Thanks for the fascinating information about "Splish Splash" and the session it came from. I got a lot out of your post, but what I really want to know is how Ertegun convinced the Atlantic board of directors to buy an 8 track console so early, and why he really needed that many tracks for a finished mono product from (mostly) live recording sessions. Wouldn't 4 or even 2 tracks be enough for overdubs? To keep the discussion about Darin, I'm wondering how many overdub tracks were used for "Splish Splash". I'm thinking two at the most. One for the cymbals, and one for Darin's vocal, the latter ONLY if he focused on playing keys live, and then went back to do the vocal after they got the instrumental. Perhaps a third track for the bathtub sound effects.
Tom Dowd, not Ertegun. Ertegun was the head of the company. It was about flexibility after the fact, both in terms of mixing (delaying certain decisions) and recording (ability to easily add or replace additional parts after the fact). I have no idea exactly how Splish Splash was recorded, but there were certainly plenty of Atlantic 8-track recordings with few or no overdubs.
FYI, "Queen of the Hop" and the lesser, "Judy, Don't Be Moody" were "the other two" nailed during that "thank God it happened" session on Aug 10. Jeff
I did everything I could have done to look like Bobby > used to go to school record hops/dances dressed just like him. On the other hand, the nuns used to tell me to lip synch in the church choir because I couldn't sing for crap!
The date of the recording session was April 10 not Aug 10. Not to beat a dead horse I'm still not convinced that Ruppli was in error. Morgana King was recording for Mercury in 1958. It also doesn't make sense that Atlantic would record just 2 songs with King and that's all.
Absolutely my mistake. I mistyped. April 10, not August 10. But as far as I see, there were two tracks attempted with Morgana... and then we know - or can hear - it went: "Judy, Don't Be Moody" (4 takes) "Splish Splash" (8 takes) - bubbles overdubbed approx 2 weeks later "Queen of the Hop" (10+ takes) - you can hear the progression of takes as they drop the bass singer, Bobby takes on piano, etc. All three were "nailed" that day. Jeff
Sort of random question... Bobby owned T. M. Music, where he nurtured Rudy Clark, and other great songwriters one on one. And he produced tracks... most notably Wayne Newton's "take-off" record. But was it typical at the time to say "Produced by X Music Company" and not the person(s)?... That was Bobby producing with the Wrecking Crew... Jeff
I just went through the entire thread and was surprised no one mentioned the "Rare, Rockin' and Unreleased" CD from a number pf years back. It's essential for true Darin collectors since it includes numerous session takes (with studio talk) for many of his early recordings including "Splish Splash" (4 takes in mono) and a couple of amazing "Mack The Knife" takes in stereo. The sound quality is sensational.
It's a "grey" release which is why it wasn't mentioned... Acknowledged by the BD Estate, not approved by them, but they are not shy in saying it exists if you want to get it. Jeff
I used to think the same thing, but it IS legitimately available on Amazon, the Bear Family website, and others. I don't feel that it's "grey area" anymore. At any rate, here's take one of "Splish Splash" someone posted on youtube:
I haven't heard the tapes myself, Jeff. Would be great to have corroboration from anyone who might have heard the half featuring Morgana, so that we can settle the matter for good. About whether it was ever a question, I'd say that, well, there has been a bit of questioning, as well as some degree of doubt and confusion. We have, for starters, the post that I quoted, pointing out the discrepancy. We have also gone through decades (1980's & 1990's) in which people wanting to know specifics about Bobby's Atlantic discography resorted to the Ruppli discography as an authoritative and main source. Case in point: a re-statement of Ruppli's information was what people used to read online in the 1990s, when they would go to the main Bobby website in existence. Such a re-statement probably led Bobby's fans to wonder why two standards had been attempted at a rock 'n' roll date, how come that they were still unreleased, etc., etc. Nowadays, the website offers the following instead, courtesy of "Darinfan and very knowledgeable music fan Dik de Heer": ... considering the fact that this was not a standard three-hour session (in which usually four songs would be recorded), but a split session. Bobby was only allocated 90 minutes, after pop-jazz singer Morgana King had recorded "Since I Fell for You" and "My Reverie." In Michel Ruppli's Atlantic discography (1979), these two songs are erroneously credited to BD and as a result, they were included in a list of Atco/Atlantic recordings on Linda's website, as mysterious unreleased tracks, until they were removed at my request in August 2001. I essentially agree, Lukpac. Your way of reasoning is why I wrote that the split session story has been "established" as being correct, rather than "proven" to be correct. By "established", I meant that it is the story which has been appearing in most (all?) of the published accounts out there, including the various biographies of Bobby and Ahmet. But I myself do not have any full proof of the story's accuracy. I only assume it to be the true or correct turn of events because of the witnesses' recollections ("allegations?") and because I've looked at Ruppli's Atlantic discography. (I feel that the data Ruppli had at hand was, among other things, a bit too basic. I'm also under the impression that split sessions are especially liable to generate errors, as its information gets transcribed into specialized files at the record companies.) Normally, the inclusion of this piece of information (i.e., the split session) in a Bear Family booklet would provide strong support of its veracity, too, but not in this particular case. (If I understood correctly, the fine author of the booklet's notes -- a fellow poster -- was letting us know that the source for his comments in the booklet had not been his consultation of session files or his listening of session tapes, but the recollections of the already mentioned witnesses.) Something else worth mentioning is the existence of commercially issued outtakes from the session. They were released in an Italian CD, with no credit or clues as to their provenance. The fact that they exist neither proves nor disproves the claim that the session was split. But it gives a small amount of hope that the contents of the session reels have survived in some shape or form, and that the two singers are (eureka!) heard in a reel ... This was far more long-winded than intended. The bottom line is still the same: I too believe that the split session took place, but I want stronger corroboration.
