NORTHERN LIGHTS 03 - Early Sketch
The final version too!
“Northern Lights” and “Northern Lights (Alternate Version)” hit the street last week. Look for them HERE.
Today I’m sharing an early sketch of the song. As I listen to it now, I assume we must have known that some of those lyrics were serious clunkers deserving of ‘placeholder’ status. That’s probably why I uncharacteristically drenched the vocals in reverb.
Around 2001 I began working as a media composer. That’s a fancy way of saying I made music for film and tv. Around 2007 I fell into the ad world. Over the next several years, I worked now and then making music for commercials. One of those pieces evolved into “Northern Lights.”
The instrumental intro on the early sketch posted above will give you a good idea of what I submitted for the ad. I call it ‘guitar wallpaper.’ Repeating fingerpicked patterns create a background that, if done well, is as interesting as it is ignorable. At some point, I’ll have to dig into my composer library and share some of the music I’ve made for picture over the years.
For now, we can compare the early sketch above to the final recording. I’ll save you a trip to your favorite music platform and post the record here.
There’s so much more going on on the record. Perhaps we can get into all that another time?
Until then, here is a wonderfully crummy old phone photo of my live room workstation from 2011.
Peace & Love Songs,
Pete
I love this version! Thanks for sharing it.
I don’t where to post this but here it is...
I do like your posted work but (I guess there is always a ’but’) I totally and completely see and listen to as an album artist.
Your “Find A Door” album is one of the most amazing albums I’ve had the pleasure to own. My library has cumulatively been in excess of 4k albums, tapes, and CDs ranging from ABBA to Zappa and literally everything in between. This is one of the best produced releases I own and I have all of The Pink Floyd, The Band, David Bowie (up to the Berlin created albums), and Delerium Records. The mixing couldn’t be any better but what hooks me every time is the mastering of Stephen Marcussen. He took your excellent performance and sequenced it perfectly within the album and the relationship of the previous song and the following song.
It is still in my rotation, your sound has been prevalent since its release. It still bugs, puzzles and confounds me that this isn’t talked about by the critics. If re-released today it would fly and sustain altitude.
I know I sound a tad exaggerated but I’m not. I know what is good and what is not. You captured a feel as if it came out of Memphis like a Stax or Ardent recording. The sound was tight without a stiffness yet it flowed with purposeful movement.
Thank you for creating this album.