The Tater Blog

Posts Tagged ‘demo’

Sorry I’ve been a bit absent from the blog for the last several weeks. I get caught up in so many things and more often than not I get to the end of the night -- or usually the middle of the wee hours of the morning -- and finally have to lay myself down for a few hours of sleep with visions of all I didn’t get done. But I’ll try to catch up a bit here…

Recording
The bulk of the recording is done, with just a few bits to add on at this point. Still have a few guests that are going to add to the mix, and we have to schedule all of that. Then it’s down to mixing and mastering, and looking at a way to get it pressed. In the meantime, here’s a few more clips of what’s been going on. As with some of the previous posts, keep in mind that these are just unfinished clips, still need mixing, some EQ’ing, etc:

• Wolfman Told Me Tonight
  This is a song that Gary & I have had for years, and it usually only gets totted out around Halloween each year for the live shows. Somewhere at one of those shows last year someone said, “Why do we only play this at Halloween”?”Because… it’s got a werewolf in it?” I’m sure there was more to the conversation, but I’m pretty easy to convince when it comes to adding some monster fun to the calendar year, so… on the CD it goes!
• Fun At Home
  I put an earlier version of this up about a month ago, but we’ve added some more vocals, including the Nonexistent Taters Horn Section on the bridge, so I thought I’d stick this up and let you hear the progress
• Wax Paper
  Another very fun song that comes from the Monday Week days, this has been dusted off and refitted for the new millennium. This has got to be one of the few songs out there with distorted guitar and banjo on it, not to mention one of the surprisingly few odes to household products and food containers specifically.

Other stuff
As always, in addition to Tatering live and in the studio, all of us stay busy at whatever side projects come our way. Here is a recent video that I worked on for the VA Tax Dept’s online filing initiative. The lyrics were a committe process, and the tune is me trying to write and perform my best Zimmy impersonation! I’m playing bass, guitar & singing on this, with Richard Schellenberg on lead gtr, as well as recording & mixing. Guest spot from Kevin Cronin on harmonica. And no, the guy in the kilt is not me -- I’m behind the camera on this one.

Rock & Roll Revue
Brad & I have started rehearsals for the next R&R Revue, coming up in May. We’ll be reprising a lot of the Elvis, Buddy, Roy & Everly’s tunes from the first show, and adding in a few new ones, including a few appearances from Ricky Nelson. Backing us up again will be the vintage talents of George Garrett, Brian Sulser and Jim Wark. Check the calendar for the dates and call early for tickets!

Here are some of Brian’s videos from the first show

By the way, if anyone would like to volunteer to film or photograph the next show, we’d love the help! And we’ll be glad to let you share in the fame and glory

I think that’s it for now. Should have a version of the CD cover finished soon, so I’ll post a draft of that when it’s ready. For now, here’s a shot we’re using for some new flyers. Click on the image for a larger version.

Hope to see you soon!

Craig

Brad & I had a great time playing in the revue last weekend, along with “the band” featuring George Garrett, Jim Wark, and Brian Sulser. Brian has videos of most of the show up on his YouTube site, so go take a look! I got to do Elvis and Roy Orbison, Brad was Buddy Holly, and we each became half of the Everlys. It was a pile of fun to play, and very eye-opening for all of us; it’s been awhile since any of us had really listened closely to those recordings, really trying to pull out some of the nuances that get lost when modern bands (guilty as charged) play them. Not saying one is better than the other, but it was sure done differently back then, and we tried to do our homework! We’re already planning a follow-up show, so be sure to keep an eye on our calendar for future dates.

Work on menagerie (yes, the new CD has a name!) is coming along. Here are a few new clips of some songs we’re working on:

• Oceans Apart
  This is one that Gary & I started quite a while back, but just never really got finished. I finished it up last year and we worked out a new arrangement of it with the walking bassline, which I think helps it a lot. Vocals are pretty straightforward duet throughout, with Brad taking the high harmony. I’m playing a bit of piano on this one as well.
• Fun at Home
  One of my oldest tunes, we used to play this in Monday Week, though I never felt like we quite had the rhythm down that I was looking for. His majesty Buz King is taking care of that on this version by pounding on a leather chair cushion, which we then mixed on top of the drum track. Very cool sound, sort of an acoustic-electronic groove. The sound of the leather gives it an organic tone which keeps it from being too mechanical. Lots of great slide and 12-string work from Greg on this, and Brad & I reprise the famous Non-Existent Tater Horn Section on the bridge!

more later

OK, time to pull back the curtain a bit. We haven’t gotten to the mixing stage yet on the new CD, but we have been laying down tracks all over the place. Many of them have stuck to the CD, so they’ll probably stay.

Here’s a few sound clips from a couple that are getting close to done. Again, no final mix has been done, so you’re likely to hear some parts too loud or too soft, but you’ll get the general idea.

• No I Don’t
  This one has some bits & pieces to work on, a few things to move around, and vocals to mix. This is one that Gary & I wrote some years back but never really did anything with. It’s one of the kids we’ve had rattling about in the cellar for years, and we’ve decided to let him out. Hope he doesn’t hurt himself. This was one of the first songs, way back in Monday Week, that I ever played piano on in a live show
• We Can Work It Out
  This is one we didn’t write, at least not yet. A different take on a favorite of ours, with some beautiful guitar work from both Brad & Greg.

If you like hearing these, let me know and I’ll try to post more in the coming weeks.