After having been bitten by the production bug while recording Busted, and hoping to be able to produce more complex and higher-quality recordings than were possible on a boom box or a 2-track open reel, Steve Hudspeth bought a used Fostex X-15 4-track cassette recorder. CW was insanely jealous.
CW, for his part, had bought a used Harmony bass guitar at a pawn shop and had spent his fall semester learning to play it. Sound System had gone through three bass players in two years, and CW decided that the only way to get a dependable bass player was to take on the job himself.
CW had also moved in with childhood friend Justin Chastain, and the two had spent long hours in their dorm room recording demos of new songs and favorite covers. Justin was now a de facto member of the band, although the Sound System's current lineup had never performed in the same room together.
Steve's little brother Phil had been working up his chops to take on lead guitar, and he and Steve had put the Fostex through its paces. Troy Gould continued performing with the Indianola High School Jazz Band, and was getting better and better all the time. The time had come for Sound System to begin recording a new album. They settled on the title Home Turf, to reflect the idea that they were returning to comfortable surroundings.
CW and Justin drove back from Ames to Indianola every weekend, and the five members would meet at Steve's, Troy's, or CW's parents' homes to record the album a little bit at a time. Since they were learning the craft of recording on-the-job, it took a while to figure out the best way to mic drums or saxophone, or that a "scratch vocal" could be helpful to other members recording their parts.
One of the first songs recorded was "If." Steve showed CW the lyrics and played the piece through on acoustic guitar. CW liked the piece but suggested a change on the third couplet, just to keep the song from being too repetitive. Steve agreed and recorded the two guitar parts -- one acoustic, one electric. He also recorded a vocal, but didn't like it and asked CW to sing it instead. This give-and-take in the composing and recording processes defined how the two would work together for many years.
Cliff Hall came home on spring break, and was asked to play lead guitar on "Hello Julie." But he'd never heard the song before. He and Steve planned four measures of the solo, then Steve would lift the pause button on the Fostex. Cliff would record the four bars, then Steve would pause the recorder again. This went on for the whole 16-bar solo, and the session was completed in about 30 minutes.
To record Justin's composition, "Why Do You Ask Me," he, Steve and CW went to the Simpson College student union and miked up a grand piano that was available there. The song was recorded entirely live, with Justin playing and singing in the same take.
One weekend, when Steve wasn't going to be available to record, CW asked if he could borrow the Fostex to record a demo of another new song. Steve dropped off the recorder, and CW recorded his instrumental "Debby's Smile," then wrote and recorded another song, "Winter Wind." Steve was floored with the new recordings. CW told Steve how he envisioned a fuller arrangement for "Winter Wind," with more involvement from the band, but Steve would have none of it. The two songs would go on the new album just as they were.
Since Busted had turned out, in retrospect, to be such a rough album, CW and Steve decided once again to add the original 1986 recording of "For Sherry" onto the end of Home Turf. The song had received airplay on KGGO FM in February, and it seemed appropriate to have the song available on a product they could actually be proud of.
Cassette cover art
Sorry, no cassette cover is available at this time. But be sure to check back soon!
Track listing
01 Don't Tell Me
02 For My Love
03 Without You
04 Debby's Smile
05 If
06 Winter Wind
07 Hello Julie
08 Why Do You Ask Me?
09 A Place For You
10 The Myth (I Used To Believe)
11 For Sherry
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