Smooth as Silk

Joanna

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Description

It's been too long since I wrote a jazz song, so I decided to return to my favorite genre. I tried to capture the kind of song they would have played in jazz clubs back in the day. Imagine a smoky room at 3 a.m. in some dive with a quartet and a 'girl singer'. I had so much fun with this one. For the lyrics (to keep with that period feel) I played around with cliches, and had a blast doing it.

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Lyrics

Smooth as silk, slick as oil
Sly as a fox, you're never true or loyal
You're a rake, a bounder, a rascal, a cad
Why, oh, why do I like my boys bad?

You set your sights in that smoky room
Helpless as a kitten, I sauntered your way
You smiled, you laughed, enjoying my doom
I couldn't resist that black hair touched with grey

:;Refrain::

You put on airs; lived like a king
I thought you were the man that you pretended to be
The bills came in and I paid everything
A wink, a kiss, and a slap on the tush was your currency

:;Refrain::

You stole my heart, and all my rings
You took my natural pearls but skipped the cultivated
I should have known I'd lose all my things
You wouldn't even breathe without being compensated

::Refrain::

::Some noodling around::

::Refrain::

I don't know...
Loverboy...
Come to Mama.

©Copyright November 2004 by Joanna Sandsmark

Song Stats

Hits: 7885
Comments: 58
Fans: 20
Plays: 917
Downloads: 310
Votes: 45
Uploaded: Nov 23, 2004 - 11:25:42 AM
Last Updated: Nov 15, 2005 - 11:17:24 PM Last Played: May 12, 2013 - 11:28:06 PM

Song License

Creative Commons License:
Attribution-NoDerivs-NonCommercial

Song Actions

Hardware:

eMac, Shure mic.

Software:

GarageBand and JamPack #1

Comments

	mgauding said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	Is that you Peggy? Wow! What an amazing voice. Gorgeous! This is your medium, jazz that is. You were born to sing this kind of song. And your lyrics are fantastic. Thanks for another great song. I personally hate bad boys, but whatever. With such a voice you can sing anything and I'll listen.

Joanna	Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	Is that you Peggy? Thank you, mgauding! I'll admit that I'm not a big fan of bad boys, myself. But I wanted that vintage feel, and a "he done me wrong" song seemed just the ticket. I had such a good time singing this one, and that's because I was so comfortable with the genre. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Paul_T	Paul_T said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	It don't mean a thang . . . if it ain't got that . . . swang. The torch singer has been rekindled! Very authentic vibe. And I don't mean Vibrophone! A fun little track! Check out my latest song called Armor Pajamas

Joanna	Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	It don't mean a thang . . . Thanks, Paul! When I was a little kid, I used to dream of being called a torch singer. I think you just helped me fulfill a fantasy! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

phaseshifter	phaseshifter said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	That was nice Thanks. I really enjoyed this song. Your voice is very nice and the overall production is good too. Good job! Check out my latest song called Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Joanna	Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	That was nice Thank you, Phase. I'm so glad you liked it! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

ChrisSly

ChrisSly said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)

Even Oscar Peterson can't do that
I think this is a great little jazz tune. Very like the kind of
cabaret music you can hear in NYC any night of the week.
Your voice works very well for this style. The piano runs
during the refrain, though, sound a tad artificial to me.
They're just too fast to sound real. Maybe if they were
pulled back in the mix a tad, or weren't so dry.

Check out my latest song called La Valse Final Waltz

Joanna	Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	Even Oscar Peterson can't do that Chris - lol, yes, they're very artificial. I don't play any instruments, so loops are it for me. I'm still tweaking this song, so I'll experiment with pulling back the piano in the refrain. Thank you! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

packosmokes	packosmokes said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	POW!!!! After hearing this, I take back all that junk I wrote in "Rise Up". Your vocals really shine here! A slightlly smokey, sultry voice, rich in texture. This just rocked! (or is that jazzed)? :P Check out my latest song called The Future

Joanna

Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)

POW!!!!
Thank you, Pack! This is indeed the genre in which I feel most comfortable. I
absolutely adore singing jazz. It's what I tend to listen to when I pop on a CD.
It's also what I sing around the house. In fact, that's where this song came
from. I was making dinner last night, and just started singing what turned out
to be my refrain. While the microwave cooked, I ran to the computer and
typed up the lyric I'd just sung, and as soon as I finished eating, I opened
GarageBand.

Check out my latest song called 20 Years

SlimGirlFat	SlimGirlFat said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	Blissfull Vocals Well, Oh my God, Joanna, this is just too wonderful,You have just the right timbre in your voice to sing Jazz like this.great loops ( where'd you get em??) Fabulous lyrics Oooh, when you play live.. I'm comng over to be a groupie Slimmie Check out my latest song called Waiting For You 'Feat' David Paul Newell & Slimmie

Joanna

Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)

Blissfull Vocals
Thank you, Slimmie! You and I are in a mutual admiration society. I adore
your voice, you know. If that mythical performance ever happens, I think it
should be a duet.

