View Full Version : choosing songs for a cd
we are about 3/4s of the way done recording a cd of originals. our goal is 12 songs (we have em just have to record em all). songs range from sweet ballads to bluesy and a little rockin, to hokey fokey type tunes (e.g., inside i'm really built and 6'2"-my protest song for the vertically challenged-fine, short folks like myself!).
how do you choose the order for songs on a cd??? what do you do?http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif?
thanks,
ira
ps- give a listen if you like on our site-(even have one song up with my best musical talent-the kazoo).
http://nossongs.agreatserver.com/
songs 2,3,4, 9,10 are originals with 3 more up by next week.
clopez
May-17-2004, 9:43am
I just went through this too. There are many strategies. Ultimately, your sense of musicality should win out, I think. Things to think about:
1) Do you have a "single" to promote? Which tunes need to be up front and early to hook a listener? Is that even important to you?
2) Flow and pace and groove.
3) Are tunes related? Do some need to be in certain order? Does it matter? (How many people listen to a whole cd at a time?)
4) Diversity.
My cd is a bunch tales from the 1860's, so I had a linear progression in mind. I put the very best track (groove, music, story) in the #6 slot - it's about a hanging and I just couldn't kick off the record that way. In the end, I went for an approach that imitated a novel or collection of short stories with common themes. The pace/groove is a good balance between grit, pop, ballads, and migrates from a full-string band to more intimate and spare, ending with a solo and plaintive tune to sum it up.
Christian
Joe Romanello
May-19-2004, 11:11am
How do you get the proper approval for using songs that are listed with BMI, etc. ? Is it a fee structure or percentage based on the amount of CD's produced ?
clopez
May-20-2004, 2:49pm
For mechanical licenses, check out harryfox.com
There's also a link for releases under 2500 units at songfile.com
I think the cost is something like $.07/unit per song. Maybe more. But don't quote me on that. Check out harryfox.com
stanley
May-20-2004, 3:54pm
Hey great recordings Ira! Nice
stanley
May-20-2004, 3:59pm
Great recordings Ira! Nice lil' website too. Certainly brightened up my afternoon.
BTW, my wife is one of those ms-ccc/slp's...(is that all the letters)...too!
...& you really own a silver sube?
mmukav
May-20-2004, 7:30pm
When it came time to put songs in order for my CD, it was definitely a 'feel' thing. Try to pick your strongest songs, then of course one of them goes first. Then you really have to mess around with listing them, looking at it, letting it sit for a while, then go back and look again. Don't group songs together that sound similar, same key, same structure. The thing is, when you get them in the right order, you'll know.
forgot i had asked this question till today when we recorded a bit more. thanks for the suggestions. i guess it is a feel thing, but i like the idea of thinking about structure and key and mixing up the batch a bit.
stanley- thanks so much for visiting the site, and for your kind comments.
yes those are all the letters for most slps. i have a few more, but i don't want to run out of room on my business cards:)
i assume you are asking about my built and 6'2" song- i do have a silver forrester- and i truly do love it! thanks for asking- the whole song is true- hey, every folk artist needs a song of protest and the best topics (war, equal rights, etc..) have been taken, so why not a song for short guys.
thanks again for listening.:;):
Spruce
May-23-2004, 3:28pm
I like to stick the strongest tune in the #2 slot...
The nice thing about digital editing/mastering is that it's now so-ooo easy to move tunes around and stick them in a different order.
In the "old days" of cutting tape, this could be somewhat of a hassle...
why the strongest as #2. i am interested in the rationale?
mandocrucian
May-23-2004, 7:40pm
You'll have final or reference mixes of all your tunes. So the thing to do is to burn them onto CDrs in various possible tune sequencing. #You might have 6 possible versions. #Then you sit back, and just listen to the various discs....the car deck is always a good place.
(Or as a preliminary, play your tracks (on a single cdr) on randomized shuffle play and let yourself experience how veraious songs interact. Track order can color the entire mood of a CD, or change the implications of a particular song. #For example, Sam The Sham's "Hey There Little Red Riding Hood" takes on a completely different (and creepy) tone when preceded (or followed) by something like Randy Newman's "In Germany Before The War" or a Tom Waits song like "Murder In The Red Barn", "Dirt In The Ground" or "Heartattack & Vine".)
Once you have these experimental discs done, you'll start to notice what tunes flow into others the best. #You might find that having two tunes in the same key, or in a similar tempo shouldn't be back to back for best effect.
With some listening, several 3-4 song sets will tend to sort themselves out. At this point, you'll then start thinking about how to reconcile these sets. You may find you have to shift a tune or two around so that the sets connect better, and you'll eventually end up with 2 (or maybe 3) different tune sequences that you (and your band) can live with.
This is the lengthy (timewise) process I used for sequencing the tracks on my On Fire & Ready!. Better to find the version that works best (for you) before it's too late to change things because on reflection, the track order isn't right.
Niles Hokkanen
Spruce
May-24-2004, 10:39am
"why the strongest as #2. i am interested in the rationale? "
I dunno...
When I listen to a CD for the first time, I assume that the #1 tune is
supposed to be the strongest, so I always thought that it would be nice to follow it up with something that (I think) is even stronger...
It sure makes me want to listen to the rest of the CD...
I think the key the tune is in is important too...
I like to have the keys generally rise. #In other words, I don't like to have a tune in F# follow a tune in the key of G...
And I don't like to have a few tunes in the same key follow one another...
And I'm a sucker for cross-fades--bringing one tune in under the fade-out ending of the previous tune...
Guess I'm just a product of the 60's, when it was fairly common to listen to one side of an LP without any 4-second silences between the tunes anywhere...
Ira,
I was just thinking today about how a hate it when a CD has a "super-catchy" tune as the first tune. A lot of times I put on a CD and only get 1/2way thru it (sometimes two songs and then the 2yo has to watch the Lion King again). If the first song is really catchy, it's easy to get sick of it. I find this with the Ronda Vincent album with that Kentucky song. Likewise, I never liked Mars Hotel kicking off with US Blues even though I like the album when I listen to it all the way thru.
Peace,
Ken