"Something" by the beatles

[MDEW]

   I thought this would be a good song to work on that G4 which gives me trouble. I have been playing the song since the late 70s so I am familiar with it but this is the first time I really worked on it.....Well this recording session all of three hours or more.  Sorry about the click track. It is the only beat I could find that fit. At least it is a high hat and not cowbells.  Know any good drummers?

  Yes that is me playing the instruments. I do a better job at that than singing.

 

  Any comments welcome.

 

[MDEW]

     The bad thing about using a click track is that you are forced to stay with the beat. A live drummer will some times have a style that allows for a tempo change in certain areas. When I tried to play the bass line like Paul did I would land on the ending note  before or after the beat, so I had to alter things to not lose timing.

     That little walk down in the bridge has 6 steady beats, I have a 4 beat click track and had to alter the timing to make it fit.  

     Georges lead did not fit the beat either so the whole song has a different feel to it.

 

   I miss read your post, I was thinking you had said that it already has a country feel to it. It would not be too hard to make it a little more country

 Just alter the bass line a little more than I did already and rework the lead guitar.

  Thanks for listening.

[ronws]

And what's wrong with having cowbell?

 

And yeah, make it more country, that would be cool.

 

I liked it and it's okay to sing this one soft.

[MDEW]

And what's wrong with having cowbell?

 

And yeah, make it more country, that would be cool.

 

I liked it and it's okay to sing this one soft.

     Thanks Ronws.

   Cowbell is great for Mississippi Queen and Gimme 3 steps. I just don't think it will work on " Something".

    Any other observations? Things that are messing me up Vocally?

[ronws]

     Thanks Ronws.

   Cowbell is great for Mississippi Queen and Gimme 3 steps. I just don't think it will work on " Something".

    Any other observations? Things that are messing me up Vocally?

Your vowels are getting better. Just remind yourself, as I often have to remind myself, we sing the song, not speak it, even if part of it is at conversational volume and pitch.

[MDEW]

    I reworked the bass line and the lead guitar track. I may try to Rerecord the vocals. I will post the results later on. 

  Thanks Ron. I am not sure what to call those vowels I used but they worked enough to let me post the song.

[Sexy Beast]

Hey MDEW! I would work on getting a natural sound in your lower and medium range. You are very nasal.

[MDEW]

Hey MDEW! I would work on getting a natural sound in your lower and medium range. You are very nasal.

  Thanks Sexy,

     I think that is a by product of trying to be louder and keeping the sound from being caught in my throat.

I speak low and throaty most of the time. Maybe I am aiming the sound a little too high.

   This sounds like a speaking range song but the body of it is between E3 and G4 The heart of Passaggio.

   I thought the last verse sounded more grounded than the others. Is that one also too nasal?

 That bridge with the high note was too nasal, I did notice that. It was the only take that I actually sang that G4.

[Sexy Beast]

It is nasal most of the time but you are right as you go up into the E4-G4 range it gets even more nasal. I never heard you speak so I don't know if there's anything wrong with your speaking voice. Your singing voice needs to be deeper from what I just heard. Once you found your natural singing voice/sound you need to be able to keep the placement consistent. That means you don't let consonants, vowels, words, volume/intensity, range change the basic sound of your voice... well unless you want to for interpretation and artistic reasons. There's nothing wrong with coloring your voice as long as it is a deliberate choice.

[MDEW]

It is nasal most of the time but you are right as you go up into the E4-G4 range it gets even more nasal. I never heard you speak so I don't know if there's anything wrong with your speaking voice. Your singing voice needs to be deeper from what I just heard. Once you found your natural singing voice/sound you need to be able to keep the placement consistent. That means you don't let consonants, vowels, words, volume/intensity, range change the basic sound of your voice... well unless you want to for interpretation and artistic reasons. There's nothing wrong with coloring your voice as long as it is a deliberate choice.

     Thanks Sexy,

      Years of reading books on singing says the voice should be free easy and unmanipulated. When you are doing something to change the sound it is manipulation.For me the unmanipulated sound is Nasal. I can deepen by manipulating. I guess that is the part that gets confusing when reading from books and not having someone to set you straight. In the books they should have said After you manipulate the way we tell you to, Then do not further manipulate on your own. 

      I am going to rerecord the vocals on this tonight with all the suggestions.

     Thank you for your input.

