Monday, January 01, 2007

Music. The wild, the wacky, the wonderful.

This is a collection of experiments. I write a lot.  I like to explore.

As a performing musician, I tend to stick to solo guitar and ukulele; and I'll record some of those tunes here and there. But it's always fun to stretch out when studio time presents itself.

Sandals in July

I've been playing these tunes as part of my set for awhile.  I usually don't record too many covers, but these are some of my ukulele favorites.
Sandals in July recorded, mixed, and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Ukulele


Four, Six, and Eight
Some fun with looping. It's very mellow and relaxed, perfect for a late fall night by the fireplace. I do some of this material live.
Four, Six, and Eight recorded, mixed, and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Ukulele, Six String Bass, Eight String Guitar, Zendrum

Time Machine
These three tunes were actually started in spring '07, and I'm finally finishing them in spring of '08. So I thought Time Machine was a good name for the collection since it really is a look back on what I was thinking last year.
Time Machine recorded, mixed, and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Guitar, Keys, Ukulele, programming

Chameleon
For something out of the ordinary, I decided to enter Pangea Island's Herbie Hancock Remix context. Here's my entry, a laid back groove-oriented version of his classic "Chameleon".

This tune incorporates samples from Herbie's catalog (Solitude, Mercy Street, and Chameleon) and features my ukulele playing and programming.
Chameleon recorded, mixed and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Ukulele, programming

UkeJam
The name says it all. A few fun tunes featuring the ukulele. Aloha.
UkeJam recorded, mixed and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Ukulele, keys, guitar, programming

Late Night Tales
Late Night Tales is a continuation of Jump. A little more jazzy and at times a bit more orchestrated. More guitar than before, I was going for interplay and balance.

As a fitting tribute to the old school, I've included my remake of the classic "And I Shot Him". Long live the pizza boy.
Late Night Tales recorded, mixed and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Keys, guitar, vocals, programming
Mike Resetar and Rick Pipito - vocals on "And I Shot Him"

Jump
The collection of tunes on Jump are best described as fusion. There's a little jazz, a little rock, and a little programming (not much, I swear). Everything was written* and recorded from October '04 thru February '05.
Jump recorded, mixed and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Keys, guitar, vocals, programming
*You Got Me Floatin' written by Jimi Hendrix

pLAY[live]
Some instrumental rock, performed "live", one lonely night in The Pit. Think "concert for the cat's" and you have the right idea. This is what happens when you leave me alone for a week. The backing tracks are done on the Mac, but the guitar is straight up one take - no overdubs and no punches.
pLAY[live] recorded, mixed and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Keys, guitar, programming

Interplay
All I have to say is, I'm glad that's over with and I love this. These tunes took me about a year to complete, mostly due to the new software learning curve. This is basically my exploration in to groove oriented electronic. Everything from top to bottom was build in the Mac.
Interplay recorded, mixed and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Keys, programming

Voices
For something totally different (and really old), check out Voices, my vocal E.P. This set of songs is the first and only set of vocal tunes I've ever done. I think they came out quite well. Stylistically, they are pretty diverse, ranging from the groovy pop of "Evening Blues" to the hard rock of "Low".
Voices recorded, mixed and mastered at Inch High Studios
John Caputo - Keys, guitar, programming, vocals