I was never really happy with the original version, only posted last February, so I created this new and simpler instrumental, which is over a minute shorter than the former. The shorter time also simplified the video as I didn't have to repeat images other than the original one I also use for the title page.
I hadn't intended posting this until much later in the year, but a new vocal song with a trio of female backing vocalists which I hoped to post around the 1st of May has run into some BV snags. Hopefully that'll be ready for posting within a couple of weeks.
Electric Piano: Circle Ambient Lap Steel: Jeff Lorber Synth: Jovian Divine Alt Rock Multi ~ uncredited Organ: Giddy Up Country Ballad w Organ: Blair Masters Bass: Country Rock Guitar Solo, Pop Ba ~ Tobin Frank Piano: Pop Ballad Solo Acoustic Piano ~ John Jarvis *Drums: Country Rock Guitar Solo, Pop Ba ~ Brian Fullen 1st & 2nd Rhythm Guitars: Jovian Divine Alt Rock Soloing ~ Mike Durham 1st Guitar Solo: Bricks Indie Rock w Guitar Solo ~ Mike Durham 3rd Rhythm Guitar: Granite Hard Rock w Guitar Solo ~ Craig Northey 4th Rhythm Guitar: Granite Hard Rock w Guitar Solo ~ Murray Atkinson **2nd Guitar Solo: Praise & Worship w/ Power Pop So ~ Dave Cleveland
* I mastered the drums stem in Soren AI Mastering (generally a crap program!) which gave them more treble, but I kept them in as after the first drum roll you can actually hear the crash cymbal crash, which is probably the first time I've heard such in BiaB drum samples! ** The 2nd guitar solo is a hybrid of 2 samples.
C / 115bpm / 112 bars / 4:04
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Nice, Chay. You've really mastered the art of the dynamic build. And once you get the band up on the plateau you always provide an appealing array of musical textures to keep the energy going. Don't recognize this tune specifically, but it has all the expected WaoBand elements: Pulsing rhythms, slithery changes and soaring solos. The guitarist(s) in this one especially shines.
An interesting musical journey, all expertly done...again.
Good luck with the issues you mentioned in your post!
DC Ron BiaB Audiophile Presonus Studio One ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM Presonus Faderport 16 Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
Well done, Chay. When i first heard it on YT i searched for the old one to compare. i remember really liking it. This version is really really well done. It has that magical incredient that you manage to cook in every one, then you get the best players to play their part and feature them brillinaly in your mix. Very enjoyable music.
Enjoy whatever happens! marty
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@babumusic51 SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/marty-straub Band in a Box, Reaper, Cakewalk, Ozone 12, EZDrummer
Hi Chay! It dawned on me during my second listen that you have a knack of creating cohesion without the use of structured melody by using chord progressions and soloists. This makes it more about the journey through the piece than listening for repeating melodic phrases. That’s an art! Andrew
Chay, a lot of energy in this one. Great use of RTs. Loved that drum track and those guitar leads were fantastic. Loved the groove, mix, and the song. IMHO this is your best to date.
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64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
Chay, A great instrumental expertly arranged and mixed. Some really nice guitar parts here. Love the groove! Bob
Thanks, Bob! It's definitely a better instumental than the original. This year I've struggled with instrumentals as all of the experiments I've tried haven't suited solos, which I normally find easy, so I kept this one simple with just the two guitar solos.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Nice, Chay. You've really mastered the art of the dynamic build. And once you get the band up on the plateau you always provide an appealing array of musical textures to keep the energy going. Don't recognize this tune specifically, but it has all the expected WaoBand elements: Pulsing rhythms, slithery changes and soaring solos. The guitarist(s) in this one especially shines. An interesting musical journey, all expertly done...again. Good luck with the issues you mentioned in your post!
Thanks for the great response, Ron! I'm still struggling to get more or replacement backing vocals for my first Chay-sung song. It could be posted without any BVs. But that the partial yet incomplete BVs that I already have really add some sparkle.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Well done, Chay. When i first heard it on YT i searched for the old one to compare. i remember really liking it. This version is really really well done. It has that magical incredient that you manage to cook in every one, then you get the best players to play their part and feature them brillinaly in your mix. Very enjoyable music.
