Written: 2004
Composer: Doug Sparling
Midi demo written in vi on a Linux laptop.
Piano music created at the command line on a Linux laptop.
These are the first tunes I composed after switching from performing to writing. I don't own a piano…
Written: 2004
Composer: Doug Sparling
Midi demo written in vi on a Linux laptop.
Piano music created at the command line on a Linux laptop.
These are the first tunes I composed after switching from performing to writing. I don't own a piano…
once again,,, very wonderful,,,,, i will have to check out mr nevue
these tunes all have a certain cleanness and simplicity that i find intoxicating (simplicity is a complement as far as i am concerned, it takes a high degree of skill to be both simple and interesting and excellent all at the same time,, at least as far as i am concerned) well well played/keyed R
Arranged: 2004
Arranger: Doug Sparling
I believe this is a traditional tune, but I'm not sure. I learned it from uilleann piper Seamus Ennis or Liam O'Flynn (or both).
Midi demo written in vi on a Linux laptop.
Piano music created at the command…
very cool,, i like this a lot,,, and i do use a midi keyboard for much of my work,,, but i would always say that there's noting like a good acoustic piano in a large airy room with high ceilings and beautiful light,,, the way the notes dance about the room and tickle the ear is pure pure magic,, very nice Doug
Written: 2004
Composer: Doug Sparling
Midi demo written in vi on a Linux laptop.
Piano music created at the command line on a Linux laptop.
These are the first tunes I composed after switching from performing to writing. I don't own a piano…
Written: 2004
Composer: Doug Sparling
Midi demo written in vi on a Linux laptop.
Piano music created at the command line on a Linux laptop.
These are the first tunes I composed after switching from performing to writing. I don't own a piano…
Guitars/Keyboards/Low Whistle: Doug Sparling
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
Irish song, also know by its English title, "For Ireland I'd Not Tell Her Name."
The Hollow Men
Sad Hippie Thing
1993
Greg Melvin: Vocals, Rhythm Guitars, Keyboards
Doug Sparling: Lead Guitars
David Albrecht: Bass
Terry Adams: Drum Kit
All songs written by Greg Melvin
Arrangements by Greg Melvin and The Hollow Men
Guitars/Mandolin: Doug Sparling
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
A couple of nice reels played on guitar, the first is The Cup of Tea, can't remember the name of the second one. Unfortunately my midi flute scratch track got added in the mix…
Guitars/Keyboards/Pennywhistle: Doug Sparling
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2006
An old English/Scottish folk song. It's very well known, but has a great melody and I'm not ashamed to play it...
Pennywhistle, Low Whistle, Bar Stool (w/ drums ticks): Doug Sparling
Bodhran: David Shaughnessy
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
Set of traditional Irish jigs. Don't ask me the names of them, I don't remember (are you seeing a pattern here…
Guitars/Mandolin: Doug Sparling
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
A couple of nice reels played on guitar, the first is The Cup of Tea, can't remember the name of the second one. Unfortunately my midi flute scratch track got added in the mix…
Guitars/Keyboards/Pennywhistles: Doug Sparling
Composer: Doug Sparling
Recorded: 2005
This was my "signature" track several years ago. I wrote this on guitar in the mid-90s while I was getting divorced, but later renamed it and recorded it…
Guitars/Keyboards/Pennywhistles: Doug Sparling
Composer: Doug Sparling
Recorded: 2005
This was my "signature" track several years ago. I wrote this on guitar in the mid-90s while I was getting divorced, but later renamed it and recorded it…
Guitars/Keyboards/Shaker: Doug Sparling
Composer: Doug Sparling
Recorded: 2005
I believe there's a demo version of this tune that I've already uploaded to alonetone. Originally written as a piano piece.
Guitars/Keyboards/Low Whistle: Doug Sparling
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
Irish song, also know by its English title, "For Ireland I'd Not Tell Her Name."
