If you keep coming back here to read and/or re-read the story, thank you. If you check in now and then hoping for new posts or updates, I'm sorry. I look at this site as a story or novel in audio form. I finished the story and moved on (although I'm still working on a proper Anthology 4). I have not abandoned the site. I still respond to comments and update links when needed. I also will correct any grammar issues I find that I missed the first time around and generally tidy up a bit. So feel free to leave a comment or say hi.
I also have not given up on my little hobby here. My focus has just broadened some. Inspired by other Fantasy Album Constructors I have been posting some of my non-Beatles (and some Beatles) constructions at my other blog What If Misc. I've managed so far to post weekly and will continue to do so until the ideas stop.
Thanks for listening/reading
Download Status
I
have taken all of the links and consolidated them on the Download page
above. Easier to update when needed. Get them while they last.
Summary
In order to create a believable scenario wherein the Beatles did not break up in April 1970 and would allow believable 70s Beatles albums to be constructed from the solo albums, I have created an alternate time line that diverges from our reality at the time of the White album which becomes four solo albums and re-converges around 1981. In this time line the Beatles continue to record together as a group as well as solo throughout most of the 70s. This site examines these albums and the affects they had on the solo output of the individual band members.
Each album description is divided into two or three sections. The first section gives the back-story to the album and the track list. The second section describes any editing done to each song and the source of the song if it came from an unofficial source. The third section when applicable rates the Beatles Believability Index (BBI) of the album as a Beatles project and cites any songs that strengthen that believability. Please feel free to comment and give your own BBI ratings.
What this is not
This is not an attempt to recompile every solo song onto a Beatles album. These are not collections of my favorite solo songs masquerading as Beatles albums. This is an honest attempt to construct believable Beatles albums from the available solo material.
I did not speculate how an album release may have charted or what songs may have been used as singles beyond those that were already released as solo singles (which stay solo singles in most cases). I also refrained from trying to second guess the Fabs themselves as to how a song might have differed due to actual collaboration.
I used my own preferences and reasoning for the material included on these compilations. Due to personal tastes, if you decide to play this game on your own, your results may vary.
Disclaimer
I'm sure many reading this will be thinking "What's the point?" among other comments. And while I enjoy each of these compilations, when it comes to loading them on my mp3 player I prefer the White Album to the '68 solo albums or I just leave Ringo's album off. I also load the official solo albums rather than the reconstructed albums. I do load the 70s Beatles albums and the Lennon & McCartney album because it's nice to hear the lads playing together even if it is an illusion.
What this means is that this is in no way an attempt to rewrite history in a way that I feel it should have happened. It is only an exercise in which the goal was to take what we have and create a believable alternative chain of events and how it affected their musical output. I am in no way dissatisfied with what we have and how things really happened. Not always happy when you are aware of the many close calls and could have happens that did occur, especially between '73 and '77. I'm sure you've heard some of the stories.
You can view this blog three ways. The first way is to just read it straight through. The second is to just read the backstory by clicking the link on the right or by clicking here. The third is to just view the fantasy albums by again clicking on the link on the right or by clicking here.
There is a list of similar projects listed on the right side of this page.
I did this for fun and enjoyed it every step of the way. I hope you enjoy the results as much as I did creating them. I have used many pictures that I have found around the internet. If you recognize a picture as your own work and wish to have it removed or give you credit (I forget where I get these things), send me a message and I will. All album final artwork are my own efforts but again, some pictures may have come from somewhere else.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Sunday, April 25, 2010
1968
-Albums-Wonderwall [George]
John Lennon [John]
Paul McCartney [Paul]
George Harrison [George]
Ringo Starr [Ringo]
Two Virgins [John]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Lady Madonna b/w The Inner Light
Hey Jude b/w Revolution
The Beatles EP (Hey Jude/Revolution/While My Guitar Gently Weeps/Don't Pass Me By)
Beatlemania has faded, the summer of love is a year past and the Beatles have returned from India where they went looking for enlightenment. They came back from the trip with a new outlook on life in general and their careers specifically. John, Paul and George wrote so many songs while at Rishi Kesh that they realized they could not fit them all on a single LP. So they met at George's home studio in Esher to record some demos and discuss what to do.
George especially voiced concern that given his two to three song allotment per album, he would never be able to exhaust his growing back catalog. After much discussion they soon came to the conclusion that the band was at a crossroad.
It was decided to enter the studio and begin recording all the songs they had, not for a Beatles album but solo albums. They utilized each other as well as friends for the basic tracks but each member was in charge of his own album. There was no questioning each others vision although each remained open to constructive criticism and suggestions which led to the occasional collaborations. George Martin served as an executive producer, guiding each project along and doing orchestral arrangements when called upon.
They also agreed to contribute one song each to a group EP. This EP would include songs from the recent single and two more songs. The four songs would be "Hey Jude", "Revolution", "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Don't Pass Me By". Both John and George would include alternate versions of their contributions on their own albums.
Ringo in the meantime, realizing that he had the chance to record an album of his own, but not having any original material, approached George Martin with an idea. He compiled a list of his favorite old standards with suggestions from friends and family, and gave it to George Martin to commission arrangements and orchestrate. While John, Paul and George's were busy with their projects, George Martin and Ringo were able to slip in sessions over a ten day period for his album.
The albums were released close together with similar artwork and named simply using their names for the titles. They were also the first Beatles product to be released on their new label Apple.
1968 - The Beatles [EP]
Hey Jude
Revolution
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Don't Pass Me By
-
Reality Notes:
A straight compilation of the Hey Jude single plus a song by George and a song by Ringo from The White Album. All original versions as released.
BBI:
5 - Well it is them.
