Beach Boys Mythbusters

[Jason]

 

That was meant purely to antagonize the blueboarders who might be lurking here.

[hypehat]

 Alright then, I'll let you off 

[Jason]

You sir, are a gentleman and a scholar. But you're still an asshole. 

[hypehat]

The cheek!

[punkinhead]

Speaking of the Surf's Up album being played, was Til I Die ever played by the BB? Not including BW's rendition on his tour.

[Steve Mayo]

they played it in 2004. check out eric's set lists for that year.

[punkinhead]

I figured it was Mike Love's band, not the actual Beach Boys

[Foster's Freeze]

I figured it was Mike Love's band, not the actual Beach Boys

Ooooooooh, well said! 

[punkinhead]

haha, yeah, well, I'm really surprised it wasn't performed in the 70s, woulda been amazing, but Mike thought it was such a downer of a song

[Paulos]

Myth: Sharon Marie Esparza was a girlfriend of Mike's.
Truth: No she wasn't.

[lupinofan]

I've got a Readers' Digest various artists box set which includes "Fun, Fun, Fun," the potted biog to which says that CARL drowned in 1983. It was issued years before Carl really died.

To follow up on this, I now have the set on vinyl and - having found a cheap copy secondhand - CD. The booklet notes in the vinyl box vary wildly from the CD set. Many of the booklet dates are inaccurate (ie Elvis died in 1979) - these have been corrected on the CD issue, but with some mistakes remaining.

Here's the anonymously-penned bio of The Beach Boys ("Fun, Fun, Fun" is in the box set, stereo mix.)

"The group was formed in Los Angeles during 1961 and originally comprised Brian Wilson, Dennis Wilson, Carl Wilson, Al Jardin [sic], Mike Love and David Marks. With their first national hit, "Surfin' USA," they made the public aware of surf music. By the end of the 60s the band was at a low ebb with several members having personal problems. David Marks left the band. However their appearance at the Monterey Festival in 1970 and their jam with Grateful Dead at Fillmore West in 1971 put them back in favour. Their line-up was augmented by Ricky Fataar and Blondie Chaplin after drummer Dennis Wilson lost a hand in an accident. Again the band slumped badly until Brian Wilson got himself together and in 1976 the re-emergence of the Beach Boys as a force in popular music came about. The million-selling "Fun, Fun, Fun" comes from the period when Brian Wilson was going through a beach buggy and hot-rod phase. Carl Wilson, the only surfer in the group, was drowned in the early 80s."

The CD bio is identical, but with cuts to the text: Jardine's name is spelled correctly, Marks isn't mentioned at all and the shock story of Dennis's amputated hand is no longer there ("lost a hand" is, I suppose, true to an extent as he couldn't use it, but the phraseology sounds like something from a bad online translation.) They still maintain that it was Carl that drowned.

The box set, for anybody interested, is a Readers' Digest various-artists set called "The Heart & Soul of Rock 'n' Roll." I've no idea when it was issued: post-1983, obviously, but before Ricky Nelson died at the end of 1985 (he's referred to as a popular live act on the vinyl booklet.) The CD presumably came out much later, has slightly modified artwork, and some attempt has been made at correcting some of the more obvious gaffs in the text, as well as removing some other information probably for space reasons.

[Bill M]

So I guess it's a myth that Carl drown while trying to reattach Dennis' hand under water.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Myth: Sharon Marie Esparza was a girlfriend of Mike's.
Truth: No she wasn't.

True, dat. I interviewed her earlier this year. She's well aware of that myth, and finds it highly amusing.

[HighOnLife]

Can someone address this one about "That's Not Me"?

Myth: Brian used session musicians such as Carol Kaye and Glen Campbell on overdubs to finish up the track instead of using the Beach Boys.

[Mike's Beard]

I've got a Readers' Digest various artists box set which includes "Fun, Fun, Fun," the potted biog to which says that CARL drowned in 1983. It was issued years before Carl really died.

To follow up on this, I now have the set on vinyl and - having found a cheap copy secondhand - CD. The booklet notes in the vinyl box vary wildly from the CD set. Many of the booklet dates are inaccurate (ie Elvis died in 1979) - these have been corrected on the CD issue, but with some mistakes remaining.

Here's the anonymously-penned bio of The Beach Boys ("Fun, Fun, Fun" is in the box set, stereo mix.)

"The group was formed in Los Angeles during 1961 and originally comprised Brian Wilson, Dennis Wilson, Carl Wilson, Al Jardin [sic], Mike Love and David Marks. With their first national hit, "Surfin' USA," they made the public aware of surf music. By the end of the 60s the band was at a low ebb with several members having personal problems. David Marks left the band. However their appearance at the Monterey Festival in 1970 and their jam with Grateful Dead at Fillmore West in 1971 put them back in favour. Their line-up was augmented by Ricky Fataar and Blondie Chaplin after drummer Dennis Wilson lost a hand in an accident. Again the band slumped badly until Brian Wilson got himself together and in 1976 the re-emergence of the Beach Boys as a force in popular music came about. The million-selling "Fun, Fun, Fun" comes from the period when Brian Wilson was going through a beach buggy and hot-rod phase. Carl Wilson, the only surfer in the group, was drowned in the early 80s."

