The Beatles Decca sessions .......UGH!

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by [email protected], Dec 4, 2015.

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  1. Mal

    Mal Phorum Physicist

    [​IMG]
     
  2. Rfreeman

    Rfreeman Senior Member

    Location:
    Lawrenceville, NJ
    I enjoy the recordings and try not to compare them to what came later. There are lots of flaws but I get a kick out of them. May spin again on 55th anniversary
     
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  3. seilerbird

    seilerbird Forum Resident

    Poor Dick Rowe was attacked viciously because he is the man who turned down the Beatles. I don't think anyone would have signed them considering how bad that tape sounds.
     
  4. Linto

    Linto Mayor of Simpleton

    Never heard this before- I think it's ok - Pete sounds like he's enjoying himself
     
  5. Andrew

    Andrew Chairman of the Bored

    Is there an actual "master" tape still available?
     
  6. Pastle

    Pastle Forum Resident

    So we credit Ringo and George Martin for the dramatic change? Or a year of more playing, since it was about a year from Decca to Please Please Me. Or both?
     
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  7. Arnold Grove

    Arnold Grove Senior Member

    Location:
    NYC
    I still don't know why they scheduled the session for January 1st. Brian Epstein certainly knew the "boys" would not pass up celebrating New Years Eve into the wee hours of the morning. I mean did he real think they would not get drunk the night before and instead go to bed early? Couldn't he have scheduled it for January 2nd?
     
  8. Chuckee

    Chuckee Forum Resident

    Location:
    Upstate, NY, USA
    I think they sound good by the Star Club Tapes approx. a year after the Decca Stuff. I Saw Her Standing
    There very close to the EMI version. Some Other Guy from Summer? 1962 sounds great too.
     
  9. Arnold Grove

    Arnold Grove Senior Member

    Location:
    NYC
    Besides being hung over and lacking sleep, the Beatles were nervous in the studio environment and their equipment stunk. Lewisohn discusses this in Tune In.

    P.S. Wasn't this the Beatles first session inside a real studio? The Tony Sheridan/Hamburg tracks were recorded in an auditorium (Friedrich-Ebert-Halle), right? So they definitely had jitters in the sterile studio atmosphere at Decca.
     
    Last edited: Dec 4, 2015
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  10. Tero

    Tero Forum Resident

    The Hamburg Star Club session is so poorly recorded that you can barely make out lyrics. But it's a tight band! The ragged bunch on Decca is barely recognizable. Pete Best and poor singing. Three Cool Cats is my keeper teack there.
     
  11. Syd Avett

    Syd Avett Forum Resident

    For some crazy reason I have always loved the Decca Sessions. I would agree that George surprisingly sings with the most confidence but I still love John's and Paul's vocals.

    Even though the playing and singing during this session are not the best, I still detect that vibe of great personality from the music, that these guys have charisma. LOL but hindsight is 20/20! ;)
     
  12. Marc Bessette

    Marc Bessette The King of Somewhere Cold

    Possibly why Decca passed on them?
     
  13. Marc Bessette

    Marc Bessette The King of Somewhere Cold

    Could you imagine how pee'd off the recording engineer was?
    Phone Call to engineer from his boss: Oh hi Roger. I have a booking for you on New Year's Day. Some group in for a demo. Their are called the geekels or something like that. 8 am. Bye
     
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  14. pdenny

    pdenny 22-Year SHTV Participation Trophy Recipient

    Location:
    Hawthorne CA
    He sure ain't.
     
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  15. JimC

    JimC Senior Member

    Location:
    Illinois
    "Baby" is the one for me. All there except Ring. I like to think I'd have signed them based on that track. Yea, I know, hindsight.
     
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  16. Tom Schreck

    Tom Schreck Forum Resident

    I've just recently heard the sessions in full sequence, and I think it's great. Please Please Me is an outstanding portrait of the band at the time, but it's not the same type of LP as what came later. I think of the Decca Session as another step before Please Please Me, and I'm thrilled it exists.
     
  17. Blue Cactus

    Blue Cactus Forum Resident

    Location:
    Illinois
    Good question.

    Decca probably told him January 1st, take it or leave it.
     
  18. kelhard

    kelhard Forum Resident

    Tom, what do you mean by "full sequence"? Do you mean the original running order as originally performed?
     
  19. Schoolmaster Bones

    Schoolmaster Bones Poe's Lawyer

    Location:
    ‎The Midwest
    The Beatles were a killer live band that were out of their element in the studio. Not enough credit can be given to George Martin for his patience and wisdom in initiating the boys to the ways of studio life at Abbey road.
     
  20. jconsolmagno

    jconsolmagno Forum Resident

    I agree, I would love an official release of the Decca Sessions. Apple could throw it out in the spring sometime, to avoid their big holiday products each year. Not sure if an official release is even feasibly though.
     
  21. Tom Schreck

    Tom Schreck Forum Resident

    Oh -- I don't know. I had the stuff from Anthology, and I got the rest of it from the "I Saw Her Standing There" 1962 semi-official release from a few years ago (dominated by the Tony Sheridan sessions, which should not even be considered Beatles records, as the band is probably not on most of 'em). I threw 'em into iTunes and made a playlist modeled after what I saw on bootlegs online. Was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked it, and how "young" the band sounds.
     
  22. dewey02

    dewey02 Forum Resident

    Location:
    The mid-South.
    I think that all the songs (except for those that appeared on Anthology 1) are now in the public domain. But an official release would still be a better seller than all the grey market product we've seen for years.
     
  23. dino77

    dino77 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Europe
    That's when he decided he wanted to be Little Richard.:D
     
  24. dewey02

    dewey02 Forum Resident

    Location:
    The mid-South.
    But then apparently lost it again when recording such songs as Lady Madonna (Elvis or Fats), the already mentioned Little Richard tunes, Rocky Racoon (hillbilly voice), and probably several others.
     
  25. bward

    bward Senior Member

    Location:
    Boston, MA USA
    The Decca tapes are fascinating.

    I think the session humanizes them. They sound nervous to me; only George sounds confident with his vocals.

    They also sound like they are holding back in a major way, emphasizing pop over rock. And that makes sense because they were trying to land a recording contract.

    Maybe the idea was that a softer image would make them more commercial.

    At any rate, the Decca tapes are a nice little historic artifact. I'm glad we have them.

    I'd probably take a chance on them, thinking they'd be good for a single or two.
     
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