Some could argue that the downfall of John Lennon came when he met Yoko Ono. After the releases of ?Two Virgins? and ?Life With Lions,? the somewhat controversial and humour enticing albums, (both within a year of each other), the future career of Lennon seemed lacking in all the speciality of The Beatles. Even Lennon was seen to be doubtful in his departure from the band. He married Yoko on the 20th of March 1969 which was then followed by the infamous 8 day peace protest in bed as their honeymoon. The Plastic Ono Band album was released almost immediately after The Beatles split officially in May 1970, yet the final ?Let It Be,? The Beatles swansong wasn?t released until after this date.

Moving to New York in September 1971, he released the album, ?Imagine? only a month later after his departure from England. It wasn?t long until immigration almost successfully got him packing his bags and heading home. Splitting from Yoko for about a year later, he went out on several heavy drinking sessions with old friend and known alcoholic, Harry Nilsoon. Together they recorded the album, ?Pussy Cats?, sadly I can?t find a listing for this anywhere as a chart entry here or over there. Eventually allowed his green card after Sean was born, he retreated from the music industry to be alone with his new family. Putting the lid down on his piano and closing the guitar case, he seemed to have found his perfect home. On the brink of a come back with the signing of a music contract, the future seemed bright for the Lennon family until the fatal meeting with Mark Chapman where he shot Lennon out side his home on the 8th of December 1980.

We take a look at one of the compilations that has graced our record shops since his death. It would appear that on every anniversary of birth or death, an album has followed featuring his best known music from his solo career. This is one of them?

?Imagine there?s no Heaven, its easy if you try..? First released in November 1975, it went straight to number one. Again issued in December 1988 and then again in December 1999, in total, it sold over a million copies, but still, the simplicity of this track was always destined to be one of the great anthems in human history whether he was still with us or not. The hands make very little movement across the keys and with a video piece in just the same vein, they are as uniquely powerful as each other. The essentialism is within the opening piano chords. Lennon was not the greatest singer, in fact, straining his poor voice in early Beatle recordings was not unusual. (The song, ?Twist And Shout,? always had to be left until the end of a show due to the anxiety it would have on his vocal chords.) He was primarily a poet, a collector or words, creating images for the heart and for the soul of his listeners. As Dylan as his constant musical guide in his head, Lennon was, it could be said, imitating the legendary folk singer, but naturally what shone through and essentially what we connected to was the person who enlightened us from within John. Love or loathe The Beatles, one cane listen to ?Imagine? and feel something. Whether it is thoughts for our own families and children or the world as a whole, this song is very much affective and will remain so for generations to come. The tragedy of this heart dominating piece of humanitarism, is that the song is forever remembered, but the words have long been forgotten?

?Instant Karma? is the second track on this compilation album. It has to be said that one is struck by the extent of the love that John shared with Yoko, not just for each other but for their dedication to the projects that they had together. Flicking through the sleeve, we notice that the simple black and white photography is relaxed and we feel welcomed into their world. The twenty tracks are performed by John but mostly by The Plastic Ono Band which on many occasions incorporated some well respected musicians including Klaus Voorman (the German friend from the days of Hamburg who designed the Revolver album for The Beatles) and Eric Clapton. One is also struck by not just the political strengths of this man but his diversity within his music. We shift from grief stricken soul to folk, pop and rock and roll, Lennon?s first being the latter. It was released February 1970, reaching number 5.

This track, I wonder is probably more autobiographical than a political statement. The extent of this track musically throws out to its audience the same crowd-filling-a -room feeling as ?Give Peace A Chance.? A lot of hand clapping and a cast of thousands fill our ears. These tracks are primitive in their recordings in following the Ono/Lennon theme of musicians jamming a song rather than playing it in a studio situation. A mumbled counting in at the intro gives the full feeling of a song almost made up as they went along. I felt, lyrically, it was a personal dig at his shallowed emotion from being the star of The Beatles. One gets the impression that Lennon, after leaving the band, spent the rest of his life reflecting and analysing his former existence.

?Mother,? is very definitely a self therapy track that was actually spawned by some sessions with a certain Dr Janov. It is crucially a very personal track and once the words have been digested by the listener, it feels as thought we are encroaching on something so intensely intimate that its is like extreme intrusion. The opening line may bring a lump to the throat; ?..mother, you had me, but I never had you? I wanted you but you didn?t want me?? is an incredibly disturbing statement for a child to make to its mother. Another line is???father you left me, but I never left you?? If we knew a small fraction of Lennon?s upbringing, we would know that he was abandoned by his father, whom in twenty years of John?s life, he only saw him twice. Also brought up by his mother?s sister, Mimi, so with this information in hand, it is a painful ballad about one?s parents to bear, even from the voice of a grown man. Released in December 1970, it failed to enter a chart.

