Shows
Off the Wagon!3 - "You are messing with things that you do not understand."Stacie and Shelly head to the local LDS temple in Leavitt, where they meet an amiable Bishop Talbot. Somewhat charmed by the ladies, he tells them of local history, the church, Manwill and the Appointed Brethren.Meanwhile at the diner, hands are played as Truck Buckman, the drifter, shoots his shot with Tom Poe and catches him off-guard.TOM POE: "That was a pretty good ploy. I did not see that coming at all."MUSIC FROM THIS EPISODE...Sidewalk Cellist, "Ain't Free" — Little Glass Men, "Biolumina" — Julianna Barwick, "dublab Sprout Sessions" — Blue D...2021-04-2043 min
kat330Up To Me [ft Damien Riba on piano][heard on airwaves in Louisville, KY, area Apr 20, 2018, and found at 49 mins. here: https://soundcloud.com/chradio/kentuckiana-blues-radio-102]
Mar 25, 2018: Maybe this is a straightforward "he done her wrong" song. Maybe it's a wider metaphor for how our nation's no.1 confidence man has sold our national pride for personal gain and has dried up the dreams of too many, making it clear we must VOTE him GONE along with his enablers in Congress to bring back the best in US. I leave it up to you.
The familiarly marvelous piano part is provided by my absolutely favorite Nice person, who Cannes...2018-03-2002 min
kat330BUp To Me [w/ horns]Mar 25, 2018: Maybe this is a straightforward "he done her wrong" song. Maybe it's a wider metaphor for how our nation's no.1 confidence man has sold our national pride for personal gain and has dried up the dreams of too many, making it clear we must VOTE him GONE along with his enablers in Congress to bring back the best in US. I leave it up to you.
The familiarly marvelous piano part is provided by my absolutely favorite Nice person, who Cannes only be Damien Riba, courtesy of Mangalyan Records. Discover more Damien here:
@damien-riba
damienriba.bandcamp.com
Written, produced...2018-03-2002 min
kat330BNo MythNov 3, 2017: This hit single was a sweet swing and No Myth (she PENNed with a lisp) for Michael in 1989 and a song that charmed the socks off me at first listen. Hearing it recently shuffled up in my big mix of music motivated me to finally consider some new recording after nearly a nine-month hiatus with energies focused on resisT activities.
It occurs to me that NM could serve as a sequel to my "Shanghaied" piece [https://soundcloud.com/kat330/kat330shanghaied], with the narrator now back on shore and solid ground after her torrid fling on the high seas...2017-11-0204 min
kat330BThe Lonely Bird (El Ave Solitaria)July 7, 2017: I have not produced any new track for several months now with my energies, such as they are, directed instead to #ResistTrump efforts like writing myriad letters to Congress and attending protest rallies. Then a few days ago, unbidden and out of the blue, I thought on these two tunes from my youth and how they might mash up well, both in melody and the loneliness themes of both.
I had to search online a bit for a key match of "The Lonely Bull" to "White Bird," but once I found that, the mashing up choices I made here...2017-07-0304 min
kat330BI Disown You[Mar. 30 update: JT's surprise b'day gift for me here: https://youtu.be/tDDGKSTzBxk check it out!! xxxooo]
President's Day for US (2.20.17): Seemed most appropriate to post this freedom anthem on this particular bank holiday. My acoustic Guild is featured here in a performance of the '63 Madara & White melody, strumming aggressively through the piece twice, with one take from the R and the other from the L speaker. I also played some synth piano and the choral "Ahh" parts on my Yamaha keyboard. [You can D/L an instrumental-only and other versions in my sets: .mp3's at Free Music...2017-02-1904 min
kat330Shanghaied [ft Damien Riba on piano]Nov 3, 2017: Here is Chapter 2 of this high seas fling: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/no-myth
https://youtu.be/ct_BGvKhJqM [Heard at 10:30 in Ep 1 of "Sailing the Sea Bear" by Shawn Meyer]
[Oct 26, 2016] "Some Choice Words" could be this song's subtitle, because its inception began with hearing in my head rhymes for certain unusual words that have caught my attention over the years. I even found a way to include "bulwark," which is the first word I consciously recall having a fascination with whenever singing "A Mighty Fortress" in church as a preschooler. The melody that arose for intro, verse...2016-10-2103 min
kat330BHelp Me After You Die [kat330 mash]October 18, 2016: (Headphones! :) Serendipity strikes again. These two tracks came up one after the other in my major .mp3 shuffle program, and the similarities were immediately apparent. Not just the key, but also the overall tone, the shambling rhythm and especially the non-verbal groans that punctuate each artist's piece. Getting the drums to match up perfectly is always the #1 issue when there are unique and interesting drum parts featured prominently in both songs, so there are still some rough spots in the end result here. But I think the dueling "Moan" Osborne and Tom "Wails" section toward the end is delicious...2016-10-1804 min
kat330BBeyond the Planet of DOUGHY WHITE MIDDLE-AGED MEN Is a Major C Change in a Chord with Mother Earthhttp://kat330.tumblr.com/post/152947062479/finland-here-we-come-if-i-never-waken-from posted Nov 9, 2016
[Original notes updated August 2016] I recorded this ditty back in March 2015 in the tradition of a 20th C. protest song while having some extra fun with instrumentation and various musical allusions. At that time I could never have suspected—not even in my wildest nightmares—that a template for my initial inspiration could ever actually be nominated as the presidential candidate of a major US political party! Lumped with so many other heinously ignorant, unjust and horrific events of 2015-16, it can be understood only in the context of some virulent strain of p...2016-08-1702 min
kat330BDon't Dust Up Our Love [kat330 Mash-up]July 19, 2016:
I happened to catch Parquet Courts' track "Dust" on local radio recently and immediately was reminded of Richard & Linda Thompson's "Don't Renege on Our Love" from their "Shoot Out the Lights" album. With some editing and a slight tempo change of "Dust," this mash-up was born. I hope you find the end result interesting, and please check out the artists' tracks individually, too! xxxooo
https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Renege-On-Our-Love/dp/B001RYSNOI
https://www.amazon.com/Dust/dp/B01BFVFJIU2016-07-1904 min
