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My lead guitar skills suck, so you'll have to imagine one at the appropriate spot

Make your mind up
© 2018 Owen Hovenden

Link to music


Butterfly baby
Sweet as can be
Make your mind up
Buzzing by the flowers
Adrift in the breeze
Make your mind up

Chorus:
Catching every eye
Flirting with all the guys
I'm walking to the door if you don't want to say goodbye
Better make your mind up
Better make your mind up
Better make your mind....up

Butterfly baby
Don't say a word
Just make your mind up
Playing with fire
Gonna get burned
If you dont wise up

Chorus

< Insert imaginary scorching hot guitar solo here >

Chorus

Sounds like a good start to me.
JJ Cale lives on.

Vic

It's all in the guitar riffs!! Thanks for the listen

Hi Owen:

I loved the lyric and idea behind the song. To me, your vocal was a bit outside your "comfort zone"... I do it all the time... so let me suggest you re-record it at your first opportunity. It has so much potential. Best wishes for success with your music. ----Dave

Aint that the truth! Actually I'm not sure there is much that is in my comfort zone!! I'm no great shakes as a singer, but since there's no one else available I will have to do. I do take the point though, that we are never listening to a song, always the performance of a song, and even on a site like this one where people are more aware of the song structure behind a performance, it will still affect our perception of the song.

Thanks Dave. Good advice, and I'll endeavor to follow it

RDM,

I like the vibe on this one right out of the gate. Nice guitar work—really pulls you in. It’s a solid start to a potentially great tune. Yeah, the vocal here isn’t as strong and tight as others I’ve heard from you—so messing around with key changes to see if something fits your range better is worth exploring. But it’s a groovy sound. Keep tooling with this one—I like.

All the best,

Deej

Cool bluesy tune with a nice use of chromatic voice leading in the transitions.

It has a nice snappy vibe, and the guitar progression is tasty. The vocals work pretty well except for when you have to go up during the word 'up' in the chorus. One way I get around issues like this is resolve the melody lower and add a harmony that goes up. The harmony doesn't need the same power as the lead vocal in most cases so as long as the pitch is good it should sound golden. The percussion fits the song well.

It needs more bass. Is there even a bass guitar in the song? I am hearing a bass line of sorts but not really anything BASS.

I would be happy to comp a guitar solo on there for you. You can check out my soundcloud page - there are extended solos on Granite Walls, You Are My Destiny, Cold Grey Eyes, and shorter ones on Mind's Eye and Sadie Masterkiss to hear how I play. PM me if you are interested.

Cool song, and I really dug the guitar work you have on there so far.

Peace,
TC

@Deej56 thanks. I might try dropping the whole track down a tone and see if I can sing better to that.

@ TC Perkins. No, there is no bass in there at all at the moment. It has some low end organ tones but that's it. I'll take you up on the guitar solo if you're willing. Love to hear how that comes out. Thanks for the tip on the melody/harmony. I 'll have to give that a try.

I am digging this

Sounds like a 60's pop hit - which is my favorite era.

That is a cool riff!

The Doors didn't have a bass player - and this has a similar vibe.

Nice!

Scott

Great feel to this one, Owen. I know the feeling of having all this music inside without a more pro sounding way to get it out. You're still head and shoulders above a lot of folks so don't let it hold you back. An unprofessional sounding well written song is way more enjoyable to listen to than a slick piece of crap...just my opinion. Well done.

Ricki

Nice...somebody mentioned JJ Cale, one of our favorites. That may very well be the reason we like this so much.

We're also listening to more of your catalog. Good material there.

J&B

@Scott Thank you! You know I hadn't realized that. I'll have to pay more attention to them!

@Ricki We all need encouragement from time to time. I appreciate you giving it to me on this one It helps!

Hello Owen,


Very cool / enjoyable.


Calvin


http://www.soundclick.com/bands/0/calvinstewart

Very cool, indeed.
Excellent vocal performance and tasty guitar to boot.

Enjoyed the spin

Thanks Janice & Bud, Calvin and Nelson. Appreciate you taking the time to listen, and especially comment.

Catchy tune. I really like the guitar hooks that are driving it. I suspect changing the key might hurt the groove. You could also try doubling or tripling the vocal, adding some effects and a touch of harmonies on the "Better make your mind up" lines. That and a bass line would really bump this up a level. I'm thinking in the style of "Swingtown" by Steve Miller. Definitely a good start.

..ant

Yes as someone mentioned a hint of the 60s.
Good song all round
Travis7

Hey Owen,

Your music is kinda cool. Sort of reminds me a bit of Santana....don't know why, but just does.

Germain

@Ant, thanks for the very specific suggestions. I hoping to get another version of this done soon.
@ Travis. Thank you sir! 60s was a cool period
@Germain, Well, I can't say I see the resemblance, but who could possibly complain about that comparison!

New version now available, same link as before: Link to music

What's different?

• A scorching guitar solo from TC Perkins. Can't thank him enough for this, it's now the highlight of the track
• New vocals. Minor improvements. The whole song has been dropped a tone, added second vocal with Chorus effect and a third vocal with harmony
• Bass track added
• Song sped up by 3 bpm

Thanks for the listen!

Cool rocker with a 60s vibe ... would love to hear a louder bass to give it more punch and love the lead guitar!

Cheers,

Kevin

The bass in there makes a solid difference. You have all the pieces now!

The mix is pretty good. It sounds like you are using sampled bass VSTi of some sort (?). It could use a bit more clarity in the mix. The bottom is there but it's missing the mids to give it punch and clarity. Try this out if you get a chance - add a track one octave up, EQ it and mix it in judiciously so it adds those overtones that will give it presence. If it's MIDI just copy the track, transpose, find an instrument that sounds cool mixed in with the deep bass part, and try to make it sound like it's a single instrument. I've done this tons of times, and it works pretty well (Steely Dan used to double bass parts on guitar and keys).

It's sounding good, bro.

Peace,
TC

Love the beat and melody Catchy hook Great Track I liked the mix better than I can do have a great day
Anthony

Oh yeah...you've definitely taken this up to the next level. Well done!

Ricki

Owen,

You've done an awesome job ratcheting this one up! This is sounding great now--cool guitar work by TC. Good luck with this one--it's got legs. Loved the listen.

Best regards,

Deej

Version 3. Link to music


Thanks everyone. Definitely heading in the right direction. Appreciate the feedback.
@TC Perkins. The bass is from an acoustic guitar dropped an octave then run thru a VST Bass Amp simulator. Have eq'd up the mid levels on the bass

Thumps up! The bass is fully supporting the tune now.

--TC

Hi again, Owen:

Great to see you grinding away at this... and thanks, TC for providing some really good guitar work to give Owen a hand. It is a vast improvement over versions 1 and 2, Owen. The volume on the guitar solo needs to be increased to at least the same volume you used for your vocal in the rest of the song. (Naturally, lower it back a bit after you bring the vocal back in.)

Editing for most of us is a real drudge but can make or break a song from the listener's perspective. Again, my two cent's worth is intended to provide you with constructive feedback.

Really enjoyed the song and observing you bringing it to a different level. To me, this is one fantastic example that makes JPF such a great place to hang one's hat.

Best of luck with your music. ----Dave

Agree with you entirely Dave. The community here has been a terrific help and very supportive. And my experience and knowledge mixing is limited, so the feedback is well directed and appreciated. Expect a version 4 soon!