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Author Topic: L.A. (Light Album) Radio review/discussion  (Read 8328 times)
GhostyTMRS
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« on: March 22, 2015, 03:42:13 PM »

ESQ's David Beard joined me on today's "The Vintage Rock & Pop Shop" to discuss the group's 1979 "L.A. Light Album". Here is that interview/discussion..minus the songs, naturally:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fPyPZkorjw
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adamghost
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« Reply #1 on: March 22, 2015, 06:09:20 PM »

Really enjoyed that!  LIGHT ALBUM was actually the album that connected me to the Beach Boys and I'm a diehard defender.

Something I'm surprised that wasn't touched on with the puzzlement about Bruce's decision to do "Here Comes The Night"; he'd just had a massive UK hit with a disco remake of "Pipeline."  I'm sure he just thought he could duplicate the formula for his old band and give them a quick hit.  I love the track myself - I remember as a kid we'd use it as a backdrop for gaming! - but in retrospect I do agree the single edit (which smokes, I think, great Carl vocal) would have done better service to the album.
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CenturyDeprived
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« Reply #2 on: March 22, 2015, 08:05:02 PM »

Really enjoyed that!  LIGHT ALBUM was actually the album that connected me to the Beach Boys and I'm a diehard defender.

Something I'm surprised that wasn't touched on with the puzzlement about Bruce's decision to do "Here Comes The Night"; he'd just had a massive UK hit with a disco remake of "Pipeline."  I'm sure he just thought he could duplicate the formula for his old band and give them a quick hit.  I love the track myself - I remember as a kid we'd use it as a backdrop for gaming! - but in retrospect I do agree the single edit (which smokes, I think, great Carl vocal) would have done better service to the album.

If HCTN (Disco version) had become a big hit, is it pretty safe to say we would have had a full-on BB disco album of original songs in late '79/early '80?
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« Reply #3 on: March 22, 2015, 08:19:19 PM »

The program was quite enjoyable, and thanks for doing it.....
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« Reply #4 on: March 23, 2015, 05:44:59 AM »

I personally don't hate, or love Here Comes the Night (disco version). Of course, if I grew up at that time, I might have hated it. Just like living through the boy bands and pop music today really drains me. I think it's interesting that 'California Feeling' and 'Do You Like Worms' were thought about possibly being put on it. If they left HCTN as just a single, and put these two tracks on the album, maybe it would have fit better. At least CF. DYLW might have stuck out in the way Good Time does on Love You.
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« Reply #5 on: March 23, 2015, 07:20:55 AM »

I personally don't hate, or love Here Comes the Night (disco version). Of course, if I grew up at that time, I might have hated it. Just like living through the boy bands and pop music today really drains me. I think it's interesting that 'California Feeling' and 'Do You Like Worms' were thought about possibly being put on it. If they left HCTN as just a single, and put these two tracks on the album, maybe it would have fit better. At least CF. DYLW might have stuck out in the way Good Time does on Love You.

Reckon DYLW would have stuck out in the same way that HCtN did, but for different reasons! Wink
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CenturyDeprived
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« Reply #6 on: March 23, 2015, 09:59:02 AM »

I personally don't hate, or love Here Comes the Night (disco version). Of course, if I grew up at that time, I might have hated it. Just like living through the boy bands and pop music today really drains me. I think it's interesting that 'California Feeling' and 'Do You Like Worms' were thought about possibly being put on it. If they left HCTN as just a single, and put these two tracks on the album, maybe it would have fit better. At least CF. DYLW might have stuck out in the way Good Time does on Love You.

Reckon DYLW would have stuck out in the same way that HCtN did, but for different reasons! Wink

Imagine if the BBs had a disco hit, and they then redid DLYW as a disco track.
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Steve Latshaw
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« Reply #7 on: March 23, 2015, 12:36:14 PM »

This was an excellent interview, with great perspective on how this entire album changed shape once Bruce got on board.  And the revelation about Constant Companion was a stunner; I can't wait to hear it in the album mix.

Looking over AGD's site, I wonder if the revised KTSA version of Santa Ana Winds had actually been completed for LA Light.

