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Wasted on You
by Lennon714

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Song comments: 41
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Submitted on: Jun 25, 2008 - 02:22:28 AM
Last Updated:
Keywords How do I improve myself spiritually by my approach to my work? (1)
Description I'm recording a serious tune and I just can't get the vocals down. They keep sounding worse and worse and I'm really starting to get down on myself about it. So instead of beating myself up too much I decided to do this. I pretty much made it up as I went along and just let it happen instead of fussing about details.
I'm a bit of a perfectionist who is unable to get perfect results... a bad mix that results in a lot of frustration and little fruit. I'll try to relax and just get stuff posted from here on out :)

That's also my daughter lending a hand on the vocals and me getting a good laugh there in the middle.
Lyrics Given the circumstance of fate
Even the early bird comes late
But I'm wasted on you
Picking yourself up off of the ground
Life's lookin' up so don't look down
But I'm wasted on you.

You're unapproachable
If I can't get you I'll never try
You're unapproachable
But I can't get you off of my mind
No, I love you all the time
I can't get you off my mind
I love you all of the time.



Hardware GB08, Fender Telecaster, Fender Jazz Bass, Yamaha Keys, Shure SM48
Software:
Fan List

Feter

somebuddy

rsorensen

michael2

lavalamp

lengold

davisamerica

TobinMueller

mvh9591

8piscean8

12parsecs

asconejar

buckhorn

bud

timothy devine

tmcfate

guitapick

Bob Rodgers

racerat

MarkHolbrook

dajama
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Feter said 151 days ago
Wasted on You
man this is terrific ..had ot say it but its realy great ..this is so much beatlish on many parts and
its fabulous .the drums realy sound realsitic ..loved
the guitars licks so ...I think your singin is cool.
neat help you had here :-) ... thnx alot for sharin !!

Lennon714 said 151 days ago
the
ever quick feter strikes again. Thanks. I'm also dangerously obsessed with the Beatles so I thank you for noting the influence. Thanks for listening and commenting!

Birdman Wayne said 151 days ago
Cool!
Nice stuff, I like your work and the choice of instruments. Really cool, thanks for sharing!

Take Care
- Yeman A. Al-Rawi

Lennon714 said 151 days ago
Thanks Yeman
It was a fun project. I was going to do more with it but I didn't want my fun project to turn in to another frustrated mess of reaching for perfection. Thanks for listening!

dolby said 151 days ago
Nice.
Like the chord progression. Now, where have i heard it before? The melody works really well over the top. Sounds like so many things. A really good song. You're right that the production isn't quite there yet, but you've done the right thing by posting. Maybe some others here will offer to dive in and help.

Now, maybe I can post something without working it to death first?

Lennon714 said 151 days ago
Thanks
I think the chord progression reminds me of the chorus of Lennon's "Everybody Loves You When You're Down and Out". That's the closest I can think of. Unfortunately for me (and your ears), this is about as good as my production gets. Sometimes I expect myself to be able to do better and it's just not going to happen yet. I am always willing to hear suggestions so let it rain, people!

somebuddy said 151 days ago
FUN
This is a really fun, happy-go-lucky sounding song. It makes me feel like I'm strolling through Central Park in the 1920's. Thanks for the nice surprise!

rsorensen said 151 days ago
wow
really great song, eric. love those dueling guitars and that bridge is really cool too. the sound fx and samples work really well with the song and your daughter's input followed by your laugh is priceless. i like this a lot!

rsorensen said 151 days ago
oh yeah
forgot to ask - why the picture of Tim?

Lennon714 said 151 days ago
Tim
I'm just a tim fan. I like the American Office, but the BBC version is basically scripture in my household. I tried to find a good hat FM picture but google images let me down. Thanks for the compliments on the song. I taped a couple of AM stations at 1 in the morning and used the first bits I got. The tape breakdown actually happened (my handheld tape recorded petered out on me).

michael2 said 151 days ago
this is great
can't believe that you just threw this together. love that piano sound and the harmony leads. great vocals, this is a pleasure to listen too. awesome job.

