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=================================
'One
Minute With Dec'
"My
Emails Are Written With Good Humour And Should Be Read With A Smile"
[-The views of any
contributor to 'One Minute with Dec' are not necessarily the views of Dec
Cluskey-]
"Truth -
Accuracy - with no Flannel....that is our promise here at 'The Serious Writers
Guild'.
But we cannot vouch for the contributions of others...
Please alert us to inaccuracies and help us maintain our high standards."
Clive
Sanderson [legal dept. Serious Writers Guild] clivesanderson@makehits.com
"The
problem is not finding melodies, it's when getting up in the morning and
getting out of bed, not stepping on them"
johann
sebastian bach
"Hi Dec!
Fantastic! I just wanted to let you know that I was
featured last night by Special D - I presented the brand-new track of
my Project "Lumina": Summer is calling! What an audience!
What a reaction! Burning down the house!
In your courses you say: "YOU WILL BE PERFORMING LIVE" ...I
didn“t believe it, but I understood that this is absolutely essential
if you want to have success! Thanks for all your advice! I
appreciate very much! You are the best!
Flo"
============================
"Thanks for the inspired, perspective shifting stuff in the packs
so far.
Mark B Jackman"
============================
I used all of the "I ****
y*** ****" stuff and met the band, got some photos taken with
them, and made some contacts with the opening act's management. The
contact I made is with a Hip Hop act signed to EMI, and he said
they're willing to listen to any material I write.
============================
"Already I have
collaborated with two Members, P**** M**(*** and D***** B***** on a
track called 'Flirt'. Also P**** and I have formed '**** Music
Publishing.
I look forward to sharing a bottle of Champagne with you
when we celebrate our first UK Number One
L***** H****** Bsc [hons]"
============================
Giving of yourself works!
You will know that I always encourage music guys to give, give, give
to worthwhile personal charities. Simply because it
works!
If you can't give money, can't buy needed stuff and give it to those
in need [the best way!], then give your time. Sometimes time can
be even more important. For instance, my Celeb pals, we willingly
give up our valuable time to play golf, play at benefits and
generally just 'attend' functions. It encourages big business to
give to those great Show Business charities on a massive scale.
A 'for instance':
How would you like to stroll up to the first tee and have the team
sponsor introduce himself: "Hi Con, my name is Steve
Jenkins and these are my two pals....let's win this game"
Ring any bells? It was a corporate day run by 'Woolworth's
yesterday. Did you know that they are biggest record sales shops
in the UK? Steve, of course is the boss of 'Jive Records'.
Did my brother have an interesting round of golf? Yep!
Mind you, I was stuck in the studio, still tidying up the material for
our next release.
Steve was more than interested in 'The Serious Writers Guild' and
particularly the way we help those music guys who have not got the
dosh to pay the full whack for membership. Con spoke of the Member
in Nigeria who absolutely has blown everyone away with his music.
Yes, I felt he was keen and it would be right to help him with our
'Young People in Need' Foundation.
Can you help with our next venture?
If you are in the UK, you can be a part of a phenomenal benefit night
here in Eastbourne. I am devising and producing "A Gala
Night in the presence of Dame Vera Lynn". Vera is the
legendary Forces Sweetheart, so close to the hearts of every man woman
and child in the UK. A dear old lady now who, it is said, single
handed won the Second World War for the Allies...yes - her
entertaining the troops meant so much.
My pals, Paul Daniels, Roger De Courcy, Joe Pasquale, Jimmy Hill and
my band will be heading up a superb cast. The top night in
Eastbourne's calendar...we are on course to raise £25,000 to aid
Eastbourne's special needs children. 7.30 .....Friday 2 July,
The Congress Theatre, Eastbourne, East Sussex...Box Office:
01323.412000
Want to come? See you at the after show party? Email me or
call the credit card hot line on 01323.728005. You may even want
to take some Souvenir Brochure space. Now that will put your
name in front of people!
EMI....changes
It appears that EMI have taken a leaf out of Warner Brothers book and
tightened their operation. Top sellers of the year for
them were Robbie Williams, Kylie and Janet Jackson. Sadly they
made a pre tax loss of £152.8 Mill. compared with £162.8 Mill profit
in the previous year.
The slump in world sales is blamed, as well as the explosion in
copycat piracy. There have been 1,800 job cuts and they have
dropped 400 [yes! FOUR HUNDRED] artists from their books.
Alain Levy, the newly appointed boss, is on track to make £35
Mill from his personal three year contract.
The most asked question?
<<<<<<< I was wondering if you had any advice,
tips, secrets about the recording of vocals. Particularly with
reverb types and amounts? Do you use different amounts/types for
lead, double-tracking, harmonies, vocal effects, grunts and groans,
etc? >>>>>>>>
There is only one thing to remember when recording vocals:
"all the magic is in front of the microphone...not in the control
room"
There is no effect or piece of equipment that can make a bad singer
sound good.....equipment can make a great singer sound fantastic.
Simply ensure that the 'great' singer is recorded as near 0db as
possible. And as close to the mic. as possible, with a good
pop-shield.
