Your songs - going beyond guitars

[sloop_john_b]

For those of you who write and record your own music, have you ever gone beyond the basic guitar/bass/piano/drums lineup for a song and used more, let's say, exotic instrumentation?

Of course, if you're playing in a jazz band or something, I would expect there to be something like horns. For those of you who play more rock-based music, however, have you ever gone through a "Pet Sounds" phase and loaded your songs with strings, horns, odd keyboards & percussion, etc?

I'm just finishing up recording my band's debut EP, and it's pretty much a straight-ahead folk/rock type thing - but I've recently gotten the sinking feeling that I've done no justice to my classical composition background. I'm dying to put notes on paper again. In the songs I've begun writing for the next one - an LP - I've begun thinking about arrangements and ideas for horns and string quartet right from the get go. It's going to be a lush record, to say the least.

Dog, I've heard a few songs of yours that used Baritone Sax in lieu of a bass, which I thought was great. Jerry, any Shamus Twins tunes that had some sitar, or maybe a theremin solo?

[jdogric12]

Gosh, yes, lots of times. The song you mentioned "I Slipped & Fell" from Orbit Pants did have a bari sax for the bass part. That was done about two years ago with a friend from Belgium for my solo album. But, from about 2000-2005, and briefly in 2007 that was normal orchestration for my band. First it was called Dogtrot (00-05), and the '07 incarnation was Full Liquor Dancers. Both were trios, me on guitar and voice, plus a bari sax player and a set drummer.

More recently, with It Rhymes With Orange, we've used lots of things like sitar, dan tyba, odd pre-war mandolin-like instruments, digiridu, etc etc. Work is kicking my butt right now but I'll gather my notes and post some more later. Awesome thread JB!

[sloop_john_b]

I also remember you using it on "Goalpost" - a really cool root-V line. Did you write out the music for your sax player, or let him have at it?

[paologregorio]

The band I'm in hired a sax player for two songs once, and on another occasion, a friend of ours used a trumpet on two other songs; they wrote their own parts.

For the two songs using sax, one had a ska-type vibe, while the other was had a Psychedelic Furs feel to it.

One of the trumpet songs was a sort of cross between a Spaghetti Western song and the Cocteau Twins, while the other was a sort of cross between early X and Buddy Holly. Punkabilly with a trumpet in the mix.

[tennis_nick]

I can't even get the guitars right!

Most exotic instrument I've used is an organ on a bluesy tune.

[blueflamerick]

I've got a mandolin part of one of my band's songs. Just waiting for my 5002v58 to arrive so I can perform it live. I'd also like to lay down some banjo in a song or two.

[stubby]

I too regularly use mandolins and bouzoukis in my recordings. I've played in a Celtic duet for many years and the guy I play with plays some exotic instruments that we've recorded in original tunes. In addition to the staple whistles, recorders, concertina, and bodhrans, we've recorded his uilleann pipes. The funnest thing I've done recently is to add some tuba tracks to a tune I wrote. My daughter is in grade 9 and has played the tuba for a few years in school. This latest tune just needed "something" in the chorus and the tuba fit the bill. She was as pleased as can be too during the recording session! Unfortunately, she didn't look even a little like Leon Redbone.

[jdogric12]

Thanks, JB, I had forgotten that one!!! I wrote the part and told him he was free to improvise other licks in between the important notes. So, basically, all the "cool" licks you hear are his own creation.

[shamustwin]

Just found this thread.

While recording our first CD, I wanted an Indian orchestra on the song Turning Blue, going so far as to frequent Indian restaurants in search of. No luck.

What first drove a wedge between myself and former partner/bassist Tim was my putting a lot of overdubs into the recording, as well as production effects. I like among others, Jimmy Page's productions. I would have faced more objections, I'm sure, had I brought in outsiders or odd instruments.

For the most part though, I had wanted a basic rock band sound (Yardbirds and Petty, early Fabs as my personal template).

I'm basically working on the next S.T. CD alone, giving me a free hand, though I'm now in the mood to keep it simple.

Now I'm trying to adjust and write in a more roots, Americana vein.

I can't stand to think about my band at the moment!

[winston]

Yes and yes I do remember the 60's.

[iamthebassman]

I've recorded with:
Theremin
mandolin
electric mando-guitar
banjo
recorder
trumpet(I played in junior high band, still remembered my scales!)
VHS tape(tapped with fingers and EQed just right it makes for a great marching snare sound)
my wife snoring
my baby laughing(recorded thru the baby monitor for an extra bit of "strangeness" to the sound)
my dog barking

[kiramdear]

I played bass on the first ever album of Belly Dance music composed and produced by Western musicians. The lineup was me, Doug Adams on acoustic guitar and fiddle, Rusty Gauthier on mandolin, Michael O'Connor on doumbek and clay drums, and Dallas Smith on wooden and silver flutes. Of course our star dancer, DeAnn (sometimes then known as Zainah, but that didn't stick), provided liberal sprinklings of finger cymbals over the sounds her costume made whenever she moved.
The album caught on like slow wildfire and is today an essential part of any savvy belly dancer's library. Stories still come in from fans around the world. The compositions were noticed and presented by the Joffrey Ballet. Doug went on to write similar material for the early Kronos Quartet.

This milestone world music session was recorded in San Anselmo, California, in 1977, and was called "Dream Dancer".

[jdogric12]

Kira that's very cool! Got any links?

In my earlier posts I neglected to mention the Yamaha DX7. I love them things. I use one whenever I can do so without it sounding too 80's-y. Orbit Pants comes to mind.

[kiramdear]

If someone wants to hear it just for educational purposes they can please PM me. I don't have it available for streaming and I promised Doug I wouldn't give away the store... I'll fix you up with a listen, Dog.

[paologregorio]

Kira that's very cool! Got any links?

In my earlier posts I neglected to mention the Yamaha DX7. I love them things. I use one whenever I can do so without it sounding too 80's-y. Orbit Pants comes to mind.

Ditto that Kira! We use keyboards as well, both live and recorded; our keys actually sound 80s-y. Either that or they sound like power tools. We use ean 80s Roland, and one of the new Rolands that's a sort of reissue of the 80s model.