I am a songwriter, first. Then a guitar player.
Mainly acoustic guitar.
I dabble with electric a bit.
And I dabble with piano.
I have also dabbled in...
...banjo, mandolin, bass, harmonica, saxaphone (I lent my sax to someone years ago and never got it back - no great loss), and fiddle.
You DO NOT want to hear me play fiddle. Trust me.

I constantly wish I were a piano player (as a songwriting tool, mostly).
And to that end, I've been dabbling a bit more lately.
Practice is always important.
So to practice, I decided to write a "piano song".
And to experiment further (after the guitar vst in the last one), I decided to record it...
Baby steps.


HARD

i don't know if you know about me
but i'm the guy that broke her heart
that's not someone you set out to be
you don't sign up for the part
through unexpected twists and turns
sometimes you turn the wrong card
you leave someone afraid of love
suspicious, hurt, hard
   
   it's my fault
   i'm to blame
   i dimmed that light
   i cut that flame
   it's on me
   i'm the reason she put up her guard
   I broke her
   I made her
   hard

it all started as roses and rose
sweet promises in the night
i loved her i can honestly say
she and i just felt right
without warning everything changed
now she's sullen, sad, and scarred
i left her afraid of love
haunted, hurt, hard
   
   it's my fault...



The BAND:

MIDI SuperTracks in song: 3254:Bass, PopHalfNotesPush Ev 085
RealTracks in song: ~2200:Guitar, Nylon, Background CountryBrent Ev 085
RealTracks in song: 3438:Guitar, Electric, Soloist BritPsycPopBallad Ev 065

Me: Vocals, harmony, piano


Any comments are welcome.
Thanks for listening.

fj

<COPY> <PASTE>, if you know what I mean. Excellent, Floyd. Love the melody, and of course the vocal. Piano sounds great. A hard song not to really enjoy immensely. Again and again, like that new record you just bought and have to play it over and over.

Floyd, you teach each time you write--hope you know that. Wonderful track, excellent all the way around. I really liked your choice of "-ard" as your rhyme scheme--opened you up to past-tense words.
And "roses and rose'"...great line!
Now that wasn't so hard...!

No down tick at all in your usual quality by switching to piano. These are some of my favorite lyrics from you - what a story you tell. And of course the vocal and production are of the highest standard. Really nice tune, however sad it may be.

fj,
your voice communicates honesty.
The narrative encapsulates taking ownership of wrongs = honesty.
Your piano playing is where you are at present and that's solid as well as honest.
Terrific.

Hi Floyd
Proof, if any needed, that a well written song doesn't need all the bells and whistles to make it work. Lovely job.
I notice you didn't include 'singer' in that list. I'm sure we'd all agree you're a very fine one.
Regards,
Leon

Beautiful song in every way , melody ,lyrics ,vocals, instrumentation ,production.
The first four bars set the mood and the piano structure throughout laid a perfect bed to support the song.

Floyd wrote >"I constantly wish I were a piano player"<

You ARE !

Floyd ...

Yes, you're a terrific songwriter and musician. But I think an even better description is that you're an exceptionally gifted creator of all things musical. In the several years I've listened to you, I don't think I've heard a less than wonderful lyric, arrangement and presentation.

This is another treat for your listeners. And your piano playing is a perfect fit for this song. Also, this song is just more proof that talent doesn't need a lot "icing" to make its point. Great song. Totally enjoyed my listen.

Best to you & yours. Be safe ...

Alan

Jackson Brown might have to start looking over his shoulder.... That is a great job on keys.

Practice gets the job done.

I like the song too.

Hi Floyd,

Hey, nothing wrong with that piano at all in my book. It's very
singer-songwriter and more Elton John than Richard Clayderman, but
exactly right for that song. Looking forward to more piano tracks from you.

The whole backing hangs together beautifully and the lead guitar was
a nice touch, but you knew I'd say that.

Super vocals which poured emotion into the excellent story line.

One of your best, (though I still like your heavier side).

Stay safe,
ROG.

Lovely song. Awesome vocal and lyric. Piano was an excellent choice to frame the vocal. Well done.

Thanks, Marty. Nice to think back to those days of buying a record and playing it many, many times. These days I listen to a new record almost every day. A few I listen to more than once, but many I don't. There is just too much music available!!

Piano sounds good to me, Floyd. I actually started on piano and it's the only instrument I actually had any lessons for, took them for a couple of years. But it was all classical music, once I heard the Beatles on the Sullivan show all I wanted to do was play guitar in a rock and roll band

Good song! As always, I love your lyrics and vocals.

