« Meditations | Main | Time to Update the Blog! »
September 16, 2005
The Art of Preparation
One of my favorite musicians came to record at SCM studios the other night: songwriter and guitarist Kevin Browne. Kevin and I have been friends for a long time, and he is always a pleasure to work with.
Kevin has already recorded two CDs at SCM, and now he is starting his most ambitious project; actually two projects: He is recording a CD of new songs, and an album of instrumentals.
He came in at 6:30PM, and by the time he left at midnight, he had recorded:
1. Nine instrumental tracks- he laid down the guitar parts for these pieces (some of them approaching 10 minutes in length!) with the plan to add cello, violin, keyboard, and other parts later.
2. 11 guitar tracks for his new songs. He laid down basic acoustic guitar tracks for 11 songs (actually 13 songs since one “song was actually a 12-minute, three-song suite!)
3. He then recorded vocals for the entire CD of new songs, and did a vocal effect track for one of his instrumentals.
He was he able to do all this? He was prepared! He had spent the previous few weeks diligently rehearsing for this session, and so he was able to do most of the guitar tracks in one pass. He also did most of the vocals in this highly efficient one-take fashion.
His next step: when I create a rough mix CD (or CDs!) for him, he will review his work and decide what to keep and what could be improved.
I am always impressed by his dedication to his art, and by the wealth of musical and lyrical ideas that continue to pour forth from him.
Posted by leon at September 16, 2005 01:21 PM