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Attribution
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Description:
Recently, I wrote a note to Jiguma (Neil):"At work recently a woman retired. She was a very hard worker who would do anything for you. She was also so anal she couldn't let anything go and she would have to tell us everything we did wrong (nicely, of course). She was well-respected and well liked and her retirement dinner was one of the biggest parties of the year. I wrote a song for the retirement party which we played with full sound system; quite a bit of fun. Here's an mp3 to show you how it goes." I was interested in maybe some bass and drums which Neil does so well. As an aside, I asked him if maybe rtcooper would be interested in playing an electric guitar track. He said it doesn't hurt to ask. So, I was very fortunate to have both these awesome players join me and it turned up the boogie factor exponentially. Neil had so much fun he added a crowd to the mix so it sounded like a party. I only wish I had these two fellas with me at the retirement party.
Lyrics:
I was wrapping up a tray
In the Clean Workroom
I was all thumbs
as 3 o’clock loomed
Gas incheck
and tape that said Steam
Looked like I was gonna need
A glass of Jim Beam
Sweet hands took that tray
As I was making no gain
While a voice like a needle
Bored into my brain
Now Joe, I’m not saying this to be mean
But you got a gas incheck when it oughta be steam
No offense to you
But you’re kind of a slob
If you’re gonna wrap a tray
Why don’t you do a good job?
That’s the problem with some people ‘round here
I talk and talk and talk
And no one seems to care
It's like that
Humbled as I was
I put no one above
That naggin tech hammered me
Till I fell in love
I bought her flowers,
Then I planted a kiss
She said “Joe I’d rather you
Do it like ths:
Sweet hands took my hands
Put them around her waist
I got an hour-long session
In how not to make haste
Your nose should drift to left
Whlie mine drifts to the right
First, go brush your teeth
They ain’t lookin’ too white
Cheap flowers nice
Next time buy me a rose
If your gonna hang with me
I’ll keep you on your toes
No offense to you
But you’re kind of a slob
If you wanna be my lover
You better do a good job
More like that
Sitting here broken
You can’t know how it feels
Fallin far too short
of Maggie’s ideals
Makes me feel useless
With a condescending hug
Saying nobody’s perfect
Therin lies the rub
She titters and giggles
With the girls down the hall
I hear her say “Joe tries hard”
And I just feel small
I know she aint saying it Just to be mean
But I hate when she’s right
If you know what I mean
Listen to me fellas
don’t say you ain’t heard
You can talk and talk and talk
You won’t get the last word
You may think you’re something,
All she can stand
But you leave the work room
A brand new broken man
Save me Naggie Maggie
I’ve been being good
Way too long
Stop me Naggy Maggie
I must be doing
Something wrong
something wrong
Like that
Or like that
Hardware:
Alvarez Yairi DY62
Penco A190
Shure Beta 58
Hohner Harmonica
Neil's Stuff
Coop's Stuff
Software:
Garage Band and whatever Neil and Coop are using
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Naggie Maggie Blues &mdash 01/25/08 - 06:43:02 PM
WOW ..this is a blast ..what a cool tight band Joe !!
great great rockin blues colab !!! Deep Bow everybody !! [ Reply to This ]
Feter! &mdash 01/25/08 - 09:13:39 PM
Thanks Feter, this was a blast. I was blown away with the results once Neil and Coop got a hold of this. I think these guys captured the mood of this song as I could only imagine doing, but the result was beyond my imaginative powers. Also, Neil did a great job producing the mix. Glad you liked it.
[ Reply to This ]
great &mdash 01/25/08 - 06:46:55 PM
solid vocal over a jammin tune. everyone really gelled on this. kudo's [ Reply to This ]
Thanks KTB! &mdash 01/25/08 - 09:15:12 PM
Appreciate the visit and the kind words. It was like I had my own band;-)
Cheers,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Jammin! &mdash 01/25/08 - 07:09:42 PM
I love this collab. First, the lyrics are something I think we all can relate to, having known people like this. This was fun to listen to. The music rocks; you guys sure play together well. And I love the harmonica. The party sounds rounded it all out. Kudos to all! :-) [ Reply to This ]
Hello Roxy, &mdash 01/25/08 - 09:17:23 PM
Great to see you here again! These guys really stretched out on this one. Singing with Coop’s Guitar and Neil’s rhythm section is like being in a rocking chair; and that rocking chair is moving!
