Football, Friends and Finishing...Not

I am having a total blast today. I am recording and mixing tracks for the new (and final) CD of the year, while l; listening to the Green Bay Packer football game live on my iPhone. I've never done that before.

I have no idea who that kid is with the Packer shirt and guitar, but it's a cool pic, right?

As I am listening to vocal after vocal that was sent to me I've been getting goosebumps! Really, just blown away. Getting to mix all you these wonderful singers, my friends and family, I feel like this is the best Christmas present anyone could ever get!

BTW-SHUT THE FRONT DOOR - Packers are kicking butt.

I love having the radio on while recording and blogging, I might do this all the time!

Have you heard of  The Sugar Free All Stars? Of course you have (just go with it, if you really have no idea what I'm talking about click here). Chris sang and also play some excellent organ parts, plus he just looks so darn cool on the cover! OH, what a voice! Sugar...wow. It's getting so hard to mix this, I can only use very small parts of each vocal, right now I just want to release like 7 or 8 different versions with different lead singers and BTW, I haven't sung a note yet...maybe I shouldn't? 

As I work on this CD, a project that I am driven to get other people to "shine" I am beginning to realize that my recently departed mother was right, perhaps my real destiny is to be a great producer, like Phil Spector (without the guns) or Sir George Martin (without EMI and Apple studios...maybe someday). I have always loved being a director, facilitator, mover and shaker...mmmmmm.... 

A great big THANK YOU to China White and Forest Field guitarist, mutli instrumentalist and all round great guy from the Netherlands Peter Cox. He did ALL the basic music tracks for this song...drums, bass, guitars and various keyboards. I could never have done this without him. I plan to do a lot of recording for him in 2013. 

OH, just took a cookie break because right when I was done and doing some mixing on this song I think I pushed my poor little OLD MacBook to the limit. It just kinda sat there, staring at me, not playing, not restarting...BAD. So I took a break and just turned it off, now I'm re-booting. Let's see what happens next, shall we? IT WORKED! Sounds great, just needs hand claps...I really do feel like Phil Spector! MORE DRUMS, MORE SINGERS, MORE REVERB, MORE RONNIE SPECTOR, MORE EVERYTHING!!!

 Adding shout outs to everyone who played and sang on the CD, tearing up here. Missing people that aren't with us any more that would have loved to hear this. It's been a long day, this is pretty much all I got done. I don't think the CD will be done by Christmas eve, but here it is for you and your loved ones to share. Please share it, happy holiday. Love Billy.

One of those days...months...years...

I must admit it, I am REALLY officially overwhelmed and have no freaking idea what I'm doing. There are only 14 days left until the new year. I have not finished CD 11 yet. I'm not sure what songs I am going to use...I have a ton to choose from and I'm starting to think that my big plans for CD 12 are too big and  nearly impossible...but, I'm committed (or should be).

I keep switching songs from CD 11 and 12 around, I want the last project to be all duets and collaborations so any song I have on deck that has duet or collaborations built in by default are going on CD 12. I moved a few more around today.

As of right now, here is the playlist for CD 11, "Another Bunch of Electric Bananas"

1. Another Bunch of Electric Bananas 
2. I Love My Mother
3. Happy and You Know It 
4. Funky Hu  
5. James the Racecar Kid
6. Valentine, Valentine
7. I Go Bananas for Bananas
8. Party Like a Rock Star
9. A Monkey, Monkey, Monkey, Monkey, Monkey, Monkey Tale
10. Swimming With Dolphins
11. RINGO!
12. ?

Before the end of the day it'll probably change again!

I have a bunch of songs to share with you today. last week Wil and I had a marathon recording session in our living room we streamed the whole thing live on uStream, I think you can still see it here at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/mrbilly23.

Out the the session came three new songs, "Another Bunch of Electric Bananas", "James the Racecar Kid", A Monkey, Monkey, Monkey, Monkey, Monkey, Monkey Tale" and "Party Like a Rockstar".

Here they are, hope you like 'em.

PS- Please blog about what I am doing or post the songs and tell the story on your FaceBook page, OK? Thanks!

Record, Sleep, Record, Sleep, Sleep, Sleep...

I have no idea what is wrong with me. As hard as I try to do anything, all I want to do is sit and stare or sleep. My body feels like it went on vacation and forgot to tell my brain!

I did manage to push through it a bit yesterday before I passed out around 3 pm for a few hours.

I was going through all the songs I wanted to record, but nothing sounded interesting or exciting so I went though a bunch of submissions I received and found a song that got me going by Will Hale called' "I Love My Mother". It's awesome, lots of fun and in his live version the kids really scream out the chorus  I can't wait to try it for myself.

I also made some more progress yesterday and today on my new multi-lingual version of "Happy and You Know It". We are clapping in several different languages including Danish, Dutch, Afrikaan, French and Hebrew. Oh yeah, and plain ol' English too. I really wanted a Spanish so once again my big brother from another mother Dave Kinnoin is bailing me out...we really need to give this guy and award or something.

I hope to have that one in the can by late tomorrow, I'll keep working on other songs while I do this one.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a really cool day, my son in recording with me so I hope to knock out about 4-6 basic tracks with him before i take my daughter to rollerskating (that is when I usually do my graphic design  on my iPad while she skates!).

OK, I think that's it...working a a cool tune with Dave Kinnoin and Jimmy Hammer right now called "Funky Hu"...you're gonna love it. Here is "I Love My Mother"...enjoy!

Science or Fiction, You Decide

Yesterday was a great day. I finished three songs and did a bunch of other stuff (including the showers!).