Thanks, Marty. As I replied to Bob Dean, this year I've struggled getting fitting solos for the chord structure experiments I've always got in progress. And in the original version of this - now 100% deleted everywhere - I didn't feel they worked as well as usual. This new version started out longer and I wanted 3 solos in it, but I couldn't find any non-guitar solos which worked, so I simplified it a little and just used 2 guitar solos together and it works much better. The only other time I've just used 2 guitar soloists was in "Reigning Guitars".
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Excellent work on the guitar sound for a catchy song. Laurent
Thankk you, Laurent! Much appreciated.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Chay, Nice instrumental. Good build. Good drive... Especially like the guitars. Nice mix.
Many thanks, Floyd! Appreciated.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Hi Chay! It dawned on me during my second listen that you have a knack of creating cohesion without the use of structured melody by using chord progressions and soloists. This makes it more about the journey through the piece than listening for repeating melodic phrases. That’s an art! Andrew
Thanks, Andy! Yes, creating melodies or recurring phrases or choruses is extremely hard when using nothing but BiaB. The only time out of over 40 instrumentals that I managed to get a recurring theme was in "Rachael's Theme" from last September, but even then I had to do a lot of cutting sections of samples and pasting' to where the next repeated chord sequence appeared. That can take hours as one has to paste the cut section in exactly the right place and it has to be to the 100th of a second otherwise it feels or sounds just off.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Chay, a lot of energy in this one. Great use of RTs. Loved that drum track and those guitar leads were fantastic. Loved the groove, mix, and the song. IMHO this is your best to date.
Thanks, Mario, but this must be something like the 8th or 9th time you've written "IMHO this is your best to date!" I don't mind you saying that, of course but I find it impossible to make comparisons with other instrumentals as so many are unique. I have a 45 minute 'A' playlist of 11 of my favourite tracks (out of over 40 now), but I find it impossible to say that any are better than the others as they're mostly very different.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Hi, Chay. Sounds good - well mixed, coherent, and a nice build.
Thank you, David. Most appreciated.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
I echo Ron's comments. Good listening and nicely arranged.
Appreciated, EZ Storm! Thanks for listening and responding!
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
I can't remember the original version, but I like this one, Chay. Good build, and a good selection of instruments. I'm not usually a big fan of those 60s organ sounds, but they really work well here. Enjoyed my listen
Ja, ik herinner me die eerdere versie. Niet in detail, geef ik toe. Ik weet nog dat ik hem goed vond, maar nu heb je het nummer meer energie gegeven.
Voor zover ik me kan herinneren, heb je de piano en een aantal dingen in de ritmesectie veranderd. De ritme gitaar en zelfs de sologitaar speelden, zoals ik al zei, met echt meer energie. Erg mooi geworden!
Very nice instrumental. I especially liked 2:37 where the guitar brought the piece to the next level. I think we all try to do that but often come up short. Great job!
Windows 11, Intel Core I5 10400, 16 gig ram, Scarlett 2i2, Sony Acid Music Studio 10, BIAB 2020 UltraPlus Pak
I can't remember the original version, but I like this one, Chay. Good build, and a good selection of instruments. I'm not usually a big fan of those 60s organ sounds, but they really work well here. Enjoyed my listen
Thanks, Brian! Always happy to be your organ donor! Re your current love song - I forgot to ask this in my response to it - are you an American who married a German gem?
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Hi Chay, Ja, ik herinner me die eerdere versie. Niet in detail, geef ik toe. Ik weet nog dat ik hem goed vond, maar nu heb je het nummer meer energie gegeven. Voor zover ik me kan herinneren, heb je de piano en een aantal dingen in de ritmesectie veranderd. De ritme gitaar en zelfs de sologitaar speelden, zoals ik al zei, met echt meer energie. Erg mooi geworden! Hans
Thanls, Hans! I had to go online for a Dutch translation as while I do speak 'double-dutch' and way too often, I don't speak Dutch itself!
