• Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Topic: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Tall order, yes, but I'm trying to fill it. As I type, I'm uploading a crapload of live Mason in hopes of eventually hosting an MP3 copy of every single tune Mason's ever played live, covers included. Will's incomparable "Live At The Cave" collections get me half-way there, but there's still a long way to go. Part of the uphill battle stems from the fact that many fine recordings have been declared "lossless only" by the taper. Since I want to respect that, I can't offer those as MP3s without explicit permission. So here's the rub:

Plan A: Offer a high-quality MP3 of the best version of every Mason live track.
Plan B: Where Plan A fails due to lossless rules, offer the best FLAC version.
Plan C: There is no Plan C!

From you guys, I could use help tracking down the best version of each and every track. Any connections you have would be awesome. Any tapers who want to open their lossless tracks to the community, please do so.

Why MP3, you ask? Because bandwidth is finite, and the light compression of MP3 is an acceptable trade-off for the benefit of being able to host all the songs. Eventually I'd love to have MP3 and FLAC versions of every song, but that must wait until I see how much bandwidth I have left after this MP3 business.

So, in my next post, I'll put a list of every Mason song I have records of, and whether it's been found/converted yet. You guys reply with songs I missed, or with your suggestions for better versions of the recordings. And please, if you do find a better version, do the sleuthing and email the taper ahead of time for me. Thanks!

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

About The Songs/MP3s:
To my knowledge, all the MP3s I'm distributing here have either been explicitly declared "compressable" by the taper, or the taper indicated no preference concerning MP3 distribution. If you know that any song was not intended to be converted to MP3, let me know immediately.

Legend:
• All dates in YYYY-MM-DD format
• LatC = Live at the Cave
• ACL = Austin City Limits

=====================================

Links removed; see final post in thread.

Last edited by reefdog (2007-04-06 11:02 pm)

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

I should say, btw, that I do have recordings of many of these songs, it's just a matter of time as to how fast I can select and upload them.

Also, to be lazy, I'm not editing the songs... so they might have stories on the beginning or end. I think it adds character, but if it's important to you that it be "clean" then find a cleaner one or edit mine and email it to me so I can put it up!

reefdog's Website

  • From: Twin Cities
  • Registered: 2003-08-12
  • Posts: 21

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Should we maybe discuss / add Other alias Names to this list of songs?

Alright!  Time for a crime spree!
  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Indeed. I've been meaning to make note of those on the main lyrics page for a while now. I'll go ahead and add the ones I know to the list above.

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2006-06-18
  • Posts: 7

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

What about Nebraska, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Every Night, and Tomorrow is a Long Time?

Also, the song listed here as "Isabella" is "Joy," even though that has a separate entry.  Is this intentional?

Last edited by leez34 (2006-06-18 9:18 pm)

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Gawdang, you're right. Now I'm wondering why I called it Isabella, too... I think maybe Mason calls it that right before he plays it, I'll need to whip the CD out again and check it. That would argue for erasing the "Joy" name unless someone knows he changed it after 1999.

Anyway, I'll check it out and check back, thanks leez.

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2006-06-18
  • Posts: 7

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

In addition to the tracks listed above, there's also no mention of You Are My Sunshine, High Tide, Your Cheatin' Heart, and Love in Vain.  I should note that I own mp3s of all these songs I've mentioned, but I've never made my own recording, so I can't guarantee that it's OK to put them up here.  I do think it's worth mentioning them, though, for completion's sake.

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Leez, do you know what dates they're from? I only want to put up songs I know the source for so that the taper has a chance to identify their recording and complain/endorse. I don't have a problem putting up "un-endorsed" songs so long as we've at least made an attempt to find/ask the taper.

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2006-06-18
  • Posts: 7

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

The four I mentioned in the first post are from useyourwebsite.com, so I assume that the two guys over there made the recordings themselves.  I'll have to check about the other four - I don't remember who I B&P'ed with to get them at the moment.

EDIT:  I got them from Ben Bunting, locke456@care2.com.

Last edited by leez34 (2006-06-21 12:26 pm)

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

I'm pretty sure that several of the MP3s they have are not from their own recordings, though I can't say whose they are from. I'd feel more comfortable posting ones from original B&Ps, etc. than from other site's MP3s. In the case of your B&P, did it come with a setlist that identifies the original taper?

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Sorry folks, a few MP3s -- 579 (Road To Oakland), 12/8 Time, Damn (What A Beautiful Man), and Feel Better -- had bad URLs. I fixed 'em, you can download those now.

reefdog's Website

  • From: fond du lac, wi
  • Registered: 2006-06-29
  • Posts: 5

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

If you could mark which songs you have, or need yet, I can check thru my files.  This is a great idea, there are so many unreleased songs out there.

junyer_mint's Website

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Anything that isn't a link is in need of a permissible MP3 version, or I just haven't gotten around to adding one.

