Paid a sax player, was it worth it?

Agree with groovejunkie...she's not bad. But a little energyless (if that's a word in english :D )
 
The sax player is alright.......I'm sure it sounds better than a patch but it seems like he could have played something just a little more inventive.
 
she's not too bad, although she could try to "push" a bit harder.
sax was OK
good work
 
I'm computer savy (somewhat i thought!) But your shit is simply to hard to get to!!

GO PLACE IT AT WALDO"S ........nowhereradio.com

Your site irritates me, esp the graphics! We are musicians,.................NOT TURNTABLE DJ'S!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!GO TO NOWHERE!!!!!!!!!!!!! & I'll be glad to critique!!!!
 
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Actually....let me try to further comment on the sax.
He's barely playing anything on the tune. I'm not sure what the point of paying him was if he doesn't get to play anything. It's not enough to just have a little bit of sax diddling around at the end of the song. There should be some fills throughout and really, at least one short ride. Also, when he does come in, although it sounds pretty good, it's too far back in the mix.
As a sax player, it drives me crazy when people use sax without really using it. A good example is when bands hire me for special gigs to add a little something to their band but then their idea of using sax is to play 'I Feel Good' after which I stand there with my thumb up my butt while they play song after song without it ever occuring to them that I can play rides and fills on anything.
The sax adds a little bit to your tracks but not much because he wasn't allowed to add much or perhaps he couldn't think of much to add but I'd bet it was 'cause he wasn't allowed to.
 
Thanks for the feedback guys,

The sax is part of the song - it's not the song itself Lt.Bob. We didn't write a song so we could put sax on it. We wrote a song and thought some sax might add to the mood.

Hey Flat-9 you need to get out more, get a sense of humour and set your browser outside nowhere radio every once in a while! :)

Thanks Again
 
Nice Job, Good song.

Was the sax worth it? In my opinion, no. The playing is fair, not exactly Phil Woods.

I gotta agree with Lt. Bob on this one. The sax could have done a LOT more to spiff up this tune. It really needs some little licks throughout, not just a few notes at the end.

Let me put it another way: If you took the sax out, the song would be almost identical. In fact, I dont think I would have noticed the sax had you not asked us to listen to it!

Nice song though, but since you asked, the sax wasnt worth it.
 
That's my point exactely David......of course I'm not suggesting that the sax should take over the song.....but you said the point of the sax was to add something to the song and you asked if it did that. In my opinion....David's got it exactely right......it adds little because it wasn't really utilized very much. If you don't want any sax on it....fine. Plenty of tunes don't need a horn player and I'm not sure this one does. But if you are going to use one.....he needs to play a little bit. Just diddling around at the end comes across as an afterthought.
 
Bob, I think what I was hearing in my head when I heard this tune was Phil Woods on Billy Joel's " Just the way you are". Granted, he is the king, but this tune has so many gaping holes in it, it is BEGGING for a lot of solos.

Neil, a few examples:

The line " Every night I see you, In my dreams", is a musical question, which is left without an answer. Think of a couple: the girl says to the guy:

"Every night I see you, in my dreams". The guy (sax), says "OOh baby, I hear you baby". The sax is the the guy, and he says these words with music.

What you have recorded is a conversation, but only one person speaks, and she never gets an answer back. This music is a perfect of the question/Answer scenario, it would be so cool if somebody answered the girl.

Most of the song is in sections of 4 measures. The girl sings for 2 measures, and then waits for two measures without anything happening whatsover, so the two measures with nothing happening need solos.
 
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neil_walsh said:
Thanks for the feedback guys,
Hey Flat-9 you need to get out more, get a sense of humour and set your browser outside nowhere radio every once in a while! :)
Thanks Again
Click to expand...

Neil,

You are right, man. Sorry, my post was out of character as they are usually well thoughtout, detailed and helpful. ( dj stuff just puts me over the top.):eek:

I've been musician 24/7 for all my life and usually comment on musical structure, execution and emotional content as opposed to recording technique.

Good song, well arranged. I think it was money well spent albiet the saxman could have played more esp during the short open measures and a short 16 bar solo would have worked well.

The bed itself is a reflective, laid back and pleasantly plaintive in character but I do think the vocalist and reed player could have put a little 'more' into it without disrupting this but actually enhancing the message emotionally.

The contrapuntal lines in the supporting instrumental parts are well written. I especially like the string line but some of the release notes end to abruptly.

What is that sound that happens on the vocalists release of the word 'Keep' @ 1:04, 1:54? ( I actually think it's her throat and it's quite unique and personal.

Nice use of the belltree and also slight layering for a little more fattness esp with the Fantasia patch ( at least thats the name of it on Roland synths) @ the start of the @nd verse.

Good work man! I'm in the clinic if you have time to check out 'Bedlam' ( B-3 smoker) &' Sax American Style' ( smooth jazz & ya,... it's a sax patch :rolleyes: )

peace,
(the real) flat-9 ;)

:eek:
 
I like the strings, I thought they added a lot of depth to the music.
The singer's alright, she could project a little more maybe.

I'd say paying for a sax player was a good idea. It sounds rich and full, and I thought it complimented the song well. It wasn't over-used, and I think that was the goal.

I think all the instruments fit well in their sonic space in the mix.
I like it!
Good job!
 
WOW !! This is one tough audience (thread).

When I read the lyrics dry on your web-site, I didn't have high expectations, but you suprised me. You did a good job with this tune. It was ... pleasant.

I liked the strings. As far as the sax, I didn't have a problem with it. But, Lt. Bob and others made some constructive comments (albeit, in a somewhat backhanded way). The sax could be used much more effectively. But, honestly, I don't know if I would have had the same criticism about the sax if I hadn't read their posts first. I think I learned something about production in that regard.

I'm at work with headphones, so take this with a grain of salt. I thought the overall mix was good. I thought the hi-hat in a couple spots was a little too hot. I imagine this song would sound a lot better in my studio.

The singer is good. A straight forward vocal. I think a good producer might have gotten a better performance out of her - have gotten her to emote more.

I think the everyday easy-listener (e.g. my wife) would enjoy this song. Nice job.

BPOCO
 
Just curious, I think it depends if you don't mind me asking. How much did you pay the sax person? Maybe that will help to see if it's worthwhile. As long as we're playing Price Is Right, I'd say i'd pay up to $50 for it. A competent player coming in with mic's all set up and ready to go and the duration of the playing, i'd expect it all probably took about an hour for him/her to lay down the part.

I liked the song and overall everything was very quality.

As far as the debate on the singer my thoughts are what exactly are you envisioning in terms of where you expect the singer to be?

I thought her performance was good, but not quite on par with others I've heard in this genre at radioplay level. It sounds like if this person were groomed and coached, then a performance of professional caliber could definitely be coaxed from them.
 
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