Thanks,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
s'what I'm talkin about &mdash 01/25/08 - 07:16:13 PM
sawdust on the floor cuttin' material here, great collection of support staff.
. - Harold [ Reply to This ]
Thanks Rocha! &mdash 01/25/08 - 09:20:57 PM
No dancing on the tables (until 2 a.m.) The management reserves the right to cage the band for their own protection. Thanks for the kind words.
Cheers,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Had to let go :) &mdash 01/25/08 - 08:07:37 PM
As Joe said, this started out as a friendly request for some bass on a nice little acoustic boogie - little did he know that he had taken the first step in creating a monster ;)
I think Coop sent maybe 5 Strat tracks in all (there's bits of 3 of them in this version); Joe has a doubled acoustic track (plus a part of another acoustic track for the first verse), harmonica and vocal tracks, and I did bass and drums (and hired the rentacrowd crew for the ambience). This was a tricky mix to do, making sure that everyone got heard and that guitars and harp didn't get in each other's way, while at the same time trying to get the "live" feel.
Hope you enjoyed where it went Joe.
Neil [ Reply to This ]
Neil, &mdash 01/25/08 - 09:23:45 PM
this is the most fun I’ve ever had with one of my songs. And really, all I had to do was wait for the daily remix to arrive. Your musician and production skills are greatly appreciated with everything you put out, but to have one of my songs given your treatment was a pleasure I sure hope I get to repeat. And how ‘bout that Coop! I felt like I was riding on a rocket; he has a great feel for a song and I loved how this one turned out.
Thanks Neil. [ Reply to This ]
You .... &mdash 01/25/08 - 11:48:51 PM
Thanks Alannah! &mdash 01/26/08 - 07:03:05 PM
Whoa! &mdash 01/26/08 - 10:11:06 AM
Jim, in this case ... &mdash 01/26/08 - 03:35:56 PM
... the high compression was intentional :) - wanted the live feel. Compared to the duo I saw live last night (Disappear Fear - from Baltimore) the sound on this was positively subtle!
Thanks for the visit and comment - a little experiment ;)
Neil [ Reply to This ]
I figured as much &mdash 01/27/08 - 09:14:16 AM
But I still think it could sound live at a lower volume, by providing more space in the sound. The problem with using compression like this is that it puts the sound right in your face, and rather than creating space, it flattens it. Rather than sounding live, it just sounds loud.
There is something different about moving air in a concert venue versus the sound coming out of the speakers at home. The problem with having a loud sound in a recording is the ear gets fatigued easily because the sound is all there is. When you are at a live venue, there are so many other physical factors that go into the experience that the loud sound is just a minor part of that, and there's an energy factor from the public setting that makes it a different experience. This song, because it has a lot of words, and the focus is the clever wordplay and the story, would be better served by making the sound easier on the ears. Ear fatigue is something I suffer with a lot, so maybe it's just my problem. [ Reply to This ]
Jim &mdash 01/27/08 - 06:32:26 PM
I'll give it a tweak down to less inyerface settings and see what happens.
:)
Neil [ Reply to This ]
of course it could just be me &mdash 01/27/08 - 07:52:21 PM
and if I seem to be singing in a monotone, feel free to ignore me. But "loud" does not mean more exciting, more powerful, more forceful, or more "live". It just means loud, and to me, it means something I won't download because it isn't something I can take listening to more than once. It's gotten so that when a song is pushed up as far as it can go by limiting and compression, it's all I can do to get through even just one listen all the way through the song. There's a lot of songs on MacJams that are getting pushed up to that ear fatigue level for me, and it makes me less and less inclined to listen to much MacJams music. So many powerful limiting and compression plugins are so much more affordable now, like Ozone, that these effects are getting used more and more indiscriminately to push the volume up to the max, sometimes indiscriminately. But enough of my ranting...I'll get off my soapbox now... [ Reply to This ]
LEARNING CURVES &mdash 01/28/08 - 12:02:47 PM
OZONE, too often, defaults to a full, BLOWN OUT Max.