It is the ambience of the room that will detract from the
quality....nothing to do with the microphone. Ensure the room is
acoustically 'dead'....simply clap your hands....if you can hear the
slightest slap back echo then you CANNOT record good vocals.
The amount and type of reverb is simply what makes the vocal a HIT
vocal.....
Harmonies and unisons/octaves are again, simply as many tracks as is
necessary [I would use four tracks of each harmony
line....so 5 part harmony would be 20 tracks]. The best
treatment for R&B vocal arrangement is extreme left / right
'chorus RSS' or on Protools it is called 'push it out'.
I cover vocals a lot in the releases of 'How To Make A $Million From
Your Music' at www.makehits.com
.
Having been locked in my studio for a week, with vocals aplenty, I
think I know that part of the game inside out! The two points
that stick in my mind is that the 'vocal' has to be magical, have
fairy dust sprinkled liberally over it. Also that there is only
one way to record guitars....with Marshall. I see that fact over
and over. Simply put: new strings, switch it on, plug in
....and voile.....stunning stuff. But then, it is the same as
the vocal...."ya gotta know what you are doin' "
It helps to have good guitars [always use 'new'] And it helps to
have been around the best players for your whole career. Never
miss an opportunity to sit in beside a top player. I never came
away from a recording session without a phenomenal lick or trick from
the top players on the session. Yep, I would always sit beside
them during all the rehearsals and run throughs. That is how I
can count them all as my friends today.
"Do
not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do"
john wooden
Have you got a Potential Number One
Hit?
I am repeating this request as we had problems with
sending 'One Minute' last week. Been in the top ten twice lately
and needs material for a solo launch:
Hi Dec,
My name is G** and recently was a member of an Irish pop
group who shall remain nameless at this point. I am now going
solo and I am on the lookout for a number one hit. I'm looking
for Pop music think Christina meets Anastacia. If you could
help me out or know of anyone that could it would be greatly
appreciated.
Thanks a million
G**
Please guys, only Potential Number One material. And you must
have the Pin Number: G260504 on the jiffy bag
or Email with MP3...otherwise they will just be binned....too
dangerous.
The Serious Writers Guild
Stanton Prior
Darley Road
Meads
Eastbourne BN20 7UH
In the UK
Charts:
UK
1) 'F.U.R.B' ..... Frankee
2) 'Trick Me' ... Kelis
3) 'F**K IT' ... (I Don't Want You Back) Eamon <G>
1) "Burn" Usher
2) "I Don't Wanna Know" Mario Winans Featuring Enya & P
Diddy
3) "Naughty Girl" Beyonce
AUSTRALIA
1) "Black Betty" Spiderbait [don't know that one?]
2) "Left Outside Alone" .... Anastacia
3) "I DONT WANNA KNOW" .... Mario Winans
A chart observation:
USA still demonstrates that
it is a large country and that means tracks stay around a long time.
Reason being that a track can be a hit in one State then move on to
the next and so on....clever marketing.
Here in the UK, a great week
for Kelis, whose album leaps 13 places, and whose single comes
straight in at No 2. But still Frankee is sitting pretty... can no-one
dislodge her!? Meanwhile Avril Lavigne effortlessly takes the album
top spot with her new long player, but her single plummets ten places.
Singles casualties:
Abba, Kurt Nilsen, PJ Harvey, Nick Drake, Busted, James Fox, Boogie
Pimps, Twista, McFly, Brand New, Gunther and the Sunshine Girls
Singles New Entries:
Kelis, V, Kristian Leontiou, Killers, Sarah Connor, Hope of the
States, Jet, Sam & Mark, Supergrass, Deepest Blue, InMe
Music/Show Biz News:
Sir Elton John: The
British hit maker will be in St. Paul, Minnesota on Tuesday, July 20, to
perform at the Starkey Hearing Foundation's annual awards gala at the
RiverCentre. He will be honoured that night for helping the Foundation
continue its mission of promoting hearing health awareness, providing
hearing aids for the needy, and supporting hearing research and
education around the world. Since 2000, the Foundation has provided more
than 100,000 hearing aids to needy people all over the world. Sharon
Osbourne, Leslie Nielsen and Floyd "Red Crow" Westerman will
also be recognized that night for their contributions to humanity. The
"So the World May Hear" annual event will feature Norm Crosby
as Master of Ceremonies. Visit the official http://www.sotheworldmayhear.org/ for
more information.
Michael Jackson: The
controversial superstar can moon-walk with a smile on his face this week
now that he has won one of his many legal battles. The Los Angeles
police department announced yesterday that it will not bring charges
against the singer over the claim that he molested a boy in their area
in the 1980s. Carole Lieberman, a Beverly Hills psychiatrist, filed a
child abuse complaint against Jackson last year after one of her
patients told her that he was molested as a child. After interviewing
the accuser at length about the alleged incident, the LAPD decided not
to pursue the matter.
