Andreas wrote:This book will be a surprise/disappointment for many of those over-protective fans. I can't wait for it.
That was indeed an interesting thread over there; thanks for the link. I'm really looking forward to this book too.
Beach Boys - "Smile" reconstruction
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Mike Hunte
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Interesting thread indeed. Looks like a must-read tome. My one concern though is that, like any book of this nature, I'm sure there will be a good dose of analysis and commentary - and this is where legend and myth are often born. The one thing that looks to be a positive in this regard though, is that it seems to be motivated by the love of the music, as opposed to just trying to sell an agenda or point of view.
As far as Brian's singing voice goes, I think there are a lot of variables at hand here. Even discarding the monotone and flat pitch comments, something happened to the timbre and tone of his voice in the 1980's - something even stranger, IMO, than the tobacco/cocaine drenched sound of his 70's "manly" voice.
For me, I can only describe it as the sound of bleating and squawking. As someone on one of the old BB's lists once referred to the sound..."like Dennis Wilson on helium." All the more heartbreaking when one considers the timbre of his 60's voice...achingly beautiful. I don't know if this can be attributed to all the meds...but I find it depressing. That's not to say that there aren't some numbers which suit this sound better than others. I've said it before, I think Love & Mercy is the one song that he still pulls off live to pretty good effect. Probably not a surprise considering when it was first recorded.
Even going back to the MIU period, where the " temporary great vocal rebound" allegedly occured, I find his flat falsetto on She's Got Rhythm unpleasant. Like someone singing way beyond their comfortable range.
As far as Brian's singing voice goes, I think there are a lot of variables at hand here. Even discarding the monotone and flat pitch comments, something happened to the timbre and tone of his voice in the 1980's - something even stranger, IMO, than the tobacco/cocaine drenched sound of his 70's "manly" voice.
For me, I can only describe it as the sound of bleating and squawking. As someone on one of the old BB's lists once referred to the sound..."like Dennis Wilson on helium." All the more heartbreaking when one considers the timbre of his 60's voice...achingly beautiful. I don't know if this can be attributed to all the meds...but I find it depressing. That's not to say that there aren't some numbers which suit this sound better than others. I've said it before, I think Love & Mercy is the one song that he still pulls off live to pretty good effect. Probably not a surprise considering when it was first recorded.
Even going back to the MIU period, where the " temporary great vocal rebound" allegedly occured, I find his flat falsetto on She's Got Rhythm unpleasant. Like someone singing way beyond their comfortable range.
Andreas wrote:but Brian does not sound mechanical on "everything". Pieces of evidence: Melt Away. Don't Let Her Know She's An Angel and The Spirit Of Rock'n'Roll. Wilson-Paley sessions. The Waltz.
I haven't heard most of those. I admit my post-1980 BW listening experience is limited to "Getcha Back", the self-titled solo album, Orange Crate Art, and the new Smile thing. I do think he sounds mechanical to some degree on all of those, sometimes worse than others. There's a certain emotional flatness there. Maybe I wouldn't notice it if I didn't have his earlier work to compare to. Obviously not mechanical to the point I find him unlistenable, since I've gotten some enjoyment out of all of the above I listed (except Getcha Back, which I loathe).
czeskleba,
Is BW even on Getcha Back? I know, the liner notes read "Lead vocals: Mike Love, Brian Wilson", but that falsetto sounded always like Jeff Foskett to me.
OCA does sound mechanical...auto-tuned to me.
The self-titled album: Can you listen again to Melt Away and There's So Many? His range is limited, and he shouts the higher notes with little sensibility, but there seems a lot of conviction and passion when he sings these. Of course, this is getting very subjective.
Is BW even on Getcha Back? I know, the liner notes read "Lead vocals: Mike Love, Brian Wilson", but that falsetto sounded always like Jeff Foskett to me.
OCA does sound mechanical...auto-tuned to me.
The self-titled album: Can you listen again to Melt Away and There's So Many? His range is limited, and he shouts the higher notes with little sensibility, but there seems a lot of conviction and passion when he sings these. Of course, this is getting very subjective.
Andreas wrote:Is BW even on Getcha Back? I know, the liner notes read "Lead vocals: Mike Love, Brian Wilson", but that falsetto sounded always like Jeff Foskett to me.
I don't think Brian's doing the falsetto part, but he's definitely singing the "lead" during the tag (something like "If I leave her/And you leave him/Can we, baby/Get it back again?" ... I know, great lyrics).
Andreas wrote:czeskleba,
Is BW even on Getcha Back? I know, the liner notes read "Lead vocals: Mike Love, Brian Wilson", but that falsetto sounded always like Jeff Foskett to me.
Who's Jeff Foskett? I'm not a huge BB expert obviously, but I remember the publicity at the time Getcha Back was released claimed it was Brian singing the falsetto. "Look, Brian is back again! He's thin again! And he's singing the falsetto like he used to!" I definitely remember stories like that in the media; they were definitely passing it off as Brian, whether it was him or not.
Can you listen again to Melt Away and There's So Many? His range is limited, and he shouts the higher notes with little sensibility, but there seems a lot of conviction and passion when he sings these. Of course, this is getting very subjective.
Yeah, you can't really argue something like whether a singer has soul or feeling or not, it's pretty subjective. Brian's singing used to seem effortless, but on the 1988 album it sounds forced. There's something unnatural about it. (It kinda fits with what Peter Carlin says on the smile shop thread, about how music used to be Brian's escape from his problems, and somewhere along the line it instead became his biggest problem. That seems to be reflected in his singing). I've worked with schizophrenics and for a lot of them, there is just a certain emotional flatness all the time, they have lost the normal range of emotional expressiveness. That seems apparent to some degree in Brian's singing. Again, that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy a lot of that album, but when I reflect on why I don't like it as much as his older stuff that is the biggest reason.