The Traveling Wilburys -- Volume 2 and Volume 4

The Traveling Wilburys – a band that some believe is the last great “supergroup” – released two albums: Volume 1 and Volume 3. The title of the second album was a joke. During, between and after those albums, the five members recorded together on various projects.

In attempting to create a Volume 2, I realized there was enough material for a Volume 4 as well.

The first was easy to construct. I used two Traveling Wilburys outtakes:  “Maxine” and “Like a Ship.” I added three songs from Roy Orbison’s solo album, “You Got It” and “California Blue” (both featuring Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne) and “A Love So Beautiful” (featuring Lynne and George Harrison); two songs from Petty’s solo album, “I Won’t Back Down” (featuring Lynne and Harrison) and “Zombie Zoo” (featuring Lynne and Orbison); two songs from Lynne’s solo album, “Every Little Thing” and “Lift Me Up” (both featuring Harrison); one song from Bob Dylan, “Under the Red Sky” (featuring Harrison);  and one George Harrison song, “Cheer Down” from the Lethal Weapon 2 soundtrack (featuring Lynne).

I tacked on the holiday message from George Harrison (as Nelson Wilbury) from the Winter Warnersland album as a bonus track. For the album artwork of Volume 2, I only added the word/number "Volume 2" on a picture I found on the web. 

SIDE A

1. You Got It

2. Lift Me Up

3. Like a Ship

4. Every Little Thing

5. I Won’t Back Down

SIDE B

1. Cheer Down

2. A Love So Beautiful

3. Under the Red Sun

4. Maxine

5. California Blue

6. Zombie Zoo

Bonus: Holiday message from Nelson Wilbury

For Volume 4, I took a similar tack.

The tracks include two Traveling Wilburys outtakes: “Runaway” and “Nobody’s Child.” Other tracks include two Harrison songs he recorded for a “Best of” collection, “Poor Little Girl” and “Cockamamie Business” (both featuring Lynne); a Del Shannon song, “Walk Away” (featuring Lynne and Petty); three songs from Lynne, “Stormy Weather” and “September Song” (both featuring Harrison) and “Blown Away” (co-written by Petty and featuring Shannon); one song by Petty, “Runnin’ Down a Dream” (featuring Lynne, plus Shannon in the ending message), and one mostly instrumental song by Jim Horn, “Work It Out” (written by Lynne, and featuring Lynne, Harrison and Petty). I used the original version of “Runaway” and added the remix at the end as a bonus.

Roy Orbison died in 1988, and there were rumors that Del Shannon would take his place in the group. But Shannon committed suicide in 1990. Shannon ends up featuring as lead singer on “Walk Away,” backup vocals on “Blown Away” and “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” and his song “Runaway” is covered. Plus Petty name-checks him in “Runnin’ Down a Dream.” So Shannon ended up being kind of a de facto member of the group.

Dylan is mostly a no-show on this album except for sharing lead vocals on “Nobody’s Child.” Considering both Orbison’s and Shannon’s deaths (and now Harrison’s and Petty’s as well), I think the album cover of a train wreck is appropriate. I found the old photo online, added some sepia tone and changed the words.

All tracks are available on the various solo albums and the Traveling Wilburys' box set, The Traveling Wilburys Collection, except the original version of “Runaway,” which was a non-album B-side of the band’s “She’s My Baby” single.

SIDE A

1. Poor Little Girl

2. Runaway

3. Walk Away

4. Stormy Weather

5. Runnin’ Down a Dream

SIDE B

1. Nobody’s Child

2. September Song

3. Work It Out

4. Blown Away

5. Cockamamie Business

Bonus: “Runaway” (remix)

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - "Southern Accents"

Originally, the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers album Southern Accents was to be a concept album that focused on Southern life. But after inter-band disagreements and Petty breaking his hand when he punched the wall, work on the album was stunted.

Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics was invited to take part, and he co-wrote and played on three new tracks: “Don’t Come Around Here No More,” “It Ain’t Nothing to Me” and “Make It Better (Forget About Me).” To make room for the new songs, five songs were cut: "Trailer," "Big Boss Man," "Crackin' Up," "The Image of Me" and "The Apartment Song." This resulted in the concept of the concept album to basically disappear. Band members later admitted their disappointment that the album had changed so drastically.

SIDE A

1. Rebels

2. Trailer

3. The Image of Me

4. Crackin’ Up

5. Southern Accents

SIDE B

1. The Apartment Song

2. Big Boss Man

3. Spike

4. Dogs on the Run

5. Mary’s New Car

6. The Best of Everything

While we don’t know what the final tracklist order was supposed to be, we can take the album that was released, remove the Stewart tracks, and fill in the blanks. "Trailer" was later rerecorded by Petty with his original band Mudcrutch, and he also rerecorded "The Apartment Song" for his solo album, Full Moon Fever. I stick with the originals for Southern Accents, even though "The Apartment Song" is a demo (with Stevie Nicks on backup vocals).

The result is a much better album, in my opinion, although it admittedly does not have a real pop hit like “Don’t Come Around Here No More.” Perhaps the three Stewart co-penned songs could have been released later as non-album singles (or an EP), placed on a soundtrack or expanded to be another full album. But we got what we got.

All the “missing” tracks can be found on the box set Playback.

The Count Five's "Carburetor Dung"

The Count Five only released one album, Psychotic Reaction in 1966. The band did release a few singles afterward, but broke up in 1969. Unfortunately for the band, none of their subsequent singles came anywhere close to matching the success of "Psychotic Reaction." Later compilation albums have brought together all the band's album tracks, singles and outtakes. Using the later singles and outtakes, there's more than enough for a second album.

Rock critic Lester Bangs wrote an essay in 1972 with a fictional history of the band and listed four follow-up albums by the Count Five that never actually existed. The first of these follow-ups he titled Carburetor Dung. Now, it's doubtful the band (or the record company for that matter) would have called an album Carburetor Dung, but in a salute to Bangs, that's what we'll call this.

SIDE A

1. People Hear What I Say

2. Move It Up

3. Contrast

4. Declaration of Independence

5. You Must Believe

SIDE B

1. Hold Me Closer

2. You Can't Get Me

3. Teeny Bopper, Teeny Bopper

4. Merry-Go-Round

5. Revelation in Slow Motion

The album opens with the noisy garage rocker "People Hear What I Say." Six of the songs, "You Must Believe," Teeny Bopper, Teeny Bopper," "Merry Go Round," "Contrast," "Revelation in Slow Motion" and "Declaration of Independence" were all released as A or B sides of singles in 1967 and 1968. "Hold Me Closer" opens the second side and is a nice, and kind of surprising, cover of an Equals song.

The album cover is my creation, using existing outer space artwork. I added a picture of a carburetor as sort of a spaceship or space junk. I added titles using a Star Trek font, which seemed appropriate as the show was popular at the time. In the future, I'll also post a last EP for The Count Five: Cartesian Jetstream.

Led Zeppelin III - Double Album Version

When recording the album Physical Graffiti, Led Zeppelin faced a dilemma. The assembled eight songs were too long for one LP. The solution was to make a double album and add a number of tracks left off previous albums.

After the recent release of remastered albums with extra tracks, I realized there were enough leftovers and outtakes from albums I-III to make III a double album also. I considered taking all the tracks and rearranging them. But in the end, I left the first two sides the same as released, and simply built sides C and D.

SIDE A

1. Immigrant Song

2. Friends

3. Celebration Day

4. Since I've Been Loving You

5. Out on the Tiles

SIDE B

1. Gallows Pole

2. Tangerine

3. That's the Way

4. Bron Yr Aur Stomp

5. Hats off to (Roy) Harper

SIDE C

1. We're Gonna Groove

2. Poor Tom

3. Jennings Farm Blues

4. Sugar Mama

5. Key to the Highway/Trouble in Mind

SIDE D

1. Baby Come on Home

2. Bron Yr Aur

3. Hey Hey What Can I Do?

4. Medley: I Feel So Bad/Travelling Riverside Blues/32-20 Blues/Diving Duck Blues/Fixin' to Die/That's All Right (Mama)

It's kind of a head-scratcher that most of these songs remained unreleased for so long. Side C kicks off with "We're Gonna Groove," followed by an outtake from III, "Poor Tom." I think having the similar "Bron Yr Aur Stomp," "Jennings Farm Blues" and "Bron Yr Aur" on three of the four sides kind of ties the album together. "Sugar Mama" picks up the pace before the side ends with the slow acoustic blues of the "Key to the Highway/Trouble in Mind" medley.

