Departed
Former Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2019 15:07:30 GMT -5
I mean...yep...it's a Brian Solo project. It's got those "meh" production/arrangements, subpar (compared to what it used to be) Brian vocals, lame lyrics...I never imagined I'd dislike the guys' solo stuff as much as I do. But, this is one of the better ones. Nowhere near BWPS/TLOS but not bad as anything Joe Thomas ruined...for the most part. It's a fitting follow up to his '88 album for the most part. About equal in terms of songwriting and performance. Maybe it's the fact that I've had his solo stuff going on all day as background noise while I do homework...but holy cow do the vocals grate on me after awhile. Never in a million years thought I'd say that about ANY Beach Boy let alone the man himself but goddamn here we are. As Ive said elsewhere, Brian's solo stuff makes you see that (despite popular narrative--and one I believed in for awhile) he actually needed the Beach Boys as much as they needed him. If for nothing else for some variety in the vocal department anyway. It's average to mediocre stuff for the most part. Nothing much to say. Everything is competent but not particularly inspired. Landy's a lousy lyricist but not the worst collaborator Brian's ever worked with (*cough*Thomas*cough*). The production isn't as insufferably bland and soulless as what would come, but it's not up to the Wilson standard either, and it also sounds very vintage 80s. I was thinking of giving a 5 or even a 6, but the inclusion of the infamous Smart Girls alone is enough to knock off at least a point. Holy CHRIST what was he thinking? One of the most pathetic songs ever made by a great talent, and it's lucky for him it wasn't officially released. It's a shameful pandering to the new rap scene, someone who should have known better trying to break into a new scene he knew nothing about. If I were a fan of rap, I'd be insulted. Hell, as a Brian fan I'm insulted. I love the cover though. If it was what they truly intended to use, it would have been one of the second best of his solo career after NPP. If it's fan-made, they did a stellar job 4
|
|
Departed
Former Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 2, 2019 1:32:24 GMT -5
A Love Thing over at the Discord recreated some possibly real Sweet Insanity cover art that was featured in a hard to find art book; Eilish helped with the handwriting recreation on the "Sweet Insanity" text. The recreation is on left, the original on the right.
|
|
kirkk
Dude/Dudette
Posts: 74
Likes: 84
Favorite Album: Pet Sounds, SMiLE, Sunflower... but I could go on and on...
|
Post by kirkk on Mar 2, 2019 8:00:32 GMT -5
I have a bad habit of playing the most awful, ridiculous Beach Boys-related material for friends and acquaintances, just to see their reactions. And nothing tops “Smart Girls” in that department. It is the epitome of “so bad it’s good.” And honestly, “Rhonda help help, helped me for awhile/not much goin’ on behind her smile” is a pretty great line. I enjoy hearing Brian doing some more uptempo material; always really enjoyed “Someone to Love”, “Hotter”, and “Do You Have Any Regrets” (though Darian’s cover that one is much better than Brian’s take), and underneath the terrible production are some other nice tunes, like “Don’t Let Her Know She’s an Angel”. I wouldn’t call it a lost classic or anything, I can certainly see why it was rejected. It also has the distinction of being the first boot I ever received in a trade on CDR rather than cassette, so maybe I go easier on it for that reason
|
|
Departed
Former Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 2, 2019 11:28:12 GMT -5
A Love Thing over at the Discord recreated some possibly real Sweet Insanity cover art that was featured in a hard to find art book; Eilish helped with the handwriting recreation on the "Sweet Insanity" text. The recreation is on left, the original on the right. Its an interesting if a bit generic cover. Personally I think the bootleg image with Brian at the piano fits the music more. Fantastic work on the restoration tho
|
|
|
Post by The Cap'n on Mar 3, 2019 18:57:10 GMT -5
I've never understood what seems like a recent boost in love for this would-be album. I think a few of the songs are pretty decent, the production is overwhelmingly terrible, the performances are pretty bad ... I actually like "Smart Girls" compared to a lot of it because at least it's funny. (And I think it was meant to be funny.)
