Wooden Ships

  • Thread starter Thread starter Tom Hicks
  • Start date Start date
Tom Hicks

Tom Hicks

Well-known member
The drummer says its Paul Kantner sci-fi,I remember CSN&Y did it too.This is a mutated version with elements of both.
Instead of my usual overhead technique ala Mixerman's 3 mike technique I moved the ecm8000s below the cymbals as "underheads".Also close mic'd all drums.
Any mix or arrangement ideas appreciated.

Wooden Ships
 
It seems that three mics on a kit is all the rage but I just can't get my arms around it. The drums sound like they're in another room. Plus I'm brain washed on the C,S&N version. I miss the break where the tempo comes up.
 
hey Track Rat
Thanks for listening and for the comments.
I used 6 drum mics in all,stereo overheads (or underheads in this case),snare,kick,ride tom and floor tom.Of course,the underheads are 75-80% of the drum kit sound.Both the individual snare and kick tracks were compressed and EQ'd with the snare getting a dash of short plate verb as well.Then I sent them all to a group drum bus for final leveling.
I only had page two of the lyric sheet when tracking the drums,so I didn't know the proper # of verses and choruses and kinda winged it.Later on,before tracking the vox,I found the first page of the lyric sheet.I did a little digital editing over a rhythm bed of about ten tracks to lengthen the tune enough for all but one of the verses (its a pretty long song).Anybody spot the edit point?
Since I was going by long-ago memory,I completely spaced on the CSN&Y's double-time section.Had I recalled it,I prolly would have put it in.
 
It's a David Crosby song, but he wanted to hear it done "heavier" and provided layered backing vocals along with Graham Nash on "Volunteers" I learned the Airplane version early on, and never really could play the CSNY vesion. I'm having trouble getting to the MP3, I think my DSL is being temperamental. I'll get back to you when I can listen to the song.-Richie
 
nice song to cover...

sounds like a bar band recording of the song, imo. Nothing too glaring, but the drums sound distant like the were picked up with some room mics. It sounds like an attempt at a recreation of the CSNY version, but falls short. I think a remake with something 'new' would make for a better listen.
 
That's a really good song,...

and a pretty good rendition of it. The CSN and J/A versions of this song were pretty harmony-heavy, and this is harmony-light, but otherwise a good recording.

Also, like Track Rat said, there's a little section where it goes upbeat and jazzy, then breaks back into the basic rythm.

Good job.
 
Thanks for listening guys.

Richie- I did it acoustic style,so its not very "heavy" with only a single electric guitar track for the solo line.

mixmkr- Thanks for the drum comments.My preferred sound seems to be in-between modern close micing and the really distant room-mic'd kit sounds of pre-1960s.I like the punch and detail of close mic'd drums,it just sounds a little unnatural to me,so I use a bit more distant sound with a lot more of the overheads in the mix and less of the individual drum mics.

A Reel Person- Yeah,I didn't recall the double-time feel section untill after the drums were tracked,so I was limited by what I had already recorded.Overall,though,I'm pleased with the results of this one.I learn a lot each time I post something and get this kind of helpful feedback.
 
I liked the sound of the drums.

Mid-distance micing on the drums sounds okay to me,... you're right, it has more of a 'vintage' sound than close-mic'd drums.;)
 
A Reel Person- Yeah,styles and fashions change in sound too.In your face is big now for drums.
I just heard of a device called a Jecklin Disk
http://www.josephson.com/tn5.html
which is purported to give your overheads amazing detail in the stereo image.Another site said do-it-yourselfers could easily make one from a clipboard and a few mouse pads!Along those lines,I just lined a walk-in closet with bubblewrap for use as an iso-booth.A 48"X150' roll of the big 1" bubbles was only $24.The handclap test made the wrapped closet sound very dead.
 
Tom - I'm familiar with both versions of this song (CS&N and Jeff Airplane). Both had nice elements to them, although I preferred the CS&N version.

I agree with mixmkr, this mix sounds like a "club band" version. I think that is due to the reverb used. I personally don't think it fits the song, but that's a matter of personal taste.

The guitar work is excellent, as I expect from your stuff. However, I felt the vocals were pretty weak. You always run that risk when covering CS&N stuff.

All in all decent, but I've heard better from you.
 
Dachay2tnr
Thanks for the comments.Last night I added high harmonies,re-EQd things and changed the verb on the lead vox.After about 5:00 central time,I'll post the remix.Many of the changes are based on the comments and suggestions that I have recieved,so thanks everybody for all the helpful insights.The new mix sounds better vocally and seems to sorta "hang together" better to my ears.
 
I think this remix a BIG improvement.

Your harmonies are better on this remix. The whole mix is just more live and present, and all elements sound stronger. This really is such a great song, such a great melody, and sounds really soulful. Great job!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top