Welcome to your Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! edition of the Laptop Sessions with me, Jim Fusco.
I promised a new Beach Boys video today, and even though it took me until 10:30 to do it, it’s finally here. Actually, this is one of the rare Sessions that was recorded the same day I’m posting it.
I’ve been practicing this song for weeks now, as I needed to make sure it was perfect before I did a video. “The Night Was So Young” is my favorite track off the Beach Boys “Love You” album and shows the great songwriting skills of Brian Wilson coupled with the singing of Carl Wilson.
I love the minimalist approach to the recorded version of this song- it’s great in contrast to the terribly-dated synth-sounds of most of the tracks. This song also doesn’t have that cheesiness factor that some of the others have. Although, this song does tell of Brian Wilson’s lonely trip to the sink to pour some milk at 3 am…
I hope you like this toned-down Session. We’re still chugging-along at one-a-day here in 2008. I’d like to wish a Happy Birthday to my brother, Mike, who’s 22 today. Hope you had a great one!!
Hi Mike and hello to all other participators. Here is my weigh-in for the “Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!!)” album- a true classic.
SUMMER DAYS (AND SUMMER NIGHTS!!)
California Girls – 10 (An American classic- especially for a Beach Boys fan, it just simply doesn’t get much better than this. I have to rank this a 10, even though I believe God Only Knows deserves the undisputed highest spot.) Salt Lake City – 7 *The Little Girl I Once Knew – 10 (A long-standing choice for my favorite Beach Boys song of all-time. It’s still gotta be in my Top 3) The Girl from New York City – 6 (It’s okay, but very much under-produced compared to the rest of the album and they seem to be a bit more sloppy. I do like Mike’s overly-low backing vocals, though!) Help Me, Rhonda – 10 (You know, it’s kind of expected that people will give songs like this a 10, but if you just sit back and LISTEN to this version of “Help Me Rhonda”, you have to realize it’s an incredible song. It’s catchy, but still has substance. It truly is that “Beach Boys” sound. I love Mike’s low part in this tune, as well.) Let Him Run Wild – 10 (This is one of the best songs EVER- it’s unique and has that incredible chord progression. I think the bass line and the sound of the bass in this song is the best of any song I’ve ever heard. Brian’s vocals are perfect and the emotion is heartbreaking. I can’t believe I’m putting so many 10’s on this album!) *Let Him Run Wild (alternate) – 8 (Brian’s vocals don’t have that edge like the final version) You’re So Good to Me – 6.5 (Still a great song, but its simplicity just doesn’t match up with the rest of the classics. Also, those “la’s” in the background get annoying to anyone but true Beach Boys fans) And Your Dream Comes True – 5 Then I Kissed Her – 6.5 (One of their best covers- a great lead by Al!) Girl Don’t Tell Me – 8 (Catchy and a great little jab to the Beatles style of the period. Carl gives a great vocal performance, as well.) Amusement Parks USA – 3 (All I can say is: eh) Summer Means New Love – 3 (I like the tune and the production, but it’s kind of elevator-music sounding) I’m Bugged at My Ol’ Man – 5 (This is a really cute song with great vocals by Brian, bad vocals by the others, and a truer-than-it’s-supposed-to-sound lyrics)
** This album IS the Beach Boys on record, as far as the 60s are concerned. This album is what “Sunflower” is to the 70’s Beach Boys. “Summer Days” defines the Beach Boys sound, especially on cuts like “California Girls”. I would challenge anyone to give this album a bad review. It still has that innocence I love so dearly, but pushes the musical envelope as far as it can go without getting too serious. This album is really the farthest Brian could go before getting into the emotions and themes he did on “Pet Sounds” and “Smile”. For me, this album marks the end of an era and the Beach Boys just wouldn’t be the same after this. That early-60s summer fun, teenager, innocence just evaporated when “Pet Sounds” arrived. Of course, I’m not saying that the music to come wasn’t some of the greatest ever, but looking back, I wish they could’ve stayed innocent for just a couple more years… **
I’ve been listening to the Counting Crows’ new album Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings all week now (up until MoU’s new album, Homestead’s Revenge, came out! — You can buy the high quality mp3s or the CD version. Here’s the web address: http://jimfusco.com/albums.html ).
I’ve really enjoyed listening to the Counting Crows, and it reminded me of my favorite songs of theirs from years past. Thus, I decided to record “A Long December.” Although it’s a piano-based song, I think it translates well to acoustic. If I was smart, though, I would have waited until the end of the year to record it…
This song was one of their biggest hits, but that’s not why I love it. I love the lyrics and the tune, and it’s one of those songs that will forever be etched in my memory, synonymous with my youth. I remember my seventh grade science teacher, Mr. Olayos, playing the radio during a quiz, and this song was on. This song really triggers a lot of happy — and, of course — not so happy memories from my past.
I hope you enjoy today’s Laptop Session and decide to comment or rate it!
And don’t forget to check out Jeff’s Counting Crows cover at https://guitarbucketlist.com too!
Welcome to your Thursday edition of The Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog with me, Jim Fusco! I just reached 100 subscribers and I know it’ll only grow faster from here! I hope you’ll tell your friends about the music blog, too.
Anyway, now to today’s cover song video. Today, I give you another in our series of Beatles cover songs that I’ve loved for a long time, “Things We Said Today”.
Paul McCartney said that this song was about a girlfriend of his he met while in another country. They had such a great time together and made all those crazy young promises of “always waiting for you”, etc. So, he’s singing about remembering the things they said to each other while feeling alone and far away. What a great, heartfelt idea for a song!
One of the things I’ve always liked about “Things We Said Today” is the cool strumming pattern of the A-minor chord that starts the song. For a song about such a melancholy feeling, the opening chords are so harsh. Of course, that harsh feeling comes up again in the bridge of the song, where Paul gets a bit rougher with his singing style. I think the middle-8 is one of the best that Paul McCartney ever wrote. He flawlessly transitions his voice from sweet and mellow to biting. It’s very impressive.
I guess the duality in “Things We Said Today” between the verses and middle sections is reflected in the lyrics of the song. On the surface, you’ll notice that Paul is first saying how they’ve promised to “be the only one” for each other. But, if you read into it a little bit, you’ll hear what he really means. He knew, because of the distance between him and the girl he’s talking about, that the promises of “being the only one” were empty and could never be true. He knew it was only a passing fling. In the middle section, he says, “And though we may be blind, love is here to stay.” He’s saying that in a new relationship like that, people tend to overlook obvious challenges like, you know, living thousands of miles away from each other. And, in the minds of these naive folks that are newly in love, it’ll stay great forever! Those of us who have been through that situation know the real eventual outcome.
On a funnier note, I had to relocate to my room for this song (good thing I have a Laptop!) because my parakeets would not stop chattering downstairs! But, I’m glad they’re getting along, even if it is to the detriment of my acoustic cover song videos.
I hope you enjoy today’s Beatles acoustic video!
We have a NEW album out called Homestead’s Revenge (by Masters of the Universe- the band I’m in). You can buy the high quality mp3s or the CD version. Here’s the web address: http://jimfusco.com/albums.html. PLEASE check it out and let me know what you think! I hope you all enjoy today’s Session, and REALLY enjoy the new album- it’s two years in the making!
