Analysis of the Live 50th Anniversary Tour CD

[rab2591]

This thread isn't actually making me regret I didn't buy this...

Same here, Micha. I have yet to decide whether I will purchase it, but I am not really thinking of running to my retailer.

I am sad to say this.

It's really worth getting if only for the tracklist from 'California Saga' to 'Help Me Rhonda' - the vocals and instrumentals in that section are incredible.

It was disappointing for a Live release, but far better than what I expected.

[joshferrell]

yeah I too noticed that "Good Vibrations" was sped up, to me it sounds unnatural and the drum beats sounded too fast in it..

[Generation42]

GOOD VIBRATIONS

In any case, with the exception of the female vocals at the end, this is a good recording overall, and it's true to the Chiba performance.

Agreed and thanks for the in-depth discussion.

Early on, I read a couple (not many, but a couple) of remarks against "Good Vibrations" from this disc, but when I sat down and had a listen, I personally found it to be pretty good.  Other than the "sing-along," my only real issue comes during the moments the band falls prey to rushing the tempo slightly.  Coming from musicians with their kind of chops, I was a little surprised to hear this, but to tell the truth, it's not enough to detract from the performance in any serious way.

Oh, and thank goodness Brian's "Clap!, clap!" was excised!  A shame about "...we find," though.  That and the flutes.

[Pretty Funky]

GOOD VIBRATIONS

Oh, and thank goodness Brian's "Clap!, clap!" was excised! 

Ok ok...........so I'm on my own on this one!

[Generation42]

GOOD VIBRATIONS

Oh, and thank goodness Brian's "Clap!, clap!" was excised! 

Ok ok...........so I'm on my own on this one!

Yup.  Marooned all alone on Pleasure Island, which, as it turns out, is really just 45 minutes of Brian's helpful hints on proper clapping technique.   

[AlFall]

I'm wondering if "Sail On, Sailor" is the same performance that was included in that iTunes EP Isn't It Time single. There are parts of it that sound identical.

SAIL ON SAILOR is from Chiba. It's slowed down about 5% without changing the pitch and like Heroes and Villains, the rate of slowdown changes in each section of the song.  Brian's vocal is identical to the Chiba tape. 

Again I wonder why the engineers thought it was necessary to change the tempo.   To my ears, it doesn't sound better slowed down.

Hopefully, everybody understands that my nit-picking is not some kind of back-breaking criticism of this track or the CD.  I have had to mix audio in the past, and I know how hard it is.  I've really enjoyed the CD and recommend it.

[AlFall]

GOOD VIBRATIONS

Oh, and thank goodness Brian's "Clap!, clap!" was excised! 

Ok ok...........so I'm on my own on this one!

Yup.  Marooned all alone on Pleasure Island, which, as it turns out, is really just 45 minutes of Brian's helpful hints on proper clapping technique.   

Perfectly valid opinion - that things that are in the live show should not be removed.   

[Melt Away]

Listened to the whole thing. I tried so hard to like it but DAMN are those vocals processed to sh*t! Why?! I could handle the mild auto tune on TWGMTR but this sounds like the work of some dumb tween's first dubstep demo. It's pretty bad. At times I would even Invision huge, titanium robot BB's awkwardly girating as they begin to spark and smoke. It's just too much! How this got released is beyond me. (DBD, DIA, ASM...just a few of many that are unbelievably bad.)

[Iron Horse-Apples]

Listened to the whole thing. I tried so hard to like it but DAMN are those vocals processed to sh*t! Why?! I could handle the mild auto tune on TWGMTR but this sounds like the work of some dumb tween's first dubstep demo. It's pretty bad. At times I would even Invision huge, titanium robot BB's awkwardly girating as they begin to spark and smoke. It's just too much! How this got released is beyond me. (DBD, DIA, ASM...just a few of many that are unbelievably bad.)

I'm just so pleased we're got this far on both live album threads without the dreaded "H" word being used. I really think we all deserve a pat on the back.

