That time Derek Sherinian played on one of my songs...

DrewJD82

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
7,811
A couple years back Derek posted on Twitter that he was offering keyboard tracks for anyone's music. Derek used my favorite synth sounds in DT and played some of my favorite parts in those songs, so I figured I was stupid to not at least look into it. I sent him a track that would have been GREAT with him on it and told him "Dude, if I hear that same 'Lines In The Sand" patch on here I'll probably have a f*cking heart attack from sheer joy."

This is what I got back- It's just a quick demo he did to see if I'd want to follow through with it.


While it was a TRIP AND A HALF to hear THAT sound played by THAT guy on one of my songs, it was a little too costly ($1000 per song) and I really needed a new bass at the time. I would have wanted to be able to give him some instructions/work with him on the part and I didn't catch the vibe that it was that kind of situation. Derek was REALLY cool though, his words about the song itself were really, really kind and just blew my mind because you could tell by the things he said that he actually listened and took the song in. If you told 16 year old Drew that Derek Sherinian would compliment me on one of my songs as I was discussing working with him, I probably would have started seizing.
 
Last edited:
You just needed a twenty minute song next time.

:giggle:


That’s seriously cool!

The whole song is something like 7.5 minutes, it was PERFECT for him to do his thing on only where I told him to, though.

It was my 'leave well enough alone' song because I recorded all the guitars with my XXX originally, then deleted all the guitar and bass tracks when I got my AxeFX saying "I'll get a much better tone with that" and while I've gotten different tones that work fine and in some cases are better, the vibe is different.

This was it with the XXX tracks. And any keys in this are the ones I did....actually, using a Korg Triton rack unit trying to get my own version of Derek's sound. And that was BEFORE I gave it to him. (if you got a sub it's more fun)


This is actually specifically what I'm referring to when I call my music half-assed prog metal, because songs like this. No vocals on it yet but I have most of them demo'd out, I always just want to work on new stuff and that song is about 5 years old now.
 
Dayyum! I like the non-Derek version better. Feel like it breathes and builds a little better
that first 1:50.

:sofa


That's awesome, though. I just looked and I see he is still doing that.
Didn't he release a solo album this past summer?
 
Last edited:
Dayyum! I like the non-Derek version better. Feel like it breathes and builds a little better
that first 1:50.

:sofa


That's awesome, though. I just looked and I see he is still doing that.
Didn't he release a solo album this past summer?

I haven't kept up with him much and I never go on Twitter anymore, that's the only reason I saw it in the first place.

I bought a piece of sh*t Johnson 12-string for $50 just so I could record that intro.
 
That's really cool that you created, and he played on it, something that you'll have and cherish for the rest of your life!!

You think back to the 16 yo Drew, but I look to the time when you're a 66 yo Drew, and you pull it out and listen to it..., and it just makes you smile!
That's priceless.
 
Track has that DT/Fates Warning vibe. Great keyboard player no doubt. A grand for a track is pretty through the roof IMO though, especially on the level he is at. You could probably get Jordan Rudess for a grand (or less, who knows). Friend of mine got Matt Star to drum for around 500 bucks and Andrew Freeman to sing for the same (if he was telling me the truth). They did an amazing job on the song. I think the great covid collapse of everyone’s tour had a lot of these guys scrambling for work.
 
Track has that DT/Fates Warning vibe. Great keyboard player no doubt. A grand for a track is pretty through the roof IMO though, especially on the level he is at. You could probably get Jordan Rudess for a grand (or less, who knows). Friend of mine got Matt Star to drum for around 500 bucks and Andrew Freeman to sing for the same (if he was telling me the truth). They did an amazing job on the song. I think the great covid collapse of everyone’s tour had a lot of these guys scrambling for work.

This was actually pre-covid!!! More so than the cost, the inability to work WITH him and tell him “Don’t play here, ok, play for the next 8 measures, do something here but not crazy”, etc was the clincher. I love Sherinian, but I wouldn’t have any musician, no matter how much I love them, just improvise on a track of mine and call it good. I don’t write backing tracks. :rofl
 
This was actually pre-covid!!! More so than the cost, the inability to work WITH him and tell him “Don’t play here, ok, play for the next 8 measures, do something here but not crazy”, etc was the clincher. I love Sherinian, but I wouldn’t have any musician, no matter how much I love them, just improvise on a track of mine and call it good. I don’t write backing tracks. :rofl
Yea I remember his identical FB post. For 1k I’d want the audio, the midi, the soft synth patches and some input so I at least get what I had in mind close enough. I can always nudge a midi note or 3 here and there.
 
Back
Top