I DO NOT recommend doing business with David Day at BackingTrackExpress.com, because he has a very bad attitude. I contacted him in July of 2024 to make me a backing track for Dave Hum's YouTube recording of Peeler's Jacket. This is the song that I sent to him to replicate. David charged me $150, which I paid to him using PayPal. On David's first attempt, he ended the song on an Em chord, which disappointed me, because Dave Hum clearly ends the song on a G major chord. I didn't pay David to do his own thing!
Also, if you listen closely at the end of his first attempt below, David Day doesn't finish the song, he leaves 5 seconds off the last bar. When I played along with my banjo, I noticed immediately that the timing was messed up in his backing track. The song is 5 seconds too short! That is an inexcusable error for a musician who claims to make professional backing tracks. You can hear for yourself what David Day did. And as I mentioned, he also ended the song on an Em chord, which didn't sound right. ...As you just heard for yourself, the song isn't correct. I was very kind and didn't critique David Day's work in any way. I felt that from one musician to another, I paid him $150 just to see what he could make using his own creativity. I showed appreciation for his work, for giving his best attempt. But I kindly asked him to add the MISSING 5 seconds to the backing track. And I also asked him to end the tune on a G major chord instead of an Em, like Dave Hum does.
Then on his second attempt, he got the G chord right, but he only added 2 seconds instead of the 5 seconds that I specifically requested. I couldn't have been more kind. Listen to yourself what he did below, which is his second attempt. Again, the song is too short. If you play along with a banjo, the song is still 3 seconds too short and doesn't sound right. It's so obvious! ...
Again, I didn't critique his work and merely asked him kindly to fix it. To shew him my sincerity in the matter, that I wasn't just being picky, I sent him the backing track that I had made, with the correct ending chords. I truly don't know what offended him. He may have became jealous, or felt threatened that I made my own backing tracks (which I do just for fun, and I freely share them on social media); or perhaps he was frustrated that after his second attempt to finish the song, I still wanted him to fix it right.
Regardless, it doesn't matter if I owned a backing track business of my own (which I don't), when he accepted my $150 payment and agreed to make me a backing track, he was obligated legally, morally and ethically to do one of two things:
1) Complete the backing track as agreed upon, for which he was well paid; or,
2) give me a full refund and apologize that he couldn't make the track. Instead, he cheated me, kept the money, and I had to finish the backing track myself by chopping, copying and pasting parts of the song to the end, to finish it. Shame!
On his main webpage, David Day says this about his so-called “professional” tracks...
Backing Tracks Express Information
“Backing Track Express is a production service that specializes in creating high quality custom backing tracks. Any song, regardless of style or genre can be made into custom backing tracks. We also produce original songs. Songs can be customized and can even be put in your ideal key. Our music tracks don’t sound like amateur store bought tracks. We custom create our custom backing tracks new and fresh track by track! We do not use vocal elimination for professional tracks, that leaves the track sounding washed out. This service is for those who demands better quality custom production. You could be a singer, school, choir director or anyone who needs custom backing tracks. We usually create those songs not found in stores or online anywhere. ...It will be copied exactly like the original, same key and everything unless there are custom instructions you require. Your new custom backing tracks are sent to you as a high resolution mp3 and as a wave if you request. Pro Tools sessions can also be sent as an upload! Send a you tube link or mp3 of the song you want to do and we’ll get back to you with an honest price. You can count on us.” —David Day/Producer There’s some very bad tracks out there. [emphasis added]
That is FALSE advertising! Mr. Day in fact, as you can clearly hear for yourself, DIDN'T live up to his promise to produce an EXACT COPY OF THE ORIGINAL. When I asked him for the second time to do it right, he totally ignored me. After a few days, I sent him the following e-mail (I didn't change a word)...David,
Kindly said, if you're working on another project or are too busy at this time to complete the backing track that I paid you $150 to make, please let me know when I can expect it to be finished. I haven't heard from you for a few days.
When you sent me the first completed track, I kindly told you it was too short and that you needed to add "5 seconds" to the track. For whatever reason, you only added 2 seconds in your second attempt. There are still 3 seconds of the song missing, which doesn't work for me when I try to play along with the track. I need for you to finish what you started, please.
You advertise on your website that you replicate original songs. That is all I am asking for you to do. I gave you a choice of picking either one of two of Dave Hum's versions of Peeler's Jacket. Although one song fades out at the end, it only fades after Dave completes playing the song, so structurally both songs have the same exact chords at the end. For whatever reason, you strayed away from the song.
