Sit down with me and take a little ride as I knock out a cover of Justin Timberlake’s “Not A Bad Thing” with my Taylor Guitar. Like many people I found out about the song last week when it popped up at #10 on the iTunes chart – when I looked at the chart. It’s actually the first time I had glanced at the chart in a while and I was surprised to see some of the songs in the list. Because of this surprise, I’ve decided that I need to check out the chart each Tuesday so I can stay on top of the changing landscape of the music world. Seeing Justin’s name pop up made me think “Hey, I need to hear that.” I took an instant liking to it. So much so that I grabbed my guitar and started working out the chords.
Later that night I video chatted with my buddy Chris Hellstrom to provide a little sounding board as to how I should approach arranging the song (which is a complex pop arrangement with lots of little parts mind you). Chris made the suggestion that I ought to work it out in an alternate tuning. Thus if your wondering why I don’t look like I’m playing the changes of Gmaj, Emin, Dmaj/F# you now know why. The tuning is an open G tuning (D G D G B D) which actually allows for playing the right inversion voicing of the song’s chords and gives the guitar riff a neat, easy way to play it in the bass register.
I recorded the vocals with a Telefunken C12 and ran the Taylor Guitar 615ce direct into Logic X. I used the Izotope Nectar 2 plugin on the vocal to give it a nice shine. Then blended the direct guitar in with the sound of the acoustic as it leaked into the vocal mic.
If you’d like the Tabs of what I’m playing. Contact me on twitter and I’ll tell ya how you can get it.
Not A Bad Thing
Justin Timberlake
Said all I want from you
Is to see you tomorrow
And every tomorrow
Maybe you’ll let me borrow, your heart
And is it too much to ask for every Sunday?
An while we’re at it throw in every other day to start
I know people make promises all the time
Then they turn right around and break them
When someone cuts your heart open with a knife and you’re bleeding
But I could be that guy to heal it over time
And I won’t stop until you believe it
‘Cause baby you’re worth it
So don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me
Cause you might fuck around and find your dreams come true with me
Spend all your time and your money just to find out that my love was free
So don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me, me
It’s not a bad thing to fall in love with me, me
Now how about I be the last voice you hear tonight?
And every other night for the rest of the nights that there are
And every morning I just wanna see you staring back at me
‘Cause I know that’s a good place to start
I know people make promises all the time
Then they turn right around and break them
Then someone cuts your heart open with a knife
Now you’re bleeding
Don’t you know that I could be that guy to heal it over time
And I won’t stop until you believe it
Cause baby you’re worth it
So don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me
Cause you might fuck around and find your dreams come true with me
Spend all your time and your money just find out my love was free
So don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me, me
It’s not a bad thing to fall in love with me, me
Not such a bad thing to fall in love with me
No I won’t fill your mind with broken promises
And wasted time
And if you fall
You’ll always land right in these arms
These arms of mine
Don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me
Cause you might fuck around and find your dreams come true with me
Spend all your time and your money just to find out that my love was free
So don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me, me
It’s not a bad thing to fall in love with me, me
Not such a bad thing to fall in love with me
Enjoy and please share it around!
Timber is the word I need to be yelling as I’m finally getting my head around Twitter in a positive way that is building momentum. I’m starting to play around a bit with their video service known as Vine. As part of my New Years vows I told myself that I’d start to take more pictures on Instagram and do more videos on YouTube and start up with more Vines. So far, most of that is going well. Though I’m still working on the Vine thing and getting up to speed with creating more of them. Below is my first 6SecondCover. I recently heard this song a couple of weeks ago and really dug the hook, the flow ain’t bad either.
Timber
“It’s going down. I’m yelling Timber. You better move. You better dance.”
It was pretty fun knocking that out. In the process that took a few minutes due to my voice being nutty early in the morning. I think some ‘viral’ Vines were missed with me hacking up some phlegm. Dang it.
Thanks Pitbull & Ke$sha for a fun tune.
Golden Slumbers are needed because it’s been a busy week where I’ve been doing a score to a new video game in an effort to get a gig doing the full score for the whole game. Also finishing up the tracking and mix on a single for moi as I delve into the production of the next single to come after that. So what do I do as a means for looking back at a song? I pick Ben Folds doing a fantastic rendition of the Beatles Golden Slumbers. This particular cut appears on the I Am Sam soundtrack. Maybe I shouldn’t be capitalizing the title of the movie, being that they didn’t. Ah who knows.
Part of the reason that I’m examining this cover is that I’m exploring doing more covers of tunes that I like. All in the name of posting them on YouTube. I’ve never been one to do a lot of covers, but hey we’re capable of change. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Ben Folds at a small club early on in their career down in southern California. It was crazy because I had no clue who they were. Then a few years later I was able to catch Ben perform a show at the Wiltern. Amazing performer. Strictly from the standpoint that it seems like he’s always off the cuff. It’s like he loves to wing it rather than be note perfect. This certainly can create a wild ride if the artist is able to pull it off and Ben can. In Golden Slumbers he’s a bit more reserved and touching. Do you dig?
Golden Slumbers by Ben Folds
Once there was a way,
To get back homeward.
Once there was a way
To get back home.
Sleep, pretty darling,
Dot not cry
And I will sing a lullaby.
Golden slumbers,
Fill your eyes
Smiles await you when you rise
Sleep pretty darling
Do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby.
Once there was a way
To get back homeward
Once there was a way
To get back home
Sleep, pretty darling
Do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby.
Enjoy your day!
A little while ago on Twitter I put it out there asking Tweeps what song they’d like to see me do a cover of. One of the requests that came in was for Tool’s Sober. I thought – hey, that’s an interesting one if I do it with acoustic guitars and a single vocal. I found some time to put a day aside to learn the song, come up with a couple of guitar parts that would work acoustically. I recorded it. Sang it. I put it down for a couple of weeks as I was busy shooting video and recording some of my tunes. A few days ago while taking a little vacation to visit my sister, I spent a couple of hours shooting some video for the cover song. I give you:
Sober
There’s a shadow just behind me,
Shrouding every step I take,
Making every promise empty,
Pointing every finger at me.
Waiting like a stalking butler
Who upon the finger rests.
Murder now the path of “must we”
Just because the son has come.
Jesus, won’t you fucking whistle
Something but the past is done?
Jesus, won’t you fucking whistle
Something but the past is done?
Why can’t we not be sober?
I just want to start this over.
Why can’t we drink forever.
I just want to start this over.
I am just a worthless liar.
I am just an imbecile.
I will only complicate you.
Trust in me and fall as well.
I will find a center in you.
I will chew it up and leave,
I will work to elevate you
Just enough to bring you down.
Mother Mary won’t you whisper
Something but the past is done.
Mother Mary won’t you whisper
Something but the past is done.
Why can’t we not be sober?
Just want to start this over.
Why can’t we sleep forever.
I just want to start this over.
I am just a worthless liar.
I am just an imbecile.
I will only complicate you.
Trust in me and fall as well.
I will find a center in you.
I will chew it up and leave,
Trust me [x5]
Why can’t we not be sober?
Just want to start things over.
Why can’t we sleep forever.
I just want to start this over.
I want what I want [x4]
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Thanks!