Wondermints Present Smile?

[FatherOfTheMan Sr101]

Just had a thought while watching the vocal rehearsals for BWPS, what if Brian never got "into it" and the band members had to take lead vocals?

Would you still consider it "the smile"? or would it just be a tribute? and what about the public?

Just a thought, I really like the idea of a wondermint led Smile project...

[Jim V.]

Well, to save you from AGD giving you crap, Brian's backing isn't "The Wondermints". However, members of the band The Wonderments are in Brian's backing band.

But anyways, by Brian not getting "into it", what are you suggesting. That he refuses to work on the project? If he doesn't work on the project, then we likely don't have full lyrics sung for "Child Is Father Of The Man", "On A Holiday" and whatever else.

Or are you suggesting that Brian would still be involved, just not to the extent of taking nearly every lead vocal? Lead he might still do the lead on "Heroes And Villains", but not on, say, "Vega-Tables"? Well, I guess if he was involved in a project like that, and he said it was finished then it was finished.

My take on the whole BWPS thing is, Brian says he finished Smile, so who am I to argue? I know people could say he didn't, and that it was just an arrangement for a stage show. And while that was initially true, Brian said himself that they finished it, so I guess I gotta take the artists word over whoever else's.

[halblaineisgood]

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[halblaineisgood]

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[halblaineisgood]

Still...any good songs they did on their own ?

[FatherOfTheMan Sr101]

Listen to "Spoke of a Wheel Whirled" on Grooveshark (grooveshark.com)

Also, I know the mints aren't the whole backing band, but they're the majority, and a good basis for hearing individual leads.

What i'm saying is, Brian finishes it, but doesn't take leads, he decides who should sing what then they do it, no Brian leads (maybe just wind chimes, but i think Darian would be amazing on that...)

[FatherOfTheMan Sr101]

Still...any good songs they did on their own ?

Some of Bali is just as good as Smile. In my honest opinion.

[halblaineisgood]

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[halblaineisgood]

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[?]

Still...any good songs they did on their own ?

My fav: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncakqjoH-hY

[halblaineisgood]

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[Rocky Raccoon]

I like this one I've heard come up on Pandora a few times.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym_LMVY3TkU

Strangely, none of their stuff is available on iTunes.

[halblaineisgood]

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[sockittome]

Still...any good songs they did on their own ?

One so-so album of cover tunes, one collection of outtakes and miscellaneous soundtrack cuts, and three damn good albums....not that anyone on this board seems to be overly familiar with!

[AndrewHickey]

Listen to "Spoke of a Wheel Whirled" on Grooveshark (grooveshark.com)

Also, I know the mints aren't the whole backing band, but they're the majority, and a good basis for hearing individual leads.

They're not a majority of the backing band, either. At the time of Smile, three of the Wondermints were in the band -- Darian, Nick and Probyn (and Probyn was not a full member of the Wondermints, as I recall). Mike D'Amico has played with the band before and since, too. But that still left Jeff, Scott, Taylor, Paul, Nelson, Bob Lizik and Jim Hines as non-Wondermint members. Thirty percent isn't a majority.

As for whether the Wondermints have done anything good on their own -- they've never done anything bad. (In fact, I have a general rule -- if Probyn Gregory is on an album, it's going to be great -- that's never served me wrong). Their third album, Bali, is probably the best one to start with, but they're all excellent.

[AndrewHickey]

Still...any good songs they did on their own ?

One so-so album of cover tunes, one collection of outtakes and miscellaneous soundtrack cuts, and three damn good albums....not that anyone on this board seems to be overly familiar with!

I disagree that the covers album is so-so. Some of the more respectful covers (Love In The City, Guess I'm Dumb, Porpoise Song) aren't hugely necessary if you have the originals, but Probyn's lead on Don't Go Breaking My Heart is gorgeous, and the rearrangement of Knowing Me Knowing You in the style of Elvis Costello is one of the most exciting, funny pieces of music I've ever heard.

