The new voice of the Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society founded in 1971. We celebrate in this blog the history of the group using current research. We target the music back-stories the fans want to hear, and work to see all of the recorded material released and made available to fans.
I have just lost my friend and collaborator who worked tirelessly with me to compile the tracks for the forthcoming Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons Box Set. Bob Fisher, formerly of Motown Records UK as well as Sequel and Westside, passed away peacefully yesterday following a heart attack.
We embarked in 2018 with a commitment to check every source we could find to assemble an historic and career spanning tribute to Frankie Valli and all of his Four Seasons and say thank you for all the joy they have brought us and the rest of the fans.
We found what we believed was 90% of what has survived and committed to continue in whatever follows this box set to find the rest including the 20+ unreleased tracks still in the Motown Archive, the tracks hidden on 200 plus 5 inch reels[many unmarked]and on the 1970 stored 16 track tapes in the Four Seasons Partnership Storage. I'll keep the searching going Bob and get Bob Gaudio to give us the rest!!!!!.......He and I, have pioneered what we believe will be a resurgence and popularity in Frankie and the group after this 5 decade compilation is released next year to coincide with the NEW Jersey Boys TV Movie and Frankie’s planned UK Tour.
Bob worked at Motown Records UK and was responsible for the release of ‘Life and Breath’ on 45 in the UK in 1975. His Westside 2 CD compilation of ‘Bob Crewe Presents….The Dynavoice Story’ remains legendary.
His great friend Tony Rounce of ACE Records perhaps best sums up the fan he was.
“His first musical love affair - a lifelong one – was with the Four Seasons, ‘Sherry’ being the first record he ever bought. Bob has spent much of the last few years working on a 42 (that’s forty two!) CD boxed set of the Seasons and solo Frankie Valli’s complete recordings. It would have come out by now, had the pandemic not got in the way. It’s due out next year, and it breaks my heart that, having driven it over the finish line, Bob will never own a copy of what he regarded as the most satisfying achievement of his long career as a record man…”
But he was a great man and a music guru for soul, blues and pop music collectors. He will be missed by so many and our thoughts are with his family and friends. I have lost my best ever collaborator who has helped put together the best ever Four Seasons compilation which will change the view of their career for future generations. Thanks Bob….my dear friend.
With the failure of the Genuine Imitation Life Gazette[GILG] album, in early 1969, the direction and recording sessions for Frankie Valli and the 4 Seasons of the time were in a state of disarray. But Philips knew they had an ace up their sleeve in the form of the 'Edizione D'Oro' Gold Edition of all the 60s hits in wonderful re-mastered STEREO. I will write separately re this most important release.
But sessions would develop during late 1968 even while GILG was being mastered for January 1969 release which included the song 'Natural Morning' which was found and included on Disc 14. But other Philips session notes revealed three tracks that would gain release on 45. The Master of the superb 'A Face Without A Name' [42858] is not the same as the May 1969 released version [44773] (apparently) but our search of the storage revealed that version [we thought] as listed in the FSP Archive on a 5 inch Reel along with the 'unreleased', 'Alone Again' [42861] and 'I Was A Boy' [42863] and 'You've Got Your Troubles' [42862] and 'To My Father' [re-titled eventually as 'To Make My Father Proud'] both in early versions. All remain unheard. Bill Inglot found the Tape Box and we were so excited, but the tape inside was the damaged MONO tape of 'Timeless' album tracks and not as listed on the Tape Box!!!!!!. With over 200 such reels, many unmarked in the FSP storage facility, there was little chance of finding the tape[in a wrong box!!!]. With the budget spent there was no chance of searching for more potentially 'unreleased' or alternate takes. Time and cost means that someone sometime will have to speculate the Engineers time to review all of these. Could they include lost gems?.......No-one knows till they are played. But other discoveries were made and included both vocal and instrumental. Unheard instrumental versions of 'I'm Gonna Change' and 'C'mon Marianne' being two examples.
Sessions in 1969 would produce superb recordings [all of which were found in MONO and STEREO] of 'The Girl I'll Never Know' [44815], 'A Dream Of Kings' [46111], along with 'And That Reminds Me' and 'The Singles Game', which Bob Crewe released on his Crewe Label[Crewe 333] before Philips took an interest and agreed to an album release which would go into production in March 1970. 'Half and Half' would be an eclectic set again but this time of half Frankie Valli and half Four Seasons. Finding the MONO album mixes in our FSP tape archive search was a brilliant album version to include with details of the session dates and the different 45 versions of the released tracks.
But this albums poor performance reaching just #190 on the Billboard Album Chart was taking the group into dark times. The debt problem that surfaced from Tommy DeVito's gambling also must have had an impact as well as Bob Crewe's alcohol and drugs problems recently revealed by brother Dan. Sessions and Masters and releases were few.