As for the loops, they're from JamPack #1. I just got it and was dying to use
those cool lounge piano loops. In fact, I was so excited about my finally
getting a jampack, that I wrote a song about it
(http://www.macidol.com/song.php?band_id=1049&song_id=4857)

Check out my latest song called 20 Years

macapa	macapa said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	You sound great! Quite a voice! Quite a pleasure to listen to. An instant favorite. You should really try to do a collaboration with some of the members here who can play jazz. I'm certain the result would be fantastic.

Joanna	Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	You sound great! Thank you, macapa! And you're right -- it would be sooo cool to do a song with real musicians. A wee bit intimidating, but very, very cool. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

iG.STUDiO	iG.STUDiO said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	That's it. I want in. And, if you get Mcboy to play real piano on this one, it's going to be a gem. Check out my latest song called Spiral Samba

Joanna	Joanna said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	That's it. I really wanted a sax on it. But the software sax didn't sound right to me at all (I used to play sax many moons ago, so I'm a little particular about the sound). But man, real piano would be so cool! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

jcharney	jcharney said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	Awesome Though not my kind of music, I love your voice and the form of the song. The piano work was amazing too.

jcharney	jcharney said 3098 days ago (November 23rd, 2004)
	Awesome Ah, my bad...loops from JamPack 1. Well then...um excellent use of loops! :) --- IM me at atrophy normalcy (AIM)

Joanna	Joanna said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)
	Awesome jc - I know how tough it is to appreciate a genre to which you're not attracted, so I thank you most sincerely for your comments. My loops thank you, too. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Iseae	Iseae said 3098 days ago (November 24th, 2004)
	Wonderfull Loved the vocals, so swanky. My only complaint is the too quick piano riffs. Check out my latest song called Vickys Song

Joanna	Joanna said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)
	Wonderfull Is, thank you so much. Hopefully, the piano riffs will be solved soon. A collaboration is in the works! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

TobinMueller

TobinMueller said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)

Delightful
Very nice. It's great to have a contemporary writing
standards, there can't be enough of tunes like this. I
really like the piano solos between your singing, but it
does compete like a duetist on occasion when you're
singing; and I'd drop the low vibes. Your vocals are in a
different space because of the differentiating effects on
your voice too. But nice tune, nice inventive playing. This
will be a new standard in my nightclub!

Check out my latest song called Frozen Man (by James Taylor)

Joanna

Joanna said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)

Delightful
Thank you, Tobin! I just got a thrill seeing you use the word "standard", as
those are the songs I love so much. When I played the song here, the reverb
sounded a lot hotter than it had in GB, so I went back and clicked it down a
bit. Unfortunately, I couldn't swap out the now more balanced file. My fault
for posting too soon (the song went from conception to posting in just a few
hours -- one of those creative frenzy things that sometimes happen. Next
time, I'll be more patient and let it age a bit first).

Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Cameron

Cameron said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)

This is *IT*!!!
Wonderful!

This is YOUR best style, I think, and your comfort level
with this torch song genre shines through brilliantly. Your
voice lends itself perfectly to it.

The accompaniment is excellent as well, very nice rapid
piano riffs, interesting vibraphone "spice". This track is
extremely well put-together. It WORKS.

I haven't heard everything you've posted here yet, but so
far this is my favorite. VERY impressive!

An entire ALBUM of this stuff would do very well. This
track sounds very professional. This track has a similar
flavor to some of the things from Joni Mitchell's torch
song album, but your voice is definitely more soulful.

Check out my latest song called Trio for Horn, Violin & Piano

Joanna

Joanna said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)

This is *IT*!!!
Thank you, Cameron! I think one thing you're hearing is pure, unadulterated
fun. I simply had a blast singing it, and let myself play the role. To me,
singing is acting. In every song you play a character, with the structure of a
song akin to a 3 act play. And because I have a very low voice, this kind of
song does suit me vocally. The combo of comfort and a "juicy role" explains
all that fun I was having.

