In My Dreams – Leon Bratt (Composed by Paul Whitfield)
‘In My Dreams’ is a strong and well written pop song. There’s a classic ballad feeling to it, but the energy is higher than you might expect – the music is upbeat, it’s uplifting, in both the instrumentality and the melody line. The vocal performance delivering these melodies and lyrics is very easy to listen to – there’s a realness to it that puts the song very much within the reach of any audience.
The backing track is well composed, well structured, fairly flawlessly produced – the song has everything about it that you might expect a successful pop song to bring along. There’s a hopefulness to the substance of it as well, which is pleasant to listen to. There’s a touch of sadness in the verses, but on the whole the song puts out a sense of optimism, and that passes on to you as you listen. It’s an effective piece of song writing by Paul Whitfield (below)
The performances are as they should be, expressed with feeling and skill, including the harmonies that fill out the backing track towards the end. The song builds up in the way that any great song does – taking you on that all important journey for a few minutes, and resolving successfully to leave you with a lasting and enjoyable feeling. The melody is nothing massively new, but it does stay with you as any song writer would hope it to. The track is quite formulaic in terms of the structure and the backing instruments, but that’s a great thing in many cases – the song draws the right kind of audience in, and it’s likely that fans will seek out more music from the artists involved after listening to this song. There’s a certain emotion to it that is reminiscent of crucial moments in family films – perhaps even Disney films – it’s the sort of track you can hear being part of the soundtrack to an upcoming movie.
By Rebecca Cullen
Rebecca is a Musician and writer from Manchester, UK, with an MA in Song Writing.
Interview:
Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?
Paul Whitfield – I grew up in the South Yorkshire in the north of England. I have always loved and been fascinated by music from a very young age. I used to love playing around on my Grandparent’s piano as a kid and in my teens I was in various bands as a keyboard player. Around the age of 18 I first started to write my own original songs.
Exposed Vocals: How did you come up with that name? What was your inspiration behind it?
Paul Whitfield – This is my real name! I was born with it!
Exposed Vocals: What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?
Paul Whitfield – My music is available to listen to for free on Soundcloud and Spotify. I think all the social media platforms are a great way to get your music out there for people to hear.
Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?
Paul Whitfield – To be fair I myself am a songwriter who is still trying to make it to the next level. But I know that self belief, dedication and never giving up are the key to success. Every successful artist or writer has only got to where they are by hard work and perseverance.
Exposed Vocals: Do you ever make mistakes during performances? How do you handle that?
Paul Whitfield – I am not currently out gigging myself but I would say don’t beat yourself up about it. It happens to the best of them. I have seen some of the biggest artists in the world mess up on stage. Just laugh about it, learn from it and move on.
Exposed Vocals: Do you tour? Anything interesting happen on tour that you think our readers would enjoy hearing about?
Paul Whitfield – No I don’t tour myself.
Exposed Vocals: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?
Paul Whitfield – As most writers will tell you, the actual process of writing can happen in so many different ways. I can get a tune in my head in the middle of the night and sing it into my phone. Or I might just get a great song title and work on that. Other times I might first come up with a catch melody. There is no perfect winning formula. My inspiration for a song always comes from my life’s experiences and what I feel most strongly about.
Exposed Vocals: Do you have a band website? What online platforms do you use to share your music?
Paul Whitfield – My website is www.paulwhitfieldmusic.com from where all my other links can be found. I often share my songs on Soundcloud, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Exposed Vocals: What are some really embarrassing songs that we might find on your mp3 player?
Paul Whitfield – Ooh! I don’t think I have too many embarrassing songs on there! But I do love my cheesy 80s pop!
Exposed Vocals: If you were given half a million dollars and a year off, what would you do? How would you spend it?
Paul Whitfield – Wow! I would certainly put more money and time into the recording and promotion of my songs. I would love to travel more. In particular to New York, Los Angeles and Nashville! I also love the Lake District in England so I might spend more time there. And not forgetting relaxing in Santorini, Greece!
Exposed Vocals: Any planned studio upgrades? What are you working with now?
Paul Whitfield – I currently use ProTools at home. But I also use various studios for recording.
Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?
Paul Whitfield – Social media is a great tool for exposure. But over the years I have also built up various contacts in the music business who help me to find artists for my songs.Â
Exposed Vocals: If you could perform anywhere and with any artists (Dead or Alive) where and who would it be with? Why?
Paul Whitfield – I have been a life long Prince fan. It would be awesome to perform with Prince. Any place would do!
Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?
Paul Whitfield – There are currently lots of my songs being prepared for release by various artists. Mostly UK artists like Leon Bratt, Jordan Adams and Kalli Ashton. Also I am hoping to travel over the pond to Nashville in 2017 to meet with various music publishers as lots of my songs I feel would suit the US market.
Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?
Paul Whitfield – If I wasn’t making music is some way I would probably be a photographer.
Exposed Vocals: Do you remember buying your first album? Who was it? What was going through your head?
Paul Whitfield – Oh yes! I think it was the “Grease†soundtrack album! Love it!
Exposed Vocals: How do you juggle the rest of your responsibilities while trying to stay ahead in your music life?
Paul Whitfield – Good question! I think it’s all about being disciplined and making the most of every minute of your day. Everybody gets the same 24 hours. It’s easy to be lazy and waste time.
Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in the next year or so?
Paul Whitfield – Well as a songwriter and not an artist myself I have lots going on right now. There are various songs currently in the pipeline being recorded by artists as we speak for future release. Also I have some superb tracks that are still looking for a home so watch this space!
