Another new single from blues musician Alex Carter, again featuring my drums recorded at my studio, and mixed by studio engineer Chris Barwise. ‘Soft Man Blues’ also features harmonica from Bennie Hayfield.
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Following the release of singles ‘Blue Boy‘ and ‘Last Warning‘, Alex Carter’s full album ‘Call It Rock And Roll’ is finally out on all platforms.
Featuring my drums recorded at my studio on five of the eight tracks, and piano on one, the album is available on Spotify, Amazon and Apple Music. Mixed and mastered by Chris Barwise.
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The second Alex Carter single I have recorded on drums at my studio. Mixed and mastered by Chris Barwise.
Look out for more new music from Alex Carter coming soon!
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I had a great time recording for blues artist Alex Carter last month, and Alex’s new single ‘Blue Boy’ is out now on all digital platforms – including Spotify, Amazon and Apple Music.
All the drums and organ parts for ‘Blue Boy’ were recorded ‘remotely’ here at my studio, before the track was mixed by record producer Chris Barwise.
I’m really happy with the overall sound and vibe I achieved in the studio – capturing Alex’s ‘raw, classic blues sound’ inspired by artists like The Stones, Chuck Berry and John Lee Hooker – and I am proud to have contributed to this record.
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I’ve had the privilege of recording both drums and organs on a new single from blues singer/songwriter Alex Carter in my studio this weekend.
With a super cool, groovy blues vibe, I have really enjoyed getting stuck into this session and getting the tone and feel of the song just right – both in my playing and in the choice of cymbals and studio techniques. Plus the session was also another great opportunity to run organs through my vintage Sharma 2000 rotary cab, which is always very exciting!
Keep an eye out for the finished single being released soon. I can’t wait for everyone to hear it!
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This year has been tough in all sorts of ways. Playing music is all I have wanted to do, since I was a kid. I spent my early teenage years dreaming of being a session musician – going out on the road, playing on records, working for different artists and producers. It’s been nearly fifteen years now, and that’s been going pretty well.
But 2020 has really knocked me sideways. I’ve struggled a lot with the lack of gigs, being at home so much more, and the uncertainty of the whole situation. I’ve kept myself as busy as I’ve been able to with remote studio session work and online music tuition, but I have missed playing shows so much and working with other musicians in amazing venues around the country.
I’ve tried to channel some of that energy (and extra time at home) into writing more original music – and last month, I released my solo EP When The Autumn Comes, the second record I have released under my own name. They were songs I had started writing over the last few years and never got around to finishing properly, and it felt good to finally send them out into the world.
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These are extremely uncertain times for everybody in the music industry. With gig cancellations the norm right now, I am attempting to maximise the amount of work I can do from home – and to help other musicians and producers get what they need…
So for at least the rest of this month, I am offering an appropriately specific 19% off all remote studio work – whether recording sessions on drums, percussion or keys, or mixing or production packages.
If you or anyone you know is looking for remote studio work at a good price during this difficult period, please do get in touch.
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I was recently asked whilst chatting with a colleague of mine in music tuition “What first got you interested in music production and recording?”
I’d never really thought about that. But it was certainly an intriguing question, and I thought about it a deal more over the next few days. I realised the reason I hadn’t considered that before was that it had always felt like a perfectly natural thing for a working musician to be be involved in. Almost like asking a taxi driver what first got them interested in steering.
The music world is becoming more digital – more online – all the time. In fact, you can remove the word ‘music’ from that statement altogether. Technology is a fact of life in every business, including ours.
I like to think that, throughout my career, I’ve tried to take the approach that if somebody asks you to do something which you don’t currently do, you can choose to turn it down and stay in your little niche – or you can choose to learn how to do that thing, and expand your skillset and add another string to your bow. You never know where that might take you.
When I was asked to run a line-up of Ultra ‘90s a couple of years ago, I knew nothing of programming lights for stage, nothing about DMX, or MIDI control of DMX – but I took it on, and I learnt.
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You may have noticed that the Studio page of this site has been down for the last couple of months – with just a placeholder image teaser and no information… I was hoping to have everything completed before now. But things get in the way! However, the last few months have seen some pretty radical changes in my little studio space, and I am so happy with how it’s all coming together that I am very excited to reveal the new look to you all.
My workspace has expanded, and now fills a little alcove one side of the chimney breast. I have a wonderful new desk to sit and work at; this desk was custom-built for recording studios by my friend and colleague (another Ultra ’90s drummer!) Curtis Aaron, with built-in racking for studio rack gear and a large surface area to work on. The addition of an external GPU has allowed me to move to a three screen setup when working at the computer, giving me extra flexibility for working on studio projects. And the mix position has been treated with acoustic sound absorbers and bass trapping (also made by Curtis) to help me to get the best-sounding mixes possible.
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A few months ago, I had the pleasure of recording an original song in my studio; Lady Will You Be My Friend is a song from the debut novel On The Edge by retired Norfolk GP Tony Ashman – the song appears in the text of the book, and is sung by one of the main characters at a pivotal point in the plot. Without giving too much away, the song has quite an impact on the narrative!
Because the character in the book is a guitarist and singer, I was able to ask my friend James Porter to play guitar on the session at my studio in Norfolk. I then sang the track, and mixed it.
The finished track is now available to listen to on YouTube here:
On The Edge is published by Paul Dickson Books, and is available to buy from the publisher direct or on Amazon.
