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The Wrecking Crew
Hello Goodbye:
--- Quote from: oldbrownshoe on April 03, 2014, 06:37:20 AM ---I once saw a list of records that those guys were on and it's extraordinary, their only rivals probably being the Motown and Stax house bands.
One thing that's always puzzled me.....
It was common practice in the 60s that session musicians would drop in on a group's recordings, The Beach Boys even went on tour to leave Brian and the Wrecking Crew to get on with recording back in California.
So why did The Monkees (initially a pretend group for a TV series remember) get so much criticism when the press 'discovered' that they didn't play every note on all of their recordings?
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This was precisely the question I asked Peter Tork when I met him during my chief residency in 1981. He reminded me of the friction that existed between the individual members of The Monkees who really wanted to express their song writing and musical abilities and the producers of the show who were after a marketable product. That type of thing made for good reading in the limited amount of press extant at the time. He mentioned being happy when they were finally permitted to express themselves by early 1967.
They were very much in the public eye from 1966 until 1970 with a weekly television show, several albums, tours and the motion picture Head. And those were very evolutionary years for music. I guess it was hard wanting to go psychedelic when they had a certain image the TV studios wanted them to maintain. It wasn't easy for them!
I had the chance to talk with him for about a half hour. Then I shyly asked him for an autograph for my sister...
Hello Goodbye:
--- Quote from: Joost on April 03, 2014, 05:03:54 PM ---Contrary to popular belief, The Beach Boys in fact did play a lot of the instruments up until their 10th album (Pet Sounds was their 11th). So they do deserve some credit as performing musicians, quite a bit more than they usually get.
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Hi Joost! I was a teenager during the 60s and knew they played their instruments well and were a good band. They made enough on tour and on TV to prove that. We saw them evolving and knew they were not playing the brass, woodwinds, violins and harpsichord we were beginning to hear on their albums by 1965. I thought it was very exciting. Even their vocals became more complicated. Together, the instrumentals and vocals were a wonder to hear and experience.
Hello Goodbye:
--- Quote from: Joost on April 03, 2014, 05:10:49 PM ---But yeah, some of the Wrecking Crew guys (and girl) are among pop music's greatest unsung heroes. Hal Blaine for instance played drums on 50 number 1 hits and on 6 consecutive Grammy Record of the Year winners. The guy played on some of the greatest Elvis, Sinatra, Beach Boys and Simon & Garfunkel songs and hardly anyone knows his name.
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Brian knew what he wanted. The Wrecking Crew was able to provide it...
Behind The Sounds: God Only Knows Part 1
Behind The Sounds: God Only Knows Part 2
Hello Goodbye:
--- Quote from: oldbrownshoe on April 03, 2014, 06:37:20 AM ---I once saw a list of records that those guys were on and it's extraordinary, their only rivals probably being the Motown and Stax house bands.
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Here's a partial list: The Wrecking Crew Song List
Clicking on DETAILS next to each song brings up the American Federation of Musicians recording session contract which lists musicians' names.
KelMar:
Great Music Really Recorded by The Wrecking Crew
Nice thread Barry. I've been thinking someone should do it!
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