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680597 Posts in 27600 Topics by 4068 Members - Latest Member: Dae Lims March 28, 2024, 02:32:59 PM
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1  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: The most stunning Beach Boys AI I've heard yet on: January 30, 2024, 09:20:04 AM
Hats off to Dae Lims, the tunes he is doing are phenomenal and fascinating.

Like most people I am terribly afraid of AI for so many reasons, but that doesn't mean I can't compartmentalize part of my brain and completely enjoy this for what it is.

It's essentially somewhere between a cover version and BBs music from an alternate future universe.

It's a rather indescribable experience listening to these songs. But it's very very cool. To me there's only any moral and ethical quandary if he is trying to pass them off as the real thing, or anything like that. I see/hear nothing of the sort here so I have no problem enjoying this alternate version of reality.

 I'm very grateful to listen to them and I greatly appreciate the work that went into them. Bravo.

But undeniably this is uncharted territory for all people. I had a long in person discussion with a friend of mine yesterday who is a fellow superfan of this band, but he has a problem getting emotional enjoyment out of these types of AI versions. I find that fascinating, and understandable, and honestly somebody should write a thesis or a book about this new phenomenon. Different strokes for different folks.

I get an uncanny valley repulsion when I see a humanoid robot, but for some reason these versions don't give me those same negative vibes at all.

This is interesting and it is clear that people react differently to these sorts of things. I have no difficulty at all connecting emotionally with these works (when the models and application of them are as good as Daelims manages), and actually find that listening to something like the AI Holy Man, or Ol' Man River / Are You There to be incredibly emotional experiences.  I'm also someone who gets nothing whatsoever from a poorly executed AI cover, or a fan-completed mix etc. I can't even enjoy the 'updated' You're Still a Mystery with Brian's later vocal overdub, because it sounds inauthentic to me (nothing at all logical about these feelings).

I agree that when it's transparent and not intended for monetary gain from someone else's voice, I don't have a problem with it, but there are potentially huge problems down the line if the legal and ethical boundaries aren't established firmly sometime soon. Imagine a young talented singer signing a contract early on in their career that (unknowingly) gives away the rights to an AI version of their voice? Artist is then dropped a little later but the record company can churn out tracks with their voice at will (a modern day version of the Spector / He's a Rebel scenario).

Youtube fan covers/edits are different territory, but there are unethical examples on their already. Daelims has been more than transparent and is clear that he does what he enjoys doing, is very respectful of the material, usually do a high level of technical skill, this stuff can really work. It means that the vocal can contain emotion in the delivery as well as sound very close (sometimes indistinguishably so) to a contemporaneous take by the actual artist. I can't not be moved when hearing AI Dennis sing Holy Man with the rest of the boys filling out the sound via AI - it sounds incredible and goes much further in demonstrating what Dennis might have done with it had he been able to complete it than the backing track does, or the Taylor Hawkins track does. On that point, if it's ok to have a Taylor Hawkins vocal version released to showcase the song, is it worse to have Dennis' own voice on it, reconstructed carefully and respectfully via AI to do the same job?
2  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian AI Project. on: August 30, 2023, 07:19:30 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDcJKC5RWpI

Wanted to post a link to my AI-enhanced version of Worms. I tired to keep it a little more minimalistic -- my verse vocal is a little bit like a stripped down version of Dae Lims' version, that was pretty much where I was heading too. Also added in the "East or West Indes" vocal at the end. I think maybe it's a little more historically accurate than his but less fanciful? If that makes sense?

I am working on the others!

Love the East or West Indies bit! Good work! Also just picked up on your Smiley Smiley remix - great to listen to.
3  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian AI Project. on: August 30, 2023, 07:14:02 AM
The Daelims AI Smile is my favourite ever Smile listening experience, without a doubt. Smiley Smile, GV box Smile tracks, bootlegs, the H&V demo from Endless Harmony, BWPS, Smile Sessions etc - I love it all, but I've never enjoyed a fully formed mix as much as I've enjoyed this Daelims one. Given where things are with the development of AI and how quickly this was created, I'm stunned at how good the vocals are, and the Q&A youtube stuff was really illuminating in terms of choices and why AI vocals were used in certain places. The expansion of the backing tracks to enhance etc is just as impressive to me.

