Week of August 1-5
Jill Sobule will be arriving on Wednesday. We are to do a duet of sorts, yet to be formulated, of Kris Kristofferson’s song For The Good Times. It is for a tribute album for KK. I’ve actually been singing this song in my set over the last 6 or 7 months, so the choice was mine and Jill was cool to try it.
Monday
Jill wants to sing in B or Bb. I had been playing it in C. So I try to sing in Bb – I can just make it. However the guitar doesn’t play in Bb too easily. So I tune the nylon strung, and one of the steel string guitars down a whole tone, so i can use the ‘key of C’ chord shapes. Guitars are a little floppy as a consequence.
Map out an arrangement – guide electric piano and click track. Arrive at a tempo of 90 BPM.
Spend most of the rest of the day wondering how to play the song on guitar.
Find a two guitar and bass arangement which works like ‘No More Love Songs’, but slower. This is promising.
Tuesday
Fine tune the guitars from Monday. This takes a long time as one is playing 4/4 and the other is in 6/4.
Add piano/electric piano melody loop (in 4/4). This takes away from the Newport Folk Festival vibe of the guitars.
Simple 1-2 1-2 bass on the Trilogy sound works well.
Drums, using BFD, take while to find a drum kit which sits with the instruments, but I’m happy at the end of the day.
Wednesday
Need to work early to get a vocal done and have guitars OK before JS arrives (she is coming from NYC with my wife, who was vitising with relatives).
Maybe one hour to spare before they arrive. This is around 4PM. Plan is to figure out what we want to do and then get some dinner at the Apollo Grill (super restaurant which happens to be in our building).
I play what I have to Jill. She asks to listen to the track without the guitars, to see what the keyboards are doing. The feeling of space opening up is noticeable, even to the guy who spent 8 or 10 hours ‘perfecting’ the guitars.
We ditch the guitars.
I do not bitch…..
Jill sings along with my vocal on the first chorus and, after a little while, a harmony is working. We agree that we have a plan, and this will work and we get dinner. She will stay in our new spare room.
For The Good Times