SK

Here you go kad/everyone - better EQ and new reprise at end. Better, "final "production" : http://stashbox.org/389001/And...YBCS.mov

Thanks Linwood. Here's one for the Ultimate Reharms Collection. ("world premiere") -another collaboration with kad on his delightfully bizarre rendition of another Beatles song. This isn't what John Lennon had in mind, but at least the spirit is the same. It was a challenge to hear and develop. But fun. http://stashbox.org/388607/And...YBCS.mov

The "man knows his instrument". Good ears, Piano4U.

OK, (since it was unanimously well received by two people) here's the full Night & Day. The first part is just the same as before, but check the weird instrument patch I found (buried in the FP4) for the solo. http://stashbox.org/383459/N%26D.mov

Well thank you guys a lot. I appreciate it. Yeah, Roger, it was a fretless bass patch. I knew it worked on some level, but the 'groove' and the obvious root/5th/9th bass lines really bug me. I used to write complicated arrangements for standards, but I prefer open things that just work, instead of having to dress something up to make it work. Strip all the ornaments away and you still have N&D. Dave, such a nice, honest feel on Ask Me Now. I enjoyed it all, the independent hand movements, inventive reharmed chords, the occasional dissonance, and I love those last two chord voicings on the bridge. Great job on a great old tune.

Dave, I like that slightly dark version of Night & Day. Very cool. Inspired me again to try yet another N&D, just to see how many ways to stretch it. N&D is becoming the Moby Dick of reharms ("Damn ye cursed reharm, I've spent my last breath on thee!") This is a funny experimental version to me, which turned into smooth jazz meets elevator music. A naive, satirical funk version which absolutely can't work with N&D. Ranks up there with my "Bossaquarium." But we're among friends here... I hope. J+, this is one you'll never have to write out. (Full version now posted below)

However old it may be, it doesn't matter, it's still beautiful. So, thank you, Kirk. Glad we got to hear it again. It was fun to play along with.

While redoing the intro, I decided to add more to the tune. Eleanor Rigby http://stashbox.org/376219/RIGBY.mov

Haha - well, it's me who has kad's vocal arrangement held hostage. I hope to treat it fairly, according to the rules of the Geneva convention and cycle of fifths.

Strange thing happened, Sue. I recorded onto my keyboard while listening to the arrangement on computer. When I finished, somehow it sent the separately recorded intro to the computer at a faster speed than I played it. I only checked the start and ending of the intro, so I didn't notice and I posted it like that. Ugh. So I took it down to fix it. Now the storage site is down, so I can't put the corrected version back up yet.

Kad's beautiful vocal reharm of Eleanor Rigby. He and I decided to add piano and see what happens, so with all the chords, it was good ear training for me. I just played along with it and added a slight more reharm... to the reharm.

Enjoyed the nice, loose playing. The first line of your solo sounded like a tonally displaced quote of "S'Wonderful" and your double hand lines reminded me of Denny Zeitlin's feel. The drummer was holding down the fort. Sounded a lot like the drummer Mike Smith I used to play with. Recording quality doesn't matter - that was fun.

Thanks, Dave. Know what, you may be right - I think from recently posting those Marc tracks his approach came back into my head a bit. I like your Star Eyes, especially the extended time on the chords on the bridge to the end. Nice playing. Now THAT arrangement will keep you awake! Slouch, and you're lost.

Thank you Sue, Piano4U and Mo' for your kindness and support. I wish I'd taken more time to do the solo playing better, but I just realized it was next to impossible for me to 'think' two instruments and pull that off perfectly.

