Original Music By Michael Delgorio
Here's the explosive title track written and recorded in 20 minutes live on my iPhone voice memo. A talented musician and old friend who shall remain nameless -- whom I wanted to collaborate with musically --, challenged me to do an original song. It seems he had no interest in recording a cover. This is that. It's one of a dozen odd (genre defying) originals done for that project. The lyrics are based on the FOMO (fear of missing out) stresses related to people’s addiction to mobile devices, social media and the premise that all the good that technology provides us should be tempered by responsible usage and self-control. A lyric line encapsulates the words of caution: 
“…Everyone’s trying to get ahead; I'm just trying not to wake up dead.” 
I had envisioned this universal “plea of hope” as a soundtrack to a film noir that provides caution about getting caught up in technology’s deadly hypnotic web -- with few chances of breaking free. 

Please note: Sound effects and a bass line were added in GarageBand. 
The Original Recording was done in my garage (really, actually) and the "reverb" is soto vocce natural echo with the sound bouncing of the walls. 

Three very small amps were used to track the percussion, vocals and guitar track -- all recorded concurrently in one take. Since I tend to lean towards ballads, this 127 bpm track is a bit out of my wheelhouse. 

So, it comes from another place in the universe. A re-mix and master was undertaken in May of 2016 to clean up the tracks, get a higher resolution aural experience and apply the punk bass line which, in retrospect, is pretty rocked up for its genre. 

Comments, shares and likes are entirely appreciated. 

Oh, and, that friend? I never did record with him. Seems he moved onto other things and recording original music wasn’t one of them. Isn’t it a pity?

Say, Oh Hey (to the Universe)

Nowhere

Prove You Right

Picturing Myself With You

Mississippi Men

Time & Place

Proceeds from the sales of Caroline's new single "Fall for Me" will aid in the rebuilding of homes destroyed by land fires in Portugal through the ADECOM Association. 

Fall For Me

Soft Spoken Words

Do you know the Meaning of Life? This ditty poses an answer for you to kick around. Here's a little song I whipped up for my Fall 2014 Release Album titled: "Say, Oh Hey (To the Universe)". It is an original that aspires to be a throwback tune. It speaks to the kind of creative released by The New Christie Minstrels, Peter Paul and Mary, Neil Diamond and, so many others on the 60's Folk Scene. It's meant to be a feel good fireside sing-along. So, open up a bottle of Boone's Farm wine, sit cross-legged on the floor in your flashy, colorful bell bottoms and flower power shirt. And, have at it. Up with people. Up with the Universe. Let's all go hug a tree, will ya'? Likes, shares and comments are most welcome. Peace, Love and Happiness on ya'!

A special shout out to  Peter Frampton for the inspiration on the TalkBox effect peppered oh-so-lightly into the second half of the track.

Meaning Of Life -Michael Delgorio - eMastered

A little ditty to evoke warm breezes, palm trees and the Island Life. Comments, Likes and Shares are most appreciated, mon.

Saturn Limousine - Michael Delgorio - eMastered.mp3

If Barry White invited Neil Diamond and Jack Johnson over for an impromptu music session at his favorite House of Worship, "(In the Name of) Old Cape Cod" might be the resulting track. It should be noted that the always awesome Sanna Hatfield (UK Based) vocals are featured on this upbeat and hopeful track. Her contribution to the final record's tone and attitude can't be overestimated; simply put, Sanna made the track what is: Thanks, Sanna!  This track is from the "Say, Oh-Hey to the Universe" sessions of original songs. Originally recorded in the third quarter of 2014 the track was remixed in May 2016 to add presence to both the Bass track, the keys track and then the updated file was enhanced to ultra high resolution MP3 sonic quality. At some point the true master in ultra high quality Wav file format will be released. As always, your comments, shares and likes are entirely appreciated. A follow would be super nice, too, if you want to be ahead of the crowd for new releases!

Old Cape Cod - Delgorio - Hatfield- eMastered

Here's an explosive track written and recorded in 20 minutes on my iPhone voice memo. A talented musician and old friend, whom I wanted to collaborate with musically, challenged me to do an original song …since he had no interest in recording a cover. This is that. It's one of several originals done for that purpose. The lyrics are based on the FOMO (fear of missing out) stresses related to people’s addiction to mobile devices, social media and the premise that all the good that technology provides us should be tempered by responsible usage and self-control. A lyric line encapsulates the words of caution: “…Everyone’s trying to get ahead; I'm just trying not to wake up dead.” I had envisioned this universal “plea of hope” as a soundtrack to a film noir about getting caught up in technology’s deadly web--with few chances of breaking free. Sound effects and a bass line were added in GarageBand. The Original Recording was done in my garage (really) and the "reverb" is actually natural echo with the sound bouncing of the walls. Three very small amps were used to track the percussion, vocals and guitar track---all recorded in one take. Since I tend to lean towards ballads, this 127BPM track is a bit out of my wheelhouse. So, it comes from another place in the universe. A Remix and master was undertaken in May of 2016 to clean up the tracks, get a higher resolution experience and apply the punk bass line which, in retrospect, is pretty rocked up for its genre. Comments, shares and likes appreciated. Oh, and, that friend? I never did record with him. Seems he moved onto other things and recording music wasn’t one of them. Isn’t it a pity?

Say Oh Hey - To The Universe - ReMix- eMastered

A talented Aussie songwriter challenged her musically inclined Twitter followers to suggest some music and lyrics around the theme of someone (like herself) busting out of a small town to conquer the world...with, all her unbridled youthful aspirations in tow. 

She called the concept: "To The Ends of the Earth." 

This is the result of that original effort. This demo was written for her to sing...so the male performance stands in that context. She sings like a bird...so, a top notch female vocal delivery should take it to the next level. 

