a peek at musical history being made, on 4 tracks...

Vanncad · August 08, 2012, 02:59:08 PM

I love listening to stuff like that.
They did the whole Nevermind album on a radio station one. It was pretty cool to hear the tracks isolated.

Thanks for posting Hooper.

I'm gonna look at getting those books too. They both sound like very good reads.

Oldrottenhead · August 09, 2012, 06:37:31 PM

looks like they only used 3 tracks to me, never saw any movement on the bottom track. wow.

AndyR · August 10, 2012, 03:37:40 AM

Fascinating listening.

orh - I think what we're hearing here is possibly simplified (and aren't the sound effects on track 4? can't listen at the moment at work).

From what I know of them by the time they recorded this, I was quite surprised to hear the bass on the "band" track. Even with only four-track, from the Rubber Soul and Revolver period onwards, they usually left a track open for McCartney to write and record a bass part later... This one might be different of course, it might be that the captured live ensemble performance felt good enough.

Also it seems quite unlikely to me that the lead and backing vocals would have been recorded live simultaneously. I think we're listening to bounced submixes from another 4-track tape. I imagine that the guitar/horn track would have been particularly difficult to do without wiping bits of one or the other by accident if it was all done to one track.

Incidentally, did it strike anyone else that they were concentrating on the guitar/horn overdubs and the vocals, thinking "ooo yeah, that's what does it..."

... and then suddenly realising that it would have been nothing without that live ensemble mix on track one.

Fascinating. I don't own the Anthology albums, but I have heard them - there's some stunning stuff on those.

I can remember a truly eye-opening "basic track" for "Got To Get You Into My Life" - this was what they constructed the final recording on top of.

And a hilarious backing-vocal take for (I think) "And Your Bird Can Sing" - they were all doing the bvox to the existing track with its lead vox in place, and well, I remember it as putting a huge smile on my face when I heard it.

Geir · August 10, 2012, 04:10:45 AM

Quote from: AndyR on August 10, 2012, 03:37:40 AMAnd a hilarious backing-vocal take for (I think) "And Your Bird Can Sing" - they were all doing the bvox to the existing track with its lead vox in place, and well, I remember it as putting a huge smile on my face when I heard it.