MK and Tommy Emmanuel

[Love Expresso]

I listened two times to it today and during the second listen I thought that it is ... A nice little song. With good warm Martin guitar sound. I agree with you about Mark's singing voice.

LE

[quizzaciously]

So Tommy is the one who nails it and Mark had that pretty audible mistake at 1:46 in it? Something he would never accept on his own recording? Another way of dismantle his guitar hero status? Or just  showing disrespect to Tommy? That "fast shit" sentence was not nice. Would have been cooler to accept the challenge and show Tommy the meaning of "fast" instead...

Sorry I was still in the writing process... 

LE

At 1:46 it's just a little fluke that doesn't justify throwing the recording out

I understand where you're coming from, but I think that it's just about getting older. I think if these guys would teamed up 30 years early, they would release a song with the "shit" so fast your record player would blow up.

But actually I just LOVE this remark about fast shit. You can't believe how much I respect MK for saying words like that, because interestingly enough, Mark had similar words to say about no other than CHET ATKINS. Mark said he has too much of this "smooth jazz" music or even elevator music, cocktail music or something like that. Which is also 100% true. This is the reason I've skipped most of his records even. So Mark is a wizard when it comes to musician's psychology, because he says things to Tommy Emmanuel and to Chet Atkins which no other human on Earth would say to them while being equally loved after the fact. This is called respect.

[Love Expresso]

Thanks for commenting. Made me think about it.

LE

[Eddie Fox]

I caught another little slip at 0:08, not sure who rushed it. As LE said I don't see Mark allowing it on his own albums. Now I'm curious to see what Tommy recorded for Mark. If it's nice and polished like pretty much everything Mark does that will be weird. It's like come to my studio, I'll give you a little song I don't want and 5 minutes of my time to record it and then you lend me your skills for the rest of the day so I can record yet another beautifully crafted song for my new album, how about that 

Regarding the fast shit line, I bet that was Tommy's wording. Mark most likely said something like 'sure, but please don't make me look miserable, take it easy on me' 

[quizzaciously]

Tommy used a quote I'm afraid

But Mark made me think about all this fast stuff. Here's another example of music being transformed into sport (and it's Caravan again!):



I get a headache from such a fast music. Let's see Tommy's contribution to Mark if there was one. I think it was a polished one

[quizzaciously]

But, on the other hand, Tommy needs this for entertainment purposes. Chet needed all this "easy listening" music to make a living.

[Eddie Fox]

I hate shredding. I look at Vai, Satriani, Malmsteen, Petrucci and others and all I can see is a bunch of show-offs with low self esteem who think music is a mix of sport and acting. Tommy can be one of those sometimes but he's also extremely sensitive and ends up making good use of speed too.

[JF]

‘none of that fast shit.’

Tommy is an incredible player and can play so fast it defies belief. But I don't like his fast shit and he's often going very fast. I can't put my finger on it but it's lacking something. When he slows down it's just so much better. And when he slows right down to meet Mark, it gets really good. I like it. I like pipes and whistles too but it's about time he takes another turn again. To go in this particular direction would be kind of going where he was before. But that's not necessarily such a bad thing. I'm looking forward to the past (see what I did there?  )

I love this video of Tommy and Les Paul:



Watch past 1:00 minute mark and wait for it! Pretty much sums up Mark's quote about fast shit.

funny response by Les Paul !
I remember les Paul playing very fast in his young days when he played with his wife

[JF]

I hate shredding. I look at Vai, Satriani, Malmsteen, Petrucci and others and all I can see is a bunch of show-offs with low self esteem who think music is a mix of sport and acting. Tommy can be one of those sometimes but he's also extremely sensitive and ends up making good use of speed too.

I hate shredding too, can't stand all those metal players.
But in this case, I think that Tommy is more in the Django tradition : playing fast is not for show off, or demonstrate is guitar viruosity. I think it's more to suit the old jazz tradition, I mean enthusiasm, "fast life", living in night parties, liberty..you now when music seems to make you fly; I thinkit's the idea

[JF]

I caught another little slip at 0:08, not sure who rushed it. As LE said I don't see Mark allowing it on his own albums.

I think it was the case in the eighties, but now Mark seems to be less perfectinnist regarding performances. he is more into a "playing live all together ithe studio" thing like "you can't beat the house".
On "good as gold", there is a very notable greenie by Richard and they didn't record it again. ok it was not on the "real" record", but it was on the bonus of the deluxe edition

I also remember an interview aired on french radio for the OES album promo, and Mark said that fade to black was played live with the band in one take. And he said : "I could have played better, but we kept it like this, and we took this take for the record. instead of playing it agian to make it perfect, we preferred to keep it fresh"

[JF]

But actually I just LOVE this remark about fast shit. You can't believe how much I respect MK for saying words like that, because interestingly enough, Mark had similar words to say about no other than CHET ATKINS. Mark said he has too much of this "smooth jazz" music or even elevator music, cocktail music or something like that. Which is also 100% true. This is the reason I've skipped most of his records even. So Mark is a wizard when it comes to musician's psychology, because he says things to Tommy Emmanuel and to Chet Atkins which no other human on Earth would say to them while being equally loved after the fact. This is called respect.

I know I will have ennemies here, but neck and neck sounds like elevator music to me. It's indeed how it was called in a french review in 1990.
Some songs are good, and I like listen to it, but the production...sometimes sounds horrible. It doesn't sound like a root country album (as it shoud be), it sounds like a nineties pop-mainstream album. Too polished (like NHB album and OES too).

Sometimes, I prefer this kind of sound like this tune by Tommy and Mark. Yes it seems to have been recorded in a garage, but it sounds like they had fun, and this kind of sound fit vey well to that old-jazzy style, while the neck and neck production ala 90 perfect sound doesn't fit wth these old country tunes imho

[JF]

I don't hear any special "mistake" at 1:46 ? 

[quizzaciously]

I know I will have ennemies here, but neck and neck sounds like elevator music to me. It's indeed how it was called in a french review in 1990.
Some songs are good, and I like listen to it, but the production...sometimes sounds horrible. It doesn't sound like a root country album (as it shoud be), it sounds like a nineties pop-mainstream album. Too polished (like NHB album and OES too).

Sometimes, I prefer this kind of sound like this tune by Tommy and Mark. Yes it seems to have been recorded in a garage, but it sounds like they had fun, and this kind of sound fit vey well to that old-jazzy style, while the neck and neck production ala 90 perfect sound doesn't fit wth these old country tunes imho

But compared to other Chet Atkins records, including his duet with Tommy, Neck And Neck has a very country sound. CA&TE collaboration is even more "easy listening". So don't worry, no enemies at all

[superval99]

I don't hear any special "mistake" at 1:46 ? 

Neither do I also the one at 0.08.   Too much nit-picking, perhaps?         I like the song very much, btw.   

[quizzaciously]

I don't hear any special "mistake" at 1:46 ? 

Neither do I also the one at 0.08.   Too much nit-picking, perhaps?         I like the song very much, btw.   

As I said, it's not a mistake per say, but rather a little fluke. Mistake would be if he played the wrong note there, but it's just an awkward mute.