[aravindmadis]

It is nasal most of the time but you are right as you go up into the E4-G4 range it gets even more nasal. I never heard you speak so I don't know if there's anything wrong with your speaking voice. Your singing voice needs to be deeper from what I just heard. Once you found your natural singing voice/sound you need to be able to keep the placement consistent. That means you don't let consonants, vowels, words, volume/intensity, range change the basic sound of your voice... well unless you want to for interpretation and artistic reasons. There's nothing wrong with coloring your voice as long as it is a deliberate choice.

 

MDEW, I had the same issue in the exact specific range for a long time.  I have recently found ways to correct it(although not fully) and the key for me as is pointed out is embracing the voice I was born with and working towards building a proper connection while bridging. It has taken me a while, a certain degree of maturity and my voice had to develop a certain degree of strength before I could solve this problem.  

 

Let me try to explain this slightly differently.  In the passagio, our voice has to find an optimal mix of chest and head resonance to sound best.  I have a much deeper voice than say Steve Perry and if I try to sound like Steve in the passagio, it is going to cause problem.  He can adopt a much lighter tone and still have a proper connection from his chest while bridging and connecting.  For me, I cannot get the lighter tone without veering towards more heady mix, which results in a weaker and unstable voice.  I can sing all the notes now in E4-A4 region with more stability now, but it is only possible with the self-realization that I have a voice that will sound a specific way.  Once I forgot about the original singer, I could focus on finding the right mix for "MY" voice and I am able to see better results.... Ironically, I find it really tough now to do songs that I know very well, since I have built muscle memory with bad habits built in them.. 

 

My suggestion would be to try songs sung by female. Since we cannot, as males mimic the female tone, it helps us find out voice more effectively.  It is an idea that has helped me in the past for sure.. 

[MDEW]

    Thanks for the advice.

    Here again is the sticking point...we are encouraged to use our own voice, not imitate others....on the other hand we are told our voice is not the right voice....we must change it in some degree to achieve our own unique voice......

    Believe me I am not arguing, I know something is wrong with my tone. I am only pointing out the irony of it.

    Sing like yourself just not the way you are singing now.     Clear as day. 

[bluesguy63]

That was pretty smooth, my friend.

[KillerKu]

    Thanks for the advice.

    Here again is the sticking point...we are encouraged to use our own voice, not imitate others....on the other hand we are told our voice is not the right voice....we must change it in some degree to achieve our own unique voice......

    Believe me I am not arguing, I know something is wrong with my tone. I am only pointing out the irony of it.

    Sing like yourself just not the way you are singing now.     Clear as day. 

 

Alright, I got around to listening and being able to offer some input. Basically, as per usual the lower range sounds pretty good and the upper range is losing some control.

 

Here's the thing, that might help you with your dilemma, MDEW. All singing and speaking is modifying the vocal tract. You can't even make vowels without modifying it. If you were to modify to a more yawny, sobbier, or at least wider position of the pharynx it is also the position that allows head voice bridging for me comfortably, as well as opening the pharynx, which could reduce a bit of nasality.

 

Whoever is giving you advice to not modify your vocal tract. All speaking and singing is modification. I think it's probably just bad advice. I think it's more important to modify towards a sound that highlights who you are and a sound you believe in.

 

I think you've got a cool like country, conversational voice. It's got a lot of personality, and that may be who you are to be more conversational and a storyteller on average. But in order to get the upper to come in a relaxed way you without forcing or straining, most will have to do at least do 'something' a little different from speech. So I'd really advise if you're interested in range, for me it's like a compromise. I have Geoff Tate notes that I don't use much, cause they don't sound like me as a person. But even if I'm bridging, I've got to do 'something.'

[MDEW]

   Thanks Killer, I don't think my issues are from bad advice but from misunderstanding on my part.

 I know that all vocal production is a manipulation of some sort.

   When going higher into the Passaggio range I think I have been using that nasal tone thinking that I am dropping weight on the folds and singing in a mix  when what I am doing is raising the larynx and pushing the sound into my nose.

   I rerecorded the vocals and am preparing to copy it to the computer. We will find out if it sounds any better.

   Thanks for responding.

[ronws]

I agree that we all modify a bit and may want to.

 

But now I am confused. MDEW is supposed to work within his voice yet his own voice is considered too nasal. Or is it that the judgement is that he is singing out of his range? And what is his range? And why is he not allowed to sing higher? Or is it just the perception of nasality?

