Dance in the Rain - suggestions anyone?

[howlindog]

Hi folks,

I finally got a mix of this tune (Dance in the Rain) http://www.taxi.com/projectone that I thought was worthy of putting in front of you. I just sent it in for a couple of listings but I haven't finalized it yet. I'd certainly appreciate any thoughts or suggestions you may have on the tune, especially regarding the mix but I welcome any feedback. Also, I've listed it as "Adult Contemporary"; does that seem right to you? I'll copy the lyrics below.

Thanks,
Don

Dance in the Rain (by Jim Curlis / Don Nichols)

Looking back now
I understand how
We ended up here
Promises broken
Words unspoken
As our dreams disappeared
You convinced me
There’ll be no happy ending
I’m done pretending

Somewhere a new sun smiles
On a beautiful day
Somewhere there’s more joy than pain
Soon I’ll be walkin’
On sunshine again
‘Till then I’ll dance in the rain

The unopened wine
That you left behind
When you told me goodbye
Untouched and lonely
Waiting only
For your lips, your smile
Left abandoned
But now I understand it
You couldn’t chance it

Somewhere a new sun smiles
On a beautiful day
And somewhere there’s more joy than pain
Soon I’ll be walkin’
On sunshine again
‘Till then I’ll dance in the rain

How did you know
When to let go
Goodbye’s a word I couldn’t bring myself to say
But there it is
A new day begins
And till the sun breaks through the clouds to light my way
I’ll dance in the rain

Way down the road
A train whistle blows
An old fashioned song
The melody’s fading
Softly playing to the past
Then it’s gone
The train keeps rolling
Ahead to where the hope is
That’s where I’m going

Somewhere a new sun smiles
On a beautiful day
And somewhere there’s more joy than pain
Soon I’ll be walking
On sunshine again
‘Till then I’ll dance in the rain
For now I’ll dance…in the rain

[ernstinen]

Don! Just gorgeous. I'm blown away by the composition, arrangement, and vocals!

On first listen, I.... really don't have much to say except that this is in the pocket and sounds great.

Someone like Anita Baker would kill on this tune, but I'm not sure how much she's recording right now. A lot of the current smooth R&B artists would do this justice.

One thought, which might make you barf --- Country crossover. The chords are maybe too jazzy for that genre, but things are getting so homogenized these days that you never know!

Still, I'd go for the "Idol" market (which also may make you barf ), but there are so many great singers looking for material like this, I believe you've got a winner somewhere in the biz!

My Best,

Ern

[thokus]

Hey Don... Great song . I love the singer.. The mix : It seems to me, the expert(LOL,LOL) that the piano, which sounds great, needs to come up a touch, and the bass also .. Punch the bass up just a little... Great tune .. Good luck with it ..
Tom

[howlindog]

Ern, Tom,

Thanks for listening.

Ern - I'd love to sell this to Anita Baker ... or Carrie Underwood ... or just about anyone (maybe not Justin Bieber). I submitted it to the "ala Celine Dion" listing. We'll see what happens.

Tom - Wouldn't you know it; I'm the guy who told the recording engineer (who disagreed with me) to turn the piano down 1.5 dbs. And you might have a point regarding the bass as well. I'll pass along your suggestions.

Again, thanks for listening guys. This is one of the eleven tunes I'm trying to finish for a new CD and I really do appreciate your help.

Thanks,
Don

[deantaylor]

Hey Don,

Very good song. Well written. Good vocal. Good vibe. Mix seems good to me, but my ears aren't great for that.

Genre .. I'd say AC/Lounge.

Dean

[howlindog]

Dean,

Thanks for listening and for the encouraging words. Hopefully, I'm done with this tune and can move on to finishing the rest.

Thanks,
Don

[dannydep]

Hi Don,
I really like the mood of this song.

Is that an real bass or Trilian?
Either way, it sounds great and I agree with others that it needs to be more out front.
If it's the real thing maybe you need to mike it a little closer so you can get more of the overtones.
I'm not sure if it just needs to be louder or fuller.
But if it were, it would compliment the vocal and arrangement even more so than this take, imho.

This was really enjoyable to listen to.
Good luck with it.
ciao, Dan

[slowdance]

Don,

I thought the mix was pretty good....I thought the instruments were panned left/right rather nicely......upping the piano or bass a decibel or 2 sounds more like a personal taste ......well done......singer was great.

Regards,
Dick

[howlindog]

Dan, Dick,

Thanks for listening and taking the time to comment.

Dan - as far as the bass is concerned, it is mostly Andy Woodson on a five string fretless - don't ask me what kind. However, there were a few places where the riff he played was not quite in tune so we edited in snippets of the original midi bass track played through a Trilogy - Pastorius sample. We EQ'd and played with the attack and release a bit on the midi bass in order to get it to match as closely as possible to the part Andy played. I'd have to go back through my notes and check, but I'm pretty sure we recorded Andy direct - no amp, no mics. I'd say 95% of this track is Andy. We did bring the bass up almost 2 dbs in a remix earlier today as well as the piano in a few places including the C section. I believe that Jim - recording engineer and co-author of this song - added a plug-in to the bass as well to give it a little more presence.

Dick - I'll pass along your comments about the pans and the mix - (or maybe not; don't want Jim to get too big headed). I certainly agree that at some point in fine tuning a mix, it is about personal taste. (I'm the one that brought the piano down in the mix much to Jim's chagrin.) On the singer, I've been really blessed on this project to work with two of the most talented, professional, and artistic female vocalists that I've ever run across. They are also both a delight to work with - Kay Harris (this singer) and Kelly Delaveris (appears on other tunes on this CD).

Thanks again,
Don

[ernstinen]

Hey Don --- another winner here! Just great writing and vocals. You've got a hit with this one!

Engineering nit-picks: I've got a friend who is REALLY sensitive to "Sssses" on vocals, to the point it drives me crazy. But this lady's vocals have spots that are pretty sibilant. Just a thought...

I agree the piano needs to either come up a bit, or EQ'd to add more low end on it.

Finally, the tom fills that are syncopated sometimes, for me, take away from the groove. Some work, some don't to my ears.

BUT, these are small points compared to the overall great production! You're really on the right track; I could never do a production like this 'cause it's your style, which is very cool and impressive!

All My Best,

Ern