I'm so excited about the recording process of my upcoming album. My producer John Ginty is doing such a wonderful job capturing the kind of sound I was looking for, and his expertise, his musical sensibilities, and his industry connections are working wonders. A couple of nights ago we brought in the incredibly talented Dan Myers of the great band "From Good Homes" to lay down some saxophone tracks for the record. First of all, Dan is such a cool guy and we had a blast getting to know each other and hanging out in the studio. Second, Dan is crazy good. He KILLED the 3 songs he played on... including one which he hadn't even heard all the way through and halfway through listening he said "Okay let's try one." Well, ONE was all he needed. Despite not even hearing the second half of the song prior to recording, Dan Myers managed to lay down an amazing solo during the break and then a wonderful finale to top off the song with a nice bow. "The old 8 minute take -- 4 minutes to record it and 4 to listen back." (J.Ginty)

Listening back to all three tracks during last night's studio session had John, bass/guitar player/engineer Mike Buckman, and I just smiling and shaking our heads. It is a blessing to work with such talent.

It's going to be awesome!!

Here we are at the unofficial start to summer -- Memorial Day Weekend.  This past Sunday I had the pleasure of playing outdoors at Festival Earth on the Morristown Green. It was a daylong affair featuring more than a dozen musical acts -- and what a beautiful day weather-wise it turned out to be. After watching a couple of extremely talented young acts I got up and did about 1/2 dozen songs. I played 3 originals, On Three, Think I'll Stay, and Finally Love. All are relatively new songs that weren't on my first CD. I also played Jack Johnson's Upside Down, James Taylor's Shower the People... and one other song that is escaping me right now. Anyway, the people in attendance seemed to really enjoy my stuff. This was my first time standing and playing guitar since I had knee surgery a couple of weeks ago (repaired meniscus). Was good to get back up and performing again.

It's nice playing outdoors for sure, and this little gig made me really look forward to playing the 3 upcoming outdoor performances I have:

June 12th @ the Morris Plains Farmer's Market
July 11th @ the Morristown Farmer's Market
August 1 -- solo concert @ Robert's Garden in Morris Plains.

Meanwhile, recording on the next CD is going very well, and it's just so great being in the studio. I'm so pleased with how the songs are coming along. Can't wait to share them all with people!!

It feels like a LONG time since I actually had a gig. FInally getting back out there tomorrow night, May 1st... going back to the always inviting Coco Pazzo in Morris Plains for a night of solo stuff and special guests. I'm very excited. The very talented pair of MIke Buckman and Dave Hammer will be there. I'm going to have them play on a bunch of different things, and hopefully take over for me for a while!  And I'm going to try out a few new covers for the first time. We'll see how it goes. After that, I have a healthy smattering of gigs throughout the summer and fall, so there will be no rest for the weary.

Meanwhile, the recording of my second CD is going well. Have been in the studio 2 nights a week for the past few weeks. We have the rhythm tracks laid for 5 of the tunes. There will likely be 10 or 11 on the final product. Hopefully it will be all done and printed by Fall.

:) B

I haven't had a performance in a little while, but I have been busy in the studio working with my good friend Mike Buckman and my new good friend and Producer extraordinaire John Ginty. We have had 4 recording sessions so far, and the results have been encouraging. Our initial goal is to get the basic rhythm tracks recorded for the 11 songs that are currently slated for the album. These sessions typically begin at or after dinner time and go through midnight. John has a great ear and vision and has been working hard to get just the right sound from the drums, bass, etc. Our first session was mostly a set-up and experimental one. The next session we tackled a song called "I'm Somebody" -- or maybe it will just be called "Somebody." We went LATE into the evening - 1:00 or 1:30, and the results are fantastic. Next session we got the basics down for a track called "They," which is going to be one of the funnest numbers on the CD. And last night we made some pretty good progress on a very nostalgic, change-of-pace song that I wrote this past Fall called "Turning." This song, though the simplest in nature, has turned out to be the biggest challenge so far. Sometimes the biggest challenge is what to do with the simple songs. After a long night of playing, recording, discussing, playing, recording, discussing, PRD, PRD... we are finally on the right track (no pun intended).

We'll meet a couple of nights next week and continue. It's going to be a long process. But once we get the rhythm tracks all set, we will be bringing in some other talented musicians to help us with other parts. It's going to be awesome.  

It is SO GREAT to be back in the studio recording again. John and Mike are great to work with. And I am particularly excited, because I feel like this album is going to be even better than my first one.

