› recent recordings
Breath of Heaven - by Amy Grant and Chris Eaton, performed by Jane Updegraff
This is my 2012 Christmas offering. This is Mary's prayer as she walks toward destiny. I have no difficulty imagining her feelings so I choke up a lot on this song, and I had to do several takes. I left it imperfect deliberately. There are some flat spots and some obvious cracks but that's the way it comes out of my mouth, so that's what I want you to hear. Recorded in December 2012. Merry Christmas, site visitors!
Come Away With Me - by Norah Jones, performed by Jane Updegraff
I can't do smokey like Norah, but I went ahead and put my own spin on this song anyhow. I like restful, sleepy songs like this, they have a fluid quality that I can't really explain properly, but whenever I find one, I keep it in my repertoire forever. December 2012 recording.
I Can't Make You Love Me by Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin, performed by Jane Updegraff
One of my friends requested this song so I recorded it for him in December 2012. I like Bonnie Raitt's very strightforward take on it so I mimicked her here.
Do What You Have To Do - by Sarah McLachlan, performed by Jane Updegraff
This is a recording that I did at home in about July 2012. The ambiguous nature of the lyric is intriguing to me. She could be talking about anyone she has lost.
Possession - by Sarah McLachlan, performed by Jane Updegraff
This is a recording that I did at home in about July 2012. Too much reverb, perhaps.
Love Will Find a Way - by Pablo Cruise, performed by Jane Updegraff
This is a recording that I did at home in about October 2011. Just plain fun, in one take.
Ready For Love - by India Arie, performed by Jane Updegraff
This is a recording that I did at home in about June 2011 as a test of my new microphone, which I like a lot. The EV n/d mics are fantastic and have all the high end response you could ever need. The accompaniment is a backing track that I got from the web at large, it sounds to me very much like the original instrumentation but I did not see a copyright on the track I downloadad; I'm sorry India if this is actually yours!
Dog and Butterfly - by Heart, performed by Jane Updegraff
This has always been one of my favorite Heart covers. vocal track recorded September 2011. I had a cold and I think you can hear it in this recording. But I kind of like what the cold did to my high throat voice, made it all nice and raspy.
So first listen to: Barracuda - by Heart, performed by Jane Updegraff
and then compare it to ....
Barracuda - by Heart, performed by Jane Updegraff, Rob Mowery and Steve Smith
I recorded both of these covers of the original Heart classic in the first week of October 2011. The first one listed is a generic track with a plain vanilla feel. The second version has a lot more bite, thanks to the really nifty guitar and bass work by Rob Mowery and Steve Smith, respectively. Thanks guys!
Crazy - by Patsy Cline, performed by Jane Updegraff
I recorded this version of a classic for the generation that precedes me. Every time I tell anyone from my mom's generation that I am singing in a show at particular venue on a particular night, and often actually during the show, I get asked if I sing this song. Finally, I actually do. This is on Simpatico's regular set list.
Kissing a Fool - by George Michael, performed by Jane Updegraff
Wow this is a bad accompaniment track. I have always liked this song and Darla was kind enough to accompany me on it for a recital I held for my students but i haven't had her make a track for me yet. I plan to keep it alive in a regular set list with Simpatico if she'll keep playing it for me.
Angel - Sarah McLachlan, performed by Jane Updegraff
Same as above, recorded at home using a track I found on the web, clearly not the original in this case. I have a problem with the breath noise on these but I resolved that problem with an improvised windscreen so the next few ought to be better. So more coming shortly.
Dreams - The Cranberries, performed by Jane Updegraff
A song that I've always wanted to perform but never really had the right situation.
Ode To My Family - The Cranberries, performed by Jane Updegraff
Another song that I always wanted to sing. I don't think I do it justice but to be honest it's hard for me to sing it without getting all choked up.
› older recordings
Sign From God by Dr. X, performed by Jane Updegraff with Dr. X
This song might have been the title track for the untitled album that Dr. X wrote and recorded in 1992-1993, but the title of the (unreleased) album wasn't actually decided upon by the band, so it's hard to say. We recorded it at FJM audio and I think that it's safe to say that all of us enjoyed both writing and performing all of the material on it. I liked this particular song a lot, notably the bridge section. But in all honesty I liked everything on this album and I still consider it a rare treat to have worked with these men, regardless of the outcome or lack thereof, which was probably my fault. I split with my husband and drummer Jay shortly after this album was finished and it was never pushed on a publisher by amynone including myself, due to simple lack of energy through that emotionally rough time. I'm not sure what kind of reception it would have had but it would have been a good idea to try to publish it at the time, and that chance has probably now passed forever. Let me know if you would like the whole set of links, they are all mounted on this server for download. The artists in this recording are Jay Stueve on drums, Dan Reck on bass, Keith Wood on guitar and myself singing. The men wrote the music and I contributed the lyrics / melody lines.
