A little history...

6 years ago, Tom and I did our first co-write.
By pure coincidence, it was posted on March 4th - which it turns out is our birthday. BOTH of us!
We have done a "birthday song" every year since.

So, now... a little more (of our) history...


I WANT YOU TO KNOW ME

like jimmy i found florida at it's very best
clean gulf waters, a loose lauderdale, a sleepy, slow key west
then the rock'n'roll bars of new york and philly called my name
i talked to movers and shakers and record men tryin' to fan that flame

when country turned it's head towards a sound i knew
i found myself headed there to take in that view
spent years hanging with the best of the best in guitar town
taking turns strumming our tales in a bluebird round

   i don't usually tell these stories
   i'm not one to live past glories
   they stay on the shelf
   i keep to myself
   i let the rainbow be
   you want to open up the mystery
   lift the curtian, know my history
   every road town and trail
   down to the smallest detail
   it might come slowly
   but i want you to know me

west virginia to ohio and then on to chicago
drinking in all the urban blues from a late night radio
northern illinois to southern illinois then down to tennessee
kept heading south until i found the country side of me

hooked up down in florida with a hardcore working band
nashville called and made their pitch but we didn't give a damn
all those years opening up for big acts and touring stars
made up for wasted weekend nights in rowdy roadhouse bars.

repeat CHORUS

we followed the music
it's in our bones
we did it all for a song
and here we are
when it's all said and done
it lead us right where we belong

repeat CHORUS

©2019 floyd jane and Tom Adams.




floyd jane: vocals, harmony, production, mix
Tom Adams: vocals, harmony, tele (rhythm and licks), pedal steel
Janice Merritt: harmony (engineered by Bud Merritt)

RealTracks in style: ~~519:Bass, Electric, Pop HalfNotes Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 1771:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm JazzFunkMovinMuted Ev16 130
RealTracks in song: 1770:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm JazzFunkMovinChords Ev16 130
RealTracks in song: 2933:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking SongwriterFolkSlapQuinn Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 2635:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm CountryBluesRockHigh Ev 110
RealTracks in song: 671:Organ, B3, Background Southern Ev 120
RealDrums in style: NashvilleSkip^03-a:SideStick, HiHat , b:Snare, HiHat


As always, a HUGE thanks to Janice & Bud!!

Hopefully, this will continue for many years to come...

Happy Birthday, bro!

fj

Man, this has it all! Very engaging write, great story made even better 'cause it's real!

Vocals are wonderful and band is great too, nice hearing some licks from Tom in there. The mix is perfect, listened first through the monitors, then through the 'phones.

Happy birthday Floyd and Tom!

Wowser! Don't wait a year to write another!

I knew this was coming from previous years,

wow, what a treat!

it might come slowly
but i want you to know me

I want to know about you two guys (without prying)

you're both super interesting, very talented, obviously veterans of the trade (pros)

(same goes for J&B)

spent years hanging with the best of the best in guitar town
taking turns strumming our tales in a bluebird round

great lines, they make me smile!

I hear Tom's fine guitar work, nice and tasteful

northern illinois to southern illinois then down to tennessee
kept heading south until i found the country side of me

love those lines

This is my new favorite song, Happy Birthday to you both!!!

Kenny

Happy birthday Floyd and Tom nice driving groove, I like those ticking guitars, great vocals.

Janne

floyd, Tom & J&B

Just great!

Superb stuff from all involved.
Brilliant song writing, lyrics, production, playing and singing.
A wonderful engaging song.

Happy birthday to you both.

Peter

FJ @ Crew!
First of all, Happy birthdays! Stay healthy and inspired!

Great collaboration and tradition idea. Love choruses lyrics, pedal steel, overall feel is bright and energetic. Easy listen. Mix is great (at least to my amateur ears ).

Thank you for sharing!

Misha.

Thanks, Dave! We all appreciate that! Your continued support warms our old hearts

Now that's a cool tradition and a good song

Happy Birthday guys...
Simply a great song & collaboration from all of you...
I truly am impressed with your talents & abilities!

Hey there Floyd, I really enjoyed the overall tone of this. The arrangement is wonderful to the ears and the vibe is very appealing. That organ really helps piece it all together. Fantastic work on the vocals too. Keep it up!

Really good song guys. Happy birthday to you both. I and the musical world are glad you were both born!!

Wow - you guys did an amazing job! Very engaging and nicely catchy, and has some real sincerity behind it. You can almost hear that it was fun to make. A great groove that got my toe tapping right away too, and the mixing job is professional and top notch also.

You two should be proud - thanks for sharing

Dave, We appreciate your kind words and continued support, Tom BobaLew, Thanks Much, Tom

Pure country sound. Excellent mixing, vocal and playing.

Sergio

Hope you both had a Happy Birthday! Such a cool tradition and a treat for the rest of us too. Wishing you both health happiness and many more years of fun collabs with Janice's harmonies adding such beautiful glue.

Thanks for having a listen, Bob...





You know we appreciate a review like that, Kenny. Let's have beer sometime...

