gilnamur.com

Old Dog New Tricks – MP3 Bundle

Gil Namur — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 22:48:36 +0000

Get Old Dog New Tricks For $5.00

The Old Dog New Tricks MP3 Bundle includes all the songs from the CD and the cover art for $5.00 CDN!

Not familiar with Old Dog New Tricks? Download 4 songs for free.

Just fill out this simple form and click the big red button. You will be taken to paypal. On completion, you will be sent an e-mail with a link to a password protected page where you can download the MP3 bundle. If you have any problems at all, please contact me.

Thank you!

First Loves Grow

Gil Namur — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 16:43:33 +0000

That little girl
Walking down the street
She looks so fine
She smells so sweet

That little boy
Sees her every week
He wants to know her name
But he’s much to shy to speak

First loves grow
How could they know

Then one summer day
Saw her at a dance
He asked to know her name
She took him by the hand

They walked through their dreams
Smiled away the days
Learning about love
They learned about it’s pains

First loves grow
How could they know

Those summer days
Of years gone by
That little girl has changed
The little boy drinks rye

They walk through the night
And smile upon the past
Cause for their little child
First love has come so fast

First loves grow
How could they know

First Loves Grow
© 1980, Gil Namur

Photo Credit
Microsoft Office Clip Art Collection

Jesus Is Enough – MP3

Gil Namur — Mon, 30 May 2011 18:41:31 +0000

Last week, I saw Leo Kottke perform at the Alix Goolden Performance Hall in Victoria. Leo is know for interspersing humorous and interesting monologues between songs. In one of these, he spoke of how he sometimes retire a song and does not play it anymore. But the songs call to him and ask to be played again, many years later. I had the privilege to meet Leo before and after the concert and chat for a few minutes. The next day, I decided that it was time to get this site moving and re-engage my own music. Leo, if you ever read this, thank you. You really inspired me to get my act together!

As I started to think about new content for this site, inspired by what Leo had to say, I decided to go back through some old files and see what I had from the past that I could bring forward. Some have indeed called out to me and there are quite a few to share with you.

So why this one first?

A friend of mine and fabulous photographer sent me his book as a gift. It’s called The Spirit Of Northern Italy. One of the photographs that really caught my eye is called ‘Emerging Christ‘. It was taken at a roadside sanctuary in Bresanone Italy. It reminded me of a time in my life when I was a worship leader in a local church. I wrote quite a few songs in that period of my life. I also sang them solo on a weekly basis.

Jesus Is Enough is a song I wrote in 1988. Much has changed in my life since then. For one thing, I have not sung very much in years but focused more on my instrumental compositions. All of that is about to change.

This song was recorded years ago on an old stereo cassette deck in one take with just a splash of reverb. I converted it to an MP3 for the web. While the quality is not great, I think it captures how I would have sung it on a Sunday morning to a small but appreciative congregation. I hope you enjoy it

Jesus Is Enough – 3:23
© 1988, Gil Namur (SOCAN)
Full Song (click on the link to listen or right click and ‘save link as’ if you want to download it)

Read The Lyrics Here

Photo Credit
(Thank you Marco!)
Emerging Christ – © Marco Zecchin – www.marcozecchin.com

Jesus Is Enough

Gil Namur — Mon, 30 May 2011 18:39:17 +0000

When I laid my life before You
It was broken, incomplete
So I placed this shattered heart at Your feet

Then You gathered up the pieces
And replaced them with anew
Put inside not what was mine but what is You

Now whenever I get weary
And my burden’s getting rough
There’s a name that I depend on
Jesus is, Jesus is enough

While His grace has kept me going
And His mercy sets me free
Many blessings He has poured abundantly

And for this I am so thankful
For without Him I am lost
Like a ship out on the ocean I am tossed

Now whenever I get weary
And the water’s getting rough
There’s a name that I depend on
Jesus is, Jesus is enough
Jesus is, Jesus is enough
Jesus is, Jesus is enough

Listen To The MP3 Here

Jesus Is Enough
© 1988, Gil Namur

Photo Credit
(Thank you Marco!)
Emerging Christ – © Marco Zecchin – www.marcozecchin.com

Lullaby For My Kids

Gil Namur — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 23:50:02 +0000

This is a lullaby I wrote for my kids and finally recorded it, after many years of procrastination.