Hi Floyd, This is a beautiful, understated and uncluttered song that sounds, dare I say it, straight from the heart.
The piano is perfect.
Cheers,
Mike

We were very much engaged by the structure of the write...with the singer addressing his former's new.

No need to pull out lines for comment as it's such a fine write from start to finish. Love the rhymes and the alliterations.

In the no surprise department your vocals are simply outstanding. Huge soul!

Ok, the piano Your vocals and that piano are both, as Gregg Allman would say "hittin' the note!" And that says it all. Perfect together.

Oh, and the rest of the band were in the pocket with the singer and that piano guy.

Singer-songwriter goodness to the max!

J&B

floyd

Lovely song - no surprise there, and beautifully sung. Piano sounds good throughout (always wanted to play myself but can only do the basics).

Another top notch example of songwriting and production skills.

Peter

What a beautiful song!!! I'm a sucker for a piano/vocal tune and this is an outstanding one!! Lyric is sweet, and the emotion in the vocal delivers it perfectly!! That nylon acoustic (Brent?) fits beautifully into the sparse arrangement as does the solo (Brent?)! Wonderful work my friend!!! Take care. Greg

Thanks for having a listen Tano...




TM - it is always interesting to find out how a lyric is received. This was a really fast write in order to have a "vehicle" for practicing some piano... Thanks for the nice comments..

Holy so and so!!!!!!!!!!!

Those lyrics grab you from the first line.

Your piano playing is beautiful, I don't care about technique or anything, and anyway I can't tell of any mistakes. This is stunning.

And, blooming so and so can you sing. Singing alone with piano (and the occasional guitar, etc.) can be such an exposed thing. Your voice just soars.

Love the electric guitar brief entry, too.

Perhaps your best so far? You are consistently "up there", that goes without saying, but - even for you, this is something else. Wow. Wow. Wow.

Floyd,

First off, I share your desire to be more proficient at piano (actually, I'd have to know how to play at all to be "more proficient", LOL!)—but if that’s you playing, well, you’re pretty darn far along because it sounds great. As for the song, very pretty, very sad and soulful tune—and another great write. Really nice piece, Floyd! Impressive work here.

All my best,

Deej

Well played song. Great lyrics and vocals. Lovely piano. I am primarily a lyricist who uses guitar and piano (not good on either) to get my songs across - until BIAB came along. The piano playing was well done. I wish I played that good. Nice song.

ray - thanks for the honest feedback




Thanks, Leon. An interesting point you bring up (for me anyway)... "singer" has never been a label I applied to myself - although I've been singing in public since I was 14. I guess because even then I was writing and was always working to improve that as a skill. Singing, on the other hand, I never really thought about (or "worked" on). I would actually list "producer" these days after "song writer" and before "guitar player". Which brings up another thought... I think of myself as a "guitar player", but I have never called myself a "musician" - it just did not seem appropriate somehow...

The first two lines immediately grabbed me.

The chorus is one of the best I heard. Lyrics are brutally honest and so effective at touching the listener.

Another superb vocal performance.

floyd, first of all, that does not sound like dabbling in the least. The piano is the perfect palette for this song and played very very well! There is little doubt that we will be hearing more of that in the future. The write is another fine relationship song that you do so well. The bass fits in amazingly well and the nylon guitar is one of my favorite real tracks. Congratulations on your first piano song. It’s a success, Tom

Hi Floyd,

This is a very nice piece of work you made!
And surprisingly this time you took the piano as the lead instrument. I didn't know you also play the piano. I am impressed by your play. Very good!
But NOT surprisingly it is a quality song. Of course it is, I should say because I haven't heard anything less from you than quality songs.
With your voice this sad song really sounds sad. Nearly desperate. In these times it can ease people.

Very well done,
Hans

FJ,
A little late for the party. Very nice tune. A little more than just piano dabble there. Ace composition and vocals. Liked that solo!
Thank you for sharing.

Misha.

Floyd,
The piano based simple production gives your fine vocals more of a vulnerable feel.
This might be the most pared down song I`ve heard from you (guitar outro excepted), and it shows how well you write emotion into a familiar heartbreak lyric (never maudlin, always sounding real).
A brave and enjoyable venture away from the Biab toolbox!

Robert

Thanks, Gary. I appreciate the vote of confidence... But I feel like I have a ways to go before I would call myself a piano player... (but I am working towards that - so I feel good about that...)




Alan - Thanks for all of that. Hope that you guys are doing well. Stay safe!!

Floyd,

This is awesome!!!!!

I remember you told me you were practicing piano. This is gorgeous.

May just be my favorite song of yours so far. Really authentic sounding!!! Incredible!!

