Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Album Discussion Thread

[HeyJude]

This album has been discussed in several previous threads. That Amazon UK listing has been up for around a month.

If it's like the Orbison album, then the whole thing will come across as kind of superfluous, with ballads sounding okay with the accompaniment and up tempo rockers sounding goofy.

[HeyJude]

Here's a more accessible YouTube link to "Fun Fun Fun":

https://youtu.be/Gy6WJ-w1WhY

Yep, sounds awkward and goofy.....

[petsoundsnola]

Completely unnecessary. 

We're sure to sell 12 units - in January!

[pixletwin]

https://open.spotify.com/track/0NqIHq2qofh2O8IpouYW70?si=us7K2CZ4Q72TsmBcg_H-Aw

If it was just the orchestra, I think it would be cool...

But combining it with the actual track? Yeesh.

Agreed. That would have been far more interesting.

[RONDEMON]

New Studio Album Pairs The Beach Boys’ Original Vocal Harmonies with New Arrangements Recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios

 

Los Angeles / London – May 10, 2018 – The Beach Boys are pleased to announce a new album, The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, to be released worldwide on June 8 by Capitol/UMe. Produced by Nick Patrick and Don Reedman, the album pairs The Beach Boys’ original vocal performances with new symphonic arrangements, newly recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios. Available now for preorder in digital, CD, and 180-gram 2LP vinyl LP formats (2LP vinyl to be released August 17), The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra spans decades of timeless Beach Boys hits and favorites across its 17 tracks.

 

Starting today, “Fun, Fun, Fun” is available for streaming and for immediate download with digital album preorder. Preorder The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra: https://UMe.lnk.to/BeachBoysOrchestralPR

 

Watch / embed a brief trailer video for The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra: https://UMe.lnk.to/BeachBoysOrchestralTrailerPR

 

On March 8 and 9, 2018, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra convened in Studio 2 at Universal Music Group’s Abbey Road Studios in London, the storied room where The Beatles, Pink Floyd, and other legendary artists have recorded some of the world’s most cherished music. There, they recorded new orchestral arrangements to complement The Beach Boys’ classic vocal harmonies from the legendary group’s original recordings. Conducted by Steve Sidwell and Sally Herbert, who also wrote several of the album’s new symphonic arrangements, the orchestra dove into The Beach Boys classics, including the new album’s earliest hit, 1964’s “Fun, Fun, Fun,” and its most recent one, 1988’s “Kokomo.” The album also features the orchestra’s new turns on the signature classics “Good Vibrations,” “California Girls,” “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” “God Only Knows,” “Sloop John B,” “Help Me, Rhonda,” “In My Room,” “Disney Girls,” and several more. The resulting album, The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, honors The Beach Boys’ artistry and innovation in an inspired new way with the group’s first album collaboration with a full orchestra.

 

Beach Boys co-founder Brian Wilson says, "I always knew the vocal arrangements I did back in the 1960s would lend themselves perfectly for a symphony and there is no better one in the world than the Royal Philharmonic. I am both proud and humbled by what they have created using our songs and I hope everyone falls in love with it like I have.”

 

Beach Boys co-founder Mike Love says, “This album is one of a kind. I think the fact that the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra has accompanied The Beach Boys with these great arrangements is just a phenomenal thing. It’s a whole other dimension to our music.”

 

The Beach Boys’ Al Jardine says, “Don Reedman and Nick Patrick did a terrific job on this. I can’t imagine having more fun than taking some of these great songs and putting them into this perspective. They did a beautiful job of arranging the music around the original vocals, which I think is a terrific idea. It makes the music feel new all over again!”

 

The Beach Boys’ Bruce Johnston says, “When I listened to the album, I realized that the new arrangements performed by the orchestra didn’t add the wrong kind of weight. They just added the beautiful fairy dust of the orchestra to what we already recorded. It’s another interpretation of us without losing the groundwork of us. I really like it.”

 

The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra co-producer Nick Patrick says, “I’m a complete and utter fan of The Beach Boys and the way their music makes you feel. The Beach Boys’ music is so multi-layered -- you can experience it on so many layers. You’ve got the obvious harmonies, which are amazing. But what we found making this record is when you dig down into the arrangements, they’re extraordinary. They’re fresh. They’re new. They’re complex. They’re beautiful and constructed in a completely original way.”

 

The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra co-producer Don Reedman says, “To be able to make this record, it’s a great honor. The feeling you get, listening to the original recordings and the performances, and then to be able to put our expression into their recordings through our arrangements and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is an absolute thrill.”

