Here's a new one. This is a song inspired by a musician I know and have played with. He loved playing and lived one heck of a life.... been on stage with some of the big names, and opened for so many others. Now, he finds himself without a permanent residence (homeless or incarcerated) and not many options at this point.

EDIT: This is version 2.0 what is different is that the EQ on the drums has been rolled off a bit to smooth the cymbals high end....and the overall drum track is about 1dB lower in the mix. Nothing major.

The song is called

Nowhere Left To Turn

I'm playing a very short section on guitar.

The band:

LA hard rock drums
Bass 995
Guitar 999 & 996
Acoustic 405
B3 686
Steel 2670
Piano 2026
Fiddle 1878

Mixed in Sonar

5 vocal tracks: Lead, 2 layers, 2 harmony

Enjoy.

The lyrics:

he wonders what went wrong
he blinked and it all was gone
living life and playing in a band
had a kid when he was 20
figured he be rich and one day
he could buy that big old mansion on a hill

there's a cold wind blowing on the highway tonight
no place warm to lay his head until the morning light
no rest for the weary that's what he's heard people say
one day he hopes to make it home, there's no where left to turn


there is no money in the bank
and just a dollar in his hand
chasing dreams that disappear just like the shifting sand
worn out coat against the cold rain
living in the past where he's been
standing right beside the fortune and the fame

there's a cold wind blowing on the highway tonight
no place warm to lay his head until the morning light
no rest for the weary that's what he's heard people say
one day he hopes to make it home, there's no where left to turn

he's just a free spirit living day to day
he wouldn't have it any other way

there's a cold wind blowing on the highway tonight
no place warm to lay his head until the morning light
no rest for the weary that's what he's heard people say
one day he hopes to make it home, there's no where left to turn

Nice work Herb. Good tune!

Herb,

I really love this. It may be one of my very favorites of yours.

The hook and the lyrics are great.

It reminds me of Marshall Tucker and Charlie Daniels and the "glory days" of country.

Great performances all around.

P.S. On the Road is awesome as well. Did you post that? I might have missed it, but it sounds super too.

Steve: Thank you, glad you liked it.

David: Thank you.... yes, On the Road was a few weeks back.

Herb

Nice big sound - excellent memorable chorus and a well written lyric.
Excellent work all round.

Peter

Hello Herb.

Well done and enjoyable like all your songs.
Sounds like a major production.

Cheers.

Herb,

Good song, vocal and production. Excellent job!

Bob

Herb, Sad story but a great song! I've witnessed this same thing happen more than once to some very talented musicians who just couldn't deal with the trappings of success. The feel and flow of this one, chord structure/instrumentation are all so beautiful and appropriate! The Hard Rock LA drums used here are so versatile. They lend themselves well to more than a hard rock style as evidenced here! I think a lot of folks turn away from using these because of their title. Mistake! Great work!! Thanks, Torrey

What a cool lyric Herb. In my thoughts I always wondered what it would have been like to have music as primary source of income after high school. Lots of dreams of being a millionaire rock star. I have read so many stories of how hard life has been for those wanting to be a full time musician.

Your guitar work is always top shelf but I must say how much I enjoyed your vocal and how well it brought out the angst of the lyrics. This is one of my favorite songs of yours. A sad story and awesome delivery... Well done

Well done! As other have said, good lyrical story, not so happy story in practice.

A very catchy chorus, Herb. As David said, very Marshall-Tucker-Charlie-Daniels sounding.

"standing right beside the fortune and the fame" That was a nice line.

A good vocal. But it's kind of being stepped on by the ride (and crash) cymbal in the drum track. It (the ride) is really stepping on the piano, too - they seem to be fighting for the same sonic space. It's really loud - almost drowning out the snare. It dominates the mix. It is particular evident the few times is stops (for drums fills) - when it starts again, it pulls your ear away from the song itself.

PeterF: I love a big sound. The E Street band is one of my favorite "big bands". Full and fat sounding. Thanks for listening.

RichMac: Thanks, I'm glad you liked this song.

RS Dean: Again, thanks for dropping in for a listen.

Torrey Bliss: I love using rock styles in so many ways for country songs. It does in fact, work exceptionally well. Regarding my friend..... yes, we played in a number of bands together through the years and had a ton of fun doing it. He was in a few bands that really had a shot at being something, and opening for the big Nashville stars, unfortunately, they were involved with illegal pharmaceuticals and that ended with several band members including my friend spending quite a bit of mandatory vacation time courtesy of the State of VA and NC corrections depts. Sad but that's how things turn out.

Herb, I can surely relate to the lyrics having seen this same thing happen to many fellow musicians I have known. A sad story indeed. Great idea for a song and executed brilliantly with the write and performance. You surely have a feel for this genre. I really enjoyed it. I agree with floyd that the cymbal was a bit hot. Nevertheless I really loved the song, Tom

I felt the same way about the mix, particularly during the verses. The song itself is really, really good!! I think you sang it well too but the drums seemed to piercing and too dominant. Some great lyrics and a super catchy melody. Chorus is great! Come around more often. We don't see you as much as I'd like to. Take care. Greg

Herb,
I liked the big stirring country band sound and the contrast with the sad picture your lyrics paint - very well sung too, especially on the bridge.
Fine song!