I am convinced, though I'd rather not put the blame on Ruppli. I would be more inclined to link the hypothetical error to the record company's file keepers. If these are your main objections, I might be able to make you be a bit less unconvinced. Morgana King's United Artists LP Let Me Love You was recorded in July of 1958. (It says so on its back cover.) We thus know that, by the middle of that year, she was already recording for another company. The Bobby Darin session happened earlier, of course -- in April. So, here's the obvious question: was Morgana still with Mercury then? I do not believe that she was. She was with the company for all of 1956. She was apparently there during the first half of 1957 as well, since the trade press was still referring to her as "Mercury singer Morgana King" during these months. I could not find any similar references afterwards. I do realize that her Mercury LP Morgana King Sings the Blues is usually dated 1958. That date is probably correct. But guess what: the songs in the album were recorded in 1956, possibly as early as January of that year. [To be more specific, the 1958 Mercury LP Morgana King Sings the Blues (MG 20231) is either a reissue or an expansion of a 1956 Mercury Wing LP called Morgana King Sings Helen Morgan (MGW 60007). If I might go really off track for a second: I've never seen the latter. I have read speculation that it was left unreleased. However, the liner notes of Morgana's other Mercury LP, For You, For Me, Forevermore mention it as released, and so does a Billboard review of For You, For Me, Forevermore.] My overall suspicion is that Mercury dropped Morgana in 1957, maybe because her sales weren't all that great. She was, after all, a new recording artist back then, and thus essentially on trial. (Or maybe Mercury dropped her for other reasons. Or maybe she didn't want to stay.) She would have next tried her luck with other labels. Atlantic would have offered to record and release one 45 rpm single, and to see how the single fared, before actually signing her to a contract. But she would have found a more willing backer in United Artists, which would set up sessions for a full album right away. As a result (or for any other number of reasons), Atlantic would have not bothered to issue the prospective single .... [In case it is not clear: the above is a totally made-up scenario. But plausible.] Anyway, I hope that the path is partially cleared ... Am seeing no major obstacles to the possibility of finding Morgana at Atlantic in 1958.
I wish I had more info! My ear-confirmed knowledge begins right at the start of his two hour booked session. I can help answer questions about his Decca singles prior... And about the "Early in the Morning" and Buddy Holly situation between Decca and before Atco... But I admit I didn't ask or hear anything further about Morgana King... Jeff
Could have been a "test recording" by Morgana as Atlantic had just started a jazz subsidiary label "East-West" in 57/58? However they let Jackie Paris record an entire album for "East-West" in 1958 "The Jackie Paris Sound"...why would they not let Morgana do an album? Paris was not that much more well known than Morgana.
Billboard, March 3rd, 1958: "Atlantic Records signed jazz thrush Morgana King last week. She was formerly with Mercury. She will do both albums and singles for the new label." https://books.google.com/books?id=U...rgana King" billboard "atlantic" 1958&f=false
What's the Buddy Holly/Early in the Morning situation? All I know is that Holly's recording bears a striking resemblance to Darin's.
My copy has takes 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 of "Queen Of The Hop", with breakdowns and studio chatter, so unless I hear otherwise I'm assuming it's what you're referring to. And it's a fascinating listen........
Yeah, that's what I was getting at. Thanks, I'll look for a copy. That looks like a P.D. release. If so, how'd they manage to get their hands on the session reels?