 

The Beach Boys continue to hold Billboard / Nielsen SoundScan’s record as America’s top-selling band for albums and singles, and they are also the American group with the most Billboard Top 40 chart hits (36). “Good Vibrations” was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall of Fame® in 1994. ‘Sounds Of Summer: The Very Best Of The Beach Boys’ has achieved triple-Platinum sales status and ‘The SMiLE Sessions,’ released to worldwide critical acclaim in 2011, was heralded as the year’s Best Reissue by Rolling Stone and earned a GRAMMY Award® for Best Historical Album. That’s Why God Made The Radio, The Beach Boys’ 2012 studio album celebrating their 50th anniversary, debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 albums chart.

 

Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 and recipients of The Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award, The Beach Boys are a beloved American institution that remains iconic around the world.

thebeachboys.com

facebook.com/thebeachboys | twitter.com/thebeachboys

 

The story of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is colorful and dramatic with a reputation worldwide for music-making of the highest quality. In 1946, Sir Thomas Beecham set out to create a world-class ensemble from the finest musicians in the UK. Beecham envisioned an orchestra that would bring the greatest music to audiences across the world and, to this day, Beecham’s legacy lives on. Over the years, the RPO has become a byword for exceptional quality and versatility, undertaking a diverse range of activities from traditional concerts in concert halls to classical spectaculars and ‘cross-over’ concerts in arenas. The Orchestra is London-based and performs regularly at the Royal Albert Hall, Cadogan Hall and Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, as well as undertaking a busy schedule of UK concerts, international tours, recordings for CD, film and television, and community and education work. For more information, visit www.rpo.co.uk.

 

The Beach Boys With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra [CD; Digital; 2LP Vinyl]

1. California Suite   

2. California Girls   

3. Wouldn’t It Be Nice         

4. Fun, Fun, Fun     

5. Don’t Worry Baby             

6. God Only Knows

7. Sloop John B       

8. Heroes And Villains         

9. Disney Girls       

10. Here Today         

11. In My Room       

12. Kokomo

13. The Warmth Of The Sun     

14. Darlin’   

15. Help Me, Rhonda

16. You Still Believe In Me     

17. Good Vibrations

[Wata]

deleted, since the press release has already posted elsewhere

[HeyJude]

For those unfamiliar with the previous Patrick/Reedman works, the press release is a little be ambiguous as to the fact that at least some (if not most or all) of these tracks not only incorporate the original vocal tracks, but often elements of the original backing tracks. You'll notice on the YouTube link to "Fun Fun Fun", it credits the original studio musicians as well as a group of new studio musicians.

Not a big fan of Patrick and Reedman's *clear* cookie-cutter approach to this process. If this wasn't like the fourth of fifth *very similar* type of project they had done, I perhaps wouldn't feel like this whole thing is a bit assembly-line status.

Hopefully, unlike the goofy Orbison hologram that is touring behind his Royal Philharmonic album, we won't see something similar with the Beach Boys.

[HeyJude]

Perhaps we can combine the two ongoing currently active threads on this (perhaps using the other thread's more descriptive title)?

[Emdeeh]

"California Suite"?

[branaa09]

I like it! It's different, isn't that what Brian was about? Trying different things! Imagine that Brian from 1966 went back to his original recordings and decided to add Strings and Brass because, he thought they needed something. Would fans hate it? Nope, because it's what Brian might have done.   Remember Jan Berry also did an entire Album of Orchestrations using Jan and Dean's hits.

[HeyJude]

I like it! It's different, isn't that what Brian was about? Trying different things! Imagine that Brian from 1966 went back to his original recordings and decided to add Strings and Brass because, he thought they needed something. Would fans hate it? Nope, because it's what Brian might have done.   Remember Jan Berry also did an entire Album of Orchestrations using Jan and Dean's hits.

If Brian had added the full London Philharmonic Orchestra to "Fun Fun Fun" in 1964, it would have sounded goofy back then too.

Brian (and the Beatles, and Orbison, etc.) added appropriate orchestration to their songs back in the 60s. Even "Pet Sounds" would have sounded different (to its detriment) if it had had a *literal* FULL orchestra on every song in its original incarnation (and that album is probably more ripe for a full orchestra than most any other album, which is of course how we got the 2000 and later orchestra shows; though I saw a non-orchestra PS show in 2000 and I thought it sounded much better in that format).  

Not trying to crap on this project; it's innocuous at worst I think. I'd much rather have archival releases. But this new project (hopefully) isn't hurting anybody. I'm sure the band members/BRI are happy to jump on this bandwagon of other recent successes with the Patrick/Reedman overdub format.