[Rocky Raccoon]

The thing that really bugs me about the autotune is that it's lazy.  If a vocal performance is unsatisfactory, go into the studio and overdub it until you get it right.  Or look for a performance of that particular song that might have been better.

[AlFall]

DISNEY GIRLS

If you are hoping for biting, back-breaking, Judge-Judy-type criticism of this CD, you will not find it on this post.  I am going to gush heaping praise on this track for many reasons, not the least of which is that my voice is clearly heard on it at least twice.

Disney Girls is of course from Grand Prairie - that was easy to spot, as Bruce added  "a smaller Texas town" to the lyric.  It's 100% pure, un-dubbed, un-edited, un-tempo-changed Bruce and the Beach Boys, from the second show of the tour that I had the great fortune of attending.  Early in the tour, the VIP Nation meet-and-greet packages were not selling well. I bought the $200 soundcheck package, which included early entry, attending the soundcheck, and a ticket in the first 10 rows.  After a brief 4 pm check-in, I was delighted to hear that everyone who bought the soundcheck package would also get to do the meet-and-greet, perhaps the bargain of the century.  As the word got out that the shows were great, they had little trouble selling the VIP packages.

At about 5 pm, I and my fellow 40-or-so VIP patrons were escorted into the Verizon Theater, and there they were on stage, the heroes of my childhood. It was the real Brian Wilson. He was actually working again with Mike Love.  It was hard to believe, but there they were on stage together.  These early soundchecks were actually rehearsals. (I attended the soundcheck 6 weeks later at Round Rocks, and this was more of an informal performance, with announcements before each song.)  There was no doubt that some tension was present, as two separate bands (Brian's band and the Mike/Bruce/Scott band) were coming together. They started by rehearsing the transitions between the car songs at the end of Act I.  Then came a rehearsal of Sail on Sailor. Brian's speaker under his piano was not operational, so he sang the track badly out of tune. (This is not a criticism of Brian; I can't sing this complex song a cappella either.)  They stopped just before the end of the song, debating how it should end.  Scott demonstrated a possible ending, which I thought was a bit more complicated than necessary.  Then Darian quietly and humbly said, "ok, as a suggestion only, this is how Brian does it", then he played another possible ending, which I thought was a lot better. Afterward I yelled, "Do it that way!"  Melinda Wilson, sitting two rows behind me, yelled to me, "thank you!"  Scott then said, "ok, that way it is."  For the rest of the tour, Darian's ending was used.  What other Hall of Fame act would provide this kind of intimate access?

After the soundcheck/rehearsal, the 5 principals walked up in the aisle, positioned themselves in chairs  behind a "Beach Boys 50" backdrop, and posed for pictures.  Bruce apologized in a way, saying, "oh, don't worry, the show sounds better than the soundcheck", to which I replied, "well, that soundcheck sounded pretty damn good", to which Bruce replied, "well thanks!"   He was very gracious and accessible.  Brian said, "we're not signing anything" - a policy that was made clear when we bought the VIP packages.  After a few minutes, it was my turn. I positioned myself between Mike and Brian, with Bruce, Al, and David, and they snapped a very good picture of the 6 of us.  Once again, I ask, what other Hall of Fame act would provide this kind of intimate access?

For the show, I was sitting in row 4, right in front of Bruce. I was very impressed with Bruce at the soundcheck.  On the CD, at the end of When I Grow Up to Be a Man, Mike introduces Bruce. His spoken lines are from at least 3 different shows, but his section is from Texas:

2:26: Mike: He got the Grammy for the song that Barry Manilow is most famous for, "I Write The Songs".
2:31: Me: Yeaaaaaaaah!!!!!! (heard very loudly in the right speaker, the loudest single audience member utterance on the album)

Of course, admitting to this means that I actually cheered the mention of Barry Manilow!  

