Throughout the week I’ve been thinking of a beat and sound of a Bob Dylan or John Wesley Harding (aka Wesley Stace) track, but when I created the simple beat, with bass drum & snare, and added some piano, I heard a more CeeLo Green, soulful sound bubbling to the surface. I’m not sure that I have the vocal chops to pull off what I’m hearing in my head, but that didn’t stop me from trying 🙂
I also added some cymbal and tom on a separate track. Not sure that it adds much, but it’s all part of the process.
Here’s the second sketch. Let me know how ridiculous my “high-reaching” attempts sound.
-BeeHi
Nice Job Ed….catchy song…much potential
I like the “idea” of the upper register yea heys and ooh who’s but they are clearly out of your register (from a keep in tune stand point.) However, that never stopped me from still figuring out a way to incorporate something vital to a songs character. And……they do seem critical to this song (I really like) so recommend that you either add an instrument to accompany your voice for reaches at those altitudes, apply extra layers of your voice and/or apply some “dreaded” autotune…yes I know, sacrilege to many but it is all in the name of original art my friend. The only other option is to bring em down an octave..that might just work
Thanks for being honest. I thought I almost hit it on the 2ND attempt 😁
Liz (wife) also had some comments. She really liked the “yea heys and ooh[s] & doesn’t feel that they’re necessarily out of my register. She did go on to say that I need to sing more and warm up my voice. Also noting that much of my vocals are more talking or yelling than singing. I have a lot of work to do as I approach the next phase.
I definitely hear Cee Lo trying to break out of those high notes. I agree with Dave’s point not to abandon the part or the idea. You could try laying an instrumental part that serves as a guide to the vocal(s) and then mixing the various parts to the best effect. Auto tune and melodyne are also options to not be reticent toward. I daresay that almost every commercial song uses it in some fashion, just tastefully. I also think timing with the rhythm track makes a difference. If all are truly in synch, it supports the melody. And here’s a Bono lyric that I am reminded of when I am trying to hit the high notes- “I’m just trying find/a decent melody/a song that I can sing/ in my own company.”
yeah, the second time through did sound better — maybe the warmups would help. i have found that i feel more comfortable singing high stuff when i warm up “low” (try singing “ring of fire” or something …)
but generally this song has a lot of promise, i agree
I am feeling pretty positive as this was a really-quick, 1st attempt of the idea. I’m hoping to “play” with the much-appreciated suggestions and get it sounding better for the demo. Thanks to David, Alan & Bill for your comments & support! Been thinking about this one a lot and “hearing” some things. Gotta get back to it.