1968 - John Lennon
Recording for the four solo albums was scheduled to begin simultaneously. This was done to allow the basic backing tracks for the more complex songs to be started before the overdub process was begun.Of the four John relied more on the others help in the shaping of his songs. Only two songs feature no other Beatles. Julia was a solo acoustic effort and Yer Blues features Kieth Richards (bass), Eric Clapton (guitar) and Mitch Mitchell (drums). The result is an album that sounds more like a Beatles album than a solo John Lennon album.
1. Dear Prudence
2. Glass Onion
3. Sexy Sadie
4. I'm So Tired
5. The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill
6. Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey
7. Cry Baby Cry
8. Julia
9. Revolution 1
10. Yer Blues
11. What's the New Mary Jane
12. Happiness is a Warm Gun
13. Revolution 9
14. What's the New Mary Jane [Reprise]
-
Reality Notes:
- Track 1 - used an alternate mix that is very close to the album version but does not have the jet noise from Back in the USSR covering the beginning intro.
- Track 2 - used the alternate mix found on Anthology 3. This is an earlier mix done while George Martin was not present. When John played this mix for George M, Martin suggested adding some strings. This version does not have those strings which give it a rawer feel, but does have some sound effects loops at the end of the song .
- Track 3 - used the Anthology 3 version with no edits but the official version is just as good.
- Track 10 - I cheated a little on this one. I used the Rock and Roll Circus version featuring Eric Clapton (guitar), Kieth Richards (bass) and Mitch Mitchell (drums) which was recorded on Dec. 11, long after the release of the album. We could say that one or all of them stopped by the studio to help with the original recording which is why they appear together in the film. This version doesn't sound too different from the album version so the main reason for using it was to give John some guest stars on the album. My version comes from the Utlra Rare Trax Vol 4 bootleg.
- Track 11 - there are two White album era mixes of this song, one that clocks in at over 6 minutes and another that is trimmed down to just over 3. I used the longer mix which sounds better but cut it at about 3:30 right in the middle of a freakout section so no special fadeouts were needed. This makes the track just slightly longer that the shorter mix.
- Track 14 - At the end I added 2 edit pieces to close the album as an unlisted track. It starts with a reprise of What's the New Mary Jane taken from the Esher demo where John is giggling during the vocal then finishes with John exclaiming loudly "Yes sir, that's my baby!".
Due to the fact that John's songs tend to be longer, keeping the running time at a reasonable length was not easy. I did manage to keep it down to just under 46 and a half minutes which is within vinyl limits. The album also splits nicely between Julia and Revolution 1 for vinyl purposes.
There was far less editing involved when compared to Paul's album. Due to space limitations Across The Universe still goes unreleased which is fine because we wouldn't want to have to mess with Let It Be. Also, Child of Nature from the Esher demos is not used which again, is okay because the song it turned into, Jealous Guy, is much better anyway.
Goodnight was dropped but will not go unused. This song was written for Ringo to sing And was heavily orchestrated by George Martin. This will be added to Ringo's Sentimental Journey album which has been moved up to be used as his 1968 solo album.
One of the surprises was how the single album format made Revolution 9 a little more listenable. I never hated this piece but more often than not, the skip button was pressed. In my test listens I never felt the need to skip it.
1968 - Paul McCartney
Like John, Paul utilized the others for much of the basic tracks that that appeared on his album. Unlike John, once those basic tracks were done he often took a DIY approach to finishing his songs. Two songs (Blackbird and Junk) are complete solo efforts and a few others only feature one or two of the others. Paul also covered a much wider range of styles than John or George. The end result is surprisingly cohesive and personal.1. Los Paranoias
2. Birthday
3. Why Don't We Do It In The Road
4. Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da
5. Blackbird
6. Back In The USSR
7. Rocky Raccoon
8. I Will
9. Honey Pie
10. Helter Skelter
11. Junk
12. Wild Honey Pie
13. Martha My Dear
14. Mother Nature's Son
15. The Way You Look Tonight
-
Reality Notes:
- Track 1 - although a mix is available on Anthology 3, it is very short. The full take can be found on the bootleg Turn Me On Dead Man-The John Barrett Tapes and is several minutes long. I used this take but I did some minor editing to take out some repetitive ad-libs then faded it out early to make the track 1:25 long.
- Track 3 - I edited the first 30 seconds of the Esher demo onto the front of the album version extending it to 2:10.
- Track 4 - I used the version that I think can be found on Anthology 3 but I used a mix found on Ultra Rare Tracks Vol 3. The version found on The Beatles (AKA The White Album) is a remake recorded a day or two after this version.
- Track 5 - Tough call on this one as most takes available sound almost the same. I went with the take found on Anthology 3 which sounds just like the album version with minor differences in the guitar and does not have the bird sounds but the album version would have been just as good. And to be honest I kind of miss the bird sounds.
- Track 6 - used the album version but had to fade the jet noise at the end which on the album runs into Dear Prudence.
- Track 10 - Album version but preceded it with the "When I was i robber..." dialog that precedes an earlier take of Hey Jude found on Anthology 3. I also left off the "Blisters on my fingers" ending and saved that for later.
- Track 11 - I edited together the two versions found on McCartney released in 1970. I did this by taking the first 30 seconds of the instrumental version and cutting it just before the electric guitar starts and put that at the front of the vocal version then before the fade out I put the rest of the instrumental version on the end and started fading that out after about 30 seconds. This extends the song to 3:05.
- Track 15 - this is a fragment from the I Will session where Paul combines elements from this song and I Will, I then segue this into Can You Take Me Back from the same session utilizing a fuller version found on the John Barrett Tapes bootleg starting it at the same place as the album version but letting it go on a little longer before fading. I then tacked on the Helter Skelter "Blisters on my fingers" ending to the end.
The challenge in creating this disc was stretching it out to reasonable length. I did this by editing multiple takes together and digging up unreleased songs to flesh it out to just over 37 minutes long.
