Water Under The Bridge
© 2021 J. Merritt, B. Merritt & P. Fulham

A song that during its creation morphed from an Americana notion to a blues rock tune. Bud thanks Janice for tolerating his efforts encouraging her to belt one out a bit

We thank Peter for working with us on the arrangement, for the guitar tracks and the supplemental drum track ideas. And a big shoutout to Marty Straub (BabuMusic & Blue Attitude) for joining in on bass. And, as always our thanks to PG Music for making it all possible.

Comments are most welcome and your time to listen is appreciated.

Lyrics are on SC

Tech stuff for those who might be inclined:

Janice vocals:
lead > Nectar 3
third above lead harmony > Nectar 3
third above call backs > CLA Vocals
third below call backs > CLA Vocals
Rodes NT1 mic > Scarlett 212 > Logic Pro

Piano: MidiSuperTrack 3001 Rhythm Folk Blues Shuffle > Logic Pro Grand Steinway > Logic Direction Mixer > Waves CLA Unplugged

Drums:
RealDrums Blues Rock Shuffle > Waves CLA Drums
RealDrums add-ons cut from the above RD audio file
Snare > Neutron 3
Cymbals > Waves JJP Percussion/Cymbals
Toms > Neutron 3

Additionally several drum fills were comped in from a 20 year old Mick Fleetwood sample from Peter

Guitars (All Peter):
Solo 1 & Solo 2 duet
Fills
Rhythm 1 & 2
Riffs

Bass: Marty Straub using, well, whatever the man uses

Mixed in Logic Pro X
Mastering chain: Logic EQ > Waves LinMB > Waves L3 > Izotope Tonal Balance > Logic Loudness Meter

Ms. Janice's lead vocal is so melodically fluid and expressive that she could have recorded it 'a capella' to even more powerful effect. Peter's guitars create a blaze of electrifying sound that heat-up Bud's lyrics like a tuned fire roaring in the background. Marty's bass line is like a nimble, blues-infused cat dancing on the strings. The 'end of a romance' feel of the song is strong and final, a 'Dear John' letter without apologies or regrets. "You're done, hon', so get off my fridge and jump into the water beneath my bridge" !!!

This is really great.

Such a warm, warm sound. Excellent mix. Superb.

Love that album art, too. What program did you use?

Howdy J&B....

This is a very good song.
You two also have a very personal style that is very appealing.
Sweet, subtle harmonies.

Well done....

(I'm glad to see I'm not the only one that crosses that 3:30-4:00 threshold. The 3:30 norm is rarely enough for my writing propensities. )

Have a great day....

You my friend need to write a novel!

The imagery of your descriptions is priceless.

You could damn us with faint praise snd it would still be fun to read. But, no, you have thrown us all accolades that are deeply supportive and appreciated.

And for that we thank you very much!

J&B

As good as it gets!

Janice, Bud, and Peter, you are all at the top of your game on this one. And of course, Marty too.

Great job of "belting it out", Janice! And the harmonies are strong. Peter, love your guitar work on this one. The octave solos really are tasty. Well, everything is tasty, really.

Great mix and production, Bud!

This is good stuff!

Steve

Hi Janice & Bud,

Song: Good song - could maybe do with a bit more light and shade e.g. drop out the backing after the lead break. Also needs a chorus. Could benefit from a middle eight.

Mix - The backing tracks are a little out of time. Either drop some instruments or edit them in your Daw. Also some instruments playing wrong chords in places.

Overall - a good start to a song and working it up will pay dividends.

I know that virtually nobody gives practical advice on this forum - however I only do so when I like a song.

Would love to hear a remix.

Best Regards
Nigel

Nigel,

Sorry it didn’t work for you; however, we disagree on all points. There is a chorus, the tracks are synced and a couple of ace musicians who know much more complex chord structures than this played on it.

Janice & Bud

COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL.The backing vocals are the icing on this sweet cake.
Great playing by Pete n Marty, great singing n phrasing by Janice as well as a perfectly cooked song by Bud - master chef. Nothing needs tweaking...I really enjoyed the song and the anticipation of those backing vox.