kat330Bkat330's Lighten UpJuly 1, 2016: (Strap on headphones to fully plug into the Kat 3:30 ride here! :) Amused by this LIGO post [apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap160615.html] and by my husband's recent dream of us up in a spaceship, I was inspired to create this song of merging black hole G-waves, G-forces and thrust. It isn't rocket science, but it has everything to do with physical science and a sound map where G marks the spot. It's rather 11th hour slapdash in order to release it Friday as a surprise (Happy Birthday, Baby! ♥). Hopefully the multilayered fugue that builds makes it interesting, if a so...2016-07-0103 min
kat330BTurn Off Your Phone (Ion & Kathleen)[May 24, 2016: Dedicated to our true heroes—classroom educators—and to parents around the globe!] Ion Bodi's wonderful guitar instrumental inspired me to write a set of lyrics based on his very relatable title. When I sent them to him, he asked if possibly we could make it a pop piece together. So here is its earliest incarnation. I'm battling a wonky microphone situation and an even noisier recording environment than usual, but Ion has worked some magic with his mix here. He has mentioned adding other elements to this, perhaps his own music students, whenever he can find the time. I su...2016-05-2403 min
kat330Thing Called Love (add. lyrics)[May 1, 2016—Happy May Day! Please see additional info on this global collaboration in notes at the shorter version here https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/thing-called-love ]
Raitt omitted Hiatt's second set of bridge lyrics perhaps only because of the "wife" rhyme, but I imagine the "obey" rhyme is not something women are comfortable with after finally getting it removed from most marriage vows. So I rewrote that section keeping the original idea mostly intact (I think) but better suited to a female POV:
Before all humankind I'll love you as my man
To cherish, honor and to care for.
This kind of...2016-05-0104 min
kat330BThing Called Love w/ Finn & Gary[April 26, 2016, a global collaboration that's indeed a thing called love—of music!] So honored to have worked on this Hiatt à la Raitt cover with these greatly talented folk (and even greater souls)!
Finn Bårdsen (Autopilot Club): https://soundcloud.com/finn-slide-guitarist/tracks Slide guitar lead and rhythm
Gary Reeves (Mountain Songs): https://soundcloud.com/mountain-songs/tracks Percussion
Martin Lucas (Return to Normal): https://soundcloud.com/mlucas/tracks for his wonderful working version Logic X drum programming (plus his keen ears and being an all-round Hoosier mensch :)
JT Lindroos: Cover design https://www.facebook.com/people/JT-Lindroos/100003643716049 and http://jtlindroos.tumblr.com...2016-04-2604 min
kat330Bkat330 LOVE REIGNED remasterMarch 30, 2016: (headphones please :)
A remaster of LR was in the works for a while, but it seems now is the right time to post this given recent world events. A birthday wish of mine is for everyone on the planet to have a "rocky shore experience" ultimately allowing love to reign over all hate. The original release of this—my first fully realized singer-songwriter original—was in July 2013, just prior to JT's gift of a Yamaha keyboard synth. So the instruments performed here include 2 intertwining vibraphone parts on Korg keyboard, a bongo beat throughout, Epiphone drones for the "bass" end, 2 inte...2016-03-3004 min
kat330BMichael from MountainsMarch 14, 2016
This is my remaster of a track posted originally on October 24, 2013: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/michael-from-mountains Headphones always recommended as my production tweaks are usually on the subtle side.
I first heard this sweet and cheery song where I found so many other gems I performed long ago: Judy Collins' treasured "Wildflowers" album. Likewise I adapted the keyboard part (Korg in harpsichord mode) from her superb "Songbook" of the period. Cello, oboe, harp and flute parts are produced on my Yamaha synth. The artwork is JT's deft actualization of an image I had in my head as I recorded...2016-03-1403 min
kat330BSt. TeresaLeap Day 2016
I always "Relish"ed this song the most from Joan Osborne's breakthrough album. It's the music that pulled me in since I can't resist a waltz tempo, especially in a minor key. The lyrics, just vague and mysterious enough to be out of easy reach, were secondary to my enjoyment. I picked up on obvious drug references, but I needed to create a different back story in order to cover the song with any personal meaning. And while most of the lyrical content describes a shabby urban backdrop, the music itself suggested to me a rural Appalachian setting...2016-02-2904 min
kat330BDownton Files [kat330 Mash-up]While most of US tuned into that ball-maul Bowl Sunday eve, JT and I caught up with Scully & Mulder's latest reincarnation followed by the newest Abbey episode. If not for this viewing serendipity, quite possibly my keen ear would never have connected the dots—dots as ♪♪ in this case—to produce this brand new Kat Mash. And yes, those are my own "la-la-las" at the end. It's a seamless quickie both in length and in time taken to turn it out. I encourage you to visit my other similarly seamless mashup involving serendipity here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/rogue-world
Also inspired...2016-02-0701 min
kat330Bkat330's Nice to Be Naughty[see full LYRICS below and hear joerxworx's wonderful saxophone addition here: http://kat330.bandcamp.com/track/nice-to-be-naughty-featuring-joerxworx-on-saxophone ]
Kim of My Hot Air Balloon challenged me to do Eartha Kitt's "I Wanna Be Evil." As much as I enjoy Kitt's delightful performance here https://youtu.be/SS02GeKuWQ4, the lyrics didn't speak to me enough to cover it. Instead I wrote a nice vs naughty piece of my own and deliver it atop Earle Hagen's own composition duality: His song of innocence being the Andy Griffith Show Theme (on which Earle whistles as well), followed by a most sultry song of...2016-01-2103 min
Roger/B-TrainRules Of Engagement w (kat330)....Open Mic Challangehttps://soundcloud.com/roger-b-train/open-mic-challenge-malefemale-rock-or-rap
https://soundcloud.com/kat330
I wasen't sure if anyone would take interest in this but Kat and myself have been swapping ideas on this & then she sent me this with her vocal's on it!!! Sounds AwEsOmE to me what she did!! Give her a little 2015-11-1903 min
kat330BGetting Real[Originally uploaded @kat330 in 2014 during the Polar Vortex hitting US. Deleted there for more account time and remastered here November 11, 2015] These are my original production notes.
