The Hand (Live in London)

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It’s album launch day at last. It took 25+ years in the oven but it’s ready now. Jump in my time machine and enjoy a London night out from the last century. Put some sawdust on the floor if you like!

13 terrific cover performances of classic rock songs of the sixties. If you have already purchased either of the two individual tracks off this record that were already out as singles, the price is reduced to reflect that. 🙂 Feel free to listen by streaming and not buy. Thank you to Carolyn Victoria Mill for the excellent artwork and to Kevin Harty for promotional expertise. Rock on!

EPSON MFP image

The latest single from The Hand dropped today on the usual streaming and download platforms. Several decades ago we recorded a live take in a London UK studio to 2″ tape, with me engineering and playing bass and, much like dear Ringo, getting to sing lead vocals for one song! After the band went home, I overdubbed myself playing piano and organ and mixed it. It’s a tribute to Bob Dylan’s immeasurable talent that doubled as an educational exercise for me, from a production perspective. Links in the comments to listen. This is out one week ahead of the upcoming album release, “Live in London”, and this single is not on the album. PS Bob’s original has tambourine and we don’t LOL but otherwise it’s pretty Bobtacular.

Sundays In Chemainus

Today, my single “Sundays In Chemainus”, a song I wrote a few months ago, is available for streaming or downloads on 26 platforms… all the usual suspects, Apple, Spotify, Tidal, YouTube, etc. Chemainus is a beautiful small town on Vancouver Island, BC. It is famous for its fabulous murals, scenic beauty and thriving artistic community. I really enjoy the town’s many concerts, open mics and song circle run by the Chemainus Valley Cultural Arts Society.

This song celebrates the wonderful times we have playing music together in the Chemainus Song Circle every second Sunday throughout the year. Please, do have a listen, the link is in the comments below. Everything you hear is me… all vocals and instruments. I played harmonica, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, drums, mandolin, fiddle, baby grand piano, assorted percussion. This is the first original song of mine that does NOT have any synthesizers, samples or electric guitars on the record (other than my Hofner ‘ Beatle’ bass). All recorded in real life into microphones a track at a time. Engineered, mixed and mastered by me at home. Hope you like it!

Sundays in Chemainus

written by Michael Holland

Sundays in Chemainus, you’ll find us singing songs

Come on down, join the crowd, you can play along

Music makes us happy – we’re not trying to be famous

Our policy is open door on Sundays in Chemainus

In Summer, we’ll be singing in the Waterwheel Park

Moving to the Legion when the afternoons grow dark

Bring your fiddle, banjo, mandolin, guitar or uke

Bodhran or bouzouki, stand-up bass or flute

Take your seat, tap your feet

On obviously the best day of the week

Sundays in Chemainus, you’ll find us singing songs

Come on down, join the crowd, you can play along

Music makes us happy – we’re not trying to be famous

Our policy is open door on Sundays in Chemainus

Anyone can pick the song whenever it’s their turn

If you’re a beginner, what a perfect way to learn

Kate Wolf or The Beatles, Leadbelly or John Prine

If you need a capo, I can lend you mine

Take your seat, tap your feet

On obviously the best day of the week

Sundays in Chemainus, you’ll find us singing songs

Come on down, join the crowd, you can play along

Music makes us happy – we’re not trying to be famous

Our policy is open door on Sundays in Chemainus

Come on down, enjoy the sound of Sundays in Chemainus!

FLY flashback

Here’s a flashback for you….

The song is called FLY. I found the final stereo recording a few months ago, of a song I came up with back in 1992, and I like what I had, despite the rather off-key vocals and the occasional flaws in the balance!

Have given it a bit of a remix so here it is in all it’s psychedelic glory

https://soundcloud.com/michaelhollandmusic/fly-2022?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

I recorded this in 1992 at Battery so I’m mostly stuck with my stereo mix from 1992 but hearing it today I was inspired to write a full orchestration this summer (think “Live and Let Die”) just for the hell of it which was fun to assemble overdubbing the various sections a bit at a time with great sample libraries.

Here’s the back story. In 1992 I had booked some studio time as a producer at Battery Studios.in London UK, where I worked as a full-time producer/engineer for Jive Records, Silvertone Records, Coombe Music International, and various indie album and single projects.

I wrote this song, both words and music, over a drum track I recorded of my fellow band member Rob Milne (the band was called The Hand), who was playing a different song altogether. All other instruments were played by me. Although I can’t hear them and only used the drums, there is faint spill into the drum mics from Psymon King and Danny DiMento playing guitars for a different song so it’s awesome that although I muted their work on the other song when printing a mix of my new song, my excellent friends and fellow Hand (my old band) members are all in there in spirit, although I can only ever so faintly hear a trace of a guitar part that isn’t me. All vocals are me. The song was written, engineered and produced by me too. Hope the Hand in particular like it…. Rob is just the loudest LOL


Here are the lyrics.

“FLY” (Michael Holland)

You and I will ride upon

The silver wings of a unicorn

As the day becomes the dawn, it’s easy

Wished that we were far away

Another shore on another day

Look how far we’ve flown today, it’s easy

And I believe that you will find

In the cracks between Space and Time

A place to fly, it’s in your mind, it’s easy

Fly…

When you feel the price of lies

See the deeds the words disguise

Trust your opened mind and rise, it’s easy

You and I will ride upon

The silver wings of a unicorn

As the day becomes the dawn, it’s easy

Fly….

Fly…

Fly…



© 1992 Words & Music by Michael Holland

2022 Orchestration by Michael Holland

Produced and Engineered by Michael Holland

Drums – Rob Milne

Guitars – Danny DiMento, Psymon King

All other instruments & vocals – Michael Holland

Take On Me

Michael’s mix of Reid Jamieson’s TAKE ON ME has been making the rounds. This updated version of A’ha’s 80s hit was placed in the Hallmark USA film THE STORY OF US, played at US Army football games, and charting on various radio stations internationally. Such fun to produce, they continue to team up so watch for more musical magic in 2021!

All vocals and instruments: Reid Jamieson
Produced by Michael Holland & Carolyn Mill. Mixed by Michael Holland
Song: Take On Me Writers: A-ha Magne Furuholmen, Morten Harket, Pål Waaktaar