By the middle of 1970 the sound of the group was becoming more progressive with 'You Can't Take It All From A Man'......a precursor to 'One Man' with a different lyric and arrangement.'One Man' was the version discovered in the Mercury Tape Storage and shared with us in 1997. That version is what started our search for unreleased tapes of this period and are examples of 'unreleased' progressive songs, possibly too far from their former traditional sound and left for that reason.
But the group would have some final sessions for an album rumoured to be titled '1970' and the releases that happened showed their quality as a group. 'Where Are My Dreams' remains an amazing song and performance, and if it was to be part of an album and fans had heard it then maybe things could have been better at Philips.? The final single, 'Lay Me Down b/w Heartaches and Raindrops' is still an superb single and we have now heard part of the idea for the planned album. Our research uncovered 3 tapes [27 tracks] from the time of 16 track recordings from the Philips reels. Only two tracks would surface as MONO mixes for this box set, [as surviving vocals] 'The Goose' [a somewhat strange 'Beatlesque' arrangement and song], and the amazing Crewe-Gaudio song 'I Need To Get To Know You' . Along with a version of 'Just How Loud' a 1966 Northern Soul song penned by Artie Schroeck and Jet Loring this Rare Tracks Collection has a quite Northern sound. All of the above tracks are in a STEREO/MONO mixed set of alternative versions and unreleased tracks and they form a cornerstone of this Box Set and of this period of non-hits and experimentation ..........taking us from 'I'm Gonna Change' in 1967 and the discovery of the original DEMO of 'Beggin'........to the rock based 'Whatever You Say b/w Sleeping Man' on their 1971 UK tour.......this period of changing sounds and styles make these Discs collectors gems.
DISC 18 FOUR SEASONS/FRANKIE VALLI – HALF AND HALF(MONO)[PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED]/STEREO)
Philips PHS600341 No. 190 [4/70]
DISC 19 – RARE AND UNRELEASED 1967 TO 1971
These discs contain 29 Bonus Tracks to the released album of which 18 are previously unreleased tracks
Perhaps the most collectible vinyl album of this decade for Four Seasons fans is 'Genuine Imitation Life Gazette' [GILG] and definitely their 'cult' album being so different in style and sound at the time to anything heard from them before. And it included album artwork that was at that time totally original and unique.
It's concept for the group and Philips was a huge gamble but after the Beatles had turned album making on it's head with Sgt Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band, Bob Gaudio convinced the group and Philips they had to try something new. It has always been an anomaly to me that on 'Saturday's Father' the closing segment features the group in classic harmony as they had always shown since 1962, and yet apart from a Four Freshman style 'Idaho' later on the album the sound of the group is completely new. They could never escape the 'harmony' sound of Frankie's voice blended with the group. And they never truly did, notwithstanding the 1970s revival.[c/f 'Harmony' in 1976 on the 'WHO LOVES YOU album]
We tell the background to the inspiration, recording and release of the GILG album in the Box Set Collectors Notes but when the initial research of the FSP Tape storage revealed a MONO mix of the album, Snapper immediately decided to make this a vinyl insert and reproduce all of the album artwork and inserts.
Then the concept of two CD Discs for this album emerged and it meant that a number of tracks from MONO and STEREO sources from this period that we wanted to include could be accommodated. We have therefore picked up outstanding tracks from the mid to later 60s as BONUS Tracks.
As well as the MONO mix of the album which is previously unreleased we have included the two instrumentals from 1965, 'Sassy' and 'Night Hawk' plus 8 other MONO versions including the Wonder Who 45 versions and the 'non-album' versions of 'I've Got You Under My Skin' and 'Electric Stories' as the BONUS Tracks are focused on an all MONO Disc.
One other BONUS is the long known track recorded as a DEMO. 'Michael and Peter' was prepared for Frank Sinatra's 'Watertown' album sessions by Bob Gaudio. It features writer Jake Holmes on the intro then Frankie Valli's wonderful interpretation.
The second Disc features the STEREO album with 6 BONUS tracks of hard to find STEREO versions of single releases including the long lost 'Tell It To The Rain' which is the same TAKE as the 45 version. It was surprisingly found on the 25th Anniversary Reel for the 1988 'vinyl' release. 'Raven' is also featured in STEREO and this has only ever appeared on the Rhino 1990 Rarities CD. Four Takes in STEREO were discovered from the session tapes late in April 2021 during our final search. An alternative version will also feature on a later Disc.
Overall these are two exceptional Discs in the Box Set covering an eclectic album and superb BONUS Tracks from the mid to late sixties.
Whilst a critically acclaimed album it was not accepted by fans and was a commercial failure which was a huge blow for Bob Gaudio personally and would almost destroy the group as Philips now had lost faith in them and saw a lost fan base and also the group [particularly Bob Gaudio] saw no return was possible to the old sound. 'Raven' was their last return to that formula. How to go on in 1969 with a new sound was immense as was the debt Tommy DeVito had incurred for them.?
The remaining time at Philips was virtually unknown to many fans back then as the music industry had moved on to 'rock' and 'soul' and these sounds dominated the charts and the Four Seasons would get very little promotion and would become an 'oldies' sound.