Another self analysis mark of Lennon?s life is portrayed in the beautifully gentle, ?Jealous Guy.? Whilst hitting the bottle in a suicidal fashion at the temporary break from Ono, this simply tuned song offers a touching and affectionate plea for his lost one. For a man to open up his inner most feelings surely is a mark of dignity and strength. We see the sensitive side of Lennon, a side not seen whilst a foul mouthed, bad tempered Beatle. In this violin complemented ballad, we can surely be thankful for the presence of Yoko in his life. If not, he would never have penned such poetry. Released in November 1985, but failed to get any higher than number 65..

?Power to The People,? is back to the chanting, peace seeking days of the strong Lennon/Ono union. Again, a marching demonstration song easily shouted from the roof tops in great chorus. Yet with its anti war themes of such poignancy, I can only think of Citizen Smith shouting from outside Tooting tube station?Unlike Smith, Lennon found himself on many occasions being labelled as part of America?s radical left. Released as a single in March 1971, it managed a fairly decent number 7.

?Cold Turkey,? may have had all the signs of a drug addiction track but it was actually directed at the governments from both side of the pond. At the release of this track, it was at the same time as Lennon handing back his M.B.E to the Queen. Naturally, the timing for Lennon was appalling and the single flopped. A fairly mediocre rock track by John?s standards, it does not help with the cries and wails of his voice towards the end. Deeply analytical and self opposed, it denotes a less than happy time in his life. Released in November 1969, it reached a weak number 14, despite its surrounding situations.

?Love,? is again a personal reflection on the love in his life and the love lost from his parents. He describes ?love is wanting o be loved..? I feel with these tracks that it is Lennon?s attempt to quite openly bare his soul. We, the majority, only accept the musical quality of the sturdy piano and ever so soft acoustic guitar. Perhaps it is because we don?t know how to deal with someone else?s instantly personal feelings? Released November 1982, it reached only number 41.

?Mind Games,? is a whining track that may get on one?s nerves after too many listens. I do believe that John took his music too far sometimes in the respect of his introverted perspective view on the world. Being so disillusioned with the leading heads of state from both sides, he became withdrawn in his ideas, far beyond anyone?s comprehension, these were strange, avant garde pieces for his own personal benefit. Lennon totally looses himself in the immensely droning and brain washing theme of this song. I do believe he forgets, that there are people, in the future, out there who will be listening to this?A fairly awful song, it was surprisingly released as a single in November 1973 and got an average number 26.

?Whatever Gets You Through The Night,? is a jolly, happy clappy song that takes on a sudden change of theme from the rest of the album. It says, ?hey, forget everything I just said, its okay, whatever you fancy, gets you going, floats your boat, just do it..? Gone briefly are the overly emotional, 3-in-the-morning analysis of the plight of the world. We are awoken to this disco/party track to jump up and down and forget about life?s troubles?.. I?m all for that? Released in October 1974, only to struggle to number 36.

?#9 Dream? is what the title suggests. A dream state created by the distorted, drifting vocals of Lennon with slight Sgt. Pepper instruments. Floating violins, whispers and taps on tambourines have us swimming down a slow moving stream in the afternoon sun. Again, a track that probably held a deeper meaning for Lennon and Ono rather than the listener, who thought, ?hey, this is cool..? Its tracks like these that were wasted on us public.. Released in February 1975, it managed number 23.

?Stand By Me..? id the only track on this extensive album that is not written by Lennon. A classic track written for Ben. E. King by the ever legendary songwriters, King, Leiber and Stoller; the men who were responsible for some of the greatest rock and roll songs ever recorded. Lennon?s love for rock and roll was widely known. He later blamed Elvis for seducing him into creating his own band.. This was not a well liked cover but it still stands well with Lennon?s own backing track and vocal range. Although not his song, he had the ability to take such a song and create it as his own. Adding a croaky vocal and heavier guitars allowed him to do this.. Released May 1975, it failed to get any higher than number 30.

?(Just Like) Starting Over? was the ironic record which shot to number one a month after his death in 1980. A quivering rock and roll moment and somewhat retro aiming at the Teddy Bear re run moving through the younger set of the day. It?s popularity stemmed from Lennon?s untimely death. The ?starting over? theme personally related to his life re born with Yoko and Sean, their son. It was some what a macabre anthem in the feeling of life after death and the strengths his record selling abilities after his passing.

