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Author Topic: Some questions about TWGMTR ...  (Read 16381 times)
Wirestone
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« on: September 23, 2014, 07:23:46 PM »

A little experiment to try.

Listen to "Think About the Days," "The Private Life of Bill and Sue," "Strange World" and "Pacific Coast Highway." Try to listen without any preconceptions about what you're hearing, about who might be singing. Listen a couple of times if needed.

Now. Answer this question: Can you hear any audible evidence that any member of the band besides Brian (and, of course, Jeff) is singing on any of those tracks?

I can't.

Next experiment. Listen to "Shelter," "Beaches In Mind" and "Summer's Gone." Besides Mike's small parts on the first and last of those, and his verse leads on the middle one, do you hear any audible evidence of any other member of the band (besides BW and JF)?

Next experiment. We know that "Isn't It Time" was a last-minute addition to the album, recorded with all the guys together. Now, listen to that. Notice how the harmonies are ragged. Notice how you can hear several different voices throughout, and on the harmony parts. That strikes me as being a genuine group recording. And it sounds radically different from anything else on the record.

The TWGMTR album, with a couple of exceptions, was mostly written and recorded before the rest of the group was involved. We already know this. We also know that Brian and Jeff had laid down the preliminary background parts themselves.

When the other band members comeon board, they clearly need some lead vocal slots. So you have Mike and Al and Bruce pop up here and there on the record. But what if, rather than going in and replacing all of those Brian and Jeff backing parts one-by-one, it was decided to just leave them there? Who would know? Who would tell?

Well, maybe it would be Mike, who has been griping about the album's recording for a long time. Maybe it would be some of the other band members, who never seemed to know any of the tracks besides the two singles or songs that they tried fruitlessly to get on the record.

I wonder. And the more I listen to TWGMTR, the more I wonder.
« Last Edit: September 23, 2014, 07:26:00 PM by Wirestone » Logged
the captain
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« Reply #1 on: September 23, 2014, 07:35:50 PM »

I'm of the same mind. For whatever reason--time, politics, ease, quality--it seems to me that non-Brian BBs are strategically plugged in to make a Beach Boys record.
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« Reply #2 on: September 23, 2014, 07:41:38 PM »

It becomes especially apparent when you realize that Brian is singing bass parts on the record. Notably Spring Vacation and Strange World.
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« Reply #3 on: September 23, 2014, 07:54:54 PM »

I hear Al & Bruce on "Think About The Days".. no Mike though.

Either way, definitely makes you look at the album in a different light.

edit: Meh, I still think I hear em all over the album.  The bass part on "Strange World" sounds like Mike to me. And that harmony "ahh" that pans before the last chorus (as well as several other little harmony spots throughout the album) has some non-BW/Foskett tones to it.
« Last Edit: September 23, 2014, 08:05:25 PM by seltaeb1012002 » Logged
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« Reply #4 on: September 23, 2014, 07:55:53 PM »

I've no doubt that Brian and Jeff sing a majority of the parts on many of the songs, especially in the suite. But I can clearly hear the other guys on "Bill and Sue", especially in the a cappella-ish break. And they're all on "Think About The Days", at least a little (again, there may be multiple Jeffs on there - but I hear more Al and Bruce on that one than I do Brian, and I hear a little of Mike's tenor as well, but not his bass - or any bass part at all, for that matter, which is the one thing that bugs me about that song...well, that and the obvious autotune).

« Last Edit: September 23, 2014, 07:57:11 PM by c-man » Logged
Wirestone
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« Reply #5 on: September 23, 2014, 08:23:56 PM »

As ever, Craig sounds more reasoned than I do. I was genuinely curious to hear what other people thought.

Clearly there are a handful of tunes where the guys do a fair bit (the title track, Isn't It Time, From There to Back Again), but on much of the rest of the album I'm finding it hard to shake the impression -- a couple of years after the fact -- that it was a bit of a put-on.

Clearly it made Brian more comfortable to do it that way, but it also suggests the reunion was a much more limited affair than we supposed at the time. At least in the studio.
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« Reply #6 on: September 23, 2014, 11:03:08 PM »

It's true that Brian and Jeff cover most of the vocals. But "Think About the Days" and "The Private Life of Bill and Sue" definetely have the whole band, or at least I can hear Al and Bruce pretty clearly. And still, to me That's Why God Made the Radio is the closest thing to a sole group record they've come up with after 15 Big Ones, not composition wise, but the fact that they're all there together.
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« Reply #7 on: September 23, 2014, 11:21:06 PM »

A little experiment to try.

Listen to "Think About the Days," "The Private Life of Bill and Sue," "Strange World" and "Pacific Coast Highway." Try to listen without any preconceptions about what you're hearing, about who might be singing. Listen a couple of times if needed.

Now. Answer this question: Can you hear any audible evidence that any member of the band besides Brian (and, of course, Jeff) is singing on any of those tracks?

I can't.

