Making Music with Jake Haws

Here we are, another year now over and a new one about to begin. You know what that means, right? It’s the end of the year list time! Listen now for the top ten favorite albums of the year, along with some honorable mentions. To listen to the songs from this episode on Spotify, visit: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/60S3Gq540DnpXeBOaCTRYa?si=34b3f6140ba4420a [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/60S3Gq540DnpXeBOaCTRYa?si=34b3f6140ba4420a] For a Spotify playlist of all the full albums from this list, visit: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1pzvlO4HQg3TModjYcxa1H?si=e79c6939690849c4 [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1pzvlO4HQg3TModjYcxa1H?si=e79c6939690849c4]

For more Christmas music, visit: https://jakehaws.bandcamp.com/album/christmas-songs Every year, I have a tradition of recording Christmas music with my family. Some years, we’ve only done one song and other years it’s been as many as five. This year we were able to do two song. The first one is a techno version of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer." Each of my 3 kids sang on it and I used the Auto-Tune plugin on their voices, which is the first time I've ever used it. This was a little out of my comfort zone with production style but it was fun to push myself to try new sounds. The second song is a bossa nova style arrangement of "Feliz Navidad." I used a nylon string classical guitar that my wife bought for my birthday earlier this year. I also used a drum beat sample, a shaker, wood block, and bass. For the singing, everyone in my family traded off lines. We started oldest to youngest, so it began with my wife, Melissa (who is a month older then me), then I sang, then the rest of our 3 kids. Then, we all joined in together at the end.

So, as this year wraps up, I’m sharing my favorite albums from 2020. There were a lot of great records that came out, and I honestly had a hard time narrowing it down to just ten but I did, and I’m about to share them. But before I do that, let me share my honorable mentions. These are albums I listened to and enjoyed but for one reason or another, didn’t quite make the top ten album list for me: Honorable Mentions * Andy Shauf – The Neon Skyline * Sturgill Simpson – Cuttin’ Grass Vol. 1 * Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher * Tame Impala – The Slow Rush * Deftones – Ohms * Jeff Tweedy – Love Is The King * Fiona Apple – Fetch The Bolt Cutters * Hamilton Leithauser – The Loves of Your Life * Idles – Ultra Mono * Matt Berninger – Serpentine Prison Top Ten Albums of 2020 1. Travis - 10 Songs 2. Asgeir - Bury the Moon 3. Gorillaz - Song Machine Vol. 1: Strange Timez 4. Nathaniel Rateliff - And It's Still Alright 5. Phantogram - Ceremony 6. Fleet Foxes - Shore 7. Chris Stapleton - Starting Over 8. EOB - Earth 9. Laura Marling - Song For Our Daughter 10. Jason Isbell - Reunions For a spotify playlist of these songs and albums, visit: http://jakehaws.com/ep-105-favorite-music-of-2020-top-ten-albums/ [http://jakehaws.com/ep-105-favorite-music-of-2020-top-ten-albums/]

Every year, I have a tradition of recording Christmas music with my family. Some years, we’ve only done one song and other years it’s been as many as five. This year, with launching a new stock music website and our busy family schedules, we haven’t done any new songs as a family yet but I was able to put together two new Christmas songs on my own for you to hear. The first one is an EDM instrumental version of “Once In Royal David’s City.” This is way outside the usual styles of music I normally make but it was super fun to try something new and sharpen my production skills. I kind of imagine it being used for someone’s synchronized Christmas light show. Also, here's a fairly straightforward version of "Carol of the Bells." You can download the songs on my website: I hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holidays, where ever you are. Download the songs here: http://jakehaws.com/ep-104-christmas-music-2020/ [http://jakehaws.com/ep-104-christmas-music-2020/] If you want to the rest of the songs my family has recorded over the years, visitHaws Family Christmas Songs [https://jakehaws.bandcamp.com/album/christmas-songs]. If you want to license any of these songs for your podcast or video project, visitArches Audio [https://archesaudio.com/collections/holiday/].

In this episode, I'm joined by Eric Bay, a singer/songwriter from Surrey, England. We talk about his music career and collaborate on a brand new song. We recorded this back in March, so you'll hear us talk a little bit about the spread of the COVID-19 kind of at the earlier stages when more people were panic buying. After Eric and I finished writing the song over a video chat, we recorded our parts separately in our own home studios. Eric provided vocals and keyboard tracks along with some synth parts and I recorded backing vocals, guitars, synth, bass, drums and percussion. I did the initial mix, with Eric finishing the final mix and the song mastered by Joe Lonsdale. I'm really happy with how it turned. I hope it can provide some optimism for people during a difficult time. Enjoy. Lyrics: Knocking on the door on a rainy afternoon Thursdays always seem to come around so soon I could tell from the look on your face that it's getting to ya You wanna be strong but you're worried about the future A sunny day is on its way again The clouds of fear will start to clear, my friend These are troubled times indeed But you got everything you need So hold on for the sunny days ahead Saw a man I hadn't seen in years Wasn't sure if he still lived 'round here He said the people in this town have all gone crazy Human nature never ceases to amaze me A sunny day is on its way again The clouds of fear will start to clear, my friend These are troubled times indeed But you got everything you need So hold on for the sunny days ahead A sunny day is on its way again The clouds of fear will start to clear, my friend These are troubled times indeed But you got everything you need So hold on for the sunny days ahead A sunny day is on its way again The clouds of fear will start to clear, my friend These are troubled times indeed But you got everything you need So hold on for the sunny days ahead * "Sunny Days" on Bandcamp [https://jakehaws.bandcamp.com/track/sunny-days] * "Sunny Days" on Soundcloud [https://soundcloud.com/write-co/eric-bay-jake-haws-sunny-days] * Eric Bay's Music Website [https://www.ericbaymusic.com/] * "The List" by Eric Bay [https://soundcloud.com/eric-bay/the-list] * "Midnight Queen" by Luna Keller & Eric Bay [https://lunakeller.bandcamp.com/track/midnight-queen]