And I would love to hear Bruce's remake of Calendar Girl.
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« Reply #8 on: March 23, 2015, 01:17:00 PM »

Thanks all! The rest of the Beach Boys reviews/discussions/interviews can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA132AA9FFCF9DE8B
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« Reply #9 on: March 23, 2015, 01:26:41 PM »

Thanks all! The rest of the Beach Boys reviews/discussions/interviews can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA132AA9FFCF9DE8B

Great stuff!  I personally can't stand most of L.A., but I really enjoyed this discussion, and I can't wait to check out the other BB-related stuff you've got out there.  Have you ever thought about putting this out as a podcast?  Being that these are audio presentations with the music stripped out, I can't help but wonder if you'd get better listenership in the podcast format.
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« Reply #10 on: March 23, 2015, 01:51:14 PM »

Thanks. I've long thought about that....Hmmm...
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« Reply #11 on: March 24, 2015, 12:16:48 AM »

I personally don't hate, or love Here Comes the Night (disco version). Of course, if I grew up at that time, I might have hated it. Just like living through the boy bands and pop music today really drains me. I think it's interesting that 'California Feeling' and 'Do You Like Worms' were thought about possibly being put on it. If they left HCTN as just a single, and put these two tracks on the album, maybe it would have fit better. At least CF. DYLW might have stuck out in the way Good Time does on Love You.

Reckon DYLW would have stuck out in the same way that HCtN did, but for different reasons! Wink

Imagine if the BBs had a disco hit, and they then redid DLYW as a disco track.

I think it would make a really interesting techno track! Smiley
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« Reply #12 on: March 24, 2015, 05:57:12 PM »

Jus like 20/20, and MIU the Light album is a collection of odds&ends, outtakes etc.
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DonnyL
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« Reply #13 on: March 24, 2015, 09:46:33 PM »

MIU, LA, and Keepin the Summer will soon be lauded as the fine Yacht Rock records that they are.
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« Reply #14 on: March 25, 2015, 10:16:08 AM »

I find it interesting that David, who is brilliant in what he does, did not know the history of why HCTN was done as a disco record. Here is why the idea came to Bruce.

Bruce was working with Curt and California Music (Curt had taken over running that trademark). Curt had cut HCTN FOR California and was going to record it as one of their records. When Bruce became involved with the group again, he talked about this re-involvement with Curt and Curt suggested how great it would be to cut HCTN with the BB. To quote Bruce from late 1978:

I told Curt Becher, who is a guy who when he was a baby produced records for The Association like “Cherish” and “Along Comes Mary”, and then he had his own album … I told him I was going to work on the Beach Boys project. Curt and I had talked about cutting “Here Comes The Night” (for our own album), but he said that the Beach Boys should really be the ones to do it. So I approached everybody and I thought – “a Beach Boys disco record. Before anybody hears it, they’re going to hate it if they love the Beach Boys”. But if I’m right, when they hear it, they’ll realise that disco – in terms of the Beach Boys – is a lot different than disco in terms of Cerrone or Giorgio Moroder. It has to be because it’s the Beach Boys. So I decided, “Okay, I’ll talk it over with them”. Curt and I are co-producing “Here Comes The Night”. None of the guys played on the track; we used our own people. When it came to putting the vocals on, because it’s so much more rhythmic than you’re used to with normal Beach Boys vocals, Curt was a little curious as to whether they could sing the parts. But I’m telling you, I wasn’t surprised. They sang the parts … I’ve got it all done now, and it’s incredible. It’s nice to know that you can be in the record business for seventeen years, and have all these things change, and you can go into this style you’ve never sung in and (snaps fingers) you’ve got it. The first day! And it was really hard to sing. It was hard for me to sing ‘cause it’s so syncopated.

That is how the recording came to be. I always thought that the single version should have been on the LP to allow more time for other tracks, like Companion, etc.
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« Reply #15 on: March 25, 2015, 10:21:04 AM »

MIU, LA, and Keepin the Summer will soon be lauded as the fine Yacht Rock records that they are.

It's about time...why should Michael MacDonald and Christopher Cross get all the glory??
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« Reply #16 on: March 25, 2015, 10:39:08 AM »

Try this for L.A.  Burn a CD, and listen to it in the car (best place for me).

SIDE ONE
Brian’s Back (Endless Harmony version)
Good Timin’
Constant Companion (Bambu version… start track at 0:02)
Santa Ana Winds ("From my porch, thikin' 'bout the torch…" version) <— use KTSA version if you don't have this.
California Feelin’ (MIC box)
Full Sail

SIDE TWO
Angel Come Home
Love Surrounds Me
Sumahama
Lady Lynda
Baby Blue
Goin’ South
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« Reply #17 on: March 26, 2015, 03:38:55 PM »

Nice to see that someone else noticed the similarities between Surfer Girl and Good Timin'
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« Reply #18 on: March 26, 2015, 07:36:21 PM »

I find it interesting that David, who is brilliant in what he does, did not know the history of why HCTN was done as a disco record. Here is why the idea came to Bruce.

