The Beach Boys - Sea of Tunes, etc.

For discussion of those 'grey area' CDs
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Jeff T.
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The Beach Boys - Sea of Tunes, etc.

Postby Jeff T. » Sat Aug 19, 2006 6:16 pm

Fourm members, what are your favorite SOT sets, or Beach Boys gray market discs?

I recall hearing back in the mid to late 80s that the BB were out to hunt down bootleggers and bust them with all their legal might. I was told this by dealers out there at the swap meets I'd attend.

Interesting that it would be a few short years later that the vault doors flew open, session reels were threaded up, DAT machines would be loaded up with fresh blanks, and the tapes would roll. The Beach Boys would enjoy being one of the more throughly booted bands ever. Nothing that they could do at all about it.

I don't know if it all happened before or after the Pet Sounds Sessions box set from Capitol, but it did happen, and some sweetheart deserves some credit for that sea of tunes haul.

I like Leggo My Ego, and also the Good Vibes Sessions, really interesting to hear Brian calling the shots there.

I need to go into the vault and see what I have. I seem to recall there being a Dumb Angel label or title that unearthed a few rough diamonds too.

Let me look at what exactly I have....if I can remember the combination of the vault door lock....................
Last edited by Jeff T. on Sat Aug 19, 2006 6:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Jeff T.
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Postby Jeff T. » Sat Aug 19, 2006 6:25 pm

Ok, I found the master index for my collection, and I do seem to have a few of the good ones, but I may be missing something good still.

Here is the quick rundown:

Beach Boys, The - Concert Rehearsals and More 1966-1968 27 tracks, 60m. A+/SB
Beach Boys, The - Heroes and Vibrations
Beach Boys, The - Dumb Angel Rarities, 1,3 & 13, 3CD
Beach Boys, The - BBC Smile Radio Show 7/13/95
Beach Boys – Time To Get Alone, Silver Shadow Label CD 9316 2-CD set
Beach Boys - Leggo My Ego (Pet Sounds Sessions) 3-CD set
Beach Boys - Smile (Wilson Label Japan) 1-CD
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 1 (1962) The Alternate Surfin’ Safari
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 2 (1963) The Alternate Surfin' USA
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 3 (1963) The Alternate Surfer Girl
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 4 (1963) Miscellaneous Trax
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 5 (1964) Miscellaneous Trax Vol.2
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 6 (1964) Alternate All Summer Long
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 7 (1964) Alternate Beach Boys Today Vol. 1
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 8 (1965) Alternate Beach Boys Today Vol. 2
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 9 (1965) The Alternate Summer Days
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 10 (1965) The Alternate Beach Boys Party
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 11 (1965) Miscellaneous Trax Vol. 3
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 12 (1965) Sloop John B Sessions + Radio Spots
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 13 (1966) Alternate Pet Sounds Album Vol.1
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 14 (1966) Alternate Pet Sounds Album Vol.2
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 15 (1966) Good Vibrations
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 16 (1966-1967) Smile; Sea of Tunes
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 17 (1966-1967) Smile Sessions
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 18 (1967) The Alternate Smiley Smile Album
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 19 (1967) The Alternate Wild Honey
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 20 (1968-1969) Friends, 20/20
Beach Boys - Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 21 (1965) Today / Summer Days & Summer Nights

I should add that if anyone has Vols. I am missing, they should PM me.

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Xenu
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Postby Xenu » Sun Aug 20, 2006 2:26 am

Most of those were torrented over at Demonoid *really* recently. I have a few odds and ends.
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Jeff T.
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Postby Jeff T. » Sun Aug 20, 2006 3:03 am

Xenu wrote:Most of those were torrented over at Demonoid *really* recently. I have a few odds and ends.


I think everything has been torrented at some point. Many still are, but I never got into that. I simply did the snail mail trades. Nothing like opening yer po box and seeing a couple of thick packets of CDRs all ready for the playing.

I would head over the the post office at lunch time from work, grab em' and then sit in the car under a tree listening while eating my lunch.

Sometimes a chick combo plate from Boston Market, other times something a little more deluxe from a swank fire-grilled steak sand take-out eatery.

I remember combing each take of "Do it Again" listening for the magic. And also that Beatles 17 disc set of Thirty Days, and realizing that each of the key tracks there has a version with long long outro jam. You could make a double Get Back album without adding any new songs lol.

But any way, after I enjoyed the cool out doors with fantastic lunch, and all those new mail box arrivals, I could not stand the thought of downloading and then burning. Creature of habit I guess I became. I want to be outside as much as possible.

But it was good times. I guess The Beatles is a nother thread.

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Xenu
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Postby Xenu » Sun Aug 20, 2006 11:13 am

I got tired of snail-mail trades recently, after around the hundredth time of getting something with EAC errors, or--worse--something that was clearly from a lossy source.
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Postby J_Partyka » Sun Aug 20, 2006 6:33 pm

Sadly, I only have a few of the SOT titles (*cough*). I have the stereo Today/Summer Days twofer, the Alternate Smiley Smile, and disc 1 of the Smile set.

