All That I Got

The first month of a new year and I'm already finding the project difficult. This is a song I've had for years. I've always had a very clear vision for this song. I have saved this tune because I have always seen it as the first song on a CD, the first song in a live set or a January Calendar Song. I pictured it being very folk. A sparse recording with a live feel. I wanted the song to serve almost as an intro to the song I plan to do next month.
I've been toting collaboration as a guaranteed "super fix" of my stuff. This year started off as a lesson that that is not always the case. No fault of Bluesman Jay's of course. The song has been around so long and I had such a clear vision of how it sounded in my head. I think this song would have been more suited for a calendar year I do solo. There was no way of conveying what I was thinking to Jay. It's hard to describe a sound. He tirelessly reworked the ending several times and we still ended up scraping it. His harmonica is great, his vocals are great and his guitar playing is great. We just couldn't get that F***ing outro.
My initial take was slow. I play a bum bass note. I goofed the lyrics. The reality however, is nobody ever heard the song in my head. Nobody will think it sounds "off" because I'm the only one who ever heard it "on." Bluesman Jay did great. The other lesson is I need to enjoy what it became, even if it wasn't my original vision. The end product is still a nice Calendar Song. I'm ready for a years worth of lessons collaborating with my best friend. I'm posting this song in it's new "realized" virsion because it tought me a lot. Not just because it's the end of the month and this is "All That I Got."

All That I Got