Hi everybody,

no doubt about it: The protagonist of this song resp. video didn’t use to be exactly the type of guy any of us would want to be friends with. Or worse still: meet in the dark. But since he is claiming to have changed for the bettter: Doesn’t everybody deserve a second chance? Well, let’s see...

And what have Eddy, Freddy and Teddy got to do with it? And will they show us their soft sides like they always do when they hear a pedal steel guitar solo? Just hang on...

Those of you who have heard and seen some of my songs and videos know: They’re either (meant to be) funny or love songs dedicated to the ‘gal’ I can’t do without for longer than one hour. And, yes, this one is not really a love song.

VIDEO (+ lyrics)

AUDIO (+ lyrics)

AUDIO (on SoundCloud)

I am so happy that Maha, who has been severely ill for more than half a year by now (and is still far from being really healthy), could get back to the PC and do her mixing and sound-editing job again. And I think she really did very well.

Here’s the tech stuff:

Style is _TRAINBT.STY (Basic Workin' Man)

RealTracks in style: 379:Bass, Electric, Country DoubleTime Ev 088
RealTracks in style: 1727:Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm TrainBeatJohn Ev 130
RealTracks in style: 411:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Train Pickin' Ev 130
RealTracks in song: ~621:Pedal Steel, Background Easy Ev 136
RealDrums in style: NashTrainEv16^2-a:Blastix , b:Blasttix 16th

I think this is the first time I used a RealStyle ‘as is’, because it’s just perfect.

Added a pedal steel soloist RealTrack:
RT1670:Pedal Steel, Soloist CountryPaul Ev 120 (Bluesy).

And man, you ain’t seen nothing yet unless you’ve tried to edit a PSG soloist track with all its glissandi .

With such a great backing style there wasn’t much left to do for me but just do the singing.

Like always Maha used RealBand as her DAW (won’t be able to change this, because ‘BJN & FakeThat! - The RealBand Band’ has become something like our trademark) plus a couple of 3rd-party plug-ins and for the first time ever used our new Ozone 8 Standard Mastering Tool and I really think it paid off - in fact, none of our songs had ever been mastered before, shame on us.

Hope you will have a little weekend fun watching or just listening to I’VE CHANGED FOR THE BETTER.

Take care,

Stefan

Hi Stefan,

Great to see you with a new video, they are always so well done!

Good song too, enjoyed very much. Fun lyrics and nice change for the chorus.

Very happy to hear that Maha is on the mend too!

Hi Stefan,

What a swell video, song and lyrics!
The story is very, very funny and performed also very well. Didn't know you are an excellent filmmaker as well.
Maha looked very credible as a bartender, but no beer...
I like the choice of melody -country- you made for this song. To me it sounded as a real countryband! And that, while you're German!!!
You only have to use better glue for that mustache of yours. At the end it let go a bit :-)

So I have enjoyed it very much,
Hans

Nice work on this - a really fun tune, and I liked how the video was lighthearted and funny. Really catchy as well - a solid earworm!

Thanks for sharing

Great fun. The video is the way to go, with your stage persona and hilarious images matching the lyrics.
The style works and production sounds good... yeah, that little shine mastering adds is worth the trouble.
Well done to your team!


Robert

Wow...
You guys can really put an audio & video feast together...
I always look forward to seeing & hearing a BJN production...
I happy to hear Maha is on the mend & can return to do all the great things she does...
Of course I imagine you can guess by now...
That I really enjoyed watching & listening to your latest creation!

Stefan,

A fun song, clever write.

Y'all put a LOT into creating these videos - fun to watch...

Maha did a nice job on the mix. Glad to hear she is improving...

Keep 'em coming...

fj

Stefan,
Good to hear Maha is back in business! This was an awesome ride! I can only imagine how much hard work went into this... Listens very well! Imagery is hilarious! Enjoyed it much.
Stefan, tell Maha, she done exelent work on this!

P.S. are you wearing stockings to simulate tatooes on your arms?

Thank you for sharing!

Misha.

Stefan

As usual an amazing production with a lot of effort into the video. Enjoyed the song and catchy chorus.
Overall very impressive.

