Anatomy Of A Song #6: Fixing A Hole

Returning to "I Could Try" after a couple of days in the field I pull apart the infamous modulation section yet again. This had been left as a false chorus stumbling artfully into a real chorus up a major third from the home key. However, an opportunity for even craftier craftiness has presented itself: the real chorus will now be a minor modulation to the key of C instead of to Db and will finally, finally at the very last chorus repetition sweep into the Db home plate.

All stops will be pulled out here harmelodically. The long, long countermelody in half-notes will at long last assume the melodic throne to which it has pretended in the previous chorus(es) and the lead voice will veer away into controlled ad lib. The now central countermelody will pick up another harmony with each measure until the final resolving cadence of Eb diminished/A to Gb/Ab is a five-part harmony that races upward in volume and abruptly ends a la "Season Cycle", leaving the lonely lead voice to sing the final hook phrase.

Final melodic and key decisions having been made, I'm ready to print the next generation of guide Rhodes piano and vocal. Contrary to my plan of getting the makings of a keeper vocal I end up with a so-so vocal and a keeper Rhodes track. I've run the electric piano through a Dynacomp compression pedal into a tube pre into its channel and boosted the highs in the 10K range which accentuates to "bell" harmonics of the Rhodes and it sounds close, dry and glorious. With a tone as vivid and clear as this the inspiration factor is high enough to blaze a final track down against the percussion bed.

A few fixes here and there to the electric piano track (I punch in the new modulation section somewhat piecemeal as opposed to spending hours learning it) and it's a keeper. I will return to this later as more overdubs go down and pare it down a bit, leaving spaces here and there, always keeping in mind the goal of an uncluttered and pointillistic soundstage.

The utterly crucial bass guitar is worked out and printed tonight, an effort that requires about 5 or 6 hours. In addition to recording time I pull out and listen to Peter Baldwin's superlative bass work with King Radio with an eye to approaching his saturated, vintage tone. For the verses and instrumental sections I arm my bass guitar (fretted Peavey Foundation) with flat-wound strings and a tissue-paper mute between the bridge and the bridge pickup. These sections are extremely sparse and bouncy and admittedly a shameless Carol Kaye pastiche. Between the bouncing, tube-ey bass, the timpani and the sleighbells I have indulged myself greedily in '60's revisionism. Fuck it- I'll cut my Deep House song some other time.

In contrast to the Ocean Way/Bacharach/Funk Brothers collage of the verses we have the choruses which are underpinned by a neo-soulish drum loop and thick counterharmonies. For these I switch to roundwound strings, remove the mute and go direct with the bass. I cut these sections with the same arrangement approach, playing sparsely but forcefully and leaving big holes. Doubling these sections enforces a simple approach; more than likely I will use the double subsonically if at all but it's a great trick to keep the parts simple and distinctive.

Session end arrives at 2:30 AM and I'm very happy with the results. We now have final drums and percussion, final Rhodes and final bass tracks. My first job tomorrow will be housekeeping; I've spread these parts over several channels for ease, speed and safety and will have to combine them to end up with a stereo mix of drums, one final track of Rhodes and two of bass. I may fall in love with particular piano or bass passages and paste them over less inspired sections; maybe not. Further overdubs may reveal busy-ness in certain sections and I may substitute less busy passages by cutting and pasting. If need be I will reapproach certain sections of the bass track with instrument in hand once again if they sit less than comfortably with subsequent overdubs. I'll try to avoid that but won't let expediency guide me.

Next on this evening's agenda is, well, collapsing. Recording instrumental overdubs is far less tiring than the constant battle of the will. The little voice inside insists that the entire exercise is futile and will provide nothing of value, simply another lovely bauble to reside on a shelf. While this is likely true we do not let such thoughts stay our hand. We remind ourselves that beauty is an end in itself and that creativity is a divine energy. We remind ourselves that the gift of talent is to be enjoyed greedily, sensually, and that it is, like all that is sensual, a thing of the moment. We do not disparage the talent. And above all other concerns, we remind ourself that we are a machine of the universe, designed to take in carbon and process it into beauty. A mill does not question the validity of grain; a printing press does not question the worth of books and we do not pretend to understand our place in the scheme. We simply appreciate that it is good to occupy it and that it is a priviledge and a gift of unimpeachable generosity.