While playful Kat's warming up outside in the cold distance, a wild Kat did growl: This prose poem was written in a rush of despair the morning of the autumnal equinox, September 23, 2010, after hearing a weather report the temperature could reach 100-degrees in the Louisville, KY, metro area that day. It is an Owed to Earth screed about unbridled greed, my enviro-rant venting rage over the decades of senseless waste now creating great haste...2015-11-1202 min
kat330BGregorian ChanceOctober 7, 2015 [Lyrics below and headphones strongly recommended]
'Tis the creepy season of Halloween chills and, to mark the centennial of its publication, here is my sonic version of Franz Kafka's notorious tale of hapless Gregor Samsa in "Metamorphosis," greatly abbreviated here in my words and music. The narrator (guess who?!:) describes only the earliest moments of Samsa's transformation, and then I spin it in the end with an upbeat twist. Maybe it will pique your curiosity to read the original story, and I encourage you to do so.
I'm fairly pleased with how it turned out all in all but...2015-10-0703 min
kat330BCandy Man (remaster)Please see original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/candy-man-dave-van-ronk Cover Design by JT Lindroos: http://pinterest.com/jtlindroos2015-09-1702 min
kat330BEast St Louis Blues (remaster)Please see original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/east-st-louis-blues-1
(cowbell layer removed per request of JT/ "Philo" https://soundcloud.com/philo-gristle :)
Cover Design by JT Lindroos http://pinterest.com/jtlindroos2015-09-1602 min
kat330BFrankie's Blues (remaster)Please see original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/frankiesblues
(NOTE: at 1:09-1:15, you'll still hear the truck on wet pavement passing by our living room--just pretend it's ambient barroom noise. :)
Cover Design by JT "Philo Gristle" Lindroos http://pinterest.com/jtlindroos and https://soundcloud.com/philo-gristle2015-09-1603 min
kat330BFixin' (remaster)[Originally posted February 2013 @kat330 / deleted there for upload time / retained listener comments below]
While noodling on a newer toy (Epiphone Special II) in my musical instrument array, I decided to record myself back in early February 2013 strumming a rendition of "Fixin' to Die." The year had begun on a roll, but there was a sad blindside to the soul before I got around to recording any vocals for it. Well then, Dylan's / Bukka White's lyrics felt too dark for the place I was pushed aside to, so I set about writing new words in a very different direction, adding acoustic...2015-09-0403 min
kat330BBusted Rhymes: A Nhyming Narrative (must read notes!)August 18, 2015: Hope you enjoy this word puzzle I constructed as a challenge to myself. Squeezed into the 19 couplets below are fully 39 pairs of words that are spelled as if they should be rhymes but are pronounced differently, sometimes even quite so (like "tamale" and "pale" :). If there is a term for this English language quirk, I could not find it, so please inform me? In my search, I came across this site: http://people.sc.fsu.edu/~jburkardt/fun/wordplay/unrhymes.html
While obviously every couplet ends in "eye-rhymes," several lines also contain within them two to three additional words...2015-08-1802 min
kat330BEl Preso Numero NuevePlease see original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/el-preso-numero-nueve
It was used on PBS here: http://www.pbs.org/food/original-fare/season-3-episode-2-childhood-search-puerto-ricos-lost-pepper
(Muppets have left, but Kat crawled in ;)
What you'll hear missing compared with the first recording is a pan-effect that Mr. Gristle had done on my track using Garage Band software. If people really want that back in on this remaster, let me know and I'll put Philo on it! ☼
If you care to hear a *really* lo-fi, effed up version, there is always this: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/el-preso-redux-1998-tape :) xxxooo2015-08-0403 min
kat330BAfter the Gold Rush (remaster)Please read original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/after-the-gold-rush
☼2015-08-0404 min
kat330BCatch the WindFind original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/catch-the-wind
An early track benefiting from my mixing and production learning curve, separation in vocals, etc.2015-08-0103 min
kat330BSince You've Asked (remaster)Find original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/since-youve-asked-judy-collins2015-08-0102 min
kat330BColoursFind original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/colours-donovan
See Mr. Gristle's video backdrop (to the original version) here: https://youtu.be/dDqkUJq4HJw
Much better separation on this remaster, and D/Ling can now resume anew! :)2015-08-0103 min
kat330BBipolar Vortex BoogiePlease check out this droll dude's podcast, "Ragbag," which intersperses quirky music with snarky observations on e-human behavior:
https://soundcloud.com/frank-burton-912417543/ep2-triangle-house
Find lyrics and production notes at:https://soundcloud.com/kat330/bipolar-vortex-boogie-drrrama ]2015-08-0102 min
kat330BPlayer v Player (remaster)[Find lyrics and production notes at https://soundcloud.com/kat330/player-vs-player ]2015-08-0103 min
kat330BRichland Woman Blues (remaster)July 28, 2015: Another in my remaster series, Original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/richland-woman-blues
A Mississippi John Hurt cover as I learned from Maria Muldaur's version. I tweaked a lyric in verse 3 -- just made sense. The rooster artwork is by Tony "Doc" Shiels. We're fortunate to have a couple of original pieces by him. xxxooo2015-07-2802 min
kat330BSomeday Soon (remaster)Cool original artwork of her abusive, halfway house biker by JT Lindroos [kiitos, Kulta!]
