Exclusive Music
      No ... it's not my original music.  It's true I have rather long hair, and often people assume I'm a musician.  They sometimes talk to me about it.  Sometimes at first they'll ask if I'm into music.  A rather vague approach, to which I can only honestly answer with a "Yes".

        Sooner or later they get around to asking, "What do you play?"

       To that I reply, "The stereo ... but I'm pretty good at it.  Sometimes I can play it real loud."

       However, I am very blessed to have friends that are musicians.  Music has always been an important part of my family's heritage.  My Grandmother, Great aunts and Great uncles, and my Great grandfather were The Seven Russell's ... a vaudeville act that toured back and forth across America during the depression era and beyond.  So I'm grateful my friends provide me with opportunities to keep in touch with the creative process of music.

        As I grew up, our house, or the homes of many we visited were always filled with singing, and sometimes a few instruments.  I remember watching my Great uncles play drums, slide-guitar, banjo, clarinet, trumpet, and much more.  My Grandmother played guitar from time to time.  She tried to teach me, but I was a rock.

       A friend that I met in the computer profession is one such multi-talented musician.  His name is Dr. Robert Clough.  To me, he is Bob, and a great guy.  He will sometimes humbly admit that.

       Every year around Christmas time Bob self-produces an arrangement of music he records at home either alone or with his brother.  Bob plays many instruments, and in some ways reminds me of my Great uncle Roni.  He records each part to each song, mixes it together into song tracks, and, as of late, compiles those, along with a narrative of his memorable activities that year, onto a music CD for distribution to his friends and family.  He used to do it on cassette tapes until recently.  He refers to himself collectively in the form of the musical tracks that go into the songs as Three Bobby Goats Clough.

       The music Bob records is generally "radio days" music.  Some was around before radio.  Most of the pieces had been arranged and performed by several notable performers over the years.  Bob tries to stay as close to the original version of the author as he can.

       On his 2004 Christmas CD he notes that he had in the past been challenged to add percussion to his music, and firmly refused until that CD.  He says that he finally decided to add drums.  He says that his drum set is very small.  He says it fits on a 4.5" floppy disk, being that it's MIDI.

       Sometimes Bob does a vocal track for his music, but often he delivers just the music with no vocals.  Of course in most of those cases, the part that would be occupied by vocals is taken up by a trumpet or cornet as the lead melody part.  None the less, I found room for vocals in those arrangements as well.

       Bob and I were discussing The Christmas Song by Alvin and the Chipmunks.  I found a file on the Internet where someone had slowed down the song to reveal the true voices of the chipmunks, (which makes it clear to the listener that the same fellow that played the part of Dave also played the part of one of the chipmunks ... Simon, I think).

        Bob asked me if I know how to slow down a track like that.  I told him I not only did, but had recently bought a program that is quite good at it, (Blaze Media by Mystik Media, which does a whole lot more than that ... check it out).  So I took the original Chipmunks song, and slowed it down for him just like the other file I found on the 'Net.

       Then I told him it would be great if he did something like that for a song for his Christmas CD.  He said he didn't think it would work out.  So, to show him it certainly could, I ripped some tracks from his last two Christmas CDs and produced the following pieces featuring Bobs music and "Bob the Squirrel", (the chipmunk gig is already taken by Alvin's group), which is me on vocals.  These are three to five meg each and in the MP3 format.  I've also provided you with something to read while you listen to, or to help you sing along with Bob the Squirrel.
You Made Me Love You     -    Lyrics/Credits/Comments

September in the Rain     -    Lyrics/Credits/Comments

Two Sleepy People     -    Lyrics/Credits/Comments

       Another good friend of mine is Kyle Morrill.  Kyle would love to be able to produce his own music at home.  However, he tried, and is aware that there is some global conspiracy keeping him from having any luck what-so-ever with computers.

        Fact is; Kyle out-grows every computer he has ever tried before he ever owns it.  Once he gets the creative process going, it's not like a faucet he can just shut off and go back later and turn it back on again to continue filling where he left off.  Kyle is also very deep with his music while the faucet is running, hearing in his mind so much more than he can pump through instruments and equipment.  The result is, before Kyle is ready to do his first "Save File As...", he has already added so many tracks and effects that he has run his new computer right out of memory, losing all he has done up to that point, and frustrating himself into shutting off the faucet.

       However, while helping him set up said computer, the two of us produced the following song while I was showing him how to use the computer to make his own music.  It's a simple little ditty, which I feel has nothing to do with the kind of thing I'm used to hearing Kyle produce.  It is, none-the-less, good in its own right.  The entire thing was done on keyboard by Kyle, except his vocals, (of course). One affect he insisted on, (which I agree with now that I understand the song), is that the vocals sound far off ... as if in another room. Excellent call on his part, and I feel I did one heck of a job accomplishing that for him.
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