Thanks for the encouraging words everybuddy

This is so good ! I love the sounds you've used. Great work !

love the name! And it does sound sneaky :)  Great track that seems to have a bit of humour in it in an uplifting way!

Hi Mark! I had some fun sneaking a couple guitar tracks to your cool Reggae.I hope you like it!Anyway thanks for allowing me to jam along with some of your tracks.I will put it in my stream.

A collection of some of my better stuff, including a few collaborations and covers, organized into a sequence that hopefully makes for a nice 1 hour album for your listening pleasure. Hope you enjoy; thanks for having a listen, and for sharing your own stuff with us too!

(though I've been on SC privately since about 2013, I only started posting new stuff and sticking my neck out and connecting with other folks around Summer 2023. It's been a very rewarding & inspiring experience and I look forward to hearing more from you all as you flex your creative music muscles...)

-mark

Album: "The Goods"

revisiting an old favourite with new & improved sound quality, mixing and arrangement. This is basically a repeating chorus, which is pretty catchy, but I’d love to eventually compose the rest of this tune, and have it played by jazz musicians with live instruments one day. This is probably still one of my top 3 favourite tracks, but there’s a couple other versions I’ve posted on here - one with a saxophone playing lead melody: 
https://soundcloud.com/user-432503709/jazzy-ditty-new-med-quartet?in=user-432503709/sets/bestest-ones

and a slower extended version:
https://soundcloud.com/user-432503709/jazzy-ditty-belle-curves-blues?in=user-432503709/sets/bestest-ones

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here's some pictures I took: www.flickr.com/photos/mark_boucher/
my best photos on 500px (safe site): 500px.com/p/mrmark?view=photos

Jazzy Ditty (trio - piano)

This is a song that began with Steve (Steve's Planet)writing, playing it on acoustic guitar, and singing it on a stem he shared with Ken (K2 and the Three [and Four]), who added some perfect drums, as always. Ken then shared it with me, who added bass, and Tez (Llanpsych), who added some brilliant, tasteful guitar fills. We then got JJ involved, and he added the great, undulating organ. Finally, we got the master chef involved, Chris (cgmaness), who came up with some killer guitar riffs and mixed the whole thing very expertly. It must've been quite a chore, too, because there are a lot of magicians in this show. We all really feel lucky that Steve shared this song with us, and admire his singing and songwriting. We hope you enjoy our creation!

Romance by Steve's Planet (Eclectic Collective)

one of the very few tunes I've arranged almost entirely with sampled sounds & loops, this one was created entirely in Garageband without my trusty keyboard. Definitely going to try more of this...

instruments include upright bass, dobro (slide steel guitar), electric piano, vibraphones, drums, and me playing various percussion

All comments welcome, and don't be shy to be critical or suggest ideas to help me improve.   :)

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here's some pictures I took: www.flickr.com/photos/mark_boucher/
my best photos on 500px (safe site): 500px.com/p/mrmark?view=photos

Mark's Album (post-2020)

Dark Roast (electro-acoustic blend)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lEatn2oMkw

Star Lights

7 Space Speed

After I got myself some pretty realistic sounding VST horn sounds, the first thing I did was go back to the original solo piano version of this tune ("Finished Diminishing [echo version]) and laid down the muted trumpet melody, which I love.  Then I figured while I was at it, I'd also add an upright bass to round out a slow jazz combo. Threw in some vinyl static for an old skool feel. This is probably one of my top 3 fave original things I've written/recorded. And of course, I'd love to hear it played live by real Jazz musicians one day.

All comments welcome, and don't be shy to be critical or suggest ideas to help me improve.   :)

Photo taken from Trane Studio Jazz Club, Toronto
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here's some pictures I took: www.flickr.com/photos/mark_boucher/
my best photos on 500px (safe site): 500px.com/p/mrmark?view=photos

Finished Diminishing (jazz trio, ft muted trumpet)   [[my BEST track]]

more experimenting with arranging sampled sounds & loops. a little slow to build up, but once the horns and hammond organ kick in, it's pretty funky.