3.
|
|
|
Post by aquarius on Mar 19, 2019 11:58:18 GMT -5
I love it warts and all. The production I hated ten years ago doesn't sound so bad now; and the melodies are some of the sweetest that Brian has written. Some of the lyrics are dodgy (Thank You) and Brian demonstrates in songs that attempt to rock that he has no idea how to consciously rock; his singing is still in that pinched, shouty period. But I give this a solid 8. This was the last time we got a (relatively) unfiltered Brian, and there are details on this that are breathtaking. 8/10
|
|
|
Post by Jason (The Real Beach Boy) on Apr 2, 2019 7:36:21 GMT -5
3. The credited artist should be Eugene Landy; the psychobabble in the lyrics reeks of his stink. A skyscraper down from the self-titled.
|
|
arnoldfringe
Grommet
Posts: 30
Likes: 21
Favorite Album: SMiLE
|
Post by arnoldfringe on Jun 1, 2020 17:55:59 GMT -5
Oh blimey.....Am I wrong to love this album? I got the cd version of Sweet Insanity at a record fair in Manchester in 1995. It was a queer one...I loved the songs but I was a staunch indie Britpop kiddie in a band and trying to be effortlessly cool....I taped the album to play on my Walkman on the way home from work (never going to work, just coming home. It seemed to be better that way) but the copy I had was smothered in high end treble so I was terrified that the dodgy production sounds would leak through my ear things and other people on the bus would laugh at me.... I’m nearly 50 now. I have no guilty pleasure. F@#k it! Except for Sweet Insanity......Am I wrong to love this album? cheers shane
|
|
|
Post by dauber on Jun 2, 2020 8:23:12 GMT -5
Let's be real here: yeah, a lot of this album is pretty cringeworthy and has Landy written all over it ("not my mother, not my brother..." Nobody would ever dare say anything less than wonderful about Audree.) BUT -- there are some classics on there.
Heck, not counting the brief "Concert Tonite" snip at the beginning, the album starts off with three great ones. "Someone To Love" (arguably a reworking of "San Miguel") is a great starter. "Water Builds Up" is classic Brian. "Don't Let Her Know She's An Angel," despite the overly synthed production, is just plain beautiful. Except for those "Wooooooo!" things, "Make a Wish" is pretty solid.
Wanna hear a real Brian classic? Get yourself a copy of Darian's version of "Do You Have Any Regrets" -- he heard right through the weird Miami-ish synth-danceness of it and found it to be the same Brian we always knew and loved.
|
|
Departed
Former Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2020 9:14:39 GMT -5
Let's be real here: yeah, a lot of this album is pretty cringeworthy and has Landy written all over it ("not my mother, not my brother..." Nobody would ever dare say anything less than wonderful about Audree.) BUT -- there are some classics on there.
Heck, not counting the brief "Concert Tonite" snip at the beginning, the album starts off with three great ones. "Someone To Love" (arguably a reworking of "San Miguel") is a great starter. "Water Builds Up" is classic Brian. "Don't Let Her Know She's An Angel," despite the overly synthed production, is just plain beautiful. Except for those "Wooooooo!" things, "Make a Wish" is pretty solid.
Wanna hear a real Brian classic? Get yourself a copy of Darian's version of "Do You Have Any Regrets" -- he heard right through the weird Miami-ish synth-danceness of it and found it to be the same Brian we always knew and loved.
Agree completely with your takes! I actually don't mind the insane production on Do you have any regrets either, though agree the Darian version is cool as well! That said, there are lots of lows on side 2. Rainbow eyes is a great title for a terrible song. 'Brian' is a terrible title for a terrible song (an undeserving of the man's namesake). Love Ya is just plain awful...but boy, brian sure loved that chord progression in the 80s huh? Male Ego, Baby Let Your Hair Grow Long, Daddy's Little Girl come to mind. Maybe the 'shortenin bread' of that decade for Brian?
|
|
|
Post by Awesoman on Mar 22, 2021 8:02:12 GMT -5
It's hard to objectively critique this one since it never was officially released. I'd say for better or for worse that it was at least a fascinating experience to be a fly on the wall for. How they managed to get Bob Dylan to appear on a track is beyond me; I'd be curious to peer into those recording sessions for that one even if they were ultimately dull in the long run. Hell, wasn't "Weird Al" Yankovic supposed to play accordion on one song? "Smart Girls" has to be the black hole of BW's solo career but it makes for fun ironic listening. I'd say the production on this album is even more dated sounding than the 1988 album. Highly unlikely that this will ever see an official release on its own unless it is included in some BW huge box set or something.
|
|
|
Post by bittersweetsanity on May 7, 2021 11:23:09 GMT -5
"Brian" is the first version of the album project more commonly known as "Sweet Insanity", recorded by American musician Brian Wilson. It was the intended followup to 1988's critically acclaimed "Brian Wilson" album.
