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Thanks Neil, Eddie, Nelson, Calvin, TC, Paul, and Deej..

This was a fun project in that once I composited the pedal steel together, I had a clear vision of what I wanted for this beautifully sad song of Ricki's. The only other thing I had to do was stay mindful to NOT use a series of Bob Seger notes on the lead guitar on the tag lines.

TC, would you mind, in the future, if you are going to make so many nits, adding somewhere in comments to ME (in some shape or form) that you are just expressing your opinion, please? It's not a big deal, but I'd appreciate it--because to a great extent these things are subjective and you ask a hundred people and they will have varying opinions..okay? Thanks..

As to the vocal volume, for the first few notes I feel Ricki's vocals are too loud as well, only once the song's rolling I like them where they are. And in retrospect, like how they "announce themselves" so brashely. BTW, I use lots of automated faders on everything.

I have to keep in mind two things in regards this. The one thing folks say consistently about your songs is that your vocals could be LOUDER, so maybe we just have a difference of opinion about where vocals generally should sit in a mix. That, and Ricki generally likes her vocals clearly above the music, and on this particular song, I really liked them there, towering above and "outside" it, as it were..

Once I got the pedal steel composited, I realized that this was beginning to sound like something off The Cowboy Junkie's "Trinity Sessions" album, and I made that the template for this song. I said as much to Ricki. That album polarized critics, btw. Some, including a few folks here, site it as a great recording. Others think there's far too much of a big reverb on everything and bleed through between instruments. Well, it was recorded "live" in a big church...so it goes, lol.. The extra reverb and slight washiness was indeed intentional on this particular song.

But because it was intentional doesn't mean you should have different feelings about it; I respect that you don't like the mix. But it works for me. Symbollically, it's like Ricki's voice is the " I " of "I left..outside Cleveland" and the music is Cleveland, and it's all a little bit of a blur when the view is outside, from a distance, looking in..so the mix, to me, kind of organically symbolizes the mood and meaning of the lyric. I mean..there are always lots of subjective reasons, in hindsite, why we like (or dislike) how something works, when inititally this is not the case--we just like it or we don't.

My feelings are that everything I produce surprised me a little, cuz I have learned to "go with" whatever project I am working on and let me take it where it wants to go. Do I always take them to safe places where there will be unanymous praise? Of course not. That is the devil that kills creativity: worrying about pleasing everyone. The only person I was aiming to please here, other (and more) than myself, was Ricki, and again, she knows that I am always open to changing anything, any time, and happily so. And I do make judgemental errors, but I listened to this mix a few dozen times and liked it this way, and yes, I can become earblind and not hear problems in mixes, so I appreciate your opinion.

Mike