Downtown. Streetside bars. Instrumental. Kind of a latin/blues/jazz thing that morphed into hard rock, then synth pop.
Credits: Freesound for street/crowd samples. Gencraft image.

Streetside

A Flash of Lightning, Behind a Mountain

Ocean Gypsy

Help me see

In a world blurred by noise and distraction, Three Photons offers clarity with "Help Me See"—a soul-searching ballad steeped in analog warmth and emotional depth.

Written by TJG March 2024


Rhythm Guitar: Gibson ES 335
Lead Guitar: Fender Jazzmaster
Guitar Amplifier: Vox AC15….set as clean I can get it. 

Fender pedal board: Line 6 delay; Fender clean boost



Mics: a pair of Royer r10 ribbons on guitars
Mics: AEA R44 vocal 
Mic preamps: API 312
Mixer: API 24 channel summing mixer (8200/7800)
Stereo Bus processing (API EQ and API compressor)
Final mix down to a MARA MCI JH110 1/4inch 2-track at 15 ips using ATR Master Tape.

Basement boiler/heater – adding all kinds of unwanted noise 😉

Someday I will add drums and bass – but wanted to go for this raw guitar/vocal sound for now. 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Help me see

I can’t see the stars tonight
Shining down or in your eyes
I can’t see the stars tonight

I can’t find the words tonight
Written down or in my mind
I can’ t find the words tonight

I can’t see the stars tonight
Shining down or in your eyes
I can’t see the stars tonight


Shining down or in your eyes 
I can’t see the stars tonight
Help me see 
Help me see the stars tonight

I could live a simple life
Slow it down or take a flight
I could live a simple life
I could live a simple life

I can’t see the see stars tonight
I can’t find the words tonight
Shining down or in your eyes
Help me see the stars tonight

I can’t find the words tonight
Written down or in my mind
I can’t find the words I like……

Help me see

For Pride Month. This is a rough version with just me and the guitar. The real version will be a 90's dance song, hopefully with not flat vocals, hopefully this weekend

This is not about you,
Your life is not about who I love, or the things I do
You’re not the one that I answer to

But it’s not about me
There’s more to my life than i will ever know, than i’ll ever see
I don’t hurt anyone just let this be

I have no voice but I can speak
I don’t like what you do to me
I say it’s time we make a stand

It’s more than tonight
It’s more than my fight
This is my right
This is my life

Do you feel the beat
It’s the pulse of the world
Where the people meet to let their flag unfurl

Do you feel it?

What does it matter to you
How i live my life, or what I believe, or the path I choose
Look inside, are you afraid to face the truth

We all need to be
Fragile and fearless, wild and free, you see 
for fate of the world, for our destiny 

Love is blind but I still see
And I don’t like what you’ve done to me
I see bloodstains on your hands!

Do you feel the beat
It’s the pulse of the world
Where the freaks all meet to let their flags unfurl

not about you (acoustic)

Cast of Characters:
John_Anthony-- @john-anthony-871225464 --guitar, mandolin
The Mysterious Decibel-- @themysteriousdecibel – vocals
K2 and the Three [and the Four]--@k2andthe3, @k2-kara -–Ken–drums and high harmony on the end vocals
TexMex Shaman–@texmex-shaman –Stephen– banjo, production, and mix
Entheogenic Psychonaught (Josh Clary)–@josh-clary-1 –-four string fretless bass, melody and harmony on the end vocals
This song began with John, who is a verifiable expert in all things Jimmy Page, asking me and the Eclectic Collective if we'd like to cover another Led Zeppelin song to follow Hey Hey What Can I Do? Of course, the Eclectic collective is always down to sink their teeth into some of the best rock and roll ever made. John found us recordings of the original Zep version that were separated into their individual tracks, so as we were adding, we could hear what our part would've sounded like playing with the original band. What a thrill!
  Ken was first to complete his part, and did a great job of capturing the frenetic energy of Bonzo. John was up soon after, amazing us with a note for note interpretation of Page on both the guitar and mandolin. I came next, after nearly deciding that JPS's part was too difficult. It wasn't. Then, when the bulk of the music was recorded, MD came through and stunned us with a brilliant interpretation of Plant's vocals. To bring it to a boil, Stephen then laid down his magical banjo in there, too. Lasty, Ken and I polished it off with some background vocals at the end. 
  Of course, every great song needs a great producer, who in this case was Stephen. He managed to even it out and get it to sound not only like the album, but very dynamic, as well. 
  This is the EC's second collaboration with John, and we're all stricken by how proficient he is at playing Page's material. If you dig what we did here, you can check out the video, too, right here, of us playing. It's on John's YouTube page, which also contains scores of other favorites from Zep, Floyd, and others. If you are interested in seeing how your favorite Zep tunes were played, it's definitely worth a stroll through and watch.  Here's the link to his page. Also, you can find us doing Hey Hey What Can I Say? on there, too.  https://youtube.com/@johnanthony5720?si=7YqvUXLKkuXT4qjy
  We hope you enjoy listening to this song as much as we enjoyed making it.

