[quote=Michael Zaneski]Hi Steve,

I love the epic sound you get with the reverb and dreamy pads, then so intimate with the incredible close mic'd vocals! So, in terms of space, you've got massive detail as well as massive perspective. This makes a perfect bed for a song concerning MLK, I believe.

I love how your B and C sections are so rubato and so tied to the lyric that coming back to the A feels strange, at first, like...the song is musically gonna plow forward without returning to the A...then you finally do with the sax!

Beautiful song.

EDIT: And so very moving, direct, and timely...

I'm hearing a little "Van Dyke Parks" influence in terms of adventurousness, structurally and musically. But your style here feels fresh and unique, to me.

Hi Mike

Thanks, so much for the listen and your thoughtful critique. I’m a huge fan of pads...they add a fullness to the music and there are thousands at your fingertips. I’m glad you noticed the close mic’d vocals, that was deliberate. I’m also big on what is happening musically when I’m not singing and the fellow I work with on my songs is a genius when I comes to filling in the empty spaces to give it fullness.

The B and C sections came about because I didn’t want to write a song, I wanted to tell a story and I plowed through the beat vocally which gave contrast to the next line “then why did you have to die”

Van Dyke Parks, now there is a different fellow...

I’m giving away my age but as a 16 year old in 1963 I heard MLK’s I have A Dream speech (IMO one of the best ever given by a great orator.) But the idea for the song came from an article I read about the Banks in Chicago redlining areas in Chicago (Drawing a red line around areas on a map of the city where they would not lend money to anybody, primarily African American neighbourhoods). It took me back to his speech and I asked the question “What has changed” Back in the 1800’s it was called slavery and it was abolished but if you read the words in the video, aren’t we just using different words today that imply a continuing lack of freedom and equality. What I found interesting was in 2018 I was watching CNN or CBSN coverage of the 50th anniversary of Kings assassination where a bunch of young African Americans were being interviewed and were asked about the importance of the day and one of the ladies responded “you know, we’re still not free”. That knocked me back but it gave me the impetus to finish the song

Steve

Last edited by VNORTH2; 09/02/23 03:44 PM.
Creators of music have a responsibility to their craft. When they have finished using all the notes and words, they must pass them down to the next generation with a simple request. “Use these to create new music.”...Steven McDonald