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I've recently been really intrigued by the Sweet Insanity album particularly the song "Concert Tonight." It's really rockin'. Actually the whole album is pretty damn rockin'. Shame it was never released as it's probably my favorite of his solo albums. Anyway, my version of Concert Tonight is pretty crappy sound wise. I was wondering if anyone knew where I could find a cleaned up version of that song as the rest of the mp3's I have seem to be remastered in some way except for that particular song.

Mods are gonna scold ya for not reading the rules... :'( :'(

Oh I read the rules. I'm not asking anyone to post a download link though. I'm just asking if anyone knows where I might track down a remastered version or better yet if one does indeed exist. Anyway, they sell Sweet Insanity at the record store so I don't see a problem...

Illegally.

Jesus christ man. I get it. They sell sweet insanity illegally at the record store. I'm very much aware of this. Whatever. I don't care because it doesn't answer my question. Sorry to be snippy but I don't need these things to be pointed out to me again and again. If the moderators have a problem with my post then they can handle it. I don't see any reason for everyone else to be jumping on my case. So, anyone have an answer?

I'm sure there's people who can help you, but if they post here, then they'll be breaking the board rules. Now, if it's in a PM or something, that's different.

As far as I know, Vigotone put out a clear sounding version of Sweet Insanity back in the 90s (probably sourced from the master tapes that Brian said were stolen). I can't tell you where to find it (apparently Brother Records sometimes checks this board, and they are gung-ho anti-bootleg), but I hope this won't violate any rules...
http://vigotone.com/vigotone/vigotone112.htm (http://vigotone.com/vigotone/vigotone112.htm)

Just pm or email this type of question.  The same as any personal exchange.  Or ask someone to pm you regarding a "discussion" of a given area of interest. ;) ;) ;)

I like how the Vigitone site says..."fake vigitone's are flooding the market."   :lol  Fake fakes?  I thought that was funny.

So why was it never released anyway?  I agree...it's awesome.  It's no more "nutty" than Love You.  It's a brilliant freekin' record.  They should make it available.  Sell it as a stupid download -- if they feel that's more cost effective.  Sorry to beat a dead horse.

 :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse

It wasn't released because Sire rejected it...TWICE! Then the tapes were apparently stolen, according to Brian. So unless BriMel, BRI, or whoever, can get the tapes back it probably won't be officially released...

I think Sweet Insanity is a pretty big stinker, some of the songs like Hotter and Do You Have Any Regrets even give me the creeps, but I totally dig Concert Tonight.  Of all of the reaching back he has done for songs from this period I am really surprised this one hasn't been touched.  To answer your question, in what I think is a non-rule violating way, there is a pretty clear cut of the long version of the song on Vigotone's 21 Little Ones.

I think "Do you have any regrets" is awesome. Not just one of the better takes from SI but also one of Brian's best from the solo years imo

I agree. This would be a great addition to Brian's live show. It gets me pumped up every time I listen to it, even though the version I have is really grainy!

Thanks for all the answers everyone. I think I have the info I need now. Moving the discussion right along though I'd like to know other peoples opinions of this album. I think it's his best solo album. It's his most rock 'n' roll, and it even has a couple great ballads. I really, really love the song "Someone to Love." It's really terrible that all these songs are just sitting in the vault. One more question, is that Carnie singing on Bells of Madness?

How do you know? Perhaps Brian signed a nonexclusive deal with some distributor, and who is to say that some record company in Estonia didn't sign a legally-binding deal to distribute rough tracks from the Sweet Insanity Sessions, and we just don't know about it? Methinks it should be up to the record seller to determine what is and isn't illegal.

I understand why the mods have their rules on the board, and I don't think the rules are unreasonable. In this instance, however, you remind me of the kid in elementary school who would rat me out for skipping class. Let the mods do their job, or become a mod yourself.

My sentiments exactly.

yes

Ummm... what's this got to do with Sweet Insanity ?

I'm guessing it has been tacked on as a "bonus track" on one particular version of Sweet Insanity?

Always liked Sweet Insanity....To me, it showed that Brian was still capable (in 1988-89) of writing some catchy tunes, along with some interesting arrangements. On the other hand, it also caused me to seriously question if he was losing his production skills. And, as you know, it WAS rejected; he couldn't get it released.

othereric, you are aware that some of (arguably) the cream of Sweet Insanity was re-recorded for Getting In Over My Head. Unfortunately, again, the production sucked the life out of the songs...

The shining pearl of Sweet Insanity is "Don't Let Her Know She's An Angel," one of a handful of vocals post-1976 (along with the original GIOMH and a few others) where he sounds SO CLOSE to it being 1970 it hurts. I love the original version despite the shakey production.

The rest I can take or leave (with the exception of  "Someone to Love" which rocks, rocks, rocks!)

A bootleg is a bootleg, and therefore is off limits.  But a promo copy is...something that was officially released, and hence I don't think it would break the rules to point out that Rockaway Records apparently still has some of those for sale...in fact, that WAS pointed out on this board back in January...

http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,6624.0.html

http://www.rockaway.com/online/online/artistlist.php?ItemID=0&searchstring=Brian Wilson&searchdate=mm/dd/yyyy

If the masters were stolen, it being sold at a record store definitely is illegal.