?Woman,? finds us soothing over with the gentleness and humbly inspiring themes of his obvious relationship with Yoko and some may say, the respect he had for his mother whom he had loved with equal tenderness. It is a sensitive tribute to any woman from a man feeling failed in his adoration for her. An emotional piece with just as much feeling musically as in the lyrics? Released January 1981, shot to number one.

?Beautiful Boy,? has the same tenderness as the previous track but now, more focused on the birth of Sean. Much a piece picked on by the media, they highlighted the pushed-aside Julian who had been almost rejected in his earlier life by his father, Lennon, and had been the subject of ?Hey Jude,? by McCartney. This had been written several years before as an arm around the shoulder comforter to Julian after the break up of Lennon?s first marriage to his mother, Sylvia. ?Beautiful Boy,? features the lyric, ? life is what happens to you while you busy making other plans..? A sweet song completed with the tinkling tune denoting a children?s music box in this swaying nursery lullaby. Never released as a single.

?Watching The Wheels,? follows and the nest four tracks take the tempo up a little. This song is particular lifting musically, but yet, still very middle of the road by today? standards. Even though the subject remains with its element of struggle in life and the man coming to terms with his own complicated mind, his mood seems more optimistic and on an even keel. His mood always was heavily reflected in his music. Like many of us waking up knowing we?re going to have a bad day, I guess Lennon felt much the same thing musically? Released April 1981, reaching number 30.

?Nobody Told Me,? is one of my favourite Lennon tracks from his solo career. Yet again, it is a stab at the human race but somehow tongue n cheek. A song for a day that isn?t going so well, a song that I have in my head most days! There is a great deal of electric guitar playing a looped riff on a melodic theme and percussion that lifts the track to a foot tapping, skipping down the road effect from a happier Lennon. Released January 1984, to a fairly impressive number 6.

?Borrowed Time,? is a little on the new wave, Ziggy theme with its abstract Level 42 riff and its fading in and out lyrics. I wonder if this may have been the way forward for him, if he had still been alive. Its fundamental basis is a calypso style for a summer?s day on a Jamaican beach. Lennon delights us in his won vocal percussion. An unusual turn for the rock and roll head strong artist and a refreshing approach for the listener. It prides us into an understanding that Lennon could lift our spirits with open and future forward thinking themes as well as the gut wrenching ballads that have us reaching for razor blades. Lennon enjoyed all music and could adjust his uniqueness to even such foreign and unravelled paths of sounds such as calypso? I just wish I could roll my ?R?s? like he could? Released March 1984, only to number 32.

?Working Class Hero,? will have us throwing away our bongos and reaching for that bathroom cabinet door. This was the titled that labelled Lennon from his death and beyond. In this track, he reaches out to another hero of his, Bob Dylan. With acoustic guitar and minus a harmonica, he extends his talents to hard minded folk music. He falls to the very depths of personal humanity lyrically and the very struggle faced by millions just to go and earn a crust. A cold, truthful legacy to the working class, which is all of us?It was the B side to ?Imagine? in 1975.

?Happy Xmas (War Is Over,) was admittedly, his greatest anti war, anti government chant which only became famously known after his death. Unfortunately, it took seven shots in his chest to make us sit up and listen. The one disadvantage of this track is that we can hear Yoko singing, of course, she couldn?t sing a note, so for this, it is amusing. The other down side is a personal one and it reminds me of Christmases of years ago with the family. With all the spangle and droopy tinsel of all that is festive, it will always be tinged with the tragedy of Lennon?s death. It is a song that will may the listener feel humble and sorrowful for perhaps not appreciating the man when he was still alive. On any account, I do find this song very depressing. Released in December 1972 to number 2 then again in December 2003 but only reaching number 33.

Our last track is ?Give Peace A Chance? and we have gone full circle in his career within this album. Released as a single in July 1969 and recorded at the famous ?bed in? with all sorts of hangers on, musicians, drop outs, press and intellectuals, one can almost smell the mustiness of the unwashed bedclothes and the sweatiness of the enormous crowd huddled into the small hotel room. Don a bed sheet and a guitar and invite a few hundred of your closest acquaintances round for a chanting session. You?ll find this track enlightening, spirit lifting, soul soaring and it will make you want to sway with arms and legs and sing to the top of your voice. The words are simple and effortless and very much Lennon?s finest moment. In my mind, he could have started and finished his career with the very release of this record and this one only. The rest of the songs could all have been recorded but perhaps left to one side for his own personal therapy and reflection. I believe the real tragedy was not the fatal introduction of Mark Chapman, but his career, his music and his thoughtful words, wasted on the shallow human race?

