Suggestions for a recording please - Sheryl Crow

R

rob aylestone

Moderator
I've got a singer booked in, who has at the last moment changed what she wants to do. She wants to record a Sherly Crow song - and I only know one - the All I wanna do song - which does seem to feature a pedal steel, which could be interesting. Not my kind of music, but has anyone any suggestions for a few tracks that might be good ones to try - keeping in mind, I'll be playing everything, so it has to be something doable?
 
rob aylestone said:
I've got a singer booked in, who has at the last moment changed what she wants to do. She wants to record a Sherly Crow song - and I only know one - the All I wanna do song - which does seem to feature a pedal steel, which could be interesting. Not my kind of music, but has anyone any suggestions for a few tracks that might be good ones to try - keeping in mind, I'll be playing everything, so it has to be something doable?
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If it makes you happy, is a great Sheryl Crow song. Easy to find
 
I second Sheryl's If It Makes You Happy.

I'd like to throw in a wild card for her consideration : Passionate Kisses (Lucinda Williams or Mary Chapin Carpenter)
 
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rob aylestone said:
I've got a singer booked in, who has at the last moment changed what she wants to do. She wants to record a Sherly Crow song - and I only know one - the All I wanna do song - which does seem to feature a pedal steel, which could be interesting. Not my kind of music, but has anyone any suggestions for a few tracks that might be good ones to try - keeping in mind, I'll be playing everything, so it has to be something doable?
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I'm curious as to how you do this. Do you have her sing the vocals to the original Sherly Crow song, and then record all the instruments for the cover yourself? It seems labor intensive to record the cover song music first and then she changes her mind and wants to do something different.
 
I think I’ll knock up a couple of guide tracks for her to try. In the past with this singer, this is how we did it so initially I can hear how her voice sounds. We’ve done a few tracks where her voice didn’t match the song, but I can’t imagine this one. I’ve always done this for some projects where you need the music to sing to, but need the voice to play to? It’s a bit wasteful of my time though, recording something which probably wont be used. Alternatively, I might just find a karaoke track, even a poor one, to save time. I’ll listen to the suggestions and work something. The pedal steel that I just haven’t had a need to improve on could be interesting though. Listening, I’d have to practice just one little steel lick that is repeated throughout, and some slides.hmmmm I bet she wont want to do the only one I half know.

I’ve never yet made any sensible repeat money from these projects, but will split any income with her and add the track to my stuff with her as featured artist. That works nicely.
 
So it's a "for fun" session that you're not getting paid for? If that's the case, just pop in a SC greatest hits and pick the song you like the best. Or if after listening to a full album you don't like any of the songs, cancel the session.

If it's for your portfolio, I don't know that something that you have to half-ass at the last minute is worth the effort.

In the more abstract, it sounds like you were booked as producer, recording studio owner, and a selection of studio musicians. If you were looking to make money off projects like this, each of those roles should be paid, with clearly-articulated goals, and down payments. i.e. "There's a $X non-refunadble deposit for my services as a studio musician. If you change the song, that is forfeit, but I can still run the session with a karaoke track or whatever other musicians you bring in. If you decide to cancel the whole session, there's also the $Y non-refundable deposit for the studio."
 
Def not for fun - but I'm also not remotely interested in portfolio building. In this part of the country there is a very close knit group of singers, dancers, musicians, actors and tecnical bods and everyone knows everyone. The way it works is if you need a bass plater, or singer, within ten minutes you have one, and the usual way of working is cooperative, so sometimes you agree a straight fee, or splits or even barter. It's worked pretty well over the years, and is kind of positive. I have never done the formal stuff for years now. No need at all. Two and a half grand appeared in my account this morning, so I've already sent out £800 of it to people involved.

As a business model for a studio, it's weird - but it's paid the bills for a long time. The idea for a non-refundable deposit is correct and official, but unworkable for our way of working. It means that I might go and sight read a show for a big entertainment venue nearby - for free. If I need a singer, I can then 'borrow' one. Hence the way the singer gets added to the UK PPL recording credits as featured artist. If something happens and the thing makes money - we all benefit.

Of course I do 'normal' stuff, but I've just fired off an email to a booking for next week, where my spidy senses are tingling. A stranger - well, a friend of a past client, who stopped communicating once money was mentioned. So I prefer my co-operative system with people I trust, and strangers are friends of friends.

I'm very comfy with this system, never let me down. Many of the people involved are my ex-college students, so it's very odd when I end up working for them. Some are now doing really well in broadcast and the media, so word of mouth gets me some great gigs.

At the end of April, I did some work for a well known UK entertainer - audio for video. No contract, but the last one made a few quid from subscriptions, so the new one should do to. Really works for cash flow.

I've started prep today on a proper contracted job with day rates and paperwork for paperwork. I hate it!
 
I thought I had a new 'out of circle client' - somebody wanted a choir in a church unknown to me recorded - just one piece. He said they intended to move during the singing from place to place, so "It won't be difficult, you can just walk in front of them with the microphone". I told him that this was a really bad idea, and my experiments with moving choirs were that they sounded very strange as acoustics changed, but if he really wanted to do it, that was fine. Straight buy out, hand the files across and done - for a price similar to my niece gets in McDonalds for the same number of hours. I was more interested in the building for possible future jobs, so a loss leader. Close enough to not to have to even charge travelling costs. I thought he'd jump at it, but the silence has been deafening. These kind of clients just drive me mad. Looks like the Sheryl Crow thing might even have live work at the end of it - which could be nice.
 
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