My band covers The Night They Drove Ol Dixie Down

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HeyHeyMyMy

HeyHeyMyMy

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Hello everyone,

My band just finished recording a cover of The Band's The Night They Drove Ol' Dixie Down, and I was hoping for some feedback. Any suggestions, comments, etc. would be greatly appreciated. I've sort of burned myself out listening to this one, so getting some fresh ears on this mix would likely be beneficial at this point in time.

http://www.trentsevern.com/paul/dixie.wma

Thanks very much.
 
Nice rich bass sound. Vocals aren't as full to kind of match that. Kind of seem thin amidst that bass. The harmonies/ backing vocs are really nice along with the lead. Great song, top cover.
 
OK, thanks for the comment. I'll see what I can do about that thinness.
 
Very nice. Now, take the main vocal and run it thru a distortion box to add just a little grit to the voice and you'll get a lot closer. Add a sustained Hammond B3 sound to the piano (at a very low level), and you'll be even closer still.

I'd probably retrack the main vocal and have him almost shout some of the lines. The main vocal needs a lot of drive/growl/grit/grunge to make the song right. That's why even though Robbie Robertson wrote it, it took a voice like Levon Helm to make it work.
 
Harvey Gerst said:
Very nice. Now, take the main vocal and run it thru a distortion box to add just a little grit to the voice and you'll get a lot closer. Add a sustained Hammond B3 sound to the piano (at a very low level), and you'll be even closer still.

I'd probably retrack the main vocal and have him almost shout some of the lines. The main vocal needs a lot of drive/growl/grit/grunge to make the song right. That's why even though Robbie Robertson wrote it, it took a voice like Levon Helm to make it work.
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Hey Harvey,

Thanks a lot for the comments. I'll see what I can do about rigging up a distortion box for the voice, and will also try a few runs through the main vocal again (I'm the singer) to get it a little growlier, more emphatic, etc. It's always daunting to sing this song because Helm sang it so darn well.

I'll also see if I've got a Hammond-like plug-in around somewhere.

Thanks again for taking a listen.
 
HeyHeyMyMy said:
I'll see what I can do about rigging up a distortion box for the voice, and will also try a few runs through the main vocal again (I'm the singer) to get it a little growlier, more emphatic, etc. It's always daunting to sing this song because Helm sang it so darn well.
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I use a SansAmp Tri O.D. on the Fender setting, with the Drive pushed up just a little to add just a touch of grunge to a hard vocal. You're gonna be amazed at how much better the vocals sound when you do this. Adding some distortion to the vocals is an old, but VERY effective, trick when used on the right song.

In the old days, we simply took the output of one channel and fed it into another channel to overdrive the 2nd input slightly.
 
Hi Harvey,

I gave the distortion a shot, but have yet to find something like a B3 to add to the low end of the piano. Seeing as I've never tried a little distortion on vocals before, I was a little unsure as to how much to go for.

Here's the new mix: http://www.trentsevern.com/paul/dixie2.wma

Thanks again for taking a listen.
 
Much better, but what do you think? It sounds like a little too much top end fuzz - something lower in frequency would be better. But the vocal fits the song a whole lot better now, at least in my opinion.
 
Yeah, I agree. It gets to be a little too fuzzy at times. It starts to sound a little unnatural - too much like an effect. I hadn't even thought of trying to adjust the frequency. I'll see what I can do. Thanks again, Harvey.
 
There's a peak around 7 or 8 KHz you need to bring down a little bit, and I think you're about as good as you can get with this lead vocal track. I'd re-cut the lead vocal, using a dynamic mic if this was for eventual sale, but it's sounding a lot better to me anyway.
 
Excuse my ignorance, but how should I go about addressing that peak? Just address it with EQ in the final mix?

It won't be for sale. Just having a bit of fun with my roommates.

I really appreciate all of the feedback, Harvey. Your reputation on this board is well deserved. My pair of your MoreMe phones are still going strong, too.
 
HeyHeyMyMy said:
Excuse my ignorance, but how should I go about addressing that peak? Just address it with EQ in the final mix?
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Yup, just put in a 3 to 5 dB notch and sweep till you hear some of the vocal's edge knocked off.

This is Karen (Harvey's wife):
I really like the "Neil Young" kind of haunting sound of the main vocal - but also hear a lot more richness or depth or something in the last version. Thanks - enjoyed this - nice to hear a neat song redone like this. Not an easy song to make sound right! But I really like it.
 
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I will give that a shot, Harvey. Thanks, again.

Thank you very much for the kind words, Karen. It's a wonderful song and an absolute pleasure to play and sing. Robbie Robertson sure could write a mean song, and I can still remember the first time that I heard both the original version on the self-titled Band album and then the live version on the Last Waltz: both different, but uniquely excellent in their own way. Anyway, I'll reign myself in before getting off on a Band tangent. Thanks again for the lovely comments.
 
its a great song and a nice rendition that sounds good.

harvey gives the secrets away for free!

i can hear the effect the distortion has on the voice. it sounds much clearer and crisper than everything else.

i would like to hear some of that crispness in all of the elements. and i would like to hear a cymbal of some sort somewhere.

the hammond organ would thicken the sound where it needs it and it could be a little thinner in the bass.
 
I never thought to try distortion on a vocal. Just listened to the updated version...sounds fuller, without really any 'effect' type of sound that I could pick up. Very good. :)
 
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

well. youre certainly on the right track

getting the shining star of homerec to listen and actually help you out

wow

i love the snare roll and the sound of it and the placing

i dont remember that in the original

a nice press roll

i can remember trying to work up this tune for my routine and getting emotional - its a powerful tune
 
and i love the woody guthrie avatar

i used to have two of his folkways albums and i worked up most of those songs and could do them from memory anytime anywhere as long as i had my little yamaha classical on my back which was most of the time
 
Yeah, it's definitely an epic tune. Those first few Band albums are just incredible.

It's great that you're into Woody, too. I've got a few of his albums, and though there are some ho-hum tunes, there's just so much wonderful stuff. I wrote a 30-page paper on him for a senior history seminar this year at university, and it was a real pleasure to learn about his life, etc. Bound for Glory is a great book, too. He's got a unique and engaging writing voice and style.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand: thanks for listening to my recording and leaving your comments.
 
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