Home Town Roads
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BA (Hons) Open (Law, Social Sciences). Skillset: Business Development, Field Sales, Logistics/Transport Supervisor, Music Composition, Audio Production. Somerset UK (Remote/Hybrid/Own Studio) So, let's connect!
I was sent a song idea by email last year, from New Jersey USA. It featured a rough vocal with some acoustic guitar and asking if I would consider co-writing and producing the song. The sender's name was Howard Jones (No not THAT Howard Jones lol).
My days in A&R taught me to hear a great song even in its most basic of forms, and this had 'great song' written all over it, even though the demo was extremely basic. The creative ideas were surging though me immediately.
I started to map out a backing track, changing the structure and playing on the obvious Springsteen influences, and then sent it over to drummer and vocalist Tim Bragg to lay down a live drum track, a vocal and to re-record a bass line that I had done, but didn't like. What Tim sent back aligned perfectly with what I had heard in my head when listening to that very basic demo.
Here is the finished, produced, mixed and mastered track #HomeTownRoads, which is the first single from the forthcoming album #MalibuHighway by Tim Bragg & Ross Hemsworth, our second album together. The song is now a Bragg/Hemsworth/Jones composition and it led to a second track making it onto the album, also stemming from an idea by Howard, called Flowers In My Hat.
What is so often lacking in modern music in my opinion, is that "A&R ability" to hear a good song in such early stages and I'm certain Howard's song would have been rejected by most labels today because they want and expect a completed "radio ready production". It shouldn't have to be that way.
I am particularly pleased with this second album because of the mix of styles and approaches we took when choosing the 12 tracks that made it to the release. Starting with a rock track, the title track to the album Malibu Highway, you will hear a wide mix of music with influences from the 60s, 70s and 80s but with modern tight productions and some excellent musicianship and vocal deliveries. There are at least three potential singles (probably more) and a couple of real standout ballads.
Home Town Roads drops on all good streaming and download platforms on March 14th and we hope you will support all our hard work by streaming/downloading it. The album follows on April 7th.
Our first album Tall Stories on Short Street has also been remastered and re-released, and is available to listen to and download right now, at Tall Stories on Short Street - Album by Tim Bragg and Ross Hemsworth | Spotify (And other good download and streaming sites)
I hope you all enjoy our music.
Ross Hemsworth Member- U.S. Songwriters Hall of Fame & The Ivors Academy Record Producer/Musician/Guitarist/Orchestrator