The Wagtunes Corner

[wagtunes]

It was a compliment

What Rhodes were you using in that track ?

It could have used a little more compression,but the sound was pretty good

It was the Arturia Stage 73. I don't like using a lot of compression. I prefer a more "natural" sound. I'm old. What can I say?

[digitalboytn]

But there were a few notes that "jumped out" in that piano part and they were a little distracting...

Something like an LA-2A would just give it a bit of "smooth"

[wagtunes]

But there were a few notes that "jumped out" in that piano part and they were a little distracting...

Something like an LA-2A would just give it a bit of "smooth"

For you, distracting. For me, just what I wanted it to sound like.

Can't make everybody happy so my main priority is to make ME happy.

Should have learned that a long time ago.

[aaron aardvark]

wagtunes,
Now listening to "Hop Skip and Jump": this starts with a strong 50's vibe (in my opinion)! I don't recall hearing a 50's influence from you, from what I recall. Skip to my Lou! The piano has a music theater vibe (good). OK, now I see this is a medley of sorts with "Jump" (not the Van Halen variety, ha ha). Nice combo of your vocals and what I assume are female Vocaloid vocals. Per usual you have higher volume than my music. I can picture dancers in this. Very nice!

[aaron aardvark]

wagtunes,
"Ba Ba Ba": I will say this has a 70's vibe, with a bit of music theater (good; I can picture the dancers again). Nice melodies (so does the previous song)! Your singing works well on this. I can say with sincerity that you have a gift for song writing.

[wagtunes]

wagtunes,
"Ba Ba Ba": I will say this has a 70's vibe, with a bit of music theater (good; I can picture the dancers again). Nice melodies (so does the previous song)! Your singing works well on this. I can say with sincerity that you have a gift for song writing.

Thanks for the kind words Aaron. Gift for songwriting? I think that came from 40 plus years of hard work and a lot of horrible music at the beginning.

FYI, Hop Skip And Jump are all covers.

At The Hop - Danny & The Juniors (from the 50s)
Skip To My Lou - Judy Garland (From the 40s I think)
Jump (For My Love) - Pointer Sisters (From the 80s)

I turned the whole thing into a medley with my own little twists. It was a lot of fun to do.

[ChameleonMusic]

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

Pretty soon I couldn't get them out of my head
They were the only words that I could hear

Dude, how'm I gonna sleep tonight ...help me!!!

Tried counting sheep....they said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba !

Tried counting cows...they turned into sheep and said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba !

That's possibly the greatest earworm of all time - good song!

[wagtunes]

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
She said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba
The words that she would say to me

Pretty soon I couldn't get them out of my head
They were the only words that I could hear

Dude, how'm I gonna sleep tonight ...help me!!!

Tried counting sheep....they said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba !

Tried counting cows...they turned into sheep and said ba ba ba...ba ba ba ba ba !

That's possibly the greatest earworm of all time - good song!

And that's probably the greatest compliment I've ever gotten. After playing it for me friend Paul, who is older than me and grew up in the 60s, he called me the next Ron Dante. I'm sure you're familiar with the name. If not, look him up. He has quite a bubble gum legacy behind him.

[aaron aardvark]

wagtunes,
"Ripped From the Headlines": I don't believe I have reviewed this song yet. Your voice has a twang to it (good) to go with the guitars. If the guitar parts are not real, they sound real to me (rather good!). Per usual, you have very good melodies all around. Audio quality sounds good; I liked the Hammond B3 organ sound. Nice song, I like it.

[aaron aardvark]

wagtunes,
"J-Lo No-Mo": I thought some of the lyrics were funny (in a good way). I don't think J-Lo will let you be part of her posse with lyrics like that, ha ha! Vocals are fine. Unless you/me/anyone else are doing the Black rap style of vocal, not sure what what you call it. I guess spoken word would be one way to name your style of verse vocal. The Pet Shop Boys (I like a number of their songs) often sing/talk/rap/spoken word the lyrics during the verse, are a bit similar. I like the song, has good melodies. Audio quality is good. Instrumentally sounds good too.

[wagtunes]

wagtunes,
"J-Lo No-Mo": I thought some of the lyrics were funny (in a good way). I don't think J-Lo will let you be part of her posse with lyrics like that, ha ha! Vocals are fine. Unless you/me/anyone else are doing the Black rap style of vocal, not sure what what you call it. I guess spoken word would be one way to name your style of verse vocal. The Pet Shop Boys (I like a number of their songs) often sing/talk/rap/spoken word the lyrics during the verse, are a bit similar. I like the song, has good melodies. Audio quality is good. Instrumentally sounds good too.

Aaron, thanks for the feedback on the tunes. Much appreciated. No, I don't think J-Lo will want me in her fan club. LOL

[] Peter:H []

Listening to https://soundcloud.com/steven-wagenheim/ba-ba-ba-ba-ba ...
Hm, I don't know why, but you have some kind of "ear worm" factor to some your your tracks. It's really good songs that keep my attention. Good work! It's simply catchy melodies and good song writing ...

[wagtunes]

Listening to https://soundcloud.com/steven-wagenheim/ba-ba-ba-ba-ba ...
Hm, I don't know why, but you have some kind of "ear worm" factor to some your your tracks. It's really good songs that keep my attention. Good work! It's simply catchy melodies and good song writing ...

Somebody else in this thread (think it was Chameleon) said it was the best ear worm he ever heard, or something to that effect. Honestly, it's just 60s bubble gum. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to write like Ron Dante.

Thanks for the kind words Peter.

[vurt]

where the hell have you been?

[wagtunes]

where the hell have you been?

:sigh: Yeah, I know. It's a very long story. Part of it has to do with my current CD. You know how everybody is always telling me that if I spent more time on my songs, they'd be better. Well, I'm testing that out. I started a CD on 2/22/2021. It's over 2 months later and I'm not even half way done with it. In fact, I don't expect to finish this CD until sometime in July or even August.

And while production wise it's excellent (so far) musically, taking time with my songs, for me anyway, doesn't make them better songs. In fact, I'd say just the opposite. I think when I'm really inspired by an idea and I put it together quickly, it tends to come out better, at least musically. This whole agonizing over every chord, every note, every second of the arrangement, I think is counter productive for me. So far, I can honestly say that this is one of the worse CDs I've ever done, from a musical perspective. The songs are missing that spark. There's no other way to explain it. When you hear it (I'm posting the playlist in its entirety when it's finished) I am 99% sure you will agree with me.

Ultimately, this will prove to people that my working longer on songs does not guarantee that they'll be better. So far, it appears they are worse.

But that's only part of why I've been away. The rest is very personal and not something I want to get into here.

On the plus side, I just heard from my band today. Sometime in May I will be getting a mechanical royalties (units sold) check for $74.29. It's not a fortune, but it's the first money I've made in the business. The album sold 3,534 units. Ironically, after 44 years of trying to reach this "goal" I'm not quite as excited about it as I would have been 44 years ago. Time does that to you. Still, it's a good feeling. My music hasn't been for nothing.

I'm going to try to pop in this weekend and listen to a few tracks here. I see DT has a new one and I really want to hear it.

Anyway, that's about it for now. Don't worry, I'll be okay but I've got a lot of stuff to think about.