Zoom Gear & Home Recording Forum

When I started posting my songs on this forum, I told you I was debating on wich song to start with, Lou Blues was the song I could have start with because it is the first original I did after I did all my Beatles covers. I decided to go backwards in time instead of foreward and I gave you my prefered ones first, now I'm left with the 'not so happy with ones'.

My wife bought me this little harmonica in C, so I went downstairs and decided to make a song all in C like tomorrow never knows and picked a very slow 6/8 blues drum beat to start with. I had try to make a few build-up original song but it never worked till the day I got this harmonica. I had never played harmonica before, that explains why there is no harmonica lead, I also still could not lead guitar so even less harmonica. I wanted to call myself RythmManBand but I thought I would improve to 1ManBand with the harmonica! This original Lou Blues was the first of 16 original I made in a 2 years musical window. Then my mrs crashed, my comp crashed, my job crashed, my house crashed and now it's so hard to make a new song!

Here is Lou Blues just to share with you. http://soundcloud.com/1manband-1/lou-blues

Hi Lou....of course you'd want to post your better songs first..who wouldn't? I like the bass sound on this, and the guitar sounds good too............sounds better than my first attempt at something original!...ssbob

Awesome tune, great beat and vibe. Good job on the first harmonic run. Sounds a little like a Sunny tune.

I posted my first song first, and then pretty much in order as I made them. I thought that's what "New Songs" meant. Maybe we should change the name to "Greatest Hits."

Anyway, it sounds real good and clear, I think I like it best of your posts. Snappy, moves right along. I'm really not hearing much harmonica, and what I do think I hear could be a keyboard. How about lead vocal? That would be good.

loooooooouuuuuuuuu Bluuuuueeessssssss....

I like it, it's really catchy.....loads of potential if you wanted to develop it

This has great commercial appeal, IMO. It's like a car commercial, or something young & happy. Very upbeat, and makes me feel like walking/travelling.

The mix is pretty damn good to my ears, and the playing all works. Drums could come up, maybe.

The vocal is corny, but in a good way, like the Beach Boys could be. Also the melody gets in my head.

Nice!

Thanks!

Matty

Louis, this is most definitely a "good times" song. Carefree. Driving fast on a country road, or like having a day off Like Matty said, this has real commercial appeal; the melody has "tv commercial" written all over it.

Great recording! The bass is the right kind of thumpy, but I'd make it a little more trebly (not much more, though)....isn't it cool how a new instrument can inspire you?

I was all ready to tear ya a new one, but this does have a different sound from some of your other 'blues' things so again, you've done a pretty good job not sounding the same once more. Nice job here...
Now it's time to put down the smokes and get back to recording. Looking forward to hearing something new from you.

Sounds like a pro recording from the 70's!
Very cool idea.


You live in Edmonton?

I didn’t know you were posting your back catalogue, better not get me started doing that or we’ll be here all night

Less quirky than usual, but maybe it being a historic track accounts for this.

It’s interesting the way you’ve nearly always got this traditional folk theme running through your songs.

Cheers

Pete

Thanks Bobfishduo, in fact I should have start with the first one and go up the ladder but I was afraid my music would be repulsive to most of you.
You say you like the guitar but there is like 6 guitars on there so I don't know which one to are talking about. The guitar I prefer is the main rythm guitar that comes first. On the other guitars I wanted to show the different fuzz effect I liked from the zoom, they all have a different patch.

Thanks Surfer, in fact it is meant to be a sunny tune before the storm comes in.
'I've put aside my worries to concentrate on a gift'
You don't hear that kind of happy feeling in my songs if there is not a conterpart that goes againt it until the last song that says 'IS THAT IT?'.
I'm pretty happy with the harmonica in there too for a first and last attempt! You have never her it till now means I didn't want to waiste to much time with it yet.

Thanks gwood for the comment and I can understand it is your favorite because it is a commercial song and you can catch what I say on first level right away.

"I'm really not hearing much harmonica, and what I do think I hear could be a keyboard. How about lead vocal? That would be good."
That is the problem I had with my music, I would ask my wife, the only one that I would show my music to at the beguining and I would ask her "This is not done yet, I'm working on the keyboard, can you tell me if it's too loud or too low or just not good or good" and she would reply 'where is the keyboard in there?"

