"Don't Dream It's Over" cover

[zeeway]

Another great one, Glenn - vocals, instrumentals, production par excellance (my attempt at French). Digging that blue Strat. Keep it up.

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by zeeway

Another great one, Glenn - vocals, instrumentals, production per excellance (my attempt at French). Digging that blue Strat. Keep it up.

Thank you very much, Angie!

I always appreciate hearing from you! I'm so glad you like how this turned out. It was a fairly big project for me, a fair number of parts and some learning involved. And, yes, the vocals in that chorus were a challenge, but fortunately in a video you can keep doing things over and over until a person improves -- or just gives up.

It's interesting about these cover projects. Sometimes I take on stuff that I know I'm not going to have trouble with, and they are a breeze. But this one, because of the super-high vocals in the chorus, I wasn't sure if I could get there. I did almost give up at one point, but then it seemed that things started to look more possible.

Tenacity helps in this world as long as it doesn't drive a person's blood pressure through the roof.

Thanks for your kind comments, Angie!

- Glenn

[superbitterdave]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

https://youtu.be/1fDqHYFakng

This is my cover of this 1986 world-wide hit song from Crowded House. This cover uses my old 1978 Gibson ES-335 guitar and a recent Fender Strat plus my Carvin bass. I also used a tone-wheel organ sample from an old Roland XP-30 synthesizer that I have. I'm a pretty poor excuse for a keyboard player but I did what a could...

As guitar players you may note that this song is in the very friendly key of Eb. The rhythm part of the song is all barre chords so really, the odd key didn't make the song any more difficult. The hardest part of the song for me was that organ solo.

My oldest son introduced me to Crowded House's music many years ago when he was in high school, and I ended up becoming a fan. Neil Finn, the songwriter, is from New Zealand.

I hope you like this! Thank you for listening! I hope everyone is doing well out there.

- Glenn

Hey Glenn!

Great job! I'm a Finn brothers / Crowded House / Split Enz fan, so it was fun to see this cover of a tune from my youth.

I usually don't read your notes before I watch your tracks (I read them after) but I did see the 'hardest part for me was the organ solo'. I was expecting you to do it on a guitar - fun surprise to see the organ in your studio. Who knows what other tricks you have up your sleeve!

As for the performance - well done! Loved the tone on the Gibson and the harmonies, and it was super to see you nail the high notes on this one.

Thanks for sharing!

-Dave

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by superbitterdave

Hey Glenn!

Great job! I'm a Finn brothers / Crowded House / Split Enz fan, so it was fun to see this cover of a tune from my youth.

I usually don't read your notes before I watch your tracks (I read them after) but I did see the 'hardest part for me was the organ solo'. I was expecting you to do it on a guitar - fun surprise to see the organ in your studio. Who knows what other tricks you have up your sleeve!

As for the performance - well done! Loved the tone on the Gibson and the harmonies, and it was super to see you nail the high notes on this one.

Thanks for sharing!

-Dave

Thank you Dave!

It's really nice of you to continue listening and commenting on my covers! I greatly appreciate your kind and supportive comments!

Regarding the organ solo, I don't really have an organ in my studio, but I have some keyboards from my past, and they all have organ programs or samples. The particular organ patch that I used came from a Roland XP-30 synth based on a typical tone-wheel type of Hammond organ. I also had to dial in the right amount of modulation for after-touch on the keyboard keys so that I could get the right warble in the sound when it was supposed to be there.

The high vocal notes in the chorus of this song, hitting high Bb notes, were a challenge, but I continued to work on this right up to yesterday, right before I finally put up the video. If I were 40 years younger, those notes would have been a little easier, but even in my 30s, hitting Bb notes would be a challenge.

Thanks for your thoughts and comments, Dave! Greatly appreciated!

- Glenn

[Acousticado]

Hey Glenn! I’ve always loved this song. I’m surprised and happy that you covered it. Wonderful job! The lyrics can be a real mouthful to fit smoothly, and you pulled it off seamlessly. Bravo!

[SGFletch]

Great stuff, Glenn!

The electric guitar sound is great. Your singing is wonderful as always. Cool to see you tackle the other parts, too.

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by Acousticado

Hey Glenn! I’ve always loved this song. I’m surprised and happy that you covered it. Wonderful job! The lyrics can be a real mouthful to fit smoothly, and you pulled it off seamlessly. Bravo!

Thank you Tom!

Your kind and supportive comments are very much appreciated!

Regarding the lyrics for this song, yes, they are a mouthful and somewhat surreal in a way. I think he must have intended that surreal feeling. That crazy background I generated fits into that surreal approach to the song.

This kind of an all-electric guitar song is different for me, but I have always loved this song, too. When I was looking around for my next song to do, I thought, why not do this song and see if I can hit all those crazy high notes. I almost gave up in the middle of this because of those high notes. I sure like the rhythm guitar part, though.

