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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
Me as the sacrificial lamb-whattayathink?
Me as the sacrificial lamb-whattayathink?
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toddlgreene
3041 posts
Jun 18, 2011
8:56 AM
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Perhaps to draw the heat from others who recently sought opinions, I'm going to post some older tunes I play and sing on, and I want opinions.
These are from an original band I fronted here in New Orleans called am540. The band has been defunct for about a year now, due to 'artistic differences', haha.
The tracks were recorded at Fudge Studio in January '08. These represent near-final mixes, and were never mastered. There are nuances I hate that we never got fixed, such as some remaining autotune pitch correction that 'flattened' my vocal modulations a bit in a place or two(I really, really hate that crap), and some bizarreness in two of my solos, but it is what it is.
BIG DISCLAIMER:It ain't blues. It's varying degrees of multi-influenced rock.
They're free downloads-if you like them, they're yours to enjoy. If not, hit 'delete', and thanks for listening!
The first is a duet with myself and a local singer named Dana Abbott. Think Phish meets Blues Traveler.
Last Round-am540
This is a heavily Rolling Stones-influenced number, based on the guitarist's disdain for organized religion and the hypocrisy within.
Reckoning-am540
This is a story about a couples' excursion to the coast of Andalusia, ended abruptly by the female part's lesbian tryst with a Flamenco dancer...you know, the kind of thing that happens all the time. I'm playing trumpet-influenced 4th position harp.
Little Sticks-am540
Fire away.
I'm not posting this for purposes 'ego-stroking'-I'm simply sharing music with y'all for the right price(FREE), and inviting your criticism.
Have a nice weekend, and Happy Father's Day to all you papas out there.
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Todd L. Greene
Last Edited by on Jun 18, 2011 10:15 AM
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5F6H
734 posts
Jun 18, 2011
10:43 AM
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I thought at first the harp was a bit overdriven (not drastically so, compared to a lot of rock & pop harp like Popper, Feltham etc), but actually it sits pretty well with the Boogie-esque guitar tone. The sound of the harp & what you play fits well. Your vocals are great, arrangements & production are good.
"There are nuances I hate that we never got fixed"...I wouldn't sweat it, with most sessions you get to a point where you have to call "time" & run with what you have...otherwise you can tinker forever, sucking the joy out of the whole process! :-)
Only thing I personally didn't like was 07:50 running time for the last number, I liked the song but found myself drifting off after about 4:00...which might say more about me than the song itself! ;-)
Good work.
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MP
1705 posts
Jun 18, 2011
11:45 AM
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hi todd,
though i haven't listened to the tracks i'll stick to what i do know- the titles.
don't you think that(as titles) 'last round' and 'reckoning' are TOO dramatic? this is glaringly apparent,especially when contrasted w/ the playfull 'little sticks'.
and what the hell is am540? it makes no sense. are you trying to be modern? if so, you've lost me.
being as i haven't listened to the tracks, i have no idea what 5F6H is talking about. he seems fine with the titles. perhaps he has a weakness for drama too?
but on the other hand, overall your spelling is better than mine and 5F6H is smarter than me.
hope this helps:)
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MP
doctor of semiotics and reed replacement.
"making the world a better place, one harmonica at a time"
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toddlgreene
3047 posts
Jun 20, 2011
4:58 AM
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5F6H-Thanks! These were recorded before I knew about this forum and gleaned knowledge from yourself and others. The studio didn't do a good job of recording me through the amp I used to own(which sounded good),so I ended up re-tracking everything on an SM57 right into the board, then the engineer used some tube amp emulator plugin on Protools-I wasn't wild about it either, but it was rock, and time is money in a studio so I let it be.
On the song length-yeah, am540 was a jam band, so epic songs were common. I've spared you the 24-minute long trilogy we did...
MP-hahaha! 5F6H is smarter than me, too.
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Todd L. Greene
Last Edited by on Jun 20, 2011 4:59 AM
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al
27 posts
Jun 21, 2011
7:56 AM
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Hi Todd.
Little Sticks is a great track i have no issues to bring to it. 4th is by far my weakest position and what you do there is amazing. That track is gonnae be the one that eventually helps me get over my block wae 4th mate. Thanks for giving it away for free tae us.
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toddlgreene
3055 posts
Jun 21, 2011
8:42 AM
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Al-No problem, and glad you got something useful from them! I 'heard' in my head the minor-sounding trumpet parts, then picked them out, and it just so happened that put me in 4th position;I didn't set out to make it in 4th. My 'default' is usually 2nd, and if that doesn't work, I will explore other positions.
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Todd L. Greene
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12gagedan
82 posts
Jun 21, 2011
8:50 AM
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I like the first one. Reminds me of Blues Traveler (a band I've loved). I want the tempo just a fraction faster, so it bounces more, and has a little "lilt" to it. I dig the harp. If you crave some kind of critique, the solo wanders a bit. It's really cool, but as a story in itself, I think you can transition between ideas better. I bet you do live.
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12gagedan's YouTube Channel
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toddlgreene
3056 posts
Jun 21, 2011
9:01 AM
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Dan-I agree with the wandering part-also, there's a 'patch' between two different takes on the Last Round solo, where I liked the first part of a solo, but not the second, then vice-versa, and the two were put together, so if you hear a strange sounding note, that's the non-seamless connection. I re-recorded all the harp parts within one visit, and under duress, with the whole band glaring at me and the clock(we recorded per hour), on the same day I recorded the final vocals over the scratch tracks;not a relaxing setup at all.
I'm much more of a live player;my few studio experiences haven't been relaxing at all. I'm totally comfortable on stage with people staring at me, which doesn't make sense, but it's true.
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Todd L. Greene
Last Edited by on Jun 21, 2011 9:02 AM
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Diggsblues
836 posts
Jun 22, 2011
4:34 PM
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Sorry Todd I'm a vegetarian. LOl
Reckoning good stuff. I think too much over drive
on the harp sound.
Little Sticks. Having playing for several years
with a Spanish Guitarist I can appreciate this.
I wanted more harmonica. Seemed like e phrygian
a good place to start. Just an arranging thing put in more
fill and background from any of the instruments.
Great guitar playing.
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Emile "Diggs" D'Amico a Legend In His Own Mind
How you doin'
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toddlgreene
3067 posts
Jun 23, 2011
1:43 PM
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Thanks Diggs! Yes, too much distortion-it was some Protools Tube amp emulator. Sounded like crap to me, but I didn't realize just how bad until all was said and done. Oh well.
Oh, and I primarily play in Nickelodeon Mode.
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Todd L. Greene
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