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Post by kds on Dec 8, 2022 20:14:35 GMT
Based on an aside in the Shoutbox, I'll be doing a Best / Worst song pole for the Christmas albums by Brian Wilson and Mike Love.
Starting......now. Brian Wilson's 2005 Christmas album will be up for discussion until Thursday, December 15 at 11am EST.
Brian Wilson - What I Really Want For Christmas (2005)
Best Worst The Man With All The Toys What I Really Want For Christmas 3 God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen O Holy Night We Wish You A Merry Christmas Hark The Herald Angels Sing It Came Upon A Midnight Clear The First Noel 1 Christmasey Little Saint Nick 2 Deck The Halls Auld Lang Syne On Christmas Day 1 Joy To The World Silent Night 2
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Post by kds on Dec 8, 2022 20:53:28 GMT
Best - What I Really Want for Christmas - I really like all three originals on this album. I like how the horns on the chorus of Christmasey sound so...Christmasey. I think On Christmas Day is a better realized version of Bells of Christmas. But, I love the vocals and arrangement on the title track. I like the fact that Brian selected mostly non-secular Christmas songs, as they tend to be my favorite traditional carols.
Worst - Little Saint Nick - This is the only song on Brian's Christmas album that I don't enjoy very much because it just feels so unnecessary. At least Man With All the Toys and Auld Lang Syne are expanded. Little Saint Nick is just a copy by numbers copy of the BB single.
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Emdeeh
Pacific Coast Highway
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Post by Emdeeh on Dec 8, 2022 21:08:13 GMT
I'll be sitting this one out, unless you decide to add Jeff Foskett's Christmas at the Beach to the discussions.
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Post by kds on Dec 8, 2022 21:19:04 GMT
I'll be sitting this one out, unless you decide to add Jeff Foskett's Christmas at the Beach to the discussions. Not a fan of Brian's or Mike's Christmas offerings?
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Dec 9, 2022 12:49:13 GMT
I've always been, maybe not shocked or perplexed, but surprised at the direction Brian Wilson took with the 1964 Beach Boys' Christmas Album. Around that time, Brian was very much into Phil Spector's Wall Of Sound. Brian was recording songs ("Don't Worry Baby") that were influenced by Spector's songs ("Be My Baby"). He was increasingly using The Wrecking Crew in the studio for Beach Boys' recordings. And, Brian has mentioned in interviews that A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector was one of his favorite albums. So surely, when Brian and The Beach Boys recorded their own Christmas album in mid-1964, it was going to be very...Spectorian. Well, no, not really...
There is very little Phil Spector influence on The Beach Boys' Christmas Album. Side 1, the side comprised mostly of original songs, harkens back more to Little Deuce Coupe than it looks forward to Today! Brian used his own band and the final product sounds like it. The arrangements and musicianship is on the simple side, far from Spector's Wall Of Sound. Side 2, comprised mostly of slower, traditional Christmas songs, is equally surprising. Brian, the master of the moving ballad, chose Dick Reynolds to arrange and dominate those recordings. Yes, it was effective in parts, disappointing in others.
In the end, while I enjoy The Beach Boys Christmas Album, I also find it disappointing and underwhelming, more for what it's not than what it is. Over the years, I haven't read or heard many interviews from Brian or the group about the album. Was Brian satisfied with it? In hindsight, would he change anything? Maybe make the album more like A Christmas Gift For You? In 1995, when I read that Brian Wilson was recording a solo Christmas album, honestly, I was hoping that Brian would've taken the opportunity to emulate Phil Spector's legendary Christmas album. Brian still loved Spector, Brian still liked to rock, Brian still liked covers. Things were all lined up. The stars were all aligned. Would we get all three - a Christmas album, a rock and roll album, and a Spector - not cover album - but influenced album? The answer? A resounding noooooooooooo!
What I Really Want For Christmas is a difficult listen for me. There's not a lot I like about it. I'll give Brian credit for choosing the number of Christmas carols, however, he didn't have the voice to do them justice. I give him credit for writing a few original Christmas songs, but my reaction was/is...meh. I'm not really sure what Brian was trying to accomplish with this Christmas album. It's all over the place. The odd - and inferior - Beach Boys' covers. Older recordings thrown in or tacked on. The sequencing is terrible. The bottom line? The album isn't fun. It isn't spiritual. And it's not Spectorian! It's shouty. Some of the vocals, especially on the Christmas carols, just sound "thrown out" there. More than most of Brian's solo albums, the Beach Boys' voices were seriously missed. Like The Beach Boys' Christmas Album 40 years previously, I feel that What I Really Want For Christmas could've been much more. Another missed opportunity.
BEST SONG: I almost want to vote for "The First Noel" based on that one note, and you know the note I'm referring to. I do like "Joy To World" a lot. Joe Thomas got Brian to sing calm and effectively, but the dit-dit-dits spoil it. I think I'll vote for "On Christmas Day". It's the best of the original songs. Decent melody, production, and vocal. There's nothing to ruin it though I still don't get the "Frosty the Snowman is melting away" line.