These Discs comprise.....
DISC 16 THE GENUINE IMITATION LIFE GAZETTE – PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED MONO[PLUS Album tracks only VINYL INSERT]
DISC 17 THE GENUINE IMITATION LIFE GAZETTE – STEREO
Philips PHS600290 No. 85 [1/69]
The Discs include a total of 17 BONUS Tracks, one of which is 'previously unreleased' [plus the MONO mix of the album on vinyl and CD]
In our next bog we scrape the barrel of the FSP Archive for this 'end of the 60s' period finding SOME of the lost classics that Philips paper records show were completed but never released and a wonderful unheard Crewe-Gaudio song.
From mid 1965 Frankie Valli was recording 'solo' tracks and due to a reluctance on the part of Philips to have the Four Seasons sound 'challenged', the 1965 45s appeared on the Smash Label. And whilst it would be 1966 before Philips took over such releases it would not be till mid 1967 that an album would appear with the release of the 'Solo' album in June 1967 after the huge success of 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You'.
Researching the Four Seasons Partnership[FSP] archive proved to be frustrating as not all the single releases had survived on Master Tape.......and the 'Solo' album had never survived as a MONO mix.
The PolyComp Tapes contained what had survived of the MONO mixes but we had to recover from vinyl dubs....
The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore (MONO 45 YW1-36622)
This Is Goodbye (MONO 45 YW1-36623)
You’re Gonna Hurt Yourself (MONO 45 YW1-37523)
The Proud One (MONO 45 1-38789)
Can’t Take My Eyes Off You (MONO 45 1-40375)
Surprisingly the last song [a #2 hit] was not found on tape but an acetate of an earlier TAKE with an alternate and very relaxed vocal by Frankie did survive and is included with the above as BONUS Tracks.
In our research of alternate versions and MIXES we did find that This Is Goodbye and Cry For Me had survived on tape ONLY as Pseudo Stereo [or Fake Stereo as marked on the tape box] and these versions are the only ones to appear in the CD era. We also found that the GOLD album on Private Stock [PVLP1006] contained UNIQUE STEREO mixes on the vinyl album from 1975 that were worthy versions as BONUS Tracks. We salvaged four very well mixed STEREO versions here.
Can’t Take My Eyes Off You (STEREO Gold 1975 Alternate Mix)
The following album 'Timeless' released in June 1968 attempted to establish Frankie Valli as a singer of 'standards' like his hero Frank Sinatra.
With 16 track recording Philips were moving albums to 'STEREO only' as the mixes were so good and phonographs of the day could play STEREO albums in MONO. Only ever released in STEREO we did not think it had ever been mixed to MONO. But in searching for a tape of 'unreleased' tracks from 1969,[more re these tracks on a later blog] we discovered to our disappointment that the tape was damaged ….and not the songs we had wanted. Further detailed work revealed it as two track and one was distorted and one intact. We salvaged the intact track and found it contained 9 songs in MONO from this album as studio 'out-takes' with intros and outro chat on some songs. A truly amazing and lucky find.
Adding to that we found an unreleased song from the same sessions 'Stranger in Paradise', and an unreleased song from 1968 called 'Natural Morning'. The details are revealed in our Box Set Collectors Notes.
Overall these two Discs give a wonderful snapshot of the the start of Frankie Valli's solo career.
It remains to be seen if the Tape Box scan above actually contains the tracks listed as 'pulled'. Whatever the sound engineer finds on this tape we will have all the STEREO mixes listed from other tape sources.
DISC 13 THE FOUR SEASONS PRESENT FRANKIE VALLI SOLO [STEREO ONLY]
1966 was a great year for music and it appeared to be for the Four Seasons as they toured continually with new member Joe Long. And they still had 45 hits with 6 Top 100 records during the year. But there was no 'original' album and Philips flooded the market with their past hits albums as a result of the return of ownership of the Masters from Vee-Jay's bankruptcy.
The Beach Boys and the Beatles were revolutionising the album market and music with their 'Pet Sounds' and 'Revolver' albums and the lack of an album by The Four Seasons till May 1967 would not help them after the loss of 4 important members of their writing and production team. Nick Massi, Charles Calello, Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell between August 1965 and early 1966 and whilst they kept the hits going this would prove a burden that was too much to maintain or develop a new sound and something would have to change as 1967 developed.
Whilst the very competent Artie Schroeck stepped in in January 1966 with his arranging skills it was still the Frankie Valli's falsetto trademark that Philips were selling and although he and the group wanted to move on they were a 'cash cow' for Philips. Despite the anthem of 'I'm Gonna Change'[which never saw an official 45 release but would become a dance floor classic by 1973 in the UK] it was a case of the more things change the more they remain the same and it would take until 1967 for Bob Gaudio to come up with a new direction which would prove to be pretty disastrous commercially for the group and their career.