I hear Alan & Bruce (the falsetto) on "TATD". Mike on bass on "TPLOBAS"

Question for you: do you hear Brian on "Daybreak" ? Or Bruce ?

« Last Edit: September 23, 2014, 11:22:31 PM by The Legendary AGD » Logged

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« Reply #8 on: September 24, 2014, 12:08:15 AM »

A little experiment to try.

Listen to "Think About the Days," "The Private Life of Bill and Sue," "Strange World" and "Pacific Coast Highway." Try to listen without any preconceptions about what you're hearing, about who might be singing. Listen a couple of times if needed.

Now. Answer this question: Can you hear any audible evidence that any member of the band besides Brian (and, of course, Jeff) is singing on any of those tracks?

I can't.

Next experiment. Listen to "Shelter," "Beaches In Mind" and "Summer's Gone." Besides Mike's small parts on the first and last of those, and his verse leads on the middle one, do you hear any audible evidence of any other member of the band (besides BW and JF)?

Next experiment. We know that "Isn't It Time" was a last-minute addition to the album, recorded with all the guys together. Now, listen to that. Notice how the harmonies are ragged. Notice how you can hear several different voices throughout, and on the harmony parts. That strikes me as being a genuine group recording. And it sounds radically different from anything else on the record.

The TWGMTR album, with a couple of exceptions, was mostly written and recorded before the rest of the group was involved. We already know this. We also know that Brian and Jeff had laid down the preliminary background parts themselves.

When the other band members comeon board, they clearly need some lead vocal slots. So you have Mike and Al and Bruce pop up here and there on the record. But what if, rather than going in and replacing all of those Brian and Jeff backing parts one-by-one, it was decided to just leave them there? Who would know? Who would tell?

Well, maybe it would be Mike, who has been griping about the album's recording for a long time. Maybe it would be some of the other band members, who never seemed to know any of the tracks besides the two singles or songs that they tried fruitlessly to get on the record.

I wonder. And the more I listen to TWGMTR, the more I wonder.

I'm kind of surprised that you can't hear Mike's bass vocal on "The Private Life of Bill and Sue," and I'm pretty sure that's his bass on "Strange World," too.  I think you're right that Brian and Jeff take most of the vocals on more than a few songs, but the other members are definitely there.
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« Reply #9 on: September 24, 2014, 04:22:50 AM »

Like other posters, I hear more than just Brian and Jeff on the songs the OP mentioned. Not a true group effort, in that it's a pre-manufactured album from BW-JT (and JF vocally). But has there really been a true group effort in the last two or three decades? Notwithstanding the agenda he may have, Mike has a point when he claims a true, "normal", collaboration with Brian. This was not. Good album, nevertheless.
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« Reply #10 on: September 24, 2014, 04:23:20 AM »

Mike and Bruce are both very clearly audible on TPLOBAS. I hear Bruce on  TATD, too.
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« Reply #11 on: September 24, 2014, 06:32:09 AM »

I hear the real Beach Boys on most of the songs (and as some of you know, I've been pretty skeptical about some aspects of this record). I think this was the one thing that the producers made sure of, to make sure it sound like 'The Beach Boys'. There's an unmistakable BeachBoys-ness in the vocal tracks.

That said, I don't think it's anything new to have only one or two Beach Boys on a track. I can't hear a true BB blend in something like 'Sail on Sailor' or 'Full Sail'.
« Last Edit: September 24, 2014, 08:01:01 AM by DonnyL » Logged

Steve Latshaw
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« Reply #12 on: September 24, 2014, 07:36:48 AM »

Good point.  I think Sail On Sailor is largely Carl, Billy Hinsche, Gerry Beckley, right?

And Full Sail is a lot of Carl and Bruce
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« Reply #13 on: September 24, 2014, 07:39:32 AM »

I can definitely hear Bruce on “Think About the Days”, and what sounds like Mike in there too. Al is also perhaps the most identifiable there, doing the “doo-doo-doo” bits.

It certainly sounds like Al doing some of the “doo-doo-doo” bits in the backing on “Strange World” as well. Seriously, I wonder if Brian just *really* likes Al’s voice vocalizing “doo-doo” (fill in your own joke here folks). 

I think there is also video evidence of all the guys (or at least Brian, Mike, Al, and Bruce) doing the backing vocals to “Shelter.” I think that’s in the “Doin’ It Again” documentary. 

I just think on some of this stuff Jeff is doing a falsetto part and at least one if not more of the mid-range parts, so some stuff does have a “stack of Fosketts” sound even though the other guys are there to varying degrees.

There are definitely points where it’s a case of “oh yeah, *that’s* the Beach Boys singing”, such as the vocal intro to “Pacific Coast Highway.” The blend there is the closest to the 80’s/90’s Beach Boys blend. I can almost hear Carl in the stack on that one. Mike’s bass is strong, and that’s one where I can pick out all of the guys (again, barring Dave, who probably isn’t vocally prevalent on the album).
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« Reply #14 on: September 24, 2014, 11:10:02 AM »

Question for you: do you hear Brian on "Daybreak" ? Or Bruce ?

