Quote:
Originally Posted by Lord Larehip
The problem with the Beach Boys is that the vast majority of the time, they are not playing on the studio tracks, it's all session musicians--Carol Kaye, Rikki Fataar, Glen Campbell, Leon Russell, Earl Palmer, Hal Blaine. Did you know that there are virtually no Beach Boys on "Sail On Sailor"? I've always liked the song but it really isn't the Beach Boys not even the singers. The Beatles, otoh, always played their own instruments although they had guest and studio musicians help out. I've always respected the DIY approach.
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Rikki Fataar was a Beach Boy though, he was brought in when Dennis Wilson put his hand through a window pane in 1972 and severely damaged his hand to the point where he was unable to drum. Also, I believe on "Sail, On Sailor" the piano is played by Brian, the guitar Carl and Blondie (who was also a Beach Boy) did the bass and lead vocal.
The band probably shows the least presence on
Pet Sounds, but saying they weren't there at all is a myth to a certain extent. On "That's Not Me", Dennis is on drums, Carl on 12-string, Brian on organ and Al on tambourine. Add a few other instrumental credits, Mike's lyrics to "I'm Waiting for the Day" and other contributions here and there, Al's arrangement to "Sloop John B", that awesome vocal blend etc. etc. you begin to realise that while undoubtedly still being a Brian dominated product, the other Beach Boys certainly left their mark on the album.
What's more, I'm confident the band would've been capable of recording those tracks had they been given the opportunity. After all, they played on the aforementioned "That's Not Me", "When I Grow Up (To Be a Man)" and a host of other complex songs. Even Mike showed us he was halfway decent at sax on this cover of "What'd I Say?":
Most of the time, the guys aren't on the tracks because Brian was recording while the rest of the guys were touring or because he was obsessed with aping Spector's session musicians, studios etc. For me, it all adds to the idiosyncrasy of the band's mythos.