Now that the band has wrapped up "Anytime You Want Me" and grabbed some famous Memphis Barbecue from The Cozy Corner, it's time to get back to work and record the second song, "That's Love".
In this episode, you'll watch as Matt and the band:
Work out the arrangement and rehearse "That's Love"
Adjust the tone of the snare to fit the vibe of the song
Get some extra grit out of the guitar amp
Push the Spectra mic pres to saturate and soak up the transients
Overdub percussion
Join Matt Ross-Spang, Eli "Paperboy" Reed, The Hodges Brothers, Ken Coomer, and The Masqueraders inside the legendary Sam Phillips Recording in Memphis, TN for an incredible recording event, from Start To Finish.
00:00:27 It's a cool tone!
Yeah, right?
I was thinking Ken, just like...
00:00:56 Kind of like even
a real like boxy...
00:01:00 OK.
00:01:02 This is real simple.
00:02:47 Check it out.
00:03:03 Do that one more time.
00:03:55 Sorry, yeah, I messed that up.
00:04:01 That's the whole tune.
00:04:04 Then we just tag the ending...
00:04:10 Matt,
what do you think about that?
B flat.
00:04:18 Can we get a more disgusting snare?
Can we get a more disgusting snare like...
00:04:23 You know, like....
00:04:24 Yeah.
00:04:25 Or tune that lower.
00:04:26 So, disgusting like,
less dead or...
00:04:30 No dead, dead is cool.
More bottom of the snares or like.
00:04:32 Yeah...
00:04:35 I'll get them all...
00:04:46 Pretty cool.
00:04:48 That's pretty cool.
It wasn't trashy enough.
00:04:56 Alright, it's coming together.
00:05:32 Yeah.
00:05:34 What you got?
What you got for the intro?
I just wanna play the groove like that.
I like what you're doing.
00:05:42 I have a thing but I kind of
don't wanna do it anymore.
00:05:44 So...
00:05:46 What Charles was doing was awesome.
00:05:50 I have and idea but now
I don't have it anymore.
00:05:52 So we're on the second song.
00:05:54 The first is kind of a nice ballad.
00:05:57 This one is more
trashy, rock,
almost like garage soul in a sense
so I'm pushing preamps to see what happens
if I overload the preamp on purpose.
00:06:08 And seeing if things distort in a cool way
or get the effect I'm looking for.
00:06:12 So I'm just kind of searching till I find
kind of just what feels right
right now.
00:08:06 Let's do it from the bridge.
00:09:15 Just vamp like that.
00:09:18 I like the vamp, it sounds good.
00:09:20 And now we just let it ride.
00:09:21 That's it.
00:09:23 A little fast.
00:09:26 I think, yeah, just a hair.
00:09:29 Matt what do you think?
I think so.
Hey Ken, can we try a different snare?
Yeah.
00:09:36 I brought 8.
00:09:41 Can we try something like...
A little more
traditional, the attack is a little
papery on that one.
00:09:48 Try that one.
00:09:50 Still dead but just...
00:09:55 I got the Black Beauty...
00:10:02 Sounding good?
This became something different.
00:10:09 It's exactly what I wanted.
00:10:12 What do you think
about the guitar tone?
It sounds good, nice and trashy.
00:10:15 I just want the snare to
be as trashy as the guitar.
00:10:17 It's pretty trash,
but I like because it's small.
00:10:20 Yeah, it's not big.
00:10:24 It's not like the clean, kind of
cleaner Fender tone that you'd expect.
00:10:27 Yeah, exactly.
00:10:57 I've taken all the
pads off the snare
which typically I would
have both pads on the snare.
00:11:03 It's kind of cool hearing it
just splat the pre.
00:11:06 The spectrum doesn't really
ever sound bad but when
you look at the transient
you'll see it looks like
I've put a L1 limiter on it.
00:11:14 It will have no transients
left but it sounds cool in the mix so.
00:11:17 I like to commit things as I go,
I think it will give it the attitude
that I'm looking for.
00:11:22 From the top?
Yeah.
You're gonna sing for us too?
Try it.
00:11:27 I mean, I can...
00:11:29 Do it.
00:11:29 Alright.
00:11:34 They're gonna feed off that vocal.
00:11:37 I know.
00:14:32 I think it could still
come back a few clicks.
00:14:36 Yeah.
00:14:38 Let's try it.
00:14:39 Lay back as much as possible
but that's the idea.
00:14:42 It's right there,
it just sounds a little too pretty.
00:14:44 We need it a little more trashy.
00:14:46 I think it could still be a little slower,
I don't know.
00:14:50 Am I crazy?
Do it.
00:14:52 I think you've gotta rip that vocal.
00:14:54 I know, it's just...
00:14:57 It's not the kind of thing...
00:14:59 Like, I wanna do it...
00:15:00 Alright, I'll try something.
00:15:02 You try, if you don't like we'll stop.
00:15:03 I wanna try to get the...
00:15:05 I wanna them in the
pocket with them, you know?
You're playing great with them.
00:15:10 It's sounding great.
00:15:14 Alright.
00:18:36 That was awesome.