Lennon714 said 151 days ago
thanks
You throw some great stuff together on the spot so I take it as a huge compliment you like this. Thanks for stopping by and giving it an ear. Speaking of which, I hope that's better for you now.

lavalamp said 151 days ago
The Office UK
Dig the sort of happy, McCartney thing you've got going on here. Excellent piece of songwriting. Singing sounds nice to me. Did I mention Weezer-ish, too.

Cool

Dave

Lennon714 said 151 days ago
can't beat UK office
Thanks. It is kind of McCartneyish, but not as well done or inventive :). I mentioned earlier that I considered doing more with it. I wanted to make it a medley a la side B of Abbey Road. But then it started to intimidate me and my escape piece was becoming another problem piece and I thought it was to just step back and let it be. Thanks for listening!

davisamerica said 151 days ago
bbc
is better.. lol ... like this ... don't be so hard on yourself :-]

Lennon714 said 150 days ago
Is it bigger than a breadbox
Those damn Brits with their better television and better rock and roll. I am pretty hard on myself, but this place does that to you. I've never been this hard on myself. The talent on this site pushes me to do better. I just need to keep an eye on how hard I push :).

8piscean8 said 149 days ago
Sweet!
Very timeless. Great samples. There are a couple things that stick out in the mix but nothing major (tape recorder might be a little hot). I really dig the bass part. The bridge is also supper! My only suggestion for improvement would be to make the verse vocals sound more like the bridge/chorus vocals. The bridge/chorus vocals blend really well with the rest of the instrumentation but the verse vocals don't sound as cohesive as they could be with the other instruments. Maybe tuck in some reverb on them. That's just my two cents. Thanks for sharing!

-Adam

Lennon714 said 149 days ago
thanks
Hey, your two cents is worth at least 4 cents in my book :). You're right about the tape recorder (especially the squeaky fast forward one). It's a bit grating because it's so hot. And there is a huge disparity in the vocals. I welcome your criticism and thank you for the visit!

12parsecs said 149 days ago
wicked progression
what an awesome pop progression. love the raw vocals. great harmonies too.

Lennon714 said 149 days ago
Thanks
I like a weird progression, but it's rare that I am able to build a good hook around it. This song works out well, but I'm sure I'm ripping someone off so I shouldn't get too excited. Thanks for listening!

asconejar said 147 days ago
pang!
my kids call me papa and my wife calls me pang. very nice and pleasant to ears type kind of music. thanks for sharing.

Lennon714 said 146 days ago
Nice!
I'm glad you liked it. I think it's time for you to have a "pang" song up!

thekurtisproject said 147 days ago
wasted on you
This song had me going from the start. I was bobbing up and down in my chair. VERY beatle-ish, witch is a good thing (: I like your guitar tone and I like how the piano is bouncy! Goodwork. I like the voice intro and outro in the song as well =D

>KURTIS

Lennon714 said 146 days ago
Thanks
Thanks for the listen, Kurtis. I'm glad you dug it. I'm on my way to check out your stuff now.

buckhorn said 147 days ago
Great lively tune
Well arraigned(wish I could do that) I like the song writing and the vocal a lot. I think your style calls for a fairly dry approach to the vocal, but Im guessing a tiny bit of matrix reverb like 2% wet and tiny bit of track echo would help the vocal mesh a little better. Great stuff anyhow.

Lennon714 said 146 days ago
Thanks!
I'll definitely have to try to incorporate your mixing ideas. It's a huge weakpoint of mine and even though this song was just kind of thrown together, my other songs need that kind of precise attention. Thanks for stopping by and handing out some compliments/tips.

bud said 146 days ago
Perfection is over rated
just look what it did to Brian Wilson. This is a great song with a wonderful structure and story. I like the vocals quite a bit. Excellent playing and arranging as well.

