[Jamie]

Hi all, giving my guitars an outing . And there's nearly no keyboards! Trying to create a grungy rock feel with a bit of energy!
All constructive comments welcome!
Cheers
Jamie

https://soundcloud.com/jamie1802/the-river-still-flows


The river still flows

I don't know why you're here
I want to drive but you re gonna steer
Everything's gone so cold
And its all so uncontrolled

Why do you waste you're time
When there's no reasons, reason or rhyme
Take your chances do what you must
You can make a mess but you cant make a fuss

Chorus

We built a bridge but, the river still flows
The water runs deep but, it never slows
I see you waving as i'm gonna drown
And I close my eyes as I'm going down

Bridge

Will I ever let you know how I feel
I can't believe we're here again

Feels like hands around my throat
And I believe I'm gonna choke
Words just echo round and round
I try to speak but I cant make a sound

Chorus

[pompeyjazz]

Yay ! Get those guitars out Jamie. This one rocks along very nicely indeed thank you. Like the wall of sound effect you've got with the guitars and I really like your harmonies, not the obvious harmonies and they work very well to make the song sound that bit different. Voice is sounding god as ever. Nice work

John

[Skub]

Yo Jamie.

Syd lives! 

Very 60s Syd Barrett pop feel,the Floyd of Apples and Oranges,Interstellar Overdrive,Arnold lane,See Emily play,era.

Love it! I always enjoy your songs and the lazy jazz vibe usually prevalent,but this is special,more Syd pop than grunge in my humble opinion. Also sounds like a Jamie/shadowfax collaboration. 

Nothing constructive to add,other than I enjoyed the listen immensely.

Nice SG btw,I have an old 1971 Special,which was my first 'proper' guitar and cost me most of my wages for a year when I bought it! We are spoiled for choice now.

[shadowfax]

A good rockin number mate...well done!

[boolio]

Hi,
I like the less than obvious melodies and for me it has a kind of musical intelligence which engages and then holds the interest right the way through. I think your strong vocal evocative of Sting - esp. in the bridge (after he'd learnt how to sing!) pitches in right where it should in the mix too.
I also like the forceful lyrics… I think they perfectly suit the incessant feeling imparted by the instrumental backing.
Great overall vibe and great production.
Phil

[Bill Saunders]

Hi Jamie

Love a good SG - looks just like mine, they are great rock out guitars 😉 Especially in the verses I love the contrast of the rather grungy chord sequence with the light, airy melodic vocals. Non-obvious harmonies gives interest and should help give the song longevity. Ace song!

Bill

[jamesh]

Hi Jamie


This is one Id like to hear live. Its certainly got energy. Like others have said, the harmonies are unexpected and interesting and vocals sound good.

In terms of structure, it felt for me like the chorus could come in after the first verse to get it going quicker, but then, what do I know. Its just a suggestion!

James

[S.T.C]

What key is this in ?

[Binladeda]

 Hi Jamie,

 Yeah....liked this 

 Nice driving energy.  Really liked the vocal and harmonies.

 Thought the 'grunge' gtr was a bit 'relentless'....but I suppose
 it's supposed to be    Nice change around 1.45

 Excellent work....

[Steng]

Builds nicely, I like the change to the "dreamy" part about 2 mins in. Great backing vocals. Not your run of the mill melody, quite unusual and all the better for it. Nice one.

[TimCurtis]

Nice sound and I like the chord changes.  Like the change around 1:45 - gets a bit psychedelic before getting back into the main grunginess again which I really like.  I want it to sound a bit louder somehow - perhaps a bit more compression on the overall mix.... a minor quibble I know.

[Jamie]

Hi all thanks for listening, it's appreciated!

Hi John, I don't really know why I don't do more guitar stuff, I think I'll have to make a bigger effort, I always enjoy recording guitars . As it happens my next song will probably be another keyboard based song . Glad you enjoyed it. I was a bit worried about the guitar wall but it seems to sound ok! The chorus has some unusual chord changes so the harmonies weren't the easiest to find, but these just happened!

Hi Skub, you're too kind as usual! I would never have thought of Syd, I'll have to go back and listen to him again.happy to be considered in the same frame as Kevin so thanks for that! My SG was my first proper electric guitar and I still play it and my strat when recording, but tend to use my les Paul when playing with my band. They're all have their own individual feels!

Hi Kev, thanks I was aiming for a good rockin' tune so that's a great comment!

Thanks guys great comments!

Cheers
Jamie

[Jamie]

Hi guys, thanks for the feedback it's appreciated!

Hi Phil, great comments thanks! Yes the harmonies are a bit different but I felt I was pushed towards them by the chord structure, it took a while to get something I was happy with!glad you mentioned the bridge, I thought it was really important to give respite from the driving guitar sound to give a contrast and to give a lift when coming out of it, cheers! Pleased you mentioned the lyrics they're not that complex but I felt they worked quite well and it's an area I usually struggle with .

Hi Bill, ace song eh? That'll do nicely, as they say! I love my SG too they're great underrated guitars IMHO!

Hi James, I did consider bringing the chorus in after the first verse but decided not to as I wanted to establish the driving feel whilst adding a different guitar motif before going into the block chord chorus and airy bridge. It probably would have worked either way . I think it could be a good live song too!

Hi STC, it's in A........... thanks for the feedback

Cheers
Jamie

[Jamie]

Hi guys, thanks for listening!

Hi Bin, hope you're feeling better! Thanks for your great comments! As mentioned before I recognised the 'relentless' grungieness but as you mention yourself the bridge gives some 'relief'!

Hi steng, thanks,pleased you mentioned the build I think it's quite subtle . Also good that you mentioned the bridge as I said before I felt the song needed a contrast section to break up the rhythms and allow a lift going back into 3rd verse!

Hi Tim, thanks, I think the verse chord changes could sound as if from a classical style with different instrumentation ! I did use compression but to be honest I don't really know what I'm doing in the production it's just trial and error, so you've probably got a point there!

Thanks again guys, it's appreciated!
Cheers
Jamie

[tina m]

thats a very proggy sound ..i love the drums they sound like very expensive cardboard boxes
& are fabulous ..super guitar sound aswell
you always sound so serene & relaxed & always have a lovely slow melody that you never want to rush & it all works very well as it is tho I dont know how you resist adding all sorts of other bits to it..
great bridge aswell!  
I always like to imagine what peoples homes look like from the sound of their songs & from this I think you live in a huge open plan house with lots & lots of comfy chairs

'what key is it in?' what lovely feedback!