Floyd,

A stunning piece of work, both lyrically and vocally...

Bob

That's nice of you to say, Herb. Thanks...




Thanks, ROG. "Singer-songwriter piano" is really all I'm after (so thanks for that) - I don't expect to do anything more than that - nothing fancy or complicated - certainly no extended piano solos in my future...I'll leave that to the John Jarvis RealTracks ....

Thanks, Scott!




Thanks, Dave...

Mike - thanks for the very nice comments...and I appreciate the mention of the piano part - hopefully that will improve in time...



That first line just kind of "fell out of me" and then directed what the song would become. I hadn't considered how seldom I've heard that perspective until you mentioned it...so thanks for that. And for all the other nice comments...

Hi Floyd,

Nice song and voice with a sober but effective arrangement. Well done.

Kindly regard

Dero13 alias JaniJackFlash

Just heard this on soundcloud. Awesome work Floyd. As soon as I read the lyrics, I was blown away. Thanks for sharing.

Rob

More talented than we knew.

Based on the lyrics, I was wondering what the melody and the arrangement might be - they are absolutely spot on. Your vocals are always great, Floyd, and they're typically very convincing and filled with emotion. That's especially so in this song.

There's a YouTube Vevo Go Show of John Legend walking into a bar sitting down at the piano and performing 'All Of Me' - this reminds me of that.

Be well.

Scott

Thanks, Peter!

I have always felt like that - that I "could only do the basics". And I've held that opinions for so many years (always saying "I should learn more..."). I know chord structure well (not a hard thing to do), but never knew how to "strum" the piano - meaning even the basic rhythm patterns... Youtube to the rescue...ended up on one of those rabbit-hole journeys, but I think it might pay off this time! We'll see...





Thanks, Greg! I do know how you like a piano/vocal styled song! Right up your alley, for sure... (I think you OWN that alley). The nylon is Brent. But the electric solo is Mike Durham's BritPsycPopBallad - one of the new RealTracks in the 2020 version...

Hi Floyd,

Often times it's "hard" just to comment on the songs you post.
Your lyrics are always constructed in a a way that paints a such a vivid picture. In this case, this picture seems to be of a lonesome saloon and a desperado coming to terms with the man he has been.

Your mastery of the various instruments you play, never cease to amaze. Are you a self-taught musician or do you actually have formal music training?

In any case, thanks for posting this song. I enjoyed it.

James - thanks for all those nice comments. appreciate that...




Thanks, Deej...

jpt3 - thanks! I appreciate that...




Thanks, EZ...




Tom - thanks for the confidence boost regarding the piano parts... I feel it is "a beginning", but did hope that it would a least be passable at this point...




Appreciate all of that, Hans...




Thanks, Misha. Thanks for mentioning the solo - I like it, too!!





Robert - thanks for taking the time to listen and comment (and for the fine comments they are...)




Thanks, David... still practicing, of course...





Dan - I am disappointed that you deleted your comments. I felt they were worthwhile and valid from your perspective and worth giving a response to...

I can't do much more than noodle, so you already sound like a pro to me. Like you, I wish I knew more piano if only as a writing tool. It's a different beast, and in my opinion, usually a better "tool" in that box.

Anyway. Extra fine song. I'm imagining the narrator speaking to the guy left to pick up the pieces with both an explanation and a warning.

Mix-wise, the piano might could use a bit more presence. That's probably the downside--it's harder to record than an acoustic.

Thanks, Bob. That is nice of you to say.




Thanks for having a listen, Dero...




Rob - good to see you dropping by... you should hang out here more often - been a long time...




Thanks, Scott... nice to see you around...





Bawb - thanks for the nice comments.

No formal training. All self-taught... (although there is plenty of help to be had these days just for the lookin'... finding a lot for the piano on Youtube)





Thanks, Tangmo.

The piano was played on a Yamaha-P85 (digital piano) via the MIDI out (so not the Yamaha direct sound) through an EZKeys piano module (the Grand) using a preset (Swedish Pop, I think) which adds a little chorus, so gives a spread-out fuzziness to the piano. I though it best to leave the piano less-than-crystal-clean to hide my imperfections to some degree

floyd,

Nice piano ballad!
Your vocals are great as always.
And your piano is also very good.
Playing the piano yourself without using RT is wonderful.
It gives this song a very nice feel.
Enjoyed my listen a lot.

Best regards.

Shigeki Adachi

Stripped down like this the songwriting is front and center. And in that case the song... lyrics/harmony/melody needs to be strong, just like this one. Great job, I really enjoyed your tune and performance.