Peter

hey Stefan great job on this enjoyed myself very cool eric

Stefan, so much hard work goes into your productions it's incredible! A high quality work here for sure! Great vocals and production! I thought it was very clever! Thanks, Torrey

Excellent narrative as usual Stephan - fun & full too. I reckon you must have a stash or old penny dreadfulls to raid for your stories.
Good arrangement & mix and, as usual, good vocals too.

Great groove, works like a train Mix is excellent and your voice doesn't need a change for the better. Funny lyrics. Reminds me of a band called Barenaked Ladies.

Janne

Hi BlueAttitude,

once again you were the first one to comment - we seem to have similar 'forum hours'...

Thank you so much for your kind words about Maha's improvement and of course for your positive remarks on the video. I'm very glad to read that you enjoyed the song and the video, because that's what I' (resp. we're) doing it for: bring a smile to people's faces.

Have a great Sunday,

Stefan

Hi Hans,

thanks an awful lot for your very, very positive comment on our song and video

, and I'm glad that I seem to meet your sense for humor. And yes, you're right: En kroeg zonder pilsjes - nee hoor, da's echt miet leuk...!

Funny that you noticed the loose mustache - we hadn't noticed it during the recording and thought it maight be considered another tiny gimmick, so we didn't re-record the scene.

We really appreciated your kind words - thank you once again.

Take care,

Stefan

PS: Ik heb 1972 haast het hele jaar bij jou in de buurt geleefd (oftewel de buurt van je ouders, want je lijkt me toch veel jonger dan ik): in Heiloo, Alkmaar en Bergen. En ik was helemaal van plan voor goed in NH te blijven, maar dan vondt me mijn Alkmaarse vriending op eens niet meer zo leuk en ik ben terug naar D.

Maar mijn liefde voor Holland heeft dat helemaal geen kwaad gedaan.

Thank you very much, Deryk - I really appreciate your kind comment. Glad you enjoyed the production.

Cheers,

Stefan

Hi Robert,

thanks a lot for your positive and kind words - I was very happy to read that you enjoyed everything and had fun - what more could we ask for.

Thanks for taking the time for listening, watching and commenting.

All the best,

Stefan

Dear Jim,

you always make my resp. our day with your kind and supportive words about or stuff.

I have to admit that I was a bit afraid that people might say that a German shouldn't even try to put something 'county-esque' together, but if even you, as a Texan, think that there's nothing wrong with it and even more can enjoy it, I'm truely relieved. I think I heard that TRAIN style rhythm in a Vince Gill tune and it really drew my attention. You know like it is with us BIABers: Always on the scout for something we've never done before, and BIAB really makes it so easy to have a go at things you'd otherwise would have never even thought of.

And as to the video: Where would I be without those fantastic guys starring in them - nowhere!

Thank you once again for your very kind words, and, oh yes: Maha says 'Thank you, too' for what you said about her.

Take good care,

Stefan

Hello Floyd,

thank you so much for your very kind words; like with everybody else in this forum your opinion is always of particular importance to me.

Yes, it may seem to be a lot of work, but it's so much fun I wouldn't actually call it 'work' - it's just spending a lot of time that on something really makes me happy.

Thanks for listening, watching and commenting, ad yes: I'm gonna keep 'em coming, don't you worry !

Take care,

Stefan

Oh Misha, your comments are always something that I'm looking forward to and you never disappoint me - you really made my day again, thank you so much for your kind words on our latest 'prank' - I am glad you enjoyed it.

Firstly I had asked my cast to get real tattoos all over , but to my suprised and disappointment they refused to get scribbled all over. So I had to make do with those 'arm stockings' that you can buy in China (via eBay) for one or two Euros a pair incl. P&P - don't know how they do it, but the do it.

Thanks again for listening, watching and, most of all, for your kind words about the barmaid's improvement.

All the best,

Stefan

Hi Eric,

I'm very pleased to read that you enjoyed our latest 'prank' - thanks a lot for your kind and positive words.

Take care,

Stefan

Dear Peter,

thanks a lot for your positive comment on 'I've Changed
- I always appreciate your remarks very much.

Glad you had some fun listening and watching - thanks for taking the time.