As of early 2021, very little is known about the actual recording of this version of the album, other than the few references in the 1991 book "Wouldn't It Be Nice" (My Own Story), Beach Boys fan magazines from 1990-1991, and deep internet searching. The two versions of the album are quite different, and this will be explained below in the "Track-By-Track A-B" section.
Timeline
Below is an attempt to construct a timeline of events surrounding the recording of these tracks.
Late February 1990 - Brian Wilson tests out piano and vocal acoustics at the Brains and Genius studio in West Los Angeles before renovations were complete.
March 1990 - "Brian" sessions commence upon completion of the studio. Songs that didn't make it to "Sweet Insanity" are as follows: "Let's Stick Together" (with guest star Weird Al Yankovic on accordion, later re-recorded as "The Waltz" with lyrics by Van Dyke Parks), "Save The Day", "Concert Tonight" (full version, only the vocal intro was used for "Sweet Insanity") and "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll" without Bob Dylan's verse vocals, which appear to have been added for "Sweet Insanity", as they are not part of the 1990 mix of "Brian". The recording of only one song is publicly known to have been pinned down to date, which is the May 3, 1990 session for "Water Builds Up".
May 7, 1990 - Stan Love press conference, Brian Wilson appears and reads statement.
July 2, 1990 - The "hotel jam" featuring Brian Wilson, Bruce Johnston, Jeff Foskett and John Stamos, with Kevin Leslie behind the camera. "Brian" songs performed by Brian during this gathering were: "Someone To Love", "Rainbow Eyes", "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll" and "Brian". Notes: None of the lyrics seemed to be complete to any of these songs other than "Spirit" (which was written in 1986), or Brian possibly could not remember them at the time. It should also be mentioned that Bruce Johnston forcefully tries to help Brian rearrange "Rainbow Eyes" on the spot by telling him to "slow that down", which Brian politely dismisses.
July 28, 1990 - Brian's appearances at the Beach Boys Convention in San Diego, and the Hard Rock Cafe in La Jolla, CA. Brian only performed "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll" from the album. He is interrupted mid-performance by an assistant who tells him to perform to the pre-recorded track instead. T-shirts were sold during the event that read "BRIAN WILSON-The Spirit Of Rock And Roll", but it is unknown if this title was possibly being considered for the album. Video of the two appearances shows a clip of Brian dining with Eugene Landy and Alexandra Morgan afterwards.
(Footnote: The assistant who interrupted Brian's performance is also speaking about the "Spirit Of Rock And Roll" session at the beginning of the existing video. "You be Mike, you be Carl, etc." It is believed by some that this is the former Landy employee who is featured in shadow in the Prime Time Live special "Brian's Song", but this cannot be confirmed at this time.)
Late summer through late fall 1990 - "Brian" listening parties. It was documented in local fan magazines and other sources that listening parties were sometimes held at Brains and Genius studio to obtain feedback on the tracks. One such party was attended by Don Was, who went on to produce both Brian and The Beach Boys in the mid-1990s. One person who was able to attend asked someone in the studio who was producing the sessions, and they pointed to Brian and said "he is."
December 4, 1990 - "Heal The Bay" benefit. Three "Brian" songs were performed with backing tracks and possibly Rob Wasserman on bass. These are: "Water Builds Up", "Make A Wish", and "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll". Recordings emerged of these backing and vocal tracks around the mid-2000s in near pristine quality. Close examination of the lone poor quality tape that exists of the "Heal The Bay" show reveals these to be the same tracks, mixed down for this performance (and possibly others.)