Guitars/Mandolin: Doug Sparling
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
A couple of nice reels played on guitar, the first is The Cup of Tea, can't remember the name of the second one. Unfortunately my midi flute scratch track got added in the mix…
Pennywhistle, Low Whistle, Bar Stool (w/ drums ticks): Doug Sparling
Bodhran: David Shaughnessy
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
Set of traditional Irish jigs. Don't ask me the names of them, I don't remember (are you seeing a pattern here…
Guitars/Keyboards/Pennywhistle: Doug Sparling
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2006
An old English/Scottish folk song. It's very well known, but has a great melody and I'm not ashamed to play it...
Pennywhistles: Doug Sparling
Bodhran: David Shaughnessy
Composer: Traditional
Recorded: 2005
A set of reels (the first being "For the Sake of Old Decency," picked up from a Michael Tubridy album of the same name) I put together one evening. You…
This track is from the 1986 Scartaglen album "The Middle Path". The first tune "Jezaig" was composed by Breton musician Gilles Le Bigot. The second tune is one of the "Cantigas de Santa Maria" and is attributed to King Alfonso X of Spain
Roger…
Nice, glad you put Jezaig up. I actually "transcribed" this tune years ago, though I'm sure I was nowhere close. I need to dig up that Breton music on Uilleann pipes cassette you gave me. Bet there were some good tunes on there.
An unusual traditional tune from the first Scartaglen album way back in 1984. Going through stuff the other day and ran across the LP and couldn't even remember the tune or having recorded it. I played guitar on this track
Is that the same Metal Man that Barry Dransfield did on Bowin' And Scrapin'? Maybe that's where I remember that tune from. I swear I don't remember a Scartaglen recording before Middle Path, but I do seem to recall you guys had one on Kicking Mule Records....
Outland (The Ballad of Jarrod X)
words and music by VIVIAN CIRCLE
Mother, why did you lie to me?
I didn't have to make the same mistakes as you.
Father, why did you run away?
There was so many things left unspoken with you.
Jarrod walks…
An unusual traditional tune from the first Scartaglen album way back in 1984. Going through stuff the other day and ran across the LP and couldn't even remember the tune or having recorded it. I played guitar on this track
Holy shyte, I haven't heard that tune for years, not even sure I ever had that record. Pre-Middle Path? You should dig up Jezaig sometime, though I seem to recall that Roger played the guitar part...
I swore that I would NEVER upload this. Was having a bad day trying to loop "nice" acoustic guitar sounds and got frustrated so grabbed my Taylor and plugged it into a cheesy Effects box and straight into the looper. Started twiddling knobs and…
Had these backing tracks laying around on my drive for a while and didn't know what to do with them, so grabbed my Ebow and a fretless electric that I built for myself a couple years ago and had a go. My fretless playing is really in its infancy…
This is probably the last of this stuff from the archives that I'll upload. Rescued from a cassette tape of a live performance with former band mates in Scartaglen. These tunes are popular down in the Southwest of Ireland. Michael(Fiddle) and…
This is the first cover song I've ever really recorded in my 15 years of playing and recording.
The guitar and voice are each full continuous takes, I didn't want to do comping (copy and pasting), though the vocal harmony parts were done in…
The first recorded version of this song, this little folk song was originally written fifteen or so years ago with just the four chord rhythm guitar and single vocal. The song became what it is today when I needed to write additional verses for…
Another oldie but goodie (again, apologies for the few seconds of silence it takes to get to the intro). This song is the first that I really tried to record properly, written around Christmastime four or five years ago with my seventh grade…
After writing this song about our newly adopted dog, I asked Kavin if he like to play some slide guitar, knowing that he would come up with something terrific... I just had no idea how terrific.