The CD bio is identical, but with cuts to the text: Jardine's name is spelled correctly, Marks isn't mentioned at all and the shock story of Dennis's amputated hand is no longer there ("lost a hand" is, I suppose, true to an extent as he couldn't use it, but the phraseology sounds like something from a bad online translation.) They still maintain that it was Carl that drowned.

The box set, for anybody interested, is a Readers' Digest various-artists set called "The Heart & Soul of Rock 'n' Roll." I've no idea when it was issued: post-1983, obviously, but before Ricky Nelson died at the end of 1985 (he's referred to as a popular live act on the vinyl booklet.) The CD presumably came out much later, has slightly modified artwork, and some attempt has been made at correcting some of the more obvious gaffs in the text, as well as removing some other information probably for space reasons.

For the Sake Of All things Holy keep this post away from AGD or his head may explode.  

[gsmile]

So I guess it's a myth that Carl drown while trying to reattach Dennis' hand under water.

If Michael Crichton were still with us, I would SO read this novel.

[eddypierce]

Myth - Hal Blaine played drums on all the Beach Boys hits
Fact - Dennis Wilson played the drums on...
Surfin Safari
409
Shut Down
Surfer Girl
Catch A Wave
Hawaii
Little Deuce Coupe
In My Room
Fun Fun Fun(partial)
Don't Worry Baby
I Get Around
Wendy
Little Honda
When I Grow Up To Be A Man
Dance Dance Dance
Then I Kissed Her
You're So Good To Me
Wild Honey
Do It Again(basic)
I Can Hear Music
Student Demonstration Time
Rock and Roll Music
Its OK(partial)
Honkin' Down The Highway
Good Timin'

And many many many many more....

I’ve just recently discovered this forum (after doing a web search for info on Brian’s new album).  This info from Jon is very interesting!  I’m a drummer myself, and so I’m always particularly interested in learning “who played drums on what.”  I’ve been a Beach Boys fan for many years, and while I was aware that Dennis played drums on most of the first two or three albums, and on a good portion of some of the “post-Smile” albums, I wasn’t aware the extent to which he played on a lot of the mid-sixties stuff (I was aware, via CD liner notes—by Brad Elliott or David Leaf, I can’t remember which—that Dennis did play on “Girl Don’t Tell Me”, and “That’s Not Me”).  This helps solidify my opinion that Dennis was a very fine drummer, especially for someone who (unless I’m mistaken) had only been playing the drums for a few years when he recorded a lot of these.  I was already of this opinion, though, after seeing live clips of his playing (on the American Band video), and also hearing his drumming on the 1964 and 1969 live albums (especially the latter).  Dennis was probably a better live drummer than studio drummer—in his live recordings, I’ve always been impressed with the amount of drive and energy he was able to create, while still “laying it down.”  At least prior to the 1980’s that is—some of his live playing shortly before his death (at least on the American Band video) seemed very erratic, no doubt at least partly due to his struggles with substance abuse.

Conversely, this information also actually improves my opinion of Hal Blaine a bit.  Some of the tunes above sometimes show some discrepancies in timing and consistency from the drums, and I’ve often been puzzled by it, because I thought Hal was playing drums (one example: the signature drum lick on Wendy--five 16th notes on the snare drum--is a bit shaky when it enters again at the end of the song).  I mean no disrespect to Dennis, because he was a good drummer, and the discrepancies are relatively slight, but Hal Blaine was one of the top studio drummers in the world at the time, and so I’d expect his playing to be more solid than some of what we hear on these tracks.

Thanks for the info!

Ed Pierce

[sockittome]

Myth:  The Smiley Smile album was a practical joke played on Capitol because of the way the Boys were being treated.

Fact: Um....okay, I got nothing.

[nobody is a chode]

Myth:  The Smiley Smile album was a practical joke played on Capitol because of the way the Boys were being treated.

Fact: Um....okay, I got nothing.

Fact: Smiley Smile is a psychedelic masterpiece that makes Sgt. Pepper and every other so-called "psychedelic" release in the mainstream of that time look like straight-laced conventional stuff. Brian was wayyyyyyyy ahead of his time and that album has never been matched on many levels.

[SmileySam]

I agree with how you say that Sgt. Pepper was straight-laced 'cause, when you think about it, it was. It's not that much of a forward move from Revolver, but thats just my opinion.

Having read about what songs Dennis played drums on, it leads me to a question: Did Denny ever play drums on any of the sessions for SMiLE? Or was Hal Blaine the main man for those sessions?......oh....wait a minute.........they were touring at the time....so..........crap! That was kind of a dumb question.