Early December 1990 - Meeting between Brian Wilson, Lenny Waronker, Seymour Stein, Eugene Landy and Alexandra Morgan to premiere what is referred to as an "unmixed" version of "Brian" to the Sire executives. It is possible that this version may have been thought of by the studio team as the finished version. The meeting did not go well, as documented in pg. 380-383 of the "Wouldn't It Be Nice" book.
This could be considered to be the end of "Brian" the album. Brian's appearance on a cooking show aired shortly after the meeting. He made something called "Surfer Chicken" which he called "a collaboration between Eugene E. Landy, Alexandra Morgan and myself." He went on to express his frustration with the record company: "Our company thinks that we should go back in and fix it up a little bit. They said, well we like it, but they think we better fix it up, like the hard rock songs should rock a little harder, that the ballads should sing a little differently, so we said "ah well, okay, we'll do it." He then goes on to perform a piece of "Smart Girls" for the guests.
Track-By-Track comparison between "Brian" and "Sweet Insanity"
The two original sources for this comparison would be the original mix of "Brian" that has circulated since late 1991, and the Brains and Genius "Sweet Insanity" cassette distributed to certain parties around the same period. Many fans have come to prefer the original "Brian" mixes to the finished "Sweet Insanity" project (especially in the case of "Smart Girls") and some fans have even attempted to mix the two versions of the album together, with interesting results. Higher quality versions of "Smart Girls" version 1 and "Let's Stick Together" have recently surfaced online.
The main differences in the two album mixes, which utilize the same backing tracks for both versions of the songs they share, can be found in Rob Wasserman's bass, which is MUCH more prevalent on "Brian", and the more eclectic sounds in the mix being brought down for "Sweet Insanity" in an attempt to make it sound more commercial.
The two versions will be referred to as "Bri" and "SI" for this section.
"Concert Tonight": Only the fifteen-second intro is used for SI. It appears to be the identical mix used on Bri.
"Someone To Love": Slight lyric differences. Verse lyrics are answered on Bri with Brian speaking in suggestive tones words like "Oh baby, let me come inside". On SI, verse lyrics are answered with singing.
"Water Builds Up": Very slight lyric differences. Brian's vocal is lower in many spots on Bri. Bass is much louder, as is the tea kettle whistle sound. Brian's new lead vocal mixed higher on SI.
"Don't Let Her Know She's An Angel": Major lyric differences in first and second verses. Horns are mixed louder through verses on Bri. Choruses appear identical on Bri and SI, save for drum machine changes.
"Do You Have Any Regrets" (aka "I Do"): Very slight lyrical and musical differences, the main one being the louder bass on Bri. Fade uses more echo on SI.
"Brian" (aka "Thank You"): Intro starts with bass on Bri, tinkly synths on SI. Lyrics are identical. Bass is louder as usual. Unfortunately the "stuck on Band-Aid" trumpet solo is on both versions.
"The Spirit Of Rock And Roll": Same lyrics, Brian sings all on Bri, Bob Dylan sings verses on SI. Brett Tuggle and Gregg Bissonette from David Lee Roth's band played on this, as well as Steve Hunter. A picture exists on Waddy Wachtel's site of them together at the session.
"Rainbow Eyes": Slight lyric differences, again the bass is much more prevalent on Bri, and almost non-existent on SI. Six-second outro utilized on SI; unknown if it was recorded for Bri and not used then.
"Make A Wish": Different bridge lyrics, louder instrumentation on Bri, louder mix on SI. Music stops on bridge in SI except for synths. Slight lyric differences on verses.
"Smart Girls": Slightly different lead vocal, lower pitched and less shouty on Bri. All Beach Boys song references are sung in multi-part vocal by Brian on Bri, and badly sampled on SI. The original vocal takes bleed through in places on the SI mix. Many fans prefer the Bri version (at least as a novelty) over the sample-laden mess that is the SI version.
Musicians
Brian Wilson-lead and background vocals, musical arrangements
Michael Bernard-keyboards, percussion, special fx, programmer
Rob Wasserman-Clevinger 4-string bass
Guest musicians:
Tim Weisberg-flute, piccolo
Paula Abdul-backing vocals
"Weird Al" Yankovic-accordian
Fred Katz-cello
Scott Page-saxophone
John Stamos-backing vocals
Guests on "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll":
Brett Tuggle-piano, keyboards
Steve Hunter-guitar
Gregg Bissonette-drums
Bob Dylan-lead vocals (Brian mentions Bob singing on his record at the Heal The Bay show. Whether this had taken place by December 1990 is unknown, but his vocal is not on the "Brian" version.)