Subscribers Section:
Not all my questions and queries are from high flying studio
dudes....here is a valid and simple question:
I
have a used five dollar acoustic guitar that i bought at a thrift
store, but one of my strings broke when trying to tighten it.
Should i get a new string? Or try to restring it back on? I also have
another concern . The owner put on steel strings after it was a nylon
string guitar. I like the steel . Now i can`t get it to stay tuned.
Should i just go out and buy another newer used guitar?
J**** from fresno, ca. I can`t afford anything over $100.00 for a
guitar. I do like small bodied ones.
My Reply:
Hi J****
By the sound of your Email you just enjoy playing and having fun...so
just keep doing that.
The string thing is important though, as you may want to progress in
your enjoyment and broken strings etc.will hinder you.
A classical/folk type guitar which is meant for gut strings should
always have gut strings on. It will not sound right or stay in tune
with steel strings, in fact it will not tune up properly, period.
You will be surprised at how cheap a set of strings are. Don't be
embarrassed at your lack of knowledge and just ask the guy in the shop
for help...he will probably re string it for you as you stand there. I
doubt if he will charge you for the service. If he does..then don't
use that shop again...simple!
Gut strings will take a while to settle down and you will be
constantly tuning and retuning for about a week. Read the great
article on my site www.makehits.co.uk/art007.htm
, there is wonderful information about strings and tuning. Don't be
afraid of the 'jargon', try to learn it as you will improve your
playing and enjoy the whole experience more.
If you like the steel string sound then, I'm afraid, you will have to
change for a steel string guitar.
As regards changing the guitar, ask a guitar playing friend his
opinion. It may be that you can find a better guitar whilst selling
your guitar for a better price. You see, when you have new strings on,
and it's nicely polished and cleaned, it will be worth more....yes?
Small bodied guitars are either totally amateur or totally
professional...normal players don't play them. The 'toy' guitars are
generally small. This may be what you have. If you have a professional
small guitar then it is valuable. Have a knowledgeable guy check it
out. If it has a name label inside the body then it is generally even
more valuable. The smaller Spanish guitars are called 'alto guitars'
because they are higher pitched..then the tiny ones are 'soprano'
guitars. Get in touch with my pal 'Gordon Giltrap'. He is world class
and loves those tiny guitars. Check out his article, again on my site www.makehits.co.uk/art006.htm
and then Email him.
Regards
"Common
sense is not so common!"
voltaire
Regards
Dec
You may use any part of this 'One Minute' in your own
publications...we simply require you to add:
Start ============
'One Minute With Dec' is written each week by Dec Cluskey.
Dec's advice?
Get in touch personally to discuss what you want to achieve in music
dec@makehits.com
Finish===========
============================================
The gags [An
extra History Lesson special from Willy Faux]
"In the 1500's:-
In those old days, they cooked in the
kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they
lit the fire and added things to the pot. They ate mostly
vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for
dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then
start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been
there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, "Peas porridge hot, peas
porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old."
Sometimes they could obtain pork,
which made them feel quite special.
When visitors came over, they would
hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man
could "bring home the bacon." They would cut off a little to
share with guests and would all sit around and "chew the fat."
Those with money had plates made of
pewter. Food with high acid content caused some of the lead to leach
onto the food, causing lead poisoning death. This happened most often
with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered
poisonous.
Bread was divided according to
status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the loaf, the family got the
middle, and guests got the top, or "upper crust."
Lead cups were used to drink ale or
whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a
couple of days. Someone walking along the road would take them for dead
and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for
a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink
and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom of holding a
"wake."
England is old and small and the
local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would
dig up coffins and would take the bones to a "bone-house" and
reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were
found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had
been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of
the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie
it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night
(the "graveyard shift") to listen for the bell; thus, someone
could be "saved by the bell" or was considered a "dead
ringer."
And that's the truth... Now , whoever
said that History was boring ! ! !
============================================
How to set up a Demo consultation
with Dec?
The Professional
service the Professionals use. Even available for voice and
guitar!
Simply get in touch by Email - click this link:
demo@makehits.co.uk and tell me that you want to send your material
for a full critique and appraisal. We will then send you a unique PIN number to put on your letter or Jiffy Bag. This will ensure you get
immediate attention. This is also for security reasons. We do not open
unsolicited Jiffy Bags.
For full details click on this
link: www.makehits.co.uk/demo.htm
Heard enough, want to apply
to join 'The Serious Writers Guild' and receive the award winning ten
month program: "How To Make A $Million From Your Music" now?
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buy in your local shop"
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details will never be given to ANYONE]
To pay by any other method please check out the payment
methods on the secure
page. Any queries re payment just contact me directly.
I'll get back in touch with you within hours: dec@makehits.com
For your further protection, we are recognised by British
Actors Equity.
Dec Cluskey
The Serious Writers Guild,
Stanton Prior,
Darley Road,
Meads,
Eastbourne BN20 7UH in the UK
Email: dec@makehits.com
Fax.: +44 (0)1323.729318
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Copyright ©2004 MakeHits.com, Dec
Cluskey. All rights reserved.
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