Only one I hear for certain is Al on the intro. At least that one has credits for a separate cast of background singers.

And no -- it doesn't sound like Mike on bass in TPLOBAS to me. Or really anywhere else other than Isn't It Time.
« Last Edit: September 24, 2014, 11:17:05 AM by Wirestone » Logged
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« Reply #15 on: September 24, 2014, 11:58:40 AM »

I swear I hear MIke doing his doo-wop bass thing on From Here To Back Again.
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« Reply #16 on: September 24, 2014, 12:32:57 PM »

Isnt it Caroline No all Brian? And GOK only Brian, Carl and Bruce? Thats not me only Brian and Mike?

I mean its pretty standard for BBs records not to employ fully all members. And if Pet Sounds can act as a baseline, then TWGMTR is as normal as any other BB record.

Nope?
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« Reply #17 on: September 24, 2014, 12:47:10 PM »

Next experiment. We know that "Isn't It Time" was a last-minute addition to the album, recorded with all the guys together. Now, listen to that. Notice how the harmonies are ragged. Notice how you can hear several different voices throughout, and on the harmony parts. That strikes me as being a genuine group recording. And it sounds radically different from anything else on the record.


Ragged as the harmonies might have been (I don't hear it so much) "Isn't It Time" was the best thing about the TWGMTR album for me and Mike's doo-wops really made that a GREAT song.  I wished they'd done a whole album with that style.

That song is the classic BB's vocal sound!
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« Reply #18 on: September 24, 2014, 12:55:12 PM »

Next experiment. We know that "Isn't It Time" was a last-minute addition to the album, recorded with all the guys together. Now, listen to that. Notice how the harmonies are ragged. Notice how you can hear several different voices throughout, and on the harmony parts. That strikes me as being a genuine group recording. And it sounds radically different from anything else on the record.


Ragged as the harmonies might have been (I don't hear it so much) "Isn't It Time" was the best thing about the TWGMTR album for me and Mike's doo-wops really made that a GREAT song.  I wished they'd done a whole album with that style.

That song is the classic BB's vocal sound!
Yeah, Isn't It Time is a BB classic, just as much as the "life-suite" is. It should've been the lead single, as much as I love the title track, it's pretty dull and non-commercial.
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« Reply #19 on: September 24, 2014, 01:07:33 PM »

I guess I'm the only one that doesn't really care for Isn't It Time.
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Wirestone
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« Reply #20 on: September 24, 2014, 02:06:45 PM »

I swear I hear MIke doing his doo-wop bass thing on From Here To Back Again.

Yeah, he's on toward the end of it. That's why I didn't include it in any of my examples -- Al has a whole lead section, Brian has a section, and then Mike has a wordless coda bit. A nice use of the band's most distinctive voices.
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« Reply #21 on: September 24, 2014, 02:37:58 PM »

The Light Album: I don't think there's a track which includes all six, and very often less than that. No Brian or Dennis on "HCTN"... in fact, Brian's barely on it, period. A lot of it is just Carl & Bruce.
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« Reply #22 on: September 24, 2014, 02:53:15 PM »

Next experiment. We know that "Isn't It Time" was a last-minute addition to the album, recorded with all the guys together. Now, listen to that. Notice how the harmonies are ragged. Notice how you can hear several different voices throughout, and on the harmony parts. That strikes me as being a genuine group recording. And it sounds radically different from anything else on the record.


Ragged as the harmonies might have been (I don't hear it so much) "Isn't It Time" was the best thing about the TWGMTR album for me and Mike's doo-wops really made that a GREAT song.  I wished they'd done a whole album with that style.

That song is the classic BB's vocal sound!
Yeah, Isn't It Time is a BB classic, just as much as the "life-suite" is. It should've been the lead single, as much as I love the title track, it's pretty dull and non-commercial.

I thought the original (album) version of the song was fantastic. I wouldn't have wanted a whole album like that and was glad for some of the other material as well, but it was really, really strong. (Single version didn't suit my taste as much. I thought it almost ruined it, to be honest.)
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« Reply #23 on: September 24, 2014, 02:55:51 PM »

My query on the TWGMTR album is different again. Listening closely to the guys singing, there seem to be several instances of missing consonants and vowels, as if much (clumsy, digital) cutting and slicing of different takes had to be done to achieve the final product. Any one else hear this?
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« Reply #24 on: September 24, 2014, 03:29:41 PM »

My query on the TWGMTR album is different again. Listening closely to the guys singing, there seem to be several instances of missing consonants and vowels, as if much (clumsy, digital) cutting and slicing of different takes had to be done to achieve the final product. Any one else hear this?

Mmm-hmm. Although at least some of it could simply be Brian singing less than crisply.

The vocals are some nipped and tucked on that album it can be almost impossible to imagine what they started with ...

I never minded it on something like "Imagination," where the wall-of-Brians was kind of the gimmick of the whole thing. But on TWGMTR, we certainly could have stood to hear some less-processed blend ...
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