Pinky toe in the awesome ocean

I arrived at Parlor Productions around 9:30 yesterday morning as some of the session players were chatting in the parking lot before load in. Producer and co-owner Larry Sheridan gave me a tour of the studio and introduced me to everybody as they set up.

By 10:10, the band was ready and all the players came into the control room to review the chart that band leader and co-owner Robin Ruddy had prepared the night before. Larry said he and Robin had an idea to change my chromatic walk-down so the music didn’t follow the vocal melody but instead supported it, and give the song a more contemporary feel.

He played my ‘work tape’ (guitar-vocal home demo) long enough for the group to hear the part he was talking about. Then there were ideas bouncing around left, right and center; all spoken in the Nashville number system, which I understand on the most basic level. But what I know of it is kind of like grade four French: je vais, tu vas, nous allons, discotheque... But these folks were in speaking their mother tongue. I knew what they were talking about, but I wasn't keeping up with the conversation!

Once they reached their conclusion, the guitarist played it for me to sing along with and I agreed it was a great idea. There were now three chords instead of my original four, and an Em that I hadn’t played there before. A little change, but it made such a huge difference, especially to me since my old way is kind of carved into the brick that holds my head together.

Then the band went back to the live room and got set to run it. Drums, bass and electric were in the main room. Keyboards were in an isolation booth, acoustic guitar in another iso, and I was in a third to sing the scratch vocal. The pro singer would be in the following day.



Here’s the team:

Bass: Spady Brannan
Drums: Mark Beckett
Keys: Jimmy Nichols
Electric: Kerry Marx
Acoustic: Robin Ruddy
Engineer: Matt Legge
Assistant engineer: Micah Tanner
Producer: Larry Sheridan

Band tracking
Larry asked if I wanted to build gradually or start big. I said big and Mark counted it in. There was one hiccup on the bridge and another at the end of the double chorus. But they hadn’t even listened to the whole song at that point, they were just playing from the chart! We talked about those dynamics for a few minutes and how to best support the vocal lines there. Then Larry played those parts of my work tape again for reference.

Take one was done before I knew it and take two followed after a few more comments from Larry on transitions. After that, Kerry, Robin and Spady punched in to tighten up a few bits each. Jimmy punched in for a couple of piano fixes and then added a B3 organ.

I’ve read about and heard oodles of people say “you’ll be amazed” at the level of professionalism and musicianship in Nashville. But it’s an entirely different thing to experience it first hand with your own song.

Vocals
By 10:45, the band was done and I was chatting with Robin about the singer she booked. I didn't have time to hear any samples or choose anyone because the booking came together pretty last minute. So it's pretty cool that she unknowingly got the same guy I'd already booked for Friday on another song at another studio!

Singing the scratch track along with the band felt like a surreal karaoke experience. But listening to someone else record the real vocal was whacky on a whole other level.

I'm by no means a great guitarist, so it wasn’t so strange to hear somebody play it better than me. But I consider myself a singer, and these lyrics have only ever been sung by me. I think that’s the biggest part of it. Although I’ve edited them a fair bit for commercial pitching since I wrote the first version for my parents’ anniversary years ago, they’re still quite personal. And I’ve never heard anyone else sing them. So it was pretty whacky to hear Matt Dame sing everything just a little bit different than I do. And the quality and control of his voice is really something else.

When I opened the control room door, he was already making his own custom shorthand notes over each word as yesterday’s rough mix played with my scratch vocal. Vertical bars like numeral ones signified the downbeat. Numbers at the end of a line were for the chord it ended on. And there were all sorts of squiggles that he said couldn’t be explained, but meant something to him.

Parlor Productions, April 24, 2013: Matt Dame singing This Old House by Michael Lake

Once at the microphone, he did one rough pass and we had a quick listen to that with Larry. Then he did two takes and punched in to redo a few lines here and there. Then he added three harmony tracks with absolute ease and precision for every tiny inflection. I guess all those squiggly lines did the trick!

Mix etc
Obviously, as the songwriter, I’m focused on the music and vocals more so than the technology end of things. But I can’t complete the story without sending kudos to Matt Legge the engineer who kept everything rolling while tracking and especially when reviewing takes and editing. He also mixed it. I left the vocal session at 4:40 and popped back around 7:00 for a listen. We made a couple of timing tweaks between the vocals and drums, and softened some P pops. To be honest, I don't know if "we" did that or if "he" did it while I just happened to be there. :-)

Everyone involved was fast, efficient and amazing at what they did. If they weren’t talking precise music theory about the song or recording it, then they were joking around and making it one of the most relaxed atmospheres I’ve ever been in.