Robert

Scott C: I made my living at music for a number of years and several of those were in bands with the fellow this song is about. It was fun but it was also a hard life. Sometimes we were wondering how we were going to eat until the next gig. I had learned a trade and had that to fall back on. Others didn't plan so well for the future. Most left the music scene for other more lucrative endeavors. Some continued to play music on the side for fun....and some didn't have anything else that they knew how to do to make money. Time slips by...and well.... here we are.

dcuny: thanks for listening.... yes, a sad story

Floyd: glad you like the chorus. so do I. as far as the production and the drums, yeah, I agree, the drums are a bit hot.... maybe I'll remix it when I have the time.... but here's an interesting side note. The guy this is about is a drummer. We were playing a gig in a little honky tonk hole in the wall juke joint one night. We had bought some new PA gear and since the amount was over a certain amount, the store gave us a pretty nice sound pressure meter. We used it quite a bit. Some clubs actually required the SPL at the bar to be a certain level. Other clubs had city cops stand outside with SPL meters and the clubs were fined if the SPL at 5' from the door exceeded 95dB. So we were used to having it on stage and running. In this club, there were no level requirements. So during the song.... a country song... the on stage SPL was 118dB.... yup... we were loud. In that song, there was a drum solo. During the solo, the SPL actually rose to 121dB.... He was a loud drummer. I'm paying for those nights of musical indiscretion now with a constant ringing in the ears from the damage we did.

Tommyad: kind words indeed. Thank you. I'm glad you liked this song. ditto on the drums... yep, might do a remix on this later.

Greg Johnson: I'm glad you like this tune and agree with FJ. I'm planning to write and record more fun tunes and post them here. I've been tied up with other things going on, but finally seeing my way through the swamp to where I have the time to work on some music again.

Robertkc: Thanks for noticing the big country band..... Yep, I love that sound. I appreciate you taking the time to listen

I get a little Bruce Hornsby thing, like Hornsby meets Chris Isaak with some Neil Young mixed in. And there are touches of Levon Helm (RIP - I miss you!) in there.

If the protagonist was female I would interpret this as a woman who turns to prostitution because that is all she can do to make money to feed kids. That kind of desperation is what I take from it through all the metaphor.

Interesting way to look at it... and probably closer to the truth than one might imagine. He was quite the promiscuous fellow. But man it sure seemed like a good idea at the time..... right? Oh the stories I could tell on that one topic.

A life that was lived with little thought to next week and what's to come with the greater focus on tonight and let's party. So many choices that could have been made with more thought as to the results. Several years spent in prison for stupid things. Several dozen DUI/no license driving offenses, ( yeah, you read that right...several dozen) just hoping for that big payday of getting in a band that made a few chart topping hits, that never came. But several bands were so close he could almost taste it.... opening for the big names in country music.....

A life lived in quiet desperation. Alienating many of his friends and all of his family along the way, parents are gone, siblings and daughter aren't talking to him or stepping up to help... no one is opening any doors to let him sleep in a warm bed or even on the couch......And now, looking at 65, there's nowhere left to turn.

The song kind of wrote itself.

Nice one !

Thanks Furry

Hey Herb, I've waiting to comment because I figured the other forum members would be able to say what I was trying to say better than me. That is MORE true than you know. Sometimes others really nail what I'm thinking. Especially when it comes to "I hear influences of..."


I expected it to be a bit of a downer of a song. You managed to capture the loneliness of the situation but also state how he wouldn't have it any other way. THAT combination of feelings is hard for some to understand. You managed to capture that not only in lyric, but the mood of the song. Awesome!

I really like this song. It also reaffirms the choices I have made in life. Thank you for that. For me, it was MUCH bigger than just a song on a forum. I'm thankful.

Great job!

Interesting comments about the drummer and decibels. My audiologist has restricted me to 80db for the same reason. I use a phone app meter.

Janice’s brother and brother-in-law lived out this story. You told it well and performed it with feeling. We enjoyed the entire package.

J&B

Very nice job! It has an excellent groove, and the arrangement here is superb. Nothing sounds out of place, and I really like how even the mixing job is. Not to mention - it's just a catchy tune! It had my foot tapping within the first few measures

Thanks so much for sharing!

Excellent song! Great write, production and vocal.

And the story rings true, I know a couple of people from back in the day that have similar stories.

Really good, Herb, enjoyed the listen!

Hear to Learn: I'm glad you listened and liked the song. Yeah... nobody likes to hear and sing along to sad and depressing songs so when you write about a subject such as this you really walk that fine line between getting it right and providing insight or just depressing the heck out of the audience and turning them off. I like to write about things I observe and while writing this I was constantly thinking what would the guy who this is about think of what I wrote about him. As it turned out, he's heard it and liked it. Thanks for your insight.

Janice & Bud: Man I wish I could go back and tell my young self to wear earplugs when I was shooting my guns and playing music. Regarding the story line in the song.... indeed, way too many musicians live this story out every day. It's always a decision that one has to make, a realization that only a few ever really become famous and rich in this business and you probably should have a backup plan at some point. Pulling that plug is hard. But there are many musicians who have moved the music from life goal to a fun thing to do on weekends after you work at something that can actually pay the bills and let you raise a family. Thanks for listening.

Deryk-PG Music: I'm glad you had the time at work to stop in and listen. Thanks for commenting. It's always interesting to have the PG staff comment on how we're using the products you make.

Blue Attitude: Thanks for listening. You know, I think we all have people like this in our lives that we met and played with and never really figured things out. Glad you enjoyed it.

Herb,
The production on this piece is top of the line. I'm nowhere near an expert on these things, but I don't understand why I'm not hearing this on country radio every day. Outstanding!

Hi herb,

I didn't hear this before you trimmed the hi EQ on the drums and the overall volume. But what I just listen to sounds pretty well balanced and everything seems to pretty much have its own space.

Loved your vocal. I wish I could hit those higher notes with power and correct pitch some of you guys do! Oh well, I'm more a guitar player than anything. I'm happy with that!

Too many musician stories similar to this. I played in clubs, bars and dives for about 50 years. Thank God I never got into all that stuff. But, lots of temptation! It's so easy to go there.

This is a real nice listen!


Alan