July 28, 2015: Another in my remaster series, still with the sarcastically cynical lyric changes as sung by an older (yet not at all wiser) woman. Original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/cynical-sarcastic-someday-soon
This is the earliest recording still on my kat330 site that I have never tweaked until this remaster. I think it benefits the most from my learning curve. :) xxxooo2015-07-2802 min
kat330BHard Lovin' Loser (remaster)July 28, 2015: Another in my remaster series. Original production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/hard-lovin-loser-richard-fari and Mr. Gristle's YouTube edited cartoon visual here: https://youtu.be/nc1BuhBxY6E
No getting rid of the Korg's "buzz" when it was plugged into my laptop and in normal piano mode, but maybe there's more clarity elsewhere in this version. xxxooo2015-07-2803 min
kat330BWaltz to a Wood Thrush (Lyrics+Lisa Lilts)[see a video using this track here: https://youtu.be/UlJGyvCFRkc ]
July 27, 2015: OK, the 4th and final variation on a thrush theme, whew! This is my vocal version with the lovely lilts of Lisa West (Faerytale on SoundCloud) https://soundcloud.com/faerytale/tracks and here: www.cdbaby.com/Artist/Faerytale
Lisa indicated she recorded her vocalization against my lyrics version, and so I feel it fits together even better than her with my instrumental version. To see lyrics, go to production notes here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/waltz-to-a-wood-thrush2015-07-2703 min
kat330BSisters of Mercy (remaster)Nov 11, 2016: Leonard Cohen, R.I.P. ♥
July 23, 2015: [headphones suggested] Here's the 5th in my "remastered for downloading anew" project. You'll also find a few DL-maxed tracks at freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin (excluding my covers of active artists). Somehow I had mastered my initial recording of "SoM" with an especially soft volume, so boosting that is the primary improvement here. I feel this is one of my finest vocals overall, coming after I'd learned a bit more about Reaper and before I'd beat up my best mic by badly securing it to and often dropping it from a telescope tripod fo...2015-07-2302 min
kat330Waltz to a Wood ThrushJuly 16, 2015: How appropriate that my probable "swan song" here at kat330 was inspired by a bird a couple of weeks ago, a talented wood thrush to be specific! From his 6-note song, I heard a waltz melody in my head and began writing lyrics to fit. It was an unexpected yet joyous journey getting into the guise of a male songbird courting a mate for this narrative.
My Guild provided the simple chords and rhythm, and to that I added keyboard sounds of harpsichord, cello, pan flute and orchestra harp, even some flourishes of kantele near the end. The thrush...2015-07-1603 min
kat330BWaltz to a Wood Thrush (instrumental)July 16, 2015: How appropriate that my probable "swan song" over at kat330 was inspired by a bird a couple of weeks ago, a talented wood thrush to be specific! From his 6-note song, I heard a waltz melody in my head and began writing lyrics to fit. It was an unexpected yet joyous journey getting into the guise of a male songbird courting a mate for this narrative.
But this is an instrumental version only, recommended I upload by JT. Would be so lovely if someone choreographed a waltz piece to it or used it for some pastoral video. My Guild...2015-07-1603 min
kat330BLa Chanson des Vieux AmantsJune 23, 2015: [headphones suggested and, please, no need to ♥ / repost / comment again!] Another in my "remastered for downloading anew" project. You'll also find a few DL-maxed tracks at freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin (excluding my covers of active artists). I tightened up the melodica track a bit and used new master settings to hopefully improve and increase the overall sound. A simple trio of sounds here: my voice, my Korg in harpsichord mode and my melodica (in dark corridor FX). Please read production notes at my initial version posted here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/la-chanson-des-vieux-amants2015-06-2303 min
kat330BBlack Crow Blues (Remaster)[see JT's Betty Boop visuals for this track here: youtu.be/BezN4R-WZRI]
June 20, 2015 [remaster]: I tightened this up a bit, esp. in the "Hit it, gals!" instrumental section, and used new master settings to hopefully improve and increase the overall sound. Here are my original production notes:
When I came across this title within my old set lists, I remembered actually that it—and not Mitchell's "Last Time I Saw Richard"—was the very first song I pecked out the piano part by ear as a teen, note by note, from my vinyl of "Another Side." Never tried to tran...2015-06-2003 min
kat330BI Shall Be ReleasedJune 18, 2015 [remaster]:I haven't tweaked this significantly, but I did tighten it up and used new master settings to hopefully improve and increase the overall sound. Here are my original production notes:
Sisters and brothers, saints and sinners in the congregation of the Everlasting Light of Hope, please open your hymnals to p. 330 and join me in making a joyful, hopeful noise! ☼
First time I heard this song as rendered by The Band on "Music from Big Pink," it hit me like a hymn, and that's how I've always interpreted it. Here I've changed up the rhythm and added several ke...2015-06-1803 min
kat330BBrass in Pocket (remastered)June 15, 2015: [headphones suggested!] Please, no need to ♥ / repost / comment again. I posted this to offer resumed downloading because after "El Preso" (which still can be downloaded at freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin ), "Brass in Pocket" was my most downloaded SC track prior to October 2014 when I reverted to a non-pro account with DLs limited to 100. I haven't tweaked it a great deal, but I redid a smidgen of harmony and used new master settings to hopefully improve and increase the overall sound. My original release is still here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/brass-in-pocket-pretenders More to come!
Arranged, performed and produced by...2015-06-1503 min
kat330BSwamp Guinea [Remaster]This is a remaster of the original Sept. 19, 2013 release. Please see original info here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330/swamp-guinea There's a kantele driven break in the middle, and please listen all the way for the surprise at the end. :)2015-05-2803 min
kat330Copper KettleHappy Day to All Mothers!
