Michael Burrows - Please Don't Cry ( with Neil Finn) Interview - a podcast by John Dearing

Michael Burrows Joined John on the Phone , we spoke about Michael as a Musician , and His Music , Including his latest " Please Don't Cry with Neil Finn backing Vocals .

when Australian singer, songwriter Michael Burrows saw the opportunity of working with his songwriting hero Neil Finn, he did everything in his power to make it happen.
Burrows explains; "A few years ago, after a tip off from a friend, I donated some money to the wonderful charity Medicine Mondiale"
Along with its main ambassador Neil Finn, they offered the chance to the biggest donor to record at Neil's world class Roundhead Studios in Auckland New Zealand.
"When I received the phone call to inform me I had won, the experience that followed changed my life forever!
"I had saved some money especially for my music career, so investing in this opportunity to work with Neil and his charity, seemed like the best step I could make for my music".
Burrows soon began to communicate with Finn via email and sent him demos of his songs. Neil instantly connected to a couple of them, especially "Please Don't Cry", which he felt was ready to bring to life.
Burrows further comments; "I would have been happy just chatting with Neil about music and the art of songwriting".
"But what happened next was beyond my wildest expectations".
" Towards the end of the second night, Neil jumped into the vocal booth, and when he laid down the harmonies to my song, I was ready to die right there in that New Zealand chair!"
"I remember sitting next to the engineer Jordan Stone, and asked him if Neil does this all the time? He shook is head and mouthed the word 'no'. This was really happening!"
Finn arranged for a local band of players to add some colour, including members of New Zealand band Pluto - a band Burrows admired from a way back. Michael and the band immediately gelled together and the songs quickly took shape. "Neil was so generous with his time and advice and was involved with every aspect of the project. Including contributing vocal harmonies, playing the Wurlitzer piano, coming up with arrangement ideas and producing the rhythm tracks" says Burrows.
He recalls; "A surreal moment for me was hearing Neil in my headphones, giving directions and doodling along trying new sounds on his guitar while we were tracking. As a producer, Neil was patient and encouraged us to take risks"
They tried "Please Don't Cry" in different forms, from punk to Johnny Cash.
Neil instinctively kept returning to the slower, late night, almost drunken apologetic feel as the best version.
"I knew in my heart that he was completely right. It was also in a place that felt more age appropriate. It was a great lesson in honouring the song and doing what was right for the song"
Michael Burrows left New Zealand with two songs that had drums, bass, Wurlitzer, main vocals and harmonies with all the confidence and validation needed to finish the tracks.
When Burrows returned to Melbourne, he enlisted old friends Gideon and Daniel Frankle who run Dare Studios in Melbourne and finished the additional production elements including extra key parts, electric guitar and lap steel. Tony Buchen (Tim Finn, Bob Evans) mixed the tracks and Steve Smart from Studios 301 Sydney mastered them to completion.
Burrows sat on the tracks for a while as a few other amazing opportunities occurred; including recording an EP in Nashville (which included a re-recording of "Please Don't Cry" for US release) while subsequent promotion and release of this EP spanned a further year. Burrows was always looking for the right time to release the original recording of "Please Don't Cry".
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"I have played this track to death over the past couple of years and feel privileged that I have heard an unreleased version of my song featuring my favourite...

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