Check out my latest song called 20 Years

hacked_to_pieces	hacked_to_pieces said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)
	Bravo Standing Ovation professional quaility all the way. 10 8 8 10 Check out my latest song called blues shuffle

Joanna	Joanna said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)
	Bravo Standing Ovation Thank you, Hacked! You know, I'm so overwhelmed by the response to this song. I never in a million years expected to post a song this well received. I'm humbled and grateful to everyone who's listened. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

	said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)
	Already a jazz standard... in my estimation. This song is dressed to the nines. And you deliver a performance worthy of any jazz anthology. I mean that. Gosh, it wasn't difficult at all to imagine the setting in that late night lounge (I played a few back in the sixties). "Come on, give us one more song before they close and throw us out!" 9-9-9-9 Jack

Joanna	Joanna said 3097 days ago (November 24th, 2004)
	Already a jazz standard... Wow, thanks, Jack! Now all the world knows of my secret fantasy to be a jazz singer. It's so cool that you know that know that life. Man, I love garageband! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Ringo	Ringo said 3093 days ago (November 28th, 2004)
	Your best yet Everyone has one style they feel most comfortable with and this is defintely you. Liked it. Check out my latest song called Real Slow

Joanna	Joanna said 3093 days ago (November 28th, 2004)
	Your best yet Thank you, Ringo, and you pegged me just right. This is my musical comfort zone. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Scorpjammer	Scorpjammer said 3092 days ago (November 29th, 2004)
	Cool Song Nice nostalgic sound and mix. Great voice:-) Check out my latest song called Christmas Time Is Here

Joanna	Joanna said 3092 days ago (November 29th, 2004)
	Cool Song Thank you, Scorp! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

_nderscore	_nderscore said 3091 days ago (December 1st, 2004)
	top notch, all the way this is just perfect-the singing, the lyrics & the music! really great Check out my latest song called glyd

Joanna	Joanna said 3090 days ago (December 1st, 2004)
	top notch, all the way Thank you, _nder! That means a lot coming from you. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

randwolfe said 3081 days ago (December 10th, 2004)

Great Voice
I've been working in digital music using Pro Tools, which
is a more traditional recording interface. I have access to
lots of software synths and loops, etc. But somehow, I just
don't feel comfortable with robotic music. I think people
do some interesting stuff with it, like you. If you, or
someone, actually played that piano and bass, that's
pretty impressive, but if it was just pre-programmed
loops, it loses some magic for me. But I don't want to
sound like a party pooper. It's all good if its done well.
Keep it up. (Did anyone actually play the instruments?)

Joanna

Joanna said 3081 days ago (December 11th, 2004)

Great Voice
The piano is all loops, but they're audio loops, so we must assume that
someone played the piano in order to record them. I got the loops in Jampack
#1. The bass is a software instrument, also loops.

I would love to be able to play the piano or the bass, but I can't. I'm not a
musician, so I have to use what's available. That said, my voice is real, and I
played some of the vibraphone parts (midi).

Thank you for listening!

Check out my latest song called 20 Years

talltreetrio	talltreetrio said 3078 days ago (December 14th, 2004)
	Great lyrics! Call me a sucker, but who can resist: "You're a rake, a bounder, a rascal, a cad; Why oh why do I like my boys bad?" I agree with the previous reviewers, the repeating piano bits are a bit much, but overall, a fantastic tune. The vocal work in combination with the lyrics make this a great tune. Good job! Check out my latest song called Lone Pine

Joanna	Joanna said 3078 days ago (December 14th, 2004)
	Great lyrics! Thank you, Tall! And stay tuned -- there's a collaboration in the works that's going to replace all the loops with live instruments. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

mars

mars said 3061 days ago (December 30th, 2004)

What a voice!
OMG
First, I have to say I am sorry that I haven't heard any of
your song till now. You have a great voice!!
Your voice fits to this smoky jazz style song.
I also surprised that you did it just by eMac, Shure mic
and Garageband. It sounds really good. Especially the
piano sounds so good. Do you play that piano too?
I'm going to check your other songs too.

Big smile from Japan.

Rina(mars)

Check out my latest song called Spin (Live Jan.20)

Joanna	Joanna said 3061 days ago (December 30th, 2004)
	What a voice! Thank you, Rina! I'm a big fan of your music and especially admire your singing voice. The piano is actually a compilation of loops from Jampack #1. I wish I could play some instruments, but I can't. I performed the vocals and some of the vibraphone, that's it. Domo arigato for listening and commenting! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Anonymous said 3048 days ago (January 13th, 2005)

Smoothe as Silk it Was Indeed
Well Crafted and the performance is a true seller in itself.

I particularly liked the vibraphone solo and the walking
bass line.

I am slightly trouble by the choice of the word rake. I
know that your meaning is in reference to one that is "an
immoral ir dissolute person", but for some reason I
imagine the "rake" that one uses in the garden. In all
fairness, however, you may have been playing on words
and thus intentional in your homonymnal reference.

Good Work All the Way Around However!

Sincerely,
Johnathan J. Stegeman.
MidiMacMan.

