The Smiley Smile Message Board

The GV box set lists the following content of the "15 ips April-1962" demo tape:

- HEARTS
1 - SURF + SAFARI
2 - " "
3 - JUDY
4 - LONLEY SEA
5 - FOUR-OH-NINE

DUPLICATE MONO MASTER OF SONGS ABOVE

Murry Wilson used this tape to get the Beach Boys signed at Capitol. According to the liner notes of the GV box set, the official single and album versions of "Surfin' Safari" and "409" are the ones from the demo tape; you can hear them without their fades on the box set. "Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring" on the box set is also from that tape.

Let us look at recording dates:
Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring: circa 4/19/62 (box set)
Surfin' Safari: 6/13/62 (twofer)
409: circa 4/19/62 (box set), resp. 6/13/62 (twofer)
Lonely Sea: 6/13/62 (twofer)

Questions:
1. Are the released versions of "Surfin' Safari" and "409" really straight from the demo tape? In that case, the recording dates on the twofer are wrong.
2. That demo tape was mixed in mono, correct?
3. Were those demos recorded to mono, or twin track, or else? In other words, wouldn't there be some isolated vocal or instrumental tracks?
4. "Lonely Sea" is in wide stereo on the Surfin' USA LP, so it can't be from the demo tape. When was that song really recorded? Is the mono mix of that song the same as on the demo tape? If "Lonely Sea" could be mixed in stereo, why not the other songs from the demo tape? Or was "Lonely Sea" re-recorded on 6/13/62?

"Surfin' Safari" was re-recorded during their first Capitol recording session.

Are you saying that the "April 1962 demo tape" contained the Hite Morgan version of Surfin' Safari (recorded February 8, 1962)?

According to the liner notes of the GV box set, they used the demo tape for the song Surfin' Safari on the box set, and it is the common known album version without the fade. Something is wrong here.

When and what was that "first Capitol recording session"?

From AGD's excellent website:



This would imply that they did not re-record "Surfin' Safari", "Lonely Sea" and "409" at their first Capitol recording sessions (June 1962?), but instead that the April recordings were used for the single and album releases. However, this does not explain the existence of the stereo mix of "Lonely Sea"...

My mistake, once again:

"409" is the demo-version, recorded April 19, 1962 @ Western Studios.
Now, "Surfin' Safari" was re-recorded at Capitol Tower Studios on July 12, 1962, but of course that was after the single SS/409 was released on June 4, 1962. I guess they wanted to record a new version for the album, but finally used the single-version. So it's probably from the April-session.
"Lonely Sea" was remixed in Stereo, because SURFIN' USA was released in Stereo.

I am pretty sure that Surfin' Safari was not re-recorded in June or later. The single was already released and a hit, so there was no reason to record it another time. Especially since Capitol already paid $300 for the April master.

You can't take those recording dates in the twofers 100% accurate. If you believe them, Surfin' Safari was released before it was recorded.:)

According to  AGD, the stereo mix of Lonely Sea was the result of an overdub, using the April mix as a basis. But I guess it is also possible that the 3-track recording tape for that song was used for a stereo remix. The left channel of the stereo mix contains only the intrumental track and the lead vocal, while the right channel contains some echo from the left channel plus all the background vocals. So if there were overdubs added to the basic mix from the demo tape, it could only be the background vocals. But is it conceivable that the April demo was without background vocals?

Yes.  Now, Al Jardine has said in an interview that he was called in to sing on "Loney Sea" even though he was out of the band at that point.  Meaning he would be on the overdub that was done prior to releasing it on the first LP.

Craig

Do you mean the second LP?

Oops...yep.  Well, it WAS the first STEREO lp...by the Beach Boys, that is...
:)
Craig

First off...the twofer liner notes are full of errors...the June recording date for Surfin Safari may actually be a Jan and Dean session. But anyway, the hit versions of 409 and Surfin Safari, as well as the LP versions are the original demo versions recorded at Western in April '62 with Brian, Dennis, Carl, Mike and David. I've heard Al's claim about Lonely Sea...but I don't hear him on there...or anywhere on the first two LP's except the re-recorded Surfin' on the first LP...he's on that. Also...The Hite Morgan demos of Surfin Safari and Surfer Girl are very inferior to the Capitol released versions...tyr an A -B on them and you'll see what I mean.

That version of Surfin' on the first album is exactly the same version as the single (on the GV Box set). It has simply been sped up by about half a semitone. I have verified this by slowing it back down. That's why it sounds so "chipmonky" and tinny. The liner notes on the 2fer state that the album version is a re-recording... this is clearly not the case.

Great info; thanks guys! 

Where is this version of Judy???