Unobtainable Remedy (v2.1)

Nolan

Get Flash to see this player.

Description

Unobtainable Remedy was the first song I posted on MacJams back in June 2004 - the early days.

16,000 songs later, it's back. And not without some brilliant piano work by Syncopatient.

I'm calling this a "work in progress" because I'd like to see a lot more done with it; where that will come from I'm not yet sure...

It's been a while since I posted a song here so I'm happy to be uploading again. Hopefully, since probably thousands of MacJammers have joined since the first version, a lot of people will be hearing this song for the first time. I hope you enjoy.

And your ideas and feedback (and offers) for where I should take this song will be well received.

Leave a Comment

You must be registered and logged-in to comment.

Lyrics

Look at the bright side as dim as it is
It's happening but it's not happening to me
Don't disrespect the poet
And be sure to wash your hands

I've been holding out for you
And you've been holding off on me

I feel the chill and I fold up my arms
You are the unobtainable remedy
Why do you have the fans on
When you're so apparently cold

I've been holding out for you
And you've been holding off on me

There's something here, besides me
And there's nowhere else I'd rather be
And I haven't worked out how I'm still here
But I wish you'd let me know

Why will I put myself through this again
This weekly guaranteed let down
And how will I make it up for last time
And how long do I have

I've been holding out for you
And you've been holding off on me

Song Stats

Hits: 2390
Comments: 37
Fans: 6
Plays: 267
Downloads: 106
Votes: 18
Uploaded: Feb 24, 2006 - 08:39:37 AM
Last Updated: Feb 24, 2006 - 04:44:18 AM Last Played: Oct 24, 2009 - 05:24:47 AM

Song License

Creative Commons License:
Attribution-NoDerivs

Song Actions

Keywords:

Nolan (10), Syncopatient (1), piano (715)

Hardware:

eMac, MobilePre USB, Sennheiser mic

Synco's gear

Software:

GarageBand 1 & 2

Comments

said 1370 days ago (February 24th, 2006)

ramp it up
A nicely paced song. That certainly is powerfully introspective playing
by Syncopatient. I'd like to hear a flute or weepy guitar do some
soloing in the intro and break. Not a lot...just a light touch to
momentarily lift and set back down. The performance has a sad Billy
Joel sort of mood to it. Your voice is a little flat in places but you may
be doing that purposely to squeeze out pathos.

"I've been holding out for you. And you've been holding off on me."
That's a good hook. Maybe you could ramp it up even more each time
you sing it...moving from quiet self-pity to an angered outcry.

Nolan	Nolan said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	ramp it up Thanks Richard. It is great piano playing, isn’t it? I’ll definitely have to do the vocals again; I’ll try and do more with the final chorus. By the way, what are ‘pathos’? Thanks for the feedback. Check out my latest song called Fine

	said 1367 days ago (February 27th, 2006)
	ramp it up Pathos is a quality that arouses emotions (especially pity or sorrow). It's a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for the misfortunes of others. Pathos can also be used to describe a style that has the power to evoke feelings. --- http://www.schletty.com/song

aclarke	aclarke said 1370 days ago (February 24th, 2006)
	Like it like this The balance between your voice and Synco's (is he still out there?) beautiful piano make this song very dramatic in it's sparseness. Bravo for not taking the easy route and over-producing this. This is an extremely elegant piece of music! Check out my latest song called Ballad of The Little Tiki

Nolan	Nolan said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	Like it like this Thanks Adam. Yeh, I certainly don’t want to overdo it. Synco’s playing, especially in the bridge, shouldn’t be covered in anything. I don’t know where he is; haven’t seen heard from him for a while. Check out my latest song called Fine

Ed Hannifin

Ed Hannifin said 1370 days ago (February 24th, 2006)

Nolan, this is a great song...
It's a very immediate performance... very present... Your voice is right
there...

Yeah, Rich is right, there are some flats, and there are some plosive 'p's
and there are parts where maybe I'd back the piano back on the big
chords...

But the song's got its soul right... Its spirit has the usual melodic Neil
Finn-ish-ness, along with Finn's ability for the telling detail in the
lyrics, set against lines that set you puzzling for a moment "getting
inside" the lyrical viewpoint... And I like the actual piano playing very
much... The total effect draws me in as a listener, and leaves me
wishing there was more when the song is done... It's hard to get to
quibbling when a song does that...

If it were out there on a CD, I'd buy it, and if there was a more polished
version on CD, I'd buy that, and get this one as an "alternate take" on
iTunes...

Ed

Check out my latest song called Next Time Around (w/jiguma)

Nolan

Nolan said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)

Nolan, this is a great song...
Thanks Ed. Yeh, I think this will be an ‘alternate take’. Even as a work in
progress, I feel I might have been a little hasty in posting it. But the feedback
from you guys will help with making it better - and that’s the whole point.
Thanks for the Neil Finn comments; you know how to make my day. As for
the ‘p’s, I used my coat-hanger pop screen - it might be time for a new
stocking. And suggestions on a good quality panty-hoe ladies?

