Part 6: The Todd Carey Interview Sessions

Working With Other Artists

Amos: Did you do any co-writing or playing with other musicians when you were in LA?

Carey: It was more collaborative on the band side of it; I was just really into playing. I really haven’t co-written besides 2 songs on Watching, Waiting and then later, a couple songs with Mikal Blue. I did a little bit of co-writing with those producers who were established guys known for co-writing. Literally, until the last four months of my life, like now, I have not been into co-writing, and now I’m into it. I just started it for the next record and I’m doing a bunch of co-writing.

Amos: Did you have something that you did with Sarah Bareilles?

Carey: Yeah, she sang on Watching, Waiting. She sings on “Smile”. [plays a bit of the song “Smile”] So that’s one of the songs that I wrote and very few people know that Sara Bareilles sang on it.

Amos: Is she credited for it?

Carey: Yeah, but this was right before she became huge. When she came into the studio she was a friend of Eric’s. He was like, “Yeah, you’ve got to meet this girl, and she should sing on a song.” Then she blew up after that. But, yeah, Sarah sings on that song and I would say just my core fans know that.

Amos: That reminds me of when Tyrone Wells was talking about one of his songs at a show and how one of the former American Idol judges, Kara DiaGuardia, had sung background vocals for one of his songs but wasn’t credited because it was done on the down low.

The whole Sarah thing was on the up-and-up, she was doing really well in LA, but she wasn’t star. I don’t even think her album had come out yet. She knew Marshall because she had previously toured with Marc Broussard.

Amos: Since she only sings harmony on the song, was that ever something that you had imagined? The idea of using of possibly using a female vocal on the track?

Carey: At the time I had just written that song in Chicago. When we started in the studio, Marshall said this would be a cool one to have girl sing on. I didn’t even hear it to tell you the truth. So I was like, “Cool, we’ll try it.” So she just came in.

“Gotta Be Next To You.” on After The Morning After EP is Amber Rubarth, She sings a duet with me on the After The Morning After version. So when I wrote that I was thinking specifically it would be really good with a female voice. Now, I think like that.

It’s all part of the learning process. You learn these things as you go.

Read more here: http://toddcarey.tumblr.com/

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