Bandit rides in the back of my truck
A big…
Another song from the archive... Written about a friend who somehow seemed to come out of her general sad manner... Thoughts go back to a lunar eclipse when the girl I was standing next to to watch it (way back in college) disappeared from sight…
Something I did last year - A song about the crazy college days (Or Uni where applicable :) )
Bad Old Days
Everybody's drinking their wine
Driving slow and taking their time
Better off when I sip moonshine
Not rubbing alcohol 'cause I…
It seems a lot of you record with open mics and can relate. I record 1 track at a time with usually 4 or 5 tracks. So, Im only asking for about 15 minutes of Silence...IS THIS TOO MUCH TO ASK??? Anyway, my house is so loud, I get a lot of bloopers…
As chance had it, I found myself in an acoustically great room, full of cajons! Well, they were unfinished cabinets actually, but they had lovely tones. Since this is the stuff dreams are made of, I had no choice but to seize the opportunity and…
Caveat emptor: I did absolutely none of the drumming in this piece.
WORLD PREMIER! FIRST RECORDING OF THIS PATTERN - EVER!
My friend Kokou "Alex" Yemey called me a few days ago with some urgency in his voice: "I must record this before…
Comments on dougsparling's stuff
Lovely melody in here, sounds like it would end up a traditional folk song in future years.
once again,,, very wonderful,,,,, i will have to check out mr nevue these tunes all have a certain cleanness and simplicity that i find intoxicating (simplicity is a complement as far as i am concerned, it takes a high degree of skill to be both simple and interesting and excellent all at the same time,, at least as far as i am concerned) well well played/keyed R
very cool,, i like this a lot,,, and i do use a midi keyboard for much of my work,,, but i would always say that there's noting like a good acoustic piano in a large airy room with high ceilings and beautiful light,,, the way the notes dance about the room and tickle the ear is pure pure magic,, very nice Doug
really very nice... perfect for this eve of the fourth,,,, how exactly are you doing this??
very cool, amazing what the keys can do,, be they pc or otherwise
nice doug norm d was here
Rockin brilliant lead guitar there Doug.
Yay!! Well played sir!
excellent playing,, really very pretty
Perfect.
Superb (and great job on the bar stool, as well!)
Nice, indeed.
Mmm, I see I must think of a different adjective other than lovely. Oh hell to it, these tunes are all LOVELY.
Certainly a very lovely piece. I like the harmony with the whistles too.
Yes and it's absolutely lovely.
I haven't heard this before, it's lovely.
I love mandolins. Very beautifully done. I think your forte has to be folk.
Lovely foot tapper, cleverly placed percussion. Man, those whistles, superb.
Very, very nicely done Doug.
Good heavens, you are brilliant on the penny whistle. What a performance!
Comments made by dougsparling
Nice. Nothing like an Ebow and a looper.
Nice, glad you put Jezaig up. I actually "transcribed" this tune years ago, though I'm sure I was nowhere close. I need to dig up that Breton music on Uilleann pipes cassette you gave me. Bet there were some good tunes on there.
Is that the same Metal Man that Barry Dransfield did on Bowin' And Scrapin'? Maybe that's where I remember that tune from. I swear I don't remember a Scartaglen recording before Middle Path, but I do seem to recall you guys had one on Kicking Mule Records....
Cool, love it. Good start to RPM.
Holy shyte, I haven't heard that tune for years, not even sure I ever had that record. Pre-Middle Path? You should dig up Jezaig sometime, though I seem to recall that Roger played the guitar part...
Love with a capital "L."
That is SWEET!
Yeah, what they all said. Nice...really nice piece.
coolcoolcoolcool... You always manage to come up with something different, but yet have your distinctive signature on it. Nice blend of sounds...
Ah yeah, I always loved this set. Hmmm, good energy or good beer? :)
Brilliant arrangement...great listen. Favoriting.
Great songwriting again...and Ashley's beautiful voice is a wonderful addition.
Beautiful song all the way around.
Great song and collab. All but one of my dogs are rescue dogs, good man! I really dig your voice, Keith.
I finally have some time to do some Alonetone listening. Glad I didn't miss this one.
Love the guitars...nice and raw, the way it should be!
Ha, nice one. Just like my "studio."
Quite stunning in it's beauty and complex simplicity...
nice, those are some great cabinets...
Very nice, love the "real deal."