Cool Waters
by John Riggio
Come to the island, man! Just in time for summer we present to you "Cool Waters," an island beat tune that transports you to warm locales with sun, palm trees, and water so clear you can see to the bottom. You might have to brush the sand off this music to read it!
In order to help capture the island vibe of the song, we used steel drums and a fretless bass on the recording. Add some amazing drums and Latin percussion (courtesy of Dane Clark and Steve Hanna), and you have a really fun groove. We've also added a flute solo on the D.S. to continue the tropical motif. If you have any actors who can insert the odd "island man" laugh here and there (think low and gregarious), it would be appropriate – and probably hilarious!
The vocals are syncopated on this song, but to help keep your singers on track we've added a pan flute melody guide throughout, as well as the aforementioned steel drums playing the melody on the bridge section at bar 34.
In performance, beach towels and sunglasses would be great (and easy) props. If you have access to an inflatable palm tree, this would work as well. Have fun with this one – and happy summer!
Text is taken from Music K-8 magazine.