Cheers,

Stefan

Hello Torrey,

Thank you so much for your positive and supporting comment - being the CEO of the German TB fan base I'm especially flattered by and very grateful for any laud from your side.

Take care,

Stefan

Really fun song and video Stefan!! Lots of good humor in there. Mix and arrangement sounded good! Really enjoyed it!! Take care. Greg

Well, well, well - this forum is not only a great pleasure, but also extremely instructional: A couple of days ago I learned what a Mu Chord is, and from your very kind post I learned two English words I had never heard or read before: stash and penny dreadfuls. Having moved so often since my youth I can definitely say that there are no (more) physical penny dreadfuls around, but I'm afraid, a lot of that crap must have found its stash somewhere hidden inside my brain. No doubt that I have a certain penchant for absurdity and crankiness - especially as it helps quite a bit to stand dark clouds.

But since I have the feeling that I'm like running out of quirky ideas these days I 'm gonna take 'penny dreadfuls' as a cue to search for that stash and exploit its contents.

Seriously, thanks a lot for your positive and kind words - I really appreciate them a lot.

Cheers,

Stefan

Hello Janne,

wow - if this ain't a compliment. I'm glad you enjoyed the song and the video - I do know that my sense of humour isn't evrybody's cup of tea, so I'm always glad to hear that someone can laugh about the same stuff like me.

So thanks an awful lot for your very kind and supportive words, but as to my voice I have to teeth-gnashingly realize that it doesn't obey my commands as much as it used to. But if I think about it I must admit that this also goes for the ears, fingers and and and...Well, old age takes its toll...

Thanks again and all the best to you,

Stefan

Hi Crossroads, Nicely done! I quite enjoyed the overall the vibe on this. Well done!

Well-written, funny, and well-sung. The band is cooking and the production and mix very easy on the ears. The tattoos show a real commitment to the material not seen since the Alice Cooper hey-days. It's commendable, the change you have undergone--impermanent as it may be. Glad to hear Maha is doing better. Always a treat for eyes and ears.

Hi Stefan ...

Ah ... such a treat to hear and see you again!

First, I am delighted that Maha is doing so much better. Di and I have thought of her so often. DI just got out of the hospital after almost 2 weeks there. She's slowly recovering. When you're as old as we are (almost 73), the recovery period is much longer! But, we both are smiling because Maha has made so much progress.

I owe you a PM ... will get to that real soon.

You and Maha are so dang talented! Your videos are so good! I envy the exceptional abilities you and Maha have to entertain us. What a lot of fun that was! I';m still smiling as I type this!

Wishing you the very best, my friend. And Di and I will continue to send best wishes and warm thoughts your way for Maha's continued recovery.

All the very best to both of you ...

Alan & Di

Firstly and most importantly we are delighted to hear that Maha has been making some progress. She did a great job with the mix.

Man, do you ever hang out with some characters! And they have so many personas

Others say it, we've said it...but, again, we are amazed at the amount of time you put into these video productions. Heck, we wear ourselves out with a still image lyric video.

You put together an excellent band adding that additional RT to the style. Yep, the steel is hard to edit for sure...try out a fiddle!

So much changing to end up going back...long ride to the top and a short fall back down.

Your performance (vocally and acting wise) along with the family and friends was great. And, how cool to see Maha there also.

LOTS of fun!

J&B

Nice tune, just a little different from the norm (bonus points), and fun all around. Catchy as can be.

Thanks a lot, Greg, I really appreciate your positive feedvack and I'm glad to read that my sense of humor seems to meet yours, too.

All the best,

Stefan

Thanks a lot, Joe.

Cheers,

Stefan

Hi Tangmo,

thank you so much for your funny, yet positive comment on our song / video. Maha was delighted to hear you considered mix and sound good and says thank you for the kind words you found about her health improvement.


Well, the tatoos and the rest... It's part of the fun that we have putting a video together to think of all the props and costumes. And since my stuff is strictly non-commercial and our means aren't unlimited >(I wish they were ), we're lucky that merchants from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan offer literally everythig at low prices. First thing we learned: A Asiatic XXXL shirt is way to small for the average German beer belly

Take care,

Stfan

My dear friend Alan,

most important: You don't owe me anything - I am delighted if you find the time (and I know that yours is limited) to drop me a line, but there are definitely no 'shoulds' or 'musts' !!!

