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Post by kds on Dec 20, 2022 13:42:52 GMT
Mike also did Do You Hear What I Hear on one of those Radio Shack albums back in the 80's. I didn't know that. I knew he'd done Jingle Bell Rock prior. Speaking of, Mike's Christmas album does remind me of the kind of, often very generic, Christmas albums you could pick up at stores and gas stations on the cheap.
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Post by kds on Dec 20, 2022 13:43:36 GMT
I will say that I prefer this version of Do You Hear What I Hear over many of the covers I've heard in recent memory. I believe Whitney Houston's version was the first to use a slower tempo, and her version was used as a template for covers by Carrie Underwood and Jordan Sparks. "Do You Hear What I Hear" is one of my favorite Christmas songs. I particularly like Bing Crosby and Johnny Mathis's versions, but also check out Jack Jones and Perry Como's versions. I find those four to be incomparable. I have to admit, though, that Carrie Underwood does a fine interpretation, too. I've heard and liked Mathis's and Como's version. I really don't care for Carrie Underwood's though.
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Post by B.E. on Dec 21, 2022 23:30:24 GMT
Best - "Reason for the Season" - I'm a big fan of "Shortenin' Bread". Runner-up goes to "Must Be Christmas".
Worst - "Little Saint Nick" - There were a bunch in contention. I don't hate the album, but it's hard to get passed the uneven production. The vocal production, in particular, is pretty bad. I'm also not too keen on some of the material (both original and traditional) nor some of the performances. At best, I'd say I'm indifferent. I'd probably rate the album in the 4-5/10 range. Whatever the case, this isn't an album I'd listen to more than once every few years. But I listened in its entirety today - enjoying it just enough to get through it. I even relistened to a few tracks before moving on.
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Post by Kapitan on Dec 22, 2022 0:21:21 GMT
I need to ask about Mike's voice. Throughout this album, as I mentioned in my post about it, it quavers. It shakes in pitch. I can't for the life of me quite tell whether this is just its natural weakening, or the effect of not-quite-in-tune doubling (e.g., natural flanging--though it doesn't sound like that to me), or some unfortunate artifact of pitch correction?
Here, it mostly seems just a weakened voice. But I wonder about the other options because I first noticed it in "Isn't It Time," some 10 years ago. Listen right after the bridge, when it mostly drops out to Mike's part, right around 2:37 of the album version. And there, it doesn't seem like a weak single-tracked voice, but one of the other options.
For whatever reason, that shakiness drives me crazy.
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Post by kds on Dec 22, 2022 13:53:31 GMT
Best - "Reason for the Season" - I'm a big fan of "Shortenin' Bread". Runner-up goes to "Must Be Christmas". Worst - "Little Saint Nick" - There were a bunch in contention. I don't hate the album, but it's hard to get passed the uneven production. The vocal production, in particular, is pretty bad. I'm also not too keen on some of the material (both original and traditional) nor some of the performances. At best, I'd say I'm indifferent. I'd probably rate the album in the 4-5/10 range. Whatever the case, this isn't an album I'd listen to more than once every few years. But I listened in its entirety today - enjoying it just enough to get through it. I even relistened to a few tracks before moving on. I believe this is the first poll where two songs have received votes for both Best and Worst.
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Post by kds on Dec 22, 2022 13:55:21 GMT
I need to ask about Mike's voice. Throughout this album, as I mentioned in my post about it, it quavers. It shakes in pitch. I can't for the life of me quite tell whether this is just its natural weakening, or the effect of not-quite-in-tune doubling (e.g., natural flanging--though it doesn't sound like that to me), or some unfortunate artifact of pitch correction?
Here, it mostly seems just a weakened voice. But I wonder about the other options because I first noticed it in "Isn't It Time," some 10 years ago. Listen right after the bridge, when it mostly drops out to Mike's part, right around 2:37 of the album version. And there, it doesn't seem like a weak single-tracked voice, but one of the other options.
For whatever reason, that shakiness drives me crazy.
To my untrained ears, it sounds like a bad effect of pitch correction. I saw Mike in concert the December that this album was released, and though his vocals weren't what I'd call strong, it didn't have that quaver quality that I also noticed on the Christmas album.
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Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Dec 22, 2022 14:12:59 GMT
Best: Must Be Christmas: A legitimately good Christmas song even though the very first line is screwed up with "day" missing the d. I'm surprised nobody else picked it, although it sounds like some people had it second.