So, I know it’s my first toe in the water, but you can definitely add me to the list of people who’ll say you’ll be amazed with the talent and professionalism in Nashville. It truly is something to behold.

My first professional Nashville demo is in the can. Time and money well spent.

First pro demo!

I just booked by first Nashville pro demo session. So stoked! I'll meet producer Larry Beaird on Tuesday to review the chart and production direction. Then we're in the studio with a five-piece band on Friday. This is gonna be the coolest experience.

Too many trucks?

I was laying in bed last night in head-imploding allergy agony. For some reason, I started thinking of all the songs I’d heard on the radio that day with some combination of ‘dirt road’, ‘truck’, ‘tail gate’ and ‘cut off jeans’. I’m trying to put my finger on why those words frustrate me. Is it because I don’t have the specific personal memories to relate? Or because it just feels like too many people are saying the same thing? Not all the lines in all these songs are the same, of course. But those bits and pieces stick out to me and I wonder if they could’ve tried harder on those lyrics; if they’re just filler. But, at the same time, I am listening to those songs on the radio. So, clearly, I’ve something to learn from them!

I started imagining the scenes. Driving off away from the hustle and bustle to be alone in nature with the woman you love. It’s certainly an inviting scene.

Maybe the dirt road and the jean shorts and the truck and the tail gate are the common triggers that country fans and folks from the south and west all remember fondly from their own stories. The rest of the lyrics are the writer’s story, which is widely accessible and friendly, but it’s one person’s story. Maybe that handful of commonly recurring trigger words are the things that bridge the gap between the writer’s/singer’s story and the listener’s own similar stories. Between the song's fantasy and life's reality.

And maybe I’m just sore that I don’t have some of my own teenaged, back-country road snuggle memories. After all, I never had a truck, just borrowed my folks’ K-car occasionally!

Well, wouldn’t you know it, but that allergy headache kept me awake long enough to write two verses and a chorus for my own little back-country road snuggle song. No mention of a truck or dirt road or cutoffs, but there are jeans and t-shirts and boots and trees and grass and beer and water. Some of my own faves. And a girl who I’d one day like to be in the scene with.

And, yeah, I wouldn’t mind having a truck too. :-)

Let Hope Jump First

In June, it was hard to think of much else besides my departure date on the 29th. I'd spend two months in Nashville, working via email during the day for my boss in Toronto, playing as many writers rounds as I could at night, writing and meeting people to co-write with. I was looking forward to the summer journey, knowing that it was also the beginning of a larger and longer one. I was feeling hopeful. Scared too.

On June 15, I wrote "Let Hope Jump First"

Well it’s that little leap of faith
And it’s that little prayer you say
With the first step on your way
To something bigger

When you feel beaten down
Just look inside and not around
There’s something better to be found
If you dig deeper

Yeah, there's a great divide
With all your dreams on the other side

CHORUS
Let hope jump first, you might be surprised
Where it’ll land and how far it flies
Send it on ahead, then follow up behind
Just plant your feet one at a time

Instead of standing still
And worrying what might be the worst
Let hope jump first

Son, I’ve been in your shoes
Hesitated on a move
Terrified that I might lose
But that ain’t playing

Now I know, there's a great divide
And all your dreams are on the other side

REPEAT CHORUS

BRIDGE
With hope, you’re never looking back
It keeps your heartbeat racing fast and forward

REPEAT CHORUS

When I sing the song these days, I sometimes get a little choked up. I'm so thankful for that hook line. It's a constant reminder to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Nasty things may indeed happen along the way, like crashing my bike last June. But we can't let 'the maybes' scare us away from what may be. The good comes with the bad. Proof in the pudding: the weird turn that things took last June lead me to make some great friends in Nashville who are now helping me get things straightened away for future visits.

As I get set for the next one in March, I'm only now nearly recovered from the last visit! After five months of physiotherapy, my wrist is pretty much back to normal. I'm exercising again. Even did a few [modified] push ups this week! I'm happy with the music I've been writing lately. Happier in general. Still not writing as frequently as I'd like, but I'm constantly pondering and making notes. I'm much better at and more comfortable with writing without an instrument, which has definitely helped my lyrical focus and melody lines.

