Performances

Here you will find recordings of performances that I have been involved in. Some of these performances are live gigs or practice sessions, and include several songs. Some are demos of individual songs. Most aren't perfect but all of them are worth sharing. There is the occasional cover but most songs are original compositions, by me and/or my collaborators.

Big Cool Lizard King

Submitted by martin on Friday, 2011-06-17 21:24

Performance:

Date: 
2006-11-20

At practice sessions with The Taken we sometimes used to get into a groove on a random jam - Richard Pearce really liked doing this when he sat in with us. On some of these jams I felt I couldn't contribute much on guitar so I would stick to vocals: channeling Jim Morrison and doing a "streams of consciousness" thing. This track is one of those things... perhaps best kept in the archive... apart from its entertainment value! ;-)

Closer To You

Submitted by martin on Sunday, 2011-05-01 20:48

Performance:

Date: 
2007-10-16

Kelly originally showed me lyrics for Closer To You back in 2005. She asked me if I might be able to fit them to some interesting music. Although it probably wasn't what she expected, I turned it into a big pop or soft-rock ballad, which I like to think is in the style of some of Diane Warren's big ballads. However, it was too long and it was boring. Keith helped to tighten it up, removing a verse or so, and tweaking the spacing between verses and choruses.

Cover My Eyes - 2011-04-04 mix

Submitted by martin on Monday, 2011-04-04 20:30

Performance:

Date: 
2011-04-04

Cover My Eyes is another one of Pia's excellent songs. This song examines toxic relationships.

Most of the recording was done last Monday. I recorded my backing vocals and redid the bass on Friday. Tonight Pia re-recorded her main guitar, fixed a problem in the lead vocals and remixed it to pace the song better.

Blood - 2011-04-03 mix

Submitted by martin on Sunday, 2011-04-03 20:07

Performance:

Date: 
2011-04-03

One day in 2004 I got angry at the world and wondered if anyone, including myself, really believes in anything anymore. If you believe in anything, you have to believe in blood.

I think the lyrics were scrawled out in about 15 minutes.

I put some daggy chords behind it and tried it at practice. Craig and Keith liked the words but thought the music was pretty ordinary. Craig pulled out a strong, driving beat, Keith played a repetitive drone on bass and they encouraged me to play some different chords to the usual stuff. It is still only three chords but it rocks.

Tar - 2011-03-02 mix

Submitted by martin on Wednesday, 2011-03-02 20:07

Performance:

Date: 
2011-03-02

Tar is a song that Pia wrote last year. It is about supporting someone with depression.

This mix is based on the first recording we did in November last year. It was pretty rough so we decided to leave it and re-record it later with better equipment and more know-how.

In the mean time Pia sequenced a drum track using Hydrogen. Given that I recorded the tracks at a weird bit-rate and that Pia is traveling at the moment, she asked me if I could remix it, perhaps including the drum track.

Leave You Blue - 2011-02-21 mix

Submitted by martin on Wednesday, 2011-02-23 07:33

Performance:

Date: 
2011-02-21

Leave You Blue is a song that Pia and I wrote last year, with Mel contributing some lyrics. It is a funny little song about a relationship that has gone sour, partly set to a standard 1950's chord sequence that has been used in lots of soppy songs.

The lead vocals are obviously mine. They're meant to be overly passionate and I think I succeeded. The distortion is a due to my tube pre-amp being overdriven - an accident that could have been corrected via a quick re-take. However, we liked it, so we kept it - I figure it sounds like a bad singer in an RSL club who is trying too hard. The Barry White style comments in the intro and solo are some of my usual goofing around while recording, but we decided that they fit, so we kept them. So, in summary, the lead vocals are mostly accidental! :-)

Yesterday's Knickers

Submitted by martin on Wednesday, 2011-02-09 09:34

Performance:

Date: 
2006-02-27

One morning in early 1994 I put on the clothes I had been wearing the previous day and walked up to a nearby shop to get some milk for breakfast. By the time I returned I was singing "De dum de dum de diddle de dum, I wear yesterday's knickers". With Mel's help the song was finished that day or the next. By the end of that week Mel wanted to kill me because I wouldn't stop singing it... and I had obviously implanted the tune in her head too.

This rendition of Yesterday's Knickers is from a practice session in 2006 that we recorded from beginning to end, and is unique in that it includes a yodeling solo by Kelly. She made various weird yodeling-like sounds at the end of many lines in the song and then, at my prompting, she continued on to provide a lovely solo. As such, this version represents the song well!

Live at The Pot Belly Bar

Submitted by martin on Wednesday, 2011-02-02 13:10

Performance:

Date: 
2007-03-30

As well as posting new recordings I'll also reach into the archives occasionally and post something a bit older like this...

This was one of the The Taken's best gigs. I invited a lot of people I know to the gig instead of having a party for the birthday I celebrated at about this time. We played a set of our usual material and followed it with a looser acoustic set. The recordings attached here are the final 6 songs from the first set. Although we started off a bit loose, this "run home" is very, very good.

Greed - 2011-01-17 mix

Submitted by martin on Tuesday, 2011-01-18 13:26

Performance:

Date: 
2011-01-17

Greed is a song that Pia wrote last year .

This recording has Pia singing and playing acoustic guitar. I played bass and harmonica. Pia sequenced the drum track.

I'm The Luckiest - 2010-12-11 mix

Submitted by martin on Saturday, 2010-12-11 21:18

Performance:

Date: 
2010-12-11

Pia and I have been playing music together for about a year. We've written a few new songs and also play some of our old material together.

I'm The Luckiest is a song that Pia and I wrote earlier this year. I came up with the riff and some lyrics. Pia added some chords and lyrics. We jammed on it for a while and came up with the arrangement in the attached recording.