And while OZONE is great, it takes a few projects to learn the Dynamics settings to counter or modify the pre-sets effectively.
Headroom and Dynamic Range seem to return after some exposure to the App., but, you correctly identify the apparent Zeitgeist of the moment with Mastering Plug-ins.
As a caveat, I'll note that while Neil has a 24-bit environment, Joe and I sent him tracks in 16-bit that, by definition, has nearly no usable headroom. No argument that "Maggie" is a tad short of the Range and Headroom that would prevent the listening fatigue that you reference.
No offense intended. Enthusiasm trumped any planning of the Final as this developed and Neil was tasked with Mixing whatever we had sent over.
Point well taken.
With appreciation and best regards,
Cooper
[ Reply to This ]
a barn burner &mdash 01/26/08 - 11:59:00 AM
Yeah Vic, &mdash 01/26/08 - 07:14:37 PM
Call 911! If the fire doesn't get to the neighbors, the noise will. Thanks for the vote of confidence.
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Wham bam ... &mdash 01/26/08 - 04:03:14 PM
Thanks APB &mdash 01/26/08 - 07:18:13 PM
DANCE DANCE PARTY PARTY &mdash 01/26/08 - 09:25:32 PM
WELL, if we'd fixed it, it wouldn't have sounded like this, would it?
It sounds like the Party it was to do.
We did about everything backwards and by sense of touch, but, hey, it's a Hoot!
It's sometimes a good thing to not get too self serious about things.
Thanks, Joe. That's the first one, we'll have to see what's next, eh?
very best,
Coop
[ Reply to This ]
The thing is...... &mdash 01/27/08 - 08:36:37 PM
regardless of the details, we had a hell of a lot of fun, I think, because the musical interplay between the three of us worked so well. It was kind of exciting and that may have contributed to the high levels. Can't wait to try again. Thanks for the retro-rockets Coop!
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Rocking and Rolling........ &mdash 01/26/08 - 10:49:00 PM
Outstanding.... everything.... Joe, great song... your singing is just right on. I love the subject.... day in the life, eh? Great harp.... and the band... the band. Neil, RTC... kudos dudes....
and the crowd cried out for more!
Jack [ Reply to This ]
Yeah Jack, &mdash 01/27/08 - 08:45:54 PM
The energy level was nice and high. Reminded me of some of the best times I've had listening to music. Thanks for the comments, Jack, and the visit. It was a really enjoyable collaboration.
Joe [ Reply to This ]
The Low-Down... &mdash 01/27/08 - 11:22:18 AM
on this hoe-down...
It's a hoot!
Nice collab and a good time was had by all. ;)
--- Joe [ Reply to This ]
Hey Joe........ &mdash 01/27/08 - 08:50:38 PM
Thanks for visit. It was a real hoot, that bass makes my feet move! Always wanted to say "hey Joe.......where..." you know the rest. ;-)
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Totally smokin'! &mdash 01/27/08 - 02:38:22 PM
Gents- this is what you refer to as a bona-fide rock and roll record. This rocks in all the best possible ways. Great blues rock beat, solid and tight rhythm section, some sweet biting lead guitar and a vocal that doesn't quit (or breathe)! The Dirty Harry artwork was the icing on the retirement cake.
Excellent word play and an awful lot of fun overall! [ Reply to This ]
Hey Adam, &mdash 01/27/08 - 08:59:00 PM
Thanks for the kind words. I wanted a bit of a boogie, but I got a bar-room blast with the chicken wire and the Miller long-necks, and, I couldn't be happier. Really appreciate the visit Adam, great to see you here. [ Reply to This ]
Well... &mdash 01/27/08 - 10:09:09 PM
...this rocks big time, guys. Amazing how you can create that live feel. Love it...congrats on a great collaboration! [ Reply to This ]
It's easy Bob, &mdash 01/28/08 - 06:43:08 PM
This is a great rockin' tune &mdash 01/28/08 - 06:18:30 AM
and you've totally succeeded at getting the live feel you wanted. The playing is great - love that guitar work. But the song rests on those lyrics and that vocal performance. This makes me want to get up and dance! Excellent! Nice work to everyone involved. Peace. [ Reply to This ]
Thanks Dave, &mdash 01/28/08 - 06:49:49 PM
I couldn't ask for a bigger compliment. I always wanted to do music that made people move, but I think this is the first time it happened ;-). Appreciate the kind words and the visit.
