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STRATEGY FOR THE DAY: be selective about looking in rear view mirrors

I figure a once-a-month update is better than nothing. So... I've been busy.

I managed to get myself involved in a very unusual music assignment. I met a singer-songwriter a couple months ago, Michael Doman, who impressed me a lot. His onstage presence, his songs, his voice, and guitar playing are powerful, unique, and very moving. We got together and went through his songs with the idea of choosing the strongest for a demo. I noticed that a couple of them, two of the most striking and memorable, seemed to have a sort of a hole where the bridge (it seemed to me) ought to be. Bridges are strange things - they are amorphous, they are slippery, and they are extremely important, particularly in the verse/verse/bridge/verse song form which Michael favors. I pointed out the lack-of-a-bridge to Michael and he seemed a little perplexed. He is used to his songs the way they are and although he spent a week or so looking for bridges, they didn't appear. So, I offered to see if I could write something for one of the songs. He agreed to let me try as long as it was okay with me if he didn't like it. Agreed.

So I set to work and quickly figured out what I'd done to myself! I was trying to add a section to a song that was already written, already gorgeous and very personal to an artist who has a strong individual style. Okay. This is going to be hard. It took about a week of work to finally come up with four lines that fit the lyric style, vocal style, note range and said something that related to the rest of the lyrics. He is coming over in a few days to listen and see what he thinks. This oughta be interesting. I'll let you know what happens.

I just finished another two-hour compilation for Tedscapes, the Ted Airlines inflight channel. For vocals, I am using Dar Williams new single "Miss You Till I Meet You" and a wonderful, sweet, funny song by Rockapella called "Flamingo Sing." I can't help grinning every time I listen. ("She swimmin' in reverie / One leg on the ground, one heart in the clouds.") Instrumentals from flute player Nestor Torres who is a new fav, pianist Kevin Toney, Nouveau Flamenco guitar from Johannes Linstead, and a great deep groove version of the Beatles' "Come Together" by sax player Warren Hill from his new album POP JAZZ.

Los Angeles played host to a pretty nasty fire last week which came close to the TAXI offices where I work a couple of afternoons each week. I decided to stay home and missed the worst of it. Smoke and ash still around several days later. The Santa Ana winds are back again today. Raymond Chandler wins for best all-time description of the Santa Ana's in his short story Red Wind: ""those hot dry [winds] that come down through the mountain passes and curl your hair and make your nerves jump and your skin itch. On nights like that every booze party ends in a fight. Meek little wives feel the edge of the carving knife and study their husbands' necks. Anything can happen." Not bad for a British public school boy.

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Read A Brief History Of Love Songs by Robin Frederick at the Sound Experience Music web site.

Copyright 2005 Robin Frederick. All rights reserved.