The Recording Session

Everyone back home was excited. I landed a recording contract and was soon to record at Woodland Sound Studios in Nashville. I really did not understand the magnitude of all that was happening to me and to be quite honest, I was overwhelmed. It didn't take Bob Tubert long to line up the studio for my session. I was in the studio within two weeks after the signing of my contract. I didn't rehearse with any of the studio musicians. I didn't understand how the session was going to work. When the day finally came, I realized that we were on the clock. I was to record about 10 songs in 8 hours. Tubert was very conscious of this time limit. He booked eight hours and we had to get it done. The studio musicians were incredibly talented but none of them read music. They had a numbering system for guitar chord progressions and rhythms. The musicians would gather around me and I would do one of my songs from the beginning to the end. They would write down a listing numbers and then take their place in the studio. We all put on our head phones and I would play and sing the song again and one by one they would enter in and the sound track was created in a matter of minutes. They would ask me if I liked or disliked certain things. They wanted me to direct them and I was reluctant to tell them anything but Tubert encouraged me to get involved because this was costing him money and so I begrudgingly obliged.

These musicians were ultra professional and had recorded with Bob Dylan and Kris Kristofferson just to name a few. The piano player was blind. His name was "Piggy" and he had played on Hee Haw several times. I was adapting fairly well until I looked into the sound room where they were doing the recording and I saw Kris Kristofferson sitting on one of the tables in blue jean cut-offs and nothing else. He was bare chested, barefoot and bushy haired. That was intimidating. I had no idea that any one of any significance would be there. I later found out that the artists did this all the time. They were always looking for songwriters and just loved being around the newest happening on the music scene. It just happened to be me that day.

I managed to get eight of the songs recorded. One song was called, "No time to Cry". It was a blues rock song that I had written and it had a soul grinding kind of blues beat. The musicians loved it and had the lights turned off and lit some candles for atmosphere. That was wild and it really got me more into the session.

The biggest joy of the day was when we recorded a song called "A Dedication". This was a song dedicated to my mom and dad. It was a promise to them that I would make something of myself. The lyrics were full of promises to them. "I won't be a doctor. I won't be a king but I'll be known around the world for the songs that I Sing." The ending was long and repetitive much like Hey Jude and to my astonishment the people in the sound room walked out into the studio and gathered around me and sang the chorus over and over with me. It was a happening and I took full advantage of it and started whaling at the end. It felt like I was in another world. The music got louder and louder and the momentum of the song was increasing and then after a 3 minute ending the song finally began to fade. I was exhausted and I broke down in tears at the end. I was spent and so was the eight hours. It was over.

I went back home that night and was actually glad to see old Vera. It seemed normal. What I experienced that day was anything but normal. Something wasn't right within me. I began to pray to this God that I had not yet met. I ask Him to explain what was going on inside of me. I should have been happy and ecstatic but I wasn't. I kind of felt used and I didn't know why.

Next up.... I walked away from it all