Yeah, "Don't Let Her Know She's An Angel" is a good one, and I also prefer the original over the re-recording. "Somebody To Love" is a personal favorite. too. I thought it might make it onto GIOMH, but I guess it was too juvenile. It could probably use a lyrical overhaul and re-recording. Hey, I got an idea.... ;D

I hate these sessions. I think he is singing worse then on OCA, the songs have rotten lyrics, the melodies are bad. It's his SIP. After the fairly steller Brian Wilson from 1988 this would have done real damage to his career. Darian did something nice with Do You Have Any Regrets but that is the only SI related thing I have really goten enjoyment from. No offense to those who feel different.

I don't think so...these are extra copies of original promo cassettes manufactured & distributed in 1991 by Brian & Landy's company, Brains & Genius.  They're the un-distributed leftovers.  In that regard, they're no really no different than undistributed promo copies of an out-of-print vinyl record that someone found sitting in a box and sold to a used record store (like if someone found a box of those "POB" promo LPs that sometimes pop up on ebay).  Now if someone copied them, and sold the copies, that would be a different story.  And if whoever has the stolen masters made copies of them & sold them, that WOULD be illegal.

I think his singing on OCA is the absolute best of his whole solo-carreer. And much better than his Beach Boys-stuff since "'til I die"....  :-\

To each their own I guess. I have trouble playing OCA. I don't like the style it doesn't have enough edge to me. I think TLOS is a much more vibrant version of what that album tried to be.

Sweet Insanity sounds to me like a decade-earlier version of Imagination, a weak attempt to force Brian Wilson into some other sound perceived as current at the time. Some of the material is decent, a lot of it isn't, and those guitars, keyboards and drum sounds throughout sound just terrible. Like any Wilson-related recordings, there are good parts. But it's one that I have a hard time believing people would truly like if it had been done by Ryan Wilkins. Then everyone would just say it was a subpar attempt at imitating Brian Wilson. (Hell, it sounds like it could have been a John Stamos album, actually. And everyone has a field day mocking the sound of his Forever.)

Water Builds Up is really the only song I can stand to listen to more than once a year from Sweet Insanity.  ( Lame Insanity) :P
I love Turning Point, but I think that's an Usher thing and NOT on SI. Sometimes I can almost like Country Feeling, like right now as I listen to it.

Regarding Usher material from the 80s, I think it was a fantastic project.

Regarding the rejection of Sweet Insanity, I remember a quote from the infamous WIBN Bio in which one of the executives said (replying to listening to 'Thank You' (Aka Brian): "This is really hard to listen to."  Which some of it is kind of awkward.

I've always thought the first half of SI was really strong, the strings on Don't Let her Know, the idea of an intro to the album (concert Tonight) is cool, Water Builds Up makes Brian sound angry, but I think Let's go to Heaven in my Car is stronger, and Someone To Love is always been a favorite of mine....oh! and who could forget Do you Have Any Regrets? I heard Darian S. covered that, I'd like to hear that, *wink wink*

And, see, I feel OCA has Brian's WORST singing in that time period, for the most part, esp on "Hold Back Time".

Darian wasn't in the band back then - not until the late 1990's after "Imagination." I agree that the song's sound is cool and different for Brian, although it is a bit of a cheesy lyric. I say that, and I love "Love You." This is one of the two big shortcomings of Sweet Insanity, the other one being the instrumental sounds, which seem like they came from a Casio keyboard that was bought at Radioshack by your first wife as a gift to make up for cheating on me with that guy she works with...

Wait, uh...

Seriously though.. cheesy sounds. "Concert Tonight" gets me excited. I don't play it very often, however, because it makes me expect a concert and every time the evening rolls around, I am disappointed.

I don't think MBE is (what would have been mistakenly) saying Darian was involved in Sweet Insanity. He's just saying that Darian's version of Do You Have Any Regrets is the one Sweet Insanity-related thing that he (MBE) likes. And I'll agree, Darian's take on that tune is great.

That's because people compare it to the original which sounds 10000000000 times better.

I guess MBE is referring to Darian's truly fantastic Pet-Sounds-esque reworking of the title. There's an even better version of I Wanna Pick You Up on the flip.
http://powerpopcriminals.blogspot.com/2009/04/darian-do-you-have-any-regrets-1997-at.html

That Darion single is really cool.

The full version of "Concert Tonight" sounds like Brian trying to do his own take of McCartney's "Rock Show"...but, since Brian has never been an "Are you ready to rock, Cleveland?!" type of performer, the result is unconvincing. I think it was a good choice to simply use the a capella opening and transition to "Someone To Love" (a song which I definitely enjoy everytime I hear it even though the verse melody is nicked from Dennis' "San Miguel").

I think SWEET INSANITY and OCA are the two albums that are the most controversial among Brian/Beach Boys fans. You could probably throw GIOMH into that pile as well. Personally, I really like the warmer, more organic production/arrangement of the SI tracks that made it on GIOMH, although I would have preferred "Someone To Love" made the cut instead of "Make A Wish".

Wow. I need to hear it. Who knew (besides you and MBE and everyone else besides me)

b00ts

It's done in a 1965 style. Slower tempo, wood blocks, sleigh bells... the works. A corker.

   mmmmm...dosn't seem to work for me. I'm dying to hear it

I'm not sure if it easy to find anymore but the 45 of it was cheep when it came out. It's really worth hearing and I don't go for covers normally.

Did you know that the small print on the back of Vigotone reads: 'All Rights Reversed'? Now that's what I call funny...