Busking Dawes

Hydroman52
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 12:58 am

Here is a song that is just plain fun to play. It is by a group called Dawes, and the name of the song is Love Is All I Am. I had been following them since they did a session recording on daytrotter.com. Then about a month or two ago (maybe three), I ran across a video on daytrotter.com that they recorded of this song in front of an old farmhouse in Maquoketa, IA. Their three part harmonies are tight and reminded me of The Band. Each band member is very talented at what they do. If you are looking for individual solos, you won't find it here. Instead, you will find a solid, balanced performance that rocks the house. You will probably hear more about them as I just read that they were selected as the backup band for Robbie Robertson's latest tour. That doesn't surprise me.

So, bassman Jerry and I picked this one up and couldn't put it down. We have each put in a lot of work individually on it, but not a lot of play through time together until we did this recording. I created a drum track for it that turned out to be a complete disaster. So, it was back to the drawing board for a total rewrite. My second attempt at the drum track was better and we were able to ferret out the truly bad stuff and make corrections just before recording this one. Fortunately, someone was kind enough to put up some fairly accurate tabs of the song on the Internet, so I didn't have to spend a lot of time figuring out most of the guitar basics. Another good thing is that Dawes is really hustling to make a name for themselves, and, consequently, there are a number of great performances posted on the Internet to observe. Jerry worked really hard on dissecting the harmonies and gave me good instruction so we can be synchronized there. So, this is Take 2 for the evening. In the Key of D, the singing is on the upper part of my range. It is more comfortable for me to sing in the Key of C, but then the rest of the song just doesn't sound right and doesn't have the punch it needs. So I'll just keep on stretching until I get it.

These guys have energy, enthusiasm, and are still edgy. I hope they never lose that. It's what makes them fun to watch, and their songs fun to play. So here is our early take on Love Is All I Am. We hope you enjoy it.

Hydroman52



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lueders
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 1:26 am

Hydro, you guys sound Damn good! Nice performance all the way around!! :laugh:
Gonna head over to youtube and check these guys out a little further. Thanks for the heads up on 'em. A
person can't get too much old-timey, folksy sounding stuff in his/her record collection. ;)

Cori


tovo
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:05 am

Well done guys, sounding great. It's a cool tune and they sound like a band worth checking out. Thanks for the look.


willem
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:22 am

Hi Hydro,,,you said it self on the end ''that was gut'' and i enjoyed it pretty much,,great sound you two and i think you can go on the road with,,well you blew me away..thanks

ps Which pick were you useing??


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neverfoundthetime
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 4:08 am

Mike & Jerry ( ever tried making ice-cream as well as music?) just great going guys. I loved the groove and the singing and the energy of that song.
These are great videos you guys are posting! Thank you very much and Congrats!


dsmarion
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 6:15 am

Hey, thanks for sharing that! I am not familiar with these guys yet but I have heard the name. You guys sounded great - the harmonies don't sound easy. Certainly a lot of verses to remember there as well, I can see why you have the music stand in front of you :-) I really like the "dead stop - missing strum" - really a great effect in a song. Keep em coming.

Scott


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daryl
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 6:18 am

Definitely a fun song. Loved the bass and drums and guitar and vocals and harmonies. Great sound.


dennisg
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 8:02 am

Hydro,

That was really a fun ride, and I was sorry when it ended. More, please!

Just a technical note: I'd like to see you guys sitting a lot closer together so that the camera could be in tighter on you. It would be illuminating to see what you're doing.


michelew
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 9:32 am

'Funner and Funner' I whole-heartedly agree. GREAT sounds. I love the stuff you guys choose.

Well I guess I'll be checking out iTune tomorrow.

Thanks for the performance. I love your work. I want to be as good as the two of you someday. Aahhhh ... When i grow up....


So cool

Thanks

Michele


Hydroman52
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Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:44 pm

Cori – Thanks for watching. Google “Dawes big ugly yellow couch”, and you will find an excellent video of this song stripped down. While you’re at it, check out some of the other artists in the Big Ugly Yellow Couch sessions. Lot’s of people there I had never heard before who are quite good.

Tony – Thanks for checking it out. They also do this song in an electric version. If you go to YouTube and search “Dawes Barnstormer II - Lodi, WI”, you should find my favorite electric version.

Willem – Thanks for the kind words. That was Frankenpick I. Frankenpick II works a little better, and (I’m hoping) Bride of Frankenpick will be even better.

Chris – Does this mean that you haven’t tried our 35 flavors, yet? Just kidding . . . . but it wouldn’t shock me if Jerry and his wife made the best ice cream on the planet. They are a whole lot of fun to be around and full of surprises like that. Thanks for watching.

Scott – You are very observant. Jerry has spent a bit of time studying the harmonies. His notes on the subtle changes that are happening are about as complicated looking as my drum track notes. Of course, we are missing the third part, and it would be great to have someone sit in to fill that void to see how it would sound. I’m very happy that you keyed in on the “dead stop – missing strum”. I read somewhere that the note following a silence is the most important part and is the “statement” of the musical passage. It’s very deceptive how tough it is to pull this off. Everything must stop, pause, and start at the same time. When everything works, it is a bit dramatic. I do this with a complete palm mute with my right hand between the bridge and the sound hole. As my hand comes down for the mute, I land the pick on the lowest string (the fourth string) of the next chord to be played after the pause. That way, there is complete silence and I am in position for the hard downward strum that follows the pause. As I hit the statement chord out of the silence, there needs to be a lot of energy directed into the downward strum to give it the volume and speed that puts you back into the rhythm of the song. When it doesn’t work, it still sounds good, but, when it works, it sounds great. Thanks for noticing that. We put a bit of time into it and it’s really flattering to know that it has an effect.

Daryl – Thanks for listening. Any compliment from you I hold in high regard.

Dennis – Glad you liked it. Thanks for the technical note, too. These videos have always been shot for our own use with a few of the better ones shared here. It’s easy for us to figure out what’s going on, but you are right, they are not clear enough to see what is going on very well. I will talk with Jerry and see if there is something we can do to remedy this. I have benefited so much from everyone else’s videos, and I need to step up and do my part to contribute, too. It really is not very good if you can’t see what’s going on clearly. Thanks for pointing that out.

Michele – Never grow up! You are fine just the way you are.

I forgot to mention one other thing in the original post. During the summer, the upstairs studio gets a little bit warm with the amps and other stuff heating the room. We had a big box fan to keep a breeze going, but it was a bit loud. So I picked up a couple of 6” 2-speed fans at Wally World (Wal-Mart – about $7.00 US each). There is a regular base that is interchangeable with a clamp-on base so they can be clipped onto something close by. We have them clamped to the stool that the computer is setting on. They are much quieter than the box fan and it’s very refreshing to have constant breeze on you to say the least. Two cautions . . . . Don’t clamp them to your mic stand or the vibration will come through the PA . . . . Make sure they aren’t blowing on your microphone unless you have a windscreen.

Thanks for all your comments.

Hydroman52


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