Saturday 14 December 2013

Brian Wilson and The Big Beat 1963



The Big Beat 1963 brings together Brian Wilson and Beach Boys collaborations

David Beard
examiner.com
11 December 2013

In the tradition of the Bob Dylan Copyright Extension Collection (2012), Capitol Records is releasing a special digital-only collection titled THE BIG BEAT 1963 on Tuesday, December 17. The new compilation features a collection of rare Beach Boys or Brian Wilson-related recordings from 1963. Most of these tracks have appeared on bootlegs and collector’s tapes over the years, but none have ever had a commercial release.

Recent EU copyright extension legislation states that if a recording is not officially released within 50 years of its creation, it will automatically fall into the public domain at the beginning of the 51st calendar year. If the recording is released, the copyright protection is extended for another 20 years. Columbia Records fired a preemptive strike In late 2012 by issuing a very limited-edition set of 86 previously unreleased songs, demos, and alternate takes recorded in 1962 — and is set to do the same with Dylan's 1963 outtakes. This same legislation has also prompted Apple/Capitol to release an expanded collection of the Beatles’ BBC Recordings, as well as a just-announced digital-only set of outtakes entitled THE BOOTLEG RECORDINGS 1963 (also due on December 17).

For THE BIG BEAT 1963, Endless Summer Quarterly CEO  Lee Dempsey contributed several songs from his private collection. Dempsey said, "I received a call from Alan Boyd asking if I might have the acetates — or at least low-generation source tapes — for a number of rare tracks that have made the collector's tape-trading circuit since the 1980's. Specifically he and Mark [Linett] needed good sources for 'You Brought It All On' and 'Make the Night A Little Longer,' two rare Honeys tracks, as well as Brian's 'Gonna Hustle You' demo. I don't have the original acetates for those, but hopefully I was able to improve on their sources a bit. I sent them several versions from different tapes that I've obtained over the years.

"At the same time I asked Alan and Mark if they had any interest in including 'Rabbit's Foot' (instrumental track and Honeys backing vocals) on the compilation, as I believe I have the only surviving acetate of it. I've shared it with a few people, and I've played it at several Beach Boys conventions, but I've been waiting for the proper official venue for wider distribution — such as a Brian Wilson anthology or rarities compilation. With the threat that one of Brian's earliest productions to use the Wrecking Crew might fall into the public domain, I figured now's the right time for the public to hear it.

"Also a couple of years ago I was able to get in contact with Vickie Kocher — now Victoria Hale — who was an acquaintance of Brian and Bob Norberg back in 1963. Victoria has the only known acetate of 'The Summer Moon,' which is a duet between her and Norberg sung to the track of 'The Surfer Moon.' It's been Victoria's dream for 50 years for it to be officially released, so I got Alan and Mark in touch with her. They arranged for Victoria to hand-carry her acetate to a professional mastering studio in order to make a digital transfer."

The confirmed list of songs for the set are:

1. The Big Beat — recorded by Bob & Sheri
(Brian Wilson)

2. First Rock and Roll Dance (Instrumental) — recorded by Brian Wilson
(Brian Wilson)

3. Gonna Hustle You (a.k.a. New Girl In School) [Demo] — recorded by Brian Wilson
(Brian Wilson, Bob Norberg)

4. Ride Away — recorded by Bob & Sheri
(Brian Wilson, Bob Norberg)

5. Funny Boy — recorded by The Honeys
(Brian Wilson)

6. Marie — recorded by Bob Norberg & Brian Wilson, with The Honeys
(Brian Wilson)

7. Mother May I — recorded by The Beach Boys
(Brian Wilson)

8. I Do (Demo) — recorded by The Beach Boys
(Brian Wilson, Roger Christian)

9. Bobby Left Me (Backing track) — recorded by Brian Wilson
(Brian Wilson)

10. If It Can't Be You (a.k.a. I'll Never Love Again) — recorded by Gary Usher
(Brian Wilson)

11. You Brought It All On Yourself — recorded by The Honeys
(Brian Wilson)

12. Make The Night A Little Longer — recorded by The Honeys
(Carole King, Gerry Goffin)

13. Rabbit's Foot (Unfinished track w/backing vocals) — recorded by The Honeys
(Brian Wilson)

14. Summer Moon — recorded by Vicki Kocher and Bob Norberg
(Brian Wilson)

15. Side Two (Instrumental)— recorded by Brian Wilson
(Brian Wilson)

16. Ballad Of Ole Betsy (Demo) — recorded by The Beach Boys
(Brian Wilson, Roger Christian)

17. Thank Him (Demo)— recorded by Brian Wilson
(Brian Wilson)

18. Once You've Got Him — recorded by The Honeys
(Ginger Blake, Dianne Rovell)

19. For Always And Forever (Demo) — recorded by The Honeys
(Ginger Blake, Dianne Rovell)

20. Little Dirt Bike (Demo) — recorded by The Honeys
(Ginger Blake, Dianne Rovell)

21. Darling I'm Not Stepping Out On You (Demo) — recorded by The Honeys
(Ginger Blake, Dianne Rovell)

22. When I Think About You (Demo) — recorded by The Honeys
(Ginger Blake, Dianne Rovell)
http://www.examiner.com/article/brian-wilson-s-the-big-beat-1963

A little harsh reality from noted Beach Boys scholar Andrew G Doe:

"The wording "Brian Wilson related" is highly advisable as, in some cases, the relation is tenuous in the extreme: as regards the Honeys demos, the link is that in just over a years time he would be married to one of them."

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