But no, this format (regardless of the timeframe of it happening over 50 years later) is not really akin *at all* to Brian's groundbreaking/experimental work that actually took place in the 60s.

There's nothing different or experimental about this new overdub album. Indeed, it's now apparently a rather streamlined, cookie-cutter/assembly-line format Patrick and Reedman have used for multiple artists (Orbison, Aretha, Elvis). I'm not saying this album is like "Stars and Stripes", but it does kind of spring from the same type of idea, that being jumping on the bandwagon of other recent successful releases from other "legacy" artists.

[HeyJude]

"California Suite"?

I would presume/assume some sort of medley/overture. I'm wondering if it might be a bit like the Van Dyke Parks bit from the "Pet Sounds" orchestral shows, albeit of course much shorter.

[Emdeeh]

If you give me the choice of seeing a favorite act with or without an orchestra, I'll inevitably go with the "without orchestra" option. I have nothing against orchestras, btw, just feel they don't add anything in this instance. I'd rather see the orchestra or the favorite act by themselves.

This recording project falls into a similar category. I might even buy it for collection completist reasons, but my enthusiasm is low. I agree that it's an innocuous project, and I'm sure there are folks out there who are interested. Your mileage may vary.

[HeyJude]

One of the interesting (but also frustrating) things I got from the recent Orbison album is that they (obviously) had access to the multi-tracks, so in some cases (especially later era stuff), the new mix gives a fresh, more close-up insight into the vocals. It was cool to hear more dry, unadorned (for some length of time) Orbison leads on later era stuff like "I Drove All Night" and "A Love So Beautiful." The problem of course is that these sometimes stripped-back, dry, revealing mixes eventually have a way-too-busy orchestral arrangement slathered on.

It might be interesting to hear less-processed, less-shrill group vocals on something like "Kokomo" (which, as far as I can recall, has never seen any remixing done to it since 1988), at least up to the point a busy orchestra arrangement barges into the proceedings.

[Jim V.]

I love how "Disney Girls" is on here, even though nobody gives a sh*t about it, and I doubt many would put it on a list of 17 Beach Boys songs to be done with orchestra. So Bruce gets a song on here, but not Al. 

[nach0king]

I love how "Disney Girls" is on here, even though nobody gives a sh*t about it, and I doubt many would put it on a list of 17 Beach Boys songs to be done with orchestra. So Bruce gets a song on here, but not Al. 

Disney Girls is a live staple and remains pretty popular.

[KDS]

I love how "Disney Girls" is on here, even though nobody gives a sh*t about it, and I doubt many would put it on a list of 17 Beach Boys songs to be done with orchestra. So Bruce gets a song on here, but not Al. 

Considering it's Bruce's signature BB song, and a key track on the Surf's Up album, I wouldn't say that nobody gives a sh*t about Disney Girls.  

It's probably more well known than most of the songs Al wrote.  

[nach0king]

Here's a more accessible YouTube link to "Fun Fun Fun":

https://youtu.be/Gy6WJ-w1WhY

Yep, sounds awkward and goofy.....

This is awful. Who actually likes this stuff? It doesn't mesh at all, I find myself subconsciously trying to mute the orchestra.

[phirnis]

This stuff's not for me I guess. The last thing Brian's classic arrangements need is an orchestral reworking.

[rickymyfataar]

I love Disney Girls! and its much more popular across the pond. I've always loved Bruce's compositions.

[TommyPlural]

I'll just leave this here... https://entertainment.theonion.com/symphony-orchestra-simply-cannot-wait-for-collaboration-1819576839

[guitarfool2002]

Note: The discussion threads covering the Orchestra album have now been merged into one topic.

[KDS]

I'll just leave this here... https://entertainment.theonion.com/symphony-orchestra-simply-cannot-wait-for-collaboration-1819576839

 

[feelintheflows]

This band is so lost. So behind the times.

Where’s this barrel they keep scraping??

So we get the same songs for 237th time. Only with an orchestra?? I would like to say I’m surprised... but I’m not.

[guitarfool2002]

Going solely on the preview posted of Fun Fun Fun, I thought these tracks were going to be the *vocal tracks* isolated from the original tapes which would have new orchestral backings and arrangements created around the vocals. On Fun Fun Fun, they just added orchestration on top of the original record!

I really did not expect to hear strings and whatnot added to what amounts to a needle-drop rip of the original track, including the instrumental track from '63.

When I did work as an arranger, they used to call that "sweetening"...adding various decorations like strings atop the cake which had already been baked and iced in the form of an existing instrumental and vocal mix.