Johnbee58

Thanks, MR, Joad and Daryl. I know what you mean about the epiano. I guess I'll go in and try to adjust the velocity bars at those spots again. It's either feast or famine with those. If I try to quiet them down, they'd get too low, etc. But I'll give it another go. 🙂John B

Sound like something Dylan would've done years ago. Great sound. 😀John B

If it's not asking too much, could I please ask for a few more replies on this song? With total page views over 100 I know more than 5 people listened to this. This is an instrumental. None of my ugly vocals here. Also, I remixed it since I posted it last week. Thank you. 🙂John B.

Angry or jealous woman maybe?

Hey! This isn't the song I reviewed earlier. What the hell? 🙂 OK. Listened to the new one. Lovely tune. The solo instrument sounds very effective. Sad lyrics. Overall nice ballad. I like your style. You remind me of a hero of mine-Dan Fogelberg. 🙂John B

For lack of another adjective (dad burned-Use your imagination).😀 I bought Session Strings Pro 2 recently (upgrade from 1. It was half price through June). I downloaded the user's manual and just as it is with so many user's manuals (including Cakewalk Sonar BTW) it's vague and doesn't cover some of the finer points. Then, there are the YouTube video tutorials. Sometimes great and other times not so much, depending who does them. Prime example-With SS Pro 2, there was a function I wanted to do but I wasn't even sure if it could be done. It's using the Rhythm Animator and the 6 different articulations you can choose. When you first look at them, you think it's all just presets that cannot be user manipulated. But when I was watching Native Instrument's Walkthrough video I took notice that he was doing something with the mouse. He was pushing the number with the left mouse button, as one would do to vertical scroll a page and that changed the number! Previously I was clicking on the number to no avail, but I tried what he did and it worked! Why can't they put that little detail in the manual???!!🤬 It's the same as when I bought my Sony Walkman a few years ago. I almost took it back because the volume was set too low, but I accidentally found out how to adjust the volume on it. Something that could've easily been explained in the user's guide but was "overlooked". And that was a basic function. They can't even simply explain how to adjust the volume!!! Honestly, if i wasn't for the user forum here I still wouldn't know my way around half of this DAW. Seriously, I'm going to stop buying these kind of things if this goes on! Thanks for letting me vent. 😀John B

Sounds to me like you're trying too hard to sound like Elvis. Gary Brun's voice would sound more interesting to me here. 🙂John B

I agree with bringing up the bass. In some spots the cymbals are a bit too over powering. Other than those two issues, it's a killer song and recording! 🙂John B

Ingenious and ambitious piece of work. 🙂John B

The epiano sounds a bit muddy by default, so I brightened it up by boosting the high end 12db @10k. On most anything else that's a pretty big boost but it gave the piano more presence. I also brought the flutes down a bit in volume and rolled off a bit of mid on them. The free dizi flute is a great plugin (especially considering it's free) but it can be piercing, especially on the higher notes. Thanks for responding! 😀JB

Thanks, Kenny! My last words to Ginger were "I love you" and I remember the look of pain in her eyes but I could still see the love in them. Makes me cry every time I think of her. I had to go through it twice in my life (with a pet). I lost another dog previous to her in 2003. Same way, same reason. Pets should be able to be with us forever. 🙂JB

So, this is the official amphibian of my home state? You'd think that Pennsylvania's officials would be able to come up with a more attractive amphibian than that!😉😁 Neat use of the bass. Love the percussive stuff, At first I thought it was a clavinet, or something. 😀John B

This is the kind of music I need to fall asleep to. Not saying it's boring. It's relaxing. 😀John B

If you mean something like comparing my stuff to, say, Steely Dan, I'd say no worries. Happens all the time on forums like this. Just don't compare my stuff to the Six* Pistols. 😁 😀John B * change the i to an e.

I think I got the final mix. I put a third harmony to the first string part and ended it a bit differently. I also brightened up the e piano by boosting the high end and the second string part was brought down a bit in volume. Of all the tweaking I tried on it, this is the best I can get it. 🙂JB

I gotta let my wife hear this. She's a country music fan. I've heard this song several times on the local country station. Josh Turner has a nice rich baritone voice that catches one's attention quickly. You've done an extraordinary job capturing the same feel he has. 🙂John B

Bjorn, Joad, amiller and Grem- Thanks all so much for listening and commenting. I just did a second mix. I usually go by how it sounds on my Walkman w/ my Beats headphones. I have to give my ears a rest over night and listen on my morning walk tomorrow. The first mix had the flutes MUCH too loud so I brought them down and also rolled off some upper mid range. I also re did some balance on the first string ensemble and added a few notes to that. I may do another mix if my ears dictate it. Thanks for your observations. I will take them into consideration as well. Yes, @amiller -Losing a pet is exactly like losing a family member because they are family members. I love dogs. All kinds of dogs, big and small. I'm a dog fan for sure (but I love pussycats too). My little Ginger graced and blessed my life for almost 15 years. I feel as if I owe her much more than this song. @GremThanks for the kudos on the bass. Actually, it's a Trilian bass module but I've kinda mastered the use of the slide (after three years of using it). 🙂JB

Kinda looks a bit like Pro Tools. Neat. 🙂John B

Ted, I feel your pain in the frustration of wanting to create but having to deal with the PITA technical issues. I hope you find a successful answer quick. All I can tell you is my system still works fine. Something you changed recently, perhaps (Windows Update, maybe)? 🙂JB

Daryl and Freddy- Thanks for the re assurance and listening. 😀JB

A song for my late doggie. I just lost her in January. I miss her terribly. 💔 I don't know if I'm happy with the mix. I just got the Electronic piano expansion pack for EZ Keys. I started the idea with acoustic grand piano but I thought I'd plug in the electronic one to see how it works. Not sold on it yet for this one, but changing out this one for the acoustic one is a very easy task. My problem with it is it seems to get extremely loud on the last verse. Open for suggestions to tweaks. Just don't expect me to hire a real orchestra for the "fake sounding strings". I just got Session Strings Pro 2 and there's a learning curve to it. EDIT-Made some adjustments to it this morning (6/27/19). So if you checked it out prior to 6/27/19 @ 8:55 AM EST, it's (a little) different now. 🙂 https://johnbowen.bandcamp.com/track/gingers-song 🙂John B.

Both are lovely. Beautiful arrangement. 🙂John B

Kind of like a small tour of different sounds and layers. Neat. 🙂John B

Goes through a lot of interesting changes. Interesting sounds, your voice included. Very progressive. Nice! 🙂John B

No, please don't call me Merry!😮 There are two Joe Jacksons that are in the public light. One is Michael's father and the other is a British singer/songwriter who's had hits like "Steppin Out" and "You Can't Get What You Want Till You Know What You Want". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJwt2dxx9yg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGqmiT7JJVg He just put out a new album this year called "Fool" and it has some great tracks on it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvaBODjYN6Q Definitely one of my heroes. 😀JB