WORST SONG: "Silent Night". Easily. Ooh dit dit Silent Night dit dit. You don't sing "Silent Night" with dit-dits. And then 30 seconds of Brian yelling. This is terrible and should have never been released.
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Post by Kapitan on Dec 9, 2022 12:58:06 GMT
Sheriff John Stone, I love that you took the opportunity to weigh in three paragraphs' worth on the Beach Boys' Christmas album! Beach Boys fans, gotta love 'em!
Interesting that your choices for both favorite and least favorite are among the older bonus tracks, with nothing from the album proper.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Dec 9, 2022 13:03:39 GMT
Sheriff John Stone , I love that you took the opportunity to weigh in three paragraphs' worth on the Beach Boys' Christmas album! Beach Boys fans, gotta love 'em!
Interesting that your choices for both favorite and least favorite are among the older bonus tracks, with nothing from the album proper.
Well, I had to provide a big build up! And, I'll take "interesting" I guess...
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Post by Kapitan on Dec 9, 2022 13:09:12 GMT
I don't mean "interesting" in a bad way or a good way, actually--just in the literal way. Really, take yourself out of the situation and think about it. Rating best and worst songs from an album, and said (new studio) album, in the spirit of the times, has three old songs tacked on as bonus tracks. And both best and worst come from those add-ons!? Interesting! The album proper almost may as well not be there at all.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Dec 9, 2022 13:24:46 GMT
I don't mean "interesting" in a bad way or a good way, actually--just in the literal way. Really, take yourself out of the situation and think about it. Rating best and worst songs from an album, and said (new studio) album, in the spirit of the times, has three old songs tacked on as bonus tracks. And both best and worst come from those add-ons!? Interesting! The album proper almost may as well not be there at all. I could've, and probably will over the next week, talk more about the actual, new songs from the album. But hardly any of them stand out. I wouldn't go as far as saying they are bad, though parts of them are. And, on the other hand, there aren't many songs that I consider "keepers", though some parts are very good, like the "Joy To The World" tag on "The Man With All The Toys". There's another highlight if you will - starting at the 3:13 mark of "The First Noel" until the end of the song - that's one of the greatest moments of Brian's solo career.
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Post by kds on Dec 9, 2022 13:43:46 GMT
I've always been, maybe not shocked or perplexed, but surprised at the direction Brian Wilson took with the 1964 Beach Boys' Christmas Album. Around that time, Brian was very much into Phil Spector's Wall Of Sound. Brian was recording songs ("Don't Worry Baby") that were influenced by Spector's songs ("Be My Baby"). He was increasingly using The Wrecking Crew in the studio for Beach Boys' recordings. And, Brian has mentioned in interviews that A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector was one of his favorite albums. So surely, when Brian and The Beach Boys recorded their own Christmas album in mid-1964, it was going to be very...Spectorian. Well, no, not really...
There is very little Phil Spector influence on The Beach Boys' Christmas Album. Side 1, the side comprised mostly of original songs, harkens back more to Little Deuce Coupe than it looks forward to Today! Brian used his own band and the final product sounds like it. The arrangements and musicianship is on the simple side, far from Spector's Wall Of Sound. Side 2, comprised mostly of slower, traditional Christmas songs, is equally surprising. Brian, the master of the moving ballad, chose Dick Reynolds to arrange and dominate those recordings. Yes, it was effective in parts, disappointing in others.
In the end, while I enjoy The Beach Boys Christmas Album, I also find it disappointing and underwhelming, more for what it's not than what it is. Over the years, I haven't read or heard many interviews from Brian or the group about the album. Was Brian satisfied with it? In hindsight, would he change anything? Maybe make the album more like A Christmas Gift For You? In 1995, when I read that Brian Wilson was recording a solo Christmas album, honestly, I was hoping that Brian would've taken the opportunity to emulate Phil Spector's legendary Christmas album. Brian still loved Spector, Brian still liked to rock, Brian still liked covers. Things were all lined up. The stars were all aligned. Would we get all three - a Christmas album, a rock and roll album, and a Spector - not cover album - but influenced album? The answer? A resounding noooooooooooo!
What I Really Want For Christmas is a difficult listen for me. There's not a lot I like about it. I'll give Brian credit for choosing the number of Christmas carols, however, he didn't have the voice to do them justice. I give him credit for writing a few original Christmas songs, but my reaction was/is...meh. I'm not really sure what Brian was trying to accomplish with this Christmas album. It's all over the place. The odd - and inferior - Beach Boys' covers. Older recordings thrown in or tacked on. The sequencing is terrible. The bottom line? The album isn't fun. It isn't spiritual. And it's not Spectorian! It's shouty. Some of the vocals, especially on the Christmas carols, just sound "thrown out" there. More than most of Brian's solo albums, the Beach Boys' voices were seriously missed. Like The Beach Boys' Christmas Album 40 years previously, I feel that What I Really Want For Christmas could've been much more. Another missed opportunity.
