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'One Minute With Dec'

The widest read, 'delivered to your Email box', weekly music Ezine on the Music Net.

The Archive - '2'

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Written by Dec Cluskey with a little bit of help from his friends.

We do not condone any Music Scam on the Net

This Email first mailed to all Members of 'The Serious Writers Guild' and subscribers to 'One Minute With Dec' on

13 Nov 2006

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Latest Music News     Quality Information     Techniques   Cutting Edge Advice for Today

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=================================

'One Minute With Dec'

Since 1996

"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-]

"Middle age is when broadness of the mind
and narrowness of the waist change places."

MENU:

San Remo Song Festival Still going Strong? [Check out these facts]
Country Music Newsletter [ a great f ree newsletter ]
A Few Opinions re keeping the 'articles' and 'Questions and Answers' as a historical archive? [good reaction]
Good visual laugh [a laugh for Christmas?]
Tip of the week [Close Windows Quickly]
Success Stories [ again, many this week ]
Charts
Subscriber's Section [ Write two toons in a hurry? ]
The Gags [ Could this be true? ]

San Remo Song Festival Still going Strong

I just got a marvellous Email with a link to San Remo Song Festival info .... check it out .... http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festival_di_Sanremo_1967 my band had two in the top ten artists [an unheard of feat] and came third overall in the contest ... not bad for an English speaking band singing in Italian? We recorded seven songs in Italian and had a few major hits from them ... good stuff.

Just check out the list of UK and USA artists ..... stunning. Strangely, there is no mention of Neil Diamond ... my brother and I spent the week with him and Bobby Goldsboro singing Barber Shop Quartet songs all night .... silly really. We all stayed at The Grand Hotel Del Mare in Bordighera, the next village to San Remo. He was in the dumps at that time.. his career had hit a brick wall ... he insisted on giving me his address and phone number ... still got it in my address book .... must sell it on EBay sometime [grin!]

We even sang "Il Son De Silencio" as a special treat at the contest ... 'Sound of Silence' in Italian .... the English version was a big hit in the UK ... sung by my band and not by Simon and Garfunkel. If ever you get that question in Trivial Pursuits 'Baby Boomers' you now know the correct answer: "who had the UK hit with 'Sound of Silence? Answer: The Bachelors.

Just have a look at the camp photo of my band taken at the contest ... it's on the archive version of this 'One Minute' at www.makehits.com/oneminarchive131106.htm

That's me on the left. 9st. 3 lbs ... dripping wet!

Country Music Newsletter ?

A really nice guy got in touch with me Doug Davis. He writes a daily Country Music newsletter with lots of good info and stories .... if Country is your bag then I would suggest you simply send a blank Email to CountryMusicClassics-on@milepost1.com and Doug will put you on the list ... no dosh required ... 30,000 subscribers.

The newsletters he has sent me are extremely good.

CountryMusicClassics-on@milepost1.com

"Opportunities always look bigger going than coming."

A Few Opinions re keeping the 'articles' and 'Questions and Answers' as a historical archive

Hi Dec

I think it’s interesting to have the archive data, but better still if you update as well. You suggest we have an up to date hairstyle/clothes etc. Keeping abreast of what’s hot is part of what you preach so it looks good if you’re practicing it too!

V best wishes ... Barbara

Hi Dec

The One Minute's are really good & motivational. The Make Hits pages of insights and advice are tremendous; don't personally know how many subscribers/web surfers hit them though. Whatever, it should be OK to leave them as they are as visitors ought to have the brainpower to suss the content by the date. Or you could get a script written that will designate the pages as archive or refer to newer or updated pages.

You do a great job Dec and you care about people. So many would-be performers, songwriters, producers et al don't know what to do or where to begin. You give of your time and expertise and always provide a starting point. Hope you can stay with it.

Thanks & regards ... Ric

Hi Dec,

I'd say keep the old site information in archive section of the site.
Also maybe consider redesigning the site, since we almost all have broadband / fast pcs/macs there is no need to go for the plain html look anymore. If you do go that route I would avoid flash and the likes, just sticking with well designed graphics and layout with the usual underlying css/html.

Just to say it's so good to have the regularity of your newsletters.. an inspiration to see someone so constantly hard working - giving us all a flavour of what it takes to make it.

