Dennis playing organ on 'Good Vibrations'

[mikeyj]

I read a lot of people/books etc.. saying that Denny played organ on Good Vibrations but what is the source for this? I mean the only place I can find any reasonable claim is from Denny himself in an interview which can be found on page 29 in Look! Listen! Vibrate! SMiLE! where he says:

"I played organ on "Good Vibrations" in the section where it slows down."

Now I'm not saying Denny didn't play that part but is there any evidence to prove that Denny DID actually play on the record. I mean AFM Sheets etc..? C-man or anyone else can you help me?

The reason I doubt it (just from this interview anyway) is that Dennis also says this in that interview:

"If you listen closely to the "Pet Sounds" album, you'll hear me playing jazz patterns. Some of the things definitely aren't rock and roll."

And I know Denny plays on That's Not Me, but he sure makes out that he played on all of the songs on Pet Sounds and suggests that Blaine just plays percussion etc..

As I say, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Dennis didn't play on it but I was just wondering what evidence is out there to suggest that it's a fact that he played on Good Vibrations.

[c-man]

AFM sheet, session tape, quotes from Bruce, Brian and Carl in the '80s and '90s.
Lots of evidence.  No doubt about it, Dennis played the organ on the slow "churchy" part of "Good Vibrations".  One of my favorite Denny quotes is from this session tape:  "Betcha guys didn't know I was such a gas on the organ!".

[Jonas]

Is there a date/title for that session?

[mikeyj]

AFM sheet, session tape, quotes from Bruce, Brian and Carl in the '80s and '90s.
Lots of evidence.  No doubt about it, Dennis played the organ on the slow "churchy" part of "Good Vibrations".  One of my favorite Denny quotes is from this session tape:  "Betcha guys didn't know I was such a gas on the organ!".

Thanks for clearing that up c-man. I might have seen other evidence for it before but that interview was all that came to mind.

[gsmile]

"Betcha guys didn't know I was such a gas on the organ!".

This quote is great...it makes me smile, but at the same time it give me a twinge of sadness.  Dennis had so much to give musically, and quite often the band was reluctant to embrace his contributions.  Or perhaps they were just too shocked that he could hack it at all!  I can only the imagine the pleasant surprise of first wave BB fans when they heard Denny's contributions to the Friends album.

Geoff

[Jon Stebbins]

Howie Edelson asked Brian about it last year and Brian not only re-confirmed that Dennis played that part, but he said that Dennis asked him(Brian) to move from the organ so that he(Dennis) could play the take. And Brian added..."and then he drowned."

[Ron]

Brian has quite a way with words!  He always talks about his brother's death the way 5 year olds talk about death.  Children always have this way of talking about things that comes off as rude but is really just the simple truth as they understand it. 

[c-man]

Is there a date/title for that session?

Date:  9/1/66
Title:  "Good Vibrations"

[the captain]

I don't mean to diminish Dennis's talent at all, but him playing that part of that song is one of the least remarkable things he could be credited for. It's importance from a historical/trivia perspective more than anything: it's just very simply chords. You literally could have had a non-musician with minimal manual dexterity and rhythm learn and play that part. Dennis has made a lot of very good musical contributions to this world, but while that one sounds cool, it's hardly a big deal technically.

[c-man]

I don't mean to diminish Dennis's talent at all, but him playing that part of that song is one of the least remarkable things he could be credited for. It's importance from a historical/trivia perspective more than anything: it's just very simply chords. You literally could have had a non-musician with minimal manual dexterity and rhythm learn and play that part. Dennis has made a lot of very good musical contributions to this world, but while that one sounds cool, it's hardly a big deal technically.

No, but it's got a certain "feel"...that part always gave me goosebumps, long before I knew who played it.

[the captain]

If a part is played properly on an organ, there's not any gray area: most traditional organs have no "feel." They're not touch-sensitive. You play the notes and they sound or they don't. Period. so if it "felt" right it was based on the composition being properly played, not some sort of performer's inflection.

[c-man]

so if it "felt" right it was based on the composition being properly played

Which Dennis did...with the right "feel".   

[mjd180]

so if it "felt" right it was based on the composition being properly played

Which Dennis did...with the right "feel".   