1968 - George Harrison
As John and Paul grew more involved with overdubs on their own projects they had less and less time to give to George for his backing tracks. As a result George turned to his friends outside the fabs to help complete his album. Almost half the songs on George's album feature no other Beatles aside from George himself and maybe Ringo.1. Art Of Dying (Part 1)
2. Savoy Truffle
3. Long, Long, Long
4. I'd Have You Anytime
5. Circles
6. Isn't It A Pity
7. While My Guitar Gently Weeps
8. Sour Milk Sea
9. Nowhere To Go
10. Not Guilty
11. Piggies
12. The Art Of Dying
-
Reality Notes:
- Track 1 - this is the last part of the demo found on the Beware Of ABKCO bootleg. I do a hard edit at the two minute mark and play it out to the finishing strum, cutting out the end chatter.
- Track 5 - This finished version comes from the album Gone Troppo. A demo was recorded and can be found on the Esher demos but it is far from a finished product.
- Track 6 - early mix found on the Songs For Patti bootleg.
- Track 7 - version from the Love album which is the '68 demo with a George Martin score, used as is.
- Track 8 - this was a problematic track. The Esher demo is quite frankly, crappy. I found several outfakes that use an instrumental backing track from the Jackie Lomax sessions that feature Paul, George and Ringo and Eric Clapton and sync that with the Esher demo which creates a more finished track. The problem with those is that you can still hear the subpar backing instruments from the demo. Unfortunately, I had no other alternative so I used the version found on the first volume of the bootleg Fab Forgeries. It would be nice if we could get our hands on a clean version of the demo that would isolate the vocal or at least the vocal and guitar without the percussion so a new and better outfake could be created.
- Track 9 - this is the one song I could not confirm as being from this time frame but it was alluded to somewhere. Aside from this demo the only other recording of this song that I know comes from a tape of George and Bob Dylan dated sometime in November 1968 which also features the two working on I'd Have You Anytime. This take comes from the Beware Of ABKCO bootleg, I tightened the stereo field a bit and added a little more reverb to sweeten it up.
- Track 10 - one of the many versions from the White album sessions this version is the Anthology 3 version.
- Track 12 - this is an early mix found on the Songs For Patti bootleg. While I am leaving this in as is for now I may have to revert to the finished album version due to the unfinished lyrics on this one.
The challenge with George's album was finding the material. From interviews and other sources it was clear that George had enough material for an album but confirming which songs are from this period took a lot of research. There are two songs from the Esher demos that were not included on the White album and after some digging I found several songs from the All Things Must Pass album that were written between 1966 and 1968. The only song that I could not pin point an exact date but was alluded to being from this time frame was Nowhere To Go. With all the songs I found I was able to save Dehra Dhun for the Anthology 4 album, which is where I really wanted to use it.
1968 - Ringo Starr
While the other three contributed in some way to Ringo's album by way of arrangements or compositions no other Beatles appear on this album making it a true solo album.Once most of the backing tracks for the other three projects were done Ringo had more and more time to spare. He gathered a list of old standards and presented it to George Martin who commissioned arrangements and booked ten days to record the bulk of the material. This left Ringo unavailable to contribute drums to a few songs the others were working on. Although less well received than the other three solo albums it still holds up today as a fine collection of songs and performances.
1. Sentimental Journey
2. Night And Day
3. Whispering Grass (Don't Tell The Trees)
4. Bye Bye Blackbird
5. I'm A Fool To Care (Daffan 1948)
6. Stardust
7. Blue Turning Grey Over You
8. Love Is A Many Splendoured Thing
9. Dream
10. You Always Hurt The One You Love
11. Have I Told You Lately That I Love You
12. Let The Rest Of The World Go By
13. Stormy Weather
14. Goodnight
-
Reality Notes:
Ringo Starr: Vocals.
All instruments performed by The George Martin Orchestra.
Track 1. Written by Bud Green/Les Brown/Bon Homer
Arranged by Richard Perry
First released by Doris Day in 1945
Track 2. Written by Cole Porter
Arranged by Chico O'Farrill
First released by Fred Astaire and Claire Luce in 1932
Track 3. Written by Fred Fisher/Doris Fisher
Arranged by Ron Goodwin
First released by The Ink Spots in 1940
Track 4. Written by Mort Dixon/Ray Henderson
Arranged by Maurice Gibb
First released by Eddie Cantor in 1926
Track 5. Written by Ted Daffan
Arranged by Klaus Voormann
First released by Les Paul and Mary Ford in 1954
Track 6. Written by Hoagy Carmichael/Mitchell Parish
Arranged by Paul McCartney
First released by Emile Seidel and Orchestra in 1927
Track 7. Written by Andy Razaf/Fats Waller
Arranged by Oliver Nelson
First released by Louis Armstrong and his orchestra in 1930
Track 8. Written by Sammy Fain/Paul Webster
Arranged by Quincy Jones
First released by The Four Aces in 1955
Track 9. Written by Johnny Mercer
Arranged by George Martin
First released by The Pied Pipers in 1945
Track 10. Written by Allan Roberts/Doris Fisher
Arranged by John Dankworth
First released by The Mills Brothers in 1944
Track 11. Written by Scott Wiseman
Arranged by Elmer Bernstein
First released by Lulu Belle and Scotty Wiseman in 1945
Track 12. Written by Ernest Ball/Karen Brennan
Arranged by Les Reed
First released by Dick Haymes in 1944
Track 13. Written by Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler
Arranged by ??
