Brambles is inspired by memories of childhood pastimes, particularly picking blackberries with my mum, sister, and grandparents. The gentle fingerpicked guitar part provides a steady backdrop for the dreamy clarinets and trumpets that weave through the track. I was really happy to be able to include my sister on the track as one of the vocalists.

One by one we go rummaging on
Staining our shoes with the berries and sun
We pluck, we pull, the buckets fill
We amble

Two by two we go battling through
Stretching and straining to grasp at the shoots
You bare your skin, the thorns dig in
The gamble

The marks on your clothes
Might come out with soap
The marks on your hands
Will soon start to mend

Three by three is a mouthful indeed
Bursting with berries and singing with glee
La da di da, la da di da
The brambles 

The marks on our clothes
Might come out with soap
The marks on our hands
Will soon start to mend

Brambles

Wallowing in the warmth of lower mids and melancholic melody.
Recorded, mixed and mastered on a Tascam DP 32 Portastudio using vintage gear gathered over many years.


Take a large bucket. Add a pint of Neil Young, a pinch of Glen Hansard. Wack in a tea spoon of Damien Rice, then an ickle bit of Tom Mcrae. Shove in a hand full of Mike Scott, a heaped table spoon of Neil Finn and a large dollop of Conor J. O'Brien. Mix with a big stick then strain through an old sock. Pour. What you have is a little bit of Mr C.

Hello good people of the cloud.
I play everything in real time and record and master on a Tascam DP 32 Portastudio. Although three of the older songs on here where recorded on a 8 track tape recorder through an old seck analogue desk.
No pc's are used or abused in the process of me music making. I love tactile recording. Switches, faders, pots and buttons. Mouses are for computers and eating cheese. No Mac, Daws or Windows, Midi or overused plugins. And no automated mixing, compromise being a large part of my final sound.

Hope you enjoy some of the music that I make, please feel free to share and comment.

I now have another page, link below, of songs recorded from 1999 to 2012 on an 8 track tape machine.

Gear used:
Tascam DP32 (for all recording and mastering)
Custom Sound amp (owned since the 1980's/90's)
Tannoy DC 200 monitors (owned since the 1980's/90's)
Alesis Sr18 drum machine
Roland V drums HD1 Live Kit Through Roland TD20 Sound Module
Kord M1 keys (owned since the 1980's/90's)
Yamaha moX6 keys
Joe Meek VC3 pro channel (owned since the 1980's/90's)
Audio Technica AT4033a Cardioid Condenser Microphone
Shure SM58 Mic
Sessionmaster direct recording pre-amp (owned since the 1980's/90's)
Zoom GX1N guitar effects
1972 Yamaha FG180 Red Label acoustic guitar
Martin performance acoustic guitar
Yamaha FGX5 Acoustic guitar
JD Fender Telecaster Leccy guitar
DeArmond M75T Leccy guitar
Tanglewood bass 
Vintage banjo
Uke
Stagg mandolin
And a box of old rusty harps.

Please feel free to check out my YouTube channel and Instagram accounts
https://youtube.com/@mugfish76mugfish40?si=RTpuCuetokQsRVjA

https://www.instagram.com/mugfish76?igsh=MTl3MmdjY2ludG1ueQ==

Here’s The Steeple is the musical handle of Dan Walters. Dan’s songs combine intricate textures and thoughtful lyrics with a wide range of folk influences, all delivered with a uniquely rich and soulful Northern voice to warm you up like a good cup of tea. Here’s The Steeple is supported by Help Musicians.

Here’s the Steeple has received support from BBC Radio 6, Fresh On The Net, and BBC Music Introducing on Radio Tees among others, and has supported artists including Scott Matthews, Will Varley, Rozi Plain, Tiny Ruins, and Steve Mason (The Beta Band). Members of The Unthanks have said “Your album sounds fantastic! I’ve had it on in my car for months!”

Brambles

Here's The Steeple