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Post by Kapitan on Sept 30, 2022 14:05:00 GMT
The Beatles famously released two albums on the same day in 1988, Past Masters Vol. 1&2, collecting non-album tracks in one place (or, I suppose, two places).
It occurred to me--yes, ME!, nobody else, and definitely not KDS in a side conversation--that it might be fun to think about what a Beach Boys Past Masters might have looked like. Probably not quite as robust, since I don't think the Beach Boys shared that Beatles idea of generally avoiding album cuts for singles, but it could still have some interesting results.
What would you envision as such an album?
I'm not too concerned about specific rules for this, so take a liberty or two as you see fit (e.g., a version that was included on a UK album but not the US version). But I am thinking about songs that had been released, just not on proper Beach Boys studio albums. So the Smile versions of songs not released until the Good Vibrations box set, or "Soulful Old Man Shunshine," would not be what I'm thinking about here. Rather, things like "Break Away," "Child of Winter," etc. And obviously this kind of exercise envisions a world in which there weren't the twofers with bonus tracks making these songs more available.
However, as I said, take some liberties if you want. It's a message board thread, not an SAT test or trivia competition.
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Post by kds on Sept 30, 2022 14:12:57 GMT
Here's a short list of songs that I think would've definitely been included
The Baker Man Land Ahoy In My Room - German Be True to Your School - Single Version Fun Fun Fun - Single Version Little Saint Nick - Single Version The Little Girl I Once Knew Hang Onto Your Ego Break Away Celebrate the News
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Post by Kapitan on Sept 30, 2022 14:48:55 GMT
I broke my own rules--hey, I said to take liberties!--and included a few unreleased things, which I figure would be selling points. I included a few non-Beach Boys songs, too, just thinking the albums they were on weren't always in print in the pre-internet era and if the rights were taken care of, they'd make fans happier.
I also stuck more to what I like than just everything that's out there (hence no collaboration with Little Richard, or the Everlys, etc.)
The Little Girl I Once Knew Break Away Celebrate the News Cottonfields Sound of Free (Dennis Wilson)
Lady (Fallin In Love) (Dennis Wilson) We Got Love Child of Winter
The River Song (Dennis Wilson) Still I Dream of It* Almost Summer (Celebration) It’s a Beautiful Day Heaven (Carl Wilson) Problem Child California Dreamin’ Don’t Fight the Sea (Al Jardine w/ the Beach Boys)
*Unreleased (for our purposes here)
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Post by kds on Sept 30, 2022 14:55:13 GMT
You'd probably need to add in a couple unreleased goodies to make it at least a two disc collection.
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Post by Kapitan on Sept 30, 2022 15:35:47 GMT
You'd probably need to add in a couple unreleased goodies to make it at least a two disc collection. It's funny, while the Beatles had a lot of great non-album songs they released but not many good unreleased songs, the Beach Boys had the inverse: A LOT of great and good unreleased songs, but (relatively speaking, considering the length of their active career) not many released non-album songs of merit.
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Post by kds on Sept 30, 2022 15:50:20 GMT
You'd probably need to add in a couple unreleased goodies to make it at least a two disc collection. It's funny, while the Beatles had a lot of great non-album songs they released but not many good unreleased songs, the Beach Boys had the inverse: A LOT of great and good unreleased songs, but (relatively speaking, considering the length of their active career) not many released non-album songs of merit. I hadn't really thought about it, but this is pretty spot on.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Oct 1, 2022 10:44:34 GMT
This is a topic I've thought a lot about - and struggled with - over the years. When the 2fer CDs came out in the early 1990s, I wasn't a fan of the bonus tracks. And, I realize I was in a very small minority. I considered myself a quasi-purist, and I thought the original albums should stand on their own without tacking bonus tracks on at the end. Hey, The Beatles didn't need to do that! I thought the bonus tracks were in some ways telling the listener that the original albums weren't strong enough...or sufficient enough...as they were released, and needed additional songs. I know, I know. That's reading waaaaaay too much into it, but again, as a purist I thought the bonus tracks tacked on at the end took away from the listening experience, too. The album, or in this case CD, should end WITH THE ENDING SONG of the original album, the way they were intended. However, to muddy the waters and to display a strong case of hypocrisy, due to the (short) length of the original albums, I did approve of the 2fer format, so go figure. Releasing 25-27 minute CDs would not be a good idea.