I think what Luther is trying to say is that it's actually Brian who's responsible for your getting that "feel" off the organ playing. Which is natural, as it's one of the high points of the song. Maybe the highest? It basically marks the end of "section 1" of the "three parts" of the song. The song comes to a dead halt in a highly unusual/unexpected point, and you hear this creepy organ used as the transition into "section 2". It's absolute brilliance of the highest order. It's the reason why we should all be glad Brian got into the "fragmentary" writing style, even if it did result in horrible burnout/overwhelming confusion as to what part should go where...

[mikee]

They're not touch-sensitive. You play the notes and they sound or they don't. Period.

I disagree.  Good music is not as boolean as you are suggesting at all - not on organ or any other instrument.  Delay, Timing, and what you don't play are big parts of it.  A part like that section of GV might be played dorky or great on a given performance (and both takes might be technically correct).  In fact, the dorky take might be technically more correct.  Soul and feel are always a part  of artistically sucessful rock or jazz.  That's why Miles Davis always got frustrated when he tried playing with great classical players.  He would try to explain to them, when they would just play the song to technical perfection.  "No, No  you've got to play something that's like the song, but different." - and they would just not be able to figure that out or know what to do.
   
           

[KokoMoses]

If a part is played properly on an organ, there's not any gray area: most traditional organs have no "feel." They're not touch-sensitive. You play the notes and they sound or they don't. Period. so if it "felt" right it was based on the composition being properly played, not some sort of performer's inflection.

C'mon man, the timing of when you go from one chord to another is FEEL! Why do we have to endure this BS whenever any BB other than Brian manages to get miniscule credit for doing anything insturmental?

It's the same thing with drums. There are numerous quotes (Don Was, Josh Freese for example) from people who rave and rave about that "special moment" between when a drummer hits his kick on the downbeat and then his snare on the up. It has nothing to do with anything technical, but simply the fact that whoever is sitting behind the drums is going to do this diffefrently than anyone else, and that it will have it's own feel. Any drummer is essentially doing the same THING, but why does it FEEL different? This is true of any insturment..... I feel I should add, that FEEL is the reason why I preffer Dennis as a drummer over anyone else who played on their stuff or live. Hal Blaine bored me to tears. There's no feeling to his playing (IMHO) but rather percise and professional playing. Who needs that? He got the job done and didn't annoy Brian with any loud racket and made the drums pretty much as incongruous as possible on the records, which is what I imagine Brian wanted.... So be it, and Dennis was probably a lot harder to deal with/coach in the studio, but Dennis PLAYED the drums like a rock n roller and it always felt great. I wish he'd played on everything, even if the playing wouldn't have been quite as "perfect" ...... Give me keith Moon, Ringo, Dennis anyday over Hal Blaine or any session "pro"..... Ok, Jim Keltner gets a pass on this. The man has GREAT feel, Just perfect!

[the captain]

C'mon man, the timing of when you go from one chord to another is FEEL! Why do we have to endure this BS whenever any BB other than Brian manages to get miniscule credit for doing anything insturmental?

It's the same thing with drums. There are numerous quotes (Don Was, Josh Freese for example) from people who rave and rave about that "special moment" between when a drummer hits his kick on the downbeat and then his snare on the up. It has nothing to do with anything technical, but simply the fact that whoever is sitting behind the drums is going to do this diffefrently than anyone else, and that it will have it's own feel. Any drummer is essentially doing the same THING, but why does it FEEL different? This is true of any insturment..... I feel I should add, that FEEL is the reason why I preffer Dennis as a drummer over anyone else who played on their stuff or live. Hal Blaine bored me to tears. There's no feeling to his playing (IMHO) but rather percise and professional playing. Who needs that? He got the job done and didn't annoy Brian with any loud racket and made the drums pretty much as incongruous as possible on the records, which is what I imagine Brian wanted.... So be it, and Dennis was probably a lot harder to deal with/coach in the studio, but Dennis PLAYED the drums like a rock n roller and it always felt great. I wish he'd played on everything, even if the playing wouldn't have been quite as "perfect" ...... Give me keith Moon, Ringo, Dennis anyday over Hal Blaine or any session "pro"..... Ok, Jim Keltner gets a pass on this. The man has GREAT feel, Just perfect!

Calm down, man, I wasn't knocking Dennis at all, and I went out of my way to praise his talent. My comment was on the simplicity of the part. Mike could've no doubt done it just as well. Or Carl, Brian, Al, Bruce. I didn't say a single negative thing about Dennis, and especially nothing bad about his drumming, which I love.

