The Challenge 29/04/2009

Renesongs

This weeks topic comes from CDee

I wrote a song a while back and this is the lyrics of the first verse:
Sitting here in the corner
Putting life in perspective
Sitting here asking questions
Where do I go from here?

Think about the lyrics and then compose an intro and the first verse. So time to show those vocal talents! (If you don't want to sing yourself get your wife/girlfriend/husband/boyfriend/daughter/son etc to sing for you, BUT MAKE SURE YOU ENTER THE CHALLENGE!!!)
Any genre will do. Rock, metal, blues, jazz etc.... you decide!

Good luck and most of all ENJOY!

Nice one CDee. Entries in by noon Wednesday 6 May. You wont be judged on your singing (or croaking) but your guitar composition/arrangement skills.

Spyke

Nice CDee, I like.

Normal rules apply? ie: one minute and 4 track limit?
Will vocals count as a track?

Renesongs

Vocals tracks don't count.

Riaan

Will MIDI/software synth generated female "Ahhh's" go through as vocals.... :-[....? Seriously, just to demonstrate the vocal tune. That's as close as vocals I'll get to I'm afraid. No way that I'm gonna be so brave...☹

If I could get someone to do vocals I'll give it a shot, otherwise it'll be "aahhhh aaaahhhh aaahhhhh" from me.

AlanRatcliffe

Just askin' - Why wouldn't vocals count as one? Works out nicely: guitar, bass drums and vocals.

Renesongs

Will MIDI/software synth generated female "Ahhh's"

Submissions involving synth generated vocals or vocoder will illicit strong censure from the "good taste" police

Why wouldn't vocals count as one? Works out nicely: guitar, bass drums and vocals.

I'm trying to hand out free sweeties as inspiration for more people to enter. This is a guitar forum, many people become good guitarists because they can't sing therefore I assume that 90% of the people on this forum can't sing well and will therefore need as many tracks as they can get to detract from their singing/croaking/moaning/drawling/squawking/muttering etc.

FatBoy

So do we have to write our own intro and first verse and incorporate the vibe of your first verse, or should we use your lyrics? This one could be interesting!

AlanRatcliffe

Renesongs wroteSubmissions involving synth generated vocals or vocoder will illicit strong censure from the "good taste" police

Damn, there goes my first idea of using studio trickery to bludgeon Microsoft SAM into Bohemian Rhapsodesque proportions... Oh well, I have many such ideas.

I'm trying to hand out free sweeties as inspiration for more people to enter.

Fair enough.

need as many tracks as they can get to detract from their singing/croaking/moaning/drawling/squawking/muttering etc.

You've heard my vocal scratch tracks then? ?

So, can I get an extra track each for singing, croaking, moaning, drawling, squawking, muttering and etc. please?

This is an interesting one.

Renesongs

So do we have to write our own intro and first verse and incorporate the vibe of your first verse, or should we use your lyrics? This one could be interesting!

I think it would be interesting to Add your own verse chorus intro rap whatever to CDee's original verse

So, can I get an extra track each for singing, croaking, moaning, drawling, squawking, muttering and etc. please?

I'm going to be lenient on this one. Over and above the 4 instrumental track you can have as many vocal tracks as you want, so If you think you have the time to do a 32 track Farrokh Bulsara then go for it I say.

Riaan

Submissions involving synth generated vocals or vocoder will illicit strong censure from the "good taste" police

I've been guilty of many things, but good taste is not one of them!

studio trickery to bludgeon Microsoft SAM into Bohemian Rhapsodesque proportions

Ah now there's an idea...studio trickery! Never thought of that. Now that I think of it, Dimension that came with Sonar has some nice female vocal samples..."Oh yeah" is probably better than "ahhhh". When I first discovered those samples, I of course only realised what it must sound like after I spent a good few hours late one night playing them rather loud... ?.

Squonk

This is the most interesting challenge so far :-\

Will be quite a fun one though. Let's hope Cdee has found where to go from that corner where he was pondering about the perspective of life.

The killer thing here again will be the composition and the arrangement. Alan is really getting is way in these compositions ?

Spyke

Riaan wrote "Oh yeah" is probably better than "ahhhh". When I first discovered those samples, I of course only realised what it must sound like after I spent a good few hours late one night playing them rather loud... ?.

This has to be one of the best cover stories I've ever heard!!

Picture if you will...

*Riaan alone in his 'studio' decides to watch some risque videos. However, he forgets to adjust the volume prior to pressing play.*

<female voice, rather loud.> "Oh Yeah... ahhhhhhhhh!"

Wife: "Riaan! What was that!!!???"

Riaan: "Nothing honey! Just some vocal samples on Sonar"

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

Riaan

Imagine the glances from the neighbours the next morning! ?

CDee

Fritz Brand wrote So do we have to write our own intro and first verse and incorporate the vibe of your first verse, or should we use your lyrics? This one could be interesting!

The idea is to only use the words and compose your own music for it. Intro + verse 1(words given) and if time allows a chorus (your own words if you want to)

Squonk wrote This is the most interesting challenge so far :-\

Will be quite a fun one though. Let's hope Cdee has found where to go from that corner where he was pondering about the perspective of life.

The killer thing here again will be the composition and the arrangement. Alan is really getting is way in these compositions ?

The main goal is for people who struggle to compose to have a fun way of trying something new and then for the experienced composers to show us how it's done... ?

AlanRatcliffe

Squonk wrote This is the most interesting challenge so far :-\

It is. It's also CDee's sneaky method of getting us to write the music for his song. ?

The killer thing here again will be the composition and the arrangement.

Yeah - and having to work around a vocal, which none of our comps before have done.

Alan is really getting is way in these compositions ?

Only lately and both Rene and Andrew are serious competition. Andrew had me on the run for a while this time.

Riaan

Yeah - and having to work around a vocal, which none of our comps before have done.

Interesting thing I've found last night is that the mere presence of vocals swings me involuntarily towards known tunes of which the lyrics remind me of, and it's hard to get that tune out of my head and come up with something original. In this case, the lyrics keep on swinging me towards "Keep Talking" of Pink Floyd...
Interesting one, this!

Squonk

@ Riaan

I am going to do the composition first and then add the vocal melody, there are no rules against rap or even spoken vocals.
The Moody Blues Drummer Graeme Edge used to speak words over a tune.

?

Neps

Well I'm toying with 2 options.. A Jack Johnson feel, or a gritty blues piece. And even if I am a drummer.. NO DRUMS.. Had to laugh a bit, I had almost the same set of lyrics lying around at home for a while, until I threw them out and wrote a song for my Then GF.. Should have stayed with the previous lyrics.. Much deeper.

CDee

Neps wrote wrote a song for my Then GF

Your Then GF. You mean there were other Guitar Forums before us... How could you!!! :'(

Neps

CDee wrote Your Then GF. You mean there were other Guitar Forums before us... How could you!!! :'(

I found commiting to one GF was difficult, and when they are foreign you can't converse efficiently.. So I had to search for a SA based one.. ? Now my life is complete!