-sampled instruments include: rhythm & lead electric guitar, some bass, filtered piano, horns, some drums & perc
-instruments played by me include: organ, some bass, drums & perc  

All comments welcome, and don't be shy to be critical or suggest ideas to help me improve. :)

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here's some pictures I took: www.flickr.com/photos/mark_boucher/
my best photos on 500px (safe site): 500px.com/p/mrmark?view=photos

Sneaky Reggae

HyLGZ22 let me kindly play with one of his old tracks, I'm really fond of. I hope you will enjoy it !

Dimanche 16h, Le Soleil Revient (HyLGZ22 - Remix Damga)

The title and middle chorus (the only lyrics in the song) came from the fact that after recording, i felt it needed another section, like a bridge, but got too lazy to find something to fit. Thus the line “I can’t find the bridge to New Funk City”. 

Still can’t find it.   ;O)

This can probably be considered the 3rd in a trilogy of tracks created almost entirely with short loops and sound samples in Garageband ('Dark Roast', and 'Sneaky Reggae' are the other 2).
***Warning: your toezies might get sore from all the tapping they’ll be doing.


lyrics / chorus:
"Everybody tells me I got to go
but I can't find the bridge to New Funk City"


All comments welcome, and don't be shy to be critical or suggest ideas to help me improve. :)

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here's some pictures I took: www.flickr.com/photos/mark_boucher/
my best photos on 500px (safe site): 500px.com/p/mrmark?view=photos

New Funk City (where’s da bridge at?)

AlExperience - Line Level

This one came together fast!  Terry had this cool idea he sent over saying it was in D# minor pentatonic, so I was already excited when reading that as the minor pentatonic is where lots of guitarists cut their teeth.  
About a day and 1/2 later and it was done.  Sorta fell out of the sky-  so thanks to Terry and to the infinite cosmic fountain for this one!  It's the latest in the Texas Tea collabs and it's called 'True Story'

Catch the Texas Tea Playlist to hear more music from a better future
https://soundcloud.com/texmex-shaman/sets/texas-tea-sea

art credit: Tea R. Sea

True Story

True Story - w/ Tea R. Sea

another hot track by Cosmic Ratzzz to jam on ! Sax by me, all else by https://soundcloud.com/cosmic-ratzzz

Lunatics 110 In the Djungle

Une histoire de fin.. 
Paroles et musique EmmaJack 

Clap de fin, des espoirs défunts
Clap de fin mais non ce n'est rien 
Ris un peu la vie n'est qu'un jeu, 
Je caresse tes cheveux
Rien qu'encore un peu 


Clap de fin

Interpetation/Cover of Mikael Wiehes "Girl and the Crow" from 1981
Music/Compose/instrumental/vocal/mix and production :Stina Crow 2023
For music video please visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR6f5wy4c2A

ENGLISH LYRICS
The girl and the crow
I sat the other day and read my newspaper
A day like so many others before
And I thought about all those dreams
You dream that one after another have come to an end
 
Then I saw a picture of a girl
With a wounded crow on her arms
She runs through the forest
As fast as she possibly can
 
And her curly hair flutters when she runs
She runs on her thin legs
And she prays and begs and hopes and believes
That it's not too late
 
The girl is little and her hair is so bright
And her cheek is flickering red
The crow is clumsy and croaks black
In a moment it's completely dead
 
But the girl runs for her life
With a wounded crow in her arms
She runs towards safety and warmth
For what is real and true
 
And she runs with sparkling eyes
She runs with think legs
Because she thinks it's true, what dad has said:
If there's life it's never too late
 
And I run with my heart beating
I run with thin legs
And I pray and beg, but I actually know
That it is already too late

Flickan & Kråkan ( The Girl and the Crow )

