By Your Side - Nadine Cooke
These songs are here for listening pleasure and evaluation. I do not and have never received any type of royalty or payment for these songs.
All of the music on this page is from various projects that I have been involved with over the years. Click the "full" lin INVALID next to the songs if you'd like to read some info on the recording of the song.
Story behind the song
By Your Side (Cooke, Jay)
Recorded at: Love Hz Studios
With: Nadine Cooke for the Like a Bird Released album
Contribution: co-producer, bass, keyboard, backing vocals
How:
Warwick Streamer Jazzman bass: through DI, selector middle position, jazz pickup bias
Keyboard: midi vibraphone
Written by Nadine Cooke and Paulie Jay
By Your Side was the first song that Nadine Cooke and I wrote together, but it was completed before we had even met. Nadine had given a big pile of lyrics to a friend of mine in the hopes of collaborating with some songwriting. He sat on them for a while but didn't do anything with them, so I asked him to pass them on to me to see what I could come up with. This was the first song that I nervously played to Nadine when I met her.
The composition of the chords and melody came very easily, and it was just a matter of editing and rearranging some of the lines in order to make them fit the syllable structure of the melody. The song was originally in G major, which suited my voice fine, and it was then raised to B major to suit Nadine's range.
The drums and bass were recorded together, along with some of the acoustic guitar. The harmonica was provided by Canadian comedian / musician John Knowles who I had been writing with for several years. He was not very impressed with the key signature of the song, but pulled off a great performance anyway.
I came up with the backing vocal arrangement on the way to the studio one morning, and it was completed in a few passes with Ethan Willcox and I on opposite sides of a microphone. We didn't quite capture the vibe that I heard in my head, but I still think that it works ok.
Vocals: Nadine Cooke
Percussion, producer: Michael Carpenter
Bass, keyboard, backing vocals, producer: Paulie Jay
Acoustic guitar, backing vocals: Ethan Willcox
Drums: Grant Matheson
Harmonica: John Knowles
