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#620593 - 10/25/20 04:21 PM [User Showcase] It Sometimes Works That Way
Registered: 12/12/11
Posts: 3308
Loc: York, England
ROG Offline
Veteran

Registered: 12/12/11
Posts: 3308
Loc: York, England
Hi All,

A little bit of throw-away Blues-Rock from me and Eddie.
The acoustic rhythm guitar, the OOHs and the Sax are all RTs.
The other guitars, the brass (Edirol) and Hammond (Trio) are mine.
Drums, as usual are our own samples, played back through Drum Source.
Eddie is on lead vocals and I'm putting in the harmony voices.

IT SOMETIMES WORKS THAT WAY
Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose
It makes no difference, which way you choose
It doesn't matter, the game you're in
You may lose but lawyers always win
It doesn't matter, there's nothing to say
There's nothing to do because it sometimes works that way

You pay your money, you make your choice
You've got a vote, so use your voice
But when you do, you see it plain
The faces change but things stay the same
It doesn't matter, there's nothing to say
There's nothing to do because it sometimes works that way

You go to work, you earn your pay
The same old grind, the same old way
Just keep it quiet, don't make a sound
'Cos credit travels up, and blame travels down
It doesn't matter, there's nothing to say
There's nothing to do because it sometimes works that way

Many thanks to everyone who gives it a listen.
Cheers,
ROG

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#620599 - 10/25/20 05:57 PM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 06/09/16
Posts: 3357
Robertkc Offline
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Registered: 06/09/16
Posts: 3357
ROG & Eddie,

Just keep it quiet, don't make a sound
'Cos credit travels up, and blame travels down
It doesn't matter, there's nothing to say
There's nothing to do because it sometimes works that way

isn`t that the truth- great lyrics!
The music somehow makes the message good fun, so job done you guys.
Love the brass and, as always your drum sound is among the best I hear on the forum ( you could market those samples).
Well done.

Robert

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#620608 - 10/25/20 09:44 PM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 04/02/19
Posts: 676
Loc: Canberra, Australia
Leon1 Offline
Journeyman

Registered: 04/02/19
Posts: 676
Loc: Canberra, Australia
Very nice collaboration, guys. Well sung and played. I was also struck by that 'credit travels up, and blame travels down' line. Too true.
Regards,
Leon

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#620624 - 10/26/20 02:10 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 08/10/12
Posts: 11094
Loc: Florida
floyd jane Offline
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Registered: 08/10/12
Posts: 11094
Loc: Florida
The combination of brass, organ and guitar is really well done.
Bass and drums sound good. All the elements work, in fact.
Oohs and BGVs are nice. Sax sounds like it was custom done..

A nice rhythm throughout. A good listen. Great mix.

fj

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#620629 - 10/26/20 02:41 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 05/05/18
Posts: 1838
Loc: United Kingdom
musician17 Offline
Expert

Registered: 05/05/18
Posts: 1838
Loc: United Kingdom
Just great. An excellent example of the Blues done right.
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#620632 - 10/26/20 03:49 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 04/13/16
Posts: 5918
Loc: Cooran Queensland Australia
rayc Offline
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Registered: 04/13/16
Posts: 5918
Loc: Cooran Queensland Australia
Cool - an abrupt beginning but you integrated the RTs ell. The horn section is pretty cool given the source.
Well done.
The harmony vocals do sound a little synthesized though.
Oh, the return from the break is weird - what did you do?
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"What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe

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#620634 - 10/26/20 03:54 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 11/30/07
Posts: 4859
Loc: Ontario, Canada
BlueAttitude Offline
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Registered: 11/30/07
Posts: 4859
Loc: Ontario, Canada


Loved the arrangement with the horns and nice use of the "Oohs".

Nice guitar hook, ROG. I was hoping for a solo, but the sax solo certainly worked well. Good vocals, and pro mix.

Sounds great guys, certainly not throw-away!

