A good instrument will invite a player to reach outside his comfort zone. In my case with having smaller hands, it's stretching for those killer jazz chords!
Melodies from Childhood...
So much of what informs my songwriting is based on the music my folks played for me as a child at home and in the car (8 track of course!).
From dad came the classical stuff. One of the most…
A Little Backyard Magic...
I was recently visiting some dear old friends in the Midwest over the month of May. One night after everyone went off to bed, I stepped out into the back yard to take in the perfect evening weather and listen…
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My First Studio...
I still have the little recording set up from my teen years! The Teac tape machine was purchased in high school on a road trip with family to LA. Later at university, I got the Soundcraft mixer after maxing out…
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So Simple and Yet so Magical
Behold, the Challen piano from Abbey Road Studios! It was used on some very pretty Beatles songs like "Fool on the Hill", "A Day in the Life", "Lady Madonna" and "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da".
Back in August of 2023, I actually got…
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Forgotten Songs from an Old Life
I recently rediscovered a tune I wrote roughly 15 years ago. As the years pass, I'm heartened by these pleasant little surprises that I completely forgot about…
"My heart is open
For all to see
It's been searching out a…
Protect Your Name...
Patti Smith's advice to the artist originally came to her from writer/friend William S. Burroughs. I think it holds true today more than ever…
“Build a good name. Keep your name clean. Don't make compromises, don't worry about making a…
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Playing Around with Player Devices..
Sometimes these Reason player devices deliver very cool sound textures that later can be pulled into song projects. Check it out!
Playing Around with Open Chords
When it comes to songwriting, for me the best results always has come down to a simple acoustic instrument (piano/guitar) along with the human voice. Trouble is, when you constantly go back to those same old chord progressions, you find…
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Your DAW as your Songwriting Partner
So much of the modern craft of songwriting ties in with the software platform we writers choose to use. How intuitive is the user interface or GUI? How rich are the instruments and effects plug-ins? Am I inspired when firing…
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