How do I know it's me?  I started taking a cell phone video as Mike was introducing Bruce. As I was sitting in row 4 on the aisle, a big and scary woman usher told me to turn off my cell phone.  I put it into my front shirt pocket without turning off the recording.   The video is dark, and the audio is cruddy, but there is no doubt, the Bruce/Barry fan is me.

Perhaps I'm one of those psycho fans that thinks a band is singing only to me.  On a personal note, I was going through a divorce on this night in Texas.  When Bruce started singing - I was a few yards in front of him - I listened carefully to the lyrics.  This song sounds so much better when sung by an old man, especially the line, "I guess I'm slowing down."   It's as if Bruce wrote the song in 1971, knowing that its ultimate rendition would be 41 years later. His voice sounds breathy and distant - "distant" like it's coming from a great beyond, like a dearly departed grandfather, reminding me that, despite my current pain, I should remember the good times.   Remember the great times of childhood, of Disneyland, summer picnics, and the simple things of life. It really made me think.  The Good Vibrations of the show - pardon the pun - re-affirmed to me, in my darkest of times, that life is worth living.

To make a long story short, 6 weeks later, my wife and I celebrated our reconciliation by flying to Colorado and attending the soundcheck and show at Red Rocks.  I  enjoyed that show even more than Grand Prairie, as if that were possible.

Did the Beach Boys save my marriage?  I don't know.  But they sure as hell didn't hurt.

Thanks to Brian, Mike, Al, David, and Bruce for a beautiful and inspirational evening. Call me a psycho fan, but sometimes, music can elevate the soul and make a big difference in an ordinary life.

[Iron Horse-Apples]

Great story, and glad your marriage is reconciled 

[Melt Away]

I really dig this thread! To anyone who doesn't own the album and is curious just sign up for Spotify and you'll have access!

Listened to the whole thing. I tried so hard to like it but DAMN are those vocals processed to sh*t! Why?! I could handle the mild auto tune on TWGMTR but this sounds like the work of some dumb tween's first dubstep demo. It's pretty bad. At times I would even Invision huge, titanium robot BB's awkwardly girating as they begin to spark and smoke. It's just too much! How this got released is beyond me. (DBD, DIA, ASM...just a few of many that are unbelievably bad.)

I'm just so pleased we're got this far on both live album threads without the dreaded "H" word being used. I really think we all deserve a pat on the back.

[Dave Modny]

SAIL ON SAILOR is from Chiba. It's slowed down about 5% without changing the pitch and like Heroes and Villains, the rate of slowdown changes in each section of the song.  Brian's vocal is identical to the Chiba tape.  

I think it might be even more complicated than that, in terms of how the vocal may have been stitched together. Here's a few examples below where I have to question just how identical it actually is, and I'm honestly interested in what anyone else might make of this...because I don't know what the hell to make of it...lol.

For the non-CD, "Chiba recording" Brian says his first "Sail On Sailor" on the *upbeat* of the first note in the measure (approx. at the 26 second mark of the Chiba mp3 below), whereas on the new CD he says it on the *downbeat* of the first note in the measure. That is, it's phrased differently on the latter. Thus, they would've had to digitally re-align them to make them match, and I'm still not sure that would make them the same. Also, for the Chiba performance, he says the correct "often frightened, unenlightened," whereas on the new CD it's closer to an "often frightened, uninvited (or something blurry along those lines)." The vocal on the non-CD "Chiba recording" is doubled as well, so unless that's just a manifestation of one of the doubled vocals, that really shouldn't affect the above. Also, Brian's last word (i.e. "sail") of the "alone but I sail" line clearly dips in pitch on the non-CD recording (whereas it's "straight" on the CD...and not just in some kind of autotune way). There's a few other examples as well that seem to raise some flags.

Now, I'll admit I haven't gone through every bit of the entire song to see if there's any sections that might indeed be direct from Chiba, but at least with the above, I think there's a few question marks. No? Am I nuts...lol?



Any other thoughts welcome, of course.


