Hello!
I hope you’re all enjoying the first few days of what is officially Autumn! Autumn and Winter are my favourite seasons. You may think me mad, but I love the crisp bitter chills, combined with the occasional burst of sunshine! Anyway…(waffling on)! Just thought I’d write you a little about each song on Cover Stories – Why we chose them and my favourite bits and pieces! Hope you enjoy reading… More to come tomorrow!
Harriet Xx
I’m Not In Love (Eric Steward * Graham Gouldman)
The original 10CC classic was so ahead of its time, with its lush arrangement, it has become such an iconic song. Steve and I felt that if we washed our signature layered backing vocals and strings all over this, it would bring something new to the song. I am a huge fan of the lyric, as it’s something that strongly resonates with me – It takes a lot for a person to admit that they are ‘in love’ and to surrender, giving into the feelings that ensue from this. My favourite part of this to record was the middle section where the song ‘takes flight’ with “Ooooh you’ll wait a long time for me…” It’s so magical and I go fizzy every time I sing it! 😀
I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing (Diane Warren)
I have tremendous respect for Diane Warren’s songwriting. She makes it sound so easy… To get a melody and lyric so perfectly aligned, that a song could transcend any era or genre. I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing is a prime example of this. Steve Tyler’s vocal on the original track is strong, rugged and intensely passionate. We wanted to take the song to a completely different place and explore the idea that it might be a lullaby – sung perhaps by a mother to a child… I wanted to bring a vulnerability to my version, and so we focussed on recording me very close to the mic, so you can hear every little whisper in the delivery. Steve’s delicate and refined arrangement supports the vocal perfectly. I hope we managed to breath a new life into this song.
Every Breath You Take (Sting)
Perhaps the most unexpected of the songs on the original EP (with the same name) and this album. We were very touched to your wonderful response to I’m Not In Love when we put it on Soundcloud last year, we wanted to find a song we could give a similar treatment to. This felt like a good choice. Sting’s original hit is driven by that famous guitar riff that opens and runs through the song. You’ve probably noticed that this isn’t present in our version. Steve had a strong idea for his arrangement once we’d chosen this song, and whilst remaining respectful to the original, we were keen to freshen it up and give the song a more ethereal quality. I really enjoyed editing the video for this song, I was eager to amplify that atmosphere with a visual accompaniment – It is so different to anything else we’ve done, both musically and visually, it felt like a real milestone.
Home (Michael Bublé * Amy Foster-Gillies * Alan Chang)
I love Michael Buble (said with a grin). Who doesn’t! If I could do a duet with a male singer, he’d be close to top of my list! 😀 The way he has amalgamated that classic big-band/crooner-esqe sound with commercial pop music is genius. He does it so well. And Home, like all of his original material has helped to sooth this fusion between the two genres for him I feel. The lyric of this song is so engaging, and so relatable – We’ve all been there – Missing someone, because you’ve been away from them for too long; away from home. We kept this song warm and twinkly! 🙂 Steve’s beautiful arrangement of my layered vocals is just sublime, and something I can’t wait to replicate live, with backing singers! Wouldn’t that be awesome!? For me, the song conjures up that image of being in a crowded room, but feeling completely alone, because the person you most want to be by your side isn’t there with you. That’s definitely where I ‘went’ when I recorded this vocal.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us. It’s nice to know what an artist feels about the songs they sing! Waiting patiently for my copy to get here. I do so enjoy your music! I too like Autumn, but Winters in Kansas leave a lot to be desired! 😛
Please do send me a photo of a Kansas Winter! 😀