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Post by B.E. on Nov 15, 2019 15:43:36 GMT
So, which moment is kicking your ass right now?
How about the backing vocals of "Little Bird" as heard in the A Cappella mix released on Wake The World: The Friends Sessions? I've cued up the video to 0:46 to hear the "barbershop quartet" style singing which so beautifully slides into the next chord.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 15, 2019 17:29:31 GMT
So, which moment is kicking your ass right now? How about the backing vocals of "Little Bird" as heard in the A Cappella mix released on Wake The World: The Friends Sessions? I've cued up the video to 0:46 to hear the "barbershop quartet" style singing which so beautifully slides into the next chord. Thanks for cueing that up, B.E. I haven't listened to the Friends sessions since last year. Very nice moment. The one that comes to mind for me is the a capella Surfer Girl from Sunshine Tomorrow. So sweet sounding, especially that little descending harmony at the end of it.
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Post by B.E. on Nov 15, 2019 17:45:05 GMT
The one that comes to mind for me is the a capella Surfer Girl from Sunshine Tomorrow. So sweet sounding, especially that little descending harmony at the end of it. Yes! That was a very nice way to close out Sunshine Tomorrow. And, it reminds me of how they closed out Sunshine Tomorrow 2 with an alternate "Lei'd" take of "Surfer Girl". That vocal flourish by Brian at the end is an all-timer for me! Here it is:
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
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Likes: 201
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 15, 2019 19:21:33 GMT
The one that comes to mind for me is the a capella Surfer Girl from Sunshine Tomorrow. So sweet sounding, especially that little descending harmony at the end of it. Yes! That was a very nice way to close out Sunshine Tomorrow. And, it reminds me of how they closed out Sunshine Tomorrow 2 with an alternate "Lei'd" take of "Surfer Girl". That vocal flourish by Brian at the end is an all-timer for me! Here it is: Whoa, that’s wonderful! I never did buy ST2 but hearing that flourish from Brian I’m thinking I might need to check it out.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Nov 15, 2019 21:38:10 GMT
I have to say that I'm not a fan of the Lei'd In Hawaii tracks. It's nice that Brian was on board; his voice is always special; and parts are beautiful. But I think mostly the life is sucked out of the songs. The arrangements are stripped, and I guess that's what they/Brian were going for. I just don't care for those versions.
The nice thing about our recent threads (KISS, Led Zeppelin, BB albums, etc.) is that it has prompted me to dig out some albums that I haven't listened to in a long time. One of those is No Pier Pressure. There are actual Specific Beach Boys Musical Moments (plural) that I'm really digging right now with that album. I mentioned it in the other thread, but I think Brian did some outstanding vocal work on that album. I especially like the way he tried - and succeeded - in singing high again. His vocals on "Whatever Happened", "Tell Me Why", "I'm Feeling sad", and especially on "Our Special Love" are outstanding. I don't want to get carried away, but Brian is singing like you might've expected from a 70-something Brian Wilson had he NOT destroyed his voice in the mid-1970's.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 727
Likes: 201
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 15, 2019 22:45:48 GMT
I have to say that I'm not a fan of the Lei'd In Hawaii tracks. It's nice that Brian was on board; his voice is always special; and parts are beautiful. But I think mostly the life is sucked out of the songs. The arrangements are stripped, and I guess that's what they/Brian were going for. I just don't care for those versions. The nice thing about our recent threads (KISS, Led Zeppelin, BB albums, etc.) is that it has prompted me to dig out some albums that I haven't listened to in a long time. One of those is No Pier Pressure. There are actual Specific Beach Boys Musical Moments (plural) that I'm really digging right now with that album. I mentioned it in the other thread, but I think Brian did some outstanding vocal work on that album. I especially like the way he tried - and succeeded - in singing high again. His vocals on "Whatever Happened", "Tell Me Why", "I'm Feeling sad", and especially on "Our Special Love" are outstanding. I don't want to get carried away, but Brian is singing like you might've expected from a 70-something Brian Wilson had he NOT destroyed his voice in the mid-1970's.