Even way more important is your info that Di has returned from the hospital - we know she had to go there so often during the last months and we deeply hope that she will recover fast and, most of all, sustainably. We're talking about you very often and can understand what's going on with you with all those ups and downs.
Unfortunately Maha had a severe setback two days ago - things really don't come easy and make you feel a bit like Sysiphus. But we must never give up hope, right? When the Beatles sang "When I'm 64' we all had thought we might probaby never get that old, but having just turned 68 I glad we did, even though it's like they say, 'Getting old is no job for cowards.'

I'm delighted to read that you, again, enjoyed our song and video; I know it's pretty 'remote' - so some like it, some don't. But thinking of all those cranky things is a good compensation of an otherwise reeeeealyl square life

Last week we had the three hottest days ever measured here in Germany - it's not often that we have more than 40 Centigrades, and this year we had almost 42 degrees.
Definitely not my cup of tea (or should I say: my mug of beer.... )Hard to understand how people can live in regions that are always that hot...

Dear Alan, once again all the best for the both of you and thank you so much for your very kind words on our production.

Looking forward to what you'll be coming up with hopefully soon!

Take good care,

Stefan

Hi Tunemonger,

bonus points - yeah, finally... How many of them do I need to replace my old dishwasher? .

Seriously: Thanks a lot for your kind comments on the song. I really, really, really love this forum a lot (to be honest: it has changed my life since I became a member in 2016), but sometimes I'm just missing a little easiness, humor and (self-)irony here. Yes, life can be (or definitely is) a vale of tears, but that's not all she wrote. But in the end it's, of course, all a matter of taste, I think.

Thanks again so much for taking the time to listen and watch.

Cheers,

Stefan

Dear Janice & Bud,

thank you so much for the lovely and uplifting words you found for Maha - after a couple of weeks of positive development she infortunately had quite a setback some days ago, but we'll keep keeping on.

Glad to read you enjoyed the song/video. It may appear cranky all the way, but it surely has a reference to the real world, because these days, when truth and candor have become pretty cheap currencies, we see a lot of people claiming to have changed for the better who definitely have not, don't you think... Maybe it's sort of a qurky parable (a genre that hasn't yet been discovered by literary studies, I think )

Well, many folks mentions the amount of time I / we spend on the videos, but guys like you (and Floyd and many other forum members)come up with so incredibly many marvellous songs, while I just finish four or five a year.

I do hope that you both (and Janice's mother, too) are well and find enough time for your out. and indoor hobbies. Just looked up what's the weather is like in GA. these days - 22 Centigrades in Atlanta - well, if that ain't great for biking 'n' hiking.

All the very best to you and thank you once again for the support you always delight us with. (Not quite sure, if this is correct English, but you'll know what I mean.)

Stefan

Wow, this is just butt kicking good country, love it what a run!!!! Great lyrics and you know how to speak just the right spot. Cliff

Excellent song Eric. Loved the video. Very creative. Well done

Hi Cliff,

butt kicking good country? Oh man, you're the first one to mention that it's country at all... And you're from Alabama... You really made my day (week, month...)
I'm glad to read that I met your sense of humor and that you enjoyed the thing.

So thanks an awful lot for your very kind and uplifting comment !!!

Take care,

Stefan

Hi Scott,

thank you so much for your nice words on I've Changed For The Better. I'm glad you enjoyed everything.

Cheers,

Eric (well, Stefan actually )

Hi Stefan,

Just came home from a holiday.
Thanks for you reply. I doubt if I'm younger than you, but that doesn't matter.
And nice what you said in Dutch. We could have been 'neighbours', though my childhood was in the Caribean, the Netherlands Antilles, on the island of Curacao.
But later on in the part of Holland you mentioned.
But you must be away a long time now, don't you?
Floyd also been in my hometown lately. Maybe if more of the 'diehards' from BiaB come visit Holland we can make music together!

Bye,
Hans

As always. a great video production with a catchy song! I really enjoyed watching and listening! You are so talented!