I'm not a purist, but I can enjoy the integrity of the Pet Sounds mono mix (Wouldn't It Be Nice in mono is as good as pop music ever gets) and the Stereo, and the sessions etc. BWPS is stunning as a completed album, but the vocals will never compete with the Beach Boys own voices, no matter how well executed. I have always found any blend of BWPS vocals with original tracks jarring and distracting in a way that I simply don't find with this AI mix. There is no historically accurate final Smile mix by the Beach Boys and there never will be, but my own view is that this is the closest anyone has come to a full-album mix that is cohesive and not hampered by loads of missing vocals or varying fidelity/sonic issues etc. This mix is an extraordinary piece of work and I love every second of it.

There is no perfection possible with this sort of thing - we'll all differ in how we experience it and what we prefer, and I'm still working out what I think about the ethics of AI in general etc, but for anyone who might want to hear the Beach Boys sing In Blue Hawaii, then what's not to like about this? Or a version of You Were My Sunshine without Dennis being squashed in the mix - listen here for that too.

I don't disagree particularly with views of those that aren't so keen (different perspectives etc) or who simply prefer to hear the original voices rather than AI recreations etc - but this whole topic (smile, this board etc) was always very much based around a celebration of a lost album, missing pieces and the many "what if" scenarios and this mix responds to so much of that with an incredible sounding response. I have literally woken from dreams in which I'd heard rediscovered original Beach Boys vocals on some of these tracks that were either never recorded or lost, but in this mix I can hear them and they're just as amazing as the things I heard in my dreams. To someone like me, this mix is an extraordinary gift and I am beyond grateful that someone took so much time and effort to make something so wonderful.
4  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian AI Project. on: April 08, 2023, 11:29:56 PM
Can I ask whether the idea of using an isolated BWPS vocal is possible, desirable, or effective as the input for processing? I have to admit that reading the steps required for this tech left me no closer to understanding how it works or how to use it, so I have absolutely no idea if using a modern era Brian lead would work, but I’d be interested to know whether that’s beneficial at all.

Similarly, replacing an isolated Carl vocal with AI Brian etc, is that an option and does it work in aiming for a Brian-like sound?
5  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian AI Project. on: April 07, 2023, 05:01:28 AM
I’m currently thinking of this technology as another step on from other advancements in the recording industry. Maybe that’s wrong, maybe this is fundamentally different somehow, but so many technological changes have left people feeling uneasy, or concerned that the music they’re hearing isn’t ‘real’, that I see that as a (currently) more extreme end of a spectrum.

Personally, I love the examples so far and ver much look forward to new ones. There’s clearly a lot of work involved and the results are very impressive and great listening, in my opinion. I love Brian’s voice and a lot of these examples sound very much like it.

Ethically, I’d have a problem if someone was exploiting someone using this, and the industry definitely has form in exploiting talented people, so I can see the potential for all sorts of problems there. I’d also have a problem with ‘new’ material using an AI voice, but purporting to be the original artist etc.

But the potential for using this to fix, complete or as part of a suite of tech in production could add real value, I think. E.g. as a fix for Carl’s “shunshine” flub, or to present what Dennis might have intended for some of his music when his voice had given out etc (e.g. AI Dennis plugged in to the Taylor Hawkins vocal might make the listening experience of that track amongst other Dennis tracks much smoother and more enjoyable).

What better way to test the capabilities of the tech than with the greatest unfinished album of all time? Vey much looking forward to whatever Seltaeb and others can create with AI.
6  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian AI Project. on: March 29, 2023, 01:37:29 PM
Worth also keeping in mind that the possible quality of this sort of thing will likely develop rapidly. You might imagine a scenario in years to come where AI voices are licensed out for all sorts of purposes, with the theoretical possibility of having AI Elvis “sing” whatever you choose. All sorts of problematic issues here, but I also can’t help but imagine hearing lost vocals, unfinished work completed etc.

Personally, I’ve always struggled to listen properly to “alternate” track listings, lost albums etc, possibly because they’re just not what the artist intended. That’s not me being a purist, I’ve tried many times to construct those sorts of tack lists, but I always come back to the original albums. I can enjoy stereo remixes and not feel the same, including those with digital extraction used. So I don’t know how I’ll feel about a partially AI Smile, for example. Nonetheless, I very much hope to hear more of this and would dearly love to hear an AI construct of some of those things I’ve only ever heard in my head (Sail on Sailor with Carl’s vocal, Holy Man with Dennis etc). We’ll never know how Carl might have phrased his take on Sail on Sailor, but maybe an AI version would be worth it just to hear an approximation.

