Sunday Morning - Kris Kristofferson

[ronws]

Kris Kristofferson wrote this song. Johnny Cash made a monster hit out of it. Willie Nelson covered it, too.

And so do I. I am an outlaw.

https://app.box.com/s/3px6gqn3nx237iglwp77

[ronws]

And here is, I think, a better version. I sent the first version to MDEW and he made some suggestions that I used and I think it worked out better.

So, this is thanks to MDEW.

"Sunday Morning" inspired by Willie Nelson

https://app.box.com/s/nxweyxkiicfa0f2m0crw

[MDEW]

I really do like this second version. It has the true feeling of waking on that sunday morning. I never liked the sound of Kris's voice but he had a way with words.

I admit that I fell into the same trap that I warn others against, comparing someones effort to the sound and feeling of the "original" even though the song has been recorded and made the "Charts" by several different artists in different decades.

It was not Rons voice that had me suggest changes. It was more that the flow and pitch center did not seem to work for this. I guess I was too familier with the melody and concept of the song to accept changes.

I am not against changing the entire flow of a song to fit my own sense of what the song means to me. Still if I do this and it does not work I also would hope that someone has the respect for me and their own sense of musicality to tell me their honest feelings about it.

And thank you Ronws for having enough respect for my opinion and advice to give this a second shot.

[ronws]

Well, MDEW, your suggestions made me analyze what I did differently. In the first recording, I did it in the key of A. A place where my voice is bright and shiny. In retrospect, it seems at odds with the intention of the song. It's not that I was pitchy. It's just that I was in a key that didn't serve the song the way that you and I think of it. So, you had mentioned the Willie Nelson version and I looked it up and listened to it. Of course, being in the key of C. Lower from my vantage point but it worked out. And the slower tempo. I don't get too close to Willie's jazz feel but I think the more spread tone in my lower notes worked better in this key. And the slower tempo helped some of the phrasing, too. I am used to hearing the Cash version, sometimes, the Kris version. And yes, Kris has a distinctive voice that I never quite got used to, either, even if I liked how he sang his own song.

So, approaching the essence of Willie helped, including the arpeggiated parts for the guitar.

I have lived every line in this song but it's funny, recording it (the second version) on a Sunday morning, this morning, with eggs, toast, and coffee. No warmed-over beer to feed the emotion. It's not enough to live it, you have to find a way to express it.

[gruemanticus]

Hello Ron,

I have heard several of your recordings over the past few months and the second version of " Sunday Morning" is my favorite. Good Job!

[berniemcpeak]

Didn't really care for the first version. Felt too "happy". You were a little off pitch at the beginning but about halfway through you pulled it back and the pitch seemed to improve. But overall I just wasn't "feeling" it.

The second version was MUCH better. It had a feeling that felt truer to the lyrics. You voice seemed a bit strained while you went toward the low end of your range but it felt right for the song. The guitar playing was very good, as always. Overall a very good effort. That one is a keeper :-)

[Adolph Namlik]

Definitely a much better job on the second one, Ron !!!

The second one is MY favorite as well :cool:

And Thank You for sending it to me as well :D

[ronws]

Thanks guys. And proof that I can learn from someone else and smart enough to accept advice when given to me.

Grue - glad you liked it and maybe some of my other stuff. And Bernie, you are hearing what I was learning after getting advice from MDEW on how to arrange this. The first recording is in the Key of A and sounds like a bright or "happy" romp, because of how my voice sounds in the key of A. Dropping to C, I think, brings out some melancholy, by forcing my voice a to carry a lower line, one where there is not as much brightness in my voice.

And now that I remember, I have heard of songs being keyed higher or lower for a singer, depending on how they wanted it to come across, not because it was out-of-range for the singer.

Thanks, Adolph. It's been rattling around my head for a while and I finally got around to doing something about it.

[Slow Start]

Loved it Ron! This is something I'd put on a playlist for sitting and lounging if you uploaded it to Soundcloud! We definitely gotta jam sometime and upload a cover together. :)

[ronws]

Thank you so much, Slow Start. I will have to see if I still have my soundcloud info.

[Olem]

Ron, you have alot of soul in your voice and your timbre fits this kind of songs really well. It was a joy to listen too, epecially the second version.

[Vyper]

hey Ron nice cover man. Really like the tone of your voice:) But may I ask why don't you choose not to do vibrato? Just curious

[ronws]

hey Ron nice cover man. Really like the tone of your voice:) But may I ask why don't you choose not to do vibrato? Just curious

Well, then, you would have to hear some of my other songs that have a stronger vibrato. I was not conscious of having too much or too little vibrato in this.

Then, again, I have not really liked forced or wide vibrato. I prefer it to be natural and incidental, rather than an effect that I must have on every note.

And thanks, guys, again, for the applause.