Check out my latest song called Fine

Ed Hannifin	Ed Hannifin said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	Nolan, this is a great song... Time to get serious about your music, Nolan. Buy a real pop screen! Check out my latest song called Next Time Around (w/jiguma)

Cori Ander

Cori Ander said 1367 days ago (February 27th, 2006)

Nolan, this is a great song...
First I'll say that I love your music as allways ... (being a long time devoted
Nolan-fan I have of course heard this one before).

Pop-reducing:
There is a way you can reduce lots of the p-popping sounds even on a track
that is already recorded. That is if you have a filter ... like in Logic Express it
is named "Low Cut". It is like a sharp EQ that takes away everything below the
frequency you set.

Let's say you don't sing any notes below 120Hz, then you can safely filter out
everything below 110Hz. Most popping is below the lowest sounds of a
normal voice. (I use to do that on my guitar recordings to reduce low
drumming sounds that I cause while strumming the guit. I have also used
software eq for this purpose before I discovered I had a filter.)

Anyway to do this you need also to know the frequencies for different notes.
Here is a little list. Beginning at the lowest note I ever use on guitar, the
dropped D, and up to the guitars high E string:

(the frequences are rounded numbers)

note Hz

D 73
D# 78
E 82 (6th guitar string)
F 87
F# 92
G 98
G# 104
A 110 (5th guitar string)
A# 117
H 123
C 131
C# 139
D 147 (4th guitar string)
D# 156
E 165
F 175
F# 185
G 196 (3th guitar string)
G# 208
A 220
A# 233
H 247 (2d guitar string)
C 262
C# 277
D 294
D# 311
E 330 (1st guitar string)

/Curry

Check out my latest song called Guitar test — Martin CSN (Gerry Tolman Tribute)

Nolan	Nolan said 1365 days ago (March 1st, 2006)
	Nolan, this is a great song... Thanks very much, Curry. I appreciate your advice. And I will try that out! Check out my latest song called Fine

Macaudion	Macaudion said 1370 days ago (February 24th, 2006)
	Nolan This is such a beautiful tune. I wonder who hasn't been here... Such an honest expression, it seems. Just wonderful. Thank you for sharing this. Dion Check out my latest song called 123 iGetU

Nolan	Nolan said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	Nolan My pleasure, Dion. I’m really glad you enjoyed it. Thanks a lot. Check out my latest song called Fine

renecalvo	renecalvo said 1370 days ago (February 24th, 2006)
	great the foundation is there its all frosting from here on in. It would make a beautiful rock ballad. I would keep lots of the piano and voice duet, introducing some soulful electric guitar, base and drums on the chorus and during changes, prehaps a break with guitar solo. good luck with it. Check out my latest song called Firefly

Nolan	Nolan said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	great Thank you for the comment. I can’t wait to taste some of this 'frosting'. This song has always been just piano and vocals - it will be cool to hear it with other instruments. Thanks for the suggestions. Check out my latest song called Fine

jiguma	jiguma said 1370 days ago (February 24th, 2006)
	Excellent Talk about Finn-like! Great vox, great lyrics, great writing. I'd probably like to hear it developed into something more, not the big ballad number, just some bass and drums and an acoustic. Love hearing a familiar accent - reminds me of the Waifs or Missy Higgins' vox. Excellent! Neil Check out my latest song called Lost In Translation (w Mike Watkins)

Nolan	Nolan said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	Excellent Thanks Neil. Yeh, I definitely want to keep it simple. What you’ve suggested sounds good. Glad you liked the first draft anyway. Check out my latest song called Fine

thoddi	thoddi said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	peaceful I liked the piano, the singing and the song:) Good start on this day for me. Thanks Nolan:) Check out my latest song called Don't tell me what I can't w/KTB and Ingve

Nolan	Nolan said 1369 days ago (February 25th, 2006)
	peaceful Thanks Thoddi. I’m really glad you kicked off the day with the song. It still blows me away thinking about people listening to my silly little recordings. Check out my latest song called Fine

Peter Greenstone

Peter Greenstone said 1368 days ago (February 26th, 2006)

beautiful
You're such a great writer. To me this has the qualities of a live
performance recording in a club. There are the minor imperfections in
pitch and the slightly poping p's, but they are minor, just enough to be
like a nice live one-off. Really such a beautiful song. When did Synco
perform this for you? I've been wondering if he'd ever come back to MJ
after the summer.

I like the simple voice and piano arrangement and I could imagine it
staying that simple. But perhaps some other instrument could join in
at some point and be a good addition. I wouldn't want to hear it
overdone though. The piano is doing such a wonderful job of
supporting your vocals and the lyrics.

I guess my main observation would be that you could get a better
recording of your voice without the pops and try to deliver some of
those lines more on pitch to give this a more refined sound. I'd also
like to hear a played ending rather than a fade out. But I'd still buy it
on CD as is and be happy.