Worst: Before the concert a couple weeks ago (which I still need to post my thoughts on) I would have said Reason for the Season, but I'll go with Little Saint Nick.
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Post by kds on Dec 22, 2022 16:10:06 GMT
We had six voters for Mike Love's Reason for the Season
Best
Bring a Torch - 2 Reason for the Season - 1 Celestial Celebration - 1 Do You Hear What I Hear - 1 Must Be Christmas - 1
Worst
Little Saint Nick - 2 Reason for the Season - 2 Celestial Celebration - 1 Jingle Bell Rock
Interesting that both the title track and Celestial Celebration got votes for both Best and Worst.
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Post by Kapitan on Dec 22, 2022 16:31:33 GMT
Interesting that both the title track and Celestial Celebration got votes for both Best and Worst. Such is Beach Boys fandom!
I think especially on albums where there isn't something that's obviously head and shoulders above the rest (or below the rest), that tends to happen even more. Like, best for Smiley Smile, a huge percentage of people would probably say "Good Vibrations" for best, and almost nobody would call that one worst. (Well, actually I can think of a BBs board poster or two who would ... and they're trolls.) But on more consistent albums, whether consistently great (Pet Sounds) or consistently average (say, 85?), there just isn't necessarily the separation, so people might feel like one person's 6 is another's 4 (or for the better albums, 10 and 8), and that's enough to go from best to worst.
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Post by kds on Dec 22, 2022 16:44:03 GMT
Interesting that both the title track and Celestial Celebration got votes for both Best and Worst. Such is Beach Boys fandom!
I think especially on albums where there isn't something that's obviously head and shoulders above the rest (or below the rest), that tends to happen even more. Like, best for Smiley Smile, a huge percentage of people would probably say "Good Vibrations" for best, and almost nobody would call that one worst. (Well, actually I can think of a BBs board poster or two who would ... and they're trolls.) But on more consistent albums, whether consistently great (Pet Sounds) or consistently average (say, 85?), there just isn't necessarily the separation, so people might feel like one person's 6 is another's 4 (or for the better albums, 10 and 8), and that's enough to go from best to worst. Right, and I'd say Mike's Christmas album is about as average / middle of the road as one can find. Which, really puts in a similar league as some other later career Christmas albums from legacy artists (Ringo comes to mind).
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Post by Kapitan on Dec 22, 2022 16:57:21 GMT
Ringo is a good call: I'd actually say this about most of his latter-day music, Christmas or otherwise.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Dec 22, 2022 19:01:30 GMT
Two quick things...
When I hear Mike's vocals on his recent solo albums, I always hear a combination of his voice being noticeably weak(er), and a noticeable touch of auto-tune applied to...compensate. It doesn't work for me, but hey, without the auto-tune things might've sounded much worse.
The disappointing aspect of Reason For The Season is that it was produced by Michael Loyd and Scott Totten. Now, we know Scott's resume and it's a good one. And if you check Wikipedia (which I did ), this Michael Lloyd is no slouch either. So, how did this solo album come out sounding so bad - in many respects. Does anybody think Mike spent a lot of time on this album? I would think he probably had something (a lot?) to say about the tracklist and the guest vocalists, and suggested a few touches to a few songs. But I also think he turned things over to Totten and Lloyd to basically "make" the album. Jeez. I expected more. I really did.
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Post by kds on Dec 22, 2022 20:16:16 GMT
Even with Lloyd and Totten, I had no expectations for Mike's Christmas album.
I might be saying that moreso as a Christmas music fan than a Mike Love fan, but I feel like it turned out better than I expected.
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Post by lonelysummer on Dec 23, 2022 2:50:59 GMT
I've mostly played the album in my car, and I think it sounds fine. Yes, Mike's voice has gotten weaker in recent years, but I don't think he sounds bad here. I don't even mind the remake of Little Saint Nick. The best remake of an old BB's Xmas song is still Brian's update of The Man With All the Toys. I expect with holiday albums that there will be an element of nostalgia - especially from older singers/artists. I'm surprised Al hasn't done a Christmas single or album. If he did an album, Christmas Day would certainly be on it.
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Post by kds on Dec 23, 2022 15:24:12 GMT
Al did release a Xmas single five years ago called Hurry Up Santa Claus.
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