Eric Brad recently re-engineered it. The flute was done using a Roland guitar synth. I worked in some .wav files for the birds and sounds of waves.

I hope you enjoy it. I suggest you don’t listen while driving your car

Full Song

Songs in the Tunes category are not currently a part of any particular project. I am happy to share them with you and I hope you enjoy them! As this site evolves, I will be adding more songs here so be sure to visit now and then. To listen to the songs or teasers click on the icons. You can also right mouse button click on the icon and use your “save as feature” to save the MP3 to your hard drive.

Promenade

Gil Namur — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 23:43:12 +0000

Years ago, I wrote a chord progression inspired by the theme song for Hill Street Blues written by Mike Post and Larry Carlton (one of my favorite guitar players). Anytime I tried out a new guitar, I would play it. Often people would come over and tell me what a great groove it is. I had always thought it would be fun to solo over but never got around to it. A few years ago, I decided to record it with Bruce Davies playing bass. A simple recording with no edits. I practiced over it a bit, hit the record button and then just improvised. I then handed the recording over to my friend and engineer Eric Brad who did a nice mix for me.

Here is the result. It’s called ..

Full Song

Suggested reading: A Promenade With Your Muse

Old Dog New Tricks

Gil Namur — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 06:35:21 +0000

At long last, my first CD Old Dog New Tricks is finished. With a genre of easy listening jazz/rock, it features great bass playing by Bruce Davies.

This is really a huge milestone for me. Through various forms of procrastination, I managed to turn this into a multi-year project and I am thrilled that its finally done.

All songs have been re-engineered by Eric Brad at Northern Lodge Music and he co-produced the final product with me. Eric, thank you so much for all you did.

I have posted teasers and a few full songs which you can find on the Tracks/Samples page.

You can now purchase Old Dog New Tricks online. Please visit our purchase page to find out how.

If you would like to hear what people are saying about Old Dog New Tricks, you can do so at the Listener Feedback page. I’d love to hear your feedback as well so please leave me a comment.

Old Dog New Tricks – Purchase

Gil Namur — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 23:24:59 +0000

Thank you for supporting my music through your purchase of Old Dog New Tricks!

There are 3 ways for you purchase Old Dog New Tricks.

1 – Download all the songs for $5.00.

2 – You can buy the CD from our online fulfillment center Indie Pool.

This is a secure site that accepts Visa and MasterCard. They will also accept a check or a money order. If you would prefer to use PayPal, send me a note using the contact form and I’ll make it happen for you!

Old Dog New Tricks – $15.00 CDN + Shipping

3 – Also available for download from:

iTunes

Napster

IODA

emusic

Old Dog New Tricks – About The Songs

Gil Namur — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 23:21:45 +0000

Night Walk

Night Walk is a piece that I started working on sometime in 2000. I had the idea for the climbing guitar line at the beginning but could not think of where to take it. One night last year, I went for a walk with my black Labrador Retriever Pharaoh. While I was walking the song was playing in my head and the structure just came to me. So many of the songs I have written have happened in similar ways.

Song for Carlos

I wrote this song a while back as a personal tribute to a guitar player who over the years has been an influence on me. That guitar player of course is Carlos Santana. I hope he gets to hear it one day! Thank you Carlos for all you’ve done to inspire so many of us, both musically and personally.

On The Deck

This song was written while sitting on the deck of one of the new British Columbia Ferries on my way back from a business trip. The song just kind of happened. I sat there with my eyes closed and let it come out .. completely oblivious to my surroundings. When I opened my eyes, much to my surprise, I was surrounded by tourists with video cameras beckoning me to keep playing.

