the David Motel
Lost (NYF): I’ve been thinking about recording this song for a while. Kyle and I even started it for another EP, but we haven’t finished it yet. This version will probably be included when we knock out the mixing of the other 4 songs. I play a little banjo here. I also got a new Fender Jazz bass for my birthday, and I played that here as well. So without further delay..
Doing Time In A Rented Room (Again) - Artwork (Large)
It looks like a big industrial tumbleweed. Kinda fitting for a song about traveling and calling your temporary home a hotel in a business-park!
By Jeremy Johnson.
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Doing Time in a Rented Room (Again)Last Chance Dave
David Motel Demos
Doing Time In A Rented Room (Again): This is a song that I wrote and brought to my other writing/recording project with Chris Keegan - The Star Beast. We’ve been pretty slow to complete some pretty darn good songs but we did discuss scaling it back and re-recording several of the tracks. I guess talking about this the other night over a beer made me want to record this rough acoustic version.
I wrote this during my last week of travel after two straight years of 90% travel for work. I couldn’t go to bed because the first line of the song and the melody were taunting me. So I grabbed my Martin Backpacker and played into the wee hours of the morning in my Houston hotel room. Expect to hear a much more visceral version of this from The Star Beast in the future!
Live @ Mad Donna’s: I played last night with several other great ‘songsters’. A really good turnout for the show made all the difference! I especially want to thank Cecil for keeping this night going and the other musicians (Mike, Jesse, Cecil and Jay) for sharing the stage.
Mike wins the award for Best Performance By A Musician Rocking Business Casual. I also have video of one my songs - I’ll try to post soon. Anyway, good times! See ya’ next time I’m out and about.
Green Eyes: This is a pretty old demo that I decided to dust off. I haven’t been recording too much with my work schedule and other extracurriculars, but that is going to change soon. I have somewhere near 30 half-baked song ideas roughly recorded on my iPhone. I was going through them recently and decided I should take a stab at fleshing a few out for my next set of demos. I also have several other songs like Green Eyes that were started by myself and Kyle before he moved to London that will (realistically) never see the light of day, so I’ll post them sporadically. Enjoy!
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UntitledLast Chance Dave
The Word & Music Project (Vol. 4)
Untitled: Week 4 is in the bag. I struggled with a few false starts, one of which I even got partly recorded, before moving onto this tune. It’s a little mellow but the layers build on each other nicely over each section. I did realize after a few listens this song doesn’t even have a chorus, but hey those can be overrated, right? Again - go to The Word & Music Project site to hear all the songs this week!
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Ballad of the Weary MessengerLast Chance Dave
The Word & Music Project (Vol. 3)
Ballad of the Weary Messenger: Week 3 came and went pretty fast. Our word of the week was ‘Envelope’ and I had about 3 1/2 days to work it all out and get it recorded. I went stripped down as a result. Just one guitar, harmonica, and a backing vocal track. It’s a little later than I would have posted this earlier, since the Week 4 deadline is a few hours away, but upon a recent listen I like the stark, sad vibe I was able to create. Anyway go to The Word & Music Project to hear all the submissions!
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Hanna BallLast Chance Dave
The Word & Music Project (Vol. 2)
Hanna Ball: Behold! My sonic creation from Week 2 of The Word & Music Project. Our word this week was ‘skin.’ I struggled at first but on my commute home a really silly line entered my head and I couldn’t get rid of it. I would have normally brushed the idea aside but as soon as I got home and picked up my guitar the line and my first few strums met in harmony and I had to just go with it. I really want to try and distinguish each song from week to week as much as possible so this worked to that regard as well. Please go and listen to the rest of the songs for this week here. This was a very good week and the tracks by Chris Keegan, Andy Venutto, David Lotti, and John Tulley are pretty fantastic. Also, that sweet art was done by John Hooten! Onward to Week 3…
Darrell Scott, Franklin Theater August 13, 2011:
This is the most recent show I attended based on the recommendation of my friend, Mike. I didn’t do any prep listening so I wasn’t sure what to expect other than what Mike had told me. I was very impressed. This guy is fantastic! The venue was great and he performed along side a quintet. The arrangements were nicely done and suited the songs perfectly. I am definitely going to give his albums a spin, too. He also did one thing better than any performer I’ve seen in a long time. He didn’t leave the stage and do the lame encore thing. He just said, “This is our last song…but it’s not.” And continued to play. Loved that! The encore is so overdone and a joke these days. Just play your music!!! Anyway that part might have been the highlight of the evening….
The Decemberists with Caitlyn Rose, Ryman Auditorium August 6, 2011:
I’ve seen these guys 5 times now. I definitely like them in the smaller venue as opposed to the festival. The have much better interaction with the crowd. Colin Meloy definitely likes to have the crowd do it ‘his way’. By that I mean stand up, sit down, and 2-step. But other than him acting like a condescending puppet master between songs the set was extremely well done! Probably the 2nd best performance I’ve seen.
Caitlyn Rose was impressive. She had an eager yet timidness that was very endearing. You could tell she was excited and very nervous to be on the Ryman stage. It felt like I was watching her dream come true. Overall, this was another nice evening in the pews.
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Guide Me HomeLast Chance Dave
The Word & Music Project (Vol. 1)
Guide Me Home: This is the new song I just wrote this past week. I’m lucky to be participating with 4 other very talented musicians in a 5-week writing exercise. The basic premise is this: using one word you have to write and record a song using that word as the catalyst. You must also use the word in the song (not just in the title). The first word of the week was ‘Long’. Go to The Word & Music Project band camp site to hear all the songs. Very, very stellar tunes!
So I definitely enjoyed my first week. I think this track has a pretty simple, sad theme and melody. I liked the word as inspiration but struggled to get it into the song and make sense. I guess I succeeded in the end. Hope you enjoy.
I played the Commodore open mic last night. I had a great time and played with 3 other very talented singer-songwriters. I’ll be booking something there in the not too distant future. Keep your calendars clear just in case!