Thanks for posting that, Mo'. Nice authentic sounding changes and I liked your whole tone ending. Yeah, those horns sounded good, Piano4U. Ok, here's an atypical (for me) version of a forgotten standard, "Young & Foolish." A nod to kad's fine vocal harmonies on this one. Also, being a traditional standard, I play it more like in 'days of yore.' I found by splitting my keyboard and raising the bass an octave, the bass patch is almost useful. Once the bass comes in, it's LH bass and RH piano, which I played together in real time. I overdubbed the voices, and separately recorded the intro. I concentrated mostly on making the bass lines sound real while I played, so the time gets a little suspicious - my left hand sort of took on it's own personality - but the best I could do on a dp. For the bass solo, I switched hands backwards - so no, I don't have that kind of facility in my left hand. I also experimented with some different reverbs, with mixed results. Far from perfect - close enough for reharm. (slightly longer than usual) : http://stashbox.org/348609/Y%26F.mov

That was cool, Roger. I heard that brief Freddie lick: shaking his horn slurring 3rds up chromatically. That's a very real sounding trumpet and good sax too. A lot better than the Fred MacMurray tenor in my keyboard. Nice job on that thing, and believable too.

Thanks, Roger, I think. It is a bit insane. I just tried to make up something fun to listen to. I even took out my whole solo over the changes -it wasn't part of the 'entertainment' package. The tune reminded me a slight bit of Freddie Hubbard, and I just learned he passed today.

Thanks a lot, kad and floyd. And thanks for the reminder, Bobadoshe. Putting "Confirmation" back up now, with some added EQ(!) like it'll actually makes the music any better. http://stashbox.org/342990/Confirmation.mov This next one is an "original", as of today. A retro-progressive groove tune. I based it on the chords I veered off on, on the last bridge of Confirmation above, so I'll post it here for that reason (and the fact I'm too lazy to find the other thread.) And yeah, I really loaded up the instruments on this new tune, which was absurd but kinda fun to do. http://stashbox.org/342989/Groovy%20Shades.mov

Thank you both, Roger and Dave. Glad you liked it. I threw in way too much on Confirmation, like some bad actor hamming up a character, but it's probably the only time I'll record it or maybe play it again. Like I said, there are a few Giant Step type chords (3 to 5) in "I Love You" I'd heard somewhere before. Not completely my reharm, but with the added stuff, it does make an obstacle course.

That inspired me to try one bop song, "Confirmation" (some of the melody is intact.) This one is anything but pretty. Lots of intentional cliches... a style I don't play anymore. But it's part of the 'language' of that period - although I slipped up and occasionally throw in a slightly modern idea. Ridiculous bunch of notes. Minimal reharm and not an "original composition", so I didn't know where else to post it. (removed "Confirmation - forgot to EQ it. I'll repost it in a minute.) While I'm here, I'll add this loose, experimental reharm of "I Love You" as a palette cleanser. I heard a version once (don't remember who did it) which used some Giant Step changes cleverly inserted in spots, so I tried to reconstruct some of that and added other stuff. Kind of out for the tune, but brings out another dimension to the song. After the reharm, I stuck some sections of me blowing over different tempos. I was actually practicing the form and forgot it was being recorded. So you'll hear me free soloing when I'm not aware of recording. Like a horn and bass without chord voicings - angular and a little coldly conceptual, for those throngs of hardcore jazz fans out there. http://stashbox.org/339875/I%20Love%20You-reharm-musings.mov

That's beautiful, Dave. A touch of modern voicings at the top and almost a light classical feel, it has a different, airy groove I really like. I also like the last split second bluesy tags on a couple of those lines.

Hey Greg, I didn't even see your post up there. Must've posted at the same time. Thanks for the contribution. I'll listen to it. edit: Very well recorded, Greg. I'd call that less of a reharm - more of an arrangement or whole new version of the tune. Sounds good.

Sorry for a repost from the past, but I worked out the kinks in my home recording setup, and now I get recordings the way they should sound... for the first time. I had these two very different reharms of Where or When stored. I'm not re-posting them for the music but for the sound - what a difference in clarity from the original version I posted... http://stashbox.org/336968/What%20Where%20Or%20When.mov

Ah... the spirit of reharm at Christmas time. That was nice, a little Monkish in spots. Thanks Richard, and you have a nice holiday too. Oh, I'm using the same old keyboard I've used on most of these, FP4, with my own tweaks.

Oh no... What have I done? What an idea.