I put this on my originals release CD called "Say, Oh Hey (to the Universe)” in the Summer of 2014...Though the original spare demo was guitar and voice only ( and didn't have any of the more ambitious production accouterments of the other originals on the album) I revisited the original take, remixed and eMastered “Cinnabon Life” in May of 2016. 
We'll see where this goes...with it remixed, additional orchestration added now the track approaches dare I say - a full-bore Ska feel. Please let us know what you think. Likes, shares and comments are most welcome. Get a frozen marguerita and, a large shaker of salt and have a listen, Mon.


Cinnabon Life - ReMix - Michael Delgorio - eMastered

The “Say, Oh-Hey” song sessions, from August of 2014, progressed nicely with new songs produced & posted every 7- 10 days. By October, with 11 songs already on the roster, we approached the 12th song considering: “Do we add a cover song thematically tied to the rest?…Particularly, if the song was a potential inspiration for the all proceeding songs?”
We all went with “Yes!” since one song would fill that bill: “Across The Universe” – by The Beatles. It's a song that was so ingrained our collective minds; we simply moved forward recording without listening to the original. The recording session done from our recollection was done with three acoustic guitars. And we did 8 takes to wrestle this song into a viable performance.
One cut and the opening guitar lick recorded with a 12-string Ovation & three were recorded with a 17” 1950 era Kamico Archtop…a favorite of ours for its' deep resonant voice. Those casual recordings were completed as iPhone Voice Memos. 
It was beneficial to go back & listen to the original haunting, prayer-like, words & music by John Lennon. We found on the original “Let It Be” record the tune was  somewhat disconnected from what we recalled the track to sound like. What’s this?: Lennon’s voice sounded overly processed, the backing vocals sounded canned and, overall, the production sounded less satisfying than remembered. The Phil Spector “produced” original just didn’t sound “right” to us in 2014. Then we grabbed the “Naked” CD version of the same “Let It Be” album, listened…& all was better. Lennon’s voice was true to form as recollected. The orchestration sounded less labored. Simple, elegant, masterful lyrics delivered honestly & inimitably in John’s unique, guru-like fashion. The power of this remarkable song was resurrected intact.
We had a demo record to complete. With this cover, we referenced the songs that came before on the “Say, Oh-Hey” album--while staying true to the intent of the original. There was John Lennon’s voice: probably one of the most iconic pop voices ever sculptured into vinyl over the last 60 years. THAT voice could never be duplicated, bested or re-imagined. Taking his “voice” off the table, we were left with a humbler voice, our orchestration & OUR phrasing. Perhaps the most off putting to the uninitiated is the odd meter in the original. 
No doubt, John Lennon was a songwriting rule breaker. There were odd bars of dropped beats; like John just got tired of strumming & decided to start the next verse after a pregnant pause…on-the-spot. There's a bar of 5/4 just before “Pools of sorrow, waves of joy”. “Possessing and caressing me” is also a bar of 2/4 and there's one bar of 4/4 (or, even a single bar of 6/4). He did the same odd signatures in the final verse (“Inciting and inviting me”). The 2nd verse is more conventional, but it has a extra beat before the chorus. We considered that irregular songs tended to come more from Lennon than McCartney, in part because John often wrote his lyrics first and fitted the music around them. For The Beatles it was all about creative expression and, to hell with convention in the book according to John.
Coincidentally, when we were done with this cover, the record ran about 9 seconds short (3:29) of the original “Naked” recording of “Across the Universe.” We were pleased with that given the random (let’s just sit down and do this) approach.
In that spirit, this cover recording references our other original compositions on “Say Oh-Hey” given the off-the-cuff approach we brought to this project. However, we’ve also cross-referenced the George Harrison styled Indian-inspired influences used by the Lennon-McCartney masters in their hay day. Hope you like our version…for all its foibles. 

Please note: The record was remixed in May 2016 and Mastered at eMaster.com during the same month.
Likes, Comments, Follows and Shares are most welcome.


Across The Universe - ReMix - Michael Delgorio - eMastered

Tween

If You Should See

One of my favorite Boss songs.
 (featuring Faces on Film and the vocals of Amelia Bradley)

The River

Pecas is the nom de canción of Brooklyn-via-Madrid artist, Sandy Davis. Through pecas, Davis invites us to dance slowly, even cautiously, as she mixes gentle percussion and breathy vocals into a brand of R&B that is both seductive and sinister. Playing off of the traditional tropes of “baby-making” music, it’s characteristically silky and smooth, but it’s music to do-the-dirty to with one eye open - where “Let’s Get it On” quickly becomes “You Better Run” if listening closely enough. The combination of glittering sounds and alluring vocals is a lethal one. Pecas is a gender-bending femme fatale for a new generation.

T-Shirt

Pecas - T-Shirt

Everyone loves a good story. We've enjoyed telling them in words, pictures and music. 

Please follow MichaeldelAard here and on twitter @MichaeldelAard. We've long been moved by the rough cuts, bootlegs and demos by storied artists both past and present because they show pure emotion, high creativity unfettered by auto-tune and over-production. The elimination of anything that could remotely resemble anything but a perfect track is not part of this stream. This project is more about spontaneity. You'll find perfectly human imperfections and, spare (lean and mean)demo productions throughout. On occasion, though all tracks were recorded ultra-simply on an iPhone's voice memo app, we would pull a track into GarageBand to add a track or sound effects (as in several of the originals, herein)...but all in all these are low-fat productions that reflect our most basic love for music and storytelling. Nothing more than that. Should a track tickle your ear, we'd be most grateful to here about it. Thanks for the opportunity to share with you. Follows, comments and shares are welcome.

Across The Universe - ReMix - Michael Delgorio - eMastered

MichaeldelAard

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