First released by Ethel Waters in 1933
Track 14. Written by John Lennon
Arranged by George Martin
First released by Ringo Starr/The Beatles in 1968
This album was actually recorded in 1970 and was titled Sentimental Journey and was Ringo's first solo album. The album is a collection of old standards that were chosen by Ringo and his family and friends and then arranged and orchestrated by producer George Martin, Quincy Jones, Nelson Riddle, Paul McCartney and others. (Sidenote: this was recorded in 1970, years before albums like this became a trend and gave us similar albums by Rod Stewart, Linda Ronstadt and Barbara Streisand.)
With John, Paul and George all making solo albums I didn't want Ringo to feel left out. So what I'm going to do is move Ringo's Sentimental Journey album from 1970 to 1968. We can do this for two reasons; A) Ringo released two albums in 1970 almost back to back and B) there are no songs on the album that were written after 1960, most were written years or even decades before, so we are not messing up any time frames. This also allows us to use John's Goodnight which he wrote for Ringo to sing. That song's orchestral backing fits in nice with the rest of the album.
As for when it would have been recorded, I am using the 10 days when Ringo was absent when he quit the band during the White album sessions. This means that Ringo never quit, he was just busy with his album. George Martin had been recording the songs backing tracks while serving as executive producer for the other three projects and slipped in these sessions to finish the recording.
I made no changes to the track list aside from adding John's Goodnight and one outtake, Stormy Weather.
1969
-Albums-Yellow Submarine
Life With Lions [John]
Electronic Sound [George]
Abbey Road
The Wedding Album [John]
Live Peace in Toronto 1969 [John]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Get Back/Don't Let Me Down
Ballad of John and Yoko/Old Brown Shoe
Give Peace A Chance/Remember Love [John]
Cold Turkey/Don’t Worry Kyoko [John]
The solo projects had both positive and negative repercussions. While each album was well received, when it came time to regroup for a new Beatles project, they found it hard to work together. Each was reluctant to relinquish their new found independence and aside from Paul, showed little enthusiasm for the next project which started out as a film of them rehearsing for and performing a comeback concert but ended up as a film of them recording a new album. After shelving the Get Back project for now, they managed to return to form for the spectacular Abbey Road album.
John was especially busy with outside projects. He released two solo singles and two more avant garde sound pieces. He also released a live album of an inpromptu solo concert from the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival. John's activity outside the band led many to speculate that he had left the group, rumours that would persist through 1970 and into 1971 when the band releases Through Many Years.
1970
-Albums-Plastic Ono Band [John & Yoko]
All Things Must Pass [George]
Beaucoups of Blues [Ringo]
Let It Be
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Instant Karma/Who Has Seen The Wind [John]
Let It Be/You Know My Name
1970 was a year of changes for the band. John's continued quest for artistic satisfaction outside the band left the others feeling a bit left out. After Abbey Road they decide to take a break from each other to explore other projects and recharge. John records an album with Yoko with Phil Spector producing while Paul spends some time alone with his new family and records some home demos on his new tape machine and also oversees the final mixing of the Let It Be album. George hangs out with friends and records All Things Must Pass also with Phil Spector producing. While Ringo waits for the others he records an album of country songs. The band reluctantly releases Let It Be as a film and album as an interim product while John and Paul discuss material for the next album.
1970 - Plastc Ono Band
After three avaunt-garde albums, two Beatles albums, a few singles and a solo live album John wanted to enter the studio with Yoko but this time with more of a focus on songs in contrast to the improvised soundscapes or one-off singles they previously released. Enlisting Ringo and Klaus Voorman as backup John and Yoko recorded a sparse but eclectic album. Clearly influenced by their recent Janov Primal Scream therapy sessions the album is said to be John's best solo effort since 1968.1. Mother
2. Touch Me
3. I Found Out
4. Greenfield Morning I Pushed An Empty Baby Carriage All Over The City
5. Working Class Hero
6. Well, Well, Well
7. Why
8. God
9. AOS
10. My Mummy's Dead
-
Reality Notes:
Because the leftovers from John's Plastic Ono Band album are as good as or better than the ones we took from it for the upcoming Beatles release we will save this album by combining it with the Yoko album of the same name. Both of these albums were recorded at the same time and with the same line-up which gives it a consistent sound and feel. I used the shorter and more accessible Yoko songs to flesh out the leftovers from John's album and arranged them in a way that they play off each other nicely. The album becomes simply known as The Plastic Ono Band and becomes the measuring stick for future solo projects by John and Yoko both together and separate.
I used all released versions with no edits or modifications. I did preface Mother with Something More Abstract which is a 47 second bonus track from Yoko's album. The vinyl album would be split between track 5 and 6 with about 24 minutes per side. The surprise effect is how Yoko's pieces become more listenable when mixed with John's.
1970 - All Things Must Pass
Even after the success of Abbey Road George was glad to have some time away from being what he felt to be a second tier Beatle. After a short tour with buddy Eric Clapton as backup musicians on the recent Bonnie and Delaney tour George was ready to record another solo album. With Phil Spector producing George gathered a long list of friends and studio musicains to help bring the project to life.1. My Sweet Lord
2. Wah-Wah
3. What Is Life
4. If Not For You
5. Behind That Locked Door
6. Run Of The Mill
7. Apple Scruffs
8. Ballad Of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)
9. Awaiting On You All
10. I Dig Love
11. Hear Me Lord
12. All Things Must Pass
-
Reality Notes:
The original triple album took quite a gouging being robbed of many great songs to be given to three other albums.We took three songs and one demo/outtake (Art Of Dying, I'd Have You Any Time, Isn't It A Pity and Nowhere To Go) and gave them to the 1968 solo project. We then took two songs and one outtake (Beware Of Darkness, Let It Down and I Live For You) for the 1971 group project. We also assigned the outtake Dehra Dhun to the Anthology 4 album. This left us with twelve songs, a few outtakes and a disc of studio jams.
I left the songs in the order that they appeared on the original album with the exception of All Things Must Pass which was moved to the end of side two.
