Brasil '66 -- '67 TV Footage

[JOv2]

Again, these may be old hat to many...

On the first two selections, there's no cable -- or amp for that matter -- from Bob's electric bass! Dig the sunglasses on Joao; and Miss L is gorgeous! On For Me around 2:10 that two-shot of Jose and Bob makes me think of Chad & Jeremy...or Peter & Gordon (Ha!).

Enjoy!

~James

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHlSivhPfB4 < Going Out of My Head

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGOi1QLq7mQ < For Me

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjGMTE60D1g < Daytripper

[Moderator note: Song titles added to the links]

 

[Harry]

The first two are from the Hollywood Palace appearance of many of the A&M family hosted by Herb. This is the good color version making the rounds on eBay - we've a thread about it here.

Did everyone notice the edit in "Going Out Of My Head" to make the song shorter and allow more Herb/Sergio banter?

Harry

 

[Chris Martin]

WOW! Exquisite! One poster used the words "cool" and "fab" which epitomize it for me. Who cares if it's lip-synched? Not me!

 

[Michael Hagerty]

It is entirely possible that TV and music peaked that night. Wonderful!

---Michael Hagerty

 

[Jay Maynes/Juan Oskar]

That's when "pop music" still had some dignity and class. I have to admit...Ms. Hall was a cutie. Don't tell my wife of almost 29 years I wrote this on the forum. Peace amigos.....J

 

[JOv2]

Thanks for adding the song titles, Harry --

I believe the edit is at 3:54: it's pretty smooth -- they cut directly to the coda and in doing so dropped out another stab at the bridge and its release into the pretty slow passage (I must think of a way...).

Agreed. The period, '65-'67, was probably the zenith of ("modern") American pop music....truly a unique time when most AM stations were responsible for programming music to be enjoyed by all listeners: pop music from the Yardbirds to the Ray Conniff Singers. What a listening experience it must've been (can only imagine what it was like!)...and Messrs. Mendes, Alpert, and Wechter were significant contributors.

~James

 

[Harry]

Actually that wasn't me, it was probably Mike.

I've also just determined that the "For Me" recording that they're lip-syncing is the mono version. On the mono EQUINOX album, at the end of the song the girls start repeating the phrase "for me". They do this four times before being totally faded out on the mono version. The stereo version has them repeat the phrase at least ten times, though the last six are fairly low in the mix.

By using the mono version and having the ladies disappear earlier, they were able to get the song in in around 3:00 instead of the 3:21 track time listed on the record.

Harry

 

[Mike Blakesley]

Actually that wasn't me, it was probably Mike.

Yep, it was me. I like for links to have a description of some sort so a person reading quickly through the forums doesn't have to click on it to see what it shows. In this case, the description was fine but the links just needed the titles.

The period, '65-'67, was probably the zenith of ("modern") American pop music....

Well, that's all just subjective. Most teenagers would probably tell you that "right now" is the best era in American pop music. And for them, it's true. For me, as much as I like Herb and Sergio, the '70s probably produced more of my favorites than any other era.

 

[JOv2]

Harry -- Interesting monaural observation! I have no mono A&M LPs, but am curious: did they routinely perform separate mixes, or were they mostly fold downs? Any substantial sonic differences in your opinion?

Mike -- Thanks for the heads up...I'll be sure to post names as necessary. Oh, and about the pop music remark...I just meant from a variety viewpoint. It's doubtful anyone would argue that US pop music was at its most eclectic during the mid-'60s: This was a transitional period where it seemed record companies really had no idea where pop music was going -- or, perhaps, more importantly, where it would end up! Consequently, for about a 2-4 year period, they actually encouraged unique ensembles to record. For instance, at A&M, I'm confident one will discover more odd and downright strange 45 issues in the '60s...relative to the more stable, "rock industry"-approach of the '70s.

~James

 

[Mike Blakesley]

There's really good pop music being made all the time....the trick is finding it. A lot of my old faves from the 70s still release an album from time to time but since it often happens totally under the radar (or in the case of the Eagles, at Wal-Mart where I pretty much refuse to shop), a lot of fans just don't find out.

 

[Harry]

Harry -- Interesting monaural observation! I have no mono A&M LPs, but am curious: did they routinely perform separate mixes, or were they mostly fold downs? Any substantial sonic differences in your opinion?

James - Yes, particularly in the early days of the label, separate mixes were made for both mono and stereo songs. Not all the time, and not with every track, but you can hear differences in certain selections. The case in point here was "For Me", and that's one that had a different mono mix. The only really different thing is the fading out of the ladies' vocals on the refrain at the end. It occurs much earlier on the mono version of the album.

Other Sergio differences can be heard on "Constant Rain" where the refrain repeats differently, and "For What It's Worth" with a totally different lead vocal from Karen Phillipp.

If you search our threads, you can probably find a bunch of Herb Alpert mono/stereo differences too. One thing we learned is that back in the day, Herb Alpert mixed the stereo versions with Larry Levine performing that function on the mono.

