IanD

@Texaspackerfan your vocals are great, i’ll bet that most people would be very happy if they could sing like you! Ian

Wow!! Danny, that’s fantastic - I love it! I actually like everything about it, it’s a great song that I’ve never heard before and I love your arrangement, playing and singing. Great job! Just one minor suggestion - I’d like to hear your vocal a little louder in the mix. Ian

Superb @WATSON43, well done! Ian

I’d love to hear you do Wild Horses some day, that’s a great song. Ian

@mark_h, sounded fabulous to me. Beautifully played as always. @Wim VD1, I love the way you find tenuous relationships between the theme and the song 😁. I remain impressed with the progress you are making, great job. Well done @Nutty 1, you have a lovely tone to your voice. Ian

Very cool @CapM, great job! ian

@DianeB, thanks for making the commitment to keeping everyone posted, it’s hard to find time. As I mentioned to you, I have always waited eagerly for the daily updates to see what you were all up to. Well, this year I attended and it was the experience of a lifetime! i can’t begin to describe everything, I’d be here for hours. However, the highlights where: 1. The people: what an amazing group of friendly, supportive people from all over and with a common interest. 2. Steve’s sessions: he was on great form and kept us well entertained with his great wit while he educated us in the way we all know he can. 3. The private evening concerts: the four acoustic players seemed to bend the rules of physics to coax jaw-dropping sounds from their instruments. Johnny Hiland, his band and his guests were on fire, what a priviledge to watch them. 4. Great workshops and jam sessions led by awesome people. 5. Getting to meet my great forum friend @gotto for the first time after knowing him for a decade. We spent lots of time together and he graciously drove me around because I was nervous about driving on the ‘wrong’ side of the road. 6. Playing live on stage in Nashville with Greg!!! Unfortunately, my nerves got the better of me and I messed up (sorry Greg), but I did it. 7. Going to the Grand Ole Opry with Diane after the conference closed, such a delight, and being treated with another amazing/dazzling guitar display from Nashville duo ‘Striking Matches’ who drew a standing ovation from the Opry crowd. ( @Steve Krenz you should consider getting Striking Matches on your show, they were amazing at the Opry). Sadly, it’s all over now and I’m on my way home. A huge thank you to Steve, his family, team and all the contributors. This is clearly a massive undertaking to organise and deliver and we all appreciate it enormously. Finally, thank you to my dear friends for your warmth and company. ian

Thanks Diane, very useful. Ian

I am very, very excited! Ian

Wonderful Kevin! Very well done! Interesting that 3 out of 4 so far this month are Beatles tunes. Ian

WOW! Fantastic @Wim VD1. Very well played. Ian

So sorry to hear that Opie. I hope it all turns out well, take care. Ian

Great theme this month. Here’s a two minute tale of lust, revenge, arson and Scandinavian decor written by two young lads from Liverpool in the year I was born. This was great fun to do. Ian

@mark_h Beautifully plated Mark, well done! ian

@Randy120. Great job Randy. I miss your vocals though. ian

@Texaspackerfan Danny, well done! Really well played, I very much enjoyed listening. I hope you feel better now. Ian

@WATSON43 Well done Kevin. This track is beautiful, I really enjoyed it. I love listening to the sound of your voice and the playing and performance were very smooth, suiting the track well. Ian

Have a look on your iPhone/iPad for what looks like an app called 'Extras'. This is actually a kinda folder with a few apps in it, one of them is 'Voice Memos'. Once you open it, it's just a case of pressing the big red button to start recording and pressing it again to stop recording. Ian

@Wim VD1 Fantastic! I really can't believe how much you've progressed, that really was superb. And, who doesn't like a bit of Quo? For any transatlantic buddies who are not familiar with Status Quo, but like good fun rock and roll, then look them up. They opened Live Aid in '85 with 'Rockin' All Over the World'. Ian

@mark_h It's so good to have you back. That track was superbly played as usual. Ian

Hi @The deuce, I couldn't see in the thread what phone you're using. If you have an iPhone or iPad, then just use the Voice Recorder app that should already be on the device. It is simple and the quality is great. I have posted a recording here which was recorded just on an iPhone with no further processing. My 'next step up' recommendation would be a Zoom H1n handheld recorder (or one of the more expensive ones if you want more features). Very simple and great quality. Ian

Thanks Fret, I understand what you're saying. I'll try it! Ian

Hi everyone, I will be singing a couple of songs live with my guitar next Saturday at an intimate evening session organised by my singing teacher for students to build experience in performing in front of others. From previous ones I've done, I've learned that it's not good to practice unplugged and then suddenly be surprised by the sound when you're plugged into a loud P.A. on the night (one night was a complete car crash)!! As a result, I've been making an effort to practice with a mic and my acoustic guitar both plugged into my acoustic amp and with the volume turned quite high (sorry neighbours!). Anyway, a couple of evenings ago when I finished, I messed around with a song that I won't be doing on the night and haven't done before. I was pleasantly surprised and quite pleased how it turned out so I thought I'd share. So, this is sung and played live through a Loudbox acoustic amp and was just recorded on my iPhone (no editing and no post-processing). The ending needs some work though. For anyone out there that is looking to venture out of the bedroom and try performing in front of others, i.e. at open mic, I'd thoroughly recommend that your practice includes simulation of what might happen on the night (e.g. you can't hear yourself properly through the monitors, or the P.A. sounds incredibly loud and bassy, or somebody drops a glass... all of these things can really put you off). Ian

Great @WATSON43!. Kevin, I really look forward to hearing your recordings. Good job! Ian

Beautiful @Mike Hoodenpyle, absolutely beautiful! Ian