Judging from the comments and emails I have received I looks like many of my followers were a bit disappointed that I didn't actually show you "how I do it". I really would love to do that, I'm just worried that it might take too much time, unless I do a live feed. Mmm...what do you think about that, would you like to actually watch me in the studio for a song or a day...maybe a marathon recording session? Let me know about that.

As I mentioned I did finish all three songs. The one that sounds the simplest, "Science or Fiction" by Dave Kinnoin was the hardest to do. This is a FANTASTIC tune. I LOVE IT (how many caps can I use in one sentence?). But to be honest every time I get a demo from Dave or his son Oliver I dread recording the vocal...mostly because these guys are like, vocal Gods...really. Me? I'm just a songwriting rock and roll guitar player that sings because as a solo artist, I kinda have to. BUT, let me say I think that working with great singers has really improved my vocals.

"Science or Fiction" is a perfect example of my new confidence and ability as a vocalist. It was a tough one to sing, the music is minimal, but overall I think it works. Check it out below.

Today I plan to FINISH this CD. I will be recording a song called "Dogs in Space" by Wayne Potash and "Flying Cars" by my most prolific buddy Dave Kinnoin. The last song on the CD is a remix of a classic Mr. Billy song called "30 Minutes or Less" from my 3rd CD "Playground". Wish me luck and spread the word!

How the Heck Do I Do It???

Over and over people always ask me how I get so much done. To be honest I've been wondering the same this. So today with deadline looming (25 days to finish 3 last CDs) I have decided to take you with me...all day. Maybe we can both learn something...ready?

5:30 - Alarm goes off (that's 5:30 am for all you musicians out there). Keep hitting snooze over and over and over.

6:00 am (guess I should put the AM and PM in, huh?) - Drink coffee and hang out with my wonderful wife till she has to got to work...what? She can't find her keys???

6:30 am - Record my "Mad Music Marketing Podcast" at the kitchen table on my iPhone using the Spreaker app.

6:45 am - Spontaneously write and record a short silly song of the day about St. Nick on the living room piano and post it up to Shout-)-Matic (again on my iPhone).

7:00 am - Make breakfast for me and my daughter.

7:30 am - Try to drive kids to school while arguing with my "usually very awesome" son about taking stuff into the house first...after a long staring match I finally get them to school, almost on time. I WILL NOT pick them up today, no way.

8:00 am - Ready to record. Ooops, the computer is a little cranky and I don't have the files I need downloaded, OK, lets update the booking calendar and send a email newsletter to my fans while I wait.

9:00 am - Newsletter done, took quick shower (TMI?) ready to record.

9:15 am - Working on a track Oliver Kinnoin sent me, I like his demo so much I am keep much of the music and ALL of his vocals. I am adding drum, keyboards, guitar and my vocals. The song is called "Weightless".

10:45 am - dome recording...wow I guess I do record fast huh? Take another shower (TM, TMI? Sorry I get very hot and sweaty when I record stuff)

11:00 am - write this blog post while uploading the song to SoundCloud.

11:15 am - Here is the first song I recorded today, I plan to do three, but we'll see...


11:30 am - More coffee. I think I'll start another song before lunch. What to do...how about "Peanut Butter and Jellyfish?" I just got this demo from Monty Harper and Dino O'Dell late last night. Yeah, let me get the words and demo up...after I check my email...faceBook...OK, gotta stop that, back to work...

12:07 pm - Get all the guitars, drum loops and bass done and recorded in GarageBand on my little cheap used MacBook (not a Pro...anyone wanna donate?). Now I need to edit and arrange the tracks so I can do my vocals...getting hungry and the phone has been ringing...better check that...

12:49 pm - While recording my vocals Cathi (Mrs. Billy) called during her lunch break. Almost done with the vocals! I think I'll finish and then have lunch!

1:15 pm - After the phone call took a nice little cat nap (why do they call it that?), now to finish the vocals, the song and have lunch!

1:30 pm - DONE! Sounds awesome. Saving and uploading now. Time for lunch. But first, here comes the post...



2:15 pm - OK, I'm back. Had some soup and crackers while I listened to the ESPN Football Today podcast (For some reason football stuff is the only think that totally takes my mind off of music and business stuff...weird). Now I need to decide what I'm gonna do next...another song? Let's see what I have on the to do list...

2:35 pm - While trying to pick the next song (I did) I got a call from a library and book a summer reading concert! Had to update schedule, website and make a contract. Kids are coming home from school in less than an hour, things usually grind to a halt when they get home.

2:51 pm - OK I picked the song I want to do next but I have to play piano on it. Problem is I don't have my midi keyboard hooked up to my MacBook (option 1) or a way to record the piano in our living room (option 2). I tried doing it on the keyboard of the iPad (I do a lot of my keyboard parts on that, but this one is real piano stuff). So, I have to see which option will actually work.

3:00 pm - Off to the kitchen to set up a keyboard and try to record it.

4:05 pm - Getting a bit tired now, should take a real nap before I have to go to parents night at my kids school. Oh, I did have to leave in the middle of recording to pick up my daughter...she got too cold walking home..in shorts...in winter...oy.

I have gotten the piano and some other keyboards done on the song, but I don't think I like it, I wish I had a real piano player play it on a real piano...dreamer that I am. I'm gonna take a stab at the vocal before I call it a day.

5:01 pm - Well I did it. THREE songs done! The piano stuff sounded great as an electric piano with some stings way in the background. VERY HARD TO SING! I am saving it now one now, but I don't think I'll be able to upload or post it tonight, I have to be at my kids school in about 25 minutes.

So, there you have it a day with Mr. Billy in the studio and around town...from 5:30 to about 5:30! Any questions?