Yeah! Another winner, guys and gal.

Janice always makes me smile when I hear her sing, just so good! She must have been a guitarist in a former life, the way she bends those notes

Nice harmony guitar part from Peter, and I always love hearing him play slide, I'm hopeless at that.

Of course Marty is always on the money, one of the best bass players I've ever worked with, that's for sure. Plus a great guy.

Mix is your usual high standard, Bud, always spot on.

P.S. just read the comments from Nigel. Was he listening to the same song??

Janice & Bud,

It's so interesting that this song started as an Americana tune - I can absolutely hear that in the lyric, etc.

Awesome instrumental break - so unique and a great contrast to the song. Excellent arrangement and playing by Peter, Dave & Marty. Also, a very nice touch with the Mick Fleetwood sample.

Janice delivers another outstanding vocal as only she can... Love the phrasing on the word "water" and the overall edge in the performance.

Finally, the mix is big and open - no one rides the board like Bud...

Amazing stuff!

Bob

Hi Guys,

I'm just trying to help.

I've listened several more times and there is definitely something out of time on the off-beat. Does not sound like the Bass - I think it may be the Drums or Rhythm guitar.

In either case - very easy to tighten this up in your DAW.

Best Regards
Nigel

Thanks David. I use several specialty photo editors but for general work my go to is the on line version of PicMonkey.

To remove backgrounds I use PhotoScissors. And to clean up and remove small objects, e.g., power lines, etc., I like Retouch.

Glad you liked it!

This was excellent. What a cool groove to this song. Super vocal and the harmonies were excellent. Excellent playing from Peter and Marty. The song is so well put together Bud. Well done..

J&B, Peter, Marty,

Plus one to what Ray said: "COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL.The backing vocals are the icing on this sweet cake.
Great playing by Pete n Marty, great singing n phrasing by Janice as well as a perfectly cooked song by Bud - master chef. Nothing needs tweaking...I really enjoyed the song and the anticipation of those backing vox."
That bouncing piano sounds great - so low its a spine tingler in the background.

Very, very good!

Well Janice & Bud, another very fine production as usual. With such names in the bill no one can expect nothing else but a masterpiece.
Wow, Wow, Wow!

Mike B.

J&B, Peter, Marty,
Fun and creative collaboration. Janice at her best! She really is the heart of this tune. That middle guitar solo, or bridge or whatever it was (does it really matter?)...simply stunning!! Love those off chords! Marty, wonderful playing! Seems you are in high demand here Bud...Super!

It amazes me how well you do your musical things without multi million dollar studios and army of co-writers and producers. Congrats on this cool song, and thank you for sharing.

Misha.

Thanks for the kind words! I think that 3:30 norm has kinda fallen by the wayside with radio programming. Glad you liked it.

J&B

Thanks Steve for all of that...and, yep, we liked those solos a lot!

J&B

Janice, Bud & Peter, Thanks so much for the opportunity to play with you guys. What a wonderfully fun song to play. Janice's voice is always such a treat to listen to, and, Peter, that is really an awesome solo that would make even JS Bach smile. Bud, you are the master. I've learned so much from you. Thank you all again.

J&B&P&M...

Nice opening! Gets the ear ready for what is to come...

Spine-tinglin' vocals! AND BGVs!! Good as it gets.

The Band has a great groove. Peter's guitar, Marty's bass and the piano and drums...Rock Solid.

Pro-level mix. Perfect.

"TODAY I TOOK OUR PICTURE OFF THE FRIDGE
NOW YOU’RE JUST WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE"

Nice!!!

Y'all are firing on all cylinders.

Cool album cover!!

fj

Thanks Ray. You mentioned everything we’d hope to achieve. It was a fun project and thanks for mentioning the mix.

We all appreciate it!

J&B

Hi Janice & bud,

Very nice composition. It's a nice team effort. I love the well-placed second voice of Janice (I remember the vst). It's a beautiful arrangement that I appreciated. Professional work than usual. And "Bravo" to the whole team.

