Streets of London

BigBear
Posts: 0
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2009 11:02 am
Status: Offline

Tue Mar 16, 2010 11:06 pm

Jay- absolutely terrific! I just started working on this song and you did a brilliant job on the picking, which is not nearly as easy as it looks! I especially liked your alternating bass pattern. Not quite the way the song is written but you performed it perfectly.

I think you are a much better singer than you probably give yourself credit for. You should explore that more and build your confidence because you have a really nice voice.

Congrats on your hard work and thanks for sharing a terrific video and performance! I really enjoyed it very much.

Cheers! :cheer:


Chasplaya
Posts: 0
Joined: Sat Sep 20, 2008 8:41 pm
Status: Offline

Tue Mar 16, 2010 11:52 pm

Jay, Man perfect sort of voice for this song well done, one comment is the trebles notes could be louder but that may just be recording set up, tempo as been mentioned i'm not sure but the fact you maintained your tempo throughout sort of negates that a bit your picking is way ahead of where I am at so good on ya for that. Open mic? yeah i'd sit and listen to you.

Fantastic job

Chas


mcfingers
Posts: 0
Joined: Tue Apr 14, 2009 2:03 pm
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 12:04 am

Jay, that was solid. I couldn't find anything wrong with your tempo. It was even and constant. You couldn't ask for more than that. I totally agree with he others that your voice was perfect for this song. It sounded strong and you gave feeling to the words. Just keep playing and singing along, it will come around sooner than you think.
I am looking this song up right away. It next on my list. I loved it.
Great job.


cosmicmechanic
Posts: 0
Joined: Sat Apr 04, 2009 8:39 am
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 5:04 am

Jay, just a quick word ... I should be practicing, then gotta get ready for work.

Actually I was practicing "Streets of London" and decided I'd take a peek at the forum.

I feel downright dyslexic seeing how fluid your picking is :side:

I wonder how intensely you've been practicing this, maybe to the exclusion of other songs you normally play?

Neil says its ok to vary the picking, to "make it our own", but I feel I should at first master the pattern he demonstrates to get full benefit.
The pattern is not at all natural for me, but I am making some progress.

This piece has now shifted to my list of songs that seem simple at first but end up becoming longer term projects.

This comment is already too long ... probably add more at another time.

I am really impressed !

Pierre


dekotaj
Posts: 0
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2009 11:23 am
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 6:37 am

BRAVO!!! BRAVO!!!

I enjoyed very much watching you play and sing Ralph Mctell great song.You did a fantastic job with the picking.I like others think it ready for the local coffee house!!Got to do the last verse,got that old man with ribbons on his chest.Great closing verse.Well got to go watch it again.Great Great Job.

Kevin


User avatar
neverfoundthetime
Posts: 48
Joined: Sat Aug 01, 2009 2:14 pm
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 6:48 am

Jay that is simply excellent. Your voice is perfect for this song (as Buddy notes, perfect for Ballads) and your picking is rock steady. I thought the tempo was good and sure, you could ease up slightly, and it would become even more laid back and lyrical as it was intended. All this song needs is a little repetition and you are ready for that open mike by the end of this month... so a summer session is very realistic. Get the first open mike session behind you and you'll be in perfect position to go for regular sessions.

On singing and playing simultaneously, just get one down blind and then you can focus on the other as you play. If I have the playing down well, I put my focus on the lyrics and phrasing. If I know the lyrics perfectly, I focus on the playing.

Streets of London is perfect for open mike, Jay, great job! Just make sure you pass your other stage songs by us all for official approval too! ;-)


suziko
Posts: 0
Joined: Tue Jun 16, 2009 9:37 am
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 7:26 am

Wow, Jay, simply wonderful. I'm not sure why you were not completely happy with the vocals. After reading your description I thought that the volume was going to be terrible or something, but it was just fine. And your singing was really strong for this song, really pleasant.

Of course your picking always impresses the hell out of me, but I feel like I've told you that in every post and you're probably tired of hearing it by now. You are an inspiration, that's for sure.

Also, I'd never heard that song before; didn't bother to check it out when it was posted as a lesson. But I now love it and hope at some point to try to learn to play it.

Thanks! Suzi


User avatar
Music Junkie
Posts: 0
Joined: Fri Mar 13, 2009 7:17 am
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 9:47 am

Jay:

Another great bit of fingerpicking. I saw where you made the few mistakes you talked about, but only because you pointed them out.... :) The fact that you kept going and stayed in time, really draws away from the mistakes you talk about (probably would not have noticed them at if I wasn't looking for them). Plus, like we all say, we are so much harder on ourselves than we need to be. I thought your singing was very good. Like Tony mentions, once you spend a bit more time on this, you will feel it and then look out! Thanks for posting this, I really enjoyed your rendition of this classic. You are far beyond my abilities, and I enjoy watching and listening to you play.

Jason


jayswett
Posts: 31
Joined: Sat Apr 04, 2009 9:44 pm
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 10:49 am

Thanks for taking the time to watch. Here are a couple of responses to your thoughts:
Tony - Yes, I tend to be very self conscious when I sing. I need to lose that feeling.
Craig - based on your Brain Damage video, this song is within reach if you decided you wanted to lear it.
Mark - I was a strummer and a little bit of a flatpicker until a year ago. Before TG was in existence, I saw a guy online give a quick, very simple finger picking lesson. I sat with my guitar for about two hours after that, while watching a Red Sox game with my kids, playing his little fingerpicking pattern over and over. Since then, I haven't really done much other than fingerpicking. I'd like to get back to it though, as I think it makes sense to be proficient at both
Bear - I didn't realize that I was playing the bass part incorrectly. I'll have to go back and check the lesson and tab.
Mcfingers - Regarding the tempo, Neil played it quite a bit more slowly than I did, and I do think it sounds better that way.
Chas - I agree with your coments about the treble. I need to check my settings. The guitar I was using does have a mini-equalizer on the body.
Pierre - I'd say I practiced 15-20 minutes a day for six weeks. Definitely not to the exclusion of everything else. My attention span is too short for that.
Kevin - I agree with your thoughts on the last verse, which in my opinion is the best verse of the song. Having worked in a VA Hospital for a number of years, the image of the old, proud vet wearing his WW II ribbons is a vivid one for me every time I hear that song.
Suzi - the vocals for the recording were dubbed, which is why the volume sounds OK. With Audacity, one can alter the volume for each of the tracks to make it sound just right. I'd suggest you take a crack at this song. Freight Train has many similar chords, and I'd argue that the picking pattern for Streets of London is easier.


beaker
Posts: 0
Joined: Mon Jul 06, 2009 11:39 am
Status: Offline

Wed Mar 17, 2010 10:56 am

Jay, Great job! Your fingerpicking is really coming. Vocals really good too. I liked it. Keep on playing! Beaker.


Post Reply Previous topicNext topic