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#620659 - 10/26/20 07:00 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 12/08/11
Posts: 7267
Loc: Edmonton, Ab, Canada
Scott C Offline
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Registered: 12/08/11
Posts: 7267
Loc: Edmonton, Ab, Canada
Boy do I love the rhythm on this track. That horn section wowser. Very cool vocal. Got a Randy Bachman vibe. Guitar was excellent. Loved this tune
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#620671 - 10/26/20 08:06 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 01/06/20
Posts: 1749
Loc: Illinois
CaptainMoto Offline
Expert

Registered: 01/06/20
Posts: 1749
Loc: Illinois
Nice thick sound.
Just enough ear candy to keep it moving and interesting.
Love the vocals.

Well done1

moto
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#620757 - 10/27/20 02:23 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 02/03/16
Posts: 1675
Loc: Germany
Crossroads Offline
Expert

Registered: 02/03/16
Posts: 1675
Loc: Germany
Hi Rog,

yeah, that's what a good blues song needs: lack of illusions and a good bunch of pessimism. Although I disagree with verse #2 I really enjoyed the lyrics a lot !!!!

I was so pleased to hear you used brass - we don't hear that very often here. And they fitted like a glove - very well done, I think.

I also liked the approach of throwing in those 'un-bluesily' sounding vocals.

It's about 10 a.m. over here - that was a great song to begin the day with !!!!

Take care,

Stefan

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#620824 - 10/27/20 12:30 PM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 12/05/11
Posts: 13326
Loc: GA USA
Janice & Bud Offline
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Registered: 12/05/11
Posts: 13326
Loc: GA USA
Well, it had Janice doing a Blues Brothers shuffle dance from the get go smile

Shuffle blues are square in the middle of our wheelhouse so no problem enjoying this.

Good vocal and instrumental performances all the way. You on bass Rog? Nice.

All wrapped up in a great soundstage mix.

Well done y'all!

J&B
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#620863 - 10/27/20 05:36 PM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 12/21/13
Posts: 6793
Loc: Davis, CA
Greg Johnson Offline
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Registered: 12/21/13
Posts: 6793
Loc: Davis, CA
Love it!! A good dose of cynicism can be cathartic at times!! Love this line:

Cos credit travels up, and blame travels down

Is that an original? Great stuff!! Take care. Greg

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#620877 - 10/27/20 07:05 PM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: Greg Johnson]
Registered: 04/08/11
Posts: 7144
Loc: Akron, Oh
eddie1261 Online   content
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Registered: 04/08/11
Posts: 7144
Loc: Akron, Oh
Originally Posted By: Greg Johnson
Love it!! A good dose of cynicism can be cathartic at times!! Love this line:

Cos credit travels up, and blame travels down

Is that an original? Great stuff!! Take care. Greg


Rog wrote it. I did some minor lyric tweaking just to make syllables line up with the pulses in the rhythm and sang it. Often I add a verse, or replace a verse, or have to totally crate a verse to add to what Rog sends over. In this case, the lyrics he wrote were the lyrics I would have written so this one was easy for me. Just a few passes singing it to give him something to cut and paste for accuracy and timing and it was done.
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#620907 - 10/28/20 05:27 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 09/30/16
Posts: 2027
Loc: Netherlands, Haarlem
Birchwood Offline
Veteran

Registered: 09/30/16
Posts: 2027
Loc: Netherlands, Haarlem
Hi Rog and Eddy,

What a nice Blues you delivered. I liked it. I didn't do any shuffle like Janice did, but it moved my feet. That means the song is good, or cool. I was also positively surprised the horns worked out so well. I rarely use them in my songs (once, I think) but here they accentuate or cary the mood of the song very well!
I do agree with Ray thought that those harmony vocals can use a bit of Melodyne.