 

I ask because we had a large thread a few years ago about Steve Perry being nasal and I never noticed it and then for a while, I could hear nothing but that. But finally, it mostly went away.

 

I also wonder if non-americans perceive americans as sounding nasal? A basic tone in our application of English that we may not be aware of?

 

So, I am not finding fault with any statements but I find myself confused. 

[KillerKu]

   Thanks Killer, I don't think my issues are from bad advice but from misunderstanding on my part.

 I know that all vocal production is a manipulation of some sort.

   When going higher into the Passaggio range I think I have been using that nasal tone thinking that I am dropping weight on the folds and singing in a mix  when what I am doing is raising the larynx and pushing the sound into my nose.

   I rerecorded the vocals and am preparing to copy it to the computer. We will find out if it sounds any better.

   Thanks for responding.

 

Forward placement can sound a bit nasal (twang and nasal resonance). The lightening of the timbre I believe has more to do with the cricothyroid activation and/or less vocal fold closure. If you want to experience a light voice, try a yawning sigh.

 

Nice job on the instrumentation, liked the guitar solos there and the way it was blended into the harmony.

[KillerKu]

I agree that we all modify a bit and may want to.

 

But now I am confused. MDEW is supposed to work within his voice yet his own voice is considered too nasal. Or is it that the judgement is that he is singing out of his range? And what is his range? And why is he not allowed to sing higher? Or is it just the perception of nasality?

 

I ask because we had a large thread a few years ago about Steve Perry being nasal and I never noticed it and then for a while, I could hear nothing but that. But finally, it mostly went away.

 

I also wonder if non-americans perceive americans as sounding nasal? A basic tone in our application of English that we may not be aware of?

 

So, I am not finding fault with any statements but I find myself confused. 

 

It's not really an out of range thing. MDEW was having troubles around G4 and in passaggio, and even he was saying he was lifting his larynx to lighten which will likely lower the soft palate and can add extra nasality. He wants more control over this area so he differs from Lou Reed on this subject. 

 

Imo, MDEW should look for controllable areas of his voice that meet his desired aesthetic. If it ends up nasal, that's not an issue for me. Certain types of phonation are just harder to control so it's a balancing act between finding something that is both a sound that represents the artist and a sound that is controllable by the artist.

 

I've never found Steve Perry nasal by the way. In the off chance he checks the critique section, hi Steve!

 

Edit:

 

Hey MDEW, there is a thread about bridging started by Jeremy, I gave him some sound files that might help you and are related to lightening.

 

This sound here while sounding dopey is not as low of a larynx as you think.

 

https://app.box.com/s/znom31hbhw5ougfrqnyy1iwi627epeuv

 

It's a more tilted larynx, and wider pharynx (like a balloon expanding sideways in the throat).

 

I also recommended to Jeremy he finds a smooth light bridge first, then moves to the heavier one:

 

https://app.box.com/s/o6ue7dilxfbilxhz68sq1fwsasssns1q

[MDEW]

   Thanks Killer, I am posting the new recording here.

   I also added a new drum track but had to pick from a preset so it is not the proper beat for this.

   I am using the same bass line in this post but I did record one with a more country bass line. This one fit my voice better with the changes in my tone.

    The first G4 is a little flat.

 

  

 

   To be honest the first recording I did felt more relaxed and expressive. I was very happy with the tone of the final verse in the first recording. That bridge does need work though.

 

   Edit: listening to both of them back to back the first one sounds better.   

[KillerKu]

I know exactly what you mean about relaxed and expressive. I find when trying to sing with a new posture I often become robotic and stiff. It's that auto pilot emotional singing that gives people a free feeling. When trying to 'change' the voice it does feel like that.

 

You do have a slightly rounder timbre in the new take, but you don't have to rush a change into your actual singing voice if you're going to do it.

 

Something you could try, as an experiment is to sing without twang and in a cartoonish position. Cause would be like the opposite coordination. I make lots of sound effects with my voice and I do them comically. Not necessarily in a song I want to be emotionally authentic. It helps to have a sense of humor.

 

Sometimes exploring sounds outside of trying to channel like a song's emotions because as you said, it can feel very inexpressive when it isn't 'your singing voice.' But if you happen to find sounds, outside of singing that can be trained they can intuitively come into the singing voice when the 'feeling' calls for it.