Gallows Pole by Led Zeppelin (Eclectic Collective with John Anthony)

Original track. Dean on all guitars and vocals

LYRICS
Can't wait no longer for the phone to ring 
When it does, you say you want me for nothing 
Wasting away locked inside these walls 
There's no sound anymore 

The gear is gathering dust
The wolf is by the door 
There's no sound anymore

I'm packing, stacking, filling, moving, doing fine 
Cupboard's full and shelter's mine for now 
Mindless body breaking over time
There's no sound anymore 

Booty's in the bank 
Trinkets fill the floor
There's no sound anymore 

I pass you by and say my world has changed 
Still put finger in the pie sometimes 
I'm speaking but not sure you're listening to me
There's no sound anymore


No Sound

We conclude our Summer Series on a hopeful note and a glimpse into the future.  Mankind has finally found that it can accept the differences that divide us, share the bounty between us, and become a vast community governed by faith, hope, and love. How did such a thing come about?  We collectively took a step back from the brink of self-annihilation by realizing "we solve most things if we talk".  
Ironically, this was the most complex song of the five to put together,  We all had an idea of how we wanted it to turn out, and thanks to Seagull and a lot of talking between us behind the scenes, we came to consensus and a final version.  Our little band is proof "we can solve most things if we talk":)  It has been an honor to work with each of you: 
Music composition, 1st guitar (center), bass, synths, mix and production; Seagull, @farout-music-studio
Right & Left Guitar; Our wonderful guitarist; David, @david-dunhamuser589535203
Lyrics & Vocals; Our dear poet Peter, soundcloud.com/user-264930040/tracks
Vocals and harmonies; Soundcloud's most wonderful voice; Oddrun, @oddrun-eikli
And the key phrase at the end; The lovely little Finley, 7 years old.

We Solve Most Things If We Talk

Summer rain finds my face, splashing through my smile
Thunder rumbles fall away, storm is phasing through
Peace of mind is on the case, misery is in denial,
Yesterday’s squally day, tomorrow’s skies are azure blue.

Dreams of history’s tension gladly start to ease
Gripping claws of lunacy finally shun the past
Seems things turned out badly for hunger and disease
Slipping towards unity, laying down the guns at last.

Call my neighbour as my friend, our meanings line as one
Colour, gods and politics accepted as they are
Mutualities to defend no conflict clouds our shining sun
Consideration and respect, a communal repertoire

Mother Mary called today
Handed me a flower stalk
Kissed my worries clean away
We solve most things if we talk.

Need as might we understand equality’s a bed of lies
Celebrate uniqueness as a cast of human thread
Day and night, hand in hand, no polity compromise
Learning from our weakness past, focused on the light ahead.

Mother Mary spoke today
Led me on a learning walk
Eased my troubles on the way
We solve most things if we talk.

Mother Mary sang today
Left me with a simple thought
The wisest heads will simply say
We solve most things if we talk.
"We Solve Most Things If We Talk"

Contented Man (Seagull, Oddrun, Peter, David)

A Portuguese Cyrano, how would he be?