Other possible guests: David Marks, Glen Campbell, Eugene E. Landy =References
1. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" (My Own Story), Brian Wilson with Todd Gold, Harper Collins, 1991.
2. Beach Boys Stomp, issues 79-89, 1990-1992.
3. Brains and Genius "Smart Girl's" cassette insert
4. Waddy Wachtel musician site-Sweet Insanity (unreleased 1989)
5. Beach Boys Convention video 1990
6. "Hotel Jam" video, July 2, 1990
7. "Heal The Bay" show, December 4, 1990 (collector's cassette)
and this from 2005 www.honolulumagazine.com/going-solo/ "Loneliness and self-pity usually arise from the unrealistic expectations that burden nearly everyone during the holidays, but often hit singles the hardest. Young singles who have never been coupled miss home and carry exaggerated memories of holiday bliss from childhood, according to Eugene Landy, a clinical psychologist in Honolulu. Those who have been coupled or married sometimes suffer guilt about a broken family.• Read more and shun television. "That’s very grounding," says Landy, and helps you avoid the manufactured images of idyllic families and harmonious social gatherings."
and what was seemingly Landy's only comments on Brian post-separation "the controversy surrounding Brian's therapy and the termination of our professional working relationship remains a disappointment, since I know it is based largely on misunderstanding and, in important part, distortion of the factual record. I continue to have great affection for Brian and wish he and his family only the best."
|
|
chewy
Dude/Dudette
Posts: 77
Likes: 25
|
Post by chewy on May 8, 2021 2:56:53 GMT -5
Brian with Rob Wasserman? Time Weisberg? Paula Abdul? Weird Al Yankovic? Fred Katz? Scott Page? Brett Tuggle? and Stamos??? no!!!!!!!! and dylan? what- what is this?!
|
|
|
Post by AGD on May 10, 2021 16:57:42 GMT -5
"Brian" is the first version of the album project more commonly known as "Sweet Insanity", recorded by American musician Brian Wilson. It was the intended followup to 1988's critically acclaimed "Brian Wilson" album.
As of early 2021, very little is known about the actual recording of this version of the album, other than the few references in the 1991 book "Wouldn't It Be Nice" (My Own Story), Beach Boys fan magazines from 1990-1991, and deep internet searching. The two versions of the album are quite different, and this will be explained below in the "Track-By-Track A-B" section.
Timeline
Below is an attempt to construct a timeline of events surrounding the recording of these tracks.
Late February 1990 - Brian Wilson tests out piano and vocal acoustics at the Brains and Genius studio in West Los Angeles before renovations were complete.
March 1990 - "Brian" sessions commence upon completion of the studio. Songs that didn't make it to "Sweet Insanity" are as follows: "Let's Stick Together" (with guest star Weird Al Yankovic on accordion, later re-recorded as "The Waltz" with lyrics by Van Dyke Parks), "Save The Day", "Concert Tonight" (full version, only the vocal intro was used for "Sweet Insanity") and "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll" without Bob Dylan's verse vocals, which appear to have been added for "Sweet Insanity", as they are not part of the 1990 mix of "Brian". The recording of only one song is publicly known to have been pinned down to date, which is the May 3, 1990 session for "Water Builds Up".
May 7, 1990 - Stan Love press conference, Brian Wilson appears and reads statement.
July 2, 1990 - The "hotel jam" featuring Brian Wilson, Bruce Johnston, Jeff Foskett and John Stamos, with Kevin Leslie behind the camera. "Brian" songs performed by Brian during this gathering were: "Someone To Love", "Rainbow Eyes", "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll" and "Brian". Notes: None of the lyrics seemed to be complete to any of these songs other than "Spirit" (which was written in 1986), or Brian possibly could not remember them at the time. It should also be mentioned that Bruce Johnston forcefully tries to help Brian rearrange "Rainbow Eyes" on the spot by telling him to "slow that down", which Brian politely dismisses.