Violent and troubled in his youth, he found self assurance and peace in age. His power was sometimes immeasurable. During the 8 day bed in, he and Ono had boards erected across the world in 12 cities campaigning against the Vietnam war.

On the 28th of November 1974, he made his final public appearance in concert at Madison Square Garden.

All songs written by John Lennon (except Stand By Me by Leiber/Stoller/King. EMI Records Abbey Road. Bought in HMV for nine pounds.

?michelle duffy 2006. Ciao and dooyoo (sam1942) 2006

Michelle is a freelance writer in the South of England and owner of the websites, http://www.generationsounds.co.uk, http://nevermindthebloggers.bravehost.com and their successful sister, ?Never Mind The Bloggers? at http://paperback-writer29.tripod.com She has been writing over the last year, for five major consumer websites across the world and is one of the only two music category advisors for one website in the U.K. Her websites promote young, amateur and professional bands/artists and their fan clubs whilst also reviewing them for local and world wide promotion. She has also recently launched the blogs; ‘The Ramblings Of An Old Rocker,’ ‘Bohemian Waffle,’ ?The Rhythm Rock And Blues Machine? and ?The Moped?s Musings? and ?Generation Sound Suite.? She is currently working on two shops selling her music styled artwork and now sells on Ebay.

#1 – Michael Jackson – Thriller (1983)
Copies Sold: 54 Million –
On a worldwide level, Thriller is considered by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) to be the best selling album of all-time, with over fifty-four million copies sold and multiple number one hits.

#2 – AC/DC – Back In Black (1980)
Copies Sold: 42 Million –
After Bon Scott’s death, it was questionable whether AC/DC could reach previous levels of success, but with the song writing started while Bon was still alive, and Brian Johnson taking over the mic, AC/DC were indeed Back in Black.

#3 – The Eagles – Greatest Hits 1971-75 (1976)
Copies Sold: 41 Million –
Released in 1976, it was the first album to receive platinum status, and to date is the best selling album of all-time in the United States at almost thirty million copies, and worldwide has achieved over forty million in sales.

#4 – Soundtrack – Saturday Night Fever (1978)
Copies Sold: 40 Million –
The number one best-selling soundtrack of all-time, primarily recorded by the Bee Gees, was equally helped by the enormous popularity of the movie starring John Travolta. For a moment the disco era was mainstream.

#5 – Soundtrack – The Bodyguard (1992)
Copies Sold: 37 Million –
One of the most successful films in history also produced one of the most successful soundtracks worldwide. Whitney Houston’s cover of Dolly Parton’s I Will Always Love You helped bring the album to number five all-time.

#6 – Meat Loaf – Bat Out Of Hell (1978)
Copies Sold: 37 Million –
After every record label refused to pick up the album, Cleveland International Records decided to take a chance. After an appearance on Saturday Night Live, the album started to receive huge fanfare worldwide.

#7 – Pink Floyd – The Dark Side Of The Moon (1973)
Copies Sold: 35 Million –
Though this post Syd Barrett conceptual album focusing on the human experience stayed at number one for only one week on The Billboard 200, it stayed on this chart for a record fourteen consecutive years until 1988.

#8 – Shania Twain – Come On Over (1997)
Copies Sold: 35 Million –
This is the biggest selling album by a female solo artist, and is due to the successful team collaboration of the highly talented Shania and her husband, producer/writer Robert Mutt Lange, the producer for AC/DC’s Back in Black (see above).

#9 – The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
Copies Sold: 32 Million –
Considered the most influential rock album by many, this ground-breaker came at the end of the Beatlemania craze. The Beatles were no longer touring, but instead broadening their musical talents, injecting new sounds and recording styles into their music.

#10 – Soundtrack – Dirty Dancing (1987)
Copies Sold: 32 Million –
The best-selling soundtrack for the movie included many hit singles such as Hungry Eyes as sung by Eric Carmen, and an Academy Award for Best Original Song for (I’ve Had) The Time of My Life, sung by the duet of Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes.

About the Author:

Austin Culley is recreational writer of various articles including top ten reviews.

