JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum New CD "Taking On Forever" is FINALLY available for Download

Hi Gang

My new CD "Taking On Forever" is finally available. Please PM me if your interested, with your mailing info if you'd like to purchase one. It's $12 bucks. It will also be available to download in just a few days. Thank you.

CD is NOW available for download, so no shipping cost.
PM me if interested.



About the CD -
It's an all INSTRUMENTAL CD with the exception of the title track. It was produced and recorded by me and also mostly performed by myself as in the two songs below.
And also songs with the addition of some wonderful musician friends. It was three years in the works and is also the first CD I ever sent out for packaging/printing. It has a pretty extensive range of music on it. From one guitar to a 12 piece band.

Here are some samples, visual looks at two tracks on the album.
Please pardon the poor sound reduction of uploading through Soundclick

"GYPSY"


"FLIGHT 74"


I only made a limited short run of CD's

A MUST HAVE!

Congrats Mike, on the completion of this truly wonderful, great in every way CD. It is MUSIC for ALL ears! And I really mean, "Music"!

This should be said about your CD"
"They sure don't write 'em like that anymore"!
Or PLAY like that!

You should be very proud Sir! I know what it must have took, especially lately, to finish the tracks and all the work in mixing and mastering YOU did.

Folks, let's make this a Gold Record for Mike, to match the heart of gold he has.

Colonel D.

DUH I want one!!! PM headed out...

Wow Mike,what a talent!I love "Gypsy"!Hope the best for ya on this project,Mojo

You KNOW I want one

Scott

Yes please.

bump - posting this all over Facebook LOL.

I want one, Please... I've heard enough to know this CD is going to be a favorite all the way around!!

--Jen

SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!!!!!!



Markus
Stat Songs Publishing (ASCAP)
www.cdbaby.com/cd/badvibes2
www.cdbaby.com/markusspence3

Congrats Mike ------- Nice cover too

Thanks you very much John.

Wanted to also add anyone who has any questions or comments about the CD once they have it can come back here and post.

Mike

Got mine today!
No questions yet LOL I barely just now opened it.

Normally, I'm not big on Wednesdays because I have to get to work an hour and a half earlier than usual. But I was looking forward to today. Why? Because I got my copy of Taking on Forever yesterday and I knew I'd be able to play it on the drive in and home.

It's as good as I expected - meaning it's fantastic.

Way to go, Mike - something to be proud of!

Amazing musicianship and diversity of tunes. I highly recommend it.

Two questions, Mike:

(1) Who is the couple peeking under the hood of the car? Your parents?

(2) What is the title of the bonus track?

Scott

Hi Scott

Thankyou...

1- I have no idea who they are. My wife Trip has always been into photography so I asked her to give me some old photos to look at.
When I saw that one I just thought it was perfect for Taking On Forever. Besides growing up with albums I thought back on all those photos we would see in them that were probably of nothing relevant or of people they did not know. Like the way Pink Floyd would perhaps.

2- The bonus track or secret track Track #15 is just PART C of Taking On Forever which has three parts, well four parts if you count track 1 The Intro. So I'd call that track 15 TOF Part C
TOF being short for "Taking On Forever"

The secret track is just me playing the "bridge section" of Part B the main song but only on piano.

I thought it was a pretty refrain for the album. Originally the last song was going to be Waves Of The Danube but that wouldn't have been best. It should end with TOF and the only vocal song on the album.

Thanks bro!
Mike

Hi Mike, congrats for having finished such a heavy production! Now I know that not only you know a lot of songs, but that you can write and play almost everything yourself... the video is really astonishing. Hope the best for your music, you deserve it!

Mike,

All I can say is that I've listened to it a few times already; it is very well done. Good luck with this. Hope you sell all the copies you have made. "Potter Avenue" is one of my favorite tracks.

Kyrk

I am just blown away! Fantastic stuff, Mike!

Mike I will be downloading this for sure. Post up your link when it's available.

Jim

Thanks Michael

"Gypsy" was a tough one, trying to work out all those upbeats and accents. Tracking the first track alone to the click I was like Up beat? or come in on the down beat? Who am I asking? By the time I got to the drums I was like what the hell did i do? The drums while they sound simple were nuts, playing that cowbell in the beat instead of an overdub.

After all the mayhem of the arrangement I then had to come up with and play all that Nylon guitar, I got that guitar and played it for the first time THAT DAY!
Glad I did this then.

Thanks
Mike

Thanks Max

Yes I do know a LOT of songs. Not how to play them but I have been such a lover of music from so young straight through that you acquire lots of it. The more you listen to and absorb the more comes out of you.

Thanks Kyrk

I'm getting alot of great feedback on it and especially on the Potter Avenue's Part 1 & 2
A 15 year old told me she listen to that songs 4 times in row.
And was deeply moved by it. Well that's enough to move me

I would be better off really trying to get it out there to sell
within the means we ALL have internet wise. But I'm not really
carrying much about selling it. It was more to accomplish finishing it and winding down my long career with music with it.
Goodbye to the business of music.

Thanks again
Mike

Thanks Markus & Tom

Only a few lucky people will ever know how much work went into this CD. Imagine using eighteen microphones just to record the drums. Once they’re recorded you then have hundreds of choices on how each drum could sound. Let me see do I want my snare to be a 1980 Ludwig or a 1955 Slingerland? Choices for cymbals, forget about it! Now let’s move to piano. Do I want my track to sound like a Steinway or a Bosendorfer? Can you imagine making those decisions for 24 tracks, not counting virtual tracks which add to the chaos. Now make sure each wave file is perfectly lined up, cut and paste single words, record a handclap or two. Wait cowbell! I need more cowbell! That’s just a small part of the recording folks, remembers he also wrote and played every song.