My new Gristle cigar-box "Kat 330" guitar is featured here, whee! With its fret spacing and neck length, there are a limited number of tunes I can cover with any "panache," but this old repertory chestnut is one of them. I recorded the guitar first, continuing it on to the 3:30 mark or so. When I started fitting in the verse sections, I realized I had played six total, but Beddoe's lyrics only stretch to three plus a repeat of the first. I could have cut out two sections, but decided instead to write two new verses...2015-05-1003 min
kat330BPlenty Of PA (A To Z)March 1, 2015
February 2015 was brutal locally beginning midway through, but colorful seed catalogs put me in a reverie of spring planting and summer's bounty. And whenever I think of homegrown vegetables, my mind returns to a ditty I performed at age nine in Knob Knee high school's production of "Plain and Fancy." [http://kat330.tumblr.com/post/18854920150/first-stage] "Plenty of Pennsylvania" is the musical number in which this minute solo occurs and, as you might figure out on your own, I'm singing out vegetables in alphabetical order, A to Z. There's some fudging on "U" (un-ions) and "X" (x-plant for eggplant...2015-03-0101 min
kat330See a Little LightReceived an overnight visit from The Muse a while back with an insistence I cover this wonderful Bob Mould piece in a waltz tempo. It's not a song I knew all that well to start with, but I'd heard it on the radio in the preceding hours and, well, The Muse simply will not be denied. Per usual I did not wind up close to the production I hear in my head: Limitations of hardware, software and musicianship always leave me wanting. Still I trust it's at least a unique and not a wholly unpleasant version.
I got the jangly...2015-01-1604 min
kat330BTransistor Sister (remastered)Many thanks to Alfonso Llorente Sardi for offering to make TS "sound big" and for doing so! My initial lower-fi, shorter version is here https://soundcloud.com/kat330/transistor-sister and check out Alfonso's sounds here https://soundcloud.com/abogllm
Also a free .wav download of this longer version available here: http://kat330.bandcamp.com/track/transistor-sister2014-12-0505 min
kat330Transistor SisterJune 16, 2015: Posted at the Indie Media Weekly site here: http://tinyurl.com/pg5m87b
Nov 27th [Thanksgiving for US]: Preferred if this lighthearted piece wasn't already in the pipeline given the sickening injustice of Monday's Night of No Indictment. But having a minor scale taste of local corruption and injustice this year myself, I found turning to humor helped me carry on. Perhaps we must rocket off this terrestrial plane to finally find a universal justice, which is my segue to: --> The first moment I heard the soundclip of the comet "song," I hoped to work it into...2014-11-2703 min
kat330Lady-in-waitingJuly 11, 2014
The back story to creating this tale of woe -- as in how I totally backed into it -- is worth the price of admission alone. Recently I'd found myself with a long and sturdy thumbnail, rare enough given gardening, housework, etc., and took the opportunity to record a guitar part remembered from my youth. I adopted this self-taught playing style of plucking down the strings of a chord with my thumbnail when that and strumming were all I had in my teen trick bag. (A few years still until a fellow Chattertock at Brown U. showed me how...2014-07-1104 min
kat330(God Only Knows) You Make Me Feel[Hear a new remix in .wav here https://kat330.bandcamp.com/album/if-6-was-3 or in .mp3 here
http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin/If_6_Was_3 ]
July 1, 2014: For my husband and my best friend, JT Lindroos. Happy Birthday, hunaJuha!)
Brian Wilson's "God Only Knows" and "Natural Woman" by King & Goffin are two favorite songs of mine from any era and any genre. Well aware I'm unworthy of covering either on its own, I thought I could at least make a wholly new song and sound from mixing up my performance bits of both together, much as I did in "From...2014-07-0104 min
kat330Play on Words(ck. lyrics)[D/L .mp3 here http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin/Play_on_Words_Doo-wop_You_Do_to_Me OR .wav here http://kat330.bandcamp.com/track/play-on-words-doo-wop-you-do-to-me ]
Jun 15: Happy Father's Day to all you daddy-o's out in SoundCloudland!
Had it in mind a while to develop a song around a cool kitten copy editor, Grammar Puss, and the village wordsmithy, Wilder Witt III, her cool cat cunning linguist. I would jot down a lyric once in a while but couldn't settle on a style to deliver the song. I was leaning toward Minnie's "If You See My Rooster" or Simone's "...2014-06-1503 min
kat330MoondanceMay 17, 2014
If you dismiss my field recording, Blue Angels vs. Red Birds (and I do), it's been two months since I've done any new creative recording. Neighborhood noise is certainly a factor, but also there has been a matter of a claims case filed against a real lyin', deceivin', cheatin' and a-thievin' company across the river. It involves one of my late mother's major legacies left to me, so the stress and sadness surrounding it all have absorbed my time and energy since March 17th.
Yet despite having all that ugliness Spring on me, and then now my great displeasure...2014-05-1703 min
kat330Bipolar Vortex Boogie (Drrrama!)[played here http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/55046 Mar.31, 2014 ]
Happy St. Patrick's Day and time to have some fun again! I jotted down these lyrics and title a few weeks ago courtesy of a couple+ folks who would quickly recognize my inspiration if they ever bother to listen (but bet they won't! ;). I had a general idea of how I wanted to present and harmonize on the word "Drrrama!" as well as thoughts on special sounds for the track, then providence placed Poletti's "Boogie Woogie in C" backing track on my Dashboard. [https://soundcloud.com/john-poletti/boogie-woogie-in-c]
John (Poletti) Laurence's piece...2014-03-1602 min
kat330Gracewater Waltz (Lamentstrumental™)[March 1, 2014 -- Dedicated to JB: Memphis has its legendary Graceland and, for me, a legendary Gracewater as well. Airplay on May 19, 2014 and archived here: http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/55710 ] See video using the track here: https://vimeo.com/105995529
This is an acoustic blues improvisation on my Guild using a brass slide for a bit at the end. I did two different guitar takes of this lament, the second one while not directly listening to what I played the first go-round, and then sort of matched them up in two separate tracks. So, it is sloppy here and there and everywhere...2014-03-0203 min
kat330After the Gold RushREMASTERED version here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/after-the-gold-rush-remaster
[heard here on April 3, 2014: http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/55094 ]
02.21.2014
It was while thinking of covering Neil's sweet song in a reggae / world beat back in July that led to the inception of my own "Love Reigned" track. Decided I couldn't wait longer for more from the field of collabs to respond to inquiries, so to speak, so finally now, here's that cover I envisioned all those months ago.
