The Stephen Desper Thread

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

I finally got a chance to sit down and experience these.  There is really no greater gift that I could be given than isolated elements from Beach Boys recordings.  I can't thank you enough.

 

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

This really is like a dream come true.  I mean, my God.

[Dunderhead]

This really is like a dream come true.  I mean, my God.

[SloopJohnB]

I'm going to use a word that's been used so much that it has unfortunately lost some of it strength: this is mindblowing. Hearing all those parts and learning about "the technical side" of it at the same time is absolutely fantastic and I have to say those were 40 minutes I thoroughly enjoyed.

Thank you so much to both of you, Stephen and Will, for making this available to us. I won't be able to hear CCW in the same way from now on. Hell, even water might not taste the same. (I drank a glass of water after watching the video, and on this hot summer day... It was such a gas.)

The bonus video is very interesting as well, it really added the "depth" the song desperately needed! I'd love to have such a device.

[PS]

Oh, to hear all of the great Sunflower tracks with this kind of sonic illumination...Sunflower still remains one of the most beautiful sounding records ever made, by anyone. A magic cloud of sound, the absolute pinnacle of background vocal heaven. Thank you, Stephen.

I know your views on 5.1, but "still i dream of it," as the song goes...

In some ways, your Vimeo walk through the forests and streams was a more illuminating adventure into the depths of the Beach Boys' aural murals than TSS...

[metal flake paint]

Gentlemen, thank you very much for the wonderful listening/viewing privilege.

[Billgoodman]

This was great...Thank you so much! Should be put on dvd in the new boxset. It's way more rewarding than just a session put on cd.

BTW, I've seen one video, but 2 passwords. Does it mean there are already more videos? Don't want to be impatient, but material like this, get's you craving for more.

[SloopJohnB]

This was great...Thank you so much! Should be put on dvd in the new boxset. It's way more rewarding than just a session put on cd.

BTW, I've seen one video, but 2 passwords. Does it mean there are already more videos? Don't want to be impatient, but material like this, get's you craving for more.

Under the CCW video, there's a link to a bonus video. That's where the second password comes handy. 

[Stephen W. Desper]

This was great...Thank you so much! Should be put on dvd in the new boxset. It's way more rewarding than just a session put on cd.

BTW, I've seen one video, but 2 passwords. Does it mean there are already more videos? Don't want to be impatient, but material like this, get's you craving for more.

COMMENT:

As long as everyone respects the "Guidelines for Use" and as long as the copyright holder doesn't object, you can look forward to other study-videos of other songs being released from time to time. Notices will appear on this thread.

~swd

[Myk Luhv]

This is more of a personal-professional question I guess: Mr. Desper, are you still an active audio engineer or have you retired? I feel like the latter's the case but I'm not totally sure... I ask for no reason beyond curiosity!

[punkinhead]

anyone havin trouble with the password? I've tried typing it in many different ways, caps on beginning words, quotes used, no caps, 1 space, no space?

[pixletwin]

I entered them in exactly as they appear on his profile. Maybe your caps button is on?

[FatherOfTheMan Sr101]

anyone havin trouble with the password? I've tried typing it in many different ways, caps on beginning words, quotes used, no caps, 1 space, no space?

I had trouble at first, it's pretty sensitive

[punkinhead]

enter with quotes? with caps?

[pixletwin]

enter with quotes? with caps?

Enter it exactly as it is on his profile with no quotation marks.

[punkinhead]

finally got it

[Stephen W. Desper]

This is more of a personal-professional question I guess: Mr. Desper, are you still an active audio engineer or have you retired? I feel like the latter's the case but I'm not totally sure... I ask for no reason beyond curiosity!

COMMENT:  My tax return says I'm retired, but I'm busy as always. If the Beach Boys called, I'd go. Otherwise, I do what I want, and right now it's following through on some of these mixes that just are stuck in stereo. I've always been an active person, so I am building some sound suites for people, a couple of sound reinforcement systems, and this current project via Vimeo. I'd love to do some analog sessions. The last one I did was at the Shrine Auditorium in LA, mixing a 110 piece symphony orchestra used to put on a show and make a TV DVD. Eight camera shot with about 40 channels to mix. That was fun ! Did the surround mix at Sony Pictures.   

~swd

[seltaeb1012002]

If the Beach Boys called, I'd go.

Wow. Now THAT'S a reunion I'd love to see.