I can see a reasonable use case for finishing things that weren’t completed, but I think there are debates to be had about widespread use in commercial releases using AI vocals.
7  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian AI Project. on: March 29, 2023, 09:00:11 AM
Hey all,

I came across some new technology and decided to have a little fun with it!

Here's one to test the waters:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13ICunDuIcg&ab_channel=DaeLims

I've been debating posting, but it was too overwhelming to think I'm the only who has heard any of this stuff.  Grin

The technology is here. Should we have some fun before all the sh*t takes start popping up?   LOL

PS - Lots more where this came from, if people are interested!

VERY interested to hear more. It’s a strange experience listening, knowing it’s AI and still hearing some very clear Brian in tone etc. Very impressive work!
8  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian AI Project. on: March 29, 2023, 08:51:06 AM
My first thought on hearing the recent Kanye examples was what an AI Dennis singing Holy Man could sound like. There are so many ethical issues with AI and art/music (and AI in general), but the technological developments are extraordinary and the possibilities are becoming both incredible and quite frightening.

Does a really solid AI voice model require lots of isolated vocal tracks?
9  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Carl and MSIA on: May 14, 2022, 12:44:52 AM
Slightly off topic, but it sounds like a lovely version of “I Wish For You” playing in the background. Is it just Carl performing live for this organisation (i.e. the audio from the short shots of Carl with guitar in the video)?
10  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Feel Flows box set on: August 27, 2021, 03:18:32 PM
Of all the box sets, digital releases and outtake releases we’ve had over the years, I have to say that this set really is the most extraordinary release of them all. The alternate mixes, backing track + vocals, and vocals only versions really do show this period to be something of a group vocal peak for the boys. Can any other era compare with the outstanding group vocals during this period?

I sometimes think that I’ve listened to the Beach Boys so much over the years that maybe there isn’t much more for the music to give, but this really is like hearing the music again for the first time. I’m hearing layer upon layer of beautiful new detail in tracks I’ve heard many hundreds of times before - things that were barely audible to me in their full mix presented here and standing up as highlights in their own right.

As a teenager growing up listening to capitol era CD twofers, with everything after 20/20 out of print, I can remember the thrill of hearing a snippet of “All I Wanna Do” whilst watching Endless Harmony and imaging what treasures those 70’s records might hold. I have the exact same feeling hearing the vocals only version of All I Wanna Do here - it is spine tingling. Maybe Pet Sounds represents a peak for Brian as a songwriter, producer, singer and arranger,  but I think this set makes it clear that for the group as a whole this period is their absolute peak (did any other group reach collective highs such as this?)

This whole thing is an utter joy and it is a privilege to be receiving this as a fan. Sometimes the hype and the waiting for releases can eventually lead to anticipated releases being something of an anti-climax, but this surpasses every expectation I held, by a considerable distance. It feels insufficient to say it, but all I can offer is the biggest “thank you” to Alan, Mark, Howie and anyone else involved in this for all that you’ve done to make something so incredible for us. You have presented this outstanding group at their absolute finest here and have created the most incredible showcase for their music. Thank you!
11  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: No Pier Pressure - 4 Months Later on: August 20, 2015, 05:38:30 AM
I enjoy NPP a lot and think it's one of the better albums in Brian's solo career. I think it's good but not great and my main issue is that it does sound a little like two (or three) projects compiled into one single album. There are the the guest appearances that work well together, the songs featuring Al that sound like they could be from a TWGMTR follow up and the songs that sound like a BW solo album in with a TLOS vibe. Along these lines:


Duets:
"Runaway Dancer" (featuring Sebu Simonian)
"On the Island" (featuring She & Him)
"Half Moon Bay" (featuring Mark Isham)
"Our Special Love" (featuring Peter Hollens)
"Guess You Had to Be There" (featuring Kacey Musgraves)
"Saturday Night" (featuring Nate Ruess)

Beach Boys album:
"This Beautiful Day"  
"What Ever Happened" (featuring Al Jardine and David Marks)
"The Right Time" (featuring Jardine and Marks)
"Tell Me Why" (featuring Jardine)
"Sail Away" (featuring Blondie Chaplin and Jardine)
"The Last Song"  
"Somewhere Quiet" 

BW solo:
"One Kind of Love"  
"Don't Worry"  
"I'm Feeling Sad"

In some ways the tracks work fine together and I can enjoy the album as whole piece, but can't help thinking that perhaps this was more than one single cohesive project. A Beach Boys album of the above tracks featuring Al, extended with similar material could have been killer. The duet songs are great, but sit better alongside each other. Again, a full album of duets could have been excellent. From a marketing point of view, either a new Beach Boys album or a set of duets/guest songs would probably have been an easier sell. The 'solo' sounding songs might have formed part of a Love and Mercy companion album, that might also have been a better selling point.