Of course, prepping for 'the move' is eating up a lot of time and energy. I'm moving out of my apartment so I can afford to make more frequent visits to Nashville. When I was there last summer, I paid two rents the whole time. But I can't stay afloat for long like that! There's no set schedule or timing, but I reckon I'll be able to head south every two-three months. I have to be in Canada for certain periods of time to keep my healthcare and auto insurance -- and I sure don't want to lose either of those! For stints on the home front in Toronto, I'll rely on a combination of short-term rentals, friend's guest rooms and hopefully some house-sits to help pinch more pennies. Keep me in mind if you're taking sabbatical!

I've been purging like crazy, giving away books, donating clothes, tossing more useless junk than I care to admit. What's left will go in a storage locker. After that, it's just a duffel bag and guitar for the next year or so. Who knows what'll come of it, but it's gonna be an adventure!

"Instead of standing still
And worrying what might be the worst
Let hope jump first"

Little Victories

On December 5, I submitted my 14th song to NSAI for online evaluation. I've written more songs than that, it's just the 14th I’ve submitted for evaluation since I started down the country road, since my first trip to Nashville in December 2011.

I just got the feedback and I’m pretty stoked. It couldn’t have come at a better time. I’m in the process of making some kind of scary changes in my life that’ll enable me to spend more time in Nashville. With change comes uncertainty and fear, and a little reassurance is just what I needed.

The song is called Find Me A Highway and I wrote it with my friend Emily Hurson here in Toronto. I think we got together twice and ended up with three songs and one hangover. Not bad stats. We started this one in June and got the verse and chorus melody lines, first verse lyrics, and bits and pieces of ideas for the rest of it. We shelved it while I was away for the summer, so I tied up the loose ends in October and ran them by Emily. She liked the lyrics but reminded me of some rhythmic and melodic elements I’d forgotten about. Go team!

This is what the NSAI evaluation had to say:

Congratulations, the evaluator who reviewed your song believes you are showing significant progress in your writing and you are one to watch!

********************************************************************
NASHVILLE SONGWRITERS ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL SONG EVALUATION
********************************************************************

FORM/STRUCTURE: You have V/C/V/C/B/Ctag. That’s the right structure.

TITLE/HOOK: It’s a good hook. You use it in a memorable way and you have a good set up.

LYRIC: This is pretty cool. The phrasing is very interesting and different. This is something that has been written before, but you have put a different spin on it. It’s clear and to the point and you have good rhymes schemes

OVERALL THEME/IDEA: It’s a good theme. This can work for the country market.

MELODY/METER (IF APPLICABLE): This is cool and contemporary. I’m not sure because I mostly hear fiddle and though I find the phrasing interesting, it feels a bit off meter in some spots. Not sure, so go over it and make sure it all feels natural. The bridge works great.

CLOSING COMMENTS: This is really cool. I am going to mark the one to watch box, because I don’t think this a hit, but it shows your sensibilities and your talent. Keep up the good work.

And here's the demo submitted:

If you love something, set it free.

When I set out on the road to Nashville a year or so ago, I reckoned I’d meet some people, make some friends, eventually get introduced to someone by someone by someone who liked my songs after hearing me play them in a bar or by passing along a CD or MP3. I didn't think it'd happen in a year of traveling back and forth, but I thought it would eventually happen that way, and I should keep the songs close to my chest until that someone came along.

I’ve been reluctant/afraid to post the songs on the internet for anybody to hear. My thinking was that one of the existing songs will be the one to get things rolling – but that an artist might not be interested if the song is already kicking around out there on the ol’ internet. I just thought they’d be less likely to want to put their stamp on it, if it already had somebody else’s on it, even little ol' me.

On the other side of the coin, which has only recently come into focus, I’ve been thinking that my objective should shift form trying to physically meet someone who’ll agree to listen to the songs, to just letting the current songs free to be heard by any pair of ears and to eventually find the right pair that’ll want to hear more. So, rather than expecting any of the existing songs to get picked up and recorded, I'm shifting my mindset to the hope that they’ll spark some curiosity and help get me into a writing situation where I can create the song that does become the first successful single.

So that’s what’s been stewing for a while. Long enough, I s’pose. A friend once told me to “take more risks” and “know that you will never run out of ideas.” That advice has been bouncing around a lot in my head these days as I’ve been working up the nerve to do this... nudge open the cage door.

This one’s called "Say You Love Me, That’s All":

Say You Love Me That's All by MichaelLake

That’s Nathan Smith on the violin.