Sail On Sailor - The 50th Anniversary Tour CD:

http://www.lukpac.org/~dave/Sail%20On%20Sailor%20-%2050th%20Anniversary%20Tour%20CD.mp3



Sail On Sailor - Chiba, Japan:

http://www.lukpac.org/~dave/Sail%20On%20Sailor%20-%20Chiba,%20Japan.mp3

[Andrew G. Doe]

Listened to the whole thing. I tried so hard to like it but DAMN are those vocals processed to sh*t! Why?! I could handle the mild auto tune on TWGMTR but this sounds like the work of some dumb tween's first dubstep demo. It's pretty bad. At times I would even Invision huge, titanium robot BB's awkwardly girating as they begin to spark and smoke. It's just too much! How this got released is beyond me. (DBD, DIA, ASM...just a few of many that are unbelievably bad.)

I'm just so pleased we're got this far on both live album threads without the dreaded "H" word being used. I really think we all deserve a pat on the back.

Confused, West Surrey...

[Iron Horse-Apples]

Listened to the whole thing. I tried so hard to like it but DAMN are those vocals processed to sh*t! Why?! I could handle the mild auto tune on TWGMTR but this sounds like the work of some dumb tween's first dubstep demo. It's pretty bad. At times I would even Invision huge, titanium robot BB's awkwardly girating as they begin to spark and smoke. It's just too much! How this got released is beyond me. (DBD, DIA, ASM...just a few of many that are unbelievably bad.)

I'm just so pleased we're got this far on both live album threads without the dreaded "H" word being used. I really think we all deserve a pat on the back.

Confused, West Surrey...

hater

[Theydon Bois]

SAIL ON SAILOR is from Chiba. It's slowed down about 5% without changing the pitch and like Heroes and Villains, the rate of slowdown changes in each section of the song.  Brian's vocal is identical to the Chiba tape.  

I think it might be even more complicated than that, in terms of how the vocal may have been stitched together. Here's a few examples below where I have to question just how identical it actually is, and I'm honestly interested in what anyone else might make of this...because I don't know what the hell to make of it...lol.

For the non-CD, "Chiba recording" Brian says his first "Sail On Sailor" on the *upbeat* of the first note in the measure (approx. at the 26 second mark of the Chiba mp3 below), whereas on the new CD he says it on the *downbeat* of the first note in the measure. That is, it's phrased differently on the latter. Thus, they would've had to digitally re-align them to make them match, and I'm still not sure that would make them the same. Also, for the Chiba performance, he says the correct "often frightened, unenlightened," whereas on the new CD it's closer to an "often frightened, uninvited (or something blurry along those lines)." The vocal on the non-CD "Chiba recording" is doubled as well, so unless that's just a manifestation of one of the doubled vocals, that really shouldn't affect the above. Also, Brian's last word (i.e. "sail") of the "alone but I sail" line clearly dips in pitch on the non-CD recording (whereas it's "straight" on the CD...and not just in some kind of autotune way). There's a few other examples as well that seem to raise some flags.

Now, I'll admit I haven't gone through every bit of the entire song to see if there's any sections that might indeed be direct from Chiba, but at least with the above, I think there's a few question marks. No? Am I nuts...lol?



Any other thoughts welcome, of course.


Sail On Sailor - The 50th Anniversary Tour CD:

http://www.lukpac.org/~dave/Sail%20On%20Sailor%20-%2050th%20Anniversary%20Tour%20CD.mp3



Sail On Sailor - Chiba, Japan:

http://www.lukpac.org/~dave/Sail%20On%20Sailor%20-%20Chiba,%20Japan.mp3

I think that you're on to something here; there are clear differences between the guitar licks that pop up between the lines of the middle eight too.  I suspect that "Sail On Sailor" from the CD is edited together from more than one performance, which may explain the artificial slowing of the tempo of the Chiba sections (to match them to the tempo of whichever other version(s) got used?).

