The Ram, Author at The Ram Music

Ode to My Sisters & Brothers | Lyrics | To Love a Wild Fire

January 10, 2020 by The Ram

My guiding light
Brothers and sisters tonight
I’ll tell you one thing
Play some guitar sweet
Baby move your feet
Lord we’ll get this whole place swinging

Kiss of love to my sisters
A shout out to my brothers right now
Tell you right now
If it all went south
Happy to be right here with you

This road is heavy
But I’ll find my way
Nothing but Dangerous Highway

Kiss of love to my sisters
A shout out to my brothers right now
Tell you right now
If it all went south
Happy to be right here with you, BABE

This road is heavy
But I’ll find my way
Nothing but Dangerous Highway

You’re my guiding light
Brothers and sisters tonight
I’ll tell you one thing
Play some guitar sweet
Baby move your feet
Lord we’ll get this whole place swinging

Kiss of love to my sisters
A shout out to my brothers right now
Tell you right now
If it all went south
Happy to be right here with you. BABE

I SAY BABE
BABY, BABY, BABY BABE
Nothing but Dangerous Highway

ASCAP Work Title: Ode to My Sisters & Brothers
ASCAP Work ID: 905591519
ASCAP Songwriter IPI Number: 375350750
ASCAP Publisher IPI Number: 375351159

The Ram Music
OD Soul, Inc
7040 AVENIDA ENCINAS STE 104-464
CARLSBAD, CA, 92011-4652
United States

The Ram TM
https://tsdr.uspto.gov

Listen to the Album

To Love a Wild Fire | Badass Self Released Album by the Ram

Sheet Music for This Song

Ode to My Sisters & Brothers

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Music Albums & Releases

Love Is a Terrible Thing to Waste| Lyrics | To Love a Wild Fire

January 10, 2020 by The Ram

Lyrics

Take to the street to play music
Got my amplify, open guitar case
All of the hookers and hustlers
Gonna make ’em move, where they congregate

Prostitution’s illegal
But ya’d never know, by the look of this place
Mind you I’ve got no problem
‘Cause I tell you LOVE, is a terrible thing to waste

Ask me where I’m goin’
I’m a going way down town
Ask me what I’ll be up to
I say I’m a gonna spread a little love around

Playing myself some guitar
A big old smile, right across my face
I’ve been out here for 3 hours
I think it’s about some time, to smoke a little jay

Inspiration she finds me
On crowded sidewalks, and just about any place
When I’m with her I hold her so closely
‘Cause I tell you LOVE, is a terrible thing to waste

Ask me where I’m goin’
I’m a going way down town
Ask me what I’ll be up to
I say I’m a gonna spread a little love around

Love
Love
Love, Oh Yeah

Get it, get it, get it, get it, get it, get it child
Get it, get it, get it, get it, get it, get it going on
Get it, get it, get it, get it, get it, get it going on

Ask me where I’m goin’
I’m a going way down town
Ask me what I’ll be up to
Baby I’ve got a feeling, I want to mess around, mess around, mess around
‘Gonna mess, ‘gonna mess, ‘gonna mess

ASCAP Work Title: LOVE IS A TERRIBLE THING TO WASTE
ASCAP Work ID: 896532030
ASCAP Songwriter IPI Number: 375350750
ASCAP Publisher IPI Number: 375351159

The Ram Music
OD Soul, Inc
7040 AVENIDA ENCINAS STE 104-464
CARLSBAD, CA, 92011-4652
United States

The Ram TM
https://tsdr.uspto.gov

Listen to the Album

To Love a Wild Fire | Badass Self Released Album by the Ram

Sheet Music for This Song

Terrible Thing to Waste (D)

All Sheet Music

Music Albums & Releases

Looking at the Moon | Lyrics | To Love a Wild Fire

January 10, 2020 by The Ram

Lyrics

One solitary man looking at the moon, looking at the moon
One beaten down dream had the guts to stand, stand tall through it all
I saw her run run into the night, run across the dawn
One single rose was thrown it fell into my hand, it fell into my hand

I will ride, across the midnight sky
I see you look up, with your starlit eyes

Roll on the back of the Milky Way if you like

One solitary man looking at the moon, looking at the moon
One look in those eyes blew my mind, blew my mind
One heart rise above the rest All the rest will fall, All the rest will fall
One look in those eyes I decided to stay, I decided to stay

