Recording Session for “Reaching Back”
During my Canada tour last week, my friend Marcone invited me to stop in Porcelain Recording in Hamilton, Ontario to record. (Marcone did engineering work and piano playing on my last two EPs.) We didn’t have a plan or goal in mind, he just set-up some mics and said, “Let’s have fun!”
During the session, I showed Marcone an unfinished song called “Reaching Back” on my acoustic guitar. Marcone challenged me to try the guitar riff on an old Harmony guitar from the wall. We ran it through a 1970s Fender Twin, and wow! We loved what we heard.
So we got to work. I tracked the Harmony guitar and vocals live at the same time. Marcone and I played around with piano parts, and we decided simple 5 chords worked well for adding texture. Then, Marcone experimented with a bass part using a Hammond organ’s bass pedals and droning chords with a Leslie.
Steve Bigas, owner of Porcelain Records (who’s worked with Daniel Lanois!), stopped up to take a listen as I was tracking the guitar solo. “You mind if I lay down a drum track?” he asked. I was floored by the offer!
So now I have a new song to share after the mixing and mastering is done. I want to offer special thanks to GW Station and his songwriting competition, ForSongSake. “Reaching Back” was one of my submissions in 2011. However, I”m not sure this song would have came to life without that old Harmony guitar at Porcelain Records.
The magic guitar, an old Harmony!
The Fender Twin (70s era)
Marcone tracking piano
A photo of Porcelain Records's open layout.
Marcone tracking Hammond organ.
Marcone mixing at Porcelain Records
Marcone on the piano
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