Arranged, performed and produced by Kathleen Martin2014-02-2104 min
kat330Brass in Pocket[can D/L remastered version at: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/brass-in-pocket or support with purchase here: http://ldr.fm/GzUxx thank you!]
02/14/2014 [14/02/2014]
H♥ppy V♥lentine's D♥y! This one's for all you special guys and gals who need no brass in pocket to give one another some inventive attention. Use your imagination to have a ball tonight while you heat up under a warm cover song! ;)
∞ My hunajUHa: ALL is because of, to and for you always and forever after! ∞
Arranged, performed and produced by Kathleen Martin
[Art by awesomeblossompossum at deviantART w/ tweaks by JT Lindroos]2014-02-1203 min
kat330Player vs Player[NOTE: This was uploaded in .wav format, so it's a huge DL -- sorry! I can send .mp3 version if asked to]
January 31, 2014 -- Happy Chinese New Year!
Necessity is indeed the mother of invention & I trust this track is proof of that. Deja vu all over again.
To anyone who thought they already saw or heard this track a few weeks ago, consider it merely some dream you had -- you know, like the later "Newhart Show" and "Breaking Bad"'s alternative endings. ;) This renaissance of my P v P track puts my lyrics, melody and vocals into my...2014-01-0703 min
kat330All I WantNov. 25, 2013 [recorded piecemeal amidst our alleyway cacophony]
Another cover of Mother (Superior) Mitchell off her sublime "Blue" album. I make it a point never to revisit any song I cover before recording my own spin on it. This usually means I miss a lot of the original musical boat -- often lyrics as well -- but it also can help ensure a more unique version as opposed to a merely faithful cover. For e.g., I know my intro / outro dissonance sections are way off from what Joni does, but I had a lot of fun finding a variety of...2013-11-2603 min
kat330Sisters of MercyNov 11, 2016: Leonard Cohen, R.I.P. ♥
[hear the remaster (w/volume!:) here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/sisters-of-mercy-remaster ]
Another page -- four actually -- from the Judy Collins' "Songbook" and probably my final production from that source. This short and very sweet song was never part of my early repertoire, but cfriverdog wondered aloud if I happen to do any Cohen covers. (Thanks for the nudge, Corey!:) Keyboard sounds here include harpsichord, recorder, bassoon, harp and a bit of tremolo strings to begin and to end it.
Obviously I can't presume what's in Cohen's mind when he wrote and performs th...2013-11-0602 min
kat330Michael from MountainsOctober 24, 2013
First heard this sweet and cheery song, and so many others I performed long ago, on Judy Collins' treasured "Wildflowers" album, and likewise, I learned my piano (Korg harpsichord mode) accompaniment from her superb "Songbook" of the period. Cello, oboe, harp and flute parts produced on my synth keyboard. Glad this offers a counterbalance to my most recent NOLA dirge (Haunted House of the Rising Sun).
The artwork is JT's deft actualization of an image I had in my head as I recorded the vocal track.2013-10-2403 min
kat330Haunted House of the Rising Sun[NEWLY REMASTERED version for D/L here: http://kat330.bandcamp.com/track/haunted-house-of-the-rising-sun-newly-remastered]
Heard on WFMU here http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/59351 and here http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/59384 on Feb 10 & 12, 2015 [Liz Berg DJ] and Oct. 30, 2014: http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/57901 and here: http://www.mixcloud.com/nick-thomas2/a-happy-halloween-specialsounds-from-the-cloudredruth-radio31-oct-2013/
October 17, 2013
The back story on my arrangement here: I had recorded the guitar, bongos and lead vocal several weeks earlier. Then last week in the middle of the night when my mojo was still in slo-mo, the Muse visited and sang into my ear the haunting strains of Big Brother...2013-10-1705 min
kat330Children of Darkness (kodiaktom w/kat330)(Richard & Mimi Fariña cover)
Still waiting for my mojo to pique re-interest in my planned and unfinished creations, but I'm ALWAYS up for a bit of harmonizing. So here is some of that plus kantele plucking contributions to Tom Peterson's (kodiaktom) fine rendition posted less than a month ago: http://soundcloud.com/kodiaktom-1/children-of-darkness-richard
As I said in a note on his track, I'd always sung the harmony of this above the melody rather than under it, but below was my only feasible choice here. The kantele adds some higher sweetness I hope. Thanks for the opportunity, Tom! :)2013-10-1103 min
kat330I Think It's Going to Rain TodaySept. 30, 2013
I always heard my cover of this Newman gem with a cello part in my head, and now I can achieve that with the Yamaha keyboard. Sort of, anyway. The blown bottle and ending organ and bass sounds are also new additions to my early rep version of harpsichord-only accompaniment.
The 1970 photograph I've chosen for a visual is one I snapped as a teen of a "Brussels sprout" hard at work on a sidewalk in that city on my first backpacking trip to Europe. Our plane was diverted from Luxembourg to Brussels due to dense fog and, come to...2013-10-0103 min
kat330Swamp GuineaMay 27, 2015 remastered version here:
https://kat330.bandcamp.com/track/swamp-guinea-2015-remaster
by K.A. Martin (Sept. 19, 2013)
[Heard Sep 11, 2014 here: http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/57252]
I've layered in much from my new keyboard here [drums, organ, trumpet, sax and sundry sound effects] over my Epiphone (rhythm + lead), piano, kantele, bongos, "cowbell" and vocal tracks. The only imported sound here is the chicken bawk. If nothing else, I hope the amount of tediously time-consuming production and engineering effort here is realized and appreciated.