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Very nice instrumental. I especially liked 2:37 where the guitar brought the piece to the next level. I think we all try to do that but often come up short. Great job!
Thanks, John! Because I'm so limited regarding music programs - all I use is BiaB and Audacity as I have no disk space for anything else - I have to pay special attention to dynamics. In the first solo I had to bring in 2 extra rhythm guitars to change gear a little as without them that solo would have gone on too long, but that second solo gives the real extra push which was very much needed.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Well I like these sounds so much that I made a screenshot of all the instruments that you used so that I can use them myself.
😅
Really well done, it's got a very movie-esque or cinematic quality to it, I.e. I think it would be great for sync.
I think you're getting better and better at this as you go. The textures and layering choices of the instruments and overall production quality on this one is very impressive.
David Snyder Songwriter/Renaissance Man Studio + Fingers
Well I like these sounds so much that I made a screenshot of all the instruments that you used so that I can use them myself. 😅 Really well done, it's got a very movie-esque or cinematic quality to it, I.e. I think it would be great for sync. I think you're getting better and better at this as you go. The textures and layering choices of the instruments and overall production quality on this one is very impressive.
Thanks so much David. Really appreciated!
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Re your current love song - I forgot to ask this in my response to it - are you an American who married a German gem?
Nope, I'm German who married a German gem (with Italian roots)
Nay you ♪ and she ♫ dance forever! (the 3rd great love of my life was Italian)
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
That's a heckuva group of session guys you put together. Really standout guitar solos.
Nice mix ... remarkable how open you can make that many tracks sound.
Enjoyed it,
J&B
Our albums and singles are on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Pandora and more. If interested search on Janice Merritt. Thanks! A few of our videos are here on our website: https://www.janiceandbud.com/our-music.html
I can't remember the original version, but I like this one, Chay. Good build, and a good selection of instruments. I'm not usually a big fan of those 60s organ sounds, but they really work well here. Enjoyed my listen
Many thanks, Brian. Now that it's deleted I can't recall what the original one was like either!
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
That's a heckuva group of session guys you put together. Really standout guitar solos. Nice mix ... remarkable how open you can make that many tracks sound. Enjoyed it, J&B
Thanks, J&B! I wonder if that open sound is due to no mastering? I wonder based on only having tried Soren AI Mastering (due to inordinate lack of space on my PC), which I've found useless for both song songs and instrumentals, plus when trying it out on single stems it automatically centres channel biases.
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Hi Chay. I listened first before I read your post. I was thinking "this is made for a vocal". Carry on. Vic
I'll keep in mind that you thought "this is made for a vocal" as I predominantly want to be focussing on sung songs. I listened to the Audacity mix without the solos and wasn't inspired, but then listening again I thought that if the vocals followed most of the notes of the opening solo it could really well. Thanks for that idea!
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
Loved this Chay. Really cool melody. Excellent instrumentation choices. Super production and mix. Well done
Thanks for listening and responding, Scott. Much appreciated!
Some favourite Waoist Adages: #1: Play on the Way. #13: Ask not for whom the flower blooms, it blooms for you. #58: Bring consciousness to it. #63: On the road to effortlessness, effort must be made. #92: Be Love Now, the rest will come on its own.
zplane recently interviewed Peter Gannon, the founder and creator of Band-in-a-Box, about the software's early days, what sets it apart from AI, how zplane's audio algorithms are used in Band-in-a-Box, and more!
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Last Chance! The Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® Special Ends Today (May 31, 2026) at 11:59pm PDT!
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Another exciting new addition is the amazing new AI-Notes feature, which can transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI. View the results in notation or play them back as MIDI, and choose whether to transcribe an entire track or transcribe specific parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®.
There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
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Band-in-a-Box® 2026 is packed with major new features, enhancements, and an incredible lineup of new content! The program now sports a sleek, modern GUI redesign across the entire interface, including updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, a new dark mode option, and more. The brand-new side toolbar provides quicker access to key windows, while the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, creating a flexible, clutter-free workspace. We have an amazing new “AI-Notes” feature. This transcribes polyphonic audio into MIDI so you can view it in notation or play it back as MIDI. You can transcribe an entire track (all pitched instruments and drums) or focus on individual parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
There are over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®.