Kindly regard
Derochette
alias JaniJackFlash

Anther enjoyable collaboration, folks. Great mix. Goes without saying that Janice's vocal is excellent, but what continues to amaze me is the magic she works with the backing vocals. So good. Also kind of goes without saying that I admire my partner in crime's guitar playing but he certainly adds some fine touches to this one, as does Marty.
Regards,
Leon

Another fine collaboration. All cylinders burning. Well written, well performed, well produced.

Really liking the staggered backing vocals!

Of course, Janice's lead is always the star, along with Peter on the guitar.

You can take all your baggage / and lighten my load

Nice write, too!

It's a bit "busier" than your usual arrangement, but no less enjoyable!

Dave, wish you could hear Janice scatting a blues guitar solo! Really.

Yep, we much liked what Peter played and it was very cool to work with Marty. Great bass players add so much to a tune - little subtleties that accent vocals and solos. And we have and continue to enjoy his photo books.

Thanks for mentioning the mix. I was challenged by all the drum parts but Logic Pro’s Groove Track immediately locks them all dead on to the RD.

Thanks for all!

J&B

Bob, thanks a LOT for those comments. We appreciate it and even more so given how much we enjoy your productions!

J&B

Glad it all worked for you Scott. We appreciate it.

J&B

Hi Team,

Fabulous.

Relaxed but powerful.

Professional performances all round.

Clever lyrics.

Janice - you already know the things I usually say!

Great mix - got the sound of a live band and works well up LOUD without breaking up.

Loved it.

ROG.

A Million dollar team effort by a million dollar band and production team. This is about as good as it gets without really having that million dollars to get it there. Powerful production and performance on every level.

Charlie

Hi guys great work all of you Janice vocals are always excellent and peter always knows exactly the right phrasing and tone and Marty ,s excellent bass work always look forward to here you guys Eric

Love that slinky feel to this one. Nice undercurrent bass line.

Janice's voice has a slightly different tone in this song...sort of a light sweetness.

Oh god, love that guitar solo. Kudos Peter.

Another good song here. As usual! I didn't really realise that BIAB had such loose sounding drums... it continues to surprise me...

Thanks Robert for all. And extra thanks for mentioning the mix and the piano. It took a little work to get it to cooperate with all the other tracks but afterwards it seemed to do its job well.

Most appreciated!

J&B

What a great group effort.

Everything shines, and clearly a lot of talent has been encapsulated in this production.

Great.

Thanks Mike for the nice comments!

J&B

Cool vox and harmonies Janice. KUdos to all involved. I don't get to listen as much as I'd like any more - glad I didn't miss this one.
Josie

Wow! Man, your are most generous with those comments and we all greatly appreciate them. It’s been quite the journey from traditional bluegrass to productions likes this. You make us feel it’s all been worthwhile. Thank you!

J&B

Thanks for all the comments relating to my part on this song.

It's always a privilege to work with Janice & Bud and in this case Marty who I thank for the "Bach" comment!

Peter

Congrats on a wonderful song from the Ameriblock genre. It's like a friend of mine once told me, "Americana is like a a whole lot of little tents." I'm pretty sure I got that right.

Anyway, I think the morphing may have brought a new spice to the mix that give it a nice flavor.

Peter-really great job on the arrangement, the guitar tracks, and the drums. Having arranging ability shows in your playing and considerations. Those toms are their own song to me. Jaw dropping. Great job!

Marty-It's all about that bass, that bass, no treble. Well played! Sorry to say, but it didn't surprise me that it sounded so good. If it would have been sub-par would have been the surprise. As ALWAYS, exactly what is needed.

To all of the Janice's-I am going work on improving my vocabulary. Wow! Isn't cutting it anymore.
Most singers try to hit notes like dots on a page.
Janice "No...listen, you connect the dots!"
It sounds MUCH better thanks to your ability to do that. It's more than just being able to hear. It's more than just being able to "hit a note." It's realizing that emotion is a flowing at various rates of pitch and tempo. That you feel rhythm does NOT go unoticed! I hear your influences in the arrangement as well.