July 28, 1990 - Brian's appearances at the Beach Boys Convention in San Diego, and the Hard Rock Cafe in La Jolla, CA. Brian only performed "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll" from the album. He is interrupted mid-performance by an assistant who tells him to perform to the pre-recorded track instead. T-shirts were sold during the event that read "BRIAN WILSON-The Spirit Of Rock And Roll", but it is unknown if this title was possibly being considered for the album. Video of the two appearances shows a clip of Brian dining with Eugene Landy and Alexandra Morgan afterwards.
(Footnote: The assistant who interrupted Brian's performance is also speaking about the "Spirit Of Rock And Roll" session at the beginning of the existing video. "You be Mike, you be Carl, etc." It is believed by some that this is the former Landy employee who is featured in shadow in the Prime Time Live special "Brian's Song", but this cannot be confirmed at this time.)
Late summer through late fall 1990 - "Brian" listening parties. It was documented in local fan magazines and other sources that listening parties were sometimes held at Brains and Genius studio to obtain feedback on the tracks. One such party was attended by Don Was, who went on to produce both Brian and The Beach Boys in the mid-1990s. One person who was able to attend asked someone in the studio who was producing the sessions, and they pointed to Brian and said "he is."
December 4, 1990 - "Heal The Bay" benefit. Three "Brian" songs were performed with backing tracks and possibly Rob Wasserman on bass. These are: "Water Builds Up", "Make A Wish", and "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll". Recordings emerged of these backing and vocal tracks around the mid-2000s in near pristine quality. Close examination of the lone poor quality tape that exists of the "Heal The Bay" show reveals these to be the same tracks, mixed down for this performance (and possibly others.)
Early December 1990 - Meeting between Brian Wilson, Lenny Waronker, Seymour Stein, Eugene Landy and Alexandra Morgan to premiere what is referred to as an "unmixed" version of "Brian" to the Sire executives. It is possible that this version may have been thought of by the studio team as the finished version. The meeting did not go well, as documented in pg. 380-383 of the "Wouldn't It Be Nice" book.
This could be considered to be the end of "Brian" the album. Brian's appearance on a cooking show aired shortly after the meeting. He made something called "Surfer Chicken" which he called "a collaboration between Eugene E. Landy, Alexandra Morgan and myself." He went on to express his frustration with the record company: "Our company thinks that we should go back in and fix it up a little bit. They said, well we like it, but they think we better fix it up, like the hard rock songs should rock a little harder, that the ballads should sing a little differently, so we said "ah well, okay, we'll do it." He then goes on to perform a piece of "Smart Girls" for the guests.
Track-By-Track comparison between "Brian" and "Sweet Insanity"
The two original sources for this comparison would be the original mix of "Brian" that has circulated since late 1991, and the Brains and Genius "Sweet Insanity" cassette distributed to certain parties around the same period. Many fans have come to prefer the original "Brian" mixes to the finished "Sweet Insanity" project (especially in the case of "Smart Girls") and some fans have even attempted to mix the two versions of the album together, with interesting results. Higher quality versions of "Smart Girls" version 1 and "Let's Stick Together" have recently surfaced online.
The main differences in the two album mixes, which utilize the same backing tracks for both versions of the songs they share, can be found in Rob Wasserman's bass, which is MUCH more prevalent on "Brian", and the more eclectic sounds in the mix being brought down for "Sweet Insanity" in an attempt to make it sound more commercial.
The two versions will be referred to as "Bri" and "SI" for this section.
"Concert Tonight": Only the fifteen-second intro is used for SI. It appears to be the identical mix used on Bri.
"Someone To Love": Slight lyric differences. Verse lyrics are answered on Bri with Brian speaking in suggestive tones words like "Oh baby, let me come inside". On SI, verse lyrics are answered with singing.
"Water Builds Up": Very slight lyric differences. Brian's vocal is lower in many spots on Bri. Bass is much louder, as is the tea kettle whistle sound. Brian's new lead vocal mixed higher on SI.
"Don't Let Her Know She's An Angel": Major lyric differences in first and second verses. Horns are mixed louder through verses on Bri. Choruses appear identical on Bri and SI, save for drum machine changes.