It?s a typical situation. You?ve been putting a lot of energy in your craft and people are starting to talk about your band. You?ve played a few shows and everyone is asking for a CD. I used to think that in order to release your own CD you would go out and play a bunch of shows and then someone would come out and sign you. They?d take care of everything. They?d set up the recording studio, organize the artwork, and pay for it to get manufactured. That?s not the case these days.

At present, technology is readily available for any budding musician to record, create, and duplicate CDs. CD duplication involves CD-R media. CD-R prices have dropped dramatically since the first CD Recorders were available on the consumer market. This makes it an affordable option for anyone who wants to copy their own CDs and pass them on to friends, family, or fans. This is a great option for the young band that is still getting their feet wet in the music industry. Duplicating a limited amount of CDs can keep a limited budget in place.

If your band is at the point were your ready to start selling your CD your best option is to make a retail-ready CD and having it replicated. What is a retail ready CD? These are the same CDs you find in the music stores by the major label artists. They have great artwork printed on CD inserts, a nice tray card insert, silk screened art on the CD, and they are shrink-wrapped.

The retail-ready CDs are not duplicated, but Replicated. This means that an exact replica of your CD master has been stamped out on all of the CDs. CD Replication is the way to go if you are serious about selling your music for profit. In fact most music stores will not sell duplicated CDs. Think about it this way. It is illegal to sell or profit from duplicating copy written material. If you tried to sell CDs that have been duplicated to a retail store you?ll more than likely get turned down. How are they to know that it is really your band? One of the best anti-piracy practices that CD manufacturing plants have instituted is the verification of copyright and ownership through a International Property Rights Form. Filling out an I.P.R. form ensures the CD Replication plant that they are not infringing on anyone?s copyright.

CD Replication not only shows that you value your art enough to have it made retail-ready, but also cost effective. I?ll break it down in general.

DIY CD Duplication

Total $1495.00

Typical CD Replication Package

Total $1000.00

These prices are very approximate and are only used for the purpose of estimating the difference between CD Duplication and CD Replication. Lets dig in a little bit. I?ve already illustrated some of the benefits of CD Duplication and the benefits of CD Replication. You can see above that you are spending approximately $500 more taking on the CD duplication responsibilities yourself and only getting 100 CDs!! Having your CDs Replicated costs less and someone else is doing the work. You can spend the time you?d spend on CD duplication and practice your chops or promote your upcoming CD release party, saving yourself $500 that you can use for items like merchandising, t-shirts, stickers, and posters.

Whether you choose CD Replication or CD Duplication, you?ll need to do some research. There are plenty of resources available for CD Duplication and you probably own everything you need. It is up to you and your band to decide which option is better depending on what level you see your band on. Are you a band that plays parties or small clubs, or is your band seasoned and touring? There are benefits to both. Find a local CD manufacturer in your area and ask for their recommendation. Most CD manufacturers also offer quick turn high quality CD Duplication with printing on the CDs. Keep rockin?!

Blake Stoffregen writes for many websites including Crystal Clear Sound CD & DVD Replication. Crystal Clear Sound provides cd, cdr and dvd duplication and replication services and offers packages from disc only to retail ready.

Back in the old days (around ‘Nam) recording at home was a new miracle. You could actually hit record on a device and capture sound in your own home. Your eyes would light up just like Thomas Edison did when he first invented audio recording. Fast forward to 2005. It’s now completely affordable to outfit a fully functional recording rig in your home for the price of a high quality, American made guitar. While the price of getting into home recording is much cheaper than it has ever been before, it’s still a lot of money. Is setting up a small studio worth the price? What are the pitfalls of trying to record yourself? Would you be better off just paying a professional recording studio to do the job for you? Hopefully, I’ll answer these questions and more.

What It Takes

You are going to need a lot of knowledge, gear, time, and patience before jumping into the recording studio world. I was a computer nerd half done with a degree in electronics when I jumped into the recording world. I understood electronic basics and had run live sound numerous times. I totally understood how to operate a mixer/console. So all I had to do was jump into the recording portion, right? ….Well, it turned out that there was quite a learning curve to go from an empty room to the creative process (which is the fun part) and walk out with a finished cd in hand.

I had no idea how much time I would spend cursing Windows audio drivers, failed hard drives, out of sync audio files, clicks and pops, unwanted distortion, etc. Truth be told, I went from an average computer user to a computer master in that couple of monthes it took me to work out all the kinks in my system. That’s right. It took me a few monthes before I was ready to record my first band. It was that tough. That was in 2001. Maybe things are easier now. I’m guessing that you’ll still have quite a road in front of you.