Of course, to most people these discs would be an exercise in horrible tedium, but as an unabashed Beach Boys geek, I find them incredibly fascinating. The Smiley Smile disc has some amazing material on it; I can listen just to some of the piano tracking takes ("Wonderful," for instance) and find incredible beauty in them, and it's amazing to hear some of the "Wind Chimes" tag recordings as well.

Jeff T. wrote:I think everything has been torrented at some point. Many still are, but I never got into that. I simply did the snail mail trades.


Same here, though lately I prefer to do FLACs on DVD rather than CD-Rs.

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Xenu
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Postby Xenu » Sun Aug 20, 2006 11:34 pm

That a hint?;) Now's a bad time, but...
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Jeff T.
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Postby Jeff T. » Sun Aug 20, 2006 11:44 pm

J_Partyka wrote:Same here, though lately I prefer to do FLACs on DVD rather than CD-Rs.


I can see how that would be cool n' fun. How many titles can fit on a DVD-R in one amazing pop!

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Jeff T.
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Postby Jeff T. » Mon Aug 21, 2006 12:00 am

Xenu wrote:I got tired of snail-mail trades recently, after around the hundredth time of getting something with EAC errors, or--worse--something that was clearly from a lossy source.


I was lucky in that I got mostly all great perfect discs. At some point a few years ago I was hearing lossy mp3 artifacts on a particualr disc, so I went back and listened to everything from that trader and found 4/5ths of the shit was mp3 quality. So I got burned there for a half dozen shows/cds. Other than that, I got all really amazing stuff.

One guy I was trading BBC Rock Hours and King Biscuits with, had CDRs from 'reel to reels' of 70s masters . After a few really good trades, he started sending me original Vinyl LP sets with cue sheets so that I could master my own CDRs from the original radio station transcription sets, and then include a copy for him in the return package.

Is that cool or what? Can you imagine trusting a stranger with your rare original radio shows. It really makes you feel good about people when that happens. I just googled BBC, KBFH, Westwood One, Captured Live, (all words used) and then saw his post in some group about trying to get a list of every show that ever was sent to radio. So I emailed, and we were able to set up a ton of trades and loans.

That was three years ago, and ended about two years ago. I think he may have been ill and got sick and died. He hinted that he was having some treatments. His stuff was so spectacular and I was shocked at the trust. It might have been meant to be. I was the one to appreciate those biscuits, and master them to CD-R correctly complete with cues and commercials.

Anyway, after those killer trades filling in my collection with the masters of so many good ones, it was kinda the crowning acheavement on the boot radio show collection. So I brought it all to an end. And now I simply reply to requests that come in once in a while from the bootzone.

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Postby Andreas » Mon Aug 21, 2006 2:32 am

Xenu wrote:I got tired of snail-mail trades recently, after around the hundredth time of getting something with EAC errors, or--worse--something that was clearly from a lossy source.


Same for me. Too bad that I also grew tired of torrents very quickly.

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Postby Xenu » Mon Aug 21, 2006 1:56 pm

Well, for things like the entire SOT run, obviously torrents are a bit of a drag. I actually tried to get a SOT vine going on at the Smile Shop, but nobody was interested.
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Postby J_Partyka » Mon Aug 21, 2006 2:02 pm

Xenu wrote:I actually tried to get a SOT vine going on at the Smile Shop, but nobody was interested.


D'oh! :x

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Re: The Beach Boys - Sea of Tunes, etc.

Postby J_Partyka » Mon Aug 21, 2006 3:16 pm

Jeff T. wrote:Fourm members, what are your favorite SOT sets, or Beach Boys gray market discs?


It's not a SOT set, but I like the Lei'd in Hawaii set I have from '67. I've always been fascinated with the rehearsals and performances that resulted from that other ill-fated '67 Beach Boys project. Many of them fall quite flat, but some are absolutely beautiful.

And the take of "Heroes and Villains" featuring Mike Love trashing the song is ... interesting.

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Jeff T.
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Postby Jeff T. » Mon Aug 21, 2006 8:08 pm

J_Partyka wrote:
Xenu wrote:I actually tried to get a SOT vine going on at the Smile Shop, but nobody was interested.


D'oh! :x


Where have all the good times gone? Have you noticed that things have changed?

I do think that most guys at a certain age give up the chase, bow out of the run, and quit looking or listening. Some valuable records can come crashing down in value due to age of listening audience.

And I think the more experimental Beach Boys stuff may have a limited audience now. There are some young kids who go nuts for Pet Sounds and all, and will want to hear more, but the bulk of that fan base is rapidly aging now.

I have noticed that stuff like Genesis w/ Gabriel and King Crimson are two of the prog bands well known for decades in the boot world. But they both are two that never got requests from traders off of my list. Perhaps it is just that they stuck around too long and ruined the mystique?

The Beach Boys have not exactly kept up an image of artistic integrity, or creative vision.

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Postby Patrick M » Mon Aug 21, 2006 11:30 pm

Firstly, if you haven't heard the super-rare "fireman's hat" demo of "Luau" on SOT, you haven't lived!

Unfortunately, most of my vines are lossy. :(
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