November 20th, 2008

“Well, I guess I could spend a few minutes.”

….and so it began.  PJ and I started documenting his ideas. Little did I know this process would continue for the better part of the next decade.

With the sax put away, PJ borrowed my acoustic guitar (I think?) and we got started.

We cut one basic rhythm guitar track from beginning to end.  Then punched in a couple overdubs for second acoustic guitar parts.  Then we cut one take of the main vocal.  Here’s what it sounded like:

Shoebox (First Demo)

shoebox-first-demo

I get a kick out of listening to PJ’s voice on this version.  He was far less confident and comfortable in his abilities at this point in his musical career.  He hadn’t done much live performing yet as a solo singer/songwriter, with the exception of a few open mics here and there.

I hadn’t heard this demo in a long time and when I first listened to it I was startled by the amount of vibrato PJ had in his vocal delivery.  I’d never really remembered him using vibrato at all.  What I have noticed is that singers that are just starting out tend to overuse vibrato a lot.  It’s almost as if they don’t know that it’s OK to let your natural voice just be what it is.  Or perhaps it’s just an exploratory exercise.  Either way… as singers develop their vocal skills, many learn that all that vibrato is overkill.  In my experience, simply locking on the note and holding it, showing the purity in your voice, is what really takes the skill and confidence.  (I suppose that could be considered a matter of opinion)

As PJ’s vocal control developed over the years that followed, he really began to excel at being able to lock on to a note and hold it.  In fact I think it is one of my favorite parts of his vocal skill set.  I remember hearing him perform his ballad, “Boston” a number of times (live at Mercury Loung in NYC, Uncommon Ground in Chicago, or recently in his kitchen) and just being floored when he’d get to that point in the bridge.  He’d nail a note in his high falsetto voice and just lock on to it for like 4 bars!  It has the affect of a soft violin line just floating along with the music.  PJ has come a long way.  It’s great to hear an artist progress….and even more fun to be there to watch and document it as it transpires.

To show the progess, here’s where Shoebox ended up a year or so later on PJ’s first studio release Selections from the Shoebox.

Shoebox – Selections From the Shoebox