Harry

 

[JOv2]

Thanks, Harry --

It's interesting to read that separate producers/engineers were employed to conduct stereo/mono mixes at A&M. For my ears, I actually prefer mono for those close-miked, low reverb recordings of small-group combos. On the other hand, stereo, which was designed to reproduce a soundstage in your living room, is preferred for larger orchestral recordings.

On TjB's South Of The Border I noticed The Mexican Shuffle is in mono -- indeed, it's one of the best sounding songs on the LP/CD.

I've read that A&M stopped issuing mono to the consumer market in '68. For What's It's Worth -- from Stillness -- was probably recorded in '71; as no mono versions were released for sale at this time, are you referring to a promo copy (many of which were still mono issues into the '70s)?

Interesting topic to chase.

~James

 

[Harry]

I've read that A&M stopped issuing mono to the consumer market in '68. For What's It's Worth -- from Stillness -- was probably recorded in '71; as no mono versions were released for sale at this time, are you referring to a promo copy (many of which were still mono issues into the '70s)?

Albums in mono stopped then, but singles to consumers in mono continued into the '70s, as did promotional singles to radio stations.

We love delving into mono/stereo differences here, and some of them can be quite educational into the process of making a record. The most obvious difference can be found on the original "Tijuana Taxi"/"Zorba The Greek" single. The extra reverb on both, and the shortening of "Zorba" were just made to be heard on AM radio of the time, with the ability to punch through all that static.

Harry

 

[Rudy]

The last commercial mono LP release was the TJB's Beat Of The Brass album, in 1968. There were later mono releases, but mainly for radio/DJ use--not commercially released IOW.

And James, you're right: those mono mixes often sound the best. I prefer the stereo spread much of the time, personally, but still like to spin mono. Back in those days, mono was still the preferred format, and engineers put most of their care into the mono mixes. As I understand it, Larry Levine did all the mono mixes, and Herb himself may have done the stereo.

On other labels, some of their early stereo releases were questionable if not flat-out nasty. Some early Capitol LPs were drenched in reverb; heck, even one Nat King Cole LP had the channels out of phase for 40 years! An early RCA Living Stereo LP, the original Peter Gunn soundtrack, sounds pretty good but does have some extra reverb added--the mono LP is much more up front and "immediate".

 

[JOv2]

Oh yes, of course...singles -- the small record that spins faster with the big hole (Ha!) How could I forget? Looks like there's a whole world ripe for discovery. Too bad the powers at hand couldn't see fit to include a few of these as "bonus tracks" on the TjB reissues. (Perhaps a Rarities disc will show up someday...however, at this point, that may be mere daydreaming.)

Anyway, it's nice to make the e-acquaintances of a couple fellow pro-mono-ites out here! As with Rudy, I like the stereo soundstage -- but that's only really "musically" noticeable with orchestral music where the details of a 40-piece orchestra can get lost when emanating from a single point source. While stereophonically recording a septet -- for instance, the TjB -- has some sonic advantages for the listener, most of the time (particularly in the "Hi-Fi" days) stereo simply meant "different things from different speakers" -- more akin to binaural than a true stereo effect. Remember Bob Dylan's debut LP? The guitar was in one speaker while Bob's voice was in the other...that's not stereo -- just a moronic audio gimmick. (I mean, if Bob stopped by my living room and played for me (fat chance of that) both voice and guitar would largely emanate from one place anyway...and with the exception of the room acoustics, it'd basically be a mono grab.)

The primary reason why mono sounds better for small group recordings is that there's no diffusion of the signal between each speaker. Instead, you get the single sound source dead on. Case in point, The Beatles Revolver -- most folk are familiar with the released (stereo) version -- an undisputed cornerstone in pop writing, arrangement, performance and production...however the mono version is a completely different mix: the guitars and drums are so forward that on first listen I realized that the Beatles really rocked their %#$*& off!! Seriously, I had no idea that could sound like that. In fact the mono version stands right along side 1966 releases by The Yardbirds and The Who -- which were mono, btw -- as examples of progressive powerhouse rock.

Just like Rudy says, by simple virtue of acoustic design, mono is much more up front and immediate -- and that's its advantage over stereo.

~James

(Oh yeah, and if you think the mono Revolver is something -- check out the mono Sgt. Pepper -- all sorts of different effects, including different phasing on a lead vocal and even one song at a different speed! I only play the mono versions of Beatles LPs as a result. Producer, George Martin, always claimed the mono version were the intended mixes -- the difference is in the mix!)

 

[JMAR5]

I just these video clips and I love them. It's great to see Janis Hansen on "For Me" This is one of my all-time favorite Sergio songs

 

[PartyRico]

I too was thrilled to see these wonderful Brasil 66 performances. "For Me" is a fantastic composition. I've heard the original Brazilian version called "Arrastao" performed by the legendary Elis Regina (R.I.P.), and as much as I adore her, I prefer the A&M version. I firmly believe Sergio Mendes and his group were way ahead of the pack, and helped project Brazilian music all around the planet, along with that Titan of composers, known as Tom Jobim. These two maestros have all the bases covered.