[Tomás F. Calvo]

The big publishers are very sneaky (nicest word I could find), when publishing songs in public domain. For example, the Kingston Trio got sued for “Tom Duley” even though the song was in public domain, because they did a “version” that had been published. Like the Skye Boat Song, that was redone for the Outlander TV series, with the new lyrics they can copyright that, so if you do the version with their lyrics, you’d be infringing on their copyright. They are also collecting royalties on the song being played, a % of the full royalties that would normally be allocated, but none the less an increased income.

With YouTube, it’s a one-sided thing, meaning that whatever they say you have to abide by it whether you think you’re right or not. If you do a public domain song and change part of it, so you’d be entitled to lets say 20% of royalties, you might have a hard time communicating that to them if you’re not Sony or WB. I had a problem that somebody took a couple of the songs I had written and recorded, and put them up (my exact recordings) on iTunes and Amazon as his, as well as YouTube, Bandcamp and a few other places. I found out by chance, and though iTunes and Amazon were quick to take them down, YouTube never did and of course, I’d have to sue for back money which would be ridiculous.

So, the Beach Boys version of Sloop John B would not be in public domain. The music industry needs to change from the roots up.

[Tomás F. Calvo]

This is great exercise. I have to say that the MLT are the only band other than the Beatles, which I like all their songs (even if I skip over Revolution #9)

1. The Wide Wide Land
2. All About Falling in Love
3. Nothing Is In Vain
4. Dreams
5. Count On Me
6. Still A Friend Of Mine
7. The Best Years Of Our Lives
8. Bus Stop
9. God Only Knows
10. If I Fell/This Boy

It’s hard to leave so many good songs out, but for these requirements, this would be my choice. I know I cheated at the end with the Beatles cover, but If I Fell is a favorite of mine, while This Boy is sheer MLT perfection, and it has that little extra in the voices that you just can’t put your finger on it that makes it extra special, so one of those two.

The thinking behind this for me is to highlight their immense talent.

Thanks!

[Tomás F. Calvo]

I found MLT at least 2 years ago now, though it seems like I’ve always known them, when I was researching covers of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”. I had learned the solo and was planing to do an all guitar version. When I saw the MLT version I was floored, and humbled. There are so many versions of the song out there and they routinely butcher it, even by established artists. Also knowing how difficult it is to play the solo properly, and how hard it is on the fingers, it blew me away how Lisa’s little Bruce Lee fingers were all over the fret-board with incredible agility and precision.

That took me to watch their other videos, and again it blew me away how they were covering all my favorite songs, impeccably. That made me an instant lifetime fan and the more I hear them and know about them, the more and more I like them.

 

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Jung, to play backwards now a days you need audio editing software, and they have an option to reverse the recording, so it’s pretty simple if you have the software and have some knowledge on how to use it.

As a teenager I had the LP’s and I’d just turn on the record player so that the needle was active but the tray not spinning, then just sit the needle on the record and manually spin it backwards. I found out early that all that “turn me on dead man” and “I buried Paul” was BS.

With cassette tapes it was a bit trickier but more reliable, once you got the cassette inverted. I would wind the tape all to on end, then open it up and flip the reels so that the tape would play upside down, close it back up, then fast forward the tape all the way to the other end before playing it or the tape would get bunched up. Listening to full songs backwards at the right speed was quite something, especially “Rain”.

So here’s what I’ve done with “Once upon a time”. Howard, you’re right that the sound sort of shifts, and that’s where some experimenting will come it to make those transitions more “inaudible”. With some knowledge of how sound waves work, especially when two or more sounds overlap each other and the waves are “added” together, I have mixed the sound waves of a part of “Once Upon A Time” and a clip of the twins mentioning the community. I’ve done it in such a way that depending on how you listen to it, you hear the song (maybe if you listen carefully you notice there are some voices buried deep talking under it -Jacki-) or you hear a completely different recording. The second clip starts with the same music, but then the music stops altogether and the twins do their speech (which I took from one of their videos) and ends with it going back to the music clip. Where the music “shifts” is where you (Howard) hear that phasing, in the clip that’s all music, and there is where the recording “splits” into two, and later merges back. I chose the audio clip and the music clip so that the words on both would complement each other.

If you hear it in stereo then you are hearing the all music clip, but if you hear it in mono, then you are hearing the twins speak. The easiest way I found to play things in true mono these days is to hear it through the speaker of a smartphone. I don’t know if any smartphone has stereo speakers, all the ones I know are mono. So playing it on a phone on the speakerphone the two channels are mixed into one and that’s when the magic happens. I found it interesting that if you’re on a smartphone and you a listening with headphones, then you unplug the headphones and suddenly you’re listening to something different altogether.

Another way to listen in mono on your computer is to set your speakers to mono in the sound settings, if you know how to do that.

What can I say, I’m a geek and a nerd.  Thank you for putting up with me and bearing through it, I find these things fascinating. Today’s technology is magic to our ancestors, so what future technology is today’s magic?

I also hope Mona, Lisa, Michaela and Rudi are OK with me playing with their music in this manner! And I trust that they will let me know if they don’t think it’s OK for me to do so.

And last but not least, Stay Groovy!!

Tomás

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Hi Jung,

I hear at the end “yvurgy ets (sigh) yvurgy ets (sigh) yvurgy ets (sigh) …”

But I have to admit that I had to hear it backwards to figure it out. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

On the clip that I posted above you’ll hear two different things if you listen to it on a phone with or without headphones.

Stay Groovy!

Tomás

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Thanks Jacki, this helped last night with a spell of insomnia.

Funny enough, when finally, after the sun was up, I had a cup of coffee then I fell asleep. Go figure…

MLT kept me company, so it wasn’t that bad 🙂

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Jacki, love the “Twizzlers” 3D writing. And full steam ahead for 2019!

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Yes Jacki! What can be better than a MONA LISA NEW YEAR!

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Thank you Jacki and Howard! I’m glad you like it, and I love seeing loving creations, so I hope you keep posting Jacki!

Hope you had a great Christmas and looking forward to a great New Year! ✌️

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Thank you Jacki!

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Yes Jacki!  They are wonderful and very caring. Got mine today too, was not expecting it either.  ❄️ ???? ✌️ ❤️ ????

Thank you!

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Thanks Jung!

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Miguelito! (my middle name is Miguel/Michael) Thanks, one spends time on the things he likes right?

I stumbled on this by “accident”, how else? I was doing a quick birthday video for my niece, and to quickly double track the guitar and make it sound bigger, I did this (duplicated and flipped it) and then heard it on the phone and there was no guitar! That was a few years ago, but it stayed with me until I thought of something to make use of it.

Hence, yes, I’m a nerd, can’t hide it. I run servers for private community websites, so can’t escape it either!

Thanks,

Tomás

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Thanks Stephen, most of them are the exact models, others the closest I could get, like the 12 string from “Nothing Is In Vain”, I think it’s a Hagström, with an added tremolo bar, but I’m not sure, and their Hofner bass is one of only 12 made, so I had to improvise a bit there. Love guitars so it was a fun destressing pastime. This version is not print quality, but if the Twins want I can send them the photoshop file.

[Tomás F. Calvo]

Hi Rick,

I’m sorry if I didn’t understand the protocol properly for this section. Didn’t mean to speak out of turn.

✌️❤️

Tomás