Loose Ends and Demos
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Loose Ends - PH005 Recorded at any time between January 2011 and whenever you are reading this. Written and arranged by Peter Harris All noises made by Peter Harris Copyright 2011 Peter Harris, except 'Happy Birthday', 'One of These Days', 'No More Lonely nights' and 'Nowhere Man' copyright resides with the owners Published 2011 Peter Harris See copyright page for full details |
Here lies the wreckage, the flotsam and jetsam, the good the bad and the ugly.
Actually it's not that bad, it's all the bits and bobs that will probably never fit in anywhere. The snippets which kept me amused long enough to play around with before they got abandoned once I realised that they weren't going anywhere.
So here are some of the demo video's which became tracks on the finished CD's as well as some of the better musical meanderings which came to nought, I'll add the tracks as (and if) I finish them so that they'll eventually make up a complete CD.
Please let me know if you have any problems with the video.
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First up, the demo video for what became the guitar part in 'At the End' from 'Season's End'.
At the End Demo
Ball Bearings 1.58
I got horribly bored while I was trying to get the echo bounce on the keyboards for 'Straight to the Point' (which will be on the new CD), just the way I wanted it. So I knocked this up from scratch as a distraction to stop me beating the computer to death.
Take a Break 3.07
Written and recorded in a day, it's a nice combination of chords, and draws fairly obvious inspiration from Pink Floyd and the like, but just doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the new CD. So 'The Ripple Effect' loses a track and 'Loose Ends' gains one. I may have another go at this one sometime because I really do like the melody.
Never the Time - Original Version 4.09
This was the first incarnation of NTT with the 'twangy' guitar sound and bassier second piano. Close to the end of finishing up the CD I decided that the lead guitar didn't really sit well with the overall guitar sound on the album and the more I listened to it with the rest of the tracks the more it jarred every time it came up, so I re-recorded the lead guitar and took out the louder second piano track. This then is the version which I lived with since May and you can decide for yourselves which you prefer.
Bucket of Bolts 2.29
A very rough demo this one (and it sounds like it!). I don't know what I was going to do with this but it started out as the guitar riff and then siezed up completely. I've added some drums (which are stock Garageband loops, I know my drumming limitations and the drum track here very much exceeds them!), and the (very) rough and ready lead track was what I put on as a guide for when I got back around to this later. Bucket of Bolts by name and by nature.
Happy Birthday 0.44
Done as a favour, it was my niece's boyfriends 21st and they wanted something a bit rockier than Stevie Wonder. So, borrowing heavily from Queen, I banged my head against a wall for a couple of hours and came up with this, it was a thoroughly enjoyable couple of hours though and the end result was a raging success.
Careful What You Wish For - Original Version 8.54
Originally one long piece from 'Through the Looking Glass'. Noodling abounds, this one did make it onto the finished CD for a while, until I decided that it was more of an exercise in trying to find a direction than a finished tune. I can't remember what gave me the idea to split it in two, but I'm glad I did because it ended up working very well. This version doesn't have any acoustic guitar, piano or many of the other ambient noises which ended up on the finished versions on it and, listening to it now, although there are some nice little bits in it I'm glad I took it out.
One Of These Days 5.12
A left over demo from "That's Gonna Smart', slide guitar is something which I have meddled with on and off since I got my first steel string guitar, it's one of those 'dark arts' which I've never really persevered with. Why, therefore, I decided to have a go at a song which relies heavily on it is anyone's guess. Some of it came out OK while other parts I couldn't make work to my liking. Anyway here is what I wound up with, complete with me adding a double tracked bass to fill out the shortcomings on the backing track, it's not awful but it could be better.
No More Lonely Nights 4.31
Another "That's Gonna Smart' demo which never made the final cut. I haven't tidied this up at all, it's a backing track and two guitars and very, very rough. String bends which don't quite finish where they should, the opening count in and vocal cue, I could go on. It's not too hateful but a bit too twangy for my current taste hence it's on the odds and sods CD.
40 Eight 4.50
The part of this tune where the lead guitar starts I had had written and demo'd since June of 2012 but couldn't think of anything useful to do with it which was a shame because it bounced along quite merrily. It didn't really fit in anywhere on 'The Fading Light of Day' and I had pretty much made up my mind that I'd stick it up as a single once I had finished it. Anyway TFLOD was all but done (certainly writing and recording), and I'd dug this out and started working on it again the weekend of 26th October, coming up with the bits that wrap around the June section. I had taken a couple of days off and was actually working on this on the morning of the 28th when we got THAT phone call......So this is what's left, it's certainly not a polished track, I probably would have got rid of some of it and re-recorded the lead guitars from the October session which are little more than rough demo ideas, it is what it is.
Nowhere Man 2.43
I'd forgotten I'd even done this, I was going to record a whole CD of Beatles covers based on how pleased I was with the 3 tracks on 'That's Gonna Smart'. Somehow I only ever got as far as starting Nowhere Man, it's a bit unbalanced at distorted but you get the idea.