The important part of the research of the Tapes for this period was to find the NEW GOLD HITS album in both MONO and STEREO which we did. For decades fans have known that the singles from this period were distinctly different mixes to the albums and the recording studios moved to 16 track from early 1967. They moved in 1966 because of distortion problems at Stea-Philips [Charlie Calello told us] and because the equipment at Mirasound Studios with Sound Engineer George Schowerer facilitated the ability to add dubs without 'bouncing' and sound loss as was necessary in the first half of the 60s and this change also led to much better STEREO mixes.
Some fans regard this album as their favourite of the group during the 60s and it certainly features a diverse set of styles and arrangements.
But the single releases were still MONO and for reasons best known to Bob Crewe and Philips at this time the 45 versions were different mixes and predominantly issued before the album in 1966 and the UNIQUE single mixes of 'Tell It To The Rain/Beggin'/Dody/C'Mon Marrianne' and 'Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow' are featured on this Disc in these versions as BONUS Tracks. The post album 45 versions of 'Watch The Flowers Grow b/w Raven' are also preserved here and did not feature on any original albums at the time. We found all of these preserved on a set of five Mercury Compilation Master Tapes. 'Raven' would not feature ever on a vinyl album and saw it's first release [in STEREO] on the Rhino Rarities Vol 2 in 1990. That mix will feature on a later disc.
This is the MONO tape scan as it has survived.
More versions however from this period were found but space restricted this Disc and we have focused on keeping all the original MONO versions of 45s with the original [but alternate mixed versions on] MONO and STEREO albums. The other versions found will surface on later Discs in the set. The late 60s proved to be a more fertile period for our research as I will document in future blogs.
Whilst these tracks showed the variety of styles and songs the group were capable of, the same formula built around Frankie Valli's falsetto was still the dominant 'hit' sound that the record buyers wanted and moving away from this would bring a classic album but a financial disaster.
By the end of 1963 the Four Seasons were in 'breach of contract'.....but back on the charts.!!
Their dispute with Vee-Jay was in the courts and their earlier material was still being released by that label.
Their decision to record again was made in summer 1964 after over a year of conflict re royalies and ownership of masters. There was a new sound coming from the group and 'Dawn' and 'No Surfin' Today' were recorded at Atlantic Studio with now legendary Sound Engineer Tom Dowd. The story of that is told in the Box Set Collectors Notes and the location of those original 8 track Masters is not known. They may still survive in Bob Crewe's Personal Archive at Crewe Studios in Maine otherwise they are lost apart from the 'underdub' STEREO version mixed on the Edizione D'Oro album.
What our research of the Four Seasons Partnership[FSP] Archive revealed is that MONO versions of these two songs as issued on 45 had made it to the relevant Master Albums and are preserved on the Safety Copy Master Tapes. This faded Tape Box shows just how long ago that was and how time and the typewriters of the times notes have almost faded with the timings and Master Matrix Nrs hand written and some titles and the album Nr. incorrect. However the ANALOGUE MASTERS are intact in both MONO and STEREO of this album and are now re-transferred to Pro-Tools in DIGITAL FORM and will be Re-Mastered for this set. This tape of their first Philips Album is Tape Box titled 'Folk-Album' and PHS200-129 [it should be marked PHM] . It would see release as 'Born To Wander' and in MONO has never before been released on CD. Dated 9th January 1964 this is clearly a copy from the Production Master as the album came out the following month.
There has never been any evidence of other 'unreleased' songs from these sessions but an acetate of 'Millie' was found as an alternative version and the story of this is in the Collectors Notes and it appears as a Bonus Track. Also appearing as a Bonus is the earliest known LIVE Recording of the Four Seasons. Taped out of the Sound Engineers Board and in Tommy DeVito's Archive comes a set of four songs from an early 1964 show shortly after this albums issue[two songs are from this album]. It captures the amazing range of Frankie Valli's vocal falsetto at that time and remains a key find of their history as a top 60s group.
The albums that followed through 1964 and 65 were all found to exist in both MONO and STEREO Safety Copy Tapes but the singles from this period are in several cases different mixes. Also several tracks were only ever MASTERED in MONO. Such examples are 'Big Man's World', 'Only Yesterday' and 'Ronnie'.
We turned to a set of Mercury Compilation Tapes which contained many of the groups single versions preserved as Safety Copies. The clear and Full Frequency and High Dynamic Range copies included the UNIQUE 45 mixes of 'Save It For Me' and 'Silence Is Golden'. The other notable finds from 1965 included 'A Sunday Kind Of Love' in both MONO and STEREO and the distinctively different MONO version of 'Girl Come Running'[which would not surface in STEREO till 1968]
The Final album of 1965 'Working My Way Back To You' did not include the 'Let's Hang On' 45 version and no albums contain the special Mix for 45 of 'Too Many Memories' and of 'Opus 17' [for Spring 1966 release]. All of these have been preserved in this set.
