bla, bla, bla..
At last, 24 years later, my 2001 recording of my song Power From The Sun has finally made its way onto all the major electronic music suppliers including Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music. You'll also find it on YouTube where you can also hear the original master which came out on my YouTube channel.
It's worth blathering on about this tune since it was recorded on one of the first all digital recording systems in the world, the magnificent Lexicon Opus. I worked in many roles at Lexicon in the 80s and 90s but had been a test engineer for the Opus project at the time so I had some access to a complete system which resulted in this recording. Even the bass guitar and keyboards used in this recording were borrowed at the time so it was a surprise when the song came out so well. Ironically, that fact has prevented me from accessing the original tracks to do a proper remix with the data locked up on some digital backup tape I am [currently] unable to access (this was recorded in the 90s after all, when people had land lines connected to wireless phones. A marvel.). The drums were an Alesis HR-16 and the synth was a Korg Poly 800 I believe. Both borrowed. I'm pretty sure the bass was borrowed from my friend Dave Saganey. Thanks Dave! In a strange twist, I actually did some DSP programming of an Alesis chip based on those early Alesis products at one point. Very enlightening having also worked extensively with Lexicon's Lexichip which produced similar audio effects; reverb, echos,.. The original JamMan being a beneficiary. But I digress.
Anyway, being a simple enough song, I set about creating a new version but quickly realized the lyrics are already dated: "this work has [not] just begun", it's been going gangbusters. Remarkably, renewable energy, solar included, is now cheaper than that created with fossil fuel. Against all odds, though, machines that spew out free power when the sun shines on them seems like a good bet. Especially if they work. Back in the 1990s, however, the equipment was new, finicky and expensive so it had to be a good concept for it to succeed. And succeed, it has. A surefire preventative measure against oil spills, that's for sure. Anyway, I may update the lyrics and complete my remake of the "hopeful" 2001 Power From The Sun but until then, I hope you enjoy one of my very early musical successes.
One last shout-out to David Chislett who co-produced this recording but also helped with some of the lyrics and taught me the mechanics of working in a professional recording studio and the basics on mixing. Thanks David.