"Do You Have Any Regrets" (aka "I Do"): Very slight lyrical and musical differences, the main one being the louder bass on Bri. Fade uses more echo on SI.
"Brian" (aka "Thank You"): Intro starts with bass on Bri, tinkly synths on SI. Lyrics are identical. Bass is louder as usual. Unfortunately the "stuck on Band-Aid" trumpet solo is on both versions.
"The Spirit Of Rock And Roll": Same lyrics, Brian sings all on Bri, Bob Dylan sings verses on SI. Brett Tuggle and Gregg Bissonette from David Lee Roth's band played on this, as well as Steve Hunter. A picture exists on Waddy Wachtel's site of them together at the session.
"Rainbow Eyes": Slight lyric differences, again the bass is much more prevalent on Bri, and almost non-existent on SI. Six-second outro utilized on SI; unknown if it was recorded for Bri and not used then.
"Make A Wish": Different bridge lyrics, louder instrumentation on Bri, louder mix on SI. Music stops on bridge in SI except for synths. Slight lyric differences on verses.
"Smart Girls": Slightly different lead vocal, lower pitched and less shouty on Bri. All Beach Boys song references are sung in multi-part vocal by Brian on Bri, and badly sampled on SI. The original vocal takes bleed through in places on the SI mix. Many fans prefer the Bri version (at least as a novelty) over the sample-laden mess that is the SI version.
Musicians
Brian Wilson-lead and background vocals, musical arrangements
Michael Bernard-keyboards, percussion, special fx, programmer
Rob Wasserman-Clevinger 4-string bass
Guest musicians:
Tim Weisberg-flute, piccolo
Paula Abdul-backing vocals
"Weird Al" Yankovic-accordian
Fred Katz-cello
Scott Page-saxophone
John Stamos-backing vocals
Guests on "The Spirit Of Rock And Roll":
Brett Tuggle-piano, keyboards
Steve Hunter-guitar
Gregg Bissonette-drums
Bob Dylan-lead vocals (Brian mentions Bob singing on his record at the Heal The Bay show. Whether this had taken place by December 1990 is unknown, but his vocal is not on the "Brian" version.)
Other possible guests: David Marks, Glen Campbell, Eugene E. Landy =References
1. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" (My Own Story), Brian Wilson with Todd Gold, Harper Collins, 1991.
2. Beach Boys Stomp, issues 79-89, 1990-1992.
3. Brains and Genius "Smart Girl's" cassette insert
4. Waddy Wachtel musician site-Sweet Insanity (unreleased 1989)
5. Beach Boys Convention video 1990
6. "Hotel Jam" video, July 2, 1990
7. "Heal The Bay" show, December 4, 1990 (collector's cassette)
and this from 2005 www.honolulumagazine.com/going-solo/ "Loneliness and self-pity usually arise from the unrealistic expectations that burden nearly everyone during the holidays, but often hit singles the hardest. Young singles who have never been coupled miss home and carry exaggerated memories of holiday bliss from childhood, according to Eugene Landy, a clinical psychologist in Honolulu. Those who have been coupled or married sometimes suffer guilt about a broken family.• Read more and shun television. "That’s very grounding," says Landy, and helps you avoid the manufactured images of idyllic families and harmonious social gatherings."
and what was seemingly Landy's only comments on Brian post-separation "the controversy surrounding Brian's therapy and the termination of our professional working relationship remains a disappointment, since I know it is based largely on misunderstanding and, in important part, distortion of the factual record. I continue to have great affection for Brian and wish he and his family only the best."
Some Sweet Insanity sessions are listed here - Shows & sessions 1990
|
|
Shawn
Dude/Dudette
Posts: 61
Likes: 58
Favorite Album: Friends
|
Post by Shawn on Aug 29, 2021 17:54:35 GMT -5
I recently acquired the below disc which was Landy's personal copy of Sweet Insanity. Does anyone know if other digital copies/discs are out there? I thnk the bootleg CDs of this title are sourced from cassettes but am not 100% sure: Attachments:
|
|
|
Post by John Manning on Sept 1, 2021 1:26:32 GMT -5
I recently acquired the below disc which was Landy's personal copy of Sweet Insanity. Does anyone know if other digital copies/discs are out there? I thnk the bootleg CDs of this title are sourced from cassettes but am not 100% sure: Ah, congrats - had spotted that but well out of my price range!
|
|
|
Post by boogieboarder on Sept 2, 2021 13:26:21 GMT -5
Wikipedia says Brian Wilson says the master tapes were stolen, preventing an official release. It's too bad that the bootlegs are all we have, because they just aren't up to the sound quality you'd really need to enjoy the album fully, or release anything from it officially. Would they release these any of these recordings now, if they had the masters? Where are the multi-tracks? If Shawn has Gene Landy's personal copy on CD, perhaps that's as close to the master tapes we'll ever get.