Lennon714 said 146 days ago
Thanks, bud!
You're right. It is overrated. I'm really just aiming to get my songs on par with a lot of the material here. I need to step back from that attitude and realize some people will like what I do even if it isn't as polished as their work.

bud said 146 days ago
I tend to like what people do here
precisely because it's not too polished. I prefer a lot of what I hear here over commercial music. Rough edges are ways into the music - too much polish tends to push me out.

timothy devine said 145 days ago
what r u talkin bout
the vox is hip
nice touch your daughter in there
love it
(I have three/ and a son)
Geat music
the build up on the piano is cool
nice job
dont sweat the details man
cool sound

Lennon714 said 145 days ago
Thanks!
My daughter loves to come in the music room when I'm recordings. She knows when to be quiet but every now and then she just looks like she wants me to pick her up and let her say goofy stuff in to the mic. It's almost always cute and this song was perfect for a laid back approach. Thanks for listening!

LetTheMusicPlay said 144 days ago
Wasted on you
Nice singing geat music and good lyrics. Well done.

Lennon714 said 144 days ago
Thanks
and welcome to MJ! Let me know when your songs get uploaded and I'll come have a listen!

guitapick said 144 days ago
Maybe not perfect...
...but it'll do.

;)

This is so cool...wonderful songwriting and performance...

I'm a perfectionist, too. Had to tone it down, though, because performances were driving me crazy. A bit happier now, wallowing in my imperfect pigsty.

Lennon714 said 144 days ago
I know what you mean
I'm a perfectionist in the way that I have a very specific way I want something to sound. Unfortunately, it's kind of rare I get the sound I want. It'll be a learning process, I'm sure. But it's frustrating because I know how good it could be, but other people have to fill in those gaps when they listen.

That's enough of that rant! Thanks for listening and I'm glad you enjoyed the tune.

Bob Rodgers said 143 days ago
Love
the intro and this is a great song. Lovely chord progression and a real fav of mine this is!
Lovely harmonies and vocals too.
I can hear your Beatle influences and a very large pic of them from the '60s is on my studio wall! lol!
I always loved them too!
Excellent stuff!
Thanks!

Lennon714 said 139 days ago
intimidating
a very large pic of the beatles in your studio wall sounds like they're watching over you and criticising everything you do. Or at least that's how I'd see it. But you're probably not as neurotic as I am so it probably wouldn't end up getting that ridiculous. Anyway, glad you liked the song :).

racerat said 141 days ago
clean
Clear and sparse. Like the open-ness of the track. Cool lyrics. Twangy and poppy. Though I feel the lyric could use just a hair of 'verb to set it back a little. Cool. Thanks Tobin for hipping me to this. Got some back catalogue to listen to now.

Cheers,
Philip

Lennon714 said 140 days ago
reverb
You're probably right about the reverb. I've been trying some different things out lately. I heard a lot of talk about overdone reverb on lead vocals from some of the MJ heavy hitters and thought I'd tone it down a bit. my 4-track didn't have any reverb so I have been going to town with it since. I'll find the happy medium soon!

dajama said 134 days ago
This is a great song
I love the chord progression, and the restrained guitar works very well. Love the drum sound and the keyboards work well. I think your vocal performance is good - the voice sounds very forward in the mix, and maybe a little dry. I'm not suggesting slathering reverb all over the vocal or anything like that, but a little effect can bring out the voice even more, I think. Cool song. Nicely done. Peace.

Lennon714 said 134 days ago
Thanks!
Ridd is working on making the vocals stand out a little better. That is, if I sent the file right. I've never sent a file right. Thanks for listening!

Artist Profile
Lennon714 photo
Lennon714

Artist Bio I had a friend in high school. A few, actually. But this one was ashamed of his grandfather. His grandpa was a Nazi paratrooper and we were sworn to secrecy. Bringing it up around anyone other than the close group of friends was strictly forbidden. You kn...[more]
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