When The Telephone Rings

SYNC LICENSING & RIGHTS

Sync context and uses:

“When the Telephone Rings” is a slow, atmospheric blues-rock track built around soulful vocals, expressive lap-steel/slide guitar, bass and a restrained rhythm section. The sparse arrangement creates a dark, spacious and introspective feel, with a sense of tension, loneliness and anticipation.

Its blues-rooted sound and cinematic atmosphere make it well suited to scenes involving solitude, regret, relationship trouble, late-night reflection, emotional distance, waiting, or an impending call or confrontation. The track's 3:59 runtime and theme as a blues also make it a natural candidate for longer dramatic scenes rather than just short-form advertising.

Master Rights Owner:

Helge Rognstad

Publishing Rights Owner / Label:

Helge Rognstad

One-Stop master clearance /licensing possible?

Yes, Helge Rognstad own both songwriting and publishing for this song.

Licensing Contact:

Helge Rognstad (The Fluffy Jackets) – contact link

Genre:

Blues Rock

Subgenre:

Slow Blues / Atmospheric Blues / Roots Rock

Moods:

Atmospheric, moody, melancholic, introspective, lonely, haunting, tense, reflective, emotional, dark, soulful, restrained

Themes:

Loneliness, longing, heartbreak, relationships, waiting, communication, regret, uncertainty, isolation, emotional distance, anticipation, missed connection

Similar Artists:

The Allman Brothers Band, Gary Moore, Chris Rea, ZZ Top, Robin Trower, Ry Cooder, Black Country Communion, Joe Bonamassa, John Lee Hooker, The Black Crowes

Keywords:

Slow blues, blues rock, atmospheric blues, slide guitar, lap steel, guitar blues, roots rock, southern rock, classic rock, Americana, cinematic blues, dark blues, moody guitar, emotional guitar, soulful guitar, blues ballad, late night, lonely, solitude, heartbreak, longing, regret, relationship, tension, suspense, waiting, telephone, phone call, missed call, emotional drama, reflective, introspective, melancholy, gritty, haunting, spacious, sparse, cinematic, road trip, bar, night, crime drama, drama, television, film, soundtrack, sync licensing.

PERSONNEL & PRODUCTION

Personnel

Helge Rognstad – vocals, guitar, piano
Neil Murray – bass
Matija Bajtal – drums

Recorded at:

The Fluffy Jackets Sound Studio, Bergen, Norway except lead vocals recorded at Westpoint Studios, Acton, UK engineered by Shane Shanahan. Bass recorded in Selkirk, Scotland and drums recorded in Vinkovci, Croatia.

Instrumentation and recording equipment used:

Male lead vocals, electric guitar, slide guitar, dobro, electric bass, piano and drum kit.

The lead and backing vocals were performed by Helge Rognstad and recorded at Westpoint Studios, Acton, UK, with studio owner Shane Shanahan engineering the session. The vocal recording chain included a Sony C800 microphone recorded through a Neve 1081 mic preamp, Un-Fairchild compressor, Michelangelo EQ (by Hendy Amps), MAAG EQ 500 series, then into the SSL G-Series mixing desk.

The vocals were then comped and tuned where required. One vocal track is dry, while the other has added effects, including Valhalla Vintage Reverb, Microshift (Soundtoys plugin), and Echoboy delay.

Helge Rognstad performs all guitar parts on this track.

The main slide guitar was recorded using Manny Charlton’s Höfner lap slide guitar, recorded using a SM57 mic placed in front of a Fender Princeton Reverb amp. The signal was routed through a Neve 1073SPX mic preamp into the UAD Luna DAW.

The other rhythm guitars on "When The Telephone Rings," includes a Fender Custom Shop Strat 1962 re-issue (another guitar that Helge had purchased from Manny Charlton earlier that year in March 2022). This guitar was also played through the Princeton amp; this time using a Hall of Fame reverb pedal (plate setting). Additionally, a Gibson Les Paul Custom Shop 2011 model is used for rythm parts, panned to the right in the stereo mix. A Dobro guitar is also featured on the track, panned to the left.

Neil Murray, recorded the bass parts in Selkirk, Scotland in March 2023. Neil used a short-scale Nordstrand Acinonyx bass, a modernized version of an obscure 1960s model. He opted for flatwound strings and the neck pickup, resulting in a big, heavy sound that perfectly complements the drums and the song. Neil recorded his bass directly into an Audient iD14 interface and used Logic DAW, applying Logic plugins for compression, a clean amp setting, and his preferred EQ adjustments.

Helge Rognstad plays piano on this track, doubling Neil's bass riffs, so that they stand out better in the mix.

Matija Bajtal plays drums on this track (recorded in Studio Terca (Vinkovci), Croatia), using a Ludwig Black Beauty snare in one take and a Dios Maple 14x6 snare in the other, adding tonal variety.The snare is heavily produced using a range of tools, including Helios, API, Fairchild, AKG reverb, 1176, and Distressor.

Mixing-wise, the full signal of the slide guitar is kept when it plays alone in the track. However, when Neil Murray's bass enters, frequencies below 100 Hz are removed from the slide guitar to make room for the bass and kick drum. The bass on this track perfectly compliments the deep sound of the lap slide guitar. However, in order to avoid too much muddiness in the mix, it was neccessary to cut frequencies below 100 Hz from all the tracks, including vocals. The only instruments that occupy the low end frequencies are the piano, bass, kick drum, and the slide guitar when it appears alone in the mix.

Note of interest:
After Neil Murray announced his intention of retiring from recording and live performance in 2026, Helge Rognstad aquired the Norstrand bass used on this recording. It is now part of the collection at The Fluffy Jackets' sound studio in Norway and continues to be used on new recordings.

MEDIA AND LISTENING

Behind the music:

• Making of The Rise and Fall of The Songwriter (website article)

Official Recording Features

• Building The Fluffy Jackets Sound Studio — Includes including signal flow, microphones, preamps.
• Guitars, Amps & Pedals at The Fluffy Jackets Sound Studio — overview of guitars & equipment at the studio.
• Neil Murray’s Nordstrand Acinonyx Bass — the bass acquired from the Whitesnake and Black Sabbath bassist.
• 20 years of Neil Murray (Whitesnake) with the Fluffy Jackets — bass guitars behind the sounds.
• Five guitars previously owned by Manny Charlton — 5 guitars aquired from the Nazareth guitarist and producer.
  

Streaming (external link):

• Spotify

Available in physical formats:

CD, Vinyl

Official Store:

www.fluffyjackets.co.uk

DISCLAIMER

The information published on this page is provided in good faith and is intended as a reference for music industry professionals, including music supervisors, licensing agencies, publishers, broadcasters, distributors, journalists, researchers, and other parties seeking information about the recordings featured on The Fluffy Jackets – 20 Greatest (2007–2027).

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