Behind The Tracks: Sweet Crystal – Whatever Is Needed, Whatever It Takes (Single) (2023)

Ever wonder how a band that’s been together for 5 decades keeps finding inspiration and ways of writing new songs?

‘Whatever Is Needed, Whatever It Takes’, the latest release from us started out like a lot of Sweet Crystal tunes do: a weekly rehearsal of the band jamming and warming up to a variety of licks and ideas we have floating around before we get down to real rehearsal business. This time out, I (MarQ Andrew Speck: lead vocals; keys) wanted to take an idea I had and make it more Led Zeppelin-ish (musical term) so Bill (guitars), Steve (drums), and Marty (bass) came up with the funky/hard swing of the opening and main lick. We then play that lick ‘to death’ until someone (usually me) comes up with a bridge (new or from earlier jams) that just fits. This song came together very quickly musically and arrangement but it needed one more idea to make it…well sweeter.

Take a listen to both the intro and backing chants in the chorus. Stadium crowd chanting the key phrase ‘whatever is needed, whatever it takes’… Pretty sweet. FYI: those adoring fans were basically the 4 of us in Sweet Crystal standing around a single microphone multi-tracking our voices! We’re talking 50 takes of the gents chanting in time, changing the tone and timbers of their voices. How’d that work out? You tell us!