Janne - thanks for stopping in...




Peter - we appreciate that... Thanks!!

Thanks Kenny, Tom Thanks for stopping by,Tom Peter, glad you liked it. My part was easy. floyd laid all the groundwork and shouldered the load. Tom

Thank you Josie! Those guys are so much fun to sing with.

Janice

Happy Belated Birthday! So sorry for being so far behind. We moved over the last 4 plus weeks. Enough of that though. Just wanted to let you know why.

So...this song is flat out great! With people throwing around "new country" and "pop country"...blah, blah, blah, I think what is really meant is "radio friendly." Sure there are some heavy production in what's on country radio; but you could slip this in no problem; and feel people would love it.

It's really well written. It's really well produced. Most of all; it's performed really well. The two of you really (in this song) have a Alan Jackson/Jimmy Buffet thing going on...in my opinion. You did this without crossing over into the "island" vibe.

The contrast of the timbre of of each of your vocals; AND the phrasing is a blast to listen to! To hear two different interpretations of how to sing it is really cool to hear.

I could get into rhyme scheme and song structure, which are all great; but I really want to give a nod to something I feel is so important. I feel like the two of you were in the same room recording this! It sounds effortless; like I'm experiencing two friends talking. THAT can be SO hard to pull off. I listened a few times before I even thought about it. It was something you did that I noticed. It was that I just thought it. Then REALLY realized what a great performance the two of you did. If you told me that was NOT the case; I wouldn't be surprised. In fact; it would explain a bit more how you pulled it off so well.

Thanks for giving us a bit more of who you are. I do feel I know both of you better from the song. What a fantastic way of celebrating a mutual birthday. Now I'm excited for both of you to be 1 year older Can't wait!

Thanks for taking the time to put this together and share it!

I don't usually like "My RnR Story" songs but this is a really cool, melodic and interesting song so am pleased I broke from a pattern to listen and enjoy.

When you, Tom and Janice put together a song it is always so special. Just loved this song. Would love to see this one live. Guitar was very cool as well.. Super production on the song...

Love it, love it, love it!!!!! The best combo since Waylon and Willie!!! Great to hear the stories of two of our own who have stories worth sharing and really know how to tell them well. And the production feels so live and inspired.....always get that little added touch with some J and B support!! Fantastic guys!!!! Take care. Greg

Misha, Thanks for the good wishes and the nice words, Tom Herb, glad you made it by. Thanks, Tom Jim we appreciate the generous comments, Tom

Hi guys,

a very nice tune. Like always a great composition, well-sung, Floyd. Great harmonies and I love the Tele licks as well as the PSG.
And I'm impressed by the excellent production - Bud, you're always doing a great job!!!
Like it a lot.

Cheers,

Stefan

Floyd, I think you ought to have a birthday every month. Beautiful job.

Thanks Joe. floyd’s use of the organ worked beautifully. Tom Always great to hear from you David. Thanks, Tom Deryk, it is catchy and all the credit for that should go to floyd. My job was easy and quite fun, Tom

Just have time for a couple of listens.

Day-umm ... this is so good! Love story songs and you guys have a terrific one here. As always in your productions, Floyd, everything is impeccable. Top shelf all the way. Congrats and a a belated happy birthday - mine is the 22nd of this month. Loved it - really!

Best to both of you - two of the best on the site.

Alan

Di waves from her bed.

Thanks, Misha. Tom's pedal steel is nice, isn't it! It's great to have a made-to-order steel track (his tele licks fit so nicely, too!)




Thanks for stopping by, Herb...




We appreciate that, Jim...

Joe - thanks for stopping by for a listen... appreciate that...

We appreciate that, David. Good to see you drop in...




Thanks, Deryk... I'd say this one put a smile on both our birthday faces...

[/quote]



Thank y'all for mentioning my small part in the wonderful project!

Janice




Thanks Stefan for commenting on the harmony! Bud wanted to mention that the only role he played was engineering my vocal.

Janice

Thanks Sergio, we appreciate it, Tom Thank you Josie, Tom

Sergio - nice to see you drop in...



Josie - Thanks from all of us...

** A few additions that I'm not able to "edit" my post and ad. I'm a bit more caught up now, and had a few more points that I was thinking about but did not copy and paste. Drummers, I tell ya...

First, I've been able to listen to the song a good number of times on various devices and speaker/headphone arrangements. What a killer mix! Everything is where it needs to be. Everything is the level it should be AND it's clean and clear without sounding harsh. There's a guy on this forum who was just talking about how he wishes he could do that. It was me. No joke! Great job.

Sorry to say to the two of you; but adding Janice to any song never hurts; and was the case here. She took your "GREAT!" even higher. Then again I'm a sucker for great vocals. There is just a special blend that's going on. I love it.

Now finally for my "he's lost it" comment. Something about Floyd and Tom's vocals, at times, have a Big and Rich thing going on. I think it's the contrast in timbre of your voices. I think it's really cool how you two achieve this effortlessly. The bridge really had it for me. Here's an example; but probably not "the best" one. I just can't remember which song it was that would really demonstrate it. Still, you will get the idea.