BEST SONG: I almost want to vote for "The First Noel" based on that one note, and you know the note I'm referring to. I do like "Joy To World" a lot. Joe Thomas got Brian to sing calm and effectively, but the dit-dit-dits spoil it. I think I'll vote for "On Christmas Day". It's the best of the original songs. Decent melody, production, and vocal. There's nothing to ruin it though I still don't get the "Frosty the Snowman is melting away" line.
WORST SONG: "Silent Night". Easily. Ooh dit dit Silent Night dit dit. You don't sing "Silent Night" with dit-dits. And then 30 seconds of Brian yelling. This is terrible and should have never been released.
While I'm no insider, nor do I claim to be, I wonder if Brian just thought that A Christmas Gift to You was so great, so perfect, that it couldn't be emulated. So, he took a different approach when he lead The Beach Boys Christmas Album. And, again, with no inside information whatsoever, I always took the "Frosty the Snowman is melting away" line as a reference to the Rankin / Bass Frosty the Snowman (1969) cartoon. Maybe it's something Brian watched with the family on Christmas Day.
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Post by kds on Dec 9, 2022 13:45:57 GMT
I don't mean "interesting" in a bad way or a good way, actually--just in the literal way. Really, take yourself out of the situation and think about it. Rating best and worst songs from an album, and said (new studio) album, in the spirit of the times, has three old songs tacked on as bonus tracks. And both best and worst come from those add-ons!? Interesting! The album proper almost may as well not be there at all. Is there a version of WIRWFC that exists without the bonus tracks? That's a serious question, as I've never seen one. To me, if no version exists without those tracks, then I'd consider them as much as the album proper as Sloop John B is on Pet Sounds. Just my two cents.
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Post by B.E. on Dec 9, 2022 13:49:44 GMT
I don't mean "interesting" in a bad way or a good way, actually--just in the literal way. Really, take yourself out of the situation and think about it. Rating best and worst songs from an album, and said (new studio) album, in the spirit of the times, has three old songs tacked on as bonus tracks. And both best and worst come from those add-ons!? Interesting! The album proper almost may as well not be there at all. Is there a version of WIRWFC that exists without the bonus tracks? That's a serious question, as I've never seen one. To me, if no version exists without those tracks, then I'd consider them as much as the album proper as Sloop John B is on Pet Sounds. Just my two cents. The CD clearly labels tracks 13-15 as bonus tracks and, indeed, the LP does not include them. And, technically, they were previously released (which I only mention to differentiate it a little bit from a track like "Sloop John B"). By the way, I think it was a good idea to include them. It was the perfect opportunity. You get a solo Christmas album and gather up the other solo Christmas tracks he'd done (recently) for the fans. I'm glad, though, that they clearly labeled them as bonus tracks. If not, that would have bothered me.
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Post by Kapitan on Dec 9, 2022 13:51:16 GMT
I don't mean "interesting" in a bad way or a good way, actually--just in the literal way. Really, take yourself out of the situation and think about it. Rating best and worst songs from an album, and said (new studio) album, in the spirit of the times, has three old songs tacked on as bonus tracks. And both best and worst come from those add-ons!? Interesting! The album proper almost may as well not be there at all. Is there a version of WIRWFC that exists without the bonus tracks? That's a serious question, as I've never seen one. To me, if no version exists without those tracks, then I'd consider them as much as the album proper as Sloop John B is on Pet Sounds. Just my two cents. I don't think so: I think it only existed with bonus tracks (which a lot of albums were doing back in the late 90s and early 00s, and which I found odd ... it was like "the first 10-12 are the songs we like best, that fit together, but what the hell, here's some more crap, because we've got room for it on CD!"). But they were specifically noted as bonus tracks on the packaging, if I'm not mistaken.
EDIT - I stand corrected by B.E. on whether there were versions without them.
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Post by kds on Dec 9, 2022 14:00:47 GMT
Is there a version of WIRWFC that exists without the bonus tracks? That's a serious question, as I've never seen one. To me, if no version exists without those tracks, then I'd consider them as much as the album proper as Sloop John B is on Pet Sounds. Just my two cents. The CD clearly labels tracks 13-15 as bonus tracks and, indeed, the LP does not include them. And, technically, they were previously released (which I only mention to differentiate it a little bit from a track like "Sloop John B"). By the way, I think it was a good idea to include them. It was the perfect opportunity. You get a solo Christmas album and gather up the other solo Christmas tracks he'd done for the fans. I'm glad, though, that they clearly labeled them as bonus tracks. If not, that would have bothered me. Wasn't Sloop a 45 prior to the release of Pet Sounds? That's why I used that as an example. Thanks, I actually didn't know it was released on LP at the time.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Dec 9, 2022 14:05:56 GMT
I was always kind of in the middle. I knew those three songs were not from the What I Really Want For Christmas sessions, but I viewed them more as "tack-ons" than bonus tracks. I always thought it was strange to have "bonus tracks" on a new release. They do appear to be tack-ons because of the sequencing - all three are placed together, in a row, at the end - and they don't work in that regard. But, Brian sounds the same so they don't sound out-of-place in that regard.
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