[Modified to correct a typo -- wrote 'respectable' instead of respectful]

[D409]

The Wondermints are superb - check their albums out, they're far more than BB's impersonators and have so many more influences. One of the finest alternative pop bands (for want of a better description) ever. And their alt-rock cover of Abba's "Knowing Me, Knowing You" (not an "A-haa" in sight) is excellent !

[sockittome]

Still...any good songs they did on their own ?

One so-so album of cover tunes, one collection of outtakes and miscellaneous soundtrack cuts, and three damn good albums....not that anyone on this board seems to be overly familiar with!

I disagree that the covers album is so-so.

So-so was probably the wrong terminology.  I was generalizing, and "hit & miss" would have been more accurate, at least as a reflection of my personal opinion.  Love in the City, Darling, Ooh Child, Guess I'm Dumb are all gems done very tastefully.  And Knowing You, Knowing Me with its Beatlesque bassline (thinking Rain here) is simply amazing!  Some of the other tunes are just not my cup of tea.  Your mileage may vary, I suppose.

The outtakes collection is also hit and miss for me.  That's why I didn't state 'four damn good albums'.  Plus that one was obviously not really an 'album' in its own right.

So, without being nitpicky, and on a more positive note, I would just say that all their music is vital to any collection. 

[SufferingFools]

The covers album is my favorite of theirs.  I tend to find their own compositions a bit inaccessible, and I'm sure it's because they are too talented for me to grasp fully.

Their cover of KMKY is one of the most rocking tracks anywhere, ever.  And the bass part sounds straight out of The Beatles' "Rain."

[guitarfool2002]

Their Bali album is terrific, one of my favorites. I got into that having already seen them back Brian on that first solo tour. I read a review of Bali, it may have been Discoveries or Goldmine magazine, where the reviewer said something like "In a more perfect world, an album like Bali would be in the top ten...". I read that, it convinced me to buy it...apart from the fact that I had seen them backing Brian and thought they were excellent in that role.

So working a job at that time which I wasn't really digging, I'd bring in albums to make the time go faster. Bali was on *heavy* rotation, and I thought to myself "These guys know what the f*** is up, they listen, enjoy, and play the kind of music I'm into and feel good about hearing...'

The album is full of all kinds of in-jokes, sly musical quotes and deliberate swipes and name-checking of classic records, and the sounds are terrific. Nothing "fake" about the instrumentation, nothing fake at all...they are hard-core authentic to the sounds they love, and the album is as good of an overview, love letter, and updating of classic 60's and early 70's pop as you'll probably hear from recent times, it's in small company in that way.

Consider this: What other band can pull off references to Billy Stewart's frenetic scat-vocal on Summertime, "Little Pad" which in the 90's was still considered somewhat of a quirky niche tune, AND use a Stylophone in a very musical and proficient way without a hint of irony? That hadn't been used that was since Bowie, to be honest, and in between the current mini-revival of the Stylophone, there were the Wondermints using it to great effect.

Run somewhere and find a copy of Bali, f*** iTunes if they don't have it. It's a great album. Don't let anyone tell you different! 

[I. Spaceman]

Pulp used the Stylophone on a lot of their stuff, in fact it was one of Candida Doyle's main keyboards.

[sockittome]

Bali is a fantastic album.  It is adventurous and experimental as heck, but accessible at the same time.  Along the way they pay tribute to many artists and bands, without being copycats. 

The song "Chris-Craft #10" is a favorite of mine and is immediately identifiable as their take on the Who, with it's 60s style harmonies and the Moon-inspired drumming.  Then it breaks down in the middle into something Queen could have done!  Wild stuff!  I love it!

Mind if We Make Love to You is a great album, also, but it has a completely different vibe.  Very chill, kind of summery.  It sounds like it could have been released around 1970.

[Jonathan Blum]

"Mind If We Make Love To You" is the one which blew me away -- lots of texture, very emotive and accessible.  And earworm central, at least for me!

I'd also recommend "Kaleidoscopin'", their rarities collection -- an assortment of stuff from all their different phases, including a deeply groovy cover of the theme from "The Party"...

Cheers,
Jon Blum