January 5 by Dr. X, performed by Jane Updegraff with Dr. X
From the same Dr. X album mentioned in the caption above. These lyrics were inspired by the death of good friend and keyboardist Kirk Andorfer, who I worked with in the pop band "a.k.a." in the second half of the 1980s as a very young cover singer. He died in a car accident on his way home from art school in Kettering. I was to meet him that evening about an hour after he had his accident and I was still awaiting him at Ruby's when Andy Gibson hurried in and told me of the accident. He died later that night and frankly I was never the same afterward. He was a talented man, a good friend and a true artist in several different fields of art and by several definitions. I miss him all the time even now.
Clip from Barracuda by Heart, performed by Jane Updegraff live with Little Miss Fortune at GZPete's
These clips are from the first live show I ever did with LMF, in early 2004, I believe, the recording of which was a dubious choice. Who records their first show? It was sloppy and I was nervous. This was the very first song of the very first set, too, and I bungled the intro, which is why you are not hearing it in this clip :). Artists performing are Darla Northup on keys, Jerry Pullins on bass, Doug McGonigal on drums, Rob Mowery on guitar and myself on lead vocals. Backing vocals by Darla, Jerry and Doug.
Clip from Ice Cream Man by Van Halen, performed by Jane Updegraff with Little Miss Fortune
I actually sang the lyrics "Ice Cream Ma'am, but no one ever caught it or at least no one ever mentioned noticing it. This was recorded in the same first show as mentioned above. Artists performing are Darla Northup on keys, Jerry Pullins on bass, Doug McGonigal on drums, Rob Mowery on guitar and myself on lead vocals. Backing vocals by Darla, Jerry and Doug. It's Doug singing that last vocal phrase, which he just hated doing but which he HAD to do, as the only baritone, because it was so far beneath my range.
These basement recordings were done in about 2002 or so in Fred Roth's basement studio, which consisted of a road-worn Peavey board and a frankenstein computer that I built (with 4 sound cards in it), designed for ad hoc digital recording during Crystalfish band practices. The IRQ conflicts in that PC were a constant source of hilarity or frustration depending on how patient one could be. The clipping on these recordings is a direct result of the too-high input levels combined with the frequently-drunken operators. Artists in this recording: Dwight Bowden on backing vocal, Jane Updegraff lead vocal, Fred Roth on bass, Dave Linder on drums, and Mike Hilgeford is on guitar.
See the previous caption. Crystalfish performed this song for the whole time I was with them and I still like singing it. The yodel-style flip from throat to head voice is usually do-able unless I haven't had enough sleep. It's the same technique shown by Sarah McLachlan and Jewel, along with many others, including a huge range of country and bluegrass singers, not to mention traditional yodelers. The technique is, no doubt, as old as singing itself, since it's a natural feature of the mostly two-part human voice. Although the "flip" is hard to learn to control (that's the whole idea of yodeling), it's incredibly fun to do as a technique, all singers should try it just for fun if not for actual performance value. Artists in this recording: Dwight Bowden on backing vocal, Jane Updegraff lead vocal, Fred Roth on bass, Dave Linder on drums, and Mike Hilgeford is on guitar.
This version of White Rabbit was arranged by the metal band Sanctuary and is one of the best re-arrangements of a classic rock tune I have ever performed. Although the sound quality on this live recording is not good, it's still a record of a really fun time and I still like to sing along. This was performed at Wittstock (the Wittenberg University outdoor music fest in the hollow) in 1993. Jane Updegraff-Vocals/Jon Faber-Guitar/Jay Stueve-Drums/Chris Motter-Bass. I was lucky to have been able to work with these men even for a short time. All are talented musicians, among the best I have ever worked with.
› current simpatico demo recordings
Listen To Your Heart - DHT - performed by Simpatico
Dust in The Wind - Kansas - performed by Simpatico
No guitar on these yet, but it's coming soon, when Rob has his new guitar in hand and has a moment to add his tracks.
› student's and friends' recordings
Can't Get Lost - written and performed by Ian Johnson
This is a recording I took in the classroom of the then-16-year-old Ian Johnson, a student of mine at LOC, when I was teaching high school there. I like this song enough that I'll likely cover it soon.