I will ride, across the midnight sky
I see you look up, with your starlit eyes

Roll on the back of the Milky Way if you like

One look in those eyes blew my mind, blew my mind
One listen to her song Filled my heart, it didn’t take long
One listen to her song blew my mind, blew my mind
One solitary man looking at the moon, looking at the moon

I will ride, across the midnight sky
I see you look up, with your starlit eyes

ASCAP Work Title: LOOKING AT THE MOON
ASCAP Work ID: 896532031
ASCAP Songwriter IPI Number: 375350750
ASCAP Publisher IPI Number: 375351159

The Ram Music
OD Soul, Inc
7040 AVENIDA ENCINAS STE 104-464
CARLSBAD, CA, 92011-4652
United States

The Ram TM
https://tsdr.uspto.gov

Listen to the Album

To Love a Wild Fire | Badass Self Released Album by the Ram

Sheet Music for This Song

Looking at the Moon (Am)

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Music Albums & Releases

First In Line | Lyrics | To Love a Wild Fire

January 10, 2020 by The Ram

Lyrics

Give me rock and roll music till the end of time
If I need to sell my soul I’ll be the first in line
With my favorite tune blasting out the radio
Can’t, you hear me knocking by the Rolling Stones

Dance with me baby, hold me real close
The one I choose, the one I love the most

Baby show them how it’s done
Hold me little chosen one
Baby show them how it’s done

Woke up this morning feeling no pain
My baby’s love hits me like the pouring rain
Here comes the evening watch my baby sway
Her beauty flows like some fine champagne

Hang with me baby, walk real close
The one I choose, the one I love the most

Baby show them how it’s done
Hold me little chosen one
Baby show them how it’s done
Baby show them how it’s done

Say now little baby don’t you board that jet
I ain’t half done with the whole of you yet
The full moon’s a GLOW It’s gonna wax & wane
Saxophone playing by the subway train

My partner in crime, lets chase down so fun
Hold you as tight as I can, my little chosen one

Baby show them how it’s done
Hold me little chosen one
Baby show them how it’s done
Baby show them how it’s done

Baby show them how it’s done
Hold me little chosen one
Baby show them how it’s done
I’ll tell you baby how it’s done

Awwww, yeah

Baby show them how it’s done
Hold me little chosen one
Baby show them how it’s done
Baby show them how it’s done
I’ll tell you baby how it’s done

Yeah

Give me rock and roll music till the end of time
If I need to sell my soul I’ll be the first in line
Here comes the evening watch my baby sway
Her beauty flows like some fine champagne

Hang back with me baby, hold me real close
The one I choose, the one I love the most

Baby show them how it’s done
Hold me little chosen one
Baby show them how it’s done
Baby show them how it’s done

ASCAP Work Title: FIRST IN LINE
ASCAP Work ID: 906299087
ASCAP Songwriter IPI Number: 375350750
ASCAP Publisher IPI Number: 375351159

The Ram Music
OD Soul, Inc
7040 AVENIDA ENCINAS STE 104-464
CARLSBAD, CA, 92011-4652
United States

The Ram TM
https://tsdr.uspto.gov

Listen to the Album

To Love a Wild Fire | Badass Self Released Album by the Ram

Sheet Music for This Song

First In Line

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Music Albums & Releases

Come Easily | Lyrics | To Love a Wild Fire

January 10, 2020 by The Ram

Lyrics

Makes no difference where I’m going
Doesn’t really matter where I’ve been
When I feel her eyes upon me, I know
I’m exactly where I need to be

Home is where you make it
Sweet home should come easily
Could be on some distant beach I’m a lying
Could be ‘neath the shade of my baby’s tree

I spent six years in New York City
Like living in a penitentiary
Took a motorbike rode it to the ocean
My broken heart came back to me

Home, sometimes you’ve got to go out and take it
Sweet home should come easily
Could be on some highway that I’m riding
Could be left behind on those city streets

Goodbye brother
I see you in my rearview mirror
Mile marker after mile marker going by
I’m never going back, never going back

Yeah, home is where you make it
Sweet home should come easily
Could be on some distant beach where I’m a lying
Could be ‘neath the shade of my baby’s tree

Let me tell you a little bit about how this story wound down

I came to reside in California
Spend my days rolling at the beach, ohhh
All the pretty girls there they let their hair down
They’ve got nothing on my sweet beauty

Home feels just like my woman
Does it fell good? You’d better believe
She comes, joins me anywhere I’m lying
She gives me shade beneath her tree

I love you babe
I love you babe
I love you babe
I love you babe

I see you in my rearview mirror
Mile marker after mile marker going by
I’m never going back, never going back
Never going back

