Ex-WAYSTED Guitarist Explains His Recording Approach

Ex-WAYSTED guitarist Paul Chapman has fired back at his former bandmates over their claim that Chapman's slow way of working in the studio would have prevented the group's new album, "Back From the Dead", from ever coming out.

Writing to his official web site, Chapman said, "After reading [new WAYSTED guitarist] Chris George's [interview posted on the group's web site], I think I should point out a few things that would appear relevant to the upcoming sound clip. When I started recording in 1970, after taking over Gary Moore's position in SKID ROW, I was sixteen and went into one of the first 24-track studios in the UK, with Martin Birch engineering (IRON MAIDEN's producer in later years). It was a three-piece band. I believe at this time Chris was about minus 11 years old.

"Through the mid-'70s working with a six-piece (LONE STAR),Roy Thomas Baker, and Gary Lyons helped me understand how making a record is an art, and can be likened to a picture. Your ear will focus on things upfront and in the middle, just like looking into the middle of the picture (I always think of the Norman Rockwell thing with the pilgrims, you know the one with guy with the pitchfork and his old lady standing next to him). Anybody remember what's behind them? One-dimensional is fine, in the right context. Roy also taught me how to double track. Certain parts have to be very composed. I love leaving space to 'blow' over, but it's nice to have a background to the picture that warrants, or commands its own viewing.

"George Martin was a firm believer in layering guitars. In fact when you think about it, he was a firm believer in layering everything, he invented it. Listen to the end of 'Mystery Train' — loads of 'em! I might sound like I'm name dropping here, well, I am!!!!!!! I've been making records for 34 years, and have done so many guitar dubs with so many producers, it would probably make Fin want to vomit! However, if you listen to 'Profession of Violence', you'll see there's only two. The nylon and the solo. So you let the track grow (or not grow) accordingly. Also, the same with guitar sounds. I like to take whatever I think the track will need with me into the studio, example, two Les Pauls, two Strats, my G+L 12 string, Tele with a B bender, my new Baji guitar (Banjo-Guitar),various acoustics, and my electric mandolins, and a shitload of anything else I can borrow.

"Amps are another story. If you can't paint a picture with these, you need to find better songwriting partners, or take up drums or something. I'm not knocking Chris, he was thrown into a situation with Pete, Fin, and Majestic and probably doesn't understand the communication breakdown that tends to go on around them. Speaking of communication breakdowns, I don't know what the fuck they got when they opened the Pro-Tools files in Buckingham. We didn't open 7 of them here, they were just forwarded to Fin. When we did open 'Garden of Eden' here, there was banks of shit missing. I was assured by Don Depew in Cleveland they were safe, and on another file up there. We would pull them out when we mix (up there),which of course never happened.

"Anyway now I've got some of this shit off my chest (more to come, promise). The mix we have here is a very rough one of 'Garden of Eden', before Fin edited it to make the verses 10 minutes long. If I had ever thought these were going to be listened to on this magnitude, I would have not done 4 of them in 4 or 5 hours. Anyway, this is the way I saw WAYSTED going."

Listen to the "Garden of Clip" clip at this location.