Here Comes The Night 1979

[petsite]

Oh to be young and foolish again......

[Freddie French-Pounce]

What am I missing here? I Have LP, US 12" Disco Promo, Blue and Black UK 12" and UK 7"

[The Shift]

I must be one of the few here who likes this version of the tune.

Okay, it's a million miles away from traditional Beach Boys material and guilty of being a bandwagon-hopping disco cash-in with little genuine Beach Boy involvement to speak of. But it just hits a groove within and takes off.

Would like to see every version get a proper remastered CD release and maybe even, as I've mentioned before, a 5.1 mix (or whatever passes for surround in this day and age) – some of the sound effects used just lend themselves to encircling you time and time again.

[adamghost]

Every time a thread comes up about this tune I will jump on it to say openly that I love it.

[Aegir]

can anyone explain the screeching monkeys?

[The Shift]

can anyone explain the screeching monkeys?

Jungle fever baby! Get on down! Shake yer thang!

Anyone explain the Swedish frogs?

[LostArt]

I just listened to the whole thing again a couple of days ago, because of the MIU vs. LA thread.  I was not a fan of disco music back in the '70s.  I did not like nor did I listen to Bee Gees, K.C. & the Sunshine Band, Barry White, etc.  I was playing guitar in a rock band, and disco was just not cool (come to think of it, neither were The Beach Boys).  It wasn't until many years later, while watching that old movie Saturday Night Fever on TV, that I really started to pay attention to the songs.  Barry Gibb was writing some music back then.  After that, whenever I would hear a disco song from that era, I listened.  Eventually, I started to appreciate what was going on within that genre.  Yeah, there was some silly sh*t (Disco Duck anyone?), but some of that music was just good ol' R&B or funk, with a big dance beat, a mirror ball, and lots of cocaine. 

Now, The Beach Boys had no business doing a disco song in 1979.  It was a bad idea.  But, I have to say, it was well done.  The instrumental arrangement is good, and the production is great.  The best part for me, though, is the vocals...not just Carl's, but all of the harmonies.  They were singing their asses off.  I'm not saying that I'm going to be putting this song on my mp3 player anytime soon.  I'm just saying that I can appreciate what they did with the song, bad idea or not.             

[petsite]

What am I missing here? I Have LP, US 12" Disco Promo, Blue and Black UK 12" and UK 7"

The DJ reservice version that runs 3:15.

[Matt Bielewicz]

Amen. As I said in the other thread a couple of weeks back, I don't have the automatic 'it's disco, therefore it's dreck' reaction that some BB fans (and posters here) have. I love this version of the song (not that I don't love the Wild Honey version as well... but I sort of file that in my head as almost a totally different song, really).

It might have been different if I'd been old enough to know about the prevailing 'disco sucks' mood at the time the '79 version was released (I was 7, and had only just started listening to the radio)... but by the time I first heard this track in 1995, the disco vs rawwk wars were long gone, and I just enjoyed the track on its merits. Which I think are considerable; the single version, at least, is a really well-executed piece of synth-driven disco. The only thing I'd say is that the LA Light version is probably an 'extended remix too far' for an album cut, and it unbalances the record. But the single edit is great... and if they'd put that on the album, there would have been room for a couple more tracks.

Different strokes, etc etc. But for me, this is one of only three tracks I can stand to listen to on LA Light. The other two are Good Timin' (which is ooookaaaayyy, but a tad too close to Surfer Girl and suffers in the comparison) and Baby Blue, which, chronologically speaking, is the last BB track that I could really say I like passionately.

[SBonilla]

can anyone explain the screeching monkeys?

I think that's Curt's thing, I've heard that kind of thing on some of his other 'tropical' tracks.

[Ziggy Stardust]

Wow, i've never seen LA Light Album on vinyl but it sure looks beautiful with that cover!

As for Here Comes The Night (1979), well... let's say they were a bit late with the disco, weren't they?

[Sheriff John Stone]

And, I'll say again that I appreciate(d) the song.

I still remember getting in my car in the early spring of 1979 and surfing AM radio stations, and "Here Comes The Night" - the long version - came on a local radio station, and it sounded good on the radio! It was good cruising music. It wasn't long before the local record store had all different variations of the record. I felt like a hypocrite because I hated disco music but liked HCTN.

I also remember seeing the group lypsinch the edited version on the Midnight Special. I remember seeing Dennis playing some kind of percussion in the background and thinking that he was being hypocritical and narcissistic because, during concerts he would leave the stage when "new" music was being performed. But, this was TV and NOW he decides to hang around.

[Doo Dah]

I've got the Midnight Special airing of HCTN on a dvd compilation somewhere in my boxes.

I looked around online for a quick youtube fix, but no luck. Maybe the lawyers are holding back, waiting for a big remix of the dance remix.

And then again, perhaps not.

EDITED: thanks for the link Sheriff. Looked everywhere.

[lance]

Yeah, I totally agree. It is way too long for that album, but I kind of like it. The 45 version would have suited the album better and left some room. LA had a lot of good songs but it's definitely flawed.

[Sheriff John Stone]

I've got the Midnight Special airing of HCTN on a dvd compilation somewhere in my boxes.

I looked around online for a quick youtube fix, but no luck. Maybe the lawyers are holding back, waiting for a big remix of the dance remix.

And then again, perhaps not.

Here's a copy: "http://www.youtube.com/embed/CHUCdXiGFOQ"

[Lonely Summer]

I still think the single version is good, the album version just goes on too long. Not a big fan of disco music, but at least back then it was still real musicians playing real instruments, unlike the dance music that dominated in the 80's. I got burned out on the Bee Gees disco era music, but even then, their flair for great melodies and harmonies rarely failed them.