How many times do you end up recording a

[Dan O]

How many times (on average) do you record your music to get it right ? Or is it always a work in progress ? dano

[Steve LeBlanc]

I'm not sure exactly what you mean. Do you mean how many times do I completely rerecord a song or just how many takes per track?

 

I'll just answer it this way...

 

Everything I've recorded in the past year has been first take with the only exception being a vocal I redid on one song.

 

I want my music to sound as live as possible, even when it's not totally live it is the only take.

[Dan O]

Ok ..that's cool .

I have these song ideas . I record it one way . A few months later I may try it again ( new effects etc..) .

I guess that's how UNPLUGGED came about . Record it with a rock guitar than and an acoustic ! My cover tune (that I submitted) took 4 to 6 times before I said *uck it ! Now that we had more time to submit , I keep on thinking of another way to do it . dano

[Deadsy]

I don't record YET. I'm a perfectionist, which is a bad thing, so I would probably do a number of takes.

[jimbyjoe]

dano,

 

according to my most recent recording (4 minute song)

drums - 2 takes (one to get the level and midi sync right...)

bass - 2 or 3

keys - 2 or 3 but that including 2 solos.

organ - 2.

guitar - 5. just for a 4 bar riff i loop....

vocal - about the same amount of takes as decimal places pi has.

 

my takes oviously go in order of instrument talent - keys, bass, guitar........voice. actually voice would be probably 2nd if i wasn't recording. i'm just very picky about it.

 

pray,

k

[Llarion]

I'm very much the same; in order of talent on the axe:

 

Drums, usually take 1 or 2

Bass, almost always take 1

Keys, 1-4 takes, depending on complexity

Guitars, Rhythm, 1-4 takes

Guitars, lead, yeah, RIGHT.

Solos - 50-350 takes.

Vocals, BWAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA!!!!

[Magpel]

Way too many takes, way too much rethinking and rebuidling. Back when I was more band oriented, it was easier for me to go with an early take and just accept. In the midi-fied one man band setting, it takes me entirely too long to finish anything, and it pisses me off.

[jimbyjoe]

is it just me and phil or does everyone do billions of vocal takes?

 

k

[Jazzman]

Hi all, I do a lot of takes just because I like things to come out right......but sometimes I've tried to perfect it too much and and BAM loose it completely. Since I play by ear it takes me a little longer if it is complicated to set things up the way I want.

 

Usually this is what happens with me alone on the gear,

Drums,live 1-to 3 takes

Drumm machines programed 1-2 takes

Bass, 1 time usually(I'll do some dry runs first for tone)

Keys, lead 1 to 3 times

backgrounds 1 time usually

Guitar, lead.....alot can't count

chops....1-3 times

Vocals...........................I crack glass, but sometimes 3 to 5 times, but most of my music is instrumental so I don't do this much in the studio. Other folks that I've recorded take 3-5 times.

 

As an aside......just last weekend, I came up with a new song, my bass player was over, had a great grove going with a drum machine for a start, I couldn't believe it, but I just couldn't get it together on the keys...was so close to finishing the basics and BAM lost it, quit a midnight.......bummed out!! Had a lot of takes, my good friend the bass player had it together but noooooooo, my mind started to wander, lost track of where I wanted to be in the song, fumbled on the keys.......not good!

C R A P !!!!!!!!! Was just tired I guess. Doesn't happen often but when it does.......it's time to put things down and call it a day, know what I mean?

 

Jazzman

[Dan South]

I think the original question had to do with creating alternate versions of a song, not how many takes per instrument went into a single version. Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

I've run into a lot of dead ends over the years due to (a) lack of decent equipment, and (b) my own inexperience. As a result, I have lots of tapes that approximate what I was going for but aren't good enough to play for the general public.

 

Some of the projects that I've completed recently were second (or third) attempts at "demo rescue." I have more knowledge and better equipment than ever before, so I can do more with an idea than I could have, say, five years ago. It's a natural progression that most musicians go through. That said, even now, I can create some pretty dismal prototypes. You have to find the right combination of elements to make an arrangement/recording work. I'll try several ideas until one starts to click. That's a magic moment, and it's unforgettable. The arrangement almost writes itself. But there's no shame in false starts. They give you ideas. My finished projects could not have been possible without my false starts and dopey demos.

 

Remember, it's always better to try SOMETHING, evaluate it, and then redo it than (a) never getting started, or (b) churning out something that sounds unfinished.