I'll probably end up listening to my alternate track listing and the TWGMTR/NPP blend I've playlisted. The Al tracks work brilliantly with the TWGMTR stuff.

I would however say that "Sail Away" it's absolutely outstanding. To me it will be a latter day Beach Boys classic, regardless of the named artist. Even now when I hear Al sing "Try and imagine how our life would be, if you could sail away with me", I'm floored.


12  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Proposed 2016 UK Tour on: July 06, 2015, 04:54:30 AM
it's Brian's last ever European tour, the 50th Anniversary of Pet Sounds and Good Vibrations, so stop messing around and just make it a Beach Boys tour.

I would love that to happen, more than you could imagine. Alas, the indications of the last few years argue strongly against any such thing happening.

However...

These are The Beach Boys:anything is possible.

There's no disputing that of course. But then I'd never have pictured the C50 tour happening, let alone a new studio album that was actually good!

I won't be getting my hopes up but if the right person in the right place and time was able to start making the right noises with Mike and Brian, you just never know. Joe Thomas did the impossible for 2012 and it seems beyond unlikely that he'd have enough favour left to do it again.  But money talks and if C50 showed one thing it's that a full Beach Boys tour with Brian and Mike has huge potential in financial terms. We know that there were significant potential offers for more shows back in 2012 and maybe there are people who could start getting those sorts of offers back on the table, even if pulling all parties together again seems like a task beyond mere mortals. But if the money was right............
13  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Proposed 2016 UK Tour on: July 06, 2015, 03:20:03 AM
I'm pretty gutted too. I was especially looking forward to seeing Brian with Al, Blondie and Matt there too, so I hope they'll be part of whatever happens next year.

But seriously - it's Brian's last ever European tour, the 50th Anniversary of Pet Sounds and Good Vibrations, so stop messing around and just make it a Beach Boys tour. Leaving aside what we know of the personal differences, the frictions and differences of opinion, take this last ever chance and do it right. The last one proved to be the biggest success they'd had in decades and the reasons for not doing it get less compelling with each and every day.

14  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian Wilson \ on: June 17, 2015, 03:11:40 AM
I just found this thread, which might have been referring to the same vocal snippet:

http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,17201.0.html

(I think the soundcloud link is dead now, so can't verify either way).

15  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Brian Wilson \ on: June 17, 2015, 01:59:55 AM
Interesting!

I'm not certain but the vocals sound like they could be from Turning Point - does that sound right? If so, could that mean that the multi-tracks are where they should be (and that someone is listening to them)?
16  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Fans in the UK - BB's on Good Morning Britain this morning. on: June 01, 2015, 03:55:53 AM
Thanks for this, just managed to catch it. The vocals were excellent and Mike's voice seemed stronger and fuller than on some of the audio I've heard in recent years and Bruce sounded way better than I expected. It's cool seeing Dave there and the band vocals were great too. I could be totally wrong but I'm pretty sure I could hear an organ/keyboard but couldn't see one, which seems a bit odd to me.

Mike told me about this Saturday - they pre-recorded the track, live vocals.

Thanks for the clarification. Probably the only way to really do it under the circumstances. The vocals were spot on in my opinion.
17  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Fans in the UK - BB's on Good Morning Britain this morning. on: June 01, 2015, 02:32:24 AM
Thanks for this, just managed to catch it. The vocals were excellent and Mike's voice seemed stronger and fuller than on some of the audio I've heard in recent years and Bruce sounded way better than I expected. It's cool seeing Dave there and the band vocals were great too. I could be totally wrong but I'm pretty sure I could hear an organ/keyboard but couldn't see one, which seems a bit odd to me.




18  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Mike and Bruce Tour 2015 on: May 29, 2015, 02:06:48 AM
The set list from Manchester looks absolutely fantastic and I seriously wish I'd been there. On All I Wanna do I get the comments about Mike's vocals but he just about gets away with it and deserves huge credit for having given it a go. Fortunately the band seems to have done a fantastic job with performing it and the rest of the vocals are outstanding. I can't help but think it would would really suit Bruce's voice these days though, so maybe that's an option for the future.