I see you in my rearview mirror
Mile marker after mile marker going by
I’m never going back, never going back

ASCAP Work Title: COME EASILY
ASCAP Work ID: 905591638
ASCAP Songwriter IPI Number: 375350750
ASCAP Publisher IPI Number: 375351159

The Ram Music
OD Soul, Inc
7040 AVENIDA ENCINAS STE 104-464
CARLSBAD, CA, 92011-4652
United States

The Ram TM
https://tsdr.uspto.gov

Listen to the Album

To Love a Wild Fire | Badass Self Released Album by the Ram

Sheet Music for This Song

Come Easily (A)

All Sheet Music

Music Albums & Releases

2019 Year in Review

December 23, 2019 by The Ram

Creative Process, Local Music

Americana, Creative Process, DIY, Folk-Rock, Home Recording, Home Studio, Indie, Local, Local Music, Original, Recording, Roots, Support Local Music

In retrospect, 2019 has been one of the hardest working years of my life. A culmination of 20 years of home recordings, learning as I went, and the buildout of a makeshift home studio. My goals were ambitious, my timelines were unreasonable, and my understanding of just about everything involved was nonexistent. In other words, it was a tremendous learning experience.

I’m in the final stretch before my first independent studio album release, and it feels good AF. It felt like I’ve spent forever paralyzed by the thought of mixing and mastering my recorded demos. Having that obstacle cleared has returned healthy blood flow to the heart of my songwriting. When I began exploring mixing and mastering it was all-consuming, so there was no time for writing if I was going to stick to the schedule and make the deadline.

Music production IS precision-based work, and it takes a tremendous amount of discipline to do this right. The experience has left me with a tremendous appreciation for the value that mixing and mastering engineers bring to the equation because I could not have succeeded alone. Along with appreciation comes a thirst to understand the technical nuances of an ever-expanding universe of audio hardware and software. I feel like I set myself up with a decade of learning ahead.

All of this kind of reminds me of when I began learning how to code to browsers, then later to mobile devices when the iPhone ushered in a new era of technology. The first dot-com boom, the second, and the mobile revolution. Fuck it’s good to be alive in this day and age. It also reminds me of my pops. Buzz ODonnell.

I appreciate my father’s influence and work ethic, his ability to troubleshoot farm machinery to get it running and operational for the start of whatever season we found ourselves in. He was an engineer, he was a student of people and life, a hacker, he spent all of his spare time reading, troubleshooting, and problem-solving. Regardless of my pursuits in higher education, I consider myself self-taught. University only gets you so far. It’s true I have 2 degrees, a Bachelors and Masters in Fine Arts, neither of which address the day in and day out tasks I need to take care of in music, or in maintaining my day gig. They do however speak volumes to who I am as a human being and what path I have chosen to pursue.

Art is about finding your own voice and path in the world. It’s about being told you are wrong by critics and having a mindset hell-bent on proving those in doubt of your abilities wrong. As 2019 was about willing an album to existence, 2020 will be about working to breathe life back into all of the songs already written while clearing the way to any new ideas that come down the pike. It’s going to be a fucking good year people, and I’m glad to be sharing this news with you on such a fine Sunday afternoon which commences the close of the year.

Working With Giant Earth Press to Build a Brand

December 5, 2019 by The Ram

Case Studies, Creative Process, Local Music, Projects

Americana, Creative Process, DIY, Folk-Rock, Home Recording, Home Studio, Indie, Local, Local Music, Original, Recording, Roots, Support Local Music

This is going to sound funny, but it took me time to work up the courage to ask my friend to create designs for my upcoming album. The first, most obvious question is why wouldn’t I do it my self? I am after all a trained seasoned visual artist, I’ll start there.

Music is raw emotion, instinct, revelation, & mystery. The musicians I’ve studied are larger than life, titans, heroes straight out of a greek epic. Their music, along with our ancestry lives & breathes in our DNA & speaks to us if we have the balls to listen. When I hear people say that a soul lives in each of us, I’m not sure they truly believe it. Music is the very definition of a soul. Instinct and immortality are real, & becoming a hero or legend is a conscious choice down a disciplined path to a longterm vision or goal. Real men and women, flesh and blood. Any time a human tries to master something he/she enters the arena. When you enter this arena, you need to be prepared. Only a fool would take on such an endeavor without a support system. Alone.

