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Author Topic: Eirik Wangberg's biography: A SMiLE sessions Lennon & McCartney visit  (Read 2900 times)
Natural E
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« on: September 28, 2015, 05:11:25 AM »

http://wogew.blogspot.com/

via WogBlog:

"In 1967, Wangberg finds himself in Sound Recorders Studio in Hollywood, one of many studios Brian Wilson decided to utilize for the recording and mixing of The Beach Boys' upcoming album, "Smile". Having already recorded the song "Vegetables" with Wangberg first as second engineer and later on in control of the engineering, the Beach Boys, Van Dyke Parks and Wangberg are there to put the songs together to make a coherent album when John Lennon and Paul McCartney stop by, together with Derek Taylor.  After having congratulated John and Paul with the success of their latest single, "Penny Lane" and "Strawberry Fields Forever", Wangberg plays back "Vegetables" for the guests from England. After having harvested compliments for the song, Wangberg, still not sure about who is who of John and Paul, witnesses an encounter where Paul and Brian are both sitting at the piano, playing each other's new songs. "Sgt. Pepper" is still not released, so Paul starts by playing and performing "Fixing A Hole". Brian counters by playing and singing "Heroes and villains", and Paul answers with "Lovely Rita". Wangberg can still rewind Paul's solo version in his mind, he writes. Brian performs "Surf's up", before the party breaks up, John and Paul leave and "Smile" is shelved indefinitely...

This visit by John and Paul is not documented in Beatles history. In April 1967, Paul spent a week in USA with his assistant, Mal Evans - not John. During his time in LA, Paul did visit Brian and The Beach Boys in their recording studio (April 10, 1967, without Mal), and the story goes that Paul partly co-produced "Vegetables" with Brian, chewing a bit of celery during the proceedings, and also played "She's Leaving Home" to Brian on the studio piano. It's tricky to work John Lennon into the story here, but Paul gives credence to the tale in his introduction to the book. I believe more research should ensue."
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Amy B.
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« Reply #1 on: September 28, 2015, 06:33:34 AM »

According to this tale, someone went out and bought celery for Paul. Could they not have stopped at home and gotten their camera??
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Ian
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« Reply #2 on: September 28, 2015, 06:34:56 AM »

It didn't happen.  Beatles have been researched ad nauseam and we literally know the fab fours movement day to day thanks to people like mark lewisohn.  Only Paul and Derek were there.
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HeyJude
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« Reply #3 on: September 28, 2015, 09:34:28 AM »

It looks like McCartney even offered a foreward that’s probably at least partially incorrect. I think it has been established that Lennon wasn’t even in the US in 1967 at any time.

The fact that the excerpt is worded like Brian and Paul were having a “Battle of the Bands”-style tit-for-tat song-off makes the thing sound awfully embellished anyway.

Maybe this guy wanted to get his book out there before Lewisohn got to this period in his Beatles biography series and debunked it. 
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THE BEACH BOYS OPINION PAGE IS ON FACEBOOK!!! http://www.facebook.com/beachboysopinion - Check out the original "BEACH BOYS OPINION PAGE" Blog - http://beachboysopinion.blogspot.com/
Andrew G. Doe
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« Reply #4 on: September 28, 2015, 12:52:48 PM »

I contacted Wangenberg on this very topic when Dom's book came out, and he demurred, saying he was saving it for his autobiography.

Now, as related this version of events falls flat for two reasons: one, as stated, John wasn't in the US then... and two, are we seriously expected to believe that an engineer in a major LA studio wouldn't be able to distinguish between John and Paul ? I call bull of the highest order.
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HeyJude
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« Reply #5 on: September 28, 2015, 01:32:13 PM »

Perhaps the author is also hoping the thing will fly under the radar of scrutiny because it's being published in Norwegian.

That "wogew" guy's blog doesn't always put things under a particularly high level of journalistic scrutiny or inquiry.
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THE BEACH BOYS OPINION PAGE IS ON FACEBOOK!!! http://www.facebook.com/beachboysopinion - Check out the original "BEACH BOYS OPINION PAGE" Blog - http://beachboysopinion.blogspot.com/
Andrew G. Doe
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« Reply #6 on: September 29, 2015, 01:36:03 AM »

Furtherly, neither The Beatles Book nor any UK music paper of the era reported John's presence, and depending on who you read, Paul played Brian either an acetate of "A Day In The Life", or "She's Leaving Home" on the studio piano. As Ian said, never happened, at least as reported in the book.
« Last Edit: September 29, 2015, 01:42:17 AM by Andrew G. Doe » Logged

The four sweetest words in my vocabulary: "This poster is ignored".
Nile
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« Reply #7 on: September 29, 2015, 06:10:16 AM »

Couldn´t find a thread so I´ll say something here!
Did airing on 25 April 1967 (CBS, Surf´s up demo) had anything do with Smile death?
It seems very possible??!
Just a thought, don´t throw rocks on me! Grin

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harrisonjon
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« Reply #8 on: September 29, 2015, 06:26:04 AM »

Quote
After having congratulated John and Paul with the success of their latest single, "Penny Lane" and "Strawberry Fields Forever"

Penny Lane was US #1 for one week only on March 18th, Strawberry Fields #8, modest by Beatles standards.
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dogear
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« Reply #9 on: September 29, 2015, 09:38:29 AM »

Wangberg produced "Glad", a band including the young Tim B. Schmitt for Terry Melcher's Equinox Label.
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zosobird
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« Reply #10 on: September 29, 2015, 12:45:04 PM »

Couldn´t find a thread so I´ll say something here!
Did airing on 25 April 1967 (CBS, Surf´s up demo) had anything do with Smile death?
It seems very possible??!
Just a thought, don´t throw rocks on me! Grin



You know, it could be.  Perhaps the whole experience of filming it/public reaction led to the "lo-fi" music production that followed.  I always thought that Derek Taylor's announcement that SMiLE was scrapped was the real reason though.  Perhaps it gave Brian the loophole he needed/wanted to get out of dodge with the project.  I believe Derek was simply trying to create more hype for SMiLE with that statement, rather than "reporting" news that the project was over, and Brian just went with it.
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KDS
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« Reply #11 on: September 30, 2015, 06:14:08 AM »

I'd still rather listen to Paul McCartney chewing on celery than just about everything he's released in the 2000s, especially that thing with Kanye West. 
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