The Smiley Smile Message Board

Over the years there has been some doubth that Paul actuallymunched celery on 'Vega-Tables'. Here's the man himself comfirming it.

Paul: “Yeah, that is true, yeah! I mean it was wild and wacky days, you know, and I just went round to the studio because they invited me. I just thought it would be fun to sit there and watch them record, ’cause I’m a big fan. And so I was there, and then it was, I think, Brian who came over and said, ‘Oh Paul, got a favour to ask: would you mind recording something?’ I thought, ‘Oh, no! But great, I could do that’. Oh God, I’m gonna be singing on a Beach Boys record or something, you know! I got a bit kind of intimidated and thought, ‘Okay, here goes nothing’. And they said, ‘Well, what we want you to do is go in there and just munch!’ …Well, I can do that! So, if you hear somebody munching celery, that’s me!”

http://www.meatfreemondays.com/paul-mccartney-i-give-good-celery/ (ftp://http://www.meatfreemondays.com/paul-mccartney-i-give-good-celery/)

peerke, your link doesn't work (because you by mistake clicked on the wrong link-button which put it within [ftp] tags. Http links though may be simply posted raw without tags, so you don't have to use the link button). Here's the working link:

http://www.meatfreemondays.com/paul-mccartney-i-give-good-celery/

Thanks, Sjöman.

Brian also confirmed it in his 2016 book.

I knew it! Sounded like Macca to me  :lol

Yeah, but was Pet Sounds inspired by Rubber Soul?

You betcha!!!

What about the Beach Boys' leader Brian Wilson? I heard that he liked the Four Freshmen and Chuck Berry. Is that true?

It was fun to read Paul's account of it though  :)

Yes, interesting to get Paul's perspective. So often, Brian talks about how he loves Paul, and since Paul is the more confident of the two, you get the sense that Brian is a bit in awe of Paul. To have Paul say he was sort of intimidated when he thought the Beach Boys were going to ask him to sing... I mean, who wouldn't be? Even a Beatle was intimidated.

Now this is an important question for the Smile crowd who generally, and understandably, want to nuance every angle as per the recording and the specific methods employed in order to reach the finish line on each and every piece of the puzzle.  It's key to understanding the whole enchilada.  Was that celery salted?  And if so ... was it salted a LOT or just a little bit?  Who bought it?  Where?  Was it washed with luke-warm or cold water?  Or was it consumed straight out of the garden?   And did Paul hold it with his left or right hand?
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 [the celery I mean. ;)]

You also forgot: organic or pesticide-laden?

This could very well be the most famous piece of celery in the history of mankind.

LOL is it bad that I was thinking about it this morning, and wondering exactly how planned or impromptu this Paul munching the celery business was?  Was it like, "Hey man, Paul's here! We're recording Vega-Tables, we should get him on here somehow. I know! Celery! Someone go get some celery!" Or was it more like "Here I am on the day of recording Vega-Tables, and I've invited Paul McCartney because he's a vegetarian and I need a vegetarian around to crunch on celery for percussive reasons, so I'll just run in and grab some celery on my way in to the studio..."

Like this is the key to... something...

I think the whole myth of McCartney not being on there stemmed from Andrew Doe's CommGuide. Hadn't seen anyone else debunk it before or since. Probably one of the few things based on "original" research, which would explain a lot, really.

Up there with the food at the last supper. ;)

Now I just had a mental image of the Last Supper as a SMiLE skit.

Mike as judas! >:D

:lol

Not a Doctor Who fan, are you?

(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/00/49/fe/0049fecba0d2fc5c42001b1e026d3cee.jpg)


Definitely the former, since Paul didn't become a vegetarian until the Seventies.   :smokin

When Capitol issued the twofers in the '90s, the liner notes of Smiley Smile/Wild Honey stated that McCartney crunched on veggies for percussion. So that's when I found out about it. And that's what I believed.

Then in 2004 I bought The Complete Guide book by Doe & Tobbler. Page 58 of The Complete Guide book states "Two further myths require demolishing: Vege-Tables never was The Earth section of The Elements nor did Paul McCartney either play on or co-produce this or any other version." (I knew he didn't co-produce it or play an instrument on it, but it lead me to believe that McCartney didn't crunch anything on it either.) So for 13 years that's what I believed.

Then a few months ago I bought Brian's book and he stated that McCartney DID indeed crunch the veggies, and now Paul himself is stating the same.

Where's Andrew...I'm gonna tug that beard....

Exactly.  Doe is the only one who ever stated as such. Completely pulled that one out of thin air (instead of his usual MO of passing off others' research as his own)

Well, technically speaking, I don't think you could call chomping on some celery to be "playing" anything, so even if they're wrong, they're technically right. :D

Yeah, true. But it's misleading. Doe could have at least said that even though McCartney crunches on some veggies he did not however do anything else on it. (I personally have never heard any rumors about Paul co-producing or playing bass or anything like that on Vegetables... did I accidentally miss that rumor?)

Did Paul's actual celery munching has made it out to any of the actual released material?  Or was it replaced by a Wrecking Crew muncher?  Heh!

Paul did actually jam with Brian in the studio, but I can't remember if it was during the Smile or Smiley Smile Sessions.

I'll just say this: having heard all of the SMiLE session tapes that existed in the Capitol or BRI vaults as of 2011...and I mean ALL of them...there was nothing to prove (or disprove, for that matter) Macca joining in on the veggie chomping. And, because we couldn't say he did, we couldn't credit him.

Right, which would be understandable. ... saying it unequivocally did not happen and that it was a myth which required "demolishing " is a different beast entirely 

When Paul came to see Brian, he played for him She's Leaving Home, a song on their up-coming album Sgt Pepper. It was upcoming so it couldn't've been during the Smiley Smile sessions (Sgt Pepper was out by then). Can someone pinpoint when Paul visited? Because I'm beginning to wonder which version of Vega-Tables had Paul on Celery, the April or October version (because you certainly don't hear him on the April one).

It's been cited as April 10, 1967. She's Leaving Home was recorded in March 1967. I'm not aware of that date being disproven.

...

BTW, do we really know if it was just celery? Or maybe were there some carrots involved, too? Inquiring minds want to know! I wonder if Paul remembers.

If someone legit like Ian and c-man did research and showed nothing, I'll believe it. If Andrew is just making stuff up (like "Drip Drop" being recorded in 1974, like he had been saying for years before amending it :lol), then, well...

It's in C-man's Smile sessionography.  April 10, lead vocal overdub and vegetable chomping.  That's when Paul was in L.A.

However, until the Smile Vegetables was released on the 93 Good Vibrations box set, and later on the Smile Sessions, that Paul munching had never been heard - only the Smiley Smile version which did NOT have Paul on celery had been released.  So those who said Paul wasn't on Vegetables (the Smiley version) were correct.  unless C-man tells us that Brian dubbed the April 10th munching track on the June Smiley version?

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That's very cute picture but I don't like turnip.

2Bicyclerider: Thanks for the further info.

Sorry, I'm new to C-man's sessionography.  What is it, an online resource or a book?

It's in the deluxe (or super deluxe) box set version of The SMiLE Sessions. Also - I think either Brian or Al has said apples may actually have been used, since they crunch louder. Or, maybe Darian said that about the 2004 version?

Cool, thanks.  If that's the version with the LP and 5 CD's, then I probably have it!