Side D kicks off with the amazing "Baby Come on Home" (an outtake from the first album). "Hey Hey What Can I Do" was a non-album B-side of the "Immigrant Song" single. Since Zeppelin ended most of their shows with a medley of old rock and blues songs, ending this album that way seems natural. Brought together, I think Sides C and D are nearly as strong as the original A and B.

All these tracks, except one, are available as either bonus tracks to the remastered albums, or on the compilation album Coda. 

The exception is "Bron Yr Aur" which is on Physical Graffiti. In iTunes, I replaced it on that album with "Walter's Walk." I also put "Houses of the Holy" back on the album it's named for, and replaced it on Physical Graffiti with "D'yer Mak'er."

Elvis Presley's "Guitar Man"

Quite a big deal has been made about Elvis Presley's "lost" 1963 album, which has been packaged at least three different times. But no one ever talks about his "lost" 1968 album.

Elvis was producing three movies EVERY YEAR in the 1960s. Yikes. And all of those movies had a lot of songs, most of them pretty bad. Yet Elvis found time to continue to record music for singles, gospel music and soundtrack fillers that had nothing to do with the movies he was making. 

During studio sessions from September 1967 - January 1968, there were 11 tracks (minus soundtrack and gospel recordings) recorded that could have been used to create a pretty good LP.

SIDE A

1. Guitar Man

2. Just Call Me Lonesome

3. Singing Tree

4. Mine

5. Hi-Heel Sneakers

SIDE B

1. Too Much Monkey Business

2. You Don't Know Me

3. U.S. Male

4. I'll Remember You

5. Suppose

6. Big Boss Man

The album contains all of Elvis' later career hallmarks -- rock, pop, country, folk and many ballads. Timeline-wise, this would have been the last studio album before his comeback special. This album also has a heavy Jerry Reed influence. Reed wrote both "Guitar Man" and "U.S. Male," and played guitar on them as well as on two other tracks, "Big Boss Man" and "Too Much Monkey Business." As a result, the album has a very noticeable country rock feel throughout.

This album probably would not have done very well commercially if it had been released. Five of these songs charted as singles, but the highest, "U.S. Male," only made it to No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. It would take the TV special, now known as the "'68 Comeback" later in the year to make Elvis a music star again. But in retrospect, this album I think would have shown that he was still making good music before that (even if it was drowned out by the banal soundtracks).

All 11 tracks are available on the Elvis box set From Nashville to Memphis: The Complete '60s Masters. For the album cover, just a homemade touch-up job using existing artwork.

Marvin Gaye's "You're the Man"

In 1972, Marvin Gaye appears to have been at a crossroads, not sure what direction to take next. He’d followed up his hugely successful What’s Going On? album with a soundtrack to Trouble Man.

At first, his focus was an album of socio-political songs, kicked off with the title track “You’re the Man.” However, when the title song didn’t become a crossover hit when released as a single, enthusiasm for a full album appears to have waned. Plus, Gaye seems to have been brimming with lots of different ideas.

In the book “Mercy, Mercy Me: The Art, Loves and Demons of Marvin Gaye,” author Michael Eric Dyson writes, “As [Harry] Weinger sorted through the tapes vault, he was bewildered by the huge amount of material. It became clear that Marvin had many false starts and pursued a number of directions – and even another album – before settling on the songs that became Let’s Get It On.”