Joanna	Joanna said 3048 days ago (January 13th, 2005)
	Smoothe as Silk it Was Indeed Thank you for your comments. "Rake" was intentional, but not as a garden implement. I used words that were familiar to the era I was trying to capture with the song, the mid-20th century. The music, the lyrics, even the vocal performance were intended to be remniscent of that era. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Mystified	Mystified said 3047 days ago (January 13th, 2005)
	Amazing vocals... ..and lyrics and, well, everything. When I first heard this, I thought that you were a professional singer who had created a studio recording. You have the mood and style of this piece down. I'd love to hear an entire CD of your voice doing this genre! Thank you for sharing your talent! Check out my latest song called the snowflake dances

Joanna	Joanna said 3045 days ago (January 15th, 2005)
	Amazing vocals... Thank you, Mystie! I'll get working on that CD, if you get working on yours! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

thetiler	thetiler said 3045 days ago (January 15th, 2005)
	Nice and you did that with loops I am starting to like loops more and more. I need to delve into that world for sure just from what you and others have done here at macjams. Of course your voice is the topping on the cake! Great words too. Check out my latest song called When Your Strange

Joanna	Joanna said 3045 days ago (January 16th, 2005)
	Nice and you did that with loops If I could play the piano, I would, but what's great about loops is that even folks like me can make music with them. Thank you so much, Tiler! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

bronco	bronco said 2977 days ago (March 24th, 2005)
	It Is You! I agree that this is your style. More, more, more!! p.s. and don't listen to the nitpickers. The average person wouldn't know that was loops instead of your band playing. Check out my latest song called Which Way Is Up?

Joanna	Joanna said 2977 days ago (March 25th, 2005)
	It Is You! Thank you, Bronco! And now, I'd like to introduce my band... er... Check out my latest song called 20 Years

TennesseeVic	TennesseeVic said 2974 days ago (March 27th, 2005)
	Great voice! But I think I've said that before. The piano runs are a bit unrealistic though. Did you speed them up from slower runs? Oh, nice song! Check out my latest song called A Bell in the Valley

Joanna	Joanna said 2974 days ago (March 27th, 2005)
	Great voice! The piano is not a software instrument, but the tempo is a wee bit higher than at what they were recorded. Not by much, though. The actual runs are just really fast. Apple hires only the best for our loops! Thank you, Vic! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

alanfraser	alanfraser said 2942 days ago (April 28th, 2005)
	That's hot! Jazz really isn't where I live but the lyrics are great fun and you have very expressive voice. Congratulations on the acceptance by MacAddict! Check out my latest song called Too Much or Not Enough - Live at 20th Century

Joanna	Joanna said 2942 days ago (April 29th, 2005)
	That's hot! Thank you, Alan! I especially appreciate you stepping out of your comfort zone to give it a listen. I'm so glad you were able to enjoy it. Check out my latest song called 20 Years

breezer	breezer said 2918 days ago (May 22nd, 2005)
	I am not a big jazz fan but this is very professional, so I gave you 8,8,8,8! Great work Check out my latest song called Twelve-21-Twelve

Joanna	Joanna said 2918 days ago (May 23rd, 2005)
	I am not a big jazz fan Thank you very much, Breezer, for both stepping outside your genre preferences and for thinking so highly of it! Check out my latest song called 20 Years

Ed Hannifin

Ed Hannifin said 2691 days ago (January 4th, 2006)

Good Lord. Did you really do this?!?
This recording feels like vintage Blue Note...whatever I know of vintage
Blue Note... (Years with roommates with vintage record collections)...

The vocal is so human, the phrasing and the ways you use your voice
so alive... Like you did this in a club, singing to someone you picked
out in the back row, AND someone you picked out in a table at the
front...

The tone of the piano is great, and it's hard to believe this was done
with an eMac and a Shure mic... The reverb sounds really organic and
like a real space...

Very special, real...

Ed

Check out my latest song called Uno/I Like The Way... (with Macaudion, SISTERS, ktb, and ziti)

Joanna

Joanna said 2691 days ago (January 5th, 2006)

Good Lord. Did you really do this?!?
Thank you, Ed! With this song, I think it's my own joy coming through
because I had such a blast singing it. Sometimes I can barely control my
delight. The piano is all loops from Jampack #1, which I had purchased just
prior to writing this song. I was so thrilled to get some jazz piano loops I
couldn't resist immediately jumping into them.

The beauty of Garageband, to me, is that it lets someone like me, who
doesn't really play any instruments, build a musical bed for vocals. I love to
sing and those crazy loops let me do so.

Check out my latest song called 20 Years

stacey	stacey said 2522 days ago (June 22nd, 2006)
	Good Stuff! I'm so impressed! This sounds like an authentic standard! Congrats! I'm off to download now. Thanks! Stacey Check out my latest song called tick tock

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Artist Info

Location: USA

Hi, I'm Joanna (not Jo, that's someone else). Garageband has allowed me to indulge my love for singing beyond concerts in the shower. My favorite part of songwriting is writing the lyrics. This makes sense, of course, because writing is what I d... [see more]

Check out some of my other songs:

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More songs in Jazz (vocal):

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