I sent the tracks for this tune to a friend of mine who owns a professional studio. I gave him no instructions on how to mix it, as I wanted someone else's take on the music. He created a very dry, intimate mix, focusing more on the acoustic guitars…
Guitar/Mandolin: Doug Sparling
Fiddle: Brent Hoad
Composer: Turlough O'Carolan
Arrangement: Doug Sparling
Recorded: 2005
A couple of Planxties by O'Carolan. For the life of me I don't remember the names of them...one may be Charles O'Conor…
Just a Sunday morning,(raining)having my coffee, being a little lazy, checking my news feed on Facebook, found a link from Norm Dahlor, found it and am enjoying this sooo much! Thanks for a very pleasant experience, Doug!
Carol Riggall
Guitar/Mandolin: Doug Sparling
Fiddle: Brent Hoad
Composer: Turlough O'Carolan
Arrangement: Doug Sparling
Recorded: 2005
A couple of Planxties by O'Carolan. For the life of me I don't remember the names of them...one may be Charles O'Conor…
Written & Recorded: Feb 26, 2011
GADGAD Capo III, DADGAD Capo III
This is probably my last track for this year's RPM Challenge (leaving it incomplete for 2011). I'm kind of worn out and not feeling super inspired this year and I sort of…
I've been listening to your "Couleurs" sequence with great admiration. Your palette is spot-on; the music is beautiful, evocative, and insinuating, and your playing has the finesse (and occasional conscious ferocity) of a Toulouse-Lautrec, or one of Monet's late self-portraits. Brilliant stuff, which really gets under your skin!
From 2006 or 2007. One of the first (and one of just a few) pieces I wrote using Reason. I was definitely listening to Patrick O'Hearne at the time...might have to buy some real piano samples.
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…
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…
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
really cool song,, missed it somehow,, but saw Kirk's comment,, and followed the trail,, your lyrics are really good, and the musical parts are very fine,, well done
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
Written and Recorded April 22, 2010
Buddah defined compassion as "a trembling of the heart."
Details: Epiphone Les Paul (DADGAD/DADGAD Capo VII), Seymour Duncan Pickups, POD XT, Boss RC-20 Looper, EBow, Audacity.
Written and Recorded April 22, 2010
Buddah defined compassion as "a trembling of the heart."
Details: Epiphone Les Paul (DADGAD/DADGAD Capo VII), Seymour Duncan Pickups, POD XT, Boss RC-20 Looper, EBow, Audacity.
Written and Recorded April 22, 2010
Buddah defined compassion as "a trembling of the heart."
Details: Epiphone Les Paul (DADGAD/DADGAD Capo VII), Seymour Duncan Pickups, POD XT, Boss RC-20 Looper, EBow, Audacity.
Written & Recorded: Feb 26, 2011
GADGAD Capo III, DADGAD Capo III
This is probably my last track for this year's RPM Challenge (leaving it incomplete for 2011). I'm kind of worn out and not feeling super inspired this year and I sort of…
Written & Recorded: Feb 26, 2011
GADGAD Capo III, DADGAD Capo III
This is probably my last track for this year's RPM Challenge (leaving it incomplete for 2011). I'm kind of worn out and not feeling super inspired this year and I sort of…
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
Have played this over and over! I especially like this one! Song For A Friend! You have gained one with this. Thanks, Doug!
Just a Sunday morning,(raining)having my coffee, being a little lazy, checking my news feed on Facebook, found a link from Norm Dahlor, found it and am enjoying this sooo much! Thanks for a very pleasant experience, Doug! Carol Riggall
Nice to listen to, Doug, even at 7:19 AM on a Sunday! Carol Riggall
I've been listening to your "Couleurs" sequence with great admiration. Your palette is spot-on; the music is beautiful, evocative, and insinuating, and your playing has the finesse (and occasional conscious ferocity) of a Toulouse-Lautrec, or one of Monet's late self-portraits. Brilliant stuff, which really gets under your skin!
Light & pretty! w;-)
Lovely! And, how did I miss it? Shame on me! w;-)
Beautiful melody, love it!
Wonderful!! GREAT guitar sounds!
Wonderful tune, sounds great!
really cool song,, missed it somehow,, but saw Kirk's comment,, and followed the trail,, your lyrics are really good, and the musical parts are very fine,, well done
How cool! Forgot about this one. How ya been man?
Thanks to whomever for bringing this to the fore again. Love Doug's stuff.
oooo i dig that sound...
Sounds GREAT!!! Love it...
EXCELLENT TRACK MAN!!!
Trying to wrap my head (ears?) around the slightly overdriven mono(?) mix you use, but the melodies are always so strong!
Came back for another listen - it's a fascinating sound, really hypnotic
La démarche irrésistible de l'irréversibilité
What a sound, Doug... Excellent work, this RPM effort!
Faved at 0:02. Damn. So good.
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."