JK Oct 2023 - 2 yrs - Layla, That 6th Trick, Just Breathe (added 3rd November)

[NicoleKKB]

@jkahn

There is no place in that house to perform at 5am without waking the family up so the next OM will also be the last I play at for a while too!

There is a downside in almost everything, isn’t it .
I will definitely miss your live performances .

[jkahn]

@NicoleKKB

There is a downside in almost everything, isn’t it

Yep Although eventually I will have another music space with a closed door, maybe in a year or so!

[jkahn]

@Notter

Damn JK that’s a superb recording, I’d say that’s the best song I’ve seen you perform. Keeping the rhythm with that picking pattern certainly does not look a straightforward task and your vocals on this one are genuinely mega.

Thanks Mark, it was really nice to read this. The picking pattern is a mostly straightforward travis picking with some minor variations, hard to get under the fingers at first but because it’s consistent, it’s easier than it seems once you’ve got it!

Thanks for the kudos on my vocals. You know where I’ve come from. I’m trying to build towards performing in the harsh environment of a real world open mic and I’m not quite there, it’s a slow journey in working out how to sing. I’ve been figuring out how to sing with my actual natural singing voice is, the way I sing in Just Breathe is probably closest to it. Even though I’m still miles off pitch in a lot of places.

@philsmith

You can see your progression increasing greatly once you had the basics down, every recording shows next level performance. Always watch JK videos.

Thanks for watching Phil and thanks especially for watching my other videos too! I don’t have an expectation people will watch but it certainly is nice. I think I learn best in a high-feedback environment and learning alone it’s hard to get that. TBH I’d love to see some more videos from you

@Eddie_09

That was absolutely beautiful JK.

So glad you knew the song Eddie! And enjoyed it. I’m not sure if it was ever a single, but since I’ve heard it I’ve loved it. To me it’s a tale of loss, gratitude and love spun into one.

@twistor59

Bloody superb job

Thank you Phil!

@LBro

I would guess the bulk of your efforts are spent on guitar? To me it shows as I think you are much further ahead on guitar, than on the vox.

As I have told others, don’t overlook your vocal efforts and put some time in on them practice wise. If you play in front of others, the guitar play will captivate them until you open your mouth. At that point IMHO, the guitar is forgotten pretty much and they will remember your vocals.

If you have not done so, you might look up Chris Liepe. He has a lot of free stuff that can help you and his pay side is very reasonable.

Hi LBro! Thanks so much for checking my songs out and your feedback. You are 100% right. The bulk of my efforts are spent on guitar and not singing. Combined with that I come off a really, really low base with singing. Nobody sang in my house growing up. 18 months ago when I started trying to learn I didn’t even realise singers were singing… notes . I was monotone. I started with a pitch matching app (which I couldn’t even do, but eventually could), then Yousician - matching the pitch of the songs. But I found that my timbre/tone was awful when doing that.

Actually, when I listened to music, my ears were mostly active to the rhythm. I didn’t know what a melody was (and made some posts here asking about it).

I’ve done a bit of the Chris Liepe course. But admittedly stopped it and should pick it up again. One of his pieces of advice was to go for timbre/tone/emotion first, and pitch second. So I’m mostly following that advice - still trying for pitch but not at the sacrifice of tone.

I don’t do enough singing practice as such. Mostly what I do now is just try to sing in the car, and sing with headphones hooked up to a mic so I can hear myself. I plan to get a singing teacher IRL but wasn’t able to find one on a schedule that worked where I live now.

I know I still have a long way to go. I wouldn’t sing at a real world open mic yet. In truth I’m not sure I’ll ever get to the level of a functional singer. You’ve given me a lot of food for thought on what I should spend my time practicing. Thank you.

@LBro

“it is like lifting weights for the voice and singing”

Well, I like lifting weights, if only learning singing was that easy!

[Mari63]

That 6th trick sounds great, JK, it’s such a short little piece I would have been happy to listen through after a turnaround. You’re playing is nice and steady, and rhythmic.

[Notter]

That’s terrific to aim for a true open mic, have you got one / a few local to you?

I know you’ve worked hard on vocals and recall your own opinion in earlier days, even though it wasn’t that bad . But the efforts are really showing.

[Socio]

Saw this pop up on the tube and was looking for a November thread. Wow… that was some great playing JK which shows the strength, dexterity and finger independence that you have developed through practice.