Bud-You took great parts and showcased them. That takes a talent that I will never understand beyond extreme appreciation for it. Take it from someone who could take those same great performances and make them sound horrible! I hope by now you know that your stage is one I always am grateful to be in the audience for.
Tight lyrics written well. Some interesting rhymes for sure, which don't sound forced in delivery at all.

As far as the cover, it certainly grabs your attention between the color and the Janice's expression. I know people have hired others to play or sing on their songs; but is this where we are at with album covers? We're hiring models now?

PGMusic-I didn't catch your real name, but great job. You seem to be a bit of a Jack and Jill of all trades. (Hey, I may have a lyric there? Someone's probably done it already) Anyway, it seems you are making a big splash around here. I feel like somehow you are part of so many projects I've heard. That's right, I'm really paying attention; and not much gets by me! From what I can tell, you are inspiring a lot of people around these parts. Keep up the great work PG!

I so enjoyed the every aspect of this. Thanks for that!

It was our pleasure. All the way.

Thanks for the kind words!

J&B

Janice & Bud - Peter & Marty ...

It seems every time I hear one of your songs, I feel like the five-year-old kid I once was (in prehistoric times!) who had his hand in the cookie jar and didn't get caught! I got all the sweetness with a fabulous taste and left with a big smile on my face.

Tasteful, classy, nicely-assembled and perfectly delivered. A well-oiled machine with some extremely smooth-running parts. Purrs like a kitten and makes you smile. All the accolades had been used before I got here, so I couldn't think of a better way to say - damn, that's good!

Wishing all of you the very best. Take care ...

Alan

Thanks mr jane for all of the kind words AND having you quote a lyric is extra special!

J&B

I thought at first I was listening to Linda Ronstadt, the music flows that smoothly. Love it!!

We appreciate that!!

J&B

Another AAA production from the team. I can hear how that hook couplet inspired you to write a song around it, it would me. "Picture on the fridge, water under the bridge." Great stuff. Also dug the slide solo. Great work by all the team members!

Thanks Leon. Generally I (Bud) never know what’s in her head until recording time and when it comes to the BGV’s she makes it up a bit as we go. I’m just along for the rides!

Glad you liked it.

J&B



Thanks!

J&B

Thanks! Appreciate the mention of the lyric. Yeah it’s a bit denser … trying to pretend I know what I’m doing with a more like rock groove

J&B

Thanks ROG for every word! And extra thanks for mentioning the live feel as that is our hoped for objective.

J&B

Hi Janice, Marty, Peter and Bud,

What a good team you are! And what a good song you made!
When the harmony vocals come in the song gets an even higher vibe or maybe I must say some more swing. That makes it all very pleasing to listen to.
The lyrics are very visual and beside that I don't like the idea of being water under someones'bridge, they are well written.

A day ago I asked Floyd if he could remain humble under so much attention for his oeuvre, but the same goes for you too. wow, what a lot of -deserved- compliments!

Hans

Charlie, we know you have longstanding high end production chops and that makes your comments very meaningful to us.

Thanks!

J&B

Tasty collaboration.

moto

Thanks Eric!

J&B



Thanks for all of that! We are delighted it worked for you.

J&B

Thanks Chris. A little DAW tweaking can always help a RD sound more supportive of a particular song. Glad you like it. I’m assuming loose is good

J&B



Thanks!

J&B

Thanks and great to see you back around!

J&B

When we first read this we were speechless and pretty much remain so now. Wow!
It's difficult to describe how inspiring those words are. We all thank you so much.
And extra thanks for mentioning the photo as Janice reluctantly tolerates me talking
her into such. She defines modesty And even more thanks for mentioning the drums
as there were so many tracks my head was spinning trying to put them together.
And Janice much appreciates your comments on the "bent note" singing!

Best to you and the family,

J&B

Thanks Al. Those are kind, generous words that are sincerely appreciated!

Best to you both!

J&B




Now that is a huge compliment. Thank you!

J&B

Thanks! Glad you liked the hook as I had my doubts. We appreciate your remarks.

J&B



Thank you Hans! Now that water under the bridge idiom just means time gone by - we don’t want to drown anybody

We are always humbled and greatly appreciative of nice comments. We never take it for granted!

J&B



Thanks!

J&B