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202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!
With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Funk & World (Sets 468-475):
Our new jazz, funk & blues RealTracks include a groovin’ collection of RealTracks and RealDrums! These include more requested “soul jazz” RealTracks featuring artists Neil Swainson (bass), Charles Treadway (organ), Brent Mason (guitar), and Wes Little (drums). There are new “smooth jazz” styles (4), which include a RealTracks first: muted trumpet, as well as slick new smooth jazz brushes options for drums. Blues lovers will be thrilled—there are more “classic acoustic blues” styles, including guitar (5), bass (4), and drums (10) with blues master Colin Linden, featuring understated and tasty background acoustic soloing, plus brushes drums and acoustic bass. There are also new electric blues RealTracks, including electric blues with PG favorite Johnny Hiland (3) and soulful electric slide guitar from Colin Linden (4). If you love funk & gospel, there are great new options this year, including gospel organ (3) from Charles Treadway, as well as new funk, tango, and rock ’n’ roll drums (3) and bass (1). And for big, bold arrangements, we have uptempo soul horns (4) featuring a three-part hip horn section with options for a full mix or stems of each individual horn — plus an accompanying rhythm section (4) of drums, bass, guitar, and electric piano!
Rock & Pop (Sets 476–482):
Our new rock & pop RealTracks bring a powerful mix of requested favorites, fresh genres, and modern chart-inspired styles! We have more of our popular “Producer Layered Acoustic Guitars (15)” featuring Band-in-a-Box favorite Brent Mason. We’ve continued our much-requested disco styles (10), and added new Celtic guitar (5) with a more basic, accessible approach than our previous Drop-D or DADGAD offerings. There are also highly requested yacht rock styles (17), inspired by the smooth, polished soft-rock sound of the late ’70s and early ’80s — laid-back grooves, silky electric pianos, warm textures, elegant harmonic movement, and pristine production aesthetics. Fans of heavier styles will love our new glam metal (13), capturing the flashy, high-energy sound of ’80s arena-ready guitar rock. We also have a set of rootsy modern-folk rock (18), with a warm, organic sound combining contemporary folk textures and driving acoustic strumming. And we’ve added lots of new modern pop styles (16) — the kinds of sounds you’re hearing on the radio today, featuring exciting new drums, synths, and cutting-edge RealTracks arrangements.
Country, & Americana (Sets 483–488):
Our new country & Americana RealTracks deliver a rich collection of acoustic, electric, and roots-inspired styles! We have new country pop (9) with legendary guitarist Brent Mason. There is also a potpourri (14) of bouzouki, guitars, banjo, and more, perfect for adding texture and character to contemporary acoustic arrangements. We’ve added funky country guitar (5) with PG favorite Brent Mason, along with classic pedal steel styles (5) featuring steel great Doug Jernigan. There are more country songwriter styles (8) that provide intimate, rootsy foundations for storytelling and modern Americana writing. Finally, we have “background soloing” acoustic guitar (12) with Brent Mason — simpler, but still very tasty acoustic lines designed to sit beautifully behind vocals or act as a subtle standalone solo part.
And, if you are looking for more, the 2026 49-PAK (for $49) includes an impressive collection of 20 bonus RealTracks, featuring exciting and inspiring additions to add to your RealTracks library. You'll get new country-rhythm guitar styles from PG Music favorites Johnny Hiland and Brent Mason, along with modern-pop grooves that capture today’s radio-ready sound! There are also new indie-folk styles with guitar, bass, 6-string bass used as a high-chording instrument, acoustic guitar, and banjo. Plus, dedicated "cymbal fills" RealDrums provide an added layer that work very well with low-key folky styles with other percussion.
The 2026 49-PAK is loaded with other great new add-ons as well. Learn more about the 2026 49-PAK!
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but I find it impossible to make comparisons with other instrumentals as so many are unique. I have a 45 minute 'A' playlist of 11 of my favourite tracks (out of over 40 now), but I find it impossible to say that any are better than the others as they're mostly very different.
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