Would the White Album Have Worked Better as the "Kinfauns Basement Tapes"?

Right--I was remembering it wrong. In my mind, Epstein's death came before Sgt. Pepper, and McCartney plunged the band into work on the Pepper LP to keep their minds off of it. Of course, it wasn't Pepper but actually the Magical Mystery Tour concept and film.

 

Great point - I forget that things seemed more or less normal between John and Paul during the New York trip in May '68. Lennon comes back from that and apparently goes off the deep end: in the space of a week, he goes on the LSD bender that results in him convening a meeting at Apple to announce that he's Jesus Christ, invites Yoko Ono over to his house, and ends his marriage. Somewhere in there, based on my understanding of the chronology, he may also begin experimenting with heroin. If not, then in the weeks to come. What happened in New York? Or what happened in India, either while Paul was there or after Paul left? Paul doesn't change from January to June 1968. John at the Hey Bulldog sessions is basically the same guy he was a year earlier. Yoko was apparently at the Hey Bulldog session, but it didn't stop John from clowning around with Paul on the mic or contribute to any kind of an uncomfortable vibe, either in the finished song, or in the footage we have from the session. Something changed with John.

 

Sorry it wouldn't have happened a "Kinfaus Basement Tapes" in 1968.

Look how long it took the first and second cut of Bob Dylan's Basement Tapes to see daylight. I love those albums.
then look at the Let It Be project a sort a "Let It Be Tapes" project. Look at all the tinkering which happened with it. I actually love the Let It Be album. I can't see a "Kinsfaus Basement Tapes" being released in 1968.

For the record I like the White Album as it is when Ibought it when it first came out.

 

Well, Dylan's basement tapes weren't intended to be a released album, so it's no surprise they didn't come out sooner. The Let It Be project was a disaster and hated by all the participants, so it's not a surprise that took a while too. It could be that Kinfauns sessions would've been a disaster, as well, but what I meant in the OP was, what if the band had set up their full kit - drums, amps, etc. - and recorded the songs in a more relaxed atmosphere over a shorter period of time at George's house, with the intention of releasing it as an album? Not "no overdubs" or anything like that.

 

No, it wasn't, that was invented by the prosecutor and Susan Atkins who was the Beatles fan in the family. Manson didn't like the Beatles

 

Other than Revolution and maybe one or two others I don't hear a band playing on the Esher demos. Sounds like solo performances with a second vocal track/guitar overdubbed along with percussion. Is there any evidence that Ringo was there?

 

That's quite a week!!!

 

I hear percussion on some of the tracks, but I have no idea if it’s Ringo.

 

The whole thing tying the Beatles to Manson is so strange and stupid. They cut “Hey Charlie, Get Some Girls and Go Kill a whole Bunch of People” from the white album, so they clearly weren’t encouraging him. John, of course, later took that and rewrote it as I Don’t Wanna Be a Soldier.

 

Good point, in May 1968 when they started working on it how long had it been that they played a live show? Aug 1966 and did they ever get together socially and just jam?
Their last album Sgt Peppers Ringo and George "sat out" so by May of '68 the boys may have been rusty.

 

It wasnt an accident that they tied it to the Beatles who couldn’t defend themselves across the Atlantic. Neat trick they did leaving out that Manson was recording in Brian Wilson’s home studio and had a record contract with his sometime lover, Dennis.

 

good, that made room for Octopus' Garden and Maxwell's Silver Hammer

 

Indeed they do. How else would they have been at each other's throats?

 

You forgot What’s The New Mary Jane...

 

I know it’s Wikipedia, but quite a bit more here:

Helter Skelter (Manson scenario) - Wikipedia

 

I listened to The Basement Tapes in the last year or so and didn't like it as much as I once did. I'll have to listen again sometime.

 

I thought the late Pete Schotton summed it well. When asked if Yoko helped pry John away from the Beatles, he answered, "Yes. But he allowed it."

 

Lucy may have been INSPIRED by something else, but I have no doubt that it was at least partly about capturing an LSD trip. Likewise, I think Happiness was partly about shooting heroin (and partly about dirty sex with Yoko), regardless of the inspiration. John was creative enough to make those associations from a single phrase.

 

Yeah, there's been a lot of "new" research that isn't reflected there. A good place to start is a book called "Now Is the Only Thing That's Real" by Neil Sanders. Neil Young, by the way, tried to get Manson a contract with Reprise, and gave him a motorcycle fwiw

 

Is your profile picture the Beatles at Taco Bell?

 

I don't know about the dirty sex with Yoko part. Those LSD initials were inspired by the obvious...

 

My answer to the OP is a firm no. The Kinfauns demos are great to hear but I think that would have been a big let down compared to what we actually got. Not at all surprised they haven't released but a few so far and won't be surprised at all if they show up later this year, probably frankenedited. Same with The Basement Tapes-- Oh how I wish I could hear some of my all time favorite Dylan songs in better fidelity. Instead, I'm in the mood less and less each year

If anyone here has ever done LSD-- I think their use of that drug and the after effects of it made them see a little/too much of who each other really was/they way things were. The Party was really over once the acid wore off and the 'ultimate realization' had been made. I rarely if ever see this brought up regarding this band. LSD has a weird way of potentially making you feel embarrassed about somebody's presence once you've 'seen the light', IMO. I guess that's the best I can put it.. Haven't done it since 1993, so I'm not advocating!

I firmly believe Epstein's death was indeed the beginning of the end of the band. But within a year of his death you have John poking fun in song at the sessions. Both him and Paul going through a divorce and a break up, and the women they basically raced each other to marry. Growin up in your 20's, man.

 

The dark, macabre, creepy, etc. vibe of the White Album is a big part of what many of us love about it.

 

I'm pretty sure he sings backgrounds on Bungalow Bill, just like the released version, unless John is doing a similar type vocal.

 

Purely speculation: I just can't imagine Ringo not being there at George's home during the recording of these demos, however long they took to put together. Unless he was out of the country or just plain unavailable. Remember he had left India well before the others. Seems like he would have wanted to be involved/around as much as possible once all were back in Merry ol' England and the others certainly would have encouraged it. Yes, I watch too much Columbo.