The FSP Archive tapes however did not contain many of Frankie Valli single releases from this period from his first 'solo' studio sessions in mid 1965 on and finding and preserving these proved to be a more difficult task. The Frankie Valli singles that survive were preserved on Polygram Compilation Tapes, but not comprehensively. As we had believed and was proved correct, 'The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore' and the 'B' side 'This Is Goodbye' did not survive as MONO MASTER's and are preserved in this Box Set from high quality vinyl dubs The latter track from our research only survived on the Tape Copy marked in pen as....'Fake STEREO'..[otherwise known as PSEUDO STEREO].......and a Re-Engineered attempt to replicate TRUE STEREO at the time.
All such tracks are included as dubs where they are missing or as created on the Engineer's Tape copy and are preserved as BONUS TRACKS on the albums for this period. The Frankie Valli SOLO 45 tracks appear on the SOLO Album Disc which I will cover later. Full details will be in the Collectors Notes.
The albums for this period in the Box Set are......
DISC 5 BORN TO WANDER MONO/STEREO
Philips PHM200129/PHS600129 No. 84 [2/64]
DISC 6 DAWN GO AWAY & 11 OTHERS MONO/STEREO
Philips PHM200124/PHS600124 No.6 [3/64]
DISC 7 RAG DOLL MONO/STEREO
Philips PHM200146/PHS600146 No. 7 [7/64]
DISC 8 THE FOUR SEASONS ENTERTAIN YOU [With 'Toy Soldier]MONO/STEREO
Philips PHM200164/PHS600164 No. 77 [3/65]
DISC 10 SING BIG HITS BY BACHARACH/DAVID AND DYLAN
Philips PHM200193/PHS600193 No. 106 [11/65]
DISC 11 WORKING MY WAY BACK TO YOU AND MORE GREAT NEW HITS MONO/STEREO Philips PHM200201/PHS600201 No.50 [1/66]
When Snapper Music through Bob Gaudio commissioned Bill Inglot to create new DIGITAL MASTERS from the ANALOGUE TAPES back in 2018, it was at at time we had wondered if this would reveal a treasure trove of unheard material?. But label scans of Tape Boxes revealed all sorts of notes, anomalies and background questions re what were the 'original' album and source tapes and if some tracks were even there?. Even the album mix of 'Sherry' is not as the 45 issue.
The story of the groups contract at Vee-Jay as told at the beginning of our Web Site Sessionography page [HERE] showed that the contract dispute led to documentation and storage of Tapes during the 1960s being neither comprehensive or consistent re the highest quality MASTER Tapes. Past recovery of MASTERS for projects for CD issue from 1988 had achieved a SET of STEREO MASTERS......but no focus on the Original MONO Masters had been done. And what about the 'special' mixes done for 45 release which are different to the album? Did they still exist as MASTERS?
ALL the stored Tapes in the Four Seasons Partnership Archive of the early albums appeared as 15 ips Safety Copies in some form supplied by the Studios/Label and no 3 or 4 track tapes from the sessions existed. This would prove to be the case for virtually all of the Analogue Tape 'era'[ie 1962 to 1986]. For the previous issues on CD of the Vee-Jay albums full copies of the albums had been difficult to find and a UK Copy of 'Ain't That A Shame' was sourced from EMI as it remains different to the US being substantially the 'Big Girls Don't Cry and 12 Others' album. [for which no tape was found]. It was also necessary for Bill Inglot for previous STEREO issues for CD to 'Re-Construct' the 'Sherry and 11 Others' album from various Tape Sources.
In evaluating the risks to sound quality for this project, it was decided that, via listening tests, the best sounding source MASTER tapes for all the Vee-Jay albums [both MONO and STEREO] where the Tapes handed back to the Four Seasons Partnership when Vee-Jay went bust in 1966. Many of these tracks were subsequently released by Philips on vinyl albums like 'Looking Back' and '2nd Gold Vault Of Hits' in November of that year.
For this Box Set the Masters each album track has been identified and are being sourced from these 'Delivery Tapes' as they were transferred by Ver-Jay They remain the closest generation tapes to the 'original' studio masters and were clearly the best sound sources from listening tests. They will be NEW digital releases for every track recorded at Vee-Jay in both MONO and STEREO album sets, something 'unique' to this Box Set. So each Vee-Jay album is being re-created from the closest source to the studio session versions which [from our research] no longer exist.
Some stunning Bonus Tracks were discovered from this period including previously unreleased acetates of DEMO's, and alternative STEREO and MONO versions as well as the unheard BBC Radio broadcasts from 1963 of 'Big Girls Don't Cry' and 'Ain't That A Shame' whilst on their UK tour. A NEW first time in STEREO mix of 'I've Cried Before' [with the group backing Frankie] as well as the 'special' STEREO Mixes re-engineered for the 'Golden Hits' album of 'Sherry' and 'Peanuts' have been preserved. Perhaps the most surprising find again 'unique' to this Box Set was to discover 3 totally different versions of an 'unreleased' Bob Gaudio penned song 'Like You'. It appears as an original 1961 DEMO and then as versions first a year later with an organ backed arrangement and finally from 1963 with a trumpet backing. Frankie Valli's lead vocal on all 3 is impeccable.