As long as we keep feeding ourselves the mistaken idea that we are better as a country/race/people/high school than the one next door then we will never be able to actually live together and benefit from others strengths and learn how to strengthen our weaknesses.
Yes no two people are alike. Yes cultures have different foods/customs. but NO! one is not better than another. Just because you are familiar with something doesn't mean that something else is "worse"

lyrics

a round peg talked to a square hole
we seem to be very alone
why don't we get together
let's be friends 'let's build a home
I know your edges are sharp and harsh
you seem very stubborn and set in your ways
my wood is light and yours is dark
we are different in so many ways
but in the end we are both just shapes
not better, not worse, just different
so let's give it a try, what do you say?
together is better any old day


I don'e see how the square hole said
your shape is so amorphous
no start, no end  just smooth and endless
round and round you have no point that I can see
so go away and leave me be


then a carpenter came walking by and heard the conversation
I think I can be of help let me try
maybe It will be your salvation
so he took out his tools and went to work
he smoothed the squares rough edges with a stroke
then he stretched out the circle really long
at the end of the day the square and circle were gone
we were left with ...an oval and ellipse


while the fit wasn't perfect to both their surprise
it didn't need to be for them to survive
give a little, take a little, that was the key
compromise was all they needed to live happy
now they don't live alone but together happily

shape of things to come ( I hope)

songs used:
    Clay Young - Pickle Party
        https://soundcloud.com/clay-young-360347153/pickle-party
    Clay Young soundcloud:
        https://soundcloud.com/clay-young-360347153
    Clay Young instagram:
        https://www.instagram.com/clay.young.961/

   TsArWiCc - Come here
       https://soundcloud.com/tsarwicc/failureishere
   TsArWiCc soundcloud:
       https://soundcloud.com/tsarwicc
   TsArWiCc yahoo:
   Tsarwicc@yahoo.com

Clay Young & TsArWiCc - Pickle Party (dj Baubau Remix)

Dedicated to some folks in my life who've picked me up along the way, especially through music...

This is one I'm pretty proud of.  Oddly, it's the first time I’ve written a full original song with me singing my own lyrics. I'm joined by the uber talented @TexMex-Shaman, who is wielding the lead electric guitar starting at the first verse through to the end. (this is the second time now where my vocal melody is partly inspired by his magical playing!) He also lends his mastering skillz to great effect here. Thanks TMS for truly bringing this to life with your playing! 
All other instruments are played by me on the keyboard - acoustic guitar, bass, organ, Wurlitzer electric piano, 2nd electric guitar (the higher one in verse 2), horns, drums & percussion, words and voice. The chorus is supposed to sound like a 60's soul song, like Marvin Gaye meets Van Morrison. 
If you play this more than once I'm sorry but I'm afraid you'll be stuck with it in your head all day.  :)

This one's a personal one for me, so thanks for listening, and for picking us up with your music!

LYRICS: 

Verse 1
alone in the corner, that old six string whispers to me
ah but when daddy played, he could set your spirit free 
like the drops in the rain, or a forest tall and green
there's music alive all around
and mamma she told me, you must listen for more than the sound
and hear with your heart

Chorus     
(And then she’d) 
pick me up higher, pick me up higher, pick me up higher
pick me up, lift me up, build me up,  
pick me up higher, pick me up higher, pick me up higher
pick me up, lift me up, build me up, 
pick me up higher 

Verse 2
Now I’m writing my own song… makin’ music with old friends and new
But the joy of my days, are my beautiful daughter and you
And when you play that song, she would close her eyes and sway
all the while as she sings
And man when I hear her, whispered memories they lift me up still
like a bird on the wind

Chorus  

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Other credits: 
-second verse sample of 'Take Me Home, Country Roads' (by John Denver), performed by my 9 yr old daughter
-image design by me using Chat GPT
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Just for fun, here's a link to just the final chorus vocals and horns isolated: 
https://soundcloud.com/user-432503709/pick_me_up_vox_isolated
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here's some pictures I took:
https://500px.com/p/MrMark?view=photos

-mark

Sneaky Reggae

mistermark

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