Is there anything he WON'T take credit for?

In a word, no.

Zinggg!

I would love To have a "sequal" to the POB/Bambu set. Are there any other high quality unreleased songs in the vaults? I know that Dennis re-recorded "All Alone" in 1979. I would give my left foot to hear the "Labor Day" tape, if it still exists.

More than one person, around the time of BAMBU's release, swore to me there was.  I was highly skeptical, but I heard the same thing from two or three people who'd be in a position to know, and they were talking about releasing it.  Needless to say, it didn't happen. So make of that what you will.

Now that sounds pretty intriguing.  Another thing I'd dearly love to have is a cd or two of rehearsals for Dennis's abandoned tour.

A release of those rehearsals was going to be the next project from Guercio after POB/Bambu, but after the success of the Legacy release it apparently stalled and is on indefinite hold. A shame, since these tapes are supposed to be absolutely incredible.

Is the 'Til I Die piano demo as stunning as the Surf's Up one? Does it have vocals?

Yes, it was described earlier in the thread as having vocals and being otherwise similar to the "Don't Talk" demo on the PS box set.

From what we can see in this here reply from Klay, the original poster...no vocals:
   
Re: Brother Re-Issues: Proposed Bonus Tracks
« Reply #7 on: May 20, 2014, 06:24:53 PM »
Quote from: seltaeb1012002 on May 20, 2014, 06:05:09 PM
WOW. You are one lucky guy. How's the Til I Die demo sound?

The Til I Die demo is solo piano, typical of Brian's playing style: passionate bass line while the chords are played in his signature jerky rhythm, not unlike his playing on any other demos.

Oh right, I was spacing out on the vocal-less Don't Talk demo.

Is the 'Til I Die piano demo as stunning as the Surf's Up one? Does it have vocals?

Yes, it was described earlier in the thread as having vocals and being otherwise similar to the "Don't Talk" demo on the PS box set.

I believe that under some pressure this material will 'anonymously' see release someday.   

Do you base that on any firm (personal knowledge) foundation or is it just wishful thinking?

It's obviously quite frustrating that the most interesting things on these CDs remain in indefinite limbo. The 'Til I Die demo (and alternate lyric version, which few seem to mention), extended This Whole World, Mt. Vernon & Fairway demo, Ol' Movie, high quality Awake demo, and 4th Of July(s) in particular are things that should be heard IMO, somehow or other, but it's not gonna happen for a very long time, if ever. Shame....

Don't recall the theremin but Bartleby is an absolute masterpiece.

Carnie's voice shines brightly on this sweet track. I remember when this was the latest thing out and I couldn't get enough listens, R.I.P Rob Wasserman.

That's the one.

"This guy", Crispin Glover, is a well-known eccentric cult actor and performance artist, who, besides his prominent and brilliant comedic performance in Back To the Future, is unfortunately perhaps best known for pissing off David Letterman many years ago in a bizarre, amped-up appearance on his "Late Night" show, when he demonstrated a karate kick quite close to Dave's nose, way inside his comfort zone, whereupon Letterman abruptly cut to commercial and Glover was banned from the show for quite a long time (years later he appeared on the show again and apologized in his odd, inimitable fashion).

Brief correction: I think Glover was on Letterman again only a few weeks after to explain his appearance and then was on again a few years after that (edit: and then a few years again after that). I don't think he was ever banned from the show.

I had always understood that he was banned, but I could have gotten some bad information.

BTW there's a fantastic cover of IWFTD, an older one by a Japanese singer (I think) with a colorful name that I can't remember, which you should hear if you haven't already. Cheers.

Do you mean Short Hair Front?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIwMCaxGUUA

Pretty cool!

No, that's pretty decent but the one I'm talking about really rocks, and is from the '60s I think. It may not be a Japanese singer, I only heard it once and forgot to take notes in order to remember later. It may or may not be on YouTube. Some help I am, eh? Sorry....

Fine work, thanks for your dedication!

"This guy", Crispin Glover, is a well-known eccentric cult actor and performance artist, who, besides his prominent and brilliant comedic performance in Back To the Future, is unfortunately perhaps best known for pissing off David Letterman many years ago in a bizarre, amped-up appearance on his "Late Night" show, when he demonstrated a karate kick quite close to Dave's nose, way inside his comfort zone, whereupon Letterman abruptly cut to commercial and Glover was banned from the show for quite a long time (years later he appeared on the show again and apologized in his odd, inimitable fashion). He was a standout in "River's Edge" alongside a young Keanu Reeves, Roxana Zal, Ione Skye and Dennis Hopper, also played the title role in an excellent indie film production of Dickens' Bartleby the Scrivener, reimagined in a modern setting (he is terminated from his office job, is finally asked to leave the premises and will only say "I would prefer not to" refusing to do anything more of any kind even as the firm goes out of business and the building is torn down etc. lol), and in his spare time collects archaic 19th century medical and torture devices.

He would have been much better IMO than Cusack, his droll sense of humor is similar to Brian's and his OCD and real, rather than affected, unconventional awkwardness is much more similar to Brian's own sweetly peculiar nature. He's not as bankable though and is rumored to be "difficult" and so was never considered for the role, to the best of my knowledge. MUCH more interesting choice than Cusack.

I've always assumed that the original riff was supposed to be what the flutes are playing at 1:50

https://youtu.be/CedoRjvfK58?t=108

There is some similarity, but I don't see how what Al plays could accidentally deviate quite that much from this flute part in order to merit that assumption.

