The Definitive Vocal Credits Thread...

[cerro azul]

Forgive me if I'm way off base here, but going back to No Go Showboat, could that mystery vocalist be David Marks? I have no idea what he sounded like back then or if he was even in the band at that point, but he was pretty young, and it sounds like a young male voice.

I an now inclined to come full circle on this -- absent any other evidence, who else but David Marks could this be?  (I don't think this was an instance of Mike Love's "mock" falsetto as was suggested in a previous post.)  Unless perhaps some anonymous "session" musician was given his vocal "moment in the sun" here.....
What does give me pause, though, is this: I would have thought Jon Stebbins would have jumped on this by now (confirming this to be David's voice). (Maybe Mr. Stebbins has not been reading this thread?) The only other instance of David Marks' singing as a Beach Boy (that I know of) is his duet with Carl on "Summertime Blues" -- and it is impossible to identify distinguishing characteristics in David's voice in that instance (to compare with the vocal snippet in No Go Showboat).  Does anyone know of any other (confirmed) instances of David Marks singing (background vocals or otherwise) for the BB's?

[Jon Stebbins]

I guarantee Dave's voice is minimally used on a few things on the first and second LPs but to distinguish which is nearly impossible as he was trained by Brian to double Dennis' parts. I get into this in more detail in the Lost Beach Boy book. Identification of the Marks voice is also tough because he was 13 and his voice changed rapidly over the next several years. The guy who sang Summertime Blues in '62 sounds a lot different than the guy who sang lead on the Marksmen singles in '64 and waaay different than the guy who sang lead on two Moon tracks in '67...its all David and it sounds like three distinct people, simply because he was 13, then 15 and then 19 and his voice went through a huge maturation process. No Go Showboat? I doubt it, but its certainly possible. We haven't nailed down LDC LP sessions because documentation is non existent and the third and fourth LP sessions are a blur to the BB's themselves, because of overlap and touring schedule. We just figured out that Dave was still playing with the BB's through the LDC LP sessions only recently...for decades we were told his picture was on the LP cover but he wasn't really there anymore...now we know that was not the case. He left the BB's after the LP had been mastered...so NGSB could be him...but personally I think its a long shot.

[cerro azul]

Any guesses, then, as to whose voice it might be (on No Go Showboat)? (If not David's)

[John 2]

 

Sorry guys, still snowed under for a few more days....

[John 2]

Edited - please see corrected version on Page 38.

[John 2]

This needs a lot of work, guys, particularly in the terminology of some of these vocals. Help!

[linusoli]

The "bop bop dittlieits" or whatever in Add Some Music are harmonized between at least two voices...I'm not even sure I hear Dennis in there. Maybe Al and Carl? Brian?

Who's singing the "All I wanna do" in that song? In the bridge---sounds like Bruce maybe?

I'd put Brian down for prominent backup in "Our Sweet Love" the "doo doo doo doo" ...if only because it's the only vocal on the original track and it's just so damned beautiful.

Who's singing "fly away" in At My Window? Maybe Brian?

Finally, what does Bruce sing in I Just Got My Pay?

[Amy B.]

Who sings the "add some music, please add some music" background? Isn't that Dennis?

[Aegir]

I think Bruce's part in "I Just Got My Pay" is the "let's take off our clothes and hop into bed" line.

But man, I was really hoping that Add Some Music was going to come with a line by line analysis of who's singing what. I can tell Mike and Bruce apart from the others fine, but Carl, Al, and Brian sound so similar sometimes.

[No. Fourteen]

Who's singing "fly away" in At My Window? Maybe Brian?

I thought that was Bruce.

[John 2]

Me too. That sounds like Bruce.


I'm gonna still be fairly scarce for a short while, but I'll get onto these, and address each point as they come up.

Aegir is right about the Bruce part in I Just Got My Pay, and I'll do a close up on Add Some Music...good idea.

[Jon Stebbins]

Yes John...you got it right now. If you listen to a vocals only version of ASMTYD its really clear that Dennis is the most prominent voice in the Add Some, Add Some, Music to Your Day bits that you highlight in the breakdown of the song in this thread.

[adamghost]

I'm gonna shoot MYSELF down here:  I've always felt that the "what could I say/that you ran away" line of Deirdre was someone other than Bruce...timbre wise it sounds more like Al or Brian.  I just listened to it again and I think I was wrong...it's an aural illusion created by multi-tracking.  Darn it, I thought I had a fun thing to add, too...

[MBE]

Who's singing the "All I wanna do" in that song? In the bridge---sounds like Bruce maybe? Brian


Who's singing "fly away" in At My Window? Maybe Brian? I thought it was Brian too. Never thought of Bruce. Still betting on Brian.

[No. Fourteen]

I'm gonna shoot MYSELF down here:  I've always felt that the "what could I say/that you ran away" line of Deirdre was someone other than Bruce...timbre wise it sounds more like Al or Brian.  I just listened to it again and I think I was wrong...it's an aural illusion created by multi-tracking.  Darn it, I thought I had a fun thing to add, too...

I always thought it sounded like Al, too!  Darn aural illusions!

[John 2]

Edited - please see Page 38 for the corrected version.

[pixletwin]

Pretty sure thats Mike on the coda of Surf's Up.. Not Al. Maybe... What do you guys think?

[No. Fourteen]

Almost certain that's Mr. Jardine.

[SloopJohnB]

If we're talking about "a children's song, have you listened as they played?... etc" I'm quite sure it's Al.

[pixletwin]

If we're talking about "a children's song, have you listened as they played?... etc" I'm quite sure it's Al.

Yeah thats the part I mean... Anyone in the know want to help settle this?

[Andrew G. Doe]

It's Alan. We settled this some time ago.

Firstly, someone who has access to the tapes isolated the vocal, and stated categorically it was Alan.

Secondly, for good measure, he got in touch with Alan, who confirmed it.

[Andrew G. Doe]

"Tree" coda:

"Trees like me weren't meant to live/if all this earth can give/is pollution and slow death" - VDP

"Oh Lord I lay me down/my branches to the ground (or 'no life's left to be found')/there's nothing left for me" - ACJ

[Andrew G. Doe]

"Feet" middle-eight - "if you wanna do the right thing for 'em/just take a walk in the grass/but don't you catch yourself fallin'" - sounds more like Brian to these ears.

[pixletwin]

That crazy sonic chemeleon known as Alan Jardine! Who doesn't that guy sound like? Next thing someone is gonna tell me that he sang back up on Elvis' Suspicious Minds!

[CosmicDancer]

That crazy sonic chemeleon known as Alan Jardine! Who doesn't that guy sound like? Next thing someone is gonna tell me that he sang back up on Elvis' Suspicious Minds!

Nope, Al actually sang the lead on it!