Regards, Mike Renwick

Hi Dec,

I think you should keep everything regardless of how old it is. Tons of people still use old gear, I still use an Atari along side of everything else and I have no intention of ditching it.

Long live old age !!

All the best ... David

Dec

I'd like to see updates... but alongside the original stuff. BTW if you do updates, any chance of us er.. more mature (ie older) members having copies?

Just a few thoughts ... Steve Jones

Dec,

I am basing my opinion with my consultancy head on rather than my musical one.

The web page is good in its existing form - but there is danger in not updating it to keep it relevant. You have to think of who you are appealing to and many of your casual browsers I imagine will be younger people (ready to start out on the road to fame, fortune and 10000 Smarties with the black ones removed) and if they start reading about obsolete or out of date equipment they could switch off believing the site is not maintained or that other information on the side may not be relevant.

I suppose I would compare it to Littlewoods Stores - remember them? Over the last few years when they were in business, I always thought they were rather quaint – a sort of “Are You Being Served” come to life – it was like walking into a store in the 60s - but of course the stores got emptier and emptier until eventually people stopped looking and they closed.

I think the current buzzword is “fit for purpose”. You have to ask yourself – does the page as it is now do what you want it to do.

Well that’s the Sir James opinion anyway – and I share your love of old buildings and it breaks my heart every time I visit my native Glasgow and know the best part of it is now a motorway. As Pete Seeger would say , when will they ever learn….

Best wishes ... Sir James Chartfreak

Hi Dec,

About your "Question", if I may...

I think older references shouldn't be removed (because I value old buildings too), but they should be moved to a special section (maybe a link to "original articles") and replaced with up to date informations. I have to admit that, what made me hesitate for so long before I decided to join the SWG, was the outdated info on your site, like Atari (which I still have by the way), etc.

Hope this helps.

Take care,

Francois Jasmin

ffortissimostudios@videotron.ca

"A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand."

A good visual laugh? [this will give you a laugh for Christmas?]

Check out this one...

http://www.makehits.com/Claim Your Tax Refund.pps

"Junk is something you've kept for years
and throw away three weeks before you need it."

Tip of the Week

Close Windows Quickly

Oh-Oh – Your right in the middle of a game of "F ree Cell" and who comes walking down the aisle, headed directly for your desk. The last person you want to see when you’re goofing off is your boss.

Win + M to the rescue.

If you want to minimize all your windows in a hurry, Win + M will do the trick! Hold down the Windows Key, and depress M – all active windows will be minimized.

Phew.

Bob Osgoodby

"Experience is a wonderful thing.
It enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again."

Success Stories

Go to www.makehits.com/testimonials.htm also www.makehits.co.uk/applause.htm for stories that will amaze you and fill you full of hope for YOUR future.]

Hi Dec

By the way, your course is an eye opener and I am learning and doing what you say and am making progress towards my goal.

Thanks again

Michael Ricard

And another:

Really enjoying the Serious Writers Guild course, I feel much more determined and more importantly, focused when it comes to my music, and I am only on Grade 2!! Sill a long way to go!

Martin McGee

Dec

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying The Art Of Live Performing since starting the course last year.

My band, BedHead, have been doing better and better. I’d worked hard on our sound and our songs to make us stand head and shoulders above the rest on the circuit. The result of this single minded hard work was that we were the hardest working band in Scotland last year, performing at 304 gigs.

I’ve also been reading your '57Secrets of a Hit Record' book. What an absolute mine of information!

Stu Richardson

"By the time you can make ends meet, they move the ends."

=====================

Charts:

USA [my thanks to Charles in the USA for supplying this]

(1)   Justin Timberlake Featuring T.I. .... My Love  Jive   | Zomba


(2)   Akon Featuring Eminem  ... Smack That  ... SRC/Up Front/Konvict   | Universal Motown

(3)  Fergie ... Fergalicious   will.i.am/A&M   | Interscope

UK

1) Westlife ... The Rose

2) U2 & Green Day ... The Saints Are Coming ... (Universal Music)

3) All Saints ... Rock Steady ... (Parlophone)

Download Chart [now the most important chart in the UK]

1) Fedde Le Grand ... Put Your Hands Up For Detroit ... (Ministry Of Sound)

2) U2 & Green Day ... The Saints Are Coming ... (Universal Music)

3) Girls Aloud ... Something Kinda Ooooh ... (Universal Music)

"Learn from the mistakes of others.
Trust me... you can't live long enough to make them all yourself.
I've tried!!"