You have a point, but I guess I'm just happy chewing the fat about one of my all-time favourite Beach Boys songs. :=)

Yeah, it's been real. BTW there's a fantastic cover of IWFTD, an older one by a Japanese singer (I think) with a colorful name that I can't remember, which you should hear if you haven't already. Cheers.

I've always assumed that the original riff was supposed to be what the flutes are playing at 1:50

https://youtu.be/CedoRjvfK58?t=108

There is some similarity, but I don't see how what Al plays could accidentally deviate quite that much from this flute part in order to merit that assumption.

I'm confused about the whole thing at this point. The riff in the finished song is just maybe more polished to Brian's ears, more proportional, so maybe he wanted it that way, or as I said before the smoothness of the initial inadvertent but serendipitous error was not easily recaptured, so he just decided that that was the best he was going to get. Veering off-topic, I hope your eurocents will keep their full value in the coming months, as I also hope for my pocket change.

[PS]

Excuse my ignorance but I assume you're talking about the eight-note riff on what sounds like a muted tack piano (G# a G# F#-E-B-c# e). I looked through all my PS books (Granata, Abbott, Fusilli, PSS booklet) but could find no mention of a "really great mistake".

You can hear it on the Pet Sounds Sessions. The player plays the notes and Brian laughs and says, "How did you play that? That was a really great mistake." The player (Al?) says, "No kidding? I thought it felt wrong."

Thanks, Amy. I found it here (from 1:50):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Sl6IG_uxx8

Maybe the sequence Al (?) plays at 2:04 is what Brian originally asked for:  | [1] G# a G# | F# E [3] B-c# | e.  That last "e" is on the one.  

It sounds to me like at 2:04 they're trying out the new notes, not what was originally intended, because they are repeating the "mistake" at Brian's request, but with different phrasing. Interestingly (to me anyway) the first time Al spontaneously plays it it flows more smoothly than it does on the master take. I wonder if Brian preferred that or if Al was just unable to replicate his lightning-in-a-bottle improvisation no matter how hard he tried?

You may well be right, for some reason I hadn't considered that very logical explanation. I guess I'm kind of an all or nothing person, and when I heard "mistake" I thought as in wrong note(s) played. It's still possible that actual notes were different, but in light of your comment I think the odds are probably against it, at that. Thanks.

No one has a single thing to say about this? I realize it's not a ready topic for lengthy conversation, but I thought maybe someone.... I guess I'm just a true eccentric among eccentrics.

Something's been nagging at the back of my mind for years and thought I'd open it up for discussion even though it's almost certainly hopeless. What was the note progression as originally written for the little riff that the studio musician makes the "really great mistake" on, that winds up taking its place? I think Brian probably has it stored somewhere deep in his memory, but getting him at the right time, place & mood to think about it and dredge it up would be quite difficult. I hope someone is able to before it's too late, I'd really like to know even though it's a minor afterthought in the larger scheme of things. Maybe it's notated on a PS session chart somewhere?

COMMENT:  Perhaps (at least in later life) Dennis' nemesis was being a member of the Beach Boys. Just reflecting ... ~swd

He loved being a member of the group in his idealized vision of what they were or should be, but the reality of the situation broke his his heart.

I love Dennis' output, but when people have suggested that Dennis was, creatively speaking, the best way forward for the band, I always come back to: Dennis never had a hit. His solo material in the early 70s didn't do great, and neither did anything off of POB, and neither did any of his cuts for the band. Now, if he wasn't championing his own material or the band didn't feel like they had a place in a lot of his stuff, I suppose that would make sense. Despite the fact that nearly everything Dennis wrote has enriched my life, I'm not sure he ever wrote an "I Get Around" or a "Kokomo" or even "It's OK."

If "best way forward" is defined purely as hit-making, then none of the paths available to them would seem to have been particularly viable, at least with any consistency. If, however, it is defined as artistic and progressive, then a road driven down with Dennis (& Carl) at the wheel was undoubtedly their best option. Unfortunate that he wasn't a "team player" and didn't stick around in the afternoons to arrange the others' voices and parts\, and his contributions lay on the shelves unappreciated. Stephen, what about Rieley's recollections that envy of Dennis's work on the part of certain band members contributed to their not being embraced? I imagine that if something was thought by the others to be commercially viable, all other considerations would be secondary, but his stuff may not have been regarded that way. Thanks very much for your participation in this forum, it's invaluable.

[BY FAR]

So he didn't go to Julliard and isn't in the rock n roll hall of fame, and now i'm supposed to believe he helped arrange God Only Knows and Surf's Up?  For the record, I think you Stephen are far more integral to Beach Boys history than Bruce.  I adore your work with The Beach Boys.  I just find Bruce, who is a talented guy i'm sure, very overrated.  Not trying to flame here, honestly.     

COMMENT to If Mars had life on it...: Sorry that you misunderstood me. Bruce did attend classes at Julliard, and is a classical trained musician who later switched to contemporary music. Bruce is a member of the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. He did play a part in the arrangement of the ending of God Only Knows. He has been a major force in the years of vocal arrangements between GOK and Surf's Up, the latter song's ending is his arrangement and he is BY FAR much more integral to the Beach Boys' history, music, and success, than yours truly ever was. If anything, he is very underrated with respect to the application of his talent to The Beach Boys. Do I make myself clear? ~swd

Interesting and impressive that Bruce arranged the '71 SU tag, Stephen. THis has probably been answered through the years, but can you comment on whether there was an original group vocal arrangement for the tag when written in '66? It seems like, if so, what eventually emerged would have been logical then as well.

I'd also add Tears in the Morning, Endless Harmony, and Still Cruisin' as favorites of mine, even if Tears is a bit melodramatic.

A bit?