If I don't hear back from you in the next couple days, then I will reasonably conclude that you have defrauded me, which is on you.
Mistreated customer
I never heard from David Day again. The guy has an attitude problem and I don't recommend him to anyone. His work is shoddy and his attitude childish. Shame on him!
Now listen to my own backing track that I made of Peeler's Jacket, which I humbly think is at least equivalent (if not better) than David Day's (but I never told him that, which would have been mean; I'm not a jerk like him). I try to live by 'The Golden Rule' (Matthew 7:12). ...
The reason I am writing this negative review is because David Day refused to fix his shoddy work. I am a forgiving, reasonable and understanding man as a Christian. But David Day horribly ignored my multiple emails, in which I kindly asked him to please add the 3 missing seconds to the song, but he refused (without ever giving me an explanation). What a jerk! He stole my $150, since he didn't finish the song.
God knows that I was going to pay him in a few weeks to make me another track for, “The Maid Behind The Bar,” but since he refused to finish the first song I paid him to make, and he is immature emotionally and lacks character, we're done! I'll never contact David Day again.
I even sent him my own backing track after his failed second attempt, just to be helpful, so that he could hear exactly what I wanted him to fix. The only thing I can speculate is that he became jealous that my work was as good as his. Or perhaps he became angry that I asked him for the second time to finish the song correctly, but he doesn't know what he's doing. But regardless of the reason(s), he should have completed the song that I paid him $150 to make (or refund my money). I won't do repeat business with an ungodly man who cheats his customers. I couldn't have been nicer to Mr. Day. I am a firm believer in Word of Mouth as a consumer. I was recently cheated out of $619.20 by Alamo rent car company. I have already filed a complaint with the Florida Attorney General's Office and Consumer Affairs (among the hundreds of other defrauded Alamo customers). RUN from Alamo and avoid Priceline!
The bottom line is that 3 seconds are missing at the end of the song, and I cannot play my banjo along with it without having to do some weird ending, which is frustrating. I didn't get what I paid for. I didn't receive what I was promised by ExpressBackingTracks.
I understood when I hired him that David Day couldn't make a perfect replica (that is common sense). But I did at least expect for him to get the chords and bar lengths correct, which is basic 101 musicianship. His work is shoddy at best. I will never hire him to make another backing track for me again, which is his loss. I only asked him to make the track because I wanted to see what he, as a unique individual musician, could come up with. I was overall pleased with his work, even though I did pretty good on my own, and I took the time to get the chords right for my backing track. Leaving a frustrated customer hanging is not okay, it is unethical and wrong. RUN from this place!
Having said all that, I am good with manipulating audio files using MixCraft software. So, I went back and cut, copied and pasted portions of the messed up song that David Day made for me, and I was able to finish the song by piecemeal. It sounds good now, and you'd never know that I cut, copied and pasted portions of the song to other places in the song to complete it, but it worked well (I humbly think). But I shouldn't have had to cut, copy and paste to complete a song that I paid David Day $150 to make for me. That was very unprofessional, unethical and rotten of him. Good riddance to bad rubbish Mr. Day!
To be fair and honest, I think overall that his track came out pretty good, despite his mistakes and unwillingness to complete the song correctly. I managed to whip the backing track into shape to share it with everyone. So, without further ado, Enjoy! ...
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of G, normal)
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of G, slower)
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of G, slow)
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of G, woodshed)
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of A, normal)
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of A, slower)
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of A, slow)
- Peeler's Choice (by David Day, that I finished, key of A, woodshed)
- Peeler's Jacket Tablature (I used TablEdit to make these tabs)
By the way, you can purchase the original rhythm track that Dave Hum himself made (
that you hear in his YouTube videos). It is packet #6 on his website. As I mentioned, I paid David Day $150 to make one backing track for Peeler's Jacket, so the price for Dave Hum's quality backing tracks is a SUPER DEAL!!! I encourage you to buy some of them. The money will help Dave's widow, and you'll be able to vicariously play along with the man himself. What a tremendous blessing!!!
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A FINAL UPDATE: I did finally hear back from David Day. To my unbelief he actually said that my two requests for him to correct his mistakes is called “song development” for which he charges more money. Unreal! I guess for $150 that doesn't include his mess ups! Where I come from people pay for their own mistakes, they don't expect others to pay for them.