[Ron]

Stephen.  Thank you for making that video.  I've loved that song since the first time I heard it, about 10 years ago.  I've listened to it hundreds of times... I always thought it was one of their masterpieces, but very underappreciated outside of the fanatics.  Your video was jawdropping.  Even though I've heard it over and over, and I'm the type that loves to sing along, I found at least 2 vocals I had never heard before in the mix!  The first is amazingly the "Drip Drip Drip Drip" part.  I can't believe I never noticed that, because it's pretty prominent.  One more thing I can sing along with.  The best, though, is the "WATER, WATER!" part at the end by Bruce and Alan (I believe you said).  I absolutely love that, I'll never hear the song the same now that I know that's there.  So fantastic.

Here's the deal; you're obviously very proud of this song, as you should be.  I don't know how we can express to you with words what you and the boys did with beautiful music, so i'll try to use an analogy, I hope it hits the mark.




A few years ago, I saw this documentary about a woman who's daughter had passed away in a state park.  They said it was an accident, she said it was murder.  Anyways, she sued the police department, and for 15 years fought them, accused them of neglect, malpractice, everything you can think of.  After 15 years of lawsuits, she finally won.  The judge ordered that the police department release all the evidence it had collected in her daughters death to her and her lawyers.

What she thought was neglect, consisted of thousands of pages of detective work the city had done for her daughter.  In the evidence were videos of the police on their hands and knees crawling through the park she passed away in... people she had never known spent days literally crawling through the dirt trying to find blood drops, or evidence somebody may have missed, just to help her daughter.

So the point is; she thought the police department had just ignored her daughter's death, and were incompetent.  The opposite was true.  They did everything they physically could to solve that crime, and worked just as hard as she would have to try and help her and her daughter.  After all those years the mother couldn't stand the beauty of it.  What she had thought she knew for so long was only 1 small piece of what actually happened, when all the information was available to her she was overwhelmed by the beauty of it.  When she saw the whole story of what had happened, she finally understood what was going on; she understood how the police officers and detectives felt; she understood why these people had taken the jobs they had, and understood just how hard they had worked for her daughter.  When she saw that; she was finally able to come to terms with her loss. 

So it is with this song!  We certainly haven't lost anybody, but it's the best analogy I can think of to explain how it feels to love something, and to have nobody else 'get' it... and then years later be offered the rest of the story. 

After all these years, you've opened the evidence locker and showed us every little loving piece.  This wasn't just a vocal exercise gone cool.  This wasn't just Brian's mad variation on a theme.  This was nothing short of the Beach Boys doing everything they physically could to make great music for us: the fans.  And 45 years later; you're doing your part to share some of that with us, the fans.

I can't thank you enough.  

[Sie W]

After watching the video, I was reminded that the noise imitating the waves crashing is used to a similar effect by Jean Michel Jarre on the 1977 track Oxygène (Part VI). it's sped up a bit on Oxygène, but still sound very similar to me.

Many thanks to Stephen and Will C. for giving up time and patience in getting these videos on line for us fans.

[Stephen W. Desper]

After watching the video, I was reminded that the noise imitating the waves crashing is used to a similar effect by Jean Michel Jarre on the 1977 track Oxygène (Part VI). it's sped up a bit on Oxygène, but still sound very similar to me.

Many thanks to Stephen and Will C. for giving up time and patience in getting these videos on line for us fans.

COMMENT:  Ocean sounds during commentary . . .  one of my favorite ocean recordings.

Psychologically Ultimate Seashore >>> http://www.amazon.com/Environments-1-Psychologically-Ultimate-Seashore/dp/B000002ILB

~swd

[Sie W]

After watching the video, I was reminded that the noise imitating the waves crashing is used to a similar effect by Jean Michel Jarre on the 1977 track Oxygène (Part VI). it's sped up a bit on Oxygène, but still sound very similar to me.

Many thanks to Stephen and Will C. for giving up time and patience in getting these videos on line for us fans.

COMMENT:  Ocean sounds during commentary . . .  one of my favorite ocean recordings.

Psychologically Ultimate Seashore >>> http://www.amazon.com/Environments-1-Psychologically-Ultimate-Seashore/dp/B000002ILB

~swd

Many thanks Stephen. Found Psychologically Ultimate Seashore  for 69p, just one track an hour long!

>>>  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Disc-1-Psychologically-Ultimate-Seashore/dp/B001F4FNVQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345651755&sr=8-1

Have 80 odd pence left at Amazon, hmmmm.

[petsite]

Steve, didn't know if you saw my post, but I was wondering if you worked with Carl putting Ten Years Of Harmony compliation together? Thank you in advance for your time.

Bob

[Stephen W. Desper]

Steve, didn't know if you saw my post, but I was wondering if you worked with Carl putting Ten Years Of Harmony compliation together? Thank you in advance for your time.

Bob

COMMENT: No. ~swd

[punkinhead]

sounds great! good work!