Now, to this thread. For a long time, and to a large extent presently, I prefer(red) that those bonus tracks on the 2fers be released on separate CDs. Keep them separate from the original albums and just lump 'em together. That would be a fascinating listen...again similar to what The Beatles did with their Past Masters Vol. 1 and 2. The Beach Boys could do a great, COMPLETE Singles boxed set. They certainly have enough singles and B-sides to do that. The group did release The Original U.S. Singles Collection - The Capitol Years, but that series ended with the 1965 songs.
But, then what would you do with the other stuff like "The Baker Man", "Cindy, Oh Cindy", "Hang Onto Your Ego", "Can't Wait Too Long", "Ol' Man River", etc.? Those songs weren't original releases; they were released and presented years later as "unreleased songs". Would you want to group them into a multi CD/boxed set with singles/B-sides/oddities? Good luck compiling that one! The group has released so many previously unreleased/alternate versions/outtakes over the years with their multiple compilations. They're all over the place!
I think my preference would be TWO projects. The first would be The Beach Boys - The Complete Singles Collection. Just the officially released singles, B-sides, and other rarities (like "East Meets West", "Happy Endings", etc.). The second release would be for those prior unreleased songs that eventually became released songs. But, again, that would probably require another boxed set as there's so many of those songs.
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Post by kds on Oct 1, 2022 11:26:54 GMT
The OCD side of me has similar feelings about bonus tracks on reissues in general.
For me, the easiest solution, and I'm not being a smart ass this is what I typically do, is to just press stop when the album proper ends. Or, if I want to listen to the bonus stuff, I'll pause and let a few minutes pass before resuming.
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Post by Kapitan on Oct 1, 2022 11:31:46 GMT
I considered myself a quasi-purist, and I thought the original albums should stand on their own without tacking bonus tracks on at the end. Hey, The Beatles didn't need to do that! I thought the bonus tracks were in some ways telling the listener that the original albums weren't strong enough...or sufficient enough...as they were released, and needed additional songs. I know, I know. That's reading waaaaaay too much into it, but again, as a purist I thought the bonus tracks tacked on at the end took away from the listening experience, too. The album, or in this case CD, should end WITH THE ENDING SONG of the original album, the way they were intended.
That's an interesting angle. Actually I have some real sympathy for that. Now, don't get me wrong, I wouldn't have wanted to give up my bonus tracks at the time when they weren't commercially available elsewhere. But I do really like the idea of an album being what an album is, and what an album's not being somewhere else.
I make a distinction between albums I knew at the time and those I didn't, too, when thinking about this. What I mean is, with albums I wasn't necessarily as familiar with upon their release, the bonus tracks can actually muddy the waters to some extent. If I were to buy a reissue of U2's The Joshua Tree or Paul Simon's Graceland, it would be very clear to me which tracks were tacked on as bonus tracks even without studying the liners, etc., because I know those albums as they were/are. Some of the Beach Boys twofers, I actually got a little fuzzy. "Break Away" and "Celebrate the News" didn't feel like bonus tracks to me, they just blended right in to the album 20/20. Weird sequencing, sure, but the Beach Boys did plenty of weird sequencing. Point being, I never really got to know most of the Beach Boys album as they were, but only ever with bonus tracks. The line sometimes felt fuzzy.
Anyway, that's a tangent off your point, but that supports the case against bonus tracks.