00:18:38 I'm cool with that.
00:18:39 Can we do one thing for me?
One thing, one thing.
00:18:43 That was great. If you're up for it,
just rip it one time for me, one whole song.
00:18:49 Alright, one more take you mean?
One more take and just let that
vocal freak flag fly.
00:18:56 Alright. OK.
00:18:58 If we don't get anymore close,
that last take is the one.
00:19:04 If I sing the high part harmony
instead of singing the low one,
I think that will help you.
00:19:12 I think this time it's about the vocal,
we need energy from the vocal,
everything else is kind of swamping,
so, I'm just looking
for that vocal to be...
00:19:20 I'll do another vocal...
00:19:22 Alright, we'll do one more.
00:19:25 We'll do one more, that's fine.
I like that one...
00:19:27 That one was great, I'm not taking away
from the last one, just see what happens.
00:19:31 OK.
00:21:03 Come on in fellers.
00:21:12 Alright.
00:21:19 That's good.
00:21:23 The snare is nice.
00:21:24 Nasty now.
00:22:02 Yeah, the first one...
00:22:04 The first one was all live.
00:22:07 This is that one.
00:22:12 Yeah.
00:23:28 What?
Oh yeah, I agree.
The last one beat it.
00:24:36 He's got a little bulldog in him.
00:24:46 Before you go,
does that need any funky cowbell?
I feel like we kind of need it.
00:24:54 Go do real quick.
Then you're free as a bird.
00:24:58 He's got this weird,
it's not like a cowbell
but he starts to play it
and it's awesome.
00:25:06 Jerry Phillips calls him the popcorn
man because we were making this record
and the guy was kind of a singer songwriter
and he never played with a band before.
00:25:15 And it turns out, he didn't know this,
I still think he doesn't know
but he hates snare drums, every time he tried
to hit his snare the guy didn't like it.
00:25:23 So Ken had the assistant run down
and get popcorn seeds and he put
them in the snare drum
and when he hits the snare once
they jumped up like Mexican jumping beans
and it lasted for like 30 seconds.
00:25:34 And Jerry came in
and saw him doing it
so now he calls him the popcorn man.
00:25:39 Hey Matt.
00:25:40 Yeah.
00:25:42 He can stay in the booth.
He's in the booth, I think.
00:25:45 Yeah, stay in that booth.
00:25:50 It's on the snare but I'm holding it.
00:25:52 That's fine, I got it on the overheads.
00:25:54 - You wanna go?
- Let's go.
00:26:57 Can we simplify and just do it
every now and then.
00:27:01 Yeah, just play me the groove.
00:27:03 I'll give you the top
and just randomly...
00:30:24 Pretty awesome Kenny.
00:30:29 Hey, that bridge...
00:30:45 It goes away there,
maybe we put something else there,
like all those shakers you do sometimes.
00:30:50 Yeah, right on.
00:30:52 You wanna get the
ending so it's tight?
No.
00:30:55 - It's perfect loose.
- Right on.
00:30:58 If they don't like it by then
they don't like the song.
00:31:01 So, shaker, what are you thinking?
Just on that bridge.
00:31:05 OK, hang on one second.
00:31:09 Do you have like a bunch of them?
- Oh yeah.
- Like a War record.
00:31:14 The war chest.
00:31:17 Percussion.
00:31:25 Let me hear.
00:31:29 Yeah, let's try that.
00:31:52 Yeah, one more time
and that will be cool.
00:32:12 Can we kind of follow the drums
when we get to that part
on the second half
where you go in the double time?
So, it's like...
00:32:19 Yeah, yeah.
00:32:43 It's so weird.
00:32:46 That's awesome.
00:32:48 That's awesome.
Should I go anywhere else?
Maybe on the outro.
00:33:47 I think we've done, isn't it?
I'm cool with that.
00:33:50 Thank you.
00:33:52 Awesome!
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Matt Ross-Spang is a Multi award-winning engineer, mixer, and producer. His first brush with greatness began at only 14 years old when he received 2 hours of studio time at Sun Studios in Memphis, TN, for his birthday.
He went on to intern at Sun Studios when he was 16 and learned what it meant to bring recording back to its roots. Matt now operates out of the newly renovated Studio B at Sam Phillips Recording in Memphis, TN, which he now calls “Southern Groove.”
Among the many incredible entries in his discography, Ross-Spang was hired in 2016 by Sony Records to mix 18 previously unreleased songs by Elvis Presley from his historic 1976 sessions from the Jungle Room at Graceland.
Known for his unique taste and ability to preserve old school recording techniques and bring them into today’s music, Matt Ross-Spang has worked with some of the world’s most cherished artists from the most legendary studios in recording history.
The series is awesome so far... as the series before are
moondog007
2020 Aug 04
What did drummer do to make the snare more trashy. It looked like he was tuning bottom head? Maybe just easing off snare strainer
Delinquent Noise
2020 Aug 01
Amazing!
Today ends my year in puremix and I have lost my job in these strange times. Everything I have learned here in one year is incredible. But I will come back when I can and I will finish watching this beautiful series.
Thank you so much to all the people at Puremix!
