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Post by Helmut83 on Aug 18, 2014 3:12:16 GMT
Hi guys! I wanted to share with you my modest cover (or version) of "Summer and Lightning". I didn't know how to upload it as a MP3 file so I did a small video so as to upload it to YouTube.
I want to make a side note about this cover not being pretentious at all and having being recorded just for fun with the little -and low quality- material I had at hand. All of the instruments were taken by a cheap Genius microphone, the typical one that has a shape of stick. I did the bass part with an acoustic guitar, I only had a 5W amplifier to take out the electric guitar and I played the keyboard/piano part on a toy mini keyboard with tiny keys which were almost impossible to hit and quite hard to press, so it was very hard to keep in tempo and in fact I went out of it badly, but the idea was to keep it spontaneous and not try 100 takes until it came out perfectly well.
Also, the only thing I respected from the original were the chords of the whole song and the melody of the first verse and bridge. Everything else is improvisation.
Feedback is welcome and criticism accepted.
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Post by Helmut83 on Aug 18, 2014 3:35:26 GMT
Yeah, I know, the first chord of the pre-chorus is an Em, not a G. I've just realized, haha, but it's the relative minor so it doesn't sound so different. Consider it my personal touch to the song  . |
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Post by livinthing on Aug 18, 2014 6:35:49 GMT
Very good. It makes it sound a completely different song. I like the pics too.
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Post by Horacewimp on Aug 18, 2014 7:25:45 GMT
That's really great Helmut.
I'm very envious, I wish I could play a musical instrument.
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Post by Buttler on Aug 18, 2014 10:28:32 GMT
Great job, my friend!  |
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Post by elophile on Aug 18, 2014 11:15:04 GMT
So nice! Love the "Joker" part!
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Post by queenofthehours on Aug 18, 2014 13:10:32 GMT
Very nice.
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Post by Helmut83 on Aug 18, 2014 15:31:02 GMT
Very good. It makes it sound a completely different song. Thanks! That's the fun part in my opinion, not trying to cover it exactly as it is but trying to add something of yours (even though there's always the risk of destroying it). That's really great Helmut. I'm very envious, I wish I could play a musical instrument. Thanks, Horace! Is it too late to start? If you are not over 80 I would highly recommend it. BTW, Buttler, when will we be enjoying your own cover of an ELO song?  |
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Post by jrmugz on Aug 18, 2014 17:25:58 GMT
Good soundin' instrumental cover, my friend. Gives me the peaceful easy feelin'! Nice touch with the harmonica.
Jim
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Post by BSJ on Aug 18, 2014 18:15:10 GMT
It came through that you has great fun making this. The harmonica playing is a favorite too.
Like H W, I don’t play an instrument and has envy. I’d muck up just hitting, one of Jeff’s fav’s, the cowbell!
Very nice. I like it!
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Post by Horacewimp on Aug 18, 2014 18:27:07 GMT
Very good. It makes it sound a completely different song. Thanks! That's the fun part in my opinion, not trying to cover it exactly as it is but trying to add something of yours (even though there's always the risk of destroying it). That's really great Helmut. I'm very envious, I wish I could play a musical instrument. Thanks, Horace! Is it too late to start? If you are not over 80 I would highly recommend it. BTW, Buttler, when will we be enjoying your own cover of an ELO song? I did play the violin at school Very badly  |
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Post by Helmut83 on Aug 18, 2014 20:53:03 GMT
jrmugz: Thanks, Jim, and thanks BSJ for your compliments. I'm glad that both of you noticed the harmonica. It's the first instrument I fell in love with and so it occupies a very special place in my preferences, and it's the instrument I like most playing when I go jamming with friends. And yes, BSJ, it's the first time I record a song and I had a lot of fun doing it. It's great when you have recorded several instruments and see how they start to sound all together. I can imagine how exciting it must be for a professional artist to record his own material in a studio.
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Post by unomusette on Aug 18, 2014 21:25:13 GMT
This is brill, thanks for sharing. It's not meant to be the kind of thing that comes out of a multi-million pound studio, its charm is in the improvisation and the interesting little extras like the harmonica. One of the bits I liked best was the sort of horsey clip-clopping towards the end. If Jeff were to hear this he'd be kicking himself he didn't put it into any of his songs. And whilst I was listening it seemed the beastie in your avatar was enjoying it too, double whammy with the video you posted  Any plans for more? |
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Post by Helmut83 on Aug 19, 2014 4:05:33 GMT
This is brill, thanks for sharing. It's not meant to be the kind of thing that comes out of a multi-million pound studio, its charm is in the improvisation and the interesting little extras like the harmonica. Exactly, that's the idea. It's almost like jamming with myself. Thank you very much for your opinion! One of the bits I liked best was the sort of horsey clip-clopping towards the end. If Jeff were to hear this he'd be kicking himself he didn't put it into any of his songs. Haha, how good that you noticed. I did that with two jam-blocks. Do you know them? Those plastic little boxes, one red and the other one blue. They are used a lot in latin music and in that bit I was trying to do kind of a cumbia rythm, altough I got a bit messed up. I'm sure Jeff will now want to include "S & L" in "Mr. Blue Sky volume 2" just to copy my horse galloping arrangement.  Not any plans for the moment, but I enjoyed a lot doing it so maybe. It would also be great to have other members of the forum do their own covers as well (there are a few that can play instruments). And yes, G'mork enjoys music. Sometimes he even sings along, although he does it in a whisper so that no one realizes because he has to keep his image of being an evil creature. |
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Post by unomusette on Aug 19, 2014 19:32:47 GMT
Aha, it was jam-blocks - I did wonder if it was a sort of muffled cowbell. I was unaware of the existence of jam-blocks before but now I shall try to shoehorn them into more of my conversations to impress people. They do say you learn something every day and today this is mine.
Once you'd pointed out that G'mork might have been singing along, there is a moment where he seems to be mouthing "Summer and Lightning", just after his massive roary bit. He is awesome. And evil of course, very evil, but with an appreciation of great music.
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, but we're OK. 
Apparently it's quite hard to see them with the naked eye, you need to be looking through a camera or other type of lens?