I have an older version (not published here in SoundCloud) with a faster tempo. Here I tried to slow it down to see if it still works.


Nascido para vencer,
senhor do meu nariz.
Mas tu podes crer:
Nunca serei nada neste país
à beira-mar plantado.
Já não escapo do meu fado.
Só me resta ser feliz.

E as melodias, e os sonhos desta arte
seguem-nos,
seguem-nos por toda a parte.
E ao partirmos com as lembranças,
com o talento, com a esperança e o sentimento
de uma nova madrugada,
é um novo dia, cheio de versos, de poesia,
e a suave companhia de umas tágides anafadas.
E as doces brisas, e os furacões da sorte
levam-nos
levam-nos para além da morte.

Porque a vida eterna é esta:
Que te conheçam a ti só
por único Deus verdadeiro
e a teu filho, a quem enviaste.

E, ao repousar na terra,
os corpos unem-se às raízes
e as vidas áridas e estéreis
crescem lindas e felizes.

Nascido para vencer, senhor deste país.
Mas tu podes crer: Nunca serei dono do meu nariz
na face mal plantado.
Já não escapo do meu fado.
Só me resta ser feliz.

Nascido Para Vencer (2024)

Words and music By Roger Whittlesey. Saxophone arrangement by Georg Boehme. Boehme plays soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone saxes. He also plays the bass clarinet. Noel Barrett plays the bass guitar. All other sounds by Whittlesey. © 2024.

Dear Reader, 

In Shakespeare's play "Hamlet," Ophelia drowns herself in what is a terrible and tragic scene late in the play. 

The idea for this song came when I recognized that the grief of loss, missed opportunities, and mistakes compound as we age, and they don't leave us. Instead, these emotions seem to haunt us—often surprising us when we least expect it. And so, these feelings are akin to the tragic drowning of Ophelia, except that they seem to happen again and again—hence the title of the song. 

Georg Boehme, a brilliant arranger, composer, and horns player from Cologne, Germany, joined me on this piece. I sent Georg the basic tracks and gave him no instructions. He knows what to do, and he always exceeds my expectations. His playing on this piece is amazing. As you get to know Georg's music, you will begin to see that he has a unique style, and it shines through in all that he plays. Thank you, Georg, for lending me your immense creative talents. 

Last week, I sent what I believed was the finished version of this song to Noel Barrett, an outstanding bass player from Cork City, Ireland. I knew he would dig the work that Georg did on the track. And he did. Without any prompting, he replaced the bass part that I laid down—and improved the tune tenfold in the process. Noel has rock-solid time and brings a melodic sensibility to everything he plays on the bass. It is a great pleasure and honor to have him guesting on this song. 

Finally, I thank you, my devoted listeners, for your comments and for your repeated returns to my channel. 

I have much more music to write. This is only the beginning of the journey. 

Highest Regards, 

Roger Whittlesey
July 9, 2024

Ophelia Drowns Again

method: employing the presets of the arpeggiator on the a50 to narrow in on philip glass, bbc's celts, orinico flow, the moldau, pata pata or sonamos or whatever your enlarged and numerous senses might perceive
narration: a flow, a bend, afloat
image: copyright jo richter

poem / copyright jo richter

striations of birthing she bore
as though no one had suffered before

shattercone . the final couplet

shattercone - the final couplet

You Said I Got It Coming.