CREDIT: Spot-on caricature art and swamp froggy shouts are provided by my hunaja (JT Lindroos).
DISCREDIT: Similarity to...2013-09-2403 min
kat330I Shall Be Released[can D/L remastered version at: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/i-shall-be-released ]
(Sisters and brothers, saints and sinners in the congregation of the Everlasting Light of Hope, please open your hymnals to p. 330 and join me in making a joyful, hopeful noise! :)
First time I heard this song as rendered by The Band on "Music from Big Pink," it hit me like a hymn, and that's how I've always interpreted it. Here I've changed up the rhythm and added several keyboard and melodica tracks instead of my original guitar-picking version, but I've kept in my ending "A-men" chords.
When I...2013-09-1003 min
kat330Can't Help Falling in Love[for Margaret]
This was one of my mother's favorite songs—certainly her favorite Elvis tune. I have fond memories of singing the upper harmony to her melody line whenever it came on the radio. It was a fitting choice then as the closing song for a live set performed at her senior center shortly before her death. That was the last occasion Mom had to see me sing and play and also the final time for me to hear her say just how proud of me she was.
There is a first here, too: I've included a few phrases in th...2013-09-0302 min
kat330ColoursREMASTERED version for D/Ling anew here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/colours-remaster
At YouTube: http://youtu.be/dDqkUJq4HJw
and heard here on Mar 27, 2014: http://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/54998 ]
As my first hitch of hiatus found me steeped in nature (still more downtime yet to come), it seems only natural my first easing back into recording would feature something simple, gentle and pastoral. So here's my stripped down cover of Donovan's "Colours"—just a gal and her Guild plus a minimalistic mouth organ bit to boot (please, someone, REboot my harmonica part with a better execution of your own?! :)2013-08-2703 min
kat330Black Crow BluesVideo by JT Lindroos here https://youtu.be/BezN4R-WZRI
[can D/L remastered version at: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/black-crow-blues ]
When I came across this title within my old set lists, I remembered actually that it—and not Mitchell's "Last Time I Saw Richard"—was the very first song I pecked out the piano part by ear as a teen, note by note from my vinyl of "Another Side." Never trying to transpose the key—where's the piano capo, inventors?—it was a bad fit for my high soprano back then. Now, however, I've nicely aged into the chesty a...2013-08-0603 min
kat330Love Reigned[Heard here http://www.mixcloud.com/nick-thomas2/sounds-from-the-cloudno-to-the-g-word-special1-aug-2013redruth-radio/ AND here on Feb 13, 2014: https://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/54428 ]
As a novice of songwriting, I'm finding every composition involves some unique inception story, and this one's no exception. [Probably true, too, for veteran and masterful songwriters, but I only know it of my greenhorn experience.] I'd been thinking for a while I wanted to cover Neil Young's "After the Goldrush," a beautifully simple song I dearly love to harmonize with whenever I hear it. But I wanted some unique angle to covering it and determined it might work very nicely...2013-07-3004 min
kat330La Chanson des Vieux Amants[Remastered and available for D/Ling again here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/la-chanson-des-vieux-amants ]
Cover of Brel's brilliant piece with Korg harpsichord and melodica accompaniment.2013-07-2303 min
kat330Walking on a WireIn the absence of feedback on those Dylan echoes I layered into my first cover of "Walking on a Wire," here is the Thompson song without any shades of Dylan. Contrast and compare and let me know your thoughts, thanks!2013-07-1603 min
kat330Walking on a Wire + Don't Think TwiceThe Arsenal here: two vocal tracks, Korg piano, classical + electric guitars, melodica, and harmonica (newly added to The Arsenal after I co-opted my recent present to JT of a 3-harmonica set :)
This is a cover of Richard Thompson's poignant "Walking on a Wire" interwoven with shades and echoes of Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice" for sort of a she says/he says mash-up of two great songs about relationship breakdown. If you're familiar with "Wire" (from Richard and Linda Thompson's superior "Shoot Out the Lights" album), you know there's a typically prodigious guitar part and solo by Richard. (You truly...2013-07-0603 min
kat330My Heart Is Yours+The Soulmate WaltzJuly 1, 2013
For JT's 40th birthday a couple of years ago, I wrote him a two-verse limerick [http://tinyurl.com/plbfb76 ]. Now, for his 42nd birthday today, I composed a melody to actually work with the rhythm and the AABBA rhyming of my stanzas, expanding the original words only with some repetition to have it fit my music.
After an opening minute of "speaking in tongues," the waltz theme includes three vocal tracks, acoustic guitar, drumsticks and Korg piano on vibraphone mode. The Korg track adds a fun calliope "vibe" to the festivities, and it wouldn't be a true celebration without...2013-07-0102 min
kat330Rogue World (Tétaz +Jules mashup) [43][Hear a new remix in .wav here https://kat330.bandcamp.com/album/if-6-was-3 or .mp3 here
http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin/If_6_Was_3 ]
Serendipity steers our lives far more than control freaks are willing to admit. Something on SoundCloud a few days ago (of June 2013) had me thinking of the great "Rogue River Suite" theme by François Tétaz from the independent Australian thriller "Rogue." Within this same timeframe a local public radio station (WFPK in Louisville, KY) played Gary Jules' cover of "Mad World" from the soundtrack of the cult indie film "Donnie Darko." Then yesterday in...2013-06-1604 min
kat330Candy Man[REMASTERED for SC D/Ling anew here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/candy-man-remaster ]
Oct. 31, 2014: Never fear that downloads of this track have maxed out here! Unlimited DL's (w/ more tracks to come) at: freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin/
It's my own arrangement, and the lyrics are changed a bit here and there to suit me better, but I learned this ditty way-back-when off my vinyl of "Just Dave Van Ronk." In this mix I'm on acoustic guitars, vocals, Korg piano (vibes mode) and drumsticks, as well as those melodica, slide whistle and electric bass snippets—a veritable circus of one, wh...2013-05-2802 min
kat330Since You've Asked[REMASTERED version for D/Ling anew here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/since-youve-asked-remaster
JT got the proper wiring so REAPER can finally groK my Korg, and now I can proceed with self-recording some of my keyboard repertory. I probably will rework "Rose, Lis..." and "Hard Lovin' Loser" eventually. In the meanwhile here's a short and simple tune from the Judy Collins' "Songbook." While now the keyboard is recording loud and clear, I'm none too pleased with my vocals here. Allergy season is taking a stiff toll on my cords this mid-spring. Perhaps I'll rerecord vocal sections sometime down the line.
