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Author Topic: The Beach Boys  (Read 151777 times)

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Hello Goodbye

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #160 on: February 09, 2010, 04:59:55 AM »

Listen to the chorus of this song (from 1:02 on)... Coincidence, or influence?  ;)
The Beach Boys - Girl Don't Tell Me

(for the record, this song was written after Ticket To Ride was released)


And Help Me Rhonda was recorded a year after Little GTO.

Joost, I like Help Me Rhonda a lot.  I know it's not one of the more meaningful Beach boys songs, but it was a great party song!
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #161 on: February 09, 2010, 05:03:45 AM »

Oh, and I like that little bit of vocalizing prior to the alternate Help Me Rhonda mix I posted.  Their voices went together so well!
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #162 on: February 09, 2010, 05:19:27 AM »

Joost,  When I Grow Up To Be A Man was one of The Beach Boys songs that really made me take them seriously back in 1965.  I'm interested in your feelings about this song.

The Beach Boys - When I Grow Up To Be A Man - STEREO
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #163 on: February 09, 2010, 05:34:03 AM »

In 1964 The Beach Boys recorded Wendy.  But I was a little too young to fully appreciate it, Joost.  I prefered their surf and car music that year.

1965 was a meaningful year for me.  I was maturing as a teenager and Wendy became an extremely significant song for me.  The Beach Boys and The Beatles were maturing in their music.  It was a wonderful time in life...and music.

Beach Boys Wendy


The Beach Boys - Wendy


 
« Last Edit: February 09, 2010, 05:37:00 AM by Hello Goodbye »
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dcowboys107

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #164 on: February 09, 2010, 09:37:00 PM »

Coincident to this discussion, WCBS-FM has been playing about four Beach Boys songs an hour the past several days.  It's nice hearing their vocals and rich harmonies.  I've always liked sibling harmony.

Help Me Rhonda alternate single version - The Beach Boys

Joost, what's the story behind this alternate mix?


I kinda enjoy the "wah wah" parts although they sound a bit dated.  Hello Goodbye, you should check out the "Help Me Rhonda" sessions where Brian fights with his dad.  It's cool glimpse into the recording process and group dynamics.

But yeah basically, they had the album version recorded already but Brian realized that this song had lots of potential so he redid the backing track (denser and more enjoyable) and changed the harmonies.  What you hear here is at attempt at reworking the harmony arrangements.


On a side note, my favorite sessions to listen to are the "Please Let Me Wonder" sessions.  I found a torrent for them and wow, those blew me away. How well they blended together. If anyone would like them, let me know and I'll try to send them to you.  I
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Joost

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #165 on: February 09, 2010, 09:59:23 PM »

Hello Goodbye:

Concerning 'Little GTO'/'Help Me, Rhonda':
I don't know if Brian really got his inspiration from 'Little GTO'. High, wordless wails like those were very common in early surf music. I agree that these vocals sound somewhat alike, but I'm sure that there are dozens of surf songs with similar sounding parts.

Concerning 'When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)':
That's a song from 'Today!', which was their first really "mature" album. It was their first one to not feature any songs about surfing, beaches or cars and their first one after Brian retired from touring. Pot was becoming a bigger source of "inspiration" (no LSD yet, Brian didn't start using that until he wrote 'California Girls').
Side A is all cheerful, uptempo songs. I think they're really taking the familiar early Beach Boys sound to a higher level here with much richer and more sophisticated compositions, lyrics and arrangements. Some really groovy stuff on there too. Side B is filled with melancholic ballads and is really a prequel to 'Pet Sounds'. Most of these songs wouldn't be out of place on 'Pet Sounds', actually.
'Today!' is one of my favorite Beach Boys albums. I think it's the "missing link" between the early sun & fun Beach Boys and the 'Pet Sounds' era.

I think it's really cool that you consciously experienced the most important years of The Beach Boys. I was born in 1978 so apart from 'Kokomo', all the important Beach Boys songs were already oldies when I started noticing them. I can't imagine how it must've been to hear them evolving with every new album. From 'All Summer Long' (1964) until ''Holland' (1973) The Beach Boys released at least one new album a year and every album sounded totally different from the previous one. The first albums I heard were their late 60s and early 70s albums ('Pet Sounds', 'Sunflower', 'Surf's Up', 'Friends', '20/20') and from there on I got to the early stuff. That's a bit like seeing the second half of a movie before the first half, I guess.
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Hello Goodbye

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #166 on: February 10, 2010, 02:39:47 AM »

Joost,  I was 15 when California Girls was recorded.  Yes, I experienced The Beach Boys and The Beatles evolving during those years.  It coincided with me maturing as a young adult and I naturally gravitated toward their music as they became more introspective and sensitive in their song writing.  I was influenced by their music; these two groups in particular who seemed to lead the way in the 60s.  They had more of an impact on me than I realized at the time.  It's best summed up by saying that Today! and Rubber Soul were the two albums that made me "feel" music for the first time.  It was a unique point in time which we can retrospectively study, but to "consciously experience" was indeed a wonder!