Run Away With You

Again such a cool duet performed by the 4 of you.

After listening to this a number of times, just wanted to add what a great example this is of collaboration. It is great to hear two great writers with a different type of style and writer's voice work together. This song really makes me appreciate that element....tons of character and style!!! Lovin' it guys!! Take care. Greg

I'm a little late on the draw, but happy birthday! And great song.

Caaron, thanks for taking the time to listen and write such a wonderful review. I don’t know if being born on the same day (different years) has anything to do with it, but we seem to have an innate understanding of what each of us brings to the table. Everything we’ve done together is as easy as it gets and gets done very quickly. By the way, we can wait to be one year older- don’t push it! Thanks again, Tom Ray, glad you came by for a spin, Tom Scott, we are glad you liked it, Tom

C - thanks for the fine review. As Tom said, everything we've done together has been "easy" - fast, smooth - a real pleasure... When I listen back to this, I always enjoy the transition from my vocal tone to Tom's vocal tone and the blending of all the vocals, including, of course, Janice...




Glad you took a chance on this, ray...




We all appreciate that, Scott...

Greg, It was a lot of fun to work with floyd and with his great idea and super melody it was easy for me to do the add ons. Thanks, Tom Stefan, Thank you for coming by and for the wonderful comments. Tom

Always enjoy your reviews, Greg! Thanks from the gang!!




Stefan - we appreciate you stopping by...





Thanks, Gary. I'm up for every month. There is much beer and wine involved. And I always enjoy working with Tom & J&B...




Alan - Thanks for the fine comments. We all appreciate that... Hope y'all are doing good...

Thanks for stopping by, Tom Happy Birthday back at ya Alan. Thanks for the nice words,Tom

C - always nice to have someone drop by a 2nd time. Thanks for mentioning the mix... And yes, we are well aware that adding Janice will ALWAYS sweeten the pot

I have to admit that I have never listened to many (or any?) Big & Rich songs - certainly not intently. I was surprised at the "current Country" sound of that. I used to hear Big Kenny every once in a while a writer's night that I played regularly at Douglas Corner Cafe (with a charts band - a very cool thing). I would not have pegged Kenny for a "new Country" guy...

Two fine talents producing some excellent music! What a great tune that sounds wonderful!! Great lyrics as always! Really enjoyed those harmonies and the production on this is as good as it gets! Thanks, Torrey

And thanks for stopping in again, Greg! The elements that you add to this forum are appreciated as well!!...




Ember - we are glad you came by for a listen...

Thanks! Bud and I used to listen to Big and Rich a lot. Holy Water comes to mind as one of their good ones.

Janice




Thanks for mentioning the harmony!

Janice

Great story song. Superb vocals--spot on. Memorable chorus. Seemingly flawless production. Thank you. I enjoyed this.

Torrey - Thanks for the nice comments - I really enjoy working with Tom and J&B - talented people (an understatement).




Thanks for stopping by for a listen, Scott... and for the nice review... we appreciate it...

Thanks Greg, we appreciate it, Tom Thanks Ember, Tom

Glad you liked it. Thanks Torrey, Tom Thanks for taking the time to listen and for your nice comments, Tom

floyd & Tom,

Happy birthday to you both.
I completely agree with Jim.
Simply a great song & collaboration from all of you...
I truly am impressed with your talents & abilities!

Sorry for the late greeting.
Best regards.

Shigeki Adachi

floyd and Tom,

O my! I have my forum preferences set to show 99 posts per page and this is the second last on page 1.... and I haven't yet commented.

First off...




This year's birthday creation is just as spectacular as all the previous years. I really loved the 'this has been my life' so far approach to these lyrics. In all honesty, I'm in awe at how much of your respective stories you've managed to pack into 4 minutes and 11 seconds. Moreover, the musical journey was every bit as engaging, and professional, as the autobiographies.

As I'm sitting here thinking what to write next, the single thought that keeps on swinging back and forth in my mind is that the two of you are class acts and that all of us here on Users Showcase are very, very fortunate to have you around.

I sincerely hope that you both had a terrific birthday!

All the best,
Noel

I don't know how you guys write so many good songs. Really liked the alternating vocals in the verses and the solid harmony.

And these chorus lines...

'i don't usually tell these stories
i'm not one to live past glories
they stay on the shelf
i keep to myself
i let the rainbow be'

...killer!

Well done.

Super late to this party but the same as HTL, I have reason but it's irrelevant once I get the opportunity to get on the User Showcase, kick back and really enjoy the good music posted here.

What a great song. Excellent write, arrangement, production and performance. You guys have continued a great tradition and as time's gone by, it won't be too much longer before you have enough material for an album. The cohesive mesh between the characters Tom, Floyd, Bud and Janice is awe inspiring to have opportunity to listen to. Each element of each person's contribution shines on it's own, much like a well mixed song that one can pick out the nuances of every instrument. Great job and Happy Birthday to Tom and Floyd.