Enter Charles Fetherolf, my secret weapon. I’ve worked, collaborated, exhibited, shared studios with countless artists over the years. Entrusting my vision to an artist of his caliber was an obvious choice, he was the first person that came to mind who could bring ideas to the table that were out of my reach. My goals were ambitious and beyond my own skillset. Creating a visual language to explore & extend the music, performance, & poetry of the Ram stage name us so open-ended it can go anywhere. Knowing that is a beautiful thing. To be productive in the journey, an artist that has a track record of executing above & beyond expectations has to be involved. I mean, what the F is the Ram anyway? I actually don’t know. Just saying I’m a bad-ass singer-songwriter isn’t enough. Sometimes names are just given to us and they stick, and on the lighter side, I know I’ve been called a hell of a lot worse. I knew Charlie could build the foundation of a visual language while I focused on all the other moving parts around me.

This is where my first point comes in. Knowing when to ask for help can be tough. I love being a DIY artist, but running everything; digital design, content, social media, film, & recording is a massive undertaking. Asking for help, and budgeting for professionals to add their magic to the mix is as important as the act of writing songs because at the end of the day it’s about maintaining the creative process, performing, getting the songs out there to the people, and moving on. Everything needs to fall in line to keep the machine going and firing on all cylinders.

Had I taken on the responsibility of making all of my tour posters, album art, and the visual language I would not have been able to push the needle as forward as I have in 2020. Today, I am surrounded by capable musicians that I want to collaborate with. Charlie’s visuals have my imagination reeling and are the beginnings of some concept poems and full albums. I’m swimming in inspiration.

Creativity Goes Beyond Objectivity

November 5, 2019 by The Ram

Creative Process, Local Music

Americana, Creative Process, DIY, Folk-Rock, Home Recording, Home Studio, Indie, Local, Local Music, Original, Recording, Roots, Support Local Music

Pushing through objectivity in the mixing and mastering process to maintain your voice & vision.

I’m going to say something, many will disagree.

“Everybody has an opinion, but when it comes to art only the artist’s opinion matters.”

Cue mass discord and bellowing boos. Bring it on bitches. As if I’ve never faced criticism or had to handle a naysayer. I’ve spent the better part of my life active in visual & performing arts, the other half on various day gigs that involve problem-solving. One thing we can all agree on is everyone has an opinion. Unless someone’s opinion is hidden deep within a good story, I could care less. My interests lie in the inspiration and the story locked within the song itself, the rest is noise.

Understanding what you don’t want is as important as knowing exactly what you want in just about every situation. In this case, I had no idea how important my involvement was during this phase of production. Now I know. Just like in the visual arts, the final steps to completion during the creative process are the most important. I’d venture to say this is true when creating any work of art. The final finishing touches are the defining steps, it’s what separates the men from the boys. Where some are comfortable with handing it off, I am not. For starters, it’s way too personal, and secondly, it’s hands down the best part of creating.

Mistakes can often be our best instructors. It’s all right to admit you don’t know something. To find yourself in the wrong. It’s how we learn. Continuous improvement. I now find myself mixing and mastering with the help of Universal Audio’s Apollo x8p system. The plugins at my disposal are some of the most powerful in the history of recording. I may be naive and stupid for trying, but this same self-awareness and confidence were what helped me pick up the guitar in the first place. It’s the same gut feeling that gave me the balls to step up to a mic and sing my first original. This feeling tells me to go for it, and learn. If the first release doesn’t work, then there will be others. Thousands of more to come.

When you get to the heart of it, this conversation is not about opinions. It’s about maintaining needed control throughout the creative process. Hearing an off mix was the catalyst that helped me embark on a road to demystify the mixing & mastering process. I’m learning and improving output daily. I’m way better off than I was a month ago, many assumptions have been replaced with hard research and action.

From where I’m sitting in my mix room, the road ahead looks damn good.

When Frustration Turns to Productivity

October 11, 2019 by The Ram

Creative Process, Local Music, News

Americana, Creative Process, DIY, Folk-Rock, Home Recording, Home Studio, Indie, Local, Local Music, Original, Recording, Roots, Support Local Music

Burnout & exhaustion are as much a regular part of the do-it-yourself (DIY) era, as making a strong cup of coffee each morning. Right about the time it feels like it can’t get any worst, it’s important to remember not to give up. Push through. More often than not trying is enough to shed some light on the subject.

Before I get into the problem, let me backtrack a bit to provide context.

