When I started recording my last album I was going to keep it simple. Vocal & guitar, maybe a bit of bass here, or a bit of harmony vocal there. But once you add one thing, you get ideas, and you'll add another... So I ended up with full band arrangements for most songs. Don't get me wrong, I am really happy with how it turned out, but I am still in awe of pure solo recordings, you know,  one person, one take and no, or very few..., tricks. One day I’ll make one. But in the meantime here …

Here is a phenomenal book about singing. It's short, to the point, and full of practical advice and great illustrations. Mario Marafioti was Caruso's laryngologist. He wrote the book after examining and working with Caruso for years. Marafioti couldn't stand the strained and artifical sounds most singers were producing and instead recommends Caruso's simple and natural approach to singing. He says singing is speaking in musical rhythm. So to sing properly you have to speak properly first. He liked the …