It’s hard to believe that we’re at the end already but here we are. It certainly does not seem like a year ago that I started this project, and it comes with both a sense of accomplishment and sadness. This has been such a rewarding experience, and has taught me so much about myself and my music, that I have been procrastinating posting the last song. Truth be told, I considered doing another year, January Through December 2.0 perhaps, but eventually decided that it would be best to leave it as it was initially intended to be.
When I started this project, I wanted to present my music as close to it’s inception as possible, while still leaving myself enough time to deliver a quality recording. In that regard, I think it was a success, and my home recordings have improved immensely since my first EP “These Stars We See” in 2006. I expected that there would be some clunkers in the bunch, and there certainly are some songs that will die along with this project but, for the most part, I am extremely satisfied with the music that availed itself to me over the past 12 months. I’ve learned a lot about songwriting and trusting my instincts, and I walk away from this project a better writer.
I have so many people that I need to thank for this experience and I’d like to use this opportunity to acknowledge their generosity with their time and talent:
Sean Boyer – Sean mixed every single song on this project, usually on the last day of the month when I finally got him the tracks (sorry Boyer). Sean is easily one of the most talented musicians I have ever met. He is a drummer of the highest caliber, and I was lucky enough to have him play the traps on the first song of this project. A talented guitarist, songwriter and singer, Sean surprised us both with his clarinet solo on ‘The Last Dance’. As if that weren’t enough, Sean was also the drummer and back-up vocalist for our one-mic experiment in November. Thank you Sean Boyer, this project is as much yours as it is mine.
Jordan Stewart – Jordan made this web-site and was the one who helped me sort out the very loose concept I had in my head very late in December of 2010. Jordan is a top-notch dude and a great friend to have on your side (and a killer poet who you all should check out at http://brokenchairessays.com/).
Chris Braydon – It’s possible that Chris spent just as much time on these songs as I did. Chris is one of my dearest friends and a scary good guitarist and songwriter. Chris lent his talents to almost all of the tracks on this project, with very few exceptions. Chris’ experimentation with feedback, looping and effect pedals is inspiring to say the least. He built the bed that songs like ‘Opening Night‘, ‘Autumn On Sherbrooke St.’ and ‘Lead Me On‘ layed on. He spent endless hours in my spare bedroom trying to make heads or tails out of my scattered direction and often times, showed me a new way to look at the song. I cannot thank you enough Chris Braydon.
Dan Culberson – Dan made the video on the main page of this site. Dan is always the first person to raise his hand when I need help with a project and refuses to take a dime for it. You’re a class act Mr. Culberson, thank you sir.
Chris Fudge – Chris has been an inspiration to me for a long, long time. Though he had a full plate this year with school, two young children and a musical career of his own, he made time to mix a couple of these songs and even perform on ‘Haven’t Got The Time To Spare‘ and ‘I’ll Be A Bird‘. Thank you brother.
Adam Kierstead – I’d like to extend my sincerest gratitude to Adam Kierstead for lending his talents and support to the project. He was a late edition but certainly made his presence known with amazing performances on a multitude of instruments including guitars, bass, keys, drums and vocals. Phew! Thank you Adam, making music with you is truly a privilege.
I’d like to thank my friends and bandmates Chuck Teed and Ali Leonard who also lent their talents to several of the songs. Thank you guys, it’s an honour to play in a band with you!
Finally, I’d like to thank each one of you for subscribing. Having an audience, no matter how large or small, was important to me from the onset. I had considered making this a free web-site but, in order to commit to the project, I needed my audience to commit with me. Thank you so much for that, it means more to me than you could possibly know.
and without further delay….The Last Song!
This month’s song came with it’s own set of pressures. I spent the first couple of weeks of December trying to come up with some kind of grand statement. A swan song to wrap the whole thing up so to speak. Forcing a square peg into a round hole has never been my strong suit and this month’s song didn’t rear it’s head until I had let go of that idea. ‘I’ll Be A Bird‘ was written on a Sunday afternoon in mid-December. I wrote the song on a banjo but ended up recording the song on guitar to avoid the harsh tones and offer some of the low-end advantage of an acoustic guitar in open-tuning.
This song features Chris Fudge on acoustic guitar and shakers, Adam Kierstead on electric guitar, bass,drums, and keys, and me on acoustic guitar, shakers, snare drum and vocals. Adam also sang a really great harmony on the track. It was recorded in my spare bedroom by both Chris Fudge and myself. The song was mixed at Chris Fudge’s house by Chris and Sean Boyer.
Lyrically this song is a fitting finale. It deals with death and has themes of reincarnation and the after-life. Maybe it’s not even about death but rather my way of saying how important music is to me. I picture the bird in the song as a songbird. Hopefully you’ll take your own meaning from it.
So without further delay, I present to you…
Clinton Charlton – I’ll Be A Bird
(to download, right click and select “save as”)
Note: This song is also available in both .WAV and FLAC formats. If you’d like a copy in either format, please write to clintoncca@gmail.com