Tomorrow Never Knows... I never know, that's for sure. I have just taken three songs off my album because they aren't playing well with the others. One step forward, two steps back...forward on! One of the hardest things to do is to take songs you write, record, mix, and to ultimately discard them. Sending them off to the Island of Misfit Songs...
A month ago my friend and drummer-percussionist extraordinaire Matt Lynott came over to the studio with his "new" 60's vintage drum set. Excited, we wanted to record...but neither of us had any new songs ready, so he said off-the-cuff "Hey...let's record "Tomorrow Never Knows"...ya know the Beatles tune!" Inside I cringed. "Ugh...a cover song?" I said deep inside my inner dialog. BUT...I have this one rule. One. All ideas are worth trying. Never say no. Try it, then decide.
"Okaaay...let's do it" Tentatively answering. Matt set up his drums and I set up my Wurlitzer electric piano and my Fender Bassman amp...set up the microphones... I hadn't heard the song in years so I barely had a clue how the song went. Matt said there were only two chords in the whole song. "Okay...let's just jam a bit on these two chords and see what comes out." I said. We did a couple of takes. We went out for some Irish bar food. I then forgot about the recording for a few weeks.
Suddenly remembering about that afternoon (I guess I am getting old...), I brought it up on my system. "Hey...this ain't bad. Maybe if I put on a bass...some more percussion..." Well...a few days later I finished it. I am really happy how it came out. Since I didn't really know the original version of the song...the structure is different...new melodies...chopping up the lyrics a bit, it feels good to me. I suppose if one does a cover song, it is important to make it your own. I cannot let you hear it until the release of the album. Why? Because of licensing. I have to pay for each time someone listens to it, even if it is just streaming. So...I am waiting to get my license to use and will have to be stingy with it and only have it available in iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, and such.
Just you wait! It's a good one! Damn that John Lennon. *smile*
I am listening to Les Baxter's "Jewels Of The Sea" album right now as I type this blahg... I am smiling. I am also thinking I gotta get back to writing new songs to replace the ones I just removed. I am sighing...