One of the things I love so much about the BB's catalogue is how varied it is in terms of style and approach - there is so much to love and so many ass-kicking moments. I think it's fun to compare the stripped down versions to the lush, layered, heavily orchestrated ones, I just love the different twists, I guess. As for NPP, I do enjoy Brian's vocals throughout that album. I'm not sure there are any Brian-only vocal moments that kick my ass on it, though I think his vocals on Tell Me Why are very good. The kick-ass moments on NPP for me are: The "ahhhhh" harmony at the end of This Beautiful Day. "But not this time" in The Right Time. The key change in Sail Away, and the bass harmonica throughout the song that is reminiscent of a foghorn. Every achingly gorgeous layer of the chorus in Tell Me Why - Al's vocals, the background harmonies... holy schnikes, the whole chorus is probably the most sublime out of any of the moments on any of Brian's solo albums.
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 15, 2019 23:52:44 GMT
I disagree (relatively strongly) that Brian sang high parts well on NPP, but I do think it had some brilliant vocal moments. I really love this part of "Tell Me Why," which while similar to other moments in the song is never quite repeated.
Brian has a real gift for suspensions and releases, sometimes not where you expect them or over unusual chords.
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Post by B.E. on Nov 16, 2019 19:03:20 GMT
I'm not sure there are any Brian-only vocal moments that kick my ass on it The bridge (?) of "One Kind Of Love" comes immediately to mind. It's not just the lyrics, or the music, that I love, it's also Brian's performance on "I wasted so much time, running circles in my mind. I couldn't hear my heart, calling out for you".
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Mike's the Greatest!!
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Post by Mike's the Greatest!! on Nov 21, 2019 20:23:49 GMT
I like the Lei'd tracks, they sound like ambient vocal music to me. Very relaxing, really good to go to sleep by!
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Nov 22, 2019 0:40:20 GMT
I like the Lei'd tracks, they sound like ambient vocal music to me. Very relaxing, really good to go to sleep by! Yeah, they're good for sleeping.
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Post by jk on Dec 17, 2019 22:35:45 GMT
I've been lending an ear to the instrumental track of "In The Back Of My Mind" and marvelling at the intricacy of it all:
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Post by jk on Jan 12, 2020 10:36:39 GMT
All of "Dance, Dance, Dance", one of the most joyous celebrations of youth ever committed to wax:
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Jan 12, 2020 17:18:52 GMT
All of "Dance, Dance, Dance", one of the most joyous celebrations of youth ever committed to wax: With Glen Campbell on lead guitar!
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Post by jk on Jan 12, 2020 22:52:09 GMT
The talk about "Caroline, No" in another thread reminded me of another moment, one that occurs in two songs.
There's the sad sax interjection in the bridge of "CN", which seems to have had a predecessor. "ITBOMM" also features such a moment, here at 0:50, where the first tenor sax briefly pokes its head out of the stew before sinking back in again:
Something rather similar happens in the instrumental workout in "Feel Flows", when Charles Lloyd's sax becomes briefly audible...
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Jan 13, 2020 21:09:12 GMT
...Something rather similar happens in the instrumental workout in "Feel Flows", when Charles Lloyd's sax becomes briefly audible... Some Charles Lloyd trivia...Charles "The Chief" Lloyd played on several Beach Boys' tracks from Surf's Up in 1971 through the M.I.U. Album in 1978, in addition to touring with the band and helping out Mike Love with Celebration.
But, did you know...that Charles Lloyd recorded with The Doors - and it wasn't on The Soft Parade album. Yes, for The Doors' last studio album, Full Circle, in 1972 and post-Jim Morrison, Charles Lloyd played the saxophone on "Verdillac" and the flute on "The Piano Bird". And he was quite prevalent on both songs. On some of the tracks on Full Circle, The Doors experimented with jazz-rock sound, with varying degrees of success. Actually, I wish The Doors would've continued to record and expand on that jazz-rock approach. Ray Manzarek, Robby Krieger, and especially John Densmore were perfect for it.
Manarek, Krieger, and Densmore first met in 1965 at a Transcendental Meditation class in Los Angeles. I'm wondering if their connection with Charles Lloyd had anything to do with their shared interest in TM?
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