@NicoleKKB

I’m also impressed by your right pinky which seems to be glued at the guitar

I noticed that too. Just be wary of putting tension on the pinky, let it be more of a guide than an anchor.

Interestingly, it looked like you didn’t use the ring finger for picking was that just a personal choice?

Overall another performance that shows how much progress you have made in 2 years over different styles and techniques. Inspirational.

[TheMadman_tobyjenner]

Congrats again JK on your achievements over the last two years, you acquired some impressive chops in such a short period of times. Seeing as I have just rekindled my FS picking and having a long term objective to pick and sing, this was quite inspirational with regard to were I am at and how far I have to go in that regard. So no critique from me, as plenty has been offered so far. Thanks for sharing.

[jkahn]

@Mari63

That 6th trick sounds great, JK

Glad you enjoyed it Mari.

@Notter

That’s terrific to aim for a true open mic, have you got one / a few local to you?

Not really any local where I am now, but we’re moving in a few weeks and there are a couple local to our new spot. I am going to go and check them out once we’re there. I’ve seen some of the videos on facebook though, and people are really good… quite intimidating. Hopefully they have a couple of newbies as well.

@Socio

I noticed that too. Just be wary of putting tension on the pinky, let it be more of a guide than an anchor.

Interestingly, it looked like you didn’t use the ring finger for picking was that just a personal choice?

Thanks for checking out Just Breathe James. And the kudos. Yeah, the pinky is just a guide to feel where I am, not a hard anchor.

The fingerpicking pattern is just a three finger pattern for this song. So no ring finger in it And believe me it is easier using the same fingers in the same pattern over and over, changing strings, than it would be go change fingers.

@TheMadman_tobyjenner

you acquired some impressive chops in such a short period of times. Seeing as I have just rekindled my FS picking and having a long term objective to pick and sing,

Thanks heaps Toby. Only tip I have to give for fingerpicking and singing is to choose a repetitive fingerpicking pattern. No tips on singing though

[adi_mrok]

Bravo JK, you really played it like a champ! I play it from time to time as well and really find it a tricky song to play. Don’t think I will ever be ready to record it in a satisfactory level of play, always stump. What usually trips me over is a consistent pace, which clearly is not an issue for an ex drummer

Your guitar sounds so much brighter than mine honestly, did you use any fx at all or is it pure sound via the mic?

My only comment would be to focus on the pinky of your left hand. I think majority of the notes on high e string were muted. I get it its quite tricky, but with repetition there will be less and less muted notes respect for full G during chorus, I couldn’t do it in time so am playing a hybrid with thumb over on low E

@jkahn

There is no place in that house to perform at 5am without waking the family up so the next OM will also be the last I play at for a while too! Although I’ll still wake up to watch.

That’s a real bummer! Any plans to find a room to perform in the future after dust from unpacking settled down?

[jkahn]

@adi_mrok

Don’t think I will ever be ready to record it in a satisfactory level of play, always stump. What usually trips me over is a consistent pace, which clearly is not an issue for an ex drummer

Your guitar sounds so much brighter than mine honestly, did you use any fx at all or is it pure sound via the mic?

Hey Adi!

I’m sure your playing of this one is better than mine - just my standards are lower . It’s a fun one. Yeah you’re right I dont have issues with consistent pace or endurance. One of those lucky ex drummer things. Although the muted bits you noticed would have been because I was pushing the pace. It’s a lot cleaner when I do it slower. I heard those muted bits in the recording but decided to go with it anyway as a live-style performance.

Guitar wise, I used pretty close to my usual OM setup. Sound is via its pickup (a combined piezo & mic pickup) through my Mustang on a simulated Fender Deluxe Reverb model. Have some large hall reverb on the amp and some “warm room” reverb in Ableton. That is usually pretty warm.

When I did the video I had about 10-20% of the camera sound in the mix too which was a bit brighter. Nothing special there it was my cameras built in mic.

@adi_mrok

Any plans to find a room to perform in the future after dust from unpacking settled down?

Yep, will be in at least 6 months, maybe 12 months, and I’ll be back to a dedicated room. In the meantime my PC & guitar space will be right outside my eldest daughters room

[SgtColon]

Whoop! Whoop! That was superb JK. A lovely bit of fingerstyle. The time and effort you have put into the song shows. Very impressive.

You know know the parts that need working on so I don’t need to say anything there. It’s amazing how far you have come in two years.

[SusanW]

Thanks for sharing, great playing for 2 years, it shows how much you must practice. I particularly liked Layla, that must be a a nice song to be able to play!