But beside that, I really enjoyed this song!
Hans
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#620911 - 10/28/20 05:58 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 02/15/17
Posts: 3414
Deryk - PG Music Offline
PG Music Staff

Registered: 02/15/17
Posts: 3414
Very good work here - the arrangement is spot on, and the lyrics are delivered perfectly, as well as being all to relatable. Nicely catchy as well. I wouldn't change a thing here - thanks for sharing smile
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Cheers,
Deryk

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#620924 - 10/28/20 07:26 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 12/26/11
Posts: 2604
F.M.M. Offline
Veteran

Registered: 12/26/11
Posts: 2604
Hi Rog and Eddie i thought this was excellent loved the vocals guitars the mix and the lyrics were awesome thanks for sharing Eric
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#620926 - 10/28/20 07:31 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: Robertkc]
Registered: 12/12/11
Posts: 3308
Loc: York, England
ROG Offline
Veteran

Registered: 12/12/11
Posts: 3308
Loc: York, England
Originally Posted By: Robertkc
ROG & Eddie,

Just keep it quiet, don't make a sound
'Cos credit travels up, and blame travels down
It doesn't matter, there's nothing to say
There's nothing to do because it sometimes works that way

isn`t that the truth- great lyrics!
The music somehow makes the message good fun, so job done you guys.
Love the brass and, as always your drum sound is among the best I hear on the forum ( you could market those samples).
Well done.

Robert

Hi Robert,

Many thanks for all the kind comments, especially about the drums. I've been
building up the samples for over thirty years and the 80s one's started out as
eight-bit samples, but they still work well.

A few people have picked up on the line "credit travels up and blame travels down"
so let me explain where it comes from. For much of my life I've done session work
and this is a phrase which was in common use amongst session musicians. If a song
was a "hit", then the band took the credit, but if it was a "flop" then the band
blamed the producer, who in turn blamed the engineer, who then blamed the session
musicians. The session musicians just developed thick skins.

Once again, many thanks for the review.

ROG.

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#620927 - 10/28/20 07:33 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: Leon1]
Registered: 12/12/11
Posts: 3308
Loc: York, England
ROG Offline
Veteran

Registered: 12/12/11
Posts: 3308
Loc: York, England
Originally Posted By: Leon1
Very nice collaboration, guys. Well sung and played. I was also struck by that 'credit travels up, and blame travels down' line. Too true.
Regards,
Leon

Hi Leon,
Thanks for the listen and review.
See my reply to Robert about THAT line!
Cheers,
ROG.

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#620928 - 10/28/20 07:42 AM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 04/08/11
Posts: 7144
Loc: Akron, Oh
eddie1261 Online   content
Veteran

Registered: 04/08/11
Posts: 7144
Loc: Akron, Oh
Originally Posted By: ROG

A few people have picked up on the line "credit travels up and blame travels down"
so let me explain where it comes from. For much of my life I've done session work
and this is a phrase which was in common use amongst session musicians. If a song
was a "hit", then the band took the credit, but if it was a "flop" then the band
blamed the producer, who in turn blamed the engineer, who then blamed the session
musicians. The session musicians just developed thick skins.


That is a perfect metaphor for life in general as well. The people doing the actual work get nothing and their boss gets the promotion and pay raise. But boy, let a server go down at 3:41am.....
_________________________
I remember when my last wife told me how impressed she was with the Thermos because it keeps hot stuff hot and cold stuff cold. She said "I mean, how does it know??" Though she also thought AAA was for really bad alcoholics, so...

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#620993 - 10/28/20 11:44 PM [User Showcase] Re: It Sometimes Works That Way [Re: ROG]
Registered: 12/06/03
Posts: 5301
Loc: Sydney Australia
PeterF Offline
Veteran

Registered: 12/06/03
Posts: 5301
Loc: Sydney Australia
Rog

A very impressive blues - well sung by Eddie. Nice horn arrangement, guitar playing and lyric.

Enjoyed the song and production.

Peter

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