The Box Set Collectors Notes will provide details of all single and album releases and sources for the 'unreleased'.
The Vee-Jay albums in their complete MONO and STEREO Versions included are.....
DISC 1 – SHERRY & 11 OTHERS MONO/STEREO
Vee-Jay VJLP 1053/SR 1053 No. 6 [10/62]
DISC 2 FOUR SEASONS GREETINGS MONO/STEREO
VJ VJLP 1055/SR 1055 No.13 on Xmas Chart in 12/63 [12/62]
DISC 3 BIG GIRLS DON’T CRY & 12 OTHERS MONO/STEREO
Vee-Jay VJLP 1056/SR 1056 No. 8 [2/63]
DISC 4 AIN’T THAT A SHAME & 11 OTHERS MONO/STEREO
Vee-Jay VJLP 1059/SR 1059 No. 47 [5/63]
DISC 9 THE FOUR SEASONS RECORDED LIVE ON-STAGE MONO/STEREO
Back in 2009 Casey Chameleon and Sound Engineer Stefan Wriedt wrote a blog for us re the status of the CD based Four Seasons Catalogue and the sources of some of the Mixes ….what existed still as the original vinyl?.... and what the definition was of a 'Best Mix' on CD?. That blog is still relevant [and can be found here] and as we enter the REMASTERING stage of the Snapper Music Box Set we are revisiting that in terms of what has survived and how it has been gathered from a wide range of sources and what we and Snapper are seeking to achieve in the Box Set. Much investment by Snapper Music goes into the artwork and memorabilia gathering and it's presentation which is their hallmark. But so too is the Mastering by Peter Reynolds and his very wide experience.
Our Mega CD DISCOGRAPHY on our web site[See Here].....attempted to track and assess the quality of the CD's by Frankie Valli and the group released from 1988 to 2010......including most in your collections …...and to take a view of their Collectibility[in terms of originality and sound quality]. Many of the links to purchase sites at the time still apply....some very cheap but others 'super' expensive. But with Stefan passing away and the rise of You Tube and streaming it has not been possible.......or worthwhile....... investing effort in such a difficult revision of the CD catalogue web page on our web site without his sound engineering skills. The CD has also become as rare as vinyl although still a viable music storage medium in 2021.
Our focus is MASTERING TODAY and a NEW reference point in terms of the catalogue. SO in this NEW COLLECTION from Snapper Music we have re-visited the ANALOGUE TAPES checking their 'authenticity' as the production intention of Bob Crewe, Bob Gaudio and the other producers involved over the decades. This will probably be the LAST AND DEFINITIVE SET OF MASTERS on CD by Frankie and the group for future generations and for transfer to other media platforms[ie streaming etc].
The variablity of CD quality issues of FV/4S music in terms of MASTERING is so inconsistent since 1988 and of course the 1960s MONO releases have not been properly addressed as we will considered in forthcoming blogs.
Back in 2009 Casey and Stefan set a standard wanted for the catalogue as 'BEST MIXES'
“Firstly the characteristics that make it sound great……
Clarity – that sharp clear shape to each element in the sound
Content – the sound stage and it’s constituent parts
Separation – the difference or space within the sound between the elements
Depth – the position of the sounds in terms of the distance they appear from the listener and each other.
We believe the definitive versions need to be stored in the best digital form for future generations of collectors. As mastering improves and the technology to process the sound, we will be able enjoy the Four Seasons as never before. Their collection is too important to be neglected”
That has happened now thanks to Snapper Music and an 'enlightened' attitude from Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli. The process of finding and reviewing all potential sources for this project has taken 3 years and has been difficult. Over the next 6 months I will outline the search for rare and authentic tracks as recorded by the group with all of their albums and alternate surviving versions worthy of note. Duplication in the set has been avoided as much as possible with the MONO and STEREO versions recovered as they have survived. Acetates and LIVE show recordings have contributed much to the range and importance of the performances over the period and each 'decade' has it's pop/rock music context. Every track included is in the research team's opinion.....'UNIQUE' [ie being the only one of its kind; unlike anything else] The tracks that never made it to STEREO have also been researched too and the original MONO MASTER versions found, along with Pseudo STEREO versions[as produced at the time following MONO only recordings].
In the 2009 Blog Stefan analyzed how no TRUE STEREO version of 'Goodnight My Love' had ever appeared on CD and he tracked the vinyl sources. It took us, as an example, till April 2021 for Bill Inglot to find a tape source deep in the Four Seasons Partnership Archive and allocate it for 're-mastering'. With the delay of the pandemic more time has allowed intense searches such as this to uncover more 'original' hidden gems.
I will start from the beginning in our next blog and work through the very distinctive 'decade focused' sources of the MASTERS and how they have and are stored and what has survived and been 'rescued'. My conclusion overall is that this has been a major 'rescue mission' and but for this project much would probably be lost forever. I will document what we couldn't find or include.......and the 'rescue work' still needed . And although a huge achievement the research for this set has shown there is more to be found and released......some sources we know of whilst others remain rumours.
