Article written on 11-24-03:
It was a cool morning in mid-September. Cool like San Diego cold, not like growing up in midwest Ohio. I started my day like I often do, playing music.

I was trying to figure out some drum progression for a song I wrote on guitar the night before. After a while, I really had the urge to record real drums... I wanted to make a quick-n-dirty recording. Two songs, three songs, who knows?

How can I record drums when I live in a condo? Well, I've gone to the desert in the past, but I wanted something else... where can I record, who do I know?

And then it hit me, my friend's flowershop. By then, I really had the recording bug. I called and asked if I could record the drums.... he said "no problem, how about Saturday or Sunday?" I said, how about in a couple of hours? It was set.

It had been a while since I played the acoustic drums & I really didn't know what I was going to record. I finally decided on recording the song I wrote the night before, one I wrote a month earlier & a really old song. Sometimes I'll record soft, pop songs... this was going to be a raw/punk recording. Quick & dirty.

The truck was finally packed with the drums, two mics & my apple computer.. did I ever tell you how moving drums is a big bummer? Anyway, this was just the first bummer I encountered.

It was dark when I arrived at the flowershop. I drove into this big warehouse and was met by my friend. He suggested that I record in the refrigerator, so I don't bother the Newspaper warehouse next door. I set-up the computer, drums & mics... and then I ran into my next problem.

I forgot the drumsticks!! WHoa. Yes, it's true... I often say that it's a good thing that my head is attached, or else I'd forget it. Anyway, my time was limited and it was late. There weren't any music stores open and a long drive, back home was not an option.

Fortunately, there were plastic spoons (used to mix plant formula) laying around. This recording was truly going to have a lo-fi sound!

I usually am a perfectionist, but I'm getting lazier as I get older. Keeping with the raw tradition, I forced myself to just record & forget it. I kept my first takes, even though I wasn't happy with them. I recorded the first two songs as planned... I opted-out on the third, and I just proceeded to make-up a jam.

I was done in a half-hour. I packed-up and started the pack-unpack-setup-pack cycle again. I miss my simpler days when there was less hassle.



The next day, I recorded the bass, guitar & vocals. I used only my first takes, mistakes and all. I ended up with three tracks for the final piece I'll call "Flowershop."

• "Rollercoaster" was written the night before recording.. it is the inspiration for recording "Flowershop"
• "Be There" was a song that was a month old
• "Shopping" was created during the recording process. It evolved in a way that I feel complements the other two songs.

"Flowershop" 3 songs for $2
download now!

© 2003 Jim Lee