Reflections of My Life

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"Reflections of My Life"
Reflections Of My Life - photo of original 1969 UK release.jpeg
Single by Marmalade
from the album Reflections of My Life
B-side "Rollin' My Thing"
Released14 November 1969 (1969-11-14)
March 1970 (U.S.)
Studio Decca Studio 2 West Hampstead, London
Genre Psychedelic pop
Length4:16
Label Decca
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) The Marmalade
Marmalade singles chronology
"Butterfly"
(1969)
"Reflections of My Life"
(1969)
"Rainbow"
(1970)

"Reflections of My Life" was a 1969/1970 hit single for the Scottish band, Marmalade. [1] It was written by their lead guitarist Junior Campbell and singer Dean Ford (credited to his birth name, Thomas McAleese). [2] Released in late 1969, it was the band's first release on Decca following an earlier spell at CBS. [3]

Contents

The song went on to chart worldwide, reaching number three in the UK in 1969, [1] No. 10 in the US in 1970 on the Billboard Hot 100, and No. 7 on the Cash Box Top 100. Initial sales were significant in both countries, and the one million mark was reported in November 1971, when the group was presented with a gold disc for global sales. [3] The track featured a lead vocal by Ford backed by vocal harmonies, and included a reverse tape guitar solo (backmasking) by Campbell.

"Reflections of My Life" has produced sales of over two million units. In 1998 the writers were awarded a Special Citation of Achievement by the BMI for attaining radio broadcast performances in excess of one million in the US alone. [4]

Recording

Original 1970 Decca release promo for "Reflections of My Life" Reflections of My Life - Marmalade - Original 1970 Decca release promo.jpg
Original 1970 Decca release promo for "Reflections of My Life"

The recording took place over three days in October 1969 at Decca Studios 2 and 1 in West Hampstead London with band members Graham Knight on bass, Alan Whitehead on drums, Pat Fairley on acoustic guitar, and Junior Campbell on keyboards and electric guitars. Dean Ford sang lead vocal and Junior Campbell and Graham Knight provided harmony vocals.

The added brass and strings were orchestrated by Keith Mansfield. "Reflections of My Life" was released on 14 November 1969 in the UK. The Decca staff recording engineers were Bill Price and Peter Rynston.

Credits

Structure

The song structure is unusual in that the intro, verses and choruses all share the same 8 bar sequence, reminiscing of the Beatles' "A Day in the Life": G major B minor E minor G7 C major B minor A minor D7 repeated throughout.[ citation needed ]

Guitar solo

"Reflections of My Life" US Sheet Music Cover 1970 Reflections Of My Life - US Sheet Music 1970.jpg
"Reflections of My Life" US Sheet Music Cover 1970

The guitar solo in "Reflections of My Life", often referred to as "reverse" guitar solo, was a sixteen bar (measure) sequence featured in the recording by Junior Campbell, the band's lead guitarist.

The song is in the key of G major and the solo was recorded thus:

The first 4 bars were recorded as normal, with Campbell playing a long “G” note, tied over from the last beat of bar 3, through bar 4, with slight feedback sustaining the long note.

The eight track tape was then turned over, and Campbell played against the reverse sound of the track, including his initial first four bars ensuring that he played another long “G” near the same point which could be cross-faded against the original – the tape was then turned over to normal setup, and he selected just 4 bars from the reverse recording which are bars 4–7 inclusive – this was cross-faded with the original at bar 4 – he then picked up from bar 8 through to bar 16 as normal, so in fact, only 4 bars are actually “reversed”.

The solo was played on his left-handed Gibson Stereo ES355 using a Sound City stack.

Chart performance

Cover versions

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