Thanks for listening and taking time to comment, Tom!

- Glenn

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by SGFletch

Great stuff, Glenn!

The electric guitar sound is great. Your singing is wonderful as always. Cool to see you tackle the other parts, too.

Thank you very much SG!

I'm so glad you thought this came out well! Thank you for your kind comments of support! I particularly appreciate your positive comments on my singing; this is not an easy song to sing because of those high Bb notes in the chorus.

Regarding the electric guitar sound, thank you! I have to say, I really love the thick sound of that chorus effect when combined with the right digital delay bouncing back on the original sound. It's pretty amazing. The strumming part seems like it would be intuitive, but it actually took some practice to get it right -- or at least I think I got it right!

This was a fairly big project for me, doing all the various song parts, but being retired, I thought I would give myself a challenge. I'm glad you feel that this came together reasonably well!

I hope all is well for you, SG! Be well!

- Glenn

[saxonblue]

Hi Glenn, fantastic work you've done on that cover playing all instruments & vocals, especially like the opening rhythm with the 335!
A long time fan of Crowded House I bought their debut LP in 1986 with that song & many other classics on it. I was initially surprised at the time how such a great trio got together (Neil Finn, Nick Seymour & Paul Hester RIP) so soon after the breakup of Split Enz.
10 years later while living & working in Sydney I was lucky enough along with my partner to be one of the 100,000 plus on the steps of the Opera House to see their "Farewell" concert. OK so it didn't turn out to be the last farewell but it was definitely their best IMO.
Thank you for reviving some great memories.

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by saxonblue

Hi Glenn, fantastic work you've done on that cover playing all instruments & vocals, especially like the opening rhythm with the 335!
A long time fan of Crowded House I bought their debut LP in 1986 with that song & many other classics on it. I was initially surprised at the time how such a great trio got together (Neil Finn, Nick Seymour & Paul Hester RIP) so soon after the breakup of Split Enz.
10 years later while living & working in Sydney I was lucky enough along with my partner to be one of the 100,000 plus on the steps of the Opera House to see their "Farewell" concert. OK so it didn't turn out to be the last farewell but it was definitely their best IMO.
Thank you for reviving some great memories.

Hi Mick!

Thanks for watching and for your interesting thoughts and comments! That is very cool that you have a more personally connected history with Crowded House.

I agree, that opening rhythm with that unusual strumming pattern on an electric guitar with that chorus effect and delay is a really catchy sound. I do think it sounds good on the Gibson ES-335; I feel very lucky to still have that guitar after all these years.

Thanks for your comments and kind words, Mick!

- Glenn

[airborne1]

Glenn,
Wow, a wonderful blast from the past! I really enjoy that song but it was lost in the cobwebs of my mind!

I really can’t add any superlatives that haven’t already been stated, but, d____, you do a fantastic job on every facet of this song!

That Strat is beautiful! What is the name of that color?

I love how you attack each project with such tenacity!

Looking forward to future endeavors!

Be well Glenn!

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by airborne1

Glenn,
Wow, a wonderful blast from the past! I really enjoy that song but it was lost in the cobwebs of my mind!

I really can’t add any superlatives that haven’t already been stated, but, d____, you do a fantastic job on every facet of this song!

That Strat is beautiful! What is the name of that color?

I love how you attack each project with such tenacity!

Looking forward to future endeavors!

Be well Glenn!

Thank you so very much, Bill!

I really appreciate your spending time listening to this cover and then providing your kind feedback! I am very grateful!

Before I forget, that blue Strat finish is called "Dark Night." Here it is on Sweetwater's website. I agree with you -- it's a very cool finish!

I'm really pleased that you felt I did well on all the various aspects of this cover. I am slowly getting better on the bass guitar as I spend more time covering songs. I will not likely ever be a very good keyboard player, but I can do what I need to for an occasional cover if given enough time to work things out and memorize the fingering.

As you note, it takes some stick–to–itiveness, a fair amount of tenacity, to get through a multi-track project like this over a few weeks. Fortunately for me, I'm retired and there is no clock running regarding what it costs me. I am not paying anyone for studio time, so that helps immensely.

I keep thinking that if I stay active with music like this, maybe it will help fend off Alzheimer's disease, a malady that both my parents succumbed to. And besides, working in the studio makes me feel good, at least most of the time.

Thanks again, Bill! I appreciate your comments very much!

- Glenn

[MBee]

Absolutely fantastic! What a voice!!

[Glennwillow]

Originally Posted by MBee

Absolutely fantastic! What a voice!!

Thank you MBee!

I appreciate the compliment; thank you have taking time to watch and comment!

I hope all is well for you!

- Glenn

[TBman]

Great job Glenn, I enjoyed that! Does your new strat have a humbucker too or just 2 single coils?