World Wide Woozle episode #675

Welcome back.

Before I start, all of the songs in this episode have something in common so see if you can spot it. There are no prizes, but I reckon someone out there might just figure it out! Pay attention closely for the not quite regular version of one track! I like to keep you all on your toes if I can.

Back before music was ruled by algorithms, corporate greed, auto-tune, and the cut and paste of digital music software, we huddled together in garages and bedrooms to make demos of our songs. That is unless of course one could afford studio time. The first demo tape I appeared on was made by strategically placing a boombox in the garage during a rehearsal and pressing record. The first 'real' one was recorded in 1991 on the same model Tascam four track that Bruce Springsteen used for Nebraska. Admittedly the band was playing live with everything reduced to four tracks by a mixing desk before hitting the recorder. DJ DJ engineered that demo and it got us a LOT of gigs. I still have the stereo master copy but not the multitracks. 

I do, however, have the multitrack cassette for the 1992 demo of the indie band I was in at the time. Recently I decided it was time to save those recordings, remix them, get them mastered, and onto CD. I have a 4-track recorder so that was the easy part, but how would I get those tracks onto a computer? It was easier than I thought. DJ Guz loaned me a fancy mixing desk that also records to multitrack computer files. All I had to do was connect the four channel outputs from the recorder into the desk, clear all the effects, set the gain, and hit record. Now I have the four songs from the Lovesmudge demo ready to mix. I'm not the expert here, Bing is. He has more than a dozen albums in his discography so we'll get together soon to see what we can come up with. If they turn out to be any good then I'll investigate mastering and CD production. I'll write some liner notes too and hopefully the other three band members will contribute. Watch this space!

What I didn't realise I still had was a couple of cassettes containing demo versions of songs I wrote in about 1994/5. They won't be getting the full treatment but I'll have a go at tidying them up and releasing them via my Soundcloud page. 

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band - Last of the Teenage Idols - https://youtu.be/HlthQpbl_0E

It would be remiss of me not to mention how excited I am that DJ ZedBoots has moved back to Australia. She's been away having adventures in London, Glasgow, and all over the place since the start of 2020. I think she may have come home to thaw out! The family has grown as well with the addition of a fiance and a cat!

The Temptations - My Girl - https://youtu.be/y3KJ7d2qBoA

If you're around my age, I wonder if you expected middle age to be the way it is? I've almost managed to accept that I need to reframe how my life will look going forwards. I always thought that I was fairly physically robust but it appears not. Working with the GP and the Chiropractor we have addressed some of the issues with my back, but there are some that can't be fixed. I have to work on managing not only my body, but my expectations and that isn't easy at all. What I will say is that if you have any niggles, get them checked out now before you end up with something that you have to live with forever. That includes your brain too, not just your body. 

Cheap Trick - Surrender - https://youtu.be/LqB9lhHqmsE

I'm playing this song because it fits into the theme you're all madly trying to work out, but also because it has been an earworm for the past week or so. I've actually sung and played this twice in public as well. Once it was to about 10 people, and the other time it was to about 1000! You may not like Taylor Swift, and that's just fine, but I do. She writes a lot of her own music, plays and sings live, and trains for gigs by running on the treadmill whilst singing. 

Taylor Swift - Love Story - https://youtu.be/yfWgXcrNQIw

This week I noticed that the classic TV series, The Dukes of Hazzard has appeared on the Amazon streaming service. Watching it now, it doesn't feel quite as exciting as when in 1979, I was allowed to go next door once a week to watch it. At that stage, having just moved to the other side of the planet, we didn't have a television. The A-Team is also now available and if you think back to my visit to the USA in 2024, you may remember that I watched a lot of that in my downtime! Back to The Dukes for a minute. I reckon the theme song was my real introduction to country music. Here's Waylon, who sang the theme and was the show's narrator, singing with Willie Nelson.

Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson - Good Hearted Woman - https://youtu.be/swRJeMsk21g

Keep smiling y'all,

The Woozle

"It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not..."

Bon Jovi, Living On A Prayer, 1986