[KokoMoses]

Yes, yes, I do need to calm down. I just hate how messy the whole Beach Boys credit/talent BS can get. I wish they were all respected just as the Beatles are..... In fact, I think Paul and Ringo should get together with Brian, Mike, Bruce, and Al and form The "Beatle-Boys" and go on tour playing Beach Boys/Beatles songs with Paul and Brian swapping bass and keyboards, Ringo drumming and Mike and Bruce being Mike and Bruce......

See the fantasy world I live in?

[Aegir]

Yes, yes, I do need to calm down. I just hate how messy the whole Beach Boys credit/talent BS can get. I wish they were all respected just as the Beatles are.....

Well, the thing is, on 95% of the recordings, John played rhythm guitar, George played lead, Paul played bass, and Ringo played drums. There's hardly any equivalent Beach Boys songs. There's a lot of Beach Boys bass players I respect, or maybe only a few, but I don't know WHO THEY ARE!

[adamghost]

You know this has got me thinking.  I've been on tour now for about 3 1/2 weeks and I've made a habit of calling up some of the musicians in the audience to play on a few songs.  The parts are really simple, but add so much if done properly.  I can teach them to someone in ten minutes or less and it's been fascinating to me to see who can cut it and who can't.  The drummer I called up tonight only had to play a solid beat for four minutes, but he sped up, slowed down, inserted breakdowns that didn't need to be there, made off-time bass drum patterns, and I'm sure he thought he was helping.  The two other guys were a bass player on guitar and a guitar player playing percussion and keyboard.  They both kept it simple, sat out when in doubt, and were great.  And that's often been the case...the theoretically technical players will tend to try to vary the simplicity of the part without being good enough to really send the song off in an interesting new direction.  But the people with good feel always nail it, even if they're on an unfamiliar instrument.

That's what I think about when we're talking about Dennis on the organ.  You either know, or you don't.  It's not really about chops.  I'll give Dennis the props for it, alright.  I guarantee you, based on showing the same simple parts to at least a dozen people on this tour, there are plenty of people who could have fodaed up that simple three chord progression.

[KokoMoses]

True, but the Beach Boys were primarily a vocal group. Their individual voices were just as important as the drums/bass/guitars were to The Beatles. Just because they didn't play on everything or write everything, they still sang on most everything and their voices need to be respected as being a singular insturment and the heart of what the Beach Boys are!

[KokoMoses]

Amen!

Better than I could have ever put it!
[/quote]

[Aegir]

You know, Adam, that sounds pretty cool (re, you calling up people from the audience) and now I'm even more bummed I can't make it to your gig in NYC next Friday.

[mikee]

the theoretically technical players will tend to try to vary the simplicity of the part without being good enough to really send the song off in an interesting new direction.  But the people with good feel always nail it, even if they're on an unfamiliar instrument.

Hey Adam!  Glad to hear affirmation from the leader of a great working band. I hope the rest of your tour is a lot of fun and  I'm looking forward to your next  gig back here in the West Coast Southland. 

 

The drummer I called up tonight only had to play a solid beat for four minutes, but he sped up, slowed down, inserted breakdowns that didn't need to be there, made off-time bass drum patterns, and I'm sure he thought he was helping. 

 

Sounds like Thelonius Monk on piano.  You might take a cue from Miles who frequently sat in with Monk at the Five Spot and elsewhere.   A soloist who listened  to Monk's rhythm support could get lost quickly (even if his name was Coltrane).   On at least one of these occasions, when it was Miles turn to solo, he turned to Monk and said in his (permanantly raspier than Dennis's) voice: "Lay Out, MF'er, lay out!"     

[adamghost]

Oh, I tried.  Keep in mind that a lot of these people are basically good enough to play in their own bands, but don't have enough depth to know the terminology or what's really appropriate.  On this tour, which was basically thrown together in a hurry, there are a lot of "baby bands" on the bills.

Generally I get together with the musicians before the show, but I rolled the dice last night and lost.  But what the hell, it was just one song and he was so excited to do it.  And the parts where he stopped playing weren't bad.

[shelter]

I don't mean to diminish Dennis's talent at all, but him playing that part of that song is one of the least remarkable things he could be credited for.

In hindsight, maybe. But I think that if you would've told people in 1966 that the part was played by that clubber behind the drum kit, people would've been very surprised.