Cheers,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
very fun &mdash 01/28/08 - 07:54:16 AM
I enjoyed the story and the lyrics. Nicely sung! Now I ain't saying this to be mean, but it sounded like the recording was just a little too hot, with a little clipping here and there on a guitar and even vocals. But man, you got some great rockin' guitar and bass work going on there, quite fun! Cheers Joe, Coop, Jiguma!
ttfn,
Drakonis [ Reply to This ]
Hello Drak! &mdash 01/28/08 - 06:59:09 PM
Great to have you here. I realize I made some mistakes on the vocal and harp tracks that may have skewed the mix towards the clip effect. But the overall feel was kind of, I don't know, exuberant, over the top, and it really grew on me. I learned some valuable lessons because of it and I promise I'll put them to use on the next one ( as soon as I come down off this table :-0). I love the Condor video. Take care,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
At the Union Hall &mdash 01/28/08 - 10:52:02 AM
"A working class hero is something to be."
The band sounds like a real blue collar and blue jean gang. Perfectly imperfect.
Now, if we could just wash off these blue ink hand stamps!
DIXIE [ Reply to This ]
TO: JB Learning Curves &mdash 01/28/08 - 12:07:02 PM
Jim,
Indeed, OZONE, too often, defaults to a full, BLOWN OUT Max.
And while OZONE is great, it takes a few projects to learn the Dynamics settings to counter or modify the pre-sets effectively.
Headroom and Dynamic Range seem to return after some exposure to the App., but, you correctly identify the apparent Zeitgeist of the moment with Mastering Plug-ins.
As a caveat, I'll note that while Neil has a 24-bit environment, Joe and I sent him tracks in 16-bit that, by definition, has nearly no usable headroom. No argument that "Maggie" is a tad short of the Range and Headroom that would prevent the listening fatigue that you reference.
No offense intended. Enthusiasm trumped any planning of the Final as this developed and Neil was tasked with Mixing whatever we had sent over.
Point well taken.
With appreciation and best regards,
Cooper [ Reply to This ]
Smokin track Joe &mdash 01/30/08 - 08:01:19 PM
your singing is great and the harp playing is too good. Way to bring in Jiguma and Coop to kick this along. Mighty fine time. [ Reply to This ]
Thanks Bud! &mdash 01/30/08 - 08:37:09 PM
It's hard to go wrong with Neil and Coop; the problem is being good enough to keep up. The emails alone were entertaining as these guys were totally committed to the song. I am one grateful guy. Thanks for the kind words and the visit. Looking forward to your next post.
Cheers,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Sitting &mdash 01/31/08 - 03:11:03 AM
in bed with toast and coffee on a stormy thursday morning in the uk before work,this has cheered up my day - Thanks
Richard [ Reply to This ]
Thanks Richard, &mdash 01/31/08 - 08:10:14 PM
You just made my day. Good of you to visit and drop a line.
Cheers,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Excellent! &mdash 02/01/08 - 10:42:30 AM
Thanks Steve, &mdash 02/01/08 - 09:44:53 PM
great! &mdash 02/03/08 - 06:20:03 PM
this sounded like a buncha talented music makers hunkering down and melding in the best way possible. great vocal alttitude, joe - this is a treat. neil and coop did a fabulous job making the music big and fat and full of life. it made me wanna go across the virtual dance floor and drag coop out onto it with me in a Ladies' Choice sorta mood.
that harmonica is scha weeeeeeeet!
enjoyed your creation,
anne [ Reply to This ]
Lol! &mdash 02/06/08 - 06:13:46 PM
You can't dance with Coop; he's in the band; maybe I can arrange a backstage pass;-) Thanks for listen and sweet comment. Someday I'll write a song with harmonies, then we'll have to call on you two. Wouldn't that be a band!