[Curtis Leon]

I agree with how you say that Sgt. Pepper was straight-laced 'cause, when you think about it, it was. It's not that much of a forward move from Revolver, but thats just my opinion.

Having read about what songs Dennis played drums on, it leads me to a question: Did Denny ever play drums on any of the sessions for SMiLE? Or was Hal Blaine the main man for those sessions?......oh....wait a minute.........they were touring at the time....so..........crap! That was kind of a dumb question.

I'd actually Sgt. Pepper was a step back in terms of psychedelia. Revolver had "I'm Only Sleeping", "She Said She Said", and "Tomorrow Never Knows". (All, coincidentally, written by Lennon). Pepper had... "Lucy in the Sky"? Maybe? It's not so much wacked out, though. More like a happy, gentle acid trip. The only real trippy song was maybe "A Day in the Life". The rest were more music hall/baroque pop.

Smiley Smile could be compared with The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, really. Both are completely wacked out acid masterpieces. Piper is more... fleshed out, though. Smiley is very underdeveloped, very simple in arrangement. One of the reasons it failed, really. The only minimalist album the Summer of Love would take was John Wesley Harding...

EDIT: Huh. The thread won't show that I posted last. Odd.   

[Mike's Beard]

I will never comprehend Sgt. Pepper's mass appeal, can't stand most of it. The only really good song is (reprise) and that's a straight forward rocker.

I'd say Pepper and Smiley are both on opposing ends of two extremes.

One is a collection of poorly written songs overloaded with overdubs and G.Martin's production and arrangement to mask weak material, the other is a collection of brilliant songs let down by zero production and poorly thought out arrangements.

Betcha cant guess which is which?   

[nobody is a chode]

The problem with Sgt Pepper as a psychedelic album is basically that it isn't. Paul was the brains behind most of it and do you know what he was on while writing the songs and recording it? Cocaine. Not acid. Sure he was probably using LSD as often as the rest of them, but I've read that the main chemical inspiration was cocaine and whiskey or something ridiculous like that. Apparently Paul was on a real writing high flowing with the idea of it and he kept banging out songs in that state.

Now think about Brian. SMiLE is now scrapped, maybe in doing that he feels a bit relieved that he doesn't have to make 12 more Good Vibrations in one album. He can chill out a bit, lessen his work load, relax. One imagines him at home in sunny California with friends, deconstructing his own songs. In my opinion he made them a thousand times better. SMiLE's Wind Chimes is ok... it's boring as it is, and Carl's vocal is not that good in my opinion. But Smiley's Wind Chimes is a whole other song, much more complex musically and more interesting instrumentally and vocally. It actually sounds like you're tripping listening to it.

Sometimes I really do believe the "beatles heard smile" theory, because Brian was strangely prescient in moving away from the grandness of SMiLE into Smiley territory. I've always wanted to ask Paul, and I will if I meet him, what he thought of Smiley Smile. You KNOW he bought that sh*t as it hit the market, listening to it loud while stoned or tripping. I want to know how it felt knowing his big fancy album had just been topped by a very unassuming but brilliant Wilson masterpiece

[nobody is a chode]

And the proof is in the pudding. Find me anything in Pepper as good as the "girls and boys" bit of Heroes and Villains.

Or as friggin' cool as the chorus to that song with the droning organ.

To me, the most iconic statement about Sgt. Pepper and SMiLE(y) is Paul visiting Brian and the two playing (what one assumes to be) their favorite of their newly written songs.

Paul playing She's Leaving Home and Brian playing Wonderful. Now, I like She's Leaving Home, it's a good song, but it's pretty standard stuff compared to Wonderful, which exists in its own universe in music box like perfection. It cycles round and round eternally. And the lyrics are AMAZING. Van Dyke Parks is friggin' brilliant.

Through the recess the chalk and numbers... COME ON, that's amazing

Oh, and - Sgt Pepper has nothing like Fall Breaks, which makes Let's Go Away For A While stink!!!

You know, as I think about this, it really makes me sad knowing that Brian probably thinks Smiley sucks compared to Pepper. I mean, he has cited it as one of his favorite albums, or as good as Pet Sounds. Everyone talks about Pepper, no one talks about Smiley. Things should be different. The story should be : how the Beatles failed to keep up with Brian Wilson's mad genius. The story is : how Brian Wilson lost his cool and the Beatles "won".

[Runaways]

fall breaks can't even touch let's go away for a while.  (that's all i got outta that).

actually, if you all want a major major lol, watch this video of this dude saying why sgt peppers is superior to pet sounds. but srsly, DO NOT make this into a beatles flame, cause there's enough beatles fans on that video comments section laughing at this dude too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpH_grmjJxA

gah i love it. so so funny.  i've seen this guy before commenting on beach boys songs. he's reaaally strange.  i almost feel like there's something a bit off about him.