I remember hearing the opening bars of California Girls for the first time.  It remains, to me, the prettiest opening to a song I've ever heard.

Barry 
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #167 on: February 10, 2010, 02:47:04 AM »

dcowboys107,

I kind of like the "wah wahs" too.  I smile when I hear this mix.  Brian's fight with his father is difficult to listen to, especially when we know how his dad's problems affected a very sensitive son.

Barry
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dcowboys107

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #168 on: February 10, 2010, 10:14:13 PM »

I agree it is tough in one sense that it highlights how rough Brian had it especially by his father's hands, but from an artist's perspective the recording process is undeniably beautiful. While their harmonies were so tight and beautiful, you still feel the humanity and hear it.  You hear Brian hitting the falsetto shrill, Mike off key a bit, etc.  I just think it's stunning. Unfortunately, Murry had to cause problems but like Joost has been saying, he gave them a kick when they needed it and they're number one hits minus Good Vibrations and Kokomo had a lot to do with him.

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #169 on: February 10, 2010, 10:46:38 PM »

Unfortunately, Murry had to cause problems but like Joost has been saying, he gave them a kick when they needed it and they're number one hits minus Good Vibrations and Kokomo had a lot to do with him.

I'm not sure The Beach Boys would've gone anywhere without Murry, and not just because he gave Brian the kick in the ass that he needed. Murry was a semi-professional songwriter, so he had connections in the music business, and he had such an intimidating personality that even the big shots at the big record companies didn't say "no" to him. The Beatles had to struggle for their breakthrough, but for The Beach Boys it was a breeze:

August 2-6, 1961: The group's first proper rehearsals.
September 7, 1961: Their first audition, for music publisher Hite Morgan. He turns them down because they only play cover songs.
September 15, 1961: Second audition for Hite Morgan. They play their very first original composition, 'Surfin''. Morgan likes it and records three demo tracks ('Surfin'', 'Luau' and 'Lavender') with the group right away.
October 3, 1961: The group's first real recording session, the re-record 'Surfin'', 'Luau' and 'Lavender'.
December 8, 1961: The 'Surfin'' b/w 'Luau' single is released.
December 23, 1961: The group's first ever live show.
February 16, 1962: 'Surfin'' enters the Billboard top 100.
May 10, 1962: The Beach Boys get signed to Capitol records.
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alexis

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #170 on: February 11, 2010, 04:55:39 AM »

I'm not sure The Beach Boys would've gone anywhere without Murry, and not just because he gave Brian the kick in the ass that he needed. Murry was a semi-professional songwriter, so he had connections in the music business, and he had such an intimidating personality that even the big shots at the big record companies didn't say "no" to him. The Beatles had to struggle for their breakthrough, but for The Beach Boys it was a breeze:

August 2-6, 1961: The group's first proper rehearsals.
September 7, 1961: Their first audition, for music publisher Hite Morgan. He turns them down because they only play cover songs.
September 15, 1961: Second audition for Hite Morgan. They play their very first original composition, 'Surfin''. Morgan likes it and records three demo tracks ('Surfin'', 'Luau' and 'Lavender') with the group right away.
October 3, 1961: The group's first real recording session, the re-record 'Surfin'', 'Luau' and 'Lavender'.
December 8, 1961: The 'Surfin'' b/w 'Luau' single is released.
December 23, 1961: The group's first ever live show.
February 16, 1962: 'Surfin'' enters the Billboard top 100.
May 10, 1962: The Beach Boys get signed to Capitol records.

I want to thank you guys, especially Joost and Hello Goodbye, for teaching me so much about the Beach Boys. I really never knew much about them, and really still don't compared to the Beatles, but I know a heck of a lot more than I used to - thanks!

And ... that chronology is so interesting! A few things that stuck out for me, besides the point being made about how soon they got their single released relative to how long they'd been playing together:

1) The Beatles were a band (J/P/G)  for 5 years longer than the Beach Boys. I think this showed up in their live shows, and the energy they brought to the studio in the early days. At least from what I've heard/seen on the clips from this thread, the Beach Boys were a great vocal group, like the Four Freshmen with an electric sound, but they didn't strike me as a live band that would make people just lose themselves in ecstasy and wild abandon (like the Beatles did). The instrumental musicianship of the early Beatles seems much better/tighter than the Beach Boys to me, thought I admit that my lack of exposure to the early Beach Boys could easily make that a silly statement.

2) The two groups took different routes to success - somehow the Beach Boys get a single released, and get into the Billboard Top 100,  before getting signed to their first big contract (Capitol records). The Beatles had to get signed first. I wonder did the #17 "Love Me Do" peak higher than "Surfin'"?

3) In the States - both groups were on Capitol - wow!

4) Both groups "didn't pass" their first audition, and within a few months of each other.

5) As Joost pointed out, The Beatles paid a lot more dues than the Beach Boys - lots of huddling together in a cold van to keep warm, living in loos, etc.

