I'm like a ship right out on the sea
And when the waves try to bury my soul
They bring out the stormy weather in me and I find my way back home

When you add up all your hope and desire
You know you're only as true as your deeds
But you can't fight fire with fire to be truly free

I'm a wistful suburban soul
And I walk in my sleep but my dreams are my own
Every person I meet
Seems to slip to their feet
When I walk by

In my time I've seen the skirts go up and down again
I've seen the fighting and the war
God knows it never ends
I've seen good men go to the wall
While the fools survive in the thick of it all
And in the end all I'm left with is me

Wistful (Original)

This is Dubup which has elements of Old-Style House, Trad, Drum & Bass and Dubstep.
Just some good old fashioned dance music to get your toes tapping. 

"Subliminal Dis"

You
Wanna be the
Best
You can
Be

But you're coming
On strong and you
Mean
Nothing to me

©2014 The Picnic Band

Subliminal Dis (Original)

The original of this was apparently written by Britney Spears but I must confess I know next to nothing about her. I got inspired to make my own version when I saw Travis doing it. So I took out all the "baby, baby" stuff (!) and changed the lyrics a bit to give it a hard male edge.
I made the video in one take using a Logitech Webcam and a Zoom H1 Handy Recorder really as a way of testing out my new Sony Movie Studio 12 video editing software so it's a bit rough. It's a very nice package (the "Suite" version) and I can't believe what good value it is - for what I want to do it's as good as Sony Vegas Pro that costs a zillion more!
Guitar used is an Epiphone Masterbilt AJ500R.

Video is over at YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1qWkHakIpc&feature=youtu.be


Hit Me Baby One More Time (Acoustic Cover)

This is a cover of Behind The Bars by Elliott Smith.
A real-time recording with voice and guitar made in the natural acoustics of my bathroom and with no digital processing.
Recorded using a Zoom H1 Handy Recorder with 32bit 192khz sample rate.
Guitar is an Epiphone Masterbilt AJ-500R.

Behind The Bars by Elliott Smith (Live Acoustic Cover)

This is a multi-tracked version of a demo I made around 94/95 and never took any further at the time. The idea for it came from what in Magik is called the "Magikal Imagination".
I had nothing to do on this hot sticky July day and just decided to make a better version with guitar and other instruments.
Produced in Sonar X3.

Little Song

This song is a little song to brighten up your day.
It's just a song to turn you on to a little game I play.
OK - now close your eyes and stay away from
Thoughts that make you sad
Banish all the bad things from your day that make you mad...
And you'll be feeling happy!

This song was a little song to brighten up your day
It's just a song. It's not so long
'Cos there's nothing much to say.
OK - make believe and after all just what do you call "real"?
In the end it's only what you see and what you feel.
So are you feeling happy?

©2014 The Picnic Band

Little Song (Original)

This is an acoustic cover of "In The Heat Of The Moment" by Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, one of the greatest British rock bands around today.

The single release date for this song is the 17th November 2014 and the new album "Chasing Yesterday" is due to be released on the 2nd March 2015.

The début album "Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds" was released in 2011 and every song on it is a gem.

IMHO Noel Gallagher is one of the most talented songwriters we have today, making everything he does appear to be simple when in reality the carefully crafted lyrics and musical arrangements are pure genius.

I'm very much looking forward to the release of the new album next year.

This is an acoustic interpretation and cover. I'm not a professional musician and I own no copyright.

Played on a Gibson J-45 Cobra Burst Acoustic Guitar.

See the video at YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBScgeyjYrM

This rendition was done in real-time using a Mobius ActionCam for the video and a Zoom H1 Portable Recorder for the sound. It was edited and rendered in Sony Movie Studio Platinum 12

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - In The Heat Of The Moment (Live Acoustic Cover)

Originally written as a guitar song this was a half-hearted attempt to jazz it up a bit. It ended up sounding like a film soundtrack and not at all what I had in mind. It sounds better as a straight acoustic guitar song so maybe I'll post an "unplugged" version one day.

In the meantime I hope you like it as is.

"Destroyer" by The Picnic Band

Thunder in the distance.
The Devil’s turn to pray.
Line of least resistance, take me all the way.
Searching for perfection your pretty eyes betray the truth
And I can see my own reflection inside you.

Sometimes the things you do make me want to scream.
How can you be so cruel?
Why d’you have to be...

A love-taker, trouble maker, heart breaker Devil Woman?
You electrify me when you walk by me.
You’re aiming to kill.
There’s poison in your veins.
Destroying is your game.