...2013-05-0802 min
kat330My Itty Bitty Birthday Ditty (for Juha) [45]A new version now, and this version is personalized for Juha (JT), but if anyone wants an .mp3 for any specific name, I can supply it.2013-02-2800 min
kat330East St. Louis Blues[REMASTERED for SC D/Ling anew here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/east-st-louis-blues-remaster ]
This seemed like a fun idea in the middle of the night, which means it probably should never be heard in the light of day. One great advantage to getting older, however, is no longer giving a damn what others may think of one's foolishness. At least less of a damn as time goes by.
This mp3 file represents my first attempt ever at trying to "sound engineer," period, and was done on software I'd never used. I'm sure there's a manual I could have browsed, if...2012-10-0502 min
kat330Catch the Wind[REMASTERED version here for D/Ling anew: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/catch-the-wind-remaster
This Donovan classic became part of my early repertoire less than a year after it arrived in the U.S. In this version I've overdubbed some harmony, and I've added bits of kantele, melodica and electric guitar bottom-strings strumming to my original acoustic guitar picking. At the third verse I've also added some percussive plucking sounds of the strings high up between the bridge and bridge pickup on the electric. I found it sort of simulates the sound of light wooden wind chimes.
The best things about...2012-09-2503 min
kat330Glad Gliese (to "Sad Lisa")Written to the lovely, bittersweet melody of Cat Stevens' "Sad Lisa" off “Tea for the Tillerman,” my new lyrics here were inspired by the October 1, 2010, Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) found at this link: http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap101001.html. The substitute poem was posted at my blog here http://kat330.tumblr.com/post/3242646193/owed-to-apod where you can also read my brief editorial about the planet's discovery.
I had it in mind to record my "filksong" for a SoundCloud upload ever since I opened the account here, but just never got around to it. Then I really want...2012-09-0502 min
kat330I Don't Believe YouI guess it's long past high time I included a Dylan cover here. After all, he is what inspired me to ask Mom for a guitar and, probably, his "Blowin' in the Wind" was the first tune I taught myself on it. "I Don't Believe You" is a little jewel from "Another Side," overshadowed and usually overlooked when stacked up against the great tracks around it. But I always had a soft spot for this simple song of a hot flame turning suddenly and inexplicably cold on one side, a universal emotional mystery to the keeper of the flame.
Before...2012-08-1603 min
kat330El Preso Numero NueveREMASTERED version here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/el-preso-numero-nueve-remaster
Used on PBS program here: http://www.pbs.org/food/original-fare/season-3-episode-2-childhood-search-puerto-ricos-lost-pepper (Muppets left, Kat arrived ;)
Oct. 31, 2014: Never fear that downloads of this track have maxed out here! Unlimited DL's (w/ more tracks to come) at: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kathleen_Martin/
My "apologia" to Spanish speakers everywhere! I was in my mid-teens when I first heard H. Cantorell's "El Preso Numero Nueve" ("Prisoner Number Nine") as performed by Joan Baez on her 1960 eponymous album. I was given my first guitar several months before I ever discovered Baez' early...2012-07-2503 min
kat330Richland Woman BluesREMASTERED: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/richland-woman-blues-remaster
Just me on guitar, voice and melodica here. I first heard RWB sung by Maria Muldaur on Jim Kweskin and the Jug Band's 1967 album "See Reverse Side for Title." The original song was written by Mississippi John Hurt, although the lyrics are altered here and there in my and Muldaur's versions. Also, I've made a slightly blue alteration of the Muldaur rendition in verse three. It seemed a natural choice to me given the red rooster image, and I've always sung it with the switch for "dude" (except before more "delicate" audiences).
Cover...2012-06-1202 min
kat330Frankie's Blues[REMASTERED version here: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/frankies-blues-remaster ]
This is my no-nonsense cover of Dave Van Ronk's "Frankie's Blues" as learned from his "Just Dave Van Ronk" Mercury Records LP of 1964. The song is his take on the tragic lovers of Frankie and Johnny. At about the minute::13 mark, you'll be able to hear the whoosh of a semi truck trundling down our street. Just imagine it's Frankie out in the middle of Main Street tracking down her cheatin' man, Albert. Then a bit later at the 2-minute mark, listen for when an angel gets its wings appropriately enough...2012-05-1602 min
kat330Someday SoonREMASTERED and new D/Ling: https://soundcloud.com/kat330repost/someday-soon-remaster
This second self-recording is of Ian Tyson's "Someday Soon," which became part of my folk repertoire after hearing Judy Collins cover it back in the late '60s. I've revised Tyson's lyrics a tad, however, so I could still sing it with some authenticity, albeit it with much sarcasm. It's no rodeo now. That young girl of the original is several years down the pike and clearly has some serious self-esteem issues still mooning over her abusive loser of a man.
Hearing it on headphones through REAPER, I can...2012-05-1202 min