at the end of the lines - it started out as just a place to breathe, but then it became a feature. Many thanks for the positive comments.

ROG.

Hi Alyn. I can't claim to do them all in an hour, but sometimes you just get lucky and things flow. I love the "Country and Eastern". Vocal slides I use a lot - it's a way of finding the note when you'd missed it! Thanks.

ROG.

Thanks, Charlie. Glad you enjoyed it. You may have a point about the lead during the intro, though it was intentionally low. I wanted the intro guitar to sit as part of the backing, so as to give me more chance to bring up the volume for the proper solo. Maybe I'd do it differently now, with hindsight.

ROG.

Hi Floyd. Many thanks for stopping by - always value your input. As I said to Charlie, you may be right about the intro. It's really nice to find someone who's a fan of my vocals after years of more negative comments! Glad you liked the oooohs as well - there's eight of me in there somewhere. Phones AND speakers, that's the way. Thanks again.

ROG.

Hi Mike. Yes, I know you as more of a Jazz person, so I'm even more flattered that you had a listen. Many thanks for the kind words and pleased you liked it.

ROG.

Hi Mario. A cross between Dylan and Country is a description I like. Many thanks.

ROG.

ROG,

Not only is your music smooth, I have always admired your gracious responses to the people who comment on your songs

Now, Pat, you're making me blush!

It's a pity that there's so much distance between us, because I get the feeling that you'd be a really interesting person to talk to. One of these days, maybe...?

Take care, ROG.

Thanks, Guenter. I actually enjoy tracking up all the voices for the BVs - the chorus effect makes me sound a lot better than I actually am!

ROG.

Dani. Thank you for the listen and the kind comments.

ROG

Hi Greg. What a profound quote from the conference. I've thought about it a lot since reading your comments and how it's absolutely correct in relation to songwriting. A lot of my ideas for songs come from the experiences of others, but I always try to remain true to the original emotions. Many thanks for your other kind words, too.

ROG.

RichMac. Thanks for the listen and the comments. In the days long ago, when I used to do session work, everything had to be one take, or you didn't get any more work. I decided that it would be a good discipline to do it again, so everything in this track is one take only. It made for a quick song, but the concentration wore me out!

ROG.

Hi Lawrence. Thanks for all the positive comments, especially the ones about my voice. I'm always riddled with insecurity about my singing, so it's good to get encouragement from someone who really can sing.
Thanks for the listen.

ROG.

Many thanks, Rob. I've been a great fan of Tom Petty since the 70s when he started out and to have any sort of comparison made is more than I could hope for.

ROG.

Hi Patrick. Thanks for listening and the nice comments. Dylan? Yes please. I can get along fine with that!

Roger,

Sounds great and I loved it from start to finish. Great payoff line at the end too.


Josie

Hey Josie.

Always good to get a listen from you and many thanks for the kind comments. Nice that you picked up on that last line - I worked hard on that! Hope the leg's getting better now.

Take care, Roger.

Nice work Rog. A strong song well delivered and engineered. Going back for another listen now!

John

Late to the party but glad we are here! This reminds us of the Byrd's
"Sweetheart of the Rodeo" album and in our book that's a dang
good thing. Sweetheart opened country music up to millions
of folks and spawned country rock including the Eagles, etc.
We like EVERYTHING about this. The open, airy mix is spot on
for the song. And the vocal just fits in perfectly with Americana,
alt-country or whatever you choose to call the genre.
If this style (lyrically and vocally) was on country radio
We'd turn it on every morning.

Great job in ALL aspects. The proverbial "keeper."

Janice/Bud

ROG, I like the Dylan sound, the pause in the vocals, the oohs. Nice mix and a very enjoyable listen. Tom

Thanks , John. Always value your opinion and it's good when people fell the need to listen more than once.

ROG.

Janice & Bud. What can I say? I'm overwhelmed by your kind comments and to be mentioned in the same sentence as The Byrds is more than I could hope for. You just made my Day! Many thanks.

ROG.

Tom. I always admire your own work and so your opinion is all the more valuable. I've always loved Dylan and I remember buying the vinyl of "Highway 61 Revisited" back in the 60s and then wearing it out. I've still got the CD in my collection now! Many thanks for the listen and the kind words.

ROG.

Hi ROG,

I've been away for a few weeks. This was one of the first songs I listened to a few days ago when I managed to sit down at the computer again!

This is A+ entertainment all the way. Like others before me, the thing that first sprang to mind was the sound of Dylan that you've managed to capture. It really appealed to me.

I'm not sure if you are aware of it, but the rhyme scheme of your verses echo Dylan also (even though the metre is slightly different)! If I rewrite a verse as 6 lines instead of three, you'll see what I mean.



Here's the lyrics to "Blowin' in the wind"



Like "Blowin' in the wind", 'Memory' is also the AAA format.

I wonder if the above, and the way you sing in this mix, worked in harmony to produce the Dylanesque vibe I heard? I don't know but, whatever it was, it sure suited 'Memory'!

All the best,
Noel

P.S. I can't be believe that such a professional sounding piece of work on took one hour! That's incredible.

Hey Noel.

Glad to see you back on the forum. I was missing for quite a while too, but happy to be back now.

Many thanks for the listen and the detailed comments - I always love the way you break down lyrics to reveal their structure. It hadn't occurred to me that the rhyming scheme worked like that until you pointed it out. It certainly wasn't deliberate - more instinctive.

One hour? Well, as I said earlier in the thread, at one time I was playing sessions which required everything to be "one take" and I thought it might be a good discipline to see if I could still do it. So, everything in this track is one take only, including tracking up the BVs, which are "chorusy" (new word?) to say the least. I know where all the mistakes are, but hopefully they're not too obvious to everyone else.

Anyway, glad you liked it and looking forward to you posting some more of your own songs.

ROG.

What a fun song! And your voice makes it all work perfectly. Great BGV's, too.

(I had something else to add, but I forgot what it was.)

Great song!