:) B

Well, I can't believe this is my first blog of 2010 and here it is already April 5th!  That is pathetic. But 4/5 seems like it's going to be a significant date for me this year -- as tonight ( I am excited to report) I am going into the studio for the first of many sessions to record my long-overdue 2nd record. Album. CD... whatever! It has been 7 years since I released "For This Day" and I guess I was never sure exactly how or when (or if) I would follow that up. But so many people have been asking for the follow-up, and I've had the good fortune of writing a bunch of solid songs in the past couple of years that it's all come together now.

I have been very busy musically. 2009 and 2010 have been very prolific for me as a writer. And been performing out more frequently in recent months. Plus rehearsing once a week with a band, which someday I suppose will get out there and begin performing. Musically, there is a lot of diversity, which has been great for my playing as well as my songwriting. I have grown as a writer for sure... and I believe I have finally found my sound, after these many years. This next project, which will release sometime later this year is going to be a solid effort I think. I'm proud of the songs, love the groove I've matured into, and I am so excited about the people I'm going to be working with and the approach we're going to take.

So for now, that's about it. But to all of you who have been asking me for years "when is the next CD coming?".... well, it's coming.  :)

Bill

The whole Holiday season is crazy busy, but I love it. Really been in the mood this year (as always I guess). I"m trying to learn a bunch -- or I might say "relearn" a bunch -- of Christmas songs. Playing Coco Pazzo in Morris Plains this Saturday night, and I'd love to be able to throw in a bunch of seasonal favorites to make it a special night. If you're in the area this weekend and want a little song and cheer, stop on in. 9pm start.

Meanwhile, I did throw down a  quick video of my acoustic version of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, and launched it up to YouTube @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-SFF15hKdQ

It is nowhere near as good as I wanted it to sound, but I would sit all day and keep improving it if I could. So I just went with the first full take. Sound levels are a little disappointing, with too much white noise... but that's what you get recoring directly into a laptop!!

Anyway, I hope everyone else is enjoying their Holiday Season. 2010 is going to be a very productive and exciting year for me musically. I'm really looking forward to it...

:) B

I'm really excited about going into the City tonight to play with my great friend Dave Hammer. He's going to have a slew of guests. Is that how you spell slew? I'll have to check after this......

I expect to do up to 10 songs. The talented Mike Buckman will be there jamming away, along with a few other special guests. Should be fun.

If you're on/near the Upper East Side, come on out tonight for the big Hammerfest Thanksgiving Show!!! 9pm BAR EAST.

Hammer's going to rock the place as always....

Had a great gig last night @ Coco Pazzo in Morris Plains. I had such a fun time playing, and I'm so happy for everyone who came out to enjoy a night of music, food, drink, etc. It sure was a special night, with good friends like Dave Hammer, Mike Buckman, Michael Laddey, Jason Mills, and Steve Flanagan getting up on stage with me for many songs -- and many sounds.

A couple songs went over better than I thought! And I think I've learned a couple of songs that I should probably DROP from my repertoire. Don't Go Back To Rockville doesn't seem to be going over very well. Not so sure about  my version of What a Fool Believes. But on the flip side, Folsom Prison Blues and a couple of other covers I've added seem to be crowd-pleasers.

And on the original front, people seem to be loving (and asking for) On Three a lot -- the tune I penned with Dave Hammer. So that's cool. Tired today from a late night. Looking forward to the next scheduled gig at the Dublin Pub.... after all the Holidays are over!

Well, The FIFTH round of Experiment 5 is all complete. The last set of lyrics was contributed by Bill Maier -- it was called "Good Enough For You."

...I changed mine to "Great Enough for You."

You can hear my creation -- as well as those by the other 4 Experiment Five members for THIS round and all previous rounds at...  http://www.billgriese.com/fr_x5:experimentfive

I'm attaching my "Great Enough For You" to this blogpost also.

I hope you enjoy it. Experiment Five sure has been a great experience. 20 songs written by 5 people all in about a 6-month period. Awesome.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Dublin Pub in Morristown last week. The gig there was tremendous. It was hands-down the best time I've ever had playing out. The room was packed, the audience was so into it... and thanks to some great guest appearances by my good friends Dave Hammer and Mike Buckman, the roof came down!

Dave Hammer took over for several solo songs, and he and I also did a few numbers together, playing guitars and doing some (passable) harmonies.

Mike Buckman brought his axe and tore the night up through at least 10 songs -- taking my rockaBillity up to a whole new notch.

The highlights were:

Mary Jane's Last Dance
Rockin the Free World
Freebird
and then of course Running On Empty, featuring all three of us.


The Dublin Pub has asked me back -- so I've scheduled 2 gigs with them in advance for 2010. So be sure to come back, or come for the first time when I return there on February 6th!!!

Can't wait....