Thanks again, guys!
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #171 on: February 11, 2010, 07:42:14 AM »

1) The Beatles were a band (J/P/G)  for 5 years longer than the Beach Boys. I think this showed up in their live shows, and the energy they brought to the studio in the early days. At least from what I've heard/seen on the clips from this thread, the Beach Boys were a great vocal group, like the Four Freshmen with an electric sound, but they didn't strike me as a live band that would make people just lose themselves in ecstasy and wild abandon (like the Beatles did). The instrumental musicianship of the early Beatles seems much better/tighter than the Beach Boys to me, thought I admit that my lack of exposure to the early Beach Boys could easily make that a silly statement.

Brian, Dennis, Carl and Mike (and later on Al) had been singing harmonies together long before they really became a band. Since childhood, actually. So in a way you could say that The Beach Boys pre-date The Beatles.

But I agree that as instrumentalists, they were no match for The Beatles. When The Beach Boys started rehearsing, Carl was a talented guitarist but still just a 14 year old kid, Dennis didn't play any instrument yet and Brian had never played bass guitar before.

I think another reason why the girls didn't go wild for The Beach Boys like they did for The Beatles is because the group's only sex symbol was hidden in the back behind the drum kit. Carl was a chubby kid, Brian was goofy and quickly gaining weight, Mike was already getting bald, Al is just 5' 5" tall... So also in that field, not match for The Beatles.

2) The two groups took different routes to success - somehow the Beach Boys get a single released, and get into the Billboard Top 100,  before getting signed to their first big contract (Capitol records). The Beatles had to get signed first. I wonder did the #17 "Love Me Do" peak higher than "Surfin'"?

Yeah, 'Surfin'' wasn't that big a hit, it peaked at #75. It was released on small, independent local record label Candix and became a national hit pretty much entirely on the strength of record sales in the Los Angeles area. Candix eventually went bankrupt because they couldn't handle such a big selling single.
« Last Edit: February 11, 2010, 11:59:17 AM by Joost »
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alexis

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #172 on: February 11, 2010, 01:46:59 PM »



Brian, Dennis, Carl and Mike (and later on Al) had been singing harmonies together long before they really became a band. Since childhood, actually...


 When The Beach Boys started rehearsing, Carl was a talented guitarist but still just a 14 year old kid ...

I was wondering about their vocal harmonies ... surely Carl, and maybe one of the other vocalists, went through puberty, with their voice changing, during this period. It'd be interesting to know if they had to rearrange who sang what part at that time, depending on how their voices "turned out" after puberty. Come to think of it, I guess I'd ask the same question about the Everly Bros. - did Phil always sing the lower harmony, and Don the higher? That high harmony is SO distinctive in the Everly Brothers ...
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #173 on: February 11, 2010, 02:24:58 PM »

I was wondering about their vocal harmonies ... surely Carl, and maybe one of the other vocalists, went through puberty, with their voice changing, during this period. It'd be interesting to know if they had to rearrange who sang what part at that time, depending on how their voices "turned out" after puberty.

They didn't, Brian always took the highest part, Carl the second highest, Al the second lowest and Mike the lowest.
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dcowboys107

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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #174 on: February 14, 2010, 08:10:38 PM »

Would Dennis double up with Al on the harmonies?  I'm trying to pick him out, it sounds like he usually did.  For "In My Room" how do the harmonies work especially for the very beginning. I think Brian starts with "there's a world" then Al I think takes "where I can go" then Brian hits the falsetto then the rest fill him from under. Does that sound right?
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #175 on: February 14, 2010, 09:07:35 PM »

Would Dennis double up with Al on the harmonies?  I'm trying to pick him out, it sounds like he usually did.  For "In My Room" how do the harmonies work especially for the very beginning. I think Brian starts with "there's a world" then Al I think takes "where I can go" then Brian hits the falsetto then the rest fill him from under. Does that sound right?

No, Carl joins in first ("I can go and"), then Dennis ("tell my secrets to"), then Al and Mike (both on "room").

Dennis often wasn't in the blend when they sang harmonies in the early years. If he did sing backing vocals it was often a bass vocal, his range was fairly similar to Mike's. Their voices even sounded somewhat similar. In fact, for many years even some of the most prominent Beach Boys experts believed that Dennis sang 'Catch A Wave' and 'Hawaii', while in fact that was Mike with a heavy cold...
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #176 on: March 13, 2010, 12:35:50 AM »

Hum dee dum, hum dee daa oh oh....hum dee dum, hum dee daa oh oh....


;)
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #177 on: March 22, 2010, 01:40:16 AM »

Gotta keep those lovin' good vibrations a-happenin' with her,

Gotta keep those lovin' good vibrations a-happenin' with her....


:)
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #178 on: March 26, 2010, 12:16:25 AM »

Ah my my what a sensation...
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Re: The Beach Boys
« Reply #179 on: March 30, 2010, 10:10:04 PM »

That song has been stuck in my head forever lol. I love it!! I especially love the live in Hawaii version. How precious Brian's voice is in it.  I can't even imagine the turmoil he had been experiencing up to that point and how much he would suffer for the next twenty or so years.
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