Well done to all involved for performing a show that covers such a broad range of the catalogue and doing it so well. One of the criticisms I have of the touring band (which can be extended back to the days when Brian, Carl and Dennis still toured) is that the full depth of the Beach Boys music isn't often explored. This is exactly the sort of set set list that I think gives a better impression of what the Beach Boys are, beyond the well known hits.
19  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: If Mike wasn't in the band... on: May 26, 2015, 04:42:54 AM
I think the live shows to Mike are very simply a case of giving people what he thinks they want and he's probably in a better position to judge what that is than most of us are (and it looks like Brian judges things in a pretty similar way). I'd love it if the live shows had always presented what I think is the best side of the band, but that's totally unrealistic. Almost all big acts return to the songs that people know, and why wouldn't they? If I'd been at a show in 1992 and Wouldn't It Be Nice and Don't Worry Baby had been cut so that they could play the Summer in Paradise album in full I'd have been pretty upset, and that same feeling would probably apply to some people attending and not hearing Barbara Ann. The point about failing to generate new hits to add into the mix seems pretty crucial to me, as it's pretty impossible to generate interest in oldie that few in the crowd know just through playing it at live shows (where all but the die-hards will probably hear it once). It's a shame they didn't get lucky with an deeper cut making it into a big film at some point (which could have had a similar effect to the Stamos-forever thing, only without Stamos).
20  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Are Bruce and Mike actually friends? on: May 26, 2015, 04:31:30 AM
Bruce is a class act in many ways. He's one of Brian's biggest cheerleaders and clearly hugely appreciative of Brian's talents and grateful for the opportunity to work with him. Bruce as a Beach Boy doesn't quite work for my after his return and he sometimes appears not to be making the most of his talents but he clearly loves the music and manages to keep out of the politics pretty well considering. Bruce has been there for Brian when he's needed him on many occasions over the years. He was there in the sixties when they needed someone to tour, there in the studio when Brian needed a reliable voice, there as a PR guy when Pet Sounds was coming out, there in the late 70's when Brian needed someone he could trust to come in, there when Brian began his return to live performances in the late 90's etc etc. In my book he's a true supporter of Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys and appears to be as big an admirer of them as many of us are.

We can joke about shorts and mic stands but to me he seems like a solid guy who enjoys what he does and doesn't pretend to be something he's not. He's pretty self-deprecating for a guy with his CV. I don't know about Mike and Bruce being friends but to me it looks like Bruce has been a true friend to Brian over the years.
21  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: No Pier Pressure (board member reviews) on: May 22, 2015, 08:09:14 AM
The album has held up well with repeated listens, though I can't help but think that it could have been improved by better sequencing and track selection. Generally speaking the standard version flows very well and feels cohesive, but is weaker for the absence of Somewhere Quiet and I'm feeling Sad. I'd have included both of those tracks at the expense of one or two others and sequenced it slightly differently.

Brian and Al's vocals are excellent and Matt blends in extremely well to make these the best sounding vocals on any Brian solo album bar his first (and even then I'm unsure). Sail Away is absolutely outstanding and to me has become a latter day Beach Boys classic. Somewhere Quiet is also a brilliant track and has completely defied the odds in turning out better than the original instrumental.

If I had the time and skill (I certainly don't have the latter) I'd edit some of the tracks to make them a little and I'd think the album would hang together better. After taking out Runaway Dancer and Our Special Love, adding in Somewhere Quiet and I'm feeling Sad, I'd then aim to reduce some of the repetition of the Right Time chorus and extend the first verse if possible, along with condensing Last Song  (taking out the single voiced "La La La" bit). If I could shorten Tell Me Why a bit I'd also do that. I think those small changes would make a big difference.

It feels pretty close to a five-star album to me, but just falls a little short overall.



22  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: What is the most devasting moment in the band's career? on: May 13, 2015, 02:03:42 AM
Have to politely disagree - 2012 was the last kick of a dying bull. Let's be honest, most of us expected something would happen. What happened in 1966-67 robbed the music world of not only possibly the best album ever released but also decades of music from one of the very, very few bona fide genii in the pop/rock field. Brian was never the same after Smile was scrapped. There were odd sparks and flarings of the flame, but compared to the upwards curve of 1963-66, it was dim stuff. Nothing compares. Nothing ever will.

That the band not only survived that but also came to produce music of genuine quality is hugely to their credit. But just imagine what could have been. The two saddest words in the English language: if only...

