Dean Irwin’s story and process

“Deja Vu”
By Adrienne Anderson and Isaac Hayes
Copyright Universal Music-Careers and Rightsong Music, Inc.
Originally performed by Dionne Warwick; 1979
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I’ve always loved the song! I was a “likkle yute” (14 years old) still living in Jamaica at the time, and when it came out, I was instantly drawn to the string composition and the bass. I don’t know why. At 14, I had very little music experience (I wasn’t even playing a instrument really, at that age). But, I was an avid listener and always “heard things” no one else in my family seemed to hear.

My parents also liked the song. It was not uncommon to hear them humming the tune as they went about their day, and my dad wore out the 8-track cassette on which the song was recorded for him. This version of the song is dedicated to them.

Fast-forward to around 2015 or so when the song popped back in my mind and I began wondering what it would sound like as a Reggae tune, and from that point, I couldn’t get the idea out of my mind! So I began recording different, very simple versions to see what I could come up with.

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I usually always start with creating a drum track first, then the bass line, then whatever else I can manage to play. Over the course of 2016, I’m pretty sure I recorded at least 5 or 6 versions, but I could never get a bass line together that I liked.

One day, while hanging out my good friend and “brotha from anotha motha”, Ivan Hampden Jr., I told him what I was up to, and it seemed to pique his interest. That started the ball rolling! I sent him what I thought was my best idea out of all the versions that I had recorded to that point. We talked about keys, chords, and in short order, he had a keyboard track created! He also came up with great ideas for the drums (naturally!). The “Dancehall Mix” in the chorus? That’s his idea! A few months later, we recorded drums at Ivans’ school, Hamptown Music Institute. That was definitely an exciting moment!

I took a hiatus from the project from 2016 onward as work, life events with family and live performance engagements (aka GIGS!!) with multiple bands all competed for attention, but the project was always there in my mind, not nagging, but making sure I didn’t forget about it.

Once 2020 came around, and with the conclusion of my last gig on March 15th, having to work from home, and as the country began to shut down, I realized that I actually had time to work on “other things”. I got back into photography, worked on my cars, and Deja Vu.

Many members of NC music family had already been releasing music and the process intrigued me. What was it really like to be an “artist”? There’s more than enough information available to get an idea of what’s involved! Then came the self doubt. I was a “sideman” for 25 years and was just fine being in a supporting role. What was I thinking, trying to put my name on something? I’m not a soloist! I never really thought of myself as a good musician. How would I be judged? But I just had to know what was involved! So I took the plunge!

I refocused my efforts in trying to find a good bassline for the song and eventually came up with what you hear in the song. I’m a fan of recording basslines straight with no punching in(recording in segments), but I must confess here, that I had to punch in to finish it. I’d hit a wall in nailing a run I use near the end of the song! I also added the “strings” arrangement.
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I then started thinking about who to ask for help with additional elements. I always wanted the song to be an instrumental, but I still wanted a vocal element, and some instruments to carry the solo parts.

Ivan provided additional keyboards; I reached out to one of my favorite guitarists, Scott Marvill for guitar work. Scott was the second guitarist in Jamrock Reggae Band back in the 90’s and brought a very different sound to what we were doing back then. I reached out to Shaena Ryan-Martin for saxophone after scheduling conflicts prevented me from working with another musician. I reached out to Leah Hinton, my niece for vocals. The professionalism of these people is second to none and I’m so proud and honored that they wanted to work with me! It’s a humbling feeling indeed. I got a rough mix going then sent to Ivan for editing and mixing to become what you hear now.

The effect that technology in the form of computers and the internet has had on the recording process cannot be understated. Keep in mind, all this is now happening in 2020, during lockdown. Everyone one recorded their parts remotely and sent them to me. Tracks were coming at me from Durham, Winston-Salem and New York City! I’ve worked on quite a few projects remotely, but the feeling of amazement that I have when a project that was recorded remotely comes together never grows old.

I’m really happy with how it turned out and I hope you enjoy it too! Click here to check it out.

​Dedicated to my parents: Weston and Elaine Irwin. “Look weh mi money ah duh!”

DejaVu  Personnel
Leah Hinton – Vocals
Scott Marvill – Guitars. Scott appears courtesy of Unisoul Records
Shaena Ryan-Martin – Saxophone
Ivan Hampden Jr. –  Producer, Arrangement, Drums, Keyboards, Editing, Mixing. Ivan appears courtesy of Hamptown Music  Inc.
Dean Irwin – Producer, Arrangements, Bass, Additional keyboards. CoreWin Music (link to Dean’s website here)
Song Licensing – Easy Song Licensing
Dave Darlington - Mastering