Indeed, besides tracks for the You’re the Man album, Gaye also recorded instrumentals, and songs written by Willie Hutch, and even began a Christmas album that Motown put on its schedule (only one holiday single was produced). There were also plans for a duet album with Diana Ross. 1972 was a busy year.

The result is that there are basically three partially created albums between Trouble Man and Let’s Get It On. My first attempt was to create You’re the Man with the six tracks that were known to have originally been planned for it and fill in the blanks with three instrumentals. But the more I looked into what had been recorded, I thought maybe there was something bigger and better possible. You can arrive at a surprisingly good double album if all the tracks are gathered and carefully assembled.

SIDE A

1. Running from Love, Part 1
2. I’m Going Home (Move)

3. You’re the Man (Parts 1 & 2)

4. I’m Gonna Give You Respect

SIDE B

1. This World is Rated X

2. Sad Tomorrows

3. Try It, You’ll Like It

4. Checking Out (Double Clutch)

5. We Can Make It Baby

SIDE C

1. Woman of the World

2. My Love is Growing

3. Cakes

4. You are That Special One

5. Mandota

SIDE D

1. Where are We Going?

2. Symphony

3. Running from Love, Part 2

4. Piece of Clay

I book-ended the album with the two parts of "Running from Love." The angrier-sounding version kicks off the album, and the moodier version ends it, with "Piece of Clay" as an epilogue. The social and political songs remain, along with more personal songs and one instrumental punctuating each of the four sides.

Gaye’s popularity was certainly strong enough to support a double album, and “Woman of the World” "Where Are We Going?" and “Piece of Clay” could have been strong contenders for singles. It seems to me to be a missed opportunity. One final thing – the inclusion of “Sad Tomorrows” is kind of a cheat. It was a non-album B-side to “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” from 1971. However, I needed one more song and it fit well, I think.

Most tracks are available on the extended versions of What's Going On? and Let's Get It On.

I can’t take any credit for the cool cover shown at the top – I found that on a blog and was impressed with how great it looks. I also made an attempt at a cover, using a similar photo from the "You're the Man" single sleeve, but as you can see below it didn't come out anywhere near as nice.

Here's the album via a YouTube playlist.

The Beatles - "Back in Your Safely Beds"

Here's an album you can't have—at least not yet, as of this writing. In the past couple of weeks, I've posted two versions of albums in which I used most of the tracks of The Beatles' "White Album." But I deliberately left off "Wild Honey Pie" and "Revolution 9." I just don't think they fit well with the other tracks.

The Beatles—specifically Paul, John and George—experimented extensively with music and wrote pop songs. George released Electronic Sound, and John and Yoko released Unfinished Music No. 1: Two Virgins, Unfinished Music No. 2: Life with the Lions and the Wedding Album. Paul also created experimental music but didn't release it commercially.

Back in Your Safely Beds is what might have happened if The Beatles released their more experimental songs together on one album.

However, one of the tracks I propose for this album, "Carnival of Light," a nearly 14-minute sound collage, has yet to be released. It was originally recorded by the band in 1967 for the Million Volt Light and Sound Rave event. It has never appeared on any Beatles release and has only been heard by a select few since the rave event. Paul wanted to put it on The Beatles' Anthology 2 album, but George vetoed the idea. Paul occasionally teases the possibility of releasing it someday in the future. The rest of the tracks on this proposed album are all commercially available.

"What's the New Mary Jane?" was completed during production of the White Album, but was not officially released until 1996 on Anthology 3. "You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)" was released as the B-side to the "Let It Be" single. The final recording work on this song was in April 1969 (the last of these five tracks to be completed), and so I see Back in Your Safely Beds as a summer of '69 release that wasn't.

SIDE A
1. You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)
2. Carnival of Light

SIDE B
1. What's the New Mary Jane?
2. Wild Honey Pie
3. Revolution 9

My simple album cover is stark white, with the title in big, fat letters and the logo of Zapple Records—the avant-garde and spoken-word subsidiary of Apple Corps. The title comes from one of Ringo's malapropisms (aka Ringoisms), like "A Hard Day's Night" and "Tomorrow Never Knows," which the band has previously used for titles. Maybe the band wouldn't even include their name on this record. Maybe they'd make up a fake name. Who knows?