(Incidentally, I note you're using www.lukpac.org - are you anything to do with that fantastic Zappa Vinyl Vs CDs page?  That's one of my favourite things on the entire internet.)

[Dave Modny]

(Incidentally, I note you're using www.lukpac.org - are you anything to do with that fantastic Zappa Vinyl Vs CDs page?  That's one of my favourite things on the entire internet.)

That's actually the work of a couple of other folks.  LP's just a good friend who lets me leech some of his server space.

[Generation42]

GOOD VIBRATIONS

Oh, and thank goodness Brian's "Clap!, clap!" was excised! 

Ok ok...........so I'm on my own on this one!

Yup.  Marooned all alone on Pleasure Island, which, as it turns out, is really just 45 minutes of Brian's helpful hints on proper clapping technique.   

Perfectly valid opinion - that things that are in the live show should not be removed.   

Aw, man, I'm just trying to have a little fun with Pretty Funky, is all.

[AlFall]

PET SOUNDS

Pet Sounds is from Phoenix, presented for the first time on this CD, as this track was not on last year's live DVD.  Audiences who attended shows in the latter part of  in the tour (staring with Bangor, Maine on June 22) were treated to a great performance of this instrumental from its classic namesake album.  I would argue that it rocks quite a bit harder and is a more exciting recording than the album cut.  Although it may have been the best recording of this track from the tour (according to the engineers), I believe David performed it better in later shows, particularly two nights later at Red Rocks.

I would like to give kudos to David Marks and Johnny Cowsill.  The Beach Boys are not a lead-guitar-up-front band like Zeppelin or The Who, but if they were, David could easily fill the role.  He is a master of the surf guitar lick, but he proved time and time again that he could crank out wailing rock riffs as well.  I wish he were louder in the mix at the shows and on this CD, but I do understand that the Beach Boys are a vocal harmony band, and it's the backing vocals that are going to be up front in the mix.  (Maybe they could let Phil Spector out of prison for a few days, so he can mix these tracks so everything is loud?) 

Cowsill's drumming was consistently, flawlessly excellent throughout the tour.  Unlike most live CDs, very little editing or studio overdubbing was necessary on the backing tracks on this release, as the backing band performed without error almost every night.  He played in nearly perfect synchronization with the other percussionists and consistently provided a steady tempo foundation without overplaying.  He proves on this track that he can be loud and powerful.   When a band sounds great, and is a hit with a younger crowd like the cheering throngs at Bonnaroo, I look first at the drummer, as he's usually the guy who is playing so well that it makes everybody else sound great.

There are only two strange edits on this track, at 1:12 and 1:50, where a single note from David is delayed one second vs. the live YouTube video. Other than that, there is no editing or overdubbing.  As I say, it was not necessary.

[LdC]

I have listened through and I really like this. Highlights are Getcha Back, Disney Girls and Pet Sounds. Al's leads also sound fantastic. All in all a good keepsake from a great tour.

[Ziggy Stardust]

I have listened through and I really like this. Highlights are Getcha Back, Disney Girls and Pet Sounds. Al's leads also sound fantastic. All in all a good keepsake from a great tour.

As for me, these are pretty much the only listenable songs from that album.

[Pretty Funky]

Whats happened to AlFall the last few days? I've been enjoying his breakdown of the C50 album and showing us how much of a poor job JT has done with autotune and using other tracks.

Have the suits at Capitol sided with Joe and taken action or what?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bdwIh7waqc

[Andrew G. Doe]

Some folk here have this thing called "a life". Me, I wouldn't know about something like that. 

[Micha]

yeah I too noticed that "Good Vibrations" was sped up, to me it sounds unnatural and the drum beats sounded too fast in it..

"Isn't It Time" would sound better sped up, both live and on the studio record.

"Isn't It Time" - Chiba, Japan:

http://www.lukpac.org/~dave/Isn%27t%20It%20Time%20-%20Chiba,%20Japan.mp3

Somehow I don't like the way that sounds...