Playing With Myself... (or should I re-phrase that?)

The Cosmic Glue recordings are moving forward beautifully with the seamless integration of new tracks coupled with some re-worked masters from 1977.

So there I was last evening, back in the studio in Stroud where this year's magic is happening, working on one of the '77 tracks, adding new vocals, new lyrics, with my younger self laying down some killer acoustic guitar, and those groovy harmony vocals over the top of my May 2013 vocalising.

I finally got it right.

The track was called Jungle Love - now it's called Poison Pen. It was always a nice dirty slice of rock (with searing guitar throughout courtesy of Hans van Epen) and now it has turned into a menacing piece of acoustic grunge all about a crime novelist and his twisted mind...

(have a little read of my book Slow Poison to get a feel of what I mean...

I'll also add a little of the rough mix of Poison Pen.

Once the rest of the album has been recorded, there will be some live gigs around the country and beyond. I have the tunes, I have the band...so you might just catch us live somewhere soon...

 

Cosmic Glue Time Travel Sessions

Well...I finally began the last phase of the Cosmic Glue sessions...

Monday evening found me singing new lyrics to a couple of my 1977 'Hot As Ice' master tracks. There was an eerie normality about    singing in 2013 with my younger self harmonising and singing back-ups.

The engineer could hardly hear the difference. I could hardly hear the difference either. (I don't have an operatic voice - so there was little that was going to change - plus I still have whatever range I used to have)

The musicians from '77 haven't met the 2013 guys, but the blend is seamless. Last night there was my good friend Jan Stavinoha playing his exquisite bossa nova 1977 guitar with my new friend Chris adding a little 2013 Getz to the track. Sublime!

There are some more of the 'old ' tracks to vocalise and then we're on to the mixing phase. The new guys will be going out on the road with me too...there is indeed life in the old dog yet!

I'll add a little snippet of sound to keep you going...there will be much more soon...

Wings To Fly (in Sixty Seconds)

Cosmic Glue - Worlds Collide...

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I'm crashing toward completion on the Cosmic Glue project.

I have a couple of studio dates next week when everything comes together. The definitive vocals will be added to both new and old songs.

I've stripped back some of the 1977 recordings to their essence so that I can build them as though they were completely new recordings. It seems to be working.

Songs that seemed fixed in stone have taken on new characteristics, a new freshness and relevance.

Some of my current collaborators are working with me on tracks from both eras, making the link complete.

I'm in touch with some of the 1977 crew and who knows what might happen when the album is released... I rule nothing out.

There will be some selected concerts throughout the year with a full-blown tour in 2014.

Those Peter Pan Pills I took back then have kept my inner self as young as ever... (it's only the mirror that reminds me of the passing years)

I've added a few new images and a clip of a work-in-progress song from Cosmic Glue.

Technology has given me the chance for a little taste of Time Travelling...you should try it too!

You Tube Glue

I thought I'd share a clip of the Cosmic Glue recording session of last night ( March 18th). A Cosmic Glue Trailer On You Tube

I was laying down vocals for a few numbers and a camera crew just happened by while we grooving along.

The track I'm singing is 'Shine' - an autobiographical song about my first years in Amsterdam...it was quite a year! More about that when the album is released in late Spring.

So, for now, a little taster...

A Cosmic Glue Trailer On You Tube

Fiddling On...

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Last Tuesday saw us adding fiddle to 'Home Made Mini' and some guitar overlays on 'All I Wanna Do...'

Tonight I'll be flying solo in the studio laying down some definitive vocals on most of the 2013 songs and some of the 1977 tracks we recently discovered. That's what 'Cosmic Glue' is all about as an album - a mixture of then and now, a drawing together of four decades of my life in music.

'if only I knew then what I know now...'

The image is of Pol Bowman - an ace fiddler who added his little bit of magic to the opening track of 'Cosmic Glue', Chris Aylmer (bass) and Mike Cooling (guitar) both of Red River Blues

and, here's a link to some of the old and not so old stuff...

Cosmic Glue & A Twist Of Time Tunes

After The Weekend...

A brief Sunday day out in the wilds of Worcestershire visiting Antique fairs and the family. Delightful. Now - back to some serious work...

I'll be dividing my time today between re-stocking our little vintage store (Time After Time) and preparing for the next recording sessions tonight and tomorrow evening.

Monday I'm adding new vocals to a handful of the 1977 tracks, transforming them into totally new songs and adding definitive lead vocals to the 2013 tracks.. Listeners so far cannot detect a discernible difference (except, hopefully, an added maturity...)

Tuesday brings Mike back into the studio for some cross-decade guitar work - an exciting prospect for all concerned.

We'll be adding a lively little fiddle track to Home Made Mini and then it will be up to me in my role as producer to pull everything together into a glorious whole!

I will post a few snippets asap - meanwhile, have that sneak preview here:

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Cosmic Glue - The Next Phase...

I love the recording studio! From those early 1970s sessions to the hours we spent last night... exploring the musical chemistry that happens is pure joy. Some things just don't gel, while others come together just as fate intended.

On-line rehearsals, mp3 overdubs - technology has made preparing for a session much easier - so that when we arrive at the same place at the same time (in our case, Stroud - the centre of the known universe...) it's a case of tune up, plug in, turn on and away we go.

There will be a few snippets to hear quite soon, but in the meantime - here's a little snapshot of the Cosmic Glue cast of characters.