And one mystery source remains largely unknown......the 'BOB CREWE ARCHIVE' which remains in the hands of Dan and Reid Crewe at Crewe Studios in Maine.
It is all about 'Looking Back'......which was the title of a 1966 album by the group. But that is what we have been doing on your behalf as part of the Snapper Music Project. For the first time it has been a case of fan involvement in asking the Four Seasons Partnership just what still exists of the Four Seasons Master tapes?
It has been a long project for us as researchers in The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society on behalf of all fans worldwide.....and recently through a long pandemic....and it is deeply sad that we lost some wonderful people due to Covid. But life and music must go on and it is good to announce that through the collaboration we have had with Snapper Music and the research of the sources we were able to make some amazing finds. The research for their planned Box Set release has now been completed. We are advised by Snapper that Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli have agreed the content they can release for the fans almost entirely as we asked for.
The final search of tapes and acetates during April 2021 added greatly to the rare and unreleased and alternative versions that have been found. Bob Gaudio personally checked out 29 of the bonus track finds for the set.
It is now for Snapper to take the project forward into the Re-Mastering and Production stage, after the research of sources for the Masters from the Partnership Tape storage, the Universal Motown Archive in New York State and Collectors Archives. Each CD features Bonus Tracks as closely related to the career timeline of Frankie and the group as was possible and the selection for inclusion has sought to include every important recording both released and unreleased in a comprehensive collection.
This has always been the aim of the UK fan group.
The identification and selection of both original and stereo versions of tracks from the 1960s in particular was considered the most intense area for research. But the inclusion of 13 Unreleased and stunning productions from their time at MoWest/Motown with alternate versions together with ALL the released tracks from that period provides a core achievement that was what we in THE FOUR SEASONS UK APPRECIATION SOCIETY signed up for with Snapper Music of London back on 20th August 2018 . And then to our surprise the research team found the LOST DISCO ALBUM and the STREETFIGHTER album studio Tapes plus lots more. All will be revealed and put into context as the release date arrives.
Two objectives for us since 1997 have been finding the UNRELEASED tracks and getting the 1960s albums in MONO, remastered to modern mastering [now 2021] standards. We wanted confirmation of what had survived on tape and for this to be salvaged and restored. We can say that our objectives are 90% achieved [subject to re-mastering] and in our blogs I will up to its release explain what was found. [and what couldn't be found or included].
We and the Snapper Team believe this to be an awesome collection which fans will love. l will post more on our blog through the summer re the individual albums by the group and their background and will advise also as Snapper prepare their press release plans and pre-ordering arrangements. All of you will want to know the final details we know and with Snapper we will provide final details for the Box contents, price and release as soon as possible.
Ken Charmer and Lynn Boleyn
Next Time we will re-visit Casey Chameleon's search for the 'Best Mixes' in 2009 and what has been found in 2021
It is not often that we come across a programme well researched and told by top DJ's in an entertaining and engaging podcast that you can enjoy or download. Last week Part One of this two Part Series hit the internet and it is highly recommended to all Four Seasons fans. This is their introduction.
“This is part one of our two-part salute to a group whose incredible career has been celebrated on stage and screen in “The Jersey Boys.” They’re the Four Seasons. We’ll chronicle all of their hit singles, as we track their tunes – collectively as a group – and individually as soloists from the 1953 to 2020.
On this episode, we’ll cover their music through the year 1966. We’re joined by one of our frequent guest experts – Nay Nassar – a leading authority on 1950s and 1960s vocal groups. And our resident Rockologist, Ken Deutsch, has sage perspectives on how the Four Seasons developed their distinctive sound. Plus, more of Ken’s customary factoids, including the Four Seasons unique connections with the Beatles and the Beach Boys. And Radio Dave will have more of the greatest rock and roll stories on record. Including some truly rare and scratchy answer songs by other artists who pressed platters in response to some of the Four Seasons greatest hits. Then there’s also the genesis of Frankie Valli’s solo career while simultaneously serving as the lead singer on almost all Four Seasons hit singles.”
The punchy DJ and Factoid experts fire facts from the early years of their career and feature all the hits in context as well as elements of the backing work pre Four Seasons and the key work of the members. The Unusual Instruments feature focused on Bob Crewe production style is really good
The Guys who research produce and deliver it have good credentials. "Radio Dave” Milberg is the host according to his biography, since 1965 he has worked as a DJ at stations 9n Detroit, Ann Arbor, Cincinnati (hence the reference to WLW-AM on this podcast), Chicago, Sarasota and Bradenton. He is also a lawyer. Ken Deutsch is a former disc jockey, former TV director and former owner of a recording studio that specialized in radio jingles.
As Music Detectives and collectors ourselves we have our own observations that are not criticisms, but just observation of the sound and factoids presented. It is not easy to assemble so much specialty knowledge in such a format and get everything right. We found only one error and that is that the Four Seasons-Beach Boys 'Duet' of 'East Meets West was a 1984 release and not 1980.