In the end, like the "White" album, even though we scattered many of the songs, nothing was lost and we actually gained a few songs. We are also going to leave the Apple Jam disc for either a Zapple release or for the bootleggers, either way works for me, the only question concerning a Zapple disc would be when it would be released.
1970 - Let It Be
After two attempts by Glyn Johns and one by Phil Spector to polish the Get Back tapes into something that all four Beatles could agree on Paul decided to take a stab at finishing the project himself. Paul took Phil's version and stripped away the orcestration and choirs but left almost everything else. He also re-inserted Don't Let Me Down back into the track list. When presented to the others the reaction was one of both acceptance and indifference. The general feeling was to just get the thing out and move on to the next project.1. Two Of Us
2. Dig A Pony
3. Across The Universe
4. I Me Mine
5. Dig It
6. Let It Be
7. Maggie Mae
8. I've Got A Feeling
9. One After 909
10. The Long And Winding Road
11. For You Blue
12. Don't Let Me Down
13. Get Back
-
Reality Notes:
What I did was combined the elements I enjoyed of both Let It Be and Let It Be...Naked into one album. I kept the original song order and added Don't Let Me Down towards the end of the disc. I restored the chatter as well as Dig It and Maggie Mae. I used the ...Naked mixes whenever I felt they were an improvement over the originals and used the same take as the original. In all, I tried to preserve the feel of the original with the better sound of the new mixes.
Track 1 - ...Naked version but had to edit in the pre-song chatter as well as edit in the end fade from the original that goes on longer with the extra whistling.
Track 2 - ...Naked version but again had to edit back the pre and post-song chatter.
Track 3 - ...Naked version without any editing.
Track 4 - ...Naked version with no editing needed.
Track 5 - original version as is.
Track 6 - tried to use the ...Naked version but reverted back to the original because I preferred George's other solo and I missed the excessive reverb on the hi-hat cymbal. Then, after hearing a bootleg mix that includes both of George's solos I switched to that. I really like how it sounds like George intended the two solos to interact with each other
Track 7 - original as is.
Track 8 - the ...Naked version uses a completely different take than the original (actually an edit of several takes into one) that has a different feel on the vocals so I went with the original version.
Track 9 - ...Naked version but had to edit the Danny Boy ending back on.
Track 10 - ...Naked version with no edits needed.
Track 11 - ...Naked version but had to edit back the pre-song chatter.
Track 12 - slipped the ...Naked version here.
Track 13 - used the original version which preserves the pre-song chatter and ends with the thank yous and "hope we passed the audition" speech.
Friday, April 23, 2010
1971
-Albums-Through Many Years
Ram [Paul]
Imagine [John]
Wild Life [Paul]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Another Day/Oh Woman, Oh Why [Paul]
Power To The People/Touch Me [John]
It Don't Come Easy/Early 1970 [Ringo}
God Save Us/Do The Oz [John]
Bangla Desh/Deep Blue [George]
Happy Xmas (War Is Over)/Listen, The Snow Is Falling [John]
1971 saw the reemergence of Paul McCartney into the public spotlight. After lying low the previous year and hot on the heels of a new Beatles album he released Ram, his first solo album since 1968.
John released his critically aclaimed Imagine album. This was his first album since 1968 that did not include Yoko. Although she was involved production wise she did not contribute any songs of her own.
George, moved by a call for help from his friend and teacher Ravi Shankar, puts on his monumental charity concert for Bangla Desh which features appearances by George, Ringo, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Ravi and others.
Paul, still itching to perform with a live band, accepts the fact that he will probably never get his band mates to agree to venture outside the studio for any live gigs. In response to this resolution he forms Wings as a side project to satisfy his need to perform in front of an audience. Over the years Wings will often rival the Beatles in popularity and Paul's attention.
1971 - Through Many Years
After a year apart from each other, John Paul George and Ringo regroup to record another album. Even though Let It Be was released the year before, this is actually the first album of brand new material from the band in almost two years. Let It Be was recorded before Abbey Road with two songs (Get Back/Don't Let Me Down) from those sessions released as a single. This is a fine album worthy of the Beatles name.1. Maybe I'm Amazed
2. Hold On
3. Beware Of Darkness
4. Look At Me
5. Every Night
6. Oo You
7. Isolation
8. Love
9. Man We Was Lonely
10. Remember
11. I Live For You
12. Early 1970
13. Teddy Boy
14. Let It Down
-
Reality Notes:
Track 3 - I used an alternate mix found on the second disc of the Art Of Dying bootleg.
Track 11 - This is an outtake from the All Things Must Pass sessions. It was later released on the anniversary edition CD as a bonus track. This mix comes from the Through Many Years bootleg
Track 13 - This was a tough call knowing George's dislike for the song, but seeing it is essentially a solo recording I kept it in.
Track 14 - this is the acoustic demo version from the Beware Of ABKCO bootleg. My biggest problem with using the official versions of any song from All Things Must Pass was the over the top Spector production, while it sounds great and as much as I love Phil Spector, it's just not Beatley enough. There are early mixes at various stages of overdubs but none of them have the same impact as this demo version. I did tighten the stereo field a bit and added a touch of reverb to smooth it out. After I finished this compilation I found a pre-overdub mix of the album version that would have fit just as nicely, I'm saving that for the last project.
My biggest dilemma with this album was whether or not it was even needed. I really did not want to take apart John's Plastic Ono Band album but if I used his singles instead the time frame shifts and I can no longer use Ringo's single which leaves him with no contributions to the disc. Paul's album was a no-brainer. As good as that album is, with the exception of a few songs, it really lacks a certain amount of polish.
As far as taking apart George's All Things Must Pass, I had less concerns due to the quantity of material available including outtakes and demos. Besides, we already took songs off and used them for his 1968 solo album.
