Having a little fun while rehearsing
The Jerrys
Comping Vocals
I finally finished comping vocals for “I’m a Reader,” the upcoming single by The Jerrys—a huge task!
What the World Could Use a Lot More Of – The Jerrys (Live)
From my appearance on WZRD Chicago 88.3 FM one month ago today, here’s “What the World Could Use a Lot More Of.” Turn it up. Sing along.
Let’s Groove – The Jerrys Live at WZRD
I played “Let’s Groove” live at WZRD Chicago 88.3 FM earlier this month. The song is the title track on Let’s Groove, a full-length CD released in 2011. If you like what you hear, there’s more on The Jerrys’ website.
The Jerrys Live at WZRD Chicago 88.3 FM
I had fun playing the music of The Jerrys live on May 1 in the WZRD studio. Playing and singing while accompanying myself via a laptop, I played ten songs by The Jerrys, including a preview of the not-yet-released single, “I’m a Reader”:
1. Every Girl
2. What the World Could Use a Lot More Of
3. New Day
4. Let’s Groove
5. Bigger Than Oprah
6. When I’m in Love
7. Bridget and Me
8. Back in the Day
9. Telepop
10. I’m a Reader
Alejandro Aguilar interviewed me halfway through the set, and he and the other folks at WZRD (or “wizards,” as they are known) were fantastic. I especially thank Alejandro, Ellie, and Rick for all of their help and for making the night so enjoyable. Check out the video I posted for “Every Girl.”
Stay tuned for more music from The Jerrys, and be sure to visit The Jerrys’ website.
The Jerrys Return to WZRD on May 1
I’ll be returning to WZRD Chicago 88.3 FM (“The Wizard”) in less than three weeks to perform the music of The Jerrys. Please join me on Thursday, May 1, at 10 pm CST for what I hope will be a memorable evening of music. In the meantime, be sure to check out the videos from The Jerrys’ first appearance on WZRD.
Twist and Shout – The Jerrys
Playing “Twist and Shout” with Robert Porche (drums and vocals) and Jim Losby (bass guitar and vocals) last week
My Love in Her Attire
“My Love in Her Attire,” from The Jerrys’ debut album, Pop Go The Jerrys, is based on a poem I came across while reading The Top 500 Poems. “My Love in Her Attire” was penned by an anonymous poet sometime between 1400 and 1600, and while it is an awesome poem as is, it needed a little work before it could be a Jerrys tune. Below is the original poem as it appears in the anthology, followed by the words to the song by The Jerrys.
My Love in Her Attire
My love in her attire doth show her wit,
It doth so well become her:
For every season she hath dressings fit,
For winter, spring, and summer,
No beauty she doth miss,
When all her robes are on;
But Beauty’s self she is,
When all her robes are gone.
My Love in Her Attire
My love in her attire does show her wit;
It does so become her, this is true.
For every season she has dressings fit.
For winter, spring, and summer too.
No beauty does she miss
When all her clothes are on,
But Beauty’s self she is
When all her clothes are gone.
My love in her black dress is such a hit;
It does so become her, what a view!
In every color she has dressings fit.
In red and green and purple too.
No beauty does she miss
When all her clothes are on,
But Beauty’s self she is
When all her clothes are gone.
My Home Recording Setup
Nearly a decade ago, I began using a digital audio workstation of the studio-in-a-box variety to produce the music of The Jerrys. Switching from magnetic tape recording to digital recording transformed the way I made music. In terms of editing alone, digital changed everything.
Fast forward to now. Over the past several months I replaced my workstation with a computer-based home studio. I’ve recorded a few tracks already, and there’s a bit of a learning curve as might be expected. It’s all good, though, as I love learning new things (I’m making progress on a near-daily basis). Without further wait, here are the components that make up my new laptop studio:
HP ENVY dv6-7215nr Notebook PC
For audio recording using a lot of tracks, I needed not only a laptop dedicated to audio recording, but one with some muscle. With a quad-core processor, 8 GB memory, and a 750 GB 7200RPM hard drive, this notebook delivers.
Propellerhead Reason 7
Released in late April, Reason 7 is the latest and the greatest software from Propellerhead. I based my decision to go with Reason solely on the fact that Todd Rundgren used previous versions of Reason to create his last few albums. I needed something that would record guitars well, and if it’s good enough for Todd, it’s good enough for me.
Focusrite Scarlett 2i2
This basic audio interface does an awesome job of getting sounds into and out of my laptop, and as actual sound recording (guitars, vocals, tambourine, etc) is a big part of my music, that’s essential. I especially like the ring LEDs around the knobs that change from green to amber to red to indicate signal and clipping.
microKORG Synthesizer/Vocoder
While I used to think of my microKORG as only an audio device and not a studio component (ie, as only an instrument), it will now also function as a MIDI controller. I’ve never used MIDI in my music, but there’s a lot I can do with it in Reason, and I’m more than open to the possibilities.
Alesis M1Active 320 USB Monitor Speakers
It doesn’t take a George Martin-type to know how good these little speakers sound. You can spend a lot of money on monitor speakers, but I didn’t, and I’m glad, as these work great.
As mentioned, I’ve been recording using the new setup, and so far I love the way everything sounds. I look forward to releasing music that was made with the new studio.