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Post by Kapitan on Mar 25, 2019 12:40:48 GMT
You know those Beach Boys songs (or members’ solo songs) that you hear and think “if only this were on that album,” or “...done five years earlier [or later],” or “...were sung by him instead?”
”Run James Run” recorded by The Beach Boys for TWGMTR would have been so great... (Heck, I’d even have liked it more on NPP if it had Al singing...)
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Mar 25, 2019 13:38:02 GMT
A big one for me has always been "Sail On Sailor". I guess lyrically and somewhat vocally, Dennis would've been a good choice, especially at that time in his career when he still had his voice. But I often wonder how "Sail On Sailor" would've fared commercially with the FAMILIAR Beach Boys' voice of Carl Wilson.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 25, 2019 17:24:14 GMT
I wonder about that. Though personally I’ve never thought it was so great a song to begin with. But I’d take a Carl vocal everyday over Blondie’s.
Another one I wish would’ve been on TWGMTR: Al’s “Drivin’.” Not once it was released, but if it had been held for that. I don’t think it’s a great song but it’s good, it fits, and I think some of the uptempo tunes on that album are weak.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Mar 25, 2019 20:41:54 GMT
I think "In The Back Of My Mind" is a good song, but Dennis Wilson's vocal doesn't do it justice. At that point in his career, Dennis just didn't have the voice for it; maybe a few years later. It seems like a personal song so Brian would be the obvious choice for the lead, but I'll bet Carl would've done a good job with it, too.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 25, 2019 20:46:16 GMT
At that time I would have definitely given it to Brian.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Mar 25, 2019 21:07:02 GMT
I really like the 1979 disco version of "Here Comes the Night". I think it's an excellent production with a great lead vocal from Carl Wilson and cool background vocals from whoever showed up to sing them. I do hear Mike in there. The single reached No. 44 on the U.S. Billboard Chart and No. 37 in the UK. That isn't too bad. Not great but not terrible either.
Obviously, there were two things working against it. First, the almost eleven-minute album version was a bit much, taking up valuable space and time on the record. Second, disco music was fading slightly when the Beach Boys recorded/released the song (Feb/March 1979).
Question: What if "Here Comes The Night" was released on the M.I.U. album, six months earlier. You need good timin'. Would've six months made a big difference? I wonder if the song receiving airplay in the fall/winter of 1978 would've resulted in a Top 20, maybe a Top 15 hit?
How would've this sounded on M.I.U.:
1. Come Go With Me (Al) 2. Wontcha Come Out Tonight (Brian and Mike) 3. Here Comes The Night (Carl) 4. She's Got Rhythm (Brian)
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 26, 2019 2:22:39 GMT
How would've this sounded on M.I.U.:
1. Come Go With Me (Al) 2. Wontcha Come Out Tonight (Brian and Mike) 3. Here Comes The Night (Carl) 4. She's Got Rhythm (Brian)
Not good. Valiant effort, but still not good.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 27, 2019 15:07:00 GMT
I know it’s not a favorite of many, but imagine a Beach Boys take on The Last Song with Mike on the verses up until that last couplet or so (up to “me to say to yoooouuuu” before the lalas), which some combo of Brian and Al might handle. Bruce was born for the lala part.
Mikes softer voice would have been ideal and it seems to be in his sweet spot range-wise.
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Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Mar 27, 2019 15:13:02 GMT
I know it’s not a favorite of many, but imagine a Beach Boys take on The Last Song with Mike on the verses up until that last couplet or so (up to “me to say to yoooouuuu” before the lalas), which some combo of Brian and Al might handle. Bruce was born for the lala part. Mikes softer voice would have been ideal and it seems to be in his sweet spot range-wise. There's a really good song lurking in The Last Song. The lalas kind of ruin it and I was begging for Brian to go into falsetto on "me to say to you" but he never got there.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 27, 2019 15:15:28 GMT
I haven’t heard a decent falsetto out of the big fella in a while.
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Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Mar 27, 2019 16:02:34 GMT
I haven’t heard a decent falsetto out of the big fella in a while. Yeah, but if I recall you haven't liked any of his falsettos in the past 40 years.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 27, 2019 17:19:52 GMT
I was about to argue that, but just when I was about to begin my rebuttal, I realized that’s more or less accurate.
It’s not that I haven’t liked his vocals, or even his higher register vocals, in those years. But specifically falsettos performed by BW? Off the top of my head, I can’t think of one I particularly like. I know some people point at She’s Got Rhythm or even Getcha Back as a sort of return to form, but I think the falsetto of both is awful.
Usually his falsetto in those decades is so, so breathy. It’s like an awful flutist, 75% air noise and 25% tone, compensated by doubling (tripling, etc) and cranking it up.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Mar 28, 2019 0:28:29 GMT
I think "The Last Song" is a very good song and a good closing track to NPP. Parts of it don't sound like Brian wrote 'em, but overall I think the song succeeds. Would "The Last Song" sound better with Mike/The Beach Boys' voices? Yes, but that can be said for 99% of Brian's solo songs.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 28, 2019 12:16:54 GMT
Would "The Last Song" sound better with Mike/The Beach Boys' voices? Yes, but that can be said for 99% of Brian's solo songs. I know, but some of them scream out for certain Beach Boys voices more than others. (I can’t tell you how good Carl and Al especially (with Dennis on what’s currently Brian’s “hey baby...” part) have sounded on the “Saturday Night on Hollywood Boulevard” that plays in my head.)
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Mar 28, 2019 12:41:42 GMT
Would "The Last Song" sound better with Mike/The Beach Boys' voices? Yes, but that can be said for 99% of Brian's solo songs. I know, but some of them scream out for certain Beach Boys voices more than others. (I can’t tell you how good Carl and Al especially (with Dennis on what’s currently Brian’s “hey baby...” part) have sounded on the “Saturday Night on Hollywood Boulevard” that plays in my head.) "Saturday Night" is another very good song on NPP (an underrated album IMO). Actually I think a 2015 Al Jardine could've handled the lead vocal just fine.
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