BBI:
This album gets very high marks and is overall a very believable Beatles product. From the opening Maybe I'm Amazed (which I thought was a Beatles song when I was younger) to the closing acoustic Let It Down.
Some of the elements that make this project believable are:
Paul plays all the instruments on his songs, including drums. I've always said that the next best thing to Ringo on drums is Paul.
John is backed by Ringo and Klaus Voorman. I'm also fond of saying that the next best thing to Paul on bass is Klaus.
Ringo is also present on George's songs although due to Phil Spector's pruduction style there is at least one other drummer.
Ringo's song Early 1970 features only George and Ringo and is almost a companion piece to John's Ballad of John and Yoko which features only John and Paul.
The only odd thing is the prominent pedal steel guitar on George's I Live For You played by Peter Drake. Although it was not unusual for a Beatles song to feature an outside musician if the song required it, those parts are usually not placed so prominently in the mix.
1972
-Albums-Concert For Bangla Desh [George]
Sometime In New York City [John]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Give Ireland Back to the Irish [Paul]
Back Off Boogaloo/Blind Man [Ringo]
Mary Had a Little Lamb/Little Woman Love [Paul]
Hi, Hi, Hi/C Moon [Paul]
This is a quiet year for the Beatles. Aside from a few singles, only two albums are released, none of them Beatles albums. George releases the live album of the Concert for Bangla Desh and John releases Some Time in New York City later in the year.
1973
-Albums-Red Rose Speedway [Paul]
Out The Blue
Band On The Run [Paul]
Living In The Material World [George]
Ringo [Ringo]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Mind Games b/w Meat City - Nutopian National Anthem [John]
Live and Let Die/I Lie Around [Paul]
Give Me Love/Miss O’Dell [George]
Photograph/Down and Out [Ringo]
A big year for everyone. Paul releases two albums, Red Rose Speedway early in the year and Band On The Run towards the end of the year. He also records the theme song for the new James Bond film Live And Let Die. John and Yoko's marriage hits a rocky patch and they separate. John begins his "lost weekend"? period. John releases his Mind Games single and George and Ringo both release solo albums. In the middle of all this, the Beatles manage to regroup to record Out The Blue.
Reality Notes:
Many songs were taken from Red Rose Speedway for the Beatles album but this album was originaly concieved as a double album. This maens that songs we took away are replaced with others originaly slated for the album.
We also took two songs from George and Ringo's respective albums but creativity was high and animosity was low druring this period so I will assume that there was more material in the works.
John's Mind Games album is put on hold and is finished the next year by combining the leftovers with the tracks left unused from Walls And Bridges.
1973 - Out The Blue
In mid 1973 the four Beatles gathered in a recording studio in upstate New York to record their next album making this the first Beatles album to be recorded outside of England. The location was chosen due to John's immigration problems. John had moved to the U.S. the year before and was now under threat of deportation.1. Out The Blue
2. I'm The Greatest
3. Big Barn Bed
4. Bring On The Lucie (Freeda People)
5. Living In The Material World
6. When The Night
7. One More Kiss
8. I Know (I Know)
9. Step Lightly
10. You Are Here
11. Hands Of Love/Power Cut
12. Be Here Now
Reality Notes:
Track 2 - The most authentic Beatles song on the album. Written by John who also plays piano and sings backing vocals, Ringo plays drums and sings, George plays guitar, Billy Preston (who appears on the "Let It Be" album) plays organ and long time Beatles associate Klaus Voorman plays bass.
Track 4 - I chopped off the short spoken intro which says "Alright boys, this is it, over the hill." and saved that for later use.
Track 7 - Edited out the count in.
Track 10 - used an alternate take of this song found on the John Lennon Anthology
Track 11 - This song required the most editing. This track closes Paul's album and is part of a four song medley. I took advantage of a natural break between the 2nd and 3rd parts, discarded the first half and faded out early before the reprise of the 1st song occurs.
Track 12 - Closing the album I added 15 seconds of silence to the end of the song then added the spoken intro from Bring on the Lucie to give the album closure.
This is the album that got me started. Many years ago I made a tape containing Beatle solo songs from 1973. Inspired by the fact that 1973 was the only year after 1970 that all four Beatles released albums (Paul released Two) I thought, "what-if instead they collaborated on an album together". You can read more about it here at my other blog.
1973 - Red Rose Speedway
1973 was a busy year for Paul and it began with the release of Red Rose Speedway. Recorded mostly in late 1972 it was the second album under the Wings name. Said to have been planned as a double album but after a visit from John Lennon several songs were taken out of the running and the album was trimmed down to a single disc. Some songs that disappeared were to materialize later on the Beatles 1973 album "Out The Blue" others popped up on B sides.Red Rose Speedway was a transitional album for Paul and Wings. Coming off the less than well received but still enjoyable "Wild Life" album we find the group exploring some new ground along with expanding on themes found on the previous LP. Encouraged by the hit single "My Love" and possibly some friendly competition from his other band the next Wings album - "Band On The Run" - would become a milestone in Paul's career.
- My Love
- Country Dreamer
- I Would Only Smile
- Get On The Right Thing
- Tragedy
- I Lie Around
- Mama's Little Girl
- Single Pigeon
- Loup (1st Indian On The Moon)
- Hold Me Tight>Lazy Dynamite>Night Out
- Little Lamb Dragonfly
Reality Notes:
Red Rose Speedway was originally intended to be a double album but was trimmed down to a single disc for many reasons but mainly to create a more accessible product. I have never been too enamored with this album so I had no hesitations in taking songs from it to construct the 1973 Beatles album "Out The Blue". This gave me the opportunity to reconstruct the album into a form I could enjoy provided the songs pulled from the album were as good or better than the ones I took off. I think it works.
