Mastering Finished; Kickstarter Support Project Launched

July 5th, 2010

I finally have a master in hand of Unsung Heroes – really! I know you’ve heard this before, but this time it’s for real. It’s been a long but rewarding journey. I learned a lot of new skills this time around; it was crazy to take on the mix from the ground up but I’m happy with the result and elated with the accomplishment. Thanks, Dave Darlington for taking me through it the first time through, and also to Tyler McDiarmid for all his assistance and tips on the second go round.

Now it’s time to design the liner materials, both online and physical, get the CD manufactured and publicity to help send this child out into the world. The point has come where resources are a little tight, so I’m reaching out to fans and friends for help through a cool fundraising tool called Kickstarter. Kickstarter projects enable independent artists like me to raise funds for their creative work and offer cool stuff in return. In the case of my Kickstarter project for Unsung Heroes, I’m offering pre orders of the CD and downloads, additional products and some other real hip stuff. I invite you check it out and contribute! Believe me, I’m offering good count. My Kickstarter project “Get My ‘Unsung Heroes’ Project Out To The People!” can be found at:

http://www.kickstarter.com/e/K0DAS/projects/1927361678/get-my-unsung-heroes-project-out-to-the-people

Unsung Heroes Progress Report

May 9th, 2010

A short note for y’all – I’m on the road right now with mastering test CDs and things are sounding good! I think I’ll be ready to wrap it up when I get back to town on the 17th. The step after that is to get the design for the CD and the downloadable liner notes finished, get the downloads up the the site and ready to sell, and the CD materials to the manufacturing plant. I want to have something on the site by the end of the month.

I’ll be letting you all know soon how you can help us get this music to the next stage – which is promoting Unsung Heroes consciousness in the hearts & minds of the jazz public. I’ll be looking for my true fans to take part in a collaboration to publicize and support the project. Stay close…

Dangerously Close to Mastering?

April 20th, 2010

“When will you make an end?” Soon, I swear it! I’m going through the Unsung Heroes tracks for the last time and I’m 3/4 done. I will ABSOLUTELY have all 26 final prints delivered to my estimable mastering engineer, Katsuhiro Naito, by next week at this time. 26 prints – what? Yeah, things got a little out of control there too. It looks like there will be 3 CDs of material coming out of this project; Vols. 1 and 2 and another volume of outtakes. I’m still looking for an online (download) release date by the end of May.

Progress Report

February 19th, 2010

I’d like to give you all an update on HMW (Hollistic Music Works) and its first recording project, my “Unsung Heroes” jaunt. We are moving forward on all fronts, but at a shall I say, more deliberate rate of speed than I had orignally hoped. I’m dealing with bringing a whole bunch of skills to the next level, from mixing in Pro Tools to conceiving project collaboration structures and working on a business plan. My scope seems to be getting wider, even as the specifics get more detailed. I’m starting to assemble a team of able folks who I’m very excited about. I’m working on making the concept of HMW both more expansive and more definite. I’m now looking at a May release for the “Unsung Heroes” material, at least the first batch. There is definitely going to be 2 CDs worth of material coming out of the sessions. One of the many things we’re figuring out is what will come out on the core CD, what comes out as download only, and what gets released in expanded and hybrid forms, as well as the workflow to produce the play alongs and Garage Band stems. We do have a little “trailer” video introducing the project, which you can check out here.

I’m moving towards a fuller concept of what I want this “entity” to be. I’m committed to the idea of using the evolving technologies to be a champion for the music I love, whether mine or of my extended musical family; whether old school or completely of the now. I want to create a structure to help make musical creation and propagation easier and more self determined, thus more fulfilling. I’m using myself as the test bed, but I am very much into working with other artists and creative forces. I’m already in talks with other artists about HMW partnering in project work ranging from education to recording.

I’m looking for feedback, so let me know your thoughts; ideas are welcomed and appreciated!

More Tracks Recorded for "Unsung Heroes"…

December 31st, 2009

It’s been always at the back of my mind since recording the material for “Unsung Heroes” that somehow I managed to track 12 different tunes without a single ballad. Nothing says that you have to include a ballad performance on a jazz record, but I always have had done so in the past (or an bolero on the Latin records), so I’ve been a little uneasy about it.

Now, at the last moment, I decided to correct this “oversight” by going back into the studio with the rhythm section to track what I thought would be two or maybe three ballads. Fortunately, the cats (Rob, David, and Pete) were available. Though we didn’t have time to rehearse and I selected the tunes on the spur of the moment, I think it turned out well, and we were able to record seven tunes in about four hours on the Tuesday evening before Christmas, Not all of these may make it on the project, but I’ve got good stuff to choose from:

Orange Blossoms (Idrees Sulieman)
Short Steps (Sulieman)
Heleen (Joe Gordon)
I Could Never Forget You (Tommy Turrentine)
Gone But Not Forgotten (T.T.)

The Sulieman and T.T. tunes I got through Don Sicker and Second Floor Music, and I believe are debut recordings, like some of their tunes from the original sessions last year.

We also recorded two more up-tempo quartet numbers, Donald Byrd’s “I’m So Excited By You” and an original blues I wrote on way way out the door to the studio, “Unsung Blues

This is not making it any easier to get this thing out the door!