And like I said, I pretty much have live versions of everything; I just need permission for some of them. So if any of you have recorded stuff yourself and would be willing to let me MP3 and host it, do tell! GCP just emailed me three tracks he recorded earlier this year that I'll be adding today.

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2006-07-02
  • Posts: 1

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

i was just wondering if there was anyway to get the mp3's onto my pc? I have a lot of them already...very few i dont have and i'd like a copy of them...any suggestions would be great...thanks

:)

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Um. Click on them? :)

Seriously, what do you mean? You can right-click and choose "Download this link" or "Save link as" or whichever, then drag them into iTunes or WinAmp or whatever you use. Is there something I'm missing?

reefdog's Website

  • From: california
  • Registered: 2004-07-01
  • Posts: 169

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

newbs....hehe.

i am not a vegetarian because i love animals; i am a vegetarian because i hate plants.

anthroboy's Website

18 Reply by Les

  • Les
  • Member
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  • From: Salt Lake City, UT
  • Registered: 2003-08-15
  • Posts: 34

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

I will be able to contribute my own copy of "Angeles." 

Also, not listed, the great song called "Vivian Brown."  I'll send that in as well.

"I remember well the hour which burst my spirit's sleep." --Saul Bellow

Les's Website

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Sweetness. Is VB a cover or an original? Because Google seems to hope it's this [rap?] song...

reefdog's Website

20 Reply by Les

  • Les
  • Member
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  • From: Salt Lake City, UT
  • Registered: 2003-08-15
  • Posts: 34

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Vivian Brown is an original, and my guess would be that it was a late 90's composition.  I can't remember where it was played right off, but I have it at home.  It is pretty much a solo performance (sounds like an electric guitar).  Here are the lyrics:

When the police men brought you here
They told me your mother wasn't well
So I laid you in my bed
to sleep, sleep Vivian Brown

And after you were fast asleep
They told me it was suicide
And I cried, my baby
to sleep, sleep Vivian Brown

Now I hold you close to me
I won't let you down
So sleep my angel sleep
Long live, Vivian Brown
Long live, Vivian Brown

"I remember well the hour which burst my spirit's sleep." --Saul Bellow

Les's Website

  • Registered: 2006-07-11
  • Posts: 1

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

I was wondering about the possibility of two things. One being a single file to d/l that has all the songs together once all the tracks have been assembled. The other being dates as to when the tracks were added to the list to help with updates and keeping track of the best versions.

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Good idea on both of those. I'll probably put together an HTML page that has more info like that. For now, I'll just start adding dates whenever I add/update songs; everything else you can consider to have been added on the date of the post.

As for a single DL, I totally agree. However, I'm waiting until I can find a better distribution method before I do that. I may be handed some more bandwidth here in a few weeks, so I'll see how that pans out. (I refuse to use one of those file-hosting services that make people walk through ten steps of ads and stuff before they can DL.)

I'd MOST prefer to do a torrent, but I don't have confidence that the file would garner enough traffic (and thus have enough seeders) to make it worth it. Maybe if I can get a permanent seeding server... but yeah, lemme just say I'm considering my options here.

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

BTW, for the curious, about my bandwidth: putting all the tracks online half-way through June still doubled my monthly traffic. Eleven days into July, and we've almost surpassed the previous record month-long high from February:

Jan 2006: 609MB
Feb 2006: 2.89GB
Mar 2006: 1.62GB
Apr 2006: 2.10GB
May 2006: 2.04GB
June 2006: 5.80GB
July 2006: 2.28GB (so far!)

And that's without the convenience of a one-click download. So I'm holding off until I get at least double my current bandwidth before providing an HTTP one-click download.

reefdog's Website

  • Registered: 2006-07-13
  • Posts: 2

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

I have a bunch of great live songs, but I am not sure exactly how to upload them. So if you want them, give me some help!!!

  • Registered: 2003-08-09
  • Posts: 400

Re: Want an MP3 of every Mason song ever?

Sweet. Now are these songs you've recorded? I've got tons of live stuff myself, but the trick is that it's not all MP3'able. What songs/shows are you going to upload?

So: I've created a Box.net account for everyone here to use. (Now, nobody be a douche and change the password or email! That's just silliness.) The login is everyone@birdwingsbeat.com and the password is mason. Upload stuff into the root folder, and then post a message here. I'll download 'em and then remove 'em.

Anyone else who wants to use it, have at!

reefdog's Website