After you get your rig fully operational, you are still going to have to learn the software. I would HIGHLY recommend that you buy a DVD and a book to teach you the software that you intend to use. I could have saved myself hundreds of hours of headaches if I would have just read the stupid manual and had a little instruction. I learned a lot by tinkering (which may be your nature too) but there is no point in learning things the hard way if you don’t have to. On my very first recording session, I had my manual in my lap. You could only imagine how stressful it can be if you have 5 guys staring at you while you desperately push buttons on something you barely understand. I’d say it took me a good 3 monthes of everyday tinkering before I felt comfortable using the software for basic recording. Keep in mind that I wasn’t trying anything advanced here. No crazy editing, no fancy automation. In fact, I had very little understanding of audio when it came down to early reflections and multi-tap delays. I’m talking about just getting the stupid song onto the computer.

Okay, so I’ve kind of prepped you on how the learning curve required for recording music. Let’s talk about the gear.

These days, it’s a waste of time to use the stand alone recorders you see in the mail order company catalogs. While these boxes promise to have everything you need to record your demo (and they usually do) the learning curve requirements are astounding. Yes, I just wrote an entire section on how tough it was to learn computer recording. However, there is a big difference between the learning curve of computer audio and the learning curve of stand alone recorders. When you learn computer knowledge, that knowledge is useful on just about every computer on the planet. (I’ve kept myself from starving a number of times with my computer knowledge which I mostly attribute to recording). Also, computer recording software generally uses a mixer that is a fairly close simulation of the real thing. The concepts stay the same. When you are using the stand alone recorders, you end up learning to hold E1 Function Menu to get to Aux send page. Why do you need a page for aux send? Anyway, I’ve had several friends who have used these boxes and don’t know anything about audio. They spent all their time learning this foreign language that will be obsolete as soon as the record is. In summary, I highly recommend that you go with a computer for your digital recordings.

Okay, so you need a computer. The good news is you don’t need a very fast one by today’s standards. In fact, I built my recording computer for about $300 and it’s overkill. I need a faster computer than most because I do more projects than most. It makes a difference when I’m rendering down mixes that I can do it twice as fast because I have too many songs to mix on a given day. I don’t have 3 minutes to sit around and wait for the computer to think.

On top of the computer, you’ll need a soundcard. I recommend a soundcard with a breakout box. This means that a cable will actually come out of the back of your computer and connect to a box where your audio connections are made. Setups with breakout boxes are almost always preferred. In fact, I ownly know of one professional audio company that doesn’t rely on a breakout box for their computer interphases. I do not recommend Sound Blaster and those sorts. We are not playing games or watching DVDs. We are recording music. The demands are certainly not the same. You will find many Firewire and PCI soundcards in the mail order catalogs that work great. Pay special attention to the number of inputs and optional preamps. This is important. You may only need 2 inputs for your recording. In fact, most projects I do seldom use more than 2 channels 90% of the time. Of course, the other 10% of the time we may be using 19 or 20 channels. If you are recording electronic music and only plan on doing a few overdubs with vocals or the occasional instrument, 2 channels will probably work fine. If you plan on recording your entire 4 piece rock band live with rock drums you are going to need at least 10 inputs (maybe more). So plan ahead and figure out how many mics you plan to use at once.

Next, you need preamps. Preamps boost the signal of a microphone up to line level and are pretty much required. Preamps are usually the top knob on the mixer of your PA. You’ll need one preamp for every microphone you plan on using at one time. You’ll want to have the same number of preamp channels as you do inputs on your soundcard. There are many soundcards that come with preamps. There are many many external preamps that CAN improve you sound quality just slightly. If all else fails, use the preamps in your PA mixer. If your mixer uses inserts you can split the signal right off the preamp by only pushing in the cable half way. I’m referring to the cable that goes out of your preamp and into your soundcard.

Next you’ll need mic stands. There aren’t too many cases where you don’t need a mic stand. You have to be very very careful with mic stands. If you buy a supercheap mic stand, you may have problems with the mic changing it’s position in the middle of a session. The results can be absolutely horrible. So buy decent mic stands. $30 per stand is a reasonable low budget stand. I would not recommend that you spend any less on a mic stand.

Next is microphones. This is where it gets fun. There are so many to choose from and there are so many tonal options. You’ll want as many mics as you have preamp channels and soundcard channels (or you went overkill on preamps / soundcards). Choosing microphones is beyond the scope of this article. You can spend $50 on a mic or you can spend $3000 on a mic and you have no way of knowing which will sound better on a given source. This is a severely big deal when it comes to recording and it’s one major area that seperates the men from the boys, so to speak. Home recording studios usually have terrible mic selections to choose from.

