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…HEAVEN…
Recorded 2 guitar parts on the Tascam 2488 using my Aria TA-40 and my Pod 2.0.
In case you’re not familiar with the TA-40, here’s mine…
Aria impressed...?
I haven’t played the TA-40 in quite a while, so last night I went to change the strings, which is something I haven’t done in a long, long time. Took me the most of an hour, and as I was doing it, the bloody guitar attacked me…
Scarred for life...
One thing I realised was that the guitar is well overdue a proper set-up. Too late to do anything about it now, but I must remember it for the future.
The two parts I recorded were nice simple lines that I plan to interchange with each other throughout the track. The guitar is not a key element in the track.
HOSANNA…
By contrast, I recorded 6 guitar parts for this track. Mostly arpeggios, but some jazzy “chords” also. Should edit together nicely.
One of the quirks of the Tascam 2488 is that while you can select any given channel to “clear out” (i.e. delete the wavs on the channel) , the machine will default to clear out channel 1 from time to time (not a random thing, I hasten to add, but say if you decide to save the “song” partway through a session). Normally, I am very careful to make sure that before I start recording on a given channel, I set that channel to clear out; otherwise I might, for example clear out channel 4 when I really want to clear out channel 5. But sometimes I forget…
Today, I had a rather nice arpeggio part recorded on channel 1 and was working my way through the other channels when I realised that I had forgotten to set my current channel to clear out and accidentally cleared out channel 1. Took me about an hour to re-record the relevant part (by this stage, my finger tips were aching like billy-oh). Cracked it eventually.
An obvious workaround here is not to record on channel 1 at all, but that’s like saying you’ll never get flat feet if you cut off your legs…
(Sorry if the last few paragraphs don’t read very well – I had to do a spot of decorating after my session and my clothes reek of white spirit - I think I’m a little high in fact).
…
It was purely coincidental, but I had decided a few nights ago that I would start tracking the guitar parts for …HEAVEN… today. Last night I got a text from Peter Fitzpatrick to tell me that an old internet friend, Paul Culnane, had died yesterday in Australia.
I knew Paul from the XTC Chalkhills list. I never met him but I spoke to him on the phone once or twice. Paul was a real music enthusiast and was very encouraging of my own efforts to write and record songs. We get along pretty well in an arms-length, internetty sort of way. I seem to recall he spoke of visiting me here at some stage. It was never going to happen of course, but it was a nice thought.
In many ways, Paul’s life was dominated by his love for rock and roll, but I’m not so sure that it really brought him much in the way of happiness. A lot of us have been caught in that trap; some of us have come to terms with it and have found a way to live simultaneously in the musical world and the “real” world. Not too sure if the same could be said for Paul,. but then again I really didn’t know him all that well.
One thing for sure, though, the world will be a much duller place without him.
So, on the day when I was tracking the guitar parts for In Heaven For A Conference, Paul was signing -in at reception, getting his nametag and his welcome pack and wondering whether the sun had sufficiently crossed the yardarm to have his first tipple of the day. I’m guessing that in Heaven, the bar is always open, you never have to buy a round and you never get a hangover. Should suit Paul down to the ground then…;-)
Regards,
djp
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