With this blog entry, I'll move on to other proposed albums that don't involve The Beatles. Stay tuned.

"The Beatles" by The Beatles

In my last post, I created a single-disc concept album using 14 tracks from The Beatles' "White Album." In this post, I'm using most of the leftover tracks to create a good, standard rock album.

While A Doll's House could have created a good bridge from the Sgt. Pepper's/Magical Mystery Tour era, this album would have been mostly a return to basics. The Summer of Love was so last year; the Vietnam War and Civil Rights protests were everywhere, and music was changing. Using the official title of the White Album, I call this one simply The Beatles. 

SIDE A

1. Back in the U.S.S.R.

2. Sexy Sadie

3. Not Guilty

4. Julia

5. Honey Pie

6. Don't Pass Me By

7. I'm So Tired

SIDE B

1. While My Guitar Gently Weeps

2. I Will

3. Yer Blues

4. Why Don't We Do It in the Road?

5. Happiness is a Warm Gun

6. Long Long Long

7. Revolution 1

8. Helter Skelter

Again, like A Doll's House, there is a balance of vocals: six by John, five by Paul, three by George, and one by Ringo. All of these tracks are from the original "White Album," except "Not Guilty." A short version of the song is on Anthology 3, but I used a longer 4:17 version. For an album cover, I used one-half of the proposed artwork for the inner gatefold of the "White Album" that wasn't used.

NOTE: You may have noticed certain songs from the White Album that I've left off from both this and A Doll's House: "Wild Honey Pie" and "Revolution 9." I consider "Wild Honey Pie" to be akin to nails on a chalkboard. I really hate it. Maybe the worst Beatles song I can think of. As far as "Revolution 9" is concerned, I was fascinated with it when I was a teenager, but these days, it just seems like one long noise track. I think maybe these two tracks as well as a few other odds and ends could appear on yet another Beatles album, which maybe I'll get to in the future.

The Beatles' "A Doll's House"

A lot has been written about creating a single album from The Beatles' "White Album." Online, you'll find numerous attempts, public polls, arguments, etc.

My personal feeling is that there is a great concept album lurking in the "White Album" begging to come out. It's fairly common knowledge that The Beatles originally planned to call the album A Doll's House after playwright Henrik Ibsen's play. However, when the group Family used the title Music from a Doll's House for its debut album, The Beatles' title was scrapped.

To me, A Doll's House conjures up the idea of childhood, and there are plenty of songs on the "White Album" that connect with childhood themes. With that in mind, I put together a single disc concept album that I think really works.

SIDE A

1. Glass Onion

2. Dear Prudence

3. Birthday

4. Savoy Truffle

5. The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill

6. Mother Nature's Son

7. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

SIDE B

1. Martha My Dear

2. Piggies

3. Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey

4. Blackbird

5. Rocky Raccoon

6. Cry Baby Cry

7. Good Night

Kicking off Side A is "Glass Onion." It's the perfect song to link previous Beatles songs with what is to come and serves as an introduction to this album. "Dear Prudence," an invitation to come out and play, follows. Then the party starts with "Birthday" and everyone can indulge in sweets with "Savoy Truffle." Then there follows storytime and singalongs -- "...Bungalow Bill," "Mother Nature's Son" and "Ob-La-Di...."

The second side of the album begins with an "Animals Suite," which harks back to the album cover: "Martha My Dear" (about Paul's sheepdog), "Piggies," "...Me and My Monkey," "Blackbird" and "Rocky Raccoon." "Cry Baby Cry"—it's nap time, and you sing the lullaby "Good Night."

Not only do all of these songs fit in well thematically, but there is also a good balance of contributions: five vocals by John, six by Paul, two by George and one by Ringo.

All of these tracks are available on the "White Album." Slight trimming is needed on "Dear Prudence" at the beginning to remove the jet sounds that bleed in from "Back in the U.S.S.R."

Here's a YouTube playlist to listen to this "lost" concept album.