"Magic is what we do. Music is how we do it." -- Jerry Garcia

Welcome to my page, my peers, associates, friends, and musical family. I'm a lifelong, multi-instrumentalist musician who records prolifically and joyfully. You'll hear me play guitar, bass (regular four string, and four and five string fretless), mandolin, banjo, keys (piano, organ, synth), lap slide, sitar, and sing on my recordings here. I've been in a few dozen bands in my life, playing everything from bluegrass, jazz, rock, jam band, reggae, funk, afrobeat, Middle Eastern, traditional Irish, singer/songwriter, pop/covers, to experimental/avant garde. 
  Since I found SoundCloud a couple years ago, I've found many talented, creative people with whom to create music. However, in the summer of '23 I formed a band called The Eclectic Collective with some of my favorite musicians I've met through here. It started as a loose collective of musicians and coalesced into a core group of musicians who find other musicians with whom we'd like to make music, then run their songs through our process, and in effect add a full band. That core of The Eclectic Collective includes Tez (Llanpsych), J.J. Terrel, Ken (K2 and the Three), Stephen (Texmex Shaman), Chris (cgmaness), and Mark (mistermark). A couple of other musicians are frequent collaborators, as well, including Artur of Surfers Like Us, and Steve Vervaet of Steve's World. More recently, we've been joined by Carl of The Beautiful Dark fame. 
  The magic of music is amplified exponentially by each person adding to it. So, we really try to add our sorcery all kinds of music from all kinds of artists. Sometimes, we keep it within the group, but a lot of what we do is collaboration with other artists. Therefore these days, 100% of what I do is collaboration, within the group or with other artists on the side.
  I, and we, are also available for hire if you have a song or lyrics and you really want to add bigger instrumentation or a band and good production to it. 
  A small sampling of the artists whom I consider primary influences, and whom you will hear coming through my fingers include Phish, The Flaming Lips, The Grateful Dead, Radiohead, Rye Cooder, Steve Earle, Miles Davis, Fela Kuti, Arcade Fire, Mikey Dread, Yellowman, Purpleman, The Meditations, Michigan and Smiley, Lee Perry, Dillinger, Django Reinhardt, Impossible Recording Machine, The Allman Bros Band, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Cream, Bela Fleck, Les Claypool, Sam Bush, David Grissman, John Prine, Talking Heads, Beastie Boys, MMW, Moe., Morphine, Ween, Steve Lukather, Michael McDonald, John Abercrombie, Dave Holland, John Scofield, Victor Wooten,  Cannonball Adderly, Thelonious Monk, Flea, Parliament Funkadelic,  Frank Zappa, Prince Paul, Pete Rock, Thievery Corporation, Amon Tobin, Chet Baker, Joao Gilberto, Stan Getz, Astrud Gilberto, Carol Kaye, Tame Impala, Mumford and Sons, Japanese Breakfast, LCD Soundsystem, Beach House, Sean Lennon, and Billy Strings, but of course there are many more. I also really like and am influenced by traditional Iranian, Palestinian, Indian, Sri Lankan, Sudanese, Mauritian, Somalian, Egyptian, West African, and Syrian music. I welcome anyone who plays non-western music to contact me for a collaboration, too.
 I'm overjoyed to have found my community on SoundCloud. This is a truly unique forum where everyone is sincerely trying to build each other up. The profoundly supportive and positive SoundCloud community has really opened up an exciting new world of collaboration for me. That is the main reason I'm in the Cloud, actually, to connect with other musicians and make music that I enjoy listening to, and hopefully others do, as well. I am ALWAYS looking to collaborate with interesting musicians, mostly though BandLab, which is where I record almost exclusively. It's a solid, free digital audio workstation hub where you can share recording projects, even if it's not where you make your recordings.
  Everything I do is live instrumental, not programmed, and using no computer beyond my phone. That's not to say that I would be opposed to using that kind of tool, it's just not my preferred medium with which to paint. If you like my music, please share it. If you want to collaborate, my BandLab handle is @bingo_pajama. Feel free to contact me at cornbreadband@hotmail.com, as well, even if you aren't on BandLab.
  If your music is primarily AI, please don't come around my page, as I'm not at all interested in complimenting a machine.
  Here's a link to music I've recorded live with a group of musicians here in Pittsburgh called The Northumberland Street Ramblers.
Check out The Northumberland Street Ramblers on #SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.app.goo.gl/fU4Me

Gallows Pole by Led Zeppelin (Eclectic Collective with John Anthony)

Entheogenic Psychonaut (Josh Clary)