Thanks,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Cool &mdash 02/13/08 - 09:44:20 PM
Cool rockin!! Enjoyed the singing and how the tune was mixed. Really enjoyed the harmonica as well.
Has a very nice swing to it. Kinda Jerry Lee Lewis feel, but of course all you guys style.
Way to go!
Nice bass ! [ Reply to This ]
Thanks Tiler, &mdash 02/13/08 - 10:34:40 PM
I love the bass and electric guitar too; I know jammin' live with these guys would be great. Collaboration on this site gives one opportunities that would never happen otherwise. I am extremely grateful. Thanks for the encouraging words Tiler, much appreciated.
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Great! &mdash 03/04/08 - 07:58:08 AM
Very great song everyone. The guitar work sounds very good and the bass line was very tasty. The vocal and harmonica are just superb. Just a top notch post my friend. Great fun .... you draw a smile here!
Take Care
- Yeman A. Al-Rawi [ Reply to This ]
Good to have you smile, &mdash 03/04/08 - 12:41:25 PM
That makes my day. Thank you for the kind words, much appreciated.
Take Care, my friend,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Tight Band &mdash 03/04/08 - 12:31:56 PM
It's really hard to make a "Club Sound Clear" So when the ambience
is overwhelming, you better have a Bad Band and this is... One.
Lyrics are solid as a rock, with some serious production behind this,
it could be a contender.
But to do this in a studio setting would mean some Maaad Work.
This could walk with the Big Boys.
I..........LIKE IT......... [ Reply to This ]
Tight Band MIx &mdash 03/04/08 - 12:43:37 PM
It's really hard to get that "Club Sound "
This a Cool-- Bad Band Mix and to put this together
I'm sure took some work. Lyrics are solid as a rock,
with some serious production behind this,
it could be a contender.
I..........LIKE IT......... [ Reply to This ]
Thankyou Soundhound! &mdash 03/04/08 - 08:21:12 PM
This was an experiment we are sure to repeat; it was fun and easy to work with these guys, and the biggest mistakes here were mine, so I am looking forward to another shot at recording collaboratively. I appreciate the thoughts you have for the material, thanks.
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Great Boogie!!!! &mdash 03/21/08 - 08:17:54 PM
Great.... &mdash 05/05/08 - 08:57:10 AM
....excellent rock and roll guys. Love the harp style...real sixties Stones. [ Reply to This ]
Thanks Dennis, &mdash 05/06/08 - 10:27:46 PM
There was some Stones in my ears while I was learning to tune; could've left a mark. This sound is very much Coop and Neil; they sure know how to have fun.
I think I just gave 'em license to rock and they released their inner animals. Good time was had by all. Thanks for the visit.
Cheers,
Joe [ Reply to This ]
Wow!!! &mdash 05/23/08 - 11:08:44 PM
This Rocks AMAZING WOW THAT Harp !!! I am Blown Away.
Phew you did a great Job on this. I LOVE THIS SOOOO MUCH.
A GEM to Download as well Music was all Rocking Good Vocals to die for. KUDO'S
[ Reply to This ]
Thank you WAO &mdash 06/01/08 - 08:31:11 PM
Appreciate the kind words for all of us. The song took on a life of its own once the collaboration got rolling; It's a special kind of satisfaction seeing two great musician/production guys have such fun with an idea you start them on. I think it might be time to try again soon. Thanks, and welcome to MacJams. [ Reply to This ]
wow &mdash 07/14/08 - 07:58:53 PM
wow
what a great driving story. and true . the bass in so infectious. and the grit in your voice and the two vdifferent tones in the harmonicas. your voice slides into the mix just right. i yhink i like the loud mix. dinamicly the song is a wall of sound, but that is part of iits charm
tim [ Reply to This ]
Hey Tim, &mdash 07/18/08 - 01:19:06 AM
Thanks for the listen; I was so excited by what Neil and Coop did to this song. I hope to collaborate again soon; Neil and Coop really got into the spirit of the song and it came out more powerful than I could have imagined (given my acoustic limitations). Great to hear from you, and thanks. [ Reply to This ]
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great great rockin blues colab !!! Deep Bow everybody !!
[ Reply to This ]