1. Gemini
One of the more recent recordings, this is the third version of this song. Trying to get a simpler, tighter sound, I recorded the drums with mics only on the snare, kick, and an AKG C12a over Bennett's head. I tried a few takes on the drums myself, keeping only my drum roll at the top. The sixteenth-note rolls in the choruses were an intentional accident in making the outro loop.
2. Open Wide
This is the first song I recorded with Bennett, the first with real drums for the album. I close-miked the cymbals, giving that swishy sound like on "Walking Endlessly." It was in the can for a few months before Pete came around and put a bass on the backing track. I re-recorded my lead vocal, then Pete had the idea of a huge cymbal crash after the third verse. Having filled all four tracks on the machine, I had to put Pete in the closet, waiting through the song to hit the cymbal at the right time, while I mixed it.
3. Somedays
Contrary to Bennett's beliefs, John Stuart came down one night for literally just a few minutes, and laid down one take of this, and a remake of "Too Much To Do" that never became anything. Pete played bass at the same time. I think Bennett was on a ski vacation, and I had possession of his AKAI 12-track and Trident console.
I sampled a concert organ for the intro from a Virgil Fox live album, live at Fillmore East. The seven funeral bells are from the dreaded guitar synthesizer, through a tweed Deluxe. The solo guitar is a Stratocaster in the neck position, to a REAL TUBE pedal, to a brown Fender Pro amp, and through a Radio Shack Minimus-77 speaker that was already blown out from a party the week previous. The microphone recording it is a Nakamichi CM300.
I had to recreate the scenario this spring when Ron Gompertz wanted me to "fix" the solo section, in fear that no radio programmers would want to play the song. What he didn't realize was that the scratchy record sound was actually a subliminal commercial for Oscar Meyer bacon!
4. Bad Black Lonesome
The earliest composition, and the earliest recording, made at Tom Mallon's in 1990. I remember a U89 and KM something with a big drumstick dent in it. I used Paul Collins' Guild D45, which had a big hole in it. This was the first and only time so far I have paid someone else to record me.
5. Annalisa
I was embarrassed with this song at first, I thought it came off like some kind of white-blues-soul ballad, but I got over that quickly. This was also recorded on the 12-track, very hastily, three times. I used a Sony ECM23F mic on everything, just plugging the send from one track to the next, running late for a date.
After the first version, I went to see Robyn Hitchcock, then wrote a bridge. I can't say who was more of an influence, RH, or the opener, Alex Chilton. The solo is a Hofner arch top guitar that looks even better than it sounds.
6. I Want You
One of the few ADAT recordings, this Byrds-y version was recorded on the fateful final session with Pete and Bennett. I had finished getting the basic track, and the two of them had nearly come to blows. (Un)fortunately, the tape was still recording their altercation, so now I can relax alone in the studio, and reminisce the good old days when I had a band, and we were all pals. The Rickenbacker 360-12 was owned by the fake George in the original cast of Beatlemania.
7. Life Start Living
One Man, One Guitar, One Microphone. But then I just had to overdub one little shaker, then a bass, an organ, then I went for the duet at the end. I felt it was too agonized by itself, and god knows there's too much agony around this town as it is. Another ADAT vintage piece, the C12a and the Urei 1176LN got a workout.
8. Hey Nino Tempo
This was nothing more than a sketch for a melody idea. Beth Hall listened to it every day for over a month, and suggested I include it in the songlist. Myself, never being satisfied unless I've put the kitchen sink on tape, wrote a score for bells, violins, harmonica, electric guitar, cymbals, and timpani.
My first super-session, this song falls victim to the concept of inviting your rock star friends to play on your record, but allowing them each only one note. Recorded in stereo with artificial reverberation.
9. See Green Like Never Seen
TEAC 3340 and 3M 996 tape.
"Wow, we're printing at +9, and it still sounds like we're in the basement
with a drum machine."
"Listen to that hi-hat."
"It's not squashed, in fact it's stiff."
Forgetting not that this whole album consists of demos, this song just sort of, well, ended. I made a new swirly ending, and painfully edited it onto the original. I went back to my notes to find I had used an SM77 to record the acoustic guitar. Please do not do this at home. These people are professionally trained actors, depicting recording engineers. I used the Eventide Ultra-Harmonizer to the max for the Space and Drums outro section. Will trade for 1st gen. SBD of Atlanta Fox '72 show. (!)
10. On The Run
Recorded in the winter weather of a San Franciscan summer, my technique enregistrement haute fidélité was developing enough to care about kick drum sounds, so I played to Bennett's drum track with a synth. My neighbors cared about the kick drum sound in their head enough to call S.F.P.D. I used the same Roland guitar processor that's on my first single, for this remake. The overly sibilant "take me where I've never been" is just a late punch. This one was especially difficult to mix. Getting a pleasing balance of all instruments throughout the song's sections was like packing more junk into an already overstuffed suitcase. On top of a soft bed.
11. Walking Endlessly
Nearly axed from the album by an overzealous A&R staff, this recording was an attempt to bring to life the sound of a Chris Isaak type band fronted by an angst-ridden Glen Campbell, thinking about Tanya Tucker too much. The hi-hat and swirly ride cymbal are panned hard away from each other because they could be. Another TEAC 3340 experience.
12. The Ballad
Written on the spot during lunch from my cushy law firm job that I was promptly fired from for going AWOL. The acoustic guitar solo is twice as loud as the whole song, but no one has said anything about it yet. Paul Collins titled this number, as he felt it was a ballad. His new album includes a song titled, "Power Pop Mid-tempo New Wave tune with a C&W feel." This was recorded on Bennett's 12-track on the high speed with expensive tape that you can buy only at one place that's closed on weekends.
13. Sight & Sound
Another big hit with the cops, this song, made on 4-track, included a plethora of new mics and gear from Aaron Gregory's stash. About this time I learned of attack and release, and also the concept of give and take. From this point on, I agreed to strike sessions at 10 p.m.
Pete & I beefed up the backing vocals into one mic with tambourines behind our backs before a quick mix and our first meeting with Heyday. I told them this album would cost $12,000 to record. Little did I know that it was being recorded already. We talked the figures over a $2.20 lunch.
After the last verse, listen for the sound of the snare mic coming in for a landing on the top skin. In the pocket! Next...
14. I Think I'll Be Going
A rainy winter of 1992 helped bring out the mood of this melancholy ballad. Bennett and Mark Wallace played the basic, and I went to work for weeks, trying to figure out what to do with the breakdown. I wanted to sum up everything about the song in those few seconds. The rain came from a storm sewer, hanging a mic through the grate. Thunder is straight off Side 4 of Quadrophenia.
This 4-track recording was probably the most labor intensive to complete. I flew all the original tracks back to ADAT recently to remix. I had to synch everything by hand, and I wonder if it really sounds better than the original mix.
15. Carry On!
One of the few drum machine songs, the compulsion to remake the tune with real drums was squelched by my satisfaction with the vocal and guitar effects. The squeaking chair sound, or so it came to be known as, is of course the pick being dragged along the strings. There was a short-lived plan to put this out as my second single, but I was hell-bent on getting an album length release together.
16. Never Again, My Love
In 1986, I bought a case of 1/4" tape that was used for logging airport traffic control. After two years of making demos on this flaky brown oxide, I decided to invest in tape made in this decade. This song was the last thing made on that batch of low grade tape. We cleaned up the final mix with Digidesign's DINR noise reduction.
After several attempts, trial and error (more errors and crashes) we found ourselves with no desire to ever hear the song again, hiss or no hiss. The original source tape had so much low end that a high volume listening by Ron Gompertz succeeded in blowing out his monitors.