The READIN Family Album
Me and Sylvia (April 4, 2002)

READIN

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The very idea of the (definitive) translation is misguided, Borges tells us; there are only drafts, approximations.

Andrew Hurley


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🦋 A Desperate Little Man

Ok, I'm pretty happy with this recording. Not perfect, there are several places where I have rhythm trouble and I generally have a little trouble with starting the verses; but the ratio of moments that work to embarrassing gaffes is a good deal higher than on the previous attempt.

(I re-recorded this tune. See the new post for the recording.)

Here is a story about "John Hardy Was a Desperate Man": It is my very favorite Carter Family song out of those that I have heard, which is a fair portion of their catalog. (Yes -- I even like it better than "Will the Circle be Unbroken".) Listening to it just puts me into a trance. Sadly I have not listened to it in a couple of years because I lost the disc on which it is recorded -- but this has a very nice upshot. In all that time of not being able to listen to the original I feel like I have come up with a very worthwhile version that is properly my own. The chords are different from the Carter Family's version, the key is different, the melody is different. This is about the only song that I cover where my version is really substantially different from the version I am covering. (Not to imply that my covers are of similar quality to the originals, just that they are imitative.) Anyway, listen to it and let me know what you think.

I am thinking maybe I should try playing this in A minor or G minor, that that might be better suited to my vocal range. I had originally chosen D minor because the guitar part is really easy there; but seeing as that's not a concern currently....

Yes! It sounds way better in G minor. I will re-record it later this morning.

posted evening of Saturday, December 22nd, 2007
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Nice! I like the way the phrase patterns in the fiddle (is it viola?) and vocal parts are differentially aligned. Gives it a pleasantly unsettled feeling.

GS

posted morning of December 23rd, 2007 by Gabriel

Yeah, viola. Thanks!

posted afternoon of December 23rd, 2007 by Jeremy

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