How I Did It
Crooked Mileby Admiral Bob
Uses samples from:
Samples are used in:
Tools I Used
Reaper, a BOSS drum machine, Ambience reverb, Cockos Reaverbate, my piano, a pink paisley Fender Stratocaster, and a p-bass
Samples I Used
Lisa DeBenedictis' vocal from "Crooked Mile."
Original Samples
a rhythm and lead guitar part, an acoustic piano part, an electric piano part, a bass line, and the drums.
Process
I originally planned to use the piano part Lisa did, but I couldn't quite figure out the underlying chords, and there were some slight tempo issues. So I started by playing something something that sounded like it on the piano. Then I added the drum machine part, adding fills, shakers, and cymbals by hand with the push buttons.... doing this to dynamically build the underlying groove. I added the rhythm guitar, trying to go for the clean, straight, and tight sound that Nile Rodgers contributed to David Bowie's "Let's Dance." Next I added the bass, and I'd painted myself into a corner with the rhythm guitar: trying to match it on the bass gave the whole piece clunkiness. So I hit on the idea of a simple slapping line on the 1, and what do you know, it sounded even more like "Let's Dance!"
So I knew what I had to do for the last part. To get an SRV-like sound I did not plug into an amplifier. I played totally clean into the computer. The effects chain is --> Simulanalog Tube screamer --> Simulanalog Rednef Twin --> Cockos Reaverbate --> Ambience Reverb. The Cockos reaverbate works as a kind of stereo spreader, and I threw an extra reverb on it to give it a hall sound to match Lisa's voice, which I mixed up and carefully kept prominent - despite everything I added, the vocal is and remains the most critical element of the song.
Other Notes
I like it. The guitar adds a slightly assertive note that somehow fits with the lilting vocal without overpowering it. I am proud of that, mostly because it was hard to do. :)
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