Leader of the Band / After the gold Rush Cover

[MDEW]

Just to prove equipment matters, Should still be enough for you to help me fix problems.

10 year old digital dictation device, thrown on bed. If you can spare a studio I take donations.

I am aware of the crappy guitar playing.

https://soundcloud.com/user898702554/leader-of-the-band

https://soundcloud.com/user898702554/after-the-gol-rush

[ronws]

First off, you get kudos for taking on a song I don't think many here could do, in spite of their other successes.

Everyone who has taken a turn at rasping some Journey to a karaoke track, I absolutely triple-dog dare anyone to do what M did. Play guitar and sing "Leader of the Band" at the same time. It's more challenging than you think.

Of course, I am probably just about the only other one in the forum who has heard of Dan Fogelberg. One of my wife's most favorite singers and this is one of her favorite songs.

Now, I must curse you, M. For I have been wanting to record this, even if it is for my own collection. I mean, if I was to be compared to the original, it would only help if others had heard the original, if only to save the advice to try and sing this like Bruce Dickinson would and have it seem not appropriate.

You sing fuller in the verses than does Dan. Your pitch was slightly flat, both times on, "my life is but a poor attempt." Because you are trying to take that chest sound up. Let it go. Let the notes go to head. You could even sing this song softer just to make the high notes blend. Otherwise, I think you did great on this song. As I was saying before, not only is this a difficult song to do, it is a challenging style, soft head voice.

"After the Gold Rush." Surprise of the day, I think this is a strong song for you, considering you do not sound like Neil Young but you "sell" the song like you wrote it. Keep this one in your set list. I think you have a folk singer voice and this is a folk song.

And, overall, as an aside, I can hear more strength in your voice in the short time you have been here. And I am glad to see you are trying the higher stuff. I think it suits your voice better than some of the lower stuff you had tried before. Maybe because singing high challenges you to engage breath support and break you from the habits of speach.

[ElWin]

MDEW - would love to hear a clean recording from you after this. Ron is right you do have a folk / country voice although I've not heard you do anything else - you may also have a killer death metal growl

At first I thought it was a bit nasal but after another listen that is probably just due to the recording quality. I didn't know either of those songs but I enjoyed them. Dan Fogelberg isn't someone I've heard before although Same Old Lang Syne is one of those songs in my guitar books that I meant to check out some time.

[MDEW]

Thanks Ronws,

Dan sings this in what could be concidered falsetto at least a very light and floaty headvoice. I saw him singing it live(on video :/ ) It may have just been that performance but it just didn't sound the same as studio recording.

I am always working on that line "My life has been" sometimes I switch and sometimes I don't. I was supprised this time that I came close singing full. And on this crappy recording I can really hear the difference in volume going into the chorus. Switching phonation would match with the verses better volume wise.

I thought about singing After the Gold Rush in head voice like Neil does but it just wasn't working today.

I had a very few minutes alone today so just for giggles I thought I would give it a go with the dictation device.

It takes about an hour to drag out my good recorder and then you try to fix all the bad stuff. I just didn't have that much time. :)

[MDEW]

Thanks Elwin, You should type in Dan Fogleberg on youtube. He passed away early but he had quite a few hits.

I grew up with Folk/country in the 70's. If you did have Kiss or BlackSabath albums you had to hide them.

The only Deep Purple song you would hear on the Radio was "Smoke on the Water". Rock N Roll to me was Eagles and Foreigner. Of course we would hear 60's Rock Steppenwolf, Spirit, Yardbirds....

My Metal Growl is more like a croak :rolleyes:

[ronws]

I hope you don't mind, M.

Not enough people are going to know the Dan Fogelberg song to understand my comments. Of course, this may lead to unfair comparisons because it can be so difficult to accept voices that are not already "famous."

And Elwin is right, Dan's bigger hit was "Same Auld Lang Syne." However, "Leader of the Band" is a softer song and harder to do. As all ballads are, because the singer's voice is so naked.

Dan Fogelberg passed away some years ago from prostate cancer and his widow does what she can to raise awareness. He was a tough guy and did not get regularly checked until he was ill.

"Leader of the Band" by Dan Fogelberg.

This is a good performance in the latter part of his performing career. My wife and I saw him about 5 years earlier than this at the Will Rogers Coliseum in Ft. Worth, Texas. At that time, believe it or not, he had the bass player from Heart playing with him. Awesome. This video is later, of course, but very much like what we got to see, live, ourselves.

[MDEW]

:) Don't mind at all. His accent really comes through strong here.

[ronws]

Amen, M. And notice how much he uses ah and eh.

General advice for any singer, find the vowels that work for you.

[MDEW]

In the area where I am flat am I singing B-ih-n or B-eh-n? I can never tell.:rolleyes:

[Validar]

Pretty cool. It's always good to hear something that strays from the norm. Your voice was very fitting for both songs.

Fogelberg's music was pure magic. I remember to this day my sister and I referring to "Longer" as the "Fishes in the Ocean" song when we would ask our mother to play it in the car.

[ronws]

My wife's other favorite Fogleberg song was "Run for the Roses."

[MDEW]

I'll do that next time. When I can put up the good studio. I need to make room in the kitchen first.

I never could get the guitar right on "Longer than" but I like that one also.

For you Ronws and your wife.

This is My Brother who passed in 96 on his birthday.

Being compared to the original artist is one thing but being compared to your brother is another.

I think you understand that. Even though it is never about competition sometimes it feels that way.

http://www.soundclick.com/player/single_player.cfm?songid=3980530&q=hi&newref=1

http://www.soundclick.com/player/single_player.cfm?songid=3980739&q=hi&newref=1

[ronws]

Thank you and bless you, M, for sharing your brother's music.

For those that are still reading this thread, and if you aren't, I could not possibly care less, "Run for the Roses" is about the love and admiration for a racehorse. The Kentucky Derby is informally known as the "Run for the Roses." The winning horse receives a wreath of red roses and the jockey fortunate enough to ride receives a bouquet of red roses almost as large as he is.

Anyway, you and your brother sound quite similar. The only difference is that he goes to head voice on the high notes and you are almost there. Go and and "run for the roses" of head voice.

As for comparisons of me and my brother, I don't know. Usually, I am the one who gets in trouble and he learns from my mistakes and does NOT repeat them, making him smarter than I am.

Even in this forum, he follows the rules better than I do. He does not post any music that has not been perfected in studio. Especially as he has his own studio and is building another one (he needed some of my electrical knowldge to decide how to get power to a new studio he is building.)

Where as me, I just click "record" on something and let it fly. Surely, I am on the highway to Hell in a very fast car. (That's what you get for letting me drive! \m/ )

Rain or shine, let us southern boys stick together. You, M, are a singer. Maybe still developing your sound and approach, but you are a singer, not just a vocal technician.