The never-ending story of love and life and lies.
Chasing hope and glory, it comes as no surprise.
Making a connection,
I’m feeling like a fool when I see my own reflection.

You’re a love-taker, trouble maker, heart breaker Devil Woman.
You electrify me when you walk by me.
You’re aiming to kill.
There’s poison in your veins.
Destroyer is your name.

Destroyer (Original)

Some lead guitar is on the way for the bridge but here's a demo.

Trust Denied (Original)

Trip Hop Dream

Did you know that you can go inside of a dream?
Making changes - rearrange it.
When you think you're awake,
Ask yourself if things are quite what they seem.
Is this for real?
You can train your mind to see behind
All your limitations
You hold the key to open all of your dreams.

You hold your breath but you're still breathing
And you realise you must be dreaming.
You take control - see what you wanna see.
And you know you can be what you wanna be.

Original music written and performed by The Picnic Band.
Created with midi virtual instruments, guitar and vocals in Sonar X3 Studio.
Mastered in Sony Sound Forge Pro.
©2016 Benjamin Osler

There's a video to accompany this song on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MYgo6q-VDc

Trip-Hop Dream (Original)

Blue skies shift to grey
A vale of darkness steals the day
A rumble turns to rage
Here comes the rain and your biggest fear
The wind of change

So come on down from the cloud you’re under
Let me hold you in my arms until the thunder blows away
Come on down
You know I hate to see you suffer
Destiny may set you free but don’t ever be afraid

Now the skies are clear
You wonder what it is you fear
The dawn is on it’s way
It’s almost here and it will be so bright
A brand new day


Guitar, vocals and keyboarded midi virtual instruments
Multi-tracked in Cakewalk Sonar X3 Studio
Mastered in Sony Sound Forge Pro 10
©2016 Benjamin Osler

The Cloud You're Under (Original)

A guitar cover of the Led Zeppelin song played on a Takamine EG523SC acoustic guitar in one take through a Marshall AS100D acoustic amp with some overdrive and added reverb. Recorded in real time with a Zoom H1 portable condenser microphone/recorder placed centrally and about a meter away from the speakers.
The first part of this is finger picked but at 1 minute and 51 seconds I pick up a plectrum (at this speed it is not easy). You can hear that if you listen carefully. The picking with the plectrum (after strumming) starts at 2 minutes 18 seconds. There is a point where both the plectrum picking and finger picking merges (using the third and fourth fingers for the finger picking) at about 2 minutes 23 seconds - This is NOT easy!. This is called "hybrid picking". You can hear that too if you listen out for it. At about 4 minutes and seven seconds I get rid of the pick and use finger picking again.
This is a cover arrangement and I own no rights to the original song

Stairway To Heaven by Led Zeppelin (Acoustic Cover)

A cover of a nice acoustic ditty originally performed by T-Rex and written by Marc Bolan.
This is an amateur performance and arrangement and I own no rights to the original song.

Girl by Marc Bolan (Cover)

This is a  blues standard written in 1923 by Jimmy Cox. Another bathroom recording here with vinyl-scratch added to make it sound like an old record. Acoustic guitar and voice. Recorded live on a Zoom H-1 portable recorder.

Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out by Jimmy Cox (Cover)

Standard cover here. Not much more to say except I wish I had a voice like Bowie's so that I could sing the damn thing properly. This song brings back so many memories.

Starman by David Bowie (Cover)

A pretty cheesy cover attempt but... We were part of it. Knebworth 76. Jules and me aged 14 just enjoying the sunshine and our first outdoor gig. That summer was incredible. We grew inches and miles. Hanging out with his bro in a basement flat in Chelsea with the Floyd and a sound to light system watching the circles in the tie-dyed sheets on the walls and having our first toke. I'd give anything to go back there.

See what we saw 38 years ago here:-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50SrPB5xcNQ

Freebird by Lynryd Skynyrd (Cover)

I'm not a real musician. The songs I write and the covers I make as "The Picnic" are really just an excuse to use what I've learned as a recording studio engineer; skills that I no longer use in a professional capacity. There was a time when I had a vague ambition to be a song-writer but I never tried hard enough and besides... I always liked pushing buttons and sliders too much for that.
The Picnic's album called "Small Boys and Boats" from 1999, a collection of material written and recorded much earlier, is posted over at YouTube. Odities and cover songs will be posted here.
The music I like to make is nothing like the music I like to listen to. You wouldn't catch me listening to this rubbish.

thepicnic

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