Bruce was working with Curt and California Music (Curt had taken over running that trademark). Curt had cut HCTN FOR California and was going to record it as one of their records. When Bruce became involved with the group again, he talked about this re-involvement with Curt and Curt suggested how great it would be to cut HCTN with the BB. To quote Bruce from late 1978:

I told Curt Becher, who is a guy who when he was a baby produced records for The Association like “Cherish” and “Along Comes Mary”, and then he had his own album … I told him I was going to work on the Beach Boys project. Curt and I had talked about cutting “Here Comes The Night” (for our own album), but he said that the Beach Boys should really be the ones to do it. So I approached everybody and I thought – “a Beach Boys disco record. Before anybody hears it, they’re going to hate it if they love the Beach Boys”. But if I’m right, when they hear it, they’ll realise that disco – in terms of the Beach Boys – is a lot different than disco in terms of Cerrone or Giorgio Moroder. It has to be because it’s the Beach Boys. So I decided, “Okay, I’ll talk it over with them”. Curt and I are co-producing “Here Comes The Night”. None of the guys played on the track; we used our own people. When it came to putting the vocals on, because it’s so much more rhythmic than you’re used to with normal Beach Boys vocals, Curt was a little curious as to whether they could sing the parts. But I’m telling you, I wasn’t surprised. They sang the parts … I’ve got it all done now, and it’s incredible. It’s nice to know that you can be in the record business for seventeen years, and have all these things change, and you can go into this style you’ve never sung in and (snaps fingers) you’ve got it. The first day! And it was really hard to sing. It was hard for me to sing ‘cause it’s so syncopated.

That is how the recording came to be. I always thought that the single version should have been on the LP to allow more time for other tracks, like Companion, etc.

Thanks for sharing this.
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« Reply #19 on: March 27, 2015, 04:58:04 PM »

I find it interesting that David, who is brilliant in what he does, did not know the history of why HCTN was done as a disco record. Here is why the idea came to Bruce.

Bruce was working with Curt and California Music (Curt had taken over running that trademark). Curt had cut HCTN FOR California and was going to record it as one of their records. When Bruce became involved with the group again, he talked about this re-involvement with Curt and Curt suggested how great it would be to cut HCTN with the BB. To quote Bruce from late 1978:

I told Curt Becher, who is a guy who when he was a baby produced records for The Association like “Cherish” and “Along Comes Mary”, and then he had his own album … I told him I was going to work on the Beach Boys project. Curt and I had talked about cutting “Here Comes The Night” (for our own album), but he said that the Beach Boys should really be the ones to do it. So I approached everybody and I thought – “a Beach Boys disco record. Before anybody hears it, they’re going to hate it if they love the Beach Boys”. But if I’m right, when they hear it, they’ll realise that disco – in terms of the Beach Boys – is a lot different than disco in terms of Cerrone or Giorgio Moroder. It has to be because it’s the Beach Boys. So I decided, “Okay, I’ll talk it over with them”. Curt and I are co-producing “Here Comes The Night”. None of the guys played on the track; we used our own people. When it came to putting the vocals on, because it’s so much more rhythmic than you’re used to with normal Beach Boys vocals, Curt was a little curious as to whether they could sing the parts. But I’m telling you, I wasn’t surprised. They sang the parts … I’ve got it all done now, and it’s incredible. It’s nice to know that you can be in the record business for seventeen years, and have all these things change, and you can go into this style you’ve never sung in and (snaps fingers) you’ve got it. The first day! And it was really hard to sing. It was hard for me to sing ‘cause it’s so syncopated.

That is how the recording came to be. I always thought that the single version should have been on the LP to allow more time for other tracks, like Companion, etc.

Thanks for sharing this.

Dave, always. I have lots of items like this. Way WAY too many! Smiley

Here is my little LA collage from facebook:

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« Reply #20 on: March 27, 2015, 06:01:35 PM »

Great pictures! Brian and Al seemed to be into horse t-shirts at the time. Discuss!
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« Reply #21 on: March 27, 2015, 08:31:28 PM »

I agree they should have left HCTN for a single release and placed a couple more Dennis and Brian songs on it...maybe they'll do a new version of the album one day similar to what the "Beatles" did with LIB-Naked..
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« Reply #22 on: March 27, 2015, 08:34:21 PM »

And I am sorry, but I really want to hear the fully mixed version of Calender Girl. Brian himself was very happy with it!
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« Reply #23 on: March 29, 2015, 05:43:04 PM »

And I am sorry, but I really want to hear the fully mixed version of Calender Girl. Brian himself was very happy with it!

Sorry…not sure who this is.  Contact me through FB.
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« Reply #24 on: March 29, 2015, 05:58:24 PM »

I like one song on L.A. (Light Album). It also has the most weirdly redundant album title of all time. The title is bad no matter how you slice it, and that terrifying woman on the inside cover keeps me up all night and part of every day.
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