By Jim Fusco:
If you know me, you know this is big news: Michael, the Admin for Brian Wilson’s Official Website, put a link to the guitarbucketlist.com homepage there to showcase the Brian Wilson/Beach Boys videos!
And below is a screenshot of the page- look at where my link is placed- right below his BAND MEMBERS! 🙂 Of course, I blew up the description of my link so it could be seen easier. Thanks to Michael and everyone for making this such a beneficial project!
By Jim Fusco:
ALBUM – LITTLE DEUCE COUPE
A Young Man is Gone – 6 (very beautiful sounding, but I was always a bit bored by it- don’t kill me, Mike!)
Little Deuce Coupe – 8
Be True to Your School (single version) – 4 (the only Beach Boys song I consistently skip past- I just never liked school enough to be “true” to it)
Be True to Your School (album cut) – (3)
No Go Showboat – 7 (love Brian’s great high voice here and the humor in Al’s lines)
Custom Machine – 7 (love the chorus and especially Mike’s bass singing!!)
Car Crazy Cutie – 6 (enjoyable)
Cherry, Cherry Coupe – 7 (I really like those chords and I love Dennis’ harmony part)
409 – 3 (never been a big fan of this song)
Our Car Club – 7 (I love the drums and vocal breaks! Also, really cool sounding)
Shut Down – 7
Spirit of America – 3 (not a big fan)
Ballad of Ole Betsy – 7 (great harmonies- the stereo separated vocals really show off the quality here)
*I love this album. To me, this is the happiest the Boys sounded on record. They are just so youthful and this album always reminds me of summer. The songs are great and the production, as minimalist as it is, just fits for these lighthearted songs about, well, cars! Plus, I always tell everyone it was the first “concept” album! Well, not really, I guess. Now, I was born in 1984, so any visions I have of the 60s come from the music I love. So, this album has always served as a window into that early 60s cars, girls, and teenage fun lifestyle that I never really got to replicate growing up in the 90s and 2000s. This album makes me reminiscent of a time that I wasn’t even alive! That’s pretty powerful stuff.*
By Jim Fusco:
Hello all, and welcome to your weekend edition of The Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog with me, Jim Fusco. After two strong outings from Jeff and Chris, I decided to pull my ace-in-the-hole and do a Beach Boys song. I always have good luck doing a Beach Boys cover song, as growing up, I would constantly sing these while in the car. After a while, I think my voice just grew into the Beach Boys tone, so I’m able to bring you fairly accurate cover song videos here on the music blog!
This is an earlier Beach Boys song that doesn’t have way too much emphasis on the background vocals, so it was a nice transition into Laptop Sessions form. Normally, I like to take more produced songs and turn them into cover song videos, but tonight, I’m taking a lesser-known song and bringing it to the public’s attention again.
I love the way Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys sings this song. It’s like he’s semi-screaming it at some points, but he’s singing about how someone is “so good” to him! I think this might have been an attempt to sound a bit more “macho” on Brian’s part, and if I were in his shoes, I would completely understand. Of course, I think the “macho” aspect goes away on the falsetto, “And I love it, LOVE it!” line. That’s okay, though, as it’s my favorite part of the song. I’ve noticed lately that one of Brian Wilson’s strengths as a songwriter (and there are many) is his ability to write a great bridge. Those catchy transition periods between the verses and choruses are usually my favorite parts of a song. I’ve been putting a lot of focus on them in my original songs, as well. For instance, in “Good Enough” off of my album, “Those Around Us”, I love the way the bridge came out. It features really cool harmonies and a catchy tune. Plus, I like the line, “And now my heart is hardened like a heart of gold.”
I hope everyone likes this one, even though it doesn’t have my favorite Mike Love low part in there. Gotta get Chris to stop correcting high school English papers one of these nights and do some more collaborations! Actually, this cover song video doesn’t feature any of the background vocals. The “la-la-la” part in the chorus can be considered annoying by some people. In fact, it took away from my love of the song until just recently. I guess it grew on me. But, here I give you a version with no background vocals for the acoustic cover songs music video blog so you can hear just what a great little song “You’re So Good To Me” is!
See you Tuesday with another Session, but stay tuned for Chris and Jeff’s entries over the next two days! Haven’t missed a day in ’08!
By Jim Fusco:
Hello all! Well, I mentioned earlier about the new site we’re planning to unveil soon. I wanted to post my original Photoshop mockup of the design so everyone can compare it to the real version that Cliff will make so much better. Let’s just say I’m giving him “creative control”…
Here’s the design- hope you all like it!