Will

Y'all look like a trustworthy lot, I'm sure I can take you at your word.

Fun listen, even more fun video!

Hey Stefan,

This song is really great! Excellent.

I want to apologize for being so absent from the forum. Also, I will be candid that this part of the post is kind of a generic “form letter” to my old and new forum friends.

In brief, work is very hectic right now and I am having a hard time keeping up with the forum and even writing new songs. There is also a lot of new material hitting the boards—more than I can listen to and reply. People are on a roll!

Instead of backing away from the forum I want to stay involved by just giving the equivalent of a “like” as opposed to full-fledged commentary.

This way, I can just keep listening, and enjoying and reply with a simple LOVE IT or something like that.

I do listen, love your stuff and really want to continue following those who are so dedicated to encouraging others, even if it is only with one word.

Hope this makes sense, thanks for your artistry and forgive my brevity going forward with massive time constraints.

Also forgive me if you see this message more than once until I know I have covered all my bases.

Peace!!

Hi Hans,

thanks for your kind reply. Yes, it's been a very long time that I lived in Noord-Holland - 45 years ago and I really had planned then to stay there for good; was even already immatriculated at the A'dam university. But 'Dis go dis way, dis go dat way...'

Of course I have visited NH very often since then, but meanwhile going places is no longer an option: I'm just a very tiny step ahead of total blindness, can't even leave the house without someone escorting me and there isb't any more fun in going places, to be honest: I find it more and more scary. So any BIAB lovers convention in Haarlem will have to take place without me.

But I am so glad that in 2016 I found BIAB and Camtasia as a video app and now I spend a lot of time in front of my giant monitor using the mag glass - for me it's a wonderful way of spending my time doing things I like a lot: writing and producing music, throwing some humor into all my productions, wortking on the PC and having the people around me I like best starring in my videos. And the very best is, that I can do all that together with Maha who unfortunately has been very ill for six months now and improving very slowly with many setbacks. But aside of these sorrows things could definitely be worse.

Oh yes: Who's the older one of us? I've just turned 68.

I'm looking forward to you next production.

Take care,

Stefan

PS: Omdat ik Nederlands altijd een heel leuke taal vondt (alleen maar de grappige idioms zoals 'in de zoep rijden' of ' geen vingers in de pap hebben' enz., en een geweldige schat van uitstekende vloeken ) heb ik het toen tamelijk snel geleerd en vanaf het begin geen Duits of Engels meer gesproken. Toen had ik blijkbaar, wat ze 'een talenknobbel' noemden, dus dat ging heel goed. Maar ondertussen ben ik veel vergeten en ik zou het dus erg leuk vinden, om met jou af en toe op z'n Hollands te communiceren, maar natuurlijk aleen maar, als jij dat ook aardig zou vinden en dan okk per PM

Thanks a lot, Will, I'm glad you could enjoy it.

And I am sure you noticed that this time I displayed the credits way longer than in former productions.

I'm still grateful for the respective hint you gave me some time ago.

Take good care and thanks again for taking the time to watcg and listen,

Stefan

Oh sure, we're so trustworthy we're even considering to become politicians - seems we have all the qualifications that are needed these days .

Thanks for your positive comment - glad you enjoyed song and vid.

Cheers,

Stefan

Hi David,

there are so many single adjectives that could make my day, so don't you worry.

And, yes, being a forum member can become almost a full-time job..

Thanks for you kind words on my song.

Take care,

Stefan

I was away on vacation when you posted this one. I always appreciate your humor, and I knew I was in for a good set of lyrics with the opening verse.

Hi Scott,

hope you had a great vacation.

I'm glad you enjoyed the thing - with your last compliment you had raised the bar pretty high lyrics-wise... Y'know, I' doing my very best...

Have a nice weekend,

Stefan

Ha Stephan. This is the first of your videos I have seen and it is GREAT. What a lot of fun and a super song. Breath of fresh air...

Hi Joanne,

thas a lot for checking the song / video out of course for your very kind words.

And whenevr the air gets too dry and dusty, HERE you'll find stuff you can even inhale.

Thanks again for your nice comment.

Take care,

Stefan