I based this edit on a reconstruction of the original double album done by soniclovenoize. When you have the chance check out his site where he presents recreations of albums that never were including his own take on 70s Beatles albums.
After getting rid of the songs used on "Out The Blue" I then listened to what was left and set upon the task of further trimming the hours worth of material down to vinyl album length. I kept all the songs that remained from the original album and chose those songs from the leftovers that I felt flowed nicely. For the most part the songs are presented with little or no editing done.
The majority of editing was done on the four song medley found on the original album. We took the second half of the medley and used it on "Out The Blue". I tried to just delete the hole that was left and join the first half with the fade out reprise section which worked to some degree. I ended up just dropping the reprise and added "Night Out" to the medley using a new crossfade that worked beautifully.
The album splits nicely between songs six and seven.
1974
-Albums-Goodnight Vienna [Ringo]
Dark Horse [George]
Walls and Bridges [John]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Whatever Gets You Through The Night/Beef Jerky [John]
Walking in the Park/Bridge Over the River Suite [Paul]
Junior’s Farm/Salley G [Paul]
Ding Dong, Ding Dong/Hari’s on Tour [George]
As John's lost weekend comes to a close he records and releases Walls and Bridges. He also scores his first solo number one with the single Whatever Gets You Through The Night. Paul goes on a world tour with Wings. George releases Dark Horse and embarks on his own tour of the states and Ringo releases his Goodnight Vienna album. No Beatles product this year but there is some interplay between the Post-Fab Four with appearences on Ringo's album and walk-ons during Paul's tour.
1974 - Walls and Bridges
When John returned to New York at the close of his 18 month So-Cal exile he felt the need to work. He took the songs he started at the beginning of his lost weekend and added to that a batch of new material he had been working on. What came out was Walls and Bridges.1. Going Down on Love
2. Tight A$
3. Old Dirt Road
4. Aisumasen (I'm Sorry)
5. What You Got
6. One Day (at a Time)
7. Bless You
8. Intuition
9. Scared
10. Only People
11. Surprise, Surprise (Sweet Bird of Paradox)
12. Move Over Ms. L
13. Ya Ya
Whatever Gets You Thru The Night b/w Beef Jerky (Single)
CD reissues include the songs from the "Whatever Gets You..." single as well as the Mind Games single from the year before as bonus tracks.
-
Reality Notes:
This is a straight compilation of the leftovers from Mind Games and Walls and Bridges. No alternate versions or editing needed.
The reason for this compilation are many. The two most important are 1) as a reader pointed out, I tend to combine John's leftovers with Yoko tracks into a John & Yoko album leaving John with fewer pure solo albums and 2) John was always very economical and purposeful when he recorded. He rarely left anything in the can. When he recorded something in the studio it was because it was something he liked and wanted to share. There are really very few unreleased song in John's studio archives. There are a lot of alternate takes and between song jams but it was rare for john to record something and not release it.
1975
-Albums-Rock 'n' Roll [John]
Rockshow
Venus And Mars [Paul]
Extra Texture [George]
Shaved Fish [John]
Blast From The Past [Ringo]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Stand By Me/Rock and Roll People [John]
John is becoming increasingly dissatisfied with fame and the biz, he releases a collection of oldies due to obligations resulting from losing a copyright infringement case that arose from his use of two lines from a Chuck Berry tune in his song Come Together. Later in the year he and Yoko reconcile and when John's immigration problems are resolved he decides to take a break from music to spend time with Yoko and their new son Sean, he will not record any music outside of home demos for five years.
Paul releases another Wings album and George releases Extra Texture. Both John and Ringo release Best of compilations and the Beatles release Rockshow towards the end of the year.
During the next five years Paul, George and Ringo continue with solo projects while John takes care of Sean, travels and bakes bread. To satisfy the public's demand for more Beatles product Capitol/EMI release more compilation albums and a live album compiled from a series of concerts from the Hollywood Bowl in 1964/65.
Reality Notes:
Even though we took two songs from George's album they are replaced with the b-sides from that album's two singles. Paul's album is saved in much the same way.
1975 - Rockshow
Although it was not intended to be this is the last Beatles album. Soon after the release of this disc John reunited with Yoko and went into seclusion to raise his new son Sean. We would not hear from John until the close of the decade when he would record Double Fantasy with Yoko.The other three would carry on with their solo careers. while they waited for John to be ready to record again.
- Rockshow
- Here We Go Again
- Tired Of Midnight Blue
- Nobody Loves You When You're Down And Out
- Call Me Back Again
- #9 Dream
- You Gave Me The Answer
- Call Me
- Steel And Glass
- Grey Cloudy Lies
- Venus And Mars
Reality Notes:
Track 1 - mostly the album version as is but I included, after editing out the vocal portions, the Venus And Mars lead in. This gives the album a nice bookend feel.
Track 2 - due to the time it was written (1974) this has been moved from the "lost album" version of Out The Blue to here. This is the album version found on Menlove Ave. used as is.
Track 4 - alternate version from John's Anthology used as is.
Track 9 - used the alternate version found on John's Anthology, no edits.
Track 11 - This is the reprise version from the album used as is.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
1976-1979
1976-Albums-
Wings At The Speed Of Sound [Paul]
Rock 'n' Roll Music
Rotogravure [Ringo]
Thirty Three & 1/3 [George]
Wings Over America [Paul]
1977
-Albums-
Live! At The Star Club
Live At The Hollywood Bowl
Ringo The 4th [Ringo]
1978
-Albums-
London Town [Paul]
Bad Boy [Ringo]
1979
-Albums-
George Harrison [George]
Back To The Egg [Paul]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Old Siam Sir/ ]Paul]
Wonderful Christmas Time/ [Paul]
While John is off baking bread and taking care of Sean the others keep busy with other projects. Building on last year's success Paul puts all his energy into Wings with a new album, a world tour and a live album. For the rest of the 70s Wings are his primary focus.