Those of you who already have Mike’s CD know the quality of the music, but a few, a choice few really understand just how much work went into it.

Nice job, Sir.

Thanks Kev.

Mike

Hi James

I have the link just PM me.

Thanks
MIke

Hi Iggy

Awe sorry you were disappointed with the album LOL

Hey man it's REALLY nice to be understand, and Gotten!
Since were on the subject of - How much work? Lets not forget to add, practicing on an instrument for four months just to be good enough to play on your own song. The guitar on "It's No Wonder"

Or sitting on your right hand, while only playing with your left
for nearly a week practicing to a metronome, increasing the speed each day.
The Piano on "Coffee & Cigarettes"

Never playing a fretless bass before let alone using a cello as one to do upright bass. Failing at it until cleverly figuring out I could use the Snark clip on tuner on the uprights bridge to tell what starting not I'm playing. And get me in pitch to start out with and land at least.

Thanks for having a deeper understanding now it's even deeper
Mike

Holy moly , I`ve been listening to Mike`s new cd :-)

So far two tracks " It`s No Wonder" and " Give It Up "
have given me the YEAH feel :-)
It means that I`ve floored the volume knob .
Just the bass lines in these two tracks are worth the money spent on this incredible wide range instrumental CD .

Man , I can`t wait to dig deeper into Mike`s world of music .

As I said once , he is all over the place .

Keep up the good work .

All the best
Jan

Hey thanks Jan

I am all over the place, always have been.

The bass line to "It's No Wonder" I was messing around over the groove and it just bursted out. I was starring at my hand surprised & startled like I was watching someone else playing who was great lol.
Then I was thinking about a change and NEVER came up with one worth leaving that killer line.

"Give It Up" was also conceived on bass. And I borrowed a friends custom made bass to record that with. Remember I DON'T own a Bass. The idea started back in 1998-99 then I dropped it.
Saw video footage from back them of me showing it to others in the studio and thought, man I have to do something with that.
Even when I did it now I dropped it again to the side. Once I came up with a different drum and groove approach the song started to take on a new life.

Like a 70's Superfly movie meets 1980's Kind Crimson

Once I took a more dance music approach to it, it came to life and became one of my favorites on the album as opposed to getting dropped. The live violin really helped that as well.

Below is a video of that song, and of the early session footage from where it came from.

Thanks
Mike

Hi Jan

Here is that early footage, followed by the current video footage of the song "Give It Up"

"GIVE IT UP"

I'm finding it hard to type because I'm listening right now and I can't chair dance and type at the same time. This is just so awesomely special. Gypsy is my fav because that's what playing. Oh wait, now my fav is It's No Wonder! There are no words Mike, you just amaze me.

Ricki

Congrats Mike listen to Gypsy it's really really good. I will download this as well post it on facebook too. Is it on youtube? I'd click the like button.

Mike. I wanna buy the download of your CD. I'll email you for that link.

Ps that video of your Mamuwalde song is awesome. Is that the strings girl you were talking about? All of it, awesome!!!!

Jim

So how did you do with this Mike? Did you get good feedback?

Brian

Hi Bri, Thanks for checking back..

Feedback on the CD has been really wonderful. I was surprised to get such totally positive and flattering feedback from industry people, high quality musicians, singer/songwriters and music lovers age ranges of 15 to 75.

Just didn't think many would relate to or have the desire and patience for an instrumental album. I was wrong about that.
A friend of mine gave one to a former very respected Columbia Record executive. I never met him, but he passed on a message to me that had me blushing all over the place Including that he would without out doubt have marched this down the hall to Clive and got it signed. But those days are long passed, he did however mention to her about giving it to a well respected movie producer. And best of all to LEGENDARY artist who is one of my all time favorite Jazz & Contemporary guitarist and artists.

I was told he still has lunch with him, and the best thing is this guy doesn't really writes songs. His songs have been written by Leon Russel, Bobby Womack, Linda Creed and others.

And through a friend who played one track "Give It Up" Two DJ/Producers, Big ones who produced Madonna wanted the song for club play. A re-mix deal... I kinda like that cause you don't have to be "An Artist" to have a club hit.

But when people get back and tell me they were listening to The Glenn Benn Boogie in the car today and really enjoying it. I get such a kick out that
Even though I am retired from pitching music as far as those opportunities and contacts, I would NOT turn them away. However like so many times in the past it will fall through either before it began or worst of all right before it happens. I've had my share of those A lifetimes worth.

I sold 15 copies of the CD in total and wanted to thank the 13 people here again who bought it.

Well I didn't make it to sell it or even pitch it, just out of pure "love and must do" too improve and to prove too myself I could do it. Despite constant pain, vertigo,depression and very little money. I got her done! And even I enjoy it without finding too many flaws.

Thanks
Mike

Just listened to and watched the video to "Give it up." What rhythm! What talent. The thing struts and swings. Loving that cello, violin and your piano playing. Everyone involved in this rocked.

Thanks alot Dan

It is a contagious feel. I had it cranked up here in the studio one day when the kids were here to work and both them and there parents started hopping around the place and dancing to it.