Subscriber's Section:

Hi Dec

I am currently writing band material in the style of Kasabian, Doves, Delays et al, and I was wondering, since I have time off work till Thursday, what would be the best way to write a couple of really good tunes in that space of time? Should I start with a loop and build from there? Write a melody on my sequencer first? Please help!!

Thank you for your time

Kind Regards

M*****

My Reply:

As regards band material ... when I write an arrangement for recording it usually takes me 3 weeks! So writing two in a couple of days?

The best way of writing is to start with a loop .. you are correct here. Gets you going quickly. Gives you inspiration and makes you write in that metre. But beforehand it is best to frame out a good hooky chorus melody line .... don't be afraid of repeating that line over and over .... always remember that 'Music is my First Love' , the great 6 1/2 minute classic only had six lines of lyrics! If the line is good enough you can repeat it forever... think 'Yellow'?

If the line is not worth repeating then it is not a great line and not worth bothering with.

The great REM track 'The One I Love' had how many lines? How many did it sell?

This one goes out to the one I love
This one goes out to the one I've left behind
A simple prop to occupy my time
This one goes out to the one I love

Fire (she's comin' down on her own, now)

This one goes out to the one I love
This one goes out to the one I've left behind
Another prop has occupied my time
This one goes out to the one I love

Concentrate on not using more than 29 differing main words [not including the small participles, at, by, go, me, you etc.] .... boy to girl, girl to boy, simple conversational, comfortable, familiar, love me up - lick me down lyrics.

[The only time to use more lyrics is when it is a 'story' song ... telling a story ... even then polish and hone the lyrics to cut the number of words down and repeat ... think how many times you can use the word 'love' ... loving, loves, loved, lovely, lover]

Make sure you mention the title line as many times as possible outside the chorus.

Think vocal arrangement as you are writing .... if the vocal arrangement comes easy, then you have a great toon ... if it is difficult, start again...trust me! All great toons are exceptionally easy to create a vocal arrangement for.

Also concentrate on musical hooks [think Coldplay, Keane, Radiohead, Killers etc.]

Don't ever get involved in the 'reason' for the lyrics ... the great writers never think of the reason they think that they are doing a job of work ... that is what they do for a living... the reason has to be 'to make dosh' ... end of story .... if you happen to write a classic while doing that then you go in the history books.

Write from the heart up hoping your wallet is in your top pocket?

Think Hip hop and R&B as regards sounds and samples ... even with the type of material you are writing .. it is the way forward! All 'today' tracks, no matter what genre, have a element of Hip hop sounds, samples, FX tricks and recording techniques .... that is what makes Darkness, Greenday and such bands so successful. The production is littered with Hip hop tricks and sounds.

Regards

DEC [Cluskey]
mailto:dec@makehits.com

You don't know whether you music is getting better unless you have a demo consultation with Dec - the one the Pro's use: UK 01323.728005 [+44.1323.728005] dec@makehits.com

Regards

Dec

============================================

The gags: ..... Could this be true?

It was entertainment night at the senior center and the Amazing Claude was
topping the bill. People came from miles around to see the famed hypnotist
do his stuff.

As Claude went to the front of the meeting room, he announced, "Unlike
most hypnotists who invite two or three people up here to be put into a
trance, I intend to hypnotize each and every member of the audience."

The excitement was almost electric as Claude withdrew a beautiful antique
pocket watch from his coat. "I want you each to keep your eye on this
antique watch. It's a very special watch. It's been in my family for six
generations.

He began to swing the watch gently back and forth while quietly chanting,
"Watch the watch, watch the watch, watch the watch..." The crowd became
mesmerized as the watch swayed back and forth, light gleaming off its
polished surface.

Hundreds of pairs of eyes followed the swaying watch,
until, suddenly,----- it slipped from the hypnotist's fingers and fell to
the floor, breaking into a hundred pieces.

Sh*t!" said the Hypnotist...

It took three weeks to clean up the senior center..

============================================

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

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