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June 8th, 2010el-live Productions: G with Oxygen in Oman, Part 3
June 8th, 2010el-live Productions: G with Oxygen in Oman, Part 2
June 8th, 2010el-live Productions: G with Oxygen in Oman, Part 1
June 8th, 2010The Poet and the Hippie
June 8th, 2010
One of Jimi’s biggest influences was Bob Dylan. Hendrix kept a book of Dylan’s lyrics in his travel bag, put curlers in his hair to mimic his idol’s look and wore a Bob Dylan button pinned to his jacket. Just the mere mention of Dylan’s name and the man got excited.
Listening to the original and Jimi’s version back to back is an interesting exercise. I always found Bob Dylan an unlikely influence like what Clapton was to Van Halen.
His interpretation of this song is considered by many to be one of his greatest achievements. Coming off the third studio album, Electric Ladyland, by this point Hendrix had complete artist control over his music and how it would be translated from the studio floor to tape. Some of Jimi’s main guitar influences show up here in the Watchtower solos. There’s a lot of Albert King’s influence on these solos.
There are many beautiful bends to work on here from the intro solo. The pickup in bar 4 bending up to the D# or the 9 sets it up. He grabs the listener’s attention right away by putting the emphasis on an extension. I like to play it unbent, in other words the D# on my high E string at the 11th fret as an exercise or actually play the whole thing unbent, even play it on the piano where you can’t bend. Then I’ll go back and play it with the bends. I see it in a different way. Jimi’s vibrato is beautiful and his tone is killing. Each phase ends and it sparkles with that amazing vibrato. 4 bars of music, short and to the point. And playing A# over an A chord in bar 8? Works for me. When you play with this much conviction I guess you make a Dorian lick work over natural minor. I always wondered if he meant to do that.
I like to think he did and either way it’s a great opening statement. That’s the intro solo and it keeps getting better. I’ve listened to this song over and over and it still sounds fresh even today. The man had magic in his fingers, the way he touched the strings he must have had a direct link from his heart to his head and onto the guitar.
Masking – Solutions
April 30th, 2010
There are two principal solutions to frequency masking. The first, and most obvious one would be to adjust the signals’ pan positions so that they occupy different places in the stereo spectrum. This is assuming you’re working on a stereo sound system. Many live venues (more than you might think) use mono systems……..it seems so wrong, but it’s true. Later in this article, we’ll discuss how to handle that scenario. (It should be mentioned here that the following applies to mono signals, but later on we’ll delve into solutions for multiple stereo tracks) On a stereo system, however, panning will be helpful in separating signals for increased clarity. Try gently sweeping each signal from left to right and search for a spot for each where you are able to hear them as distinct and separate. Once you’ve achieved this you can use eq to further define the different instruments. (Quicktip: to clean up the low end of a mix, you can decrease frequencies under 100 hertz on most instruments except bass guitar and kick drum) Understanding equalization is essential to being able to produce a good mix both live and in the studio. We will go into more detail in the next posting. For now, we’ll identify seven frequency regions to be aware of. 40 – 80 Hz : The low bass area is “felt” more than heard, and it is usually recommended to filter this range out entirely form almost all instruments. Kick drum information in Hip Hop and Dance will retain this range for power. 80 – 250 Hz : This is where”phat” lives. It’s the bass range and will add fullness to an instrument’s sound. Try going to 100Hz and 200 Hz to work with eq here. 200 Hz is good for fattening vocals and if you cut a guitar signal at around 100 Hz, it takes it out of the bass guitar’s way somewhat. Hard to define bass notes can be brought out by adding a little 200 Hz also. 250 – 500 Hz : Lo mids. Increasing levels in this range will add clarity to baselines, but will also make higher frequency signals sound muffled. Nice place to fatten female vocals. Be careful in this range, and be sure to listen to your mix at both low and high volumes to hear how this range works. 500 Hz – 2 kHz : The mid range. Very versatile in its effect on sound. Must be handled with caution. This is where you can go from a tinny sound to a telephone vibe(1 kHz to 2 kHz)…..or add some attack to a baseline at 1.5 kHz. You can also get your guitar part to stand out here. This range can make your mix or kill it. Spend some time playing around with different instruments here and get familiar with how signals are affected by cutting or boosting frequencies. 2 kHz – 4 kHz : Hi mids. Attack on drums or percussion can be addressed here. Guitar parts will be more distinct with a boost here also. Vocals can benefit from a nudge in this range to help move them “forward”. 4 kHz – 6 kHz : Sometimes referred to as the “presence” range. This range is critical in giving voices and instruments clarity and is very often used. Adding some 5 kHz to a signal will usually give it immediate distinction. 6 kHz – 20 kHz : Treble range. Adds brilliance to signals. 7 kHz, 10 kHz, and 15 kHz are your “go to” centers for “sizzle” and “sheen”.
el-live Productions: Say hello to the troops
April 15th, 2010el-live Productions: Say hello to the troops
“MASKING” – EXPLAINED
March 23rd, 2010
The phenomenon of “masking” is one that presents problems for musicians both live and in the studio. Most musicians are not even aware of it and generally go through a ton of headaches dealing with the “I can’t hear myself” factor. Masking, in short, occurs when two audio signals occupy the same frequency range. The louder signal “masks” the softer one, making it difficult to distinguish, and just plain hard to hear at all, especially when sitting in close proximity in the stereo spectrum. (Eg. Electric guitar and digital keyboards both panned center……on yeah….you’d be surprised how often this happens!!) So, the guitar isn’t coming through, you turn it up and the keyboards disappear. Turning them up puts you back at your original point of frustration, but by now, the vocals are buried and …….wait……what happened to the cymbals? The percussion is lost too. Many new school “perducers” go for the faders and tweak and diddle away. Understanding EQ ranges for instruments and voice and placement in the stereo environment can alleviate much of the mystery and help point the way to solutions to this problem. In the upcoming weeks, we will examine techniques to help clean up your mixes both live and in the studio. Until then…………..da Grape sayz……….”Life is short……..be specific!!!”
My first post on Jimi Hendrix
March 8th, 2010
Coming up as a young guitar player I kept hearing about Hendrix and how important his music was, how he changed the possibilities for electric guitar.
The more I listen back to his music the more I’m drawn in and feel a need to explore it. I can remember hearing Freedom on the radio when I was a kid and asked for Cry of Love for Christmas.
I have been a fan forever but more so the last 8 years. So I’ll be blogging and sharing my feelings on the music. Not guitar lessons just insights from a guitar player.
Next time I’ll get into a song, “All along the watchtower”. Jimi’s take on the Bob Dylan song. One of his greatest recordings.