The most important piece of gear in your studio is your studio monitors. If you try to use a boombox you will be very dissapointed when you burn a cd and try to show mom on another stereo system. Of course, you’ll probably be dissapointed even if you have a $10,000 set of studio monitors because your acoustics will be all wrong in you room and even still you probably haven’t mixed enough songs to be any good at actually mixing.

Okay, I’ve outlined what goes into recording your cd. Guess what, any decent studio has all of this taken care of you. Do you know about audio latency in XP? Do you know anything about room nodes? The studio guy probably does. That’s how he makes his living.

So when you walk into a professional recording studio ran by a serious engineer who cares about your music, you can expect to focus on one thing… the recording of your music. You don’t have to wonder about the specs of the computer, the cables connecting the preamps and the soundcard. You don’t have to worry about wasting huge amounts of time while the bass player stares at a mess of cables. You don’t have to buy the mess of cables. In fact, I’ve recorded entire albums cheaper than you would spend on mic stands. In other words, I’ve delayed charging a high price so that I could get tons of practice and become well known in my area. You might find a serious recording guy yourself who might work cheaper than you think.

What an experienced recording studio engineer knows that you probably don’t.

1)The value of his time – An experienced engineer isn’t cheap (but could be much cheaper than trying to record yourself) but he knows that his time is worth X dollars. How is this an advantage? It’s amazing how humans rise to meet a challenge. When you go in knowing that you are about to spend $20, $30, or $50 an hour on recording all of a sudden you take the time to get your guitar setup beforehand. You make sure your songs are mega tight and ready to go. You get your butt in gear because you are about to spend some money. When your guitar players tell you that he thinks he has the recording device working right, you don’t jump up get busy. You get frustrated while he tries to figure out the problems on channel 1 and 5.

2)Advanced knowledge of acoustics – This is one of those areas that you will entirely put off. At first, you are just trying to figure out how to turn the computer on. Have you really put any serious thought into the comb filtering effects of your room? The odds are minute. In fact, I bet most bands put no thought into their room acoustics. Guess what. Any good studio has spent thousands and thousands of dollars pefecting their acoustics. The only thing more important than acoustics in a recording is the song, the musicians, and the instruments. After that, acoutics is first. Proper acoustics are more important than microphones. I’d gladly record an album with $50 mics in a $2,000,000 room before I did the opposite.

3)Advanced microphone selection – Having the right mic for the job is an extremely important part of being a recording engineer. When you know that a guitar is too bright, you put a mic on it that will reduce this brightness. When a vocalist sounds dull, you put a bright mic on them. It goes on and on. This is what really makes the sound quality part of recording. Recording at home will make it hard to justify a $15,000 mic collection (or much higher). Some studios have $15,000 mics.

4)Advanced knowledge of mic placement – Even more important than the microphone is where you put it. A seasoned pro will know what has worked on the past 10 albums he’s done. He knows what he likes and what he doesn’t. He doesn’t have to wait until after the mixing is complete for him to figure out that the snare sound sucks. You’ll be experimenting like crazy, but it will take a while before you get it right, more than likely.

When you combine all this knowledge together, it becomes quite clear that there are serious advantages to letting the pros handle the work. With that being said, if you really want to learn audio, don’t mind pumping thousands into a bottomless pit, and are really that excited about taking years and years and years to learn the craft properly, go for it. I did.

Brandon Drury has written countless home recording tutorials at his website, recordingreview.com. You can hear a portion of the over 600 songs he’s recorded and mixed at his recording studio website.

Who would have ever thought that a call out for a guitar player from the audience would turn into such a wow! Beginning the night off at Launch Pad playing excellent covers of Eagles and Jimi Hendrix it could only follow by something as extraordinary as beat boxing.

Subliminal was the one who amazed me and everyone else by doing what famous beatboxing legend Rahzel is known for, which is spitting out the chorus and the beat at the same time using only his vocals. Something that you would think is impossible but it came easily to Subliminal who started out his performance with a poem he wrote. This one-man wonder can do just about anything from beatboxing to architecture. His first time at the Launch Pad opened his eyes to all the great music hopefuls.

?It?s a good vibe, a place where stars are born. It?s got that real atmosphere that?s underground, where things happen, where people can get the most creative,? said Subliminal.

Subliminal is working on his first album that is near completion. ?Three years later I am finally going to have material. Finally people will be able to take home some of Subliminal,? he said.