1980
-Albums-Somewhere In England [George]
Double Fantasy [John]
George releases Somewhere in England.
When John is ready to record again he returns with Double Fantasy in 1980. An album he records with Yoko. John and Paul begin recording demos of new material in preparation for the next Beatles album only to have that tragically cut short by John's senseless assassination.
In 1980, or soon after, another double album best of collection similar to the Red and Blue albums, appears. This time it includes solo tracks as well as Beatles tracks and covers 1970-1980.
1980 - Somwhere in England [George]
1. "Hong Kong Blues" (Carmichael) – 2:532. "Writing's on the Wall" – 3:58
3. "Flying Hour" (Harrison/Mick Ralphs) – 4:04
4. "Lay His Head" – 3:43
5. "Unconsciousness Rules" – 3:36
6. "Sat Singing" – 4:28
7. "Life Itself" – 4:24
8. "Tears of the World" – 4:00
9. "Baltimore Oriole" (Carmichael) – 3:57
10. "Save the World" – 4:56
Reality Notes:
Content to move at his own speed, Harrison began recording Somewhere in England in the autumn of 1979 and continued at a sporadic pace, finally delivering the album to Warner Bros. Records in September 1980. However, the executives at Warner Bros. rejected it, ordering Harrison to drop four of its songs ("Tears of the World", "Sat Singing", "Lay His Head" and "Flying Hour"), finding them too downbeat. Harrison's original cover art, featuring his profile against a map of Great Britain was also vetoed by Warner Bros. With Harrison already feeling unable to relate to the current post-punk and New Wave musical climate, he acceded to their requests, but knew that when his recording contract came up for renewal after his next album, he wouldn't bother re-signing.
(From Wikipedia)
If the Beatles were still a group at this time it would have been released on Apple records leaving George with total control meaning the original version would have been released. All Those Years Ago becomes a stand alone single and the album is still released in its original form.
1981
-Albums-Lennon & McCartney [John & Paul]
Stop And Smell The Roses [Ringo]
Rarities
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
All Those Years Ago [George]
1981 - Lennon & McCartney
While John was working on Double Fantasy with Yoko, John and Paul got together to discuss the next Beatles project. They each presented songs they were working on and made plans to bring in George and Ringo. John went back and finished his album while Paul started to finalize the plans and scheduling with the others.Unfortunately that's not how things went. John finished and released Double Fantasy and then was taken from us. All plans for a new Beatles album were dropped. Paul suggested to the others that they finish off the project but neither George nor Ringo felt up to the task so Paul, with the encouragement and blessings from George, Ringo and Yoko, took the tapes they were working on and released this album.
1. Borrowed Time (John)
2. Coming Up (Paul)
3. Girls and Boys (John)
4. On The Way (Paul)
5. (Forgive Me) My Little Flower Princess (John)
6. Waterfalls (Paul)
7. Nobody Knows (Paul)
8. I'm Stepping Out (John)
9. Summer's Day Song (Paul)
10. Nobody Told Me (John)
11. One Of These Days (Paul)
12. I Don't Wanna Face It (John)
-
Reality Notes:
This album combines what might be considered the best tracks from Paul's McCartney II album and John's tracks from John and Yoko's Milk and Honey album.
The album splits nicely between tracks 6 and 7. All of Paul's songs are the released versions with some of the count-ins edited out. All of John's songs are also the released versions with the exception of Borrowed Time which is an early mix without all the vocal reverb and Girls and Boys which comes from a bootleg of home demos but was also used in the film John Lennon: Imagine during the opening credits. I also edited out some of the count-ins from John's songs and dropped Grow Old With Me in favor of Girls and Boys.
BBI:
As a Beatles album some of these songs would most likely fail to make the cut but as a Lennon & McCartney album it recieves high marks. There are many moments where you can picture both John and Paul present on the tape. The standout collaboration happens on Nobody Knows. Paul actually seems to channel John on the second vocal.
1982-1995
1982-Albums-
Tug of War [Paul]
Gone Troppo (Nov)
The John Lennon Collection [John]
1983
-Albums-
Old Wave [Ringo]
Pipes Of Peace [Paul]
1984
-Albums-
Give My Regards to Broad Street [Paul]
1985
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Spies Like Us [Paul]
1986
-Albums-
Live In New York City [John]
Press To Play [Paul]
1987
-Albums-
Cloud Nine [George]
1988
-Albums-
Past Masters Vol 1 & 2
Imagine: John Lennon (Music From The Film) [John]
Traveling Wilburys Vol 1 [George]
1989
-Albums-
Starr Struck [Ringo]
Flowers In The Dirt [Paul]
-Non-LP Singles/EPs-
Party Party/ [Paul]
Cheer Down/ [George]
1990
-Albums-
Traveling Wilburys Vol 3 [George]
Ringo and His All-Star Band [Ringo]
Tripping the Live Fantastic [Paul]
1991
-Albums-
Unplugged - The Official Bootleg [Paul]
Choba B CCCP [Paul]
Liverpool Oratorio [Paul]
1992
-Albums-
Time Takes Time [Ringo]
Rarities
Live In Japan [George]
1993
-Albums-
Off the Ground [Paul]
Ringo and His All-Starr Band Volume 2 - Live From Montreux [Ringo]
1994
-Albums-
Live at the BBC
1995
-Albums-
Anthology 1
1990s and beyond
1995 ended on a high note with the release of a new song and the first installment of the Anthology series plus the airing of the 10 hour documentary of the groups history also called Anthology. 1996 was looking even better. This year saw the release of three more new songs and Anthologies 2, 3 and 4. The remaining Beatles seemed to have found a renewed fondness for their old band and often found time to work with each other.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