Kamba

The flute was achieved using a Roland Guitar Synth and the nylon strung guitar I used was an amazing Godin Multiac. Kamba was arranged using Win Jammer Pro and Band In A Box. I used elements from both programs to get the feel I wanted. Kamba is dedicated to my friend Karen M. who really enjoys a good samba.

First Dibs

This song was the first song I ever arranged using Win Jammer Pro. I was looking to write a gentle ballad and it just happened so easily. The nylon string was again the Godin. I used my Strat for the overdriven parts. First Dibs is dedicated to my friend Joy W.

Fruits of Rarotonga

Bruce and I had been playing with this groove for quite a while but I could never find an ending for it that I was happy with. After a trip to Rarotonga, Bruce had the idea for the birds and the waves at the beginning and ending of the song. He also laid down a great solo which gave the song the ending I just could not come up with. Of course, he also named the tune!

The Arousal

This one was totally groove driven. I came up with a groove that I thought was very seductive and then wrote the head (melody .. hook line) for it. The rest just flowed out.

Hamnjam

Hamnjam is another one of those songs that just happened really quickly. I was going through a dry spell .. actually .. to be honest .. I was going through a lazy spell. It was suggested to me that I would in fact dry up if I didn’t get back to writing and I proclaimed that I could write a song anytime I wanted (I was of course exaggerating profusely) and went about writing this song. It happened in one evening and much like the Arousal, it started as a grove over which I found a hook I liked. Let me be clear .. this is NOT a challenge I would want to undertake again. I got lucky that night and my muse was very kind to me. I dedicated this song to my friend Glenn M. AKA Uncle Hammy!

Not Mine

Around 1979, I met a bass player by the name of Brian Quinn. At the time, I had a small music school. Brian and I jammed a few times between lessons and one day he played a bass line I fell in love with. Many years later, I remembered the bass line one night when Bruce and I were jamming. I had him play it and what you hear is basically what came out of that jam. Brian, if you are out there, please contact me! I’d love to know if I am even close to how you played this. More than that, it would be great to hear your voice again!

Which Root is Witch

As I was working on Old Dog New Tricks, I met Michael R. (The Rootwitch) in a chat room. He and I shared so much in common musically it was almost spooky .. as if we had somehow had the same musical experiences but separated by time (he is 10 years younger than I am) and distance. Together, we met others in the online jazz chat rooms and Michael eventually started our own small chat group. In time, strong friendships were formed and he decided to invite all of us .. from all over the world .. to spend time with him and his wife in Florida. We had some incredible jam sessions there and forged memories that will last a lifetime. I will forever be grateful for the time we spent that summer. This song is dedicated to Michael.

SensCZ

I wanted to write a song that had a smooth and happy groove .. you know .. that LA groove. This song took a while to complete as I kept messing around with different feels and chord progressions. Eventually, as so often happens, I went back to where it had started at which point the whole thing happened in a few days. This song is dedicated to Sheila (Sens) and Cziana.

Old Dog New Tricks – Credits

Gil Namur — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 23:05:56 +0000

Gil Namur – Electric and acoustic guitars.

Bruce Davies – Bass guitars.

Eric Brad – Acoustic guitar on “First Dibs”, Nylon string guitar on “Song for Carlos”, Drum Programming, Midi arranging and editing.

Lis Erling Bailly – Cover art and design.

Recorded at Synaptic Studios & Northern Lodge Music
Re-engineered/mixed by Eric Brad at Northern Lodge Music
Mastered by Eric Brad at Northern Lodge Music
Produced by Gil Namur and Eric Brad
“First Dibs” & “Kamba” composed using Win Jammer Pro.
“Not Mine” sequenced by Gil Namur & edited by Eric Brad.
All other songs were composed using Band in a Box.
All audio recording, arranging, editing, and final production used Cakewalk’s Sonar music software.