Look out for more of Subliminal particularly this summer in and out of Toronto. A definite amazement and yet another divine addition to the Launch Pad.

Farris Green
farris@sugarcainentertainment.com
http://www.sugarcainentertainment.com

Barson Huey, the debut album from Sanjo and Chandrani launched in New Delhi recently, represents an encouraging trend being witnessed on the Indian music scene. Like the albums put out by Rabbi and Indian Ocean, Barson Huey is an intensely acoustic album, rich with earthy instrumentation created using six and twelve string wood guitars. The songs themselves are refreshingly different with memorable tunes and deep insightful lyrics. What is thankfully missing is the standard bundle of tin-can techno rhythms, computer generated loops and other synthesizer-based sounds that characterise much of pop music these days.

The ten tracks on Barson Huey offer a refreshing potpourri of brilliant song-writing, excellent melodies, complex arrangements and intricate instrumentation, rounded off with great vocals and backing vocals. Even though the album will inevitably be classified under the Indipop category, a more accurate description of the music would be fusion. This element of fusion comes from the blend of inherently Hindi songs with diverse Western influences ranging from pop, rock and country to reggae, flamenco and salsa.

The artistes behind the album are Sanjo and Chandrani. Sanjo is, in effect, a one-man army. In the course of this project, he has worn many hats almost all the hats, actually. He has composed the music and arranged it. He has played all the musical instruments needed to make the songs come alive. Sanjos oeuvre includes the six-string acoustic guitar, the twelve-string acoustic guitar, the electric guitar, bass, keyboards, flutes, harmonica, tabla, drums, bongos and various other percussion instruments. Then he has also sung the songs and provided backing vocals in a number of tracks. And rounded it off by supervising the studio production and mastering processes. It is this ability to close the loop that makes Sanjo the consummate musician he is.

His partner, Chandrani, is equally talented. A trained classical vocalist, she has a special talent for writing sensitive, evocative, emotionally charged lyrics that add immense depth and meaning to the songs that she crafts. Since her childhood, Chandrani has always had a lyrics-centric way of listening to songs. Its the words that she focuses on first. If these pass muster, the song as a whole gets a hearing. Otherwise she just passes it by. Her tastes are very well-defined she doesnt believe in wasting time on stuff that she doesnt care for. And she applies this stringent, exacting yardstick to her own songs as well. She is her own worst critic.

Thus, as a lyricist, Chandrani demonstrates an admirable ability to use words as constructs for expressing ideas and emotions powerfully and meaningfully. Songs like the title track, Barson Huey, along with others like Sapno Ka Ek Shahar, Aanchal, Shayad Kabhi and her own favourite, Palkon Pe Tha, demonstrate this aptitude for making the lyrics look sparse and deceptively simple, while the underlying conceptual framework is complex and multi-layered.

In the studio, Chandrani is an amazingly versatile vocalist, doing lead vocals, backing vocals as well as harmonisations. She often multi-tracks, harmonising with her own voice, thereby providing both the lead vocals as well the backing vocals for some of the songs.

Chandrani is also the de facto Project Manager for the album. She is proactive and her managerial skills are considerable. Sanjo recalls the various roadblocks the project hit along the way and says that without Chandrani as a driving force, Barson Huey may never have happened.

Interestingly, Chandrani initially joined the project with a very limited role as a singer; she was supposed to do the female vocals and also provide backing vocals. A colleague of Sanjos, Gaurav was the lyricist on the project. However, after completing just four songs, Gaurav (in his own words) faced a personal tragedy he got married! While there is no known correlation between bachelorhood and song-writing skills, his marriage actually put paid to his role as a songwriter. Thats when Chandrani stepped into the lyricists shoes quite effortlessly, as a matter of fact and completed the remaining six songs. And thus, Barson Huey stayed on track.

To connect with fans and enable them to listen to sample tracks, the producers have also launched a website (www.musicbysanjo.com) with short bio-sketches of the artistes, lyrics of the songs, plenty of photographs and Mp3 downloads of clips of all the songs.

So what the future hold for this dynamic twosome? Sanjo and Chandrani have no intention of being a one-album duo they have already finished working on the material for their second album. Sometime during the summer of 2006, they will be back in the recording studios to produce the new songs. The as yet unnamed album is slated for release later this year.

(Taffa is a New Delhi-based music producer who specialises in finding new talent and releasing their debut albums. His company, Shaman Productions, is named as a tribute to the album Shaman by Carlos Santana – one of Taffa’s guitar idols.)

More articles at articles host