Personally, I like the mixes and song selections on the previous version. I like the complete "Concert Tonight," and can't understand why he'd delete such a nice song. I like the early mix of "Smart Girls" a lot better than the mess it became. I like the original "Spirit of Rock and Roll" without Dylan (even though I am a Dylan fan).
|
|
|
Post by bittersweetsanity on Sept 5, 2021 8:37:31 GMT -5
I recently acquired the below disc which was Landy's personal copy of Sweet Insanity. Does anyone know if other digital copies/discs are out there? I thnk the bootleg CDs of this title are sourced from cassettes but am not 100% sure: cool beans
|
|
|
Post by jk on Sept 8, 2021 3:43:57 GMT -5
I don't believe the "album" itself has been linked yet (sorry if it's against the rules):
|
|
|
Post by conqueso on Sept 22, 2023 9:42:59 GMT -5
I recently acquired the below disc which was Landy's personal copy of Sweet Insanity. Does anyone know if other digital copies/discs are out there? I thnk the bootleg CDs of this title are sourced from cassettes but am not 100% sure: Hi Shawn, There are 2 mixes - the original "Brian" mix, and the later one that was edited in an attempt to get it approved for release - as Bittersweetsanity laid out in wonderful detail earlier in the thread. There are very crisp sounding versions of the second version that circulate - I think I read somewhere they are sourced from a leaked DAT tape. As far as I am aware, there are no digital versions of the original "Brian" mix in circulation. Everything I've heard is sourced from cassette tape. Apparently the masters were stolen (this is just something I've read in posts in various places over the years - I have no idea if this is actually true or not). If indeed that is the case - the CD you have in your possession is likely the highest quality copy of the original (and, IMO far superior) mix in existence. In the small chance that you read this reply 2 years after your original post, I would like to humbly ask if you would you be willing to rip the CD to wav/flac and share it? I see it as highly unlikely that this will ever be officially released - your CD may be the only chance fans get to hearing this album as Brian originally intended. -Joe
|
|
|
Post by Mikie on Sept 22, 2023 17:14:27 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by E on Sept 22, 2023 18:03:13 GMT -5
But if you do get it, stick it on YouTube. Kidding. Maybe. Still think it's a piece of shit, for the most part. Like GIOHM, there are a handful of good songs that are utterly ruined by the arrangement (actually, one of those songs - possibly the best one - is ruined on both albums), but this isn't as embarrassing because it wasn't released and didn't have cover art by Peter Blake, someone who yearned to work with Brian even more than he wanted to work with the Fabs and when he had his chance, turned in a pretty wretched piece of art.
|
|
|
Post by Mikie on Sept 22, 2023 23:30:21 GMT -5
Yeah, but.......Ed, I think some of the songs from Sweet Insanity have good melodies. It's just that Landy's lame lyrics are grating. Luckily, five songs were salvaged for the GIOMH album 'cause there's little to no chance that the entire Sweet Insanity album will see the light o' day.
|
|
|
Post by E on Sept 23, 2023 4:57:16 GMT -5
Yeah, but.......Ed, I think some of the songs from Sweet Insanity have good melodies. It's just that Landy's lame lyrics are grating. Luckily, five songs were salvaged for the GIOMH album 'cause there's little to no chance that the entire Sweet Insanity album will see the light o' day. Oh, I agree. I think the lyrics and the arrangements aren't up to much. Shouty Brian doesn't help.
|
|
|
Post by conqueso on Sept 25, 2023 8:43:09 GMT -5
Thanks for the heads up Mikie - sorry if I broke any forum rules with that!
|
|