Check out my latest song called From Nothing

Nolan	Nolan said 1368 days ago (February 27th, 2006)
	beautiful Thanks a lot, Peter. As always, I really appreciate your feedback. I shall definitely redo the vocals and I think the general consensus is to keep any instrumental additions to a minimum. Sounds like good advice since the piano is so good. Thanks again. Check out my latest song called Fine

Tadashi Togawa	Tadashi Togawa said 1367 days ago (February 27th, 2006)
	Quiet, certain sound. The voice weaves the melody. The piano plays silence. Excellent song. Check out my latest song called Mexican taste

Nolan	Nolan said 1365 days ago (March 1st, 2006)
	Quiet, certain sound. Thank you for listening and commenting, Tadashi. Check out my latest song called Fine

Cori Ander	Cori Ander said 1367 days ago (February 27th, 2006)
	Beautiful Beautiful Nolan. (See also my reply on popping above). /Curry the Nolan fan Check out my latest song called Guitar test — Martin CSN (Gerry Tolman Tribute)

Nolan	Nolan said 1365 days ago (March 1st, 2006)
	Beautiful Thanks Curry. Check out my latest song called Fine

MissChaos

MissChaos said 1366 days ago (February 28th, 2006)

Ah Nolan,
it's still one of my favorite songs on MacJams. I think the original was the
first song I ever commented on. This is just such brilliant songwriting; it's
really in the realm of sophistication beyond what I hear around here
normally. Your influences are really apparent. ;) I love this version, of
course, but on earbuds, the vocal hiss and hot spots are really a
distraction. You know I love your music, and I'm so pleased to hear this
one reworked. Fantastic!

Check out my latest song called Mama Cries - Album Version (MJRF)

Nolan

Nolan said 1365 days ago (March 1st, 2006)

Ah Nolan,
Ah, I remember that comment well. My head was spinning at that point that
strangers were even listening to, let alone enjoying, my humble little song.
I'm still getting a huge kick out of each comment.

Thanks Miss Chaos. I appreciate your kind words. As for that "vocal hiss" - it
has been the bane of my GarageBand existence. I just can't get a clean sound
through my mic. Maybe I'll start a thread on that...

Check out my latest song called Fine

thetiler	thetiler said 1365 days ago (March 1st, 2006)
	You have a very good style Nolan I hear Billy Joel in your singing, but a calmer style. Like the delicate piano. Almost like a calm city street at night in the summer. Thanks for bringing that peacfulness. It really moved me Nolan ! Lost of music doesn't do that. Again, terrific style Check out my latest song called The Bluebird Cafe (with two other guest)

Nolan	Nolan said 1340 days ago (March 26th, 2006)
	You have a very good style Nolan Thanks Tiles. I really appreciate it. Check out my latest song called Fine

giovanni	giovanni said 1363 days ago (March 3rd, 2006)
	Love it! I really dig this tune... this version is very very nice. There's something so live, so raw about it. It fits the tune well. While listening to this tune I felt as if I were sitting in a coffee shop... very intimate. Nice to see you posting again... I should give that a try! ;) Check out my latest song called I Can't Remember Me

Nolan	Nolan said 1335 days ago (March 31st, 2006)
	Love it! Thank you sir. Good to see your name around again. Now, when will I hear a new one of your catchy little numbers? Can't wait. Thanks for commenting. Check out my latest song called Fine

charliechen	charliechen said 1356 days ago (March 10th, 2006)
	Love the lyrics You do have a way with words. Like your style. Check out my latest song called Sparkles in a Lullaby

Nolan	Nolan said 1335 days ago (March 31st, 2006)
	Love the lyrics Thank you kindly Charlie. I appreciate you listening. Check out my latest song called Fine

selters	selters said 1352 days ago (March 14th, 2006)
	Great song! I both like the song, the playing, The singing, the lyrics! I love it all! Another one that goes into my Nolan folder! Check out my latest song called So Far (Out Of Reach)

Nolan	Nolan said 1335 days ago (March 31st, 2006)
	Great song! Mate, I am honoured and amazed that there is a 'Nolan' folder in Norway! Thanks. Check out my latest song called Fine

jiguma	jiguma said 1341 days ago (March 25th, 2006)
	New version now up Slightly augmented version of Unobtainable Remedy now up at http:// www.macjams.com/song/19298 Check out my latest song called Lost In Translation (w Mike Watkins)

pooey	pooey said 1339 days ago (March 27th, 2006)
	Excellent Love it as much as the original, but don't throw away the original! It has so much heart and just a great (I wanna say lo-fi) sound; it has a charm all its own. But yeah, this one is great too. Nice to see you've come into some better recording equipment and a better internet connection! Woohoo! Check out my latest song called Wake Up (Pooey Remix)

Nolan	Nolan said 1335 days ago (March 31st, 2006)
	Excellent Thanks Pooey. Yeh, the old version has a special place in my heart. Thanks for referring to it. Good to see you back around, and yes, the new equipment...mmm. Just need that condenser mic now. Any chance of some Pooey magic on a coming tune or two? Check out my latest song called Fine