Thanks Tony Jack, you say "catchy, potential, develop it" I agree, I should concentrate on re-doing these songs and give them a little boost.

Thanks for participating and again welcome to our forum msb3671.
I'm with you with the "Wanna make me traveling" I had the best trips in my life just before making Lou Blues and all my songs... I should go back!
I forgot to mention the mix was all made in my Zoom mrs1608, I only cut the last verse with Audacity.
I knew I was going corny there, I wanted to have a Beatle high end singing but totaly missed the first Lou Blues and I am disapointed no one pointed-it out yet, you'r all too kind!
If the melody is in your head then it's a freaking good thing!

Topo your post talks to me a lot! Should they not use it for a Ford Mustang 1974 commercial?
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... 8l9.2l11l0
I tried to change the EQ on audacity but decided to come back to the original WAV from the zoomI had to keep it safe.

Thanks Sungodv for not spanking me too hard!
I'm not gonna put down the smoke yet untill I'm done showing you what I got to show you, if you keep making me feel guilty of posting I'll smoke longer!

I think I do sound the same because I have my own sound and patterns, glad you don't really see it yet, don't get stuck on the first level.

Thanks Guitar Fan Guy! Guy Guy!
The build-up idea is very basic I think, I did not invent anything like The Beatles did or Zappa did but it works so well when I have limited talent to do variations.
Living in Edmonton is not that bad at all, I love it everyday! We have the best winter ever and soon Florida will be up here! Just wait for the polar change! I wish I could have a midnight walk in Paris or Liverpool but I want to comeback to Edmonton! I would never go back to Montreal if it not to see the Musical Box (http://themusicalbox.net/) band or the Stanley cup final! Go Habs Go!

Thanks Pete, I find it very interesting the things you Zoomers tell me, like...
"traditional folk" "quirky"
You guys see things that I don't see at first but then it all makes sense.
If I don't really like this song it is because I find it too commercial and after listening to my album over and over for 2 years this is one of the song I skip even if I had 2-3 good comments on it.

Sounds really good.

An infectious groove and, like others have said, it has a relaxed feel and would suit a car commercial.

Nicely done

Cheers

Dick

Nice little groove. Needs something a bit more for the lead, but could stand as it is. Harmonica is cool. I had a couple of Marine Bands back in my "all acoustic" days but never really got the hang of playing them proper. I managed to do one song "Dylan style" but my fav harp playing is the type like Paul Butterfield and Steve Cash (of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils). I wound up giving my Marine Bands to my kid.

Great job in the recording Dept. Well put together. As mentioned all the parts work together real well. Catchy tune.

"At least the wife didn't crash on ya"

I've had a laptop crash on me, man. I'm actually making all my instrumentals on the iPhone. Surprisingly, that's working well. The tune does sound happy and carefree. I visualized a happy dog with his paws on the door of a car and his tongue wagging while hanging his head out of the window. All the time, the driver and his wife are looking like "This day couldn't be better!" Then, they stop at a picnic site. The whole time, some spokesperson is talking about an erectile dysfunction product or something. Yeah.. very commercial if I could see all that while listening. Good Job! And I agree "At least the wife didn't crash on you."

Thanks dickl for this comment
It's not the first time I hear "infectious" and these are rewarding words to read.

Thanks voclizr for this comment
It's not the first time I hear "Nice groove" and these are rewarding words to read.
It was a Marine Band and only Maxime knows where it is now!

Thanks ron-e-g for the recording comment and the put together, this song was very easy to do at the time, I finaly had my mrs under controll before it crashed. Losing my wife would be the worse thing that could happen for me and for her, I always thought losing my mrs and my music was nothing compare to the great life I have everyday.

Thanks jdeyebrows, your comment was very interesting as it tells me you can read well and understand fast. I now always drive with a German Sheppard beside me and I open his window when I drive to work listening to Lou Blues!

This is pretty cool. I agree that it has kind of a "commercial" vibe to it, probably because there's never anything that takes a real lead, allowing it to fit into the background pretty well. Not grabbing your attention, but making you feel happy. A little too happy and carefree to call blues, maybe.

Nice.