Fair enough. My opinion might be slightly coloured by the fact that I ended up missing the 2012 live shows entirely, with my son's birth coinciding with the RAH date. My only chance of ever seeing a full Beach Boys line-up gone, forever!

Same here, our sons must be pretty much the same age! I'd have loved to see them all together and would have made the trek to London (I might have JUST managed if they'd played in Manchester) but there was no way with the timings. And then they were gone...

Back to the original question, for me it's a tie between the abandonment of Smile, for the reasons AGD just mentioned, along with the mid-70s power shift to Mike after Endless Summer. Two times when they were making great music but were yanked backwards by cowardice/greed.

I could probably have made Manchester or somewhere else on any day but the 27th. As much as I can look back at that with disappointment (regret would be the wrong word, I was exactly where I should have been), I'm pleased to say that with almost no intentional indoctrination, my son's favorite song is "Beach Boys" (by which he means "Do It Again").

More generally I do think it's a shame that they didn't fit in a few more dates in England, even within a fixed term reunion scenario.

They played Wembley the next night. Really, some people just don't try hard enoughGrin

You're right, of course. I could technically have made that and not missed the main event. Although my marriage might have then ended as messily as that tour did!
23  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: What is the most devasting moment in the band's career? on: May 12, 2015, 05:14:58 AM
Have to politely disagree - 2012 was the last kick of a dying bull. Let's be honest, most of us expected something would happen. What happened in 1966-67 robbed the music world of not only possibly the best album ever released but also decades of music from one of the very, very few bona fide genii in the pop/rock field. Brian was never the same after Smile was scrapped. There were odd sparks and flarings of the flame, but compared to the upwards curve of 1963-66, it was dim stuff. Nothing compares. Nothing ever will.

That the band not only survived that but also came to produce music of genuine quality is hugely to their credit. But just imagine what could have been. The two saddest words in the English language: if only...

Fair enough. My opinion might be slightly coloured by the fact that I ended up missing the 2012 live shows entirely, with my son's birth coinciding with the RAH date. My only chance of ever seeing a full Beach Boys line-up gone, forever!

24  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: What is the most devasting moment in the band's career? on: May 12, 2015, 04:11:05 AM
The most devastating moment to me is the breakdown / non-extension of the C50 reunion. For a brief moment I think the Beach Boys took back their rightful place as one of the greatest and biggest popular music groups of all time. Brian reclaimed his legacy as a Beach Boy, the world heard how incredible Al's voice is, the catalogue got a wider airing, Mike was winning people over with all of his best talents, they put out an album to rival anything they'd done since at least 1977, David was back in the fold etc, etc. The possibilities that could have followed that period were huge. And then? They chucked it all away. THAT was devastating.

To my mind, as much as I wish Smile had been completed and released, it's shelving led to some of my favourite Beach Boys records (the run from Smiley Smile to Love You is my favourite decade of Beach Boys music). So I find it hard to see Smile's abandonment as being as devastating as some others do. Dennis' decline and the all too early passing of both him and Carl are clearly devastating, but in terms things within the realms of control, the end of C50 seems to me to be the most devastating 'event' of any that I can think of.

25  Smiley Smile Stuff / General On Topic Discussions / Re: Mike announces Dave will be joining him for three Beach Boys shows on: October 07, 2014, 05:14:14 AM
I quite like the idea of Mike opening the doors Brian, Al and Dave permanently, even on his own terms. Clearly there are some major financial complications with that, but my view is that if Al or Brian want to perform as Beach Boys, they should be able to.

I can't see another C50 happening as it did, but perhaps Brian and Mike could make a deal - Mike continues to run the live show but incorporates Brian and Al into it, whilst Brian holds control over anything they opt to do in the studio. In practice that means Mike drops his issue over writing with Brian but keeps his live show the way he wants it, whilst Brian sticks to what he knows and enjoys best without having to take leads on the majority of songs in a live show. That's the best of all world's isn't it?

It'd probably not work out financially and Brian might not have any interest in touring at the rate Mike does, but in theory it seems like a workable compromise. It'd have the benefit of having the live shows covered by multiple primary vocalists and in an era where the guys are getting old, poses much less of a problem should someone take ill, lose their voice or injure their knee whilst inexplicably jumping during I Get Around.

I'd like to think that a deal made on that basis would eventually lead to a more varied set list and some greater involvement for Mike in terms of song writing, but with both happening in a natural way rather than through a forced compromise that neither part would be truly happy with.
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