Hope you like it.

Knock some cute out of it

My Nashville apartment rental was up near the end of August and, since I was sans bike, my original plan to spend early September riding and camping around Tennessee was kyboshed. So I snipped the tail off the trip and found a cheapish flight back to Toronto.

The day before I left, I went to a quarterly audition for the Bluebird Café Sunday writers’ night. Successfuls get to play three songs in front of the most attentive packed house in North America while the evening’s headliner warms up out back. You get graded on your first Sunday night performance and then could get invited into the regular shuffle of evening shows. It’s a foot in the door of the mini music meca that is the Bluebird. 

I arrived super early and lined up behind about 20 even earlier birds to spend a couple hours waiting in the sweltering sun. Doors opened at 11:00 and we played in order of arrival. No preambles, no long musical intros—just your name, the song title, a verse, a chorus and a thank you m’am. Lemme tell ya, that all goes by pretty quick.

I was still in a brace and couldn’t play guitar. The cast had come off a couple weeks before but the wrist wasn’t up to much of anything except basking in the glorious daily sprinkle of hot shower water that it’d missed for the previous six weeks. So my Airbnb landlord backed me up on guitar. He’d also lent me his car to get there that morning, scootering over later to meet me once the doors opened. He was in and out like a six-string superman. Left me looking around for the phone booth.

I reckon there were about 80 hopefuls. The organizer’s intro said that, on average, about 10% of people get the nod. That meant, 70 or so of us would be getting rejection emails a few weeks later—if this was a good day. I sang and played tamborine and an egg shaker. It felt fun. I chose an upbeat little love song.

I listened intently to everybody before and after me until the break about an hour later (I had to split and get the borrowed car back, after all). There was a wide mix of talent and proficiency. There were drinking songs, love songs, heartbreak songs, Christian songs, inspirational dream songs, even a comedic tune. Most people seemed pretty comfortable, but there were a few nervous wrecks and fretboard fumblers. I admired them even more for getting up there.

There were some good guitarists, a few really good singers, and a bunch of really nice lines scattered here and there. But no whole song that really jumped out and made me wish I’d written it. I figured there were three or four of us within nod territory and, I must admit, I was feeling pretty confident about my song, performance and chances. But still... only 10% on a good day. Hmm... I wondered did anyone else have a mental list of probables? Was I on it?

The Bluebird folks said we’d hear back in three weeks.

Nearly two months went by. I couldn’t write very well on audition day because of the brace, so I had other people putting my name and email on the various lists. Had I paid enough attention to their dictation? I checked in with a few people who were at my table that day. Nobody’d heard yet. A week later, the mystery was revealed. A shake, not a nod. On my birthday, no less.

You saw it coming, didn’t you?

I must admit, I was surprised and pretty bummed out. The email was very matter-of-fact, which I totally respect. I hope to impress people, but I don’t want to be coddled if I don’t. A snippet:

"Though we do not give specific evaluations, here are some general observations about the auditions... redundancy, too many clichés, didn’t make sense, boring, trite, been done already, etc. These comments may not have been about your song, but it’s possible that your song might fall into one of these categories."

I can honestly say my lyrics weren’t redundant. The story moves along with a very clear beginning, middle and end. Point #2: Yeah, the title is a cliché, although I haven’t heard of a song with that title before, and I thought I put a pretty cool spin on it. But still, a cliché. Did it make sense? I’m confident in saying it’s a clear story, and I’ve had it reviewed by a number of people at NSAI, SOCAN, other songwriters, etc, at various stages of the multiple edits it’s been through. Was it boring? That of course is in the ear of the beholder but I honestly didn’t think so. Good story, only real repetition of words was in the hook and there were plenty of other lines between them in the chorus. Nice melody, upbeat. Was it trite/done already? The story is of a lifelong pair of friends who end up as a couple because it’s the only love that mattered their whole lives. Like they were born for each other. That’s probably a story that’s been told a bunch of times, but in different words, different characters. Hell, I dunno. Then I got this feeling in my gut that maybe it was just too cute, which could extrapolate into not all that realistic or everyday which is a pretty strong foundation in country music.

Well, anyway, the song didn’t get me a Bluebird show, but I still play it and enjoy it. I think it’s a got a great rhythm, kind of a shuffle, and nice original yet easy to follow melody lines. The chord progression is dynamic and strong. I love the chorus lyrics. Who knows, maybe I’ll rewrite everything else and see if I can knock some cute out of it.