Further Adventures in Trio Recording

This Machine Kills Wackness.

This session snuck up on me to some extent. New song ideas have been coming so thick lately that I’ve just been messing around with those more than brushing up on the two songs for Wednesday recording. My hope was that just being comfortable with my instrument in general would be enough, and I was basically right.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Got to the spot at 5:30 with amp in tow. John likes the sound of it, as do I (of course), but he still twinned it with a more reverb-laden unit. More importantly, he let me borrow a beloved 1961 Gibson to play for the evening. Once again, playing a B minor on that was easy as pie, sounded great, and great googly moogly, I have to get a real guitar.

Dramatization.

We started with “Here Comes the Sun” (not a cover), and we got it in about three takes. It helps that the song basically has just one “part” — played slowly at first, then quickly at the end. Both Larry and John got it right away, and it was beautiful. Better yet, we actually got a “scratch” vocal that’s totally usable. That’s right, man. LIVE VOCALS in the trio setting. Very exciting.

Next came the long “country” number, “You Are Not Your Own.” We did nine takes, not including turfed-out half-takes. It was pretty rigorous, but different than the last time. My fingers weren’t hurting at all; I was well-comfortable with the guitar. I was just getting tired in general, and there was so much to remember in the end. I mean, this song is a long (for me) rambling thing, but we needed to have at least a loose map of the dynamics, so we sort of cooked up breaks and builds on the spot, then ran into it. Again and again.

No pedals were harmed -- or used, really -- in the making of this recording.

Larry had to jet at 10:00, and at about a quarter til, we got our “keeper.” No decent vocals this time, and I’ll have to record a second guitar, but otherwise, the spirit was totally there, and John and Larry nailed it. It was a long night — so long that here on the next day, my prose isn’t exactly sparkling. But fun was definitely had, and we did some good work, and I can’t thank those guys enough.

These tracks will likely be a part of whatever “project” is next for me, though how that will come together is a mystery to me. CD again? Maybe a vinyl EP? Maybe nothing physical for once? Much to discuss and decide.