I’ve been writing songs for roughly 30 years in such an unorganized fashion, I have little to show for it. Much of the work, for better or worse, has passed back into the ether it originated from. What remains is only what has been tracked, written down, or recorded as audio or video. Over time, the reservoir of ideas is overflowing but the ability to arrange & record is a challenge.

When I compare my songwriting with my efforts in visual arts (http://art.odsoul.com/) I can see how disciplined I have been with the latter. I’ve archived everything, sketchbooks, notebooks, studies leading up to finished works, and the original works themselves, all cataloged and on record. Having such a record allows me to look back to a specific timeframe to track artistic evolution.

My songwriting workflow looks something like this…

Inspiration calls, pick up the guitar, hash out BPM, rhythm, chord changes, melody
Videotape a reference performance to remember neck voicings
Build arrangement track and chord changes in Logic & iRealPro
Use virtual drummer to dial in basic beat and feel as close to rhythm guitar as possible
Laydown rhythm guitar 2 outs: 1 mic guitar/1 midi in
Skat vocal track focusing on vowels, no need for words yet.
If needed cut a vocal track and harmony tracks
Track until completion, do best to get the mix near perfect.

I can get my mixes 99.9% there to my ears, and bounce a strong reference track for a pro mix & mastering handoff. Everything is buttery smooth up until I export to Pro Tools, all around the task of exporting and multi-tracking the drums generated by the virtual drummer. I didn’t know where to start, so I had to stop and figure it out. At this point, my ability to proceed any further is at a standstill until I solve this problem properly.

Recognizing that there is a problem is the first step to progress. Logic Pro X’s virtual drummer is hands down one of the most powerful songwriting tools ever created; knowing this gave me confidence. After a bit of research, trial & error, and googling the topic, the workflow was surprisingly easy and was a built-in feature of Logic Pro X’s virtual Drummer.

All I had to do was to…

Change over to the producer version of the kit I was using. Drum Kits > Producer Kits > Current Kit with “+” plus sign
Copy the track into the Overheads Channel at the top of the stack, which will convert to MIDI
Bounce Tack in Place
File > Bounce > Track In Place
Make sure to select “Include Instrument Multi-Outputs” and “As Aditional Tracks”. Normalize should be off.
All tracks should be populated with audio when this task cycles.
Keep or remove unused tracks, up to you
here is a video

Done, my friend with ProTools is happy and off to work.

In closing, my point is that old dogs steeped in their ways can learn to adapt and thrive with the tools available to us. As creatives, we have supercomputers at our fingertips & an audience that spans across the entire globe. Not embracing tools that make us more efficient, is foolishness. Giving up should never be an option as it places you squarely back at the starting point of your efforts.

That is of course unless its time to reinvent, then placing yourself back at square one is a conscious creative choice. I commend that as long as it’s not a cop-out.

Ireland or Busk | Trailer

September 27, 2019 by The Ram

Creative Process, Local Music, News

Americana, Creative Process, DIY, Folk-Rock, Home Recording, Home Studio, Indie, Local, Local Music, Original, Recording, Roots, Support Local Music

A few years back, I convinced my brother to go with me on a trip to the holy land: the land of our heritage, the home of the O’Donnell clan. It was a thank you from me to him for all he had done for me in life. I still feel to this day that having two older brothers and two younger sisters was like winning a lottery in life, my back was always covered, anytime I ran into a wall I had advisors to help me navigate any obstacle in my path.

The Sony Played in the Trailer is a Ram original…

Motor Kine
By The Ram (Key of G)(Harmonica Key of C)

I am your Motor Kine,
I know you’ve seen me riding
greased back I shine like lighting
leg up mamma and take a ride

race down the pacific ocean,
run down those Mexico sands
just for nothing babe, just cause I want to
Gonna fly all across these lands

yeah

your desert is of the rarest beauty
I’ve never seen the like
your sands they give me water
your sun keeps me alive

dusty roads through the canyon gorge
like a bullet baby how we run
steer me babe with a gentle hand
on into that old boy sun

yeah

Motor Kine dont take low octane
throw down some money & give me premium fuel
Motor Kine don’t run on that cheap stuff
Ease your hand mamma Keep me cool!

race down the pacific ocean,
run down those Mexico sands
just for nothing babe, just cause I want to
Gonna fly all across these lands

yeah

One more time
race down the pacific…

Here is a link to the song page on my site…
https://www.theram.io/albums/motor-kine/

Here is a link to the iRealPro backing tracks I just made…
https://www.irealb.com/forums/showthread.php?21974-The-Ram-(Band)-songs&p=54562

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