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Post by kds on Oct 1, 2022 11:41:27 GMT
Regarding unfamilar albums with bonus material.
A few years ago, when I started buying Uriah Heep's earlier albums, I got the remastered editions, each with 5-6 bonus tracks.
I would actually listen to the album, then stop the CD, and listen to the bonus stuff another day. That way, I could familiarize myself with the album without my brain scrambling the alternate take of one song, or a non album outtake.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Oct 1, 2022 12:36:45 GMT
Just for the fun of it, I'm going to try to replicate The Beatles' Past Masters series using The Beach Boys' non-album tracks:
The Beach Boys - Past Masters, Volume One
01 Luau 02 Be True To Your School 03 Little Saint Nick 04 The Lord's Prayer 05 Fun, Fun, Fun 06 Why Do Fools Fall In Love
07 The Little Girl I Once Knew 08 You're Welcome 09 Break Away 10 Celebrate The News 11 Susie Cincinnati 12 Cottonfields 13 Cool, Cool Water 14 Cuddle Up 15 California Saga: California 16 Child Of Winter
The Beach Boys - Past Masters, Volume Two
01 Rock And Roll Music 02 It's OK 03 Honkin' Down The Highway 04 Here Comes The Night 05 Lady Lynda 06 It's A Beautiful Day 07 Livin' With A Heartache 08 The Beach Boys Medley 09 Chasin' The Sky 10 East Meets West 11 Rock And Roll To The Rescue 12 California Dreamin' 13 Lady Liberty 14 Happy Endings 15 Don't Worry, Baby (With The Everly Brothers) 16 Somewhere Near Japan 17 Problem Child 18 Problem Child (Instrumental) 19 That's Why God Made The Radio (Instrumental) 20 Isn't It Time 21 California Girls/Do It Again/Sail On Sailor (Live In Chicago 2012)
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Post by Kapitan on Oct 1, 2022 12:44:10 GMT
I'm assuming (which, I know, makes an...y'know...out of us both) the songs here that are on albums had different single mixes, hence their inclusion? Some songs, I knew that to be the case. But with some of the below, I didn't.
(That's something very far outside my general knowledge. I never bought, or sought, single mixes. If they weren't called out for me on comps, I had no idea.)
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Oct 1, 2022 12:48:27 GMT
I'm assuming (which, I know, makes an...y'know...out of us both) the songs here that are on albums had different single mixes, hence their inclusion? Some songs, I knew that to be the case. But with some of the below, I didn't.
(That's something very far outside my general knowledge. I never bought, or sought, single mixes. If they weren't called out for me on comps, I had no idea.)
Yes, I included the single mixes. I didn't know if the instrumental versions were necessary to include, but they were legitimate B-sides, and they weren't included on the original albums.
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Post by Kapitan on Oct 1, 2022 12:50:39 GMT
I'm curious how you and others look at that "pure" version of The Beach Boys Past Masters Vol I&II. In a world where those songs were uncollected otherwise, would you have bought those? Been excited to buy those? How do you rate them compared to their namesake by those Liverpudlians?
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Oct 1, 2022 13:19:24 GMT
I'm curious how you and others look at that "pure" version of The Beach Boys Past Masters Vol I&II. In a world where those songs were uncollected otherwise, would you have bought those? Been excited to buy those? How do you rate them compared to their namesake by those Liverpudlians? I would've purchased them just to have everything collected in one place. I mean, obviously most of them are easily available, but they're all over the place (I know, I know, we're in the digital age so it doesn't matter much ). I am a firm believer that EVERY Beach Boys' song be available either on CD or digitally, so, yes, I would want songs like "Chasin' The Sky", "Happy Endings", and "Problem Child" in my collection.
Now, comparing The Beach Boys Past Masters with The Beatles Past Masters? That's a matter of opinion or which artist/songs you like better. I think I might go with The Beatles, but just specifically the Past Masters. Those songs are better than The Beach Boys' I think.
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