The presentation of so many works they backed artists on in Bob Crewe's collection of artists is really well summarised with great tracks as is the well presented 'road from 1953 to The Four Seasons birth' [but not in it's timeline in the presentation]
And it would have been good to have had the Four Seasons 'HITS” samples in MONO instead of STEREO [as they were heard in MONO on radio at the time]. But as these are not generally available except on the Jersey Beat Box Set from 2007[and these are poor quality MONO versions]......so STEREO was probably the only choice possible until the Snapper Box Set comes out later this year.
The only major factual error is that Tommy's debt problems with the Mafia did not arise in 1965 . They were uncovered in 1968/69. Frankie Valli going solo and creating the Wonder Who to pay the bills is not correct. Frankie always wanted a solo career and Philips were reluctant......so he and Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio started recording him solo on Smash Records. Also the Wonder Who concept was an accidental novelty track during recording and Philips wanted it released but not to compete with 'Let's Hang On' in 1965 when it was flying high into the charts. Hence The Wonder Who.
Don't miss this, it is highly recommended. Click this link.
There are so many reasons to play this album in 2020 as we in the Snapper team review the Tape Transfers from the Four Seasons Partnership to Final Mastering. A No.13 hit on the Christmas Chart in December 63 it had been released a year earlier. It resonates and warms the heart and we need that in our socially distanced lives this year more than ever. Held together by friendships and social media we are determined to fight the invisible enemy and get the BEST EVER release of Frankie and the group out next year.
As we send best wishes out from the UK Fan Club to all of you, we are working hard to get you the Snapper Box Set as soon as possible next year.
The set now runs to 44 CDs. Genuine Imitation Life Gazette needed another CD to accommodate the MONO and STEREO versions[whilst the MONO version will still also be in the vinyl insert.] We have checked all the Bonus Tracks and have been able to locate and include alternative MONO 45 versions in both the 1960s and 70s like the DJ PROMO version of 'I've Got You Under My Skin' and a TRUE STEREO version of Frankie and the group on the lost 'B' side to 'Sherry'.......'I've Cried Before'.
We have located ALL the original VJ Masters in MONO and STEREO for all their albums at that label[rather than the album Safety Tapes] and Master Tapes of the Philips albums are mostly in both too. Rare versions and Unreleased gems sprinkle the CD's as Bonus Tracks to the albums and the 13 Motown Unreleased are brilliant songs and performances.
As 2021 begins we will have all tracks located and ready for re-mastering. This is the first time since 1988 that a comprehensive analogue to digital transfer has been done of the FSP vault and the whole catalogue included here will be everything that has survived.
The MONO Tracks from the 1960s are a revelation and on CD in album and single form for the first time. All the UNIQUE Bob Crewe 45 mixes appear as many are different to the album versions and whilst no STUDIO Master Tape multi-tracks have survived it was nice to discover the STEREO of the 45 version of 'Tell It To The Rain' was there all the time.....so now we have 4 versions of the song. And of course we have the specially collected Edizione D'Oro 29 Hits selection with the UNIQUE STEREO versions of 10 of their hits.
We have tried to make the set everything both fans and collectors would want and with the help of Bill Inglot and Bob and Frankie it will be. More in 2021. Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year
Ken Charmer and Lynn Boleyn for The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society – December 2020
There comes a time when you have to ask …...'Is it enough?' A time to reflect on the process of how we got this far and how much we have missed out on.....particularly in such dreadful times when our very existence is at risk from an invisible enemy.
The excitement of the opportunity to review all of the Four Seasons Partnerships[FSP] Archive has been the driving force for the design and preparation of the forthcoming Snapper Box Set. All the released and unreleased by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons from 1962 to 2010. BUT not quite!!
A project over 3 years old but one that really started back in the 'noughties' when collectors like me and sound engineer Stefan Wriedt questioned what has been given to the fans to date as we dreamed of the ultimate collection based on access to the 'Archives' and modern technology sound engineering. Stefan himself organised the bootleg issue of 'The Night/Inside You' because neither the FSP nor Universal Motown would look back and issue on CD what had been released on vinyl by the label in the early 1970s.
I started to research the Motown vault information and the list started......and grew......
Could there be up to 30 unreleased tracks in the Motown vault? [as that was what was indicated] The evidence built and we found acetates of some of what had been done and left behind when they left the label in 1974. We put them on You Tube as proof. The case for a project of the 'Unreleased' at Motown was made. BUT that was never going to be enough. Ask Paul Nixon about getting 'approvals' for tracks known to be in the Motown Vault and he will tell you how it took 5 years after his highly successful 'Cellarfull Of Motown Series Volumes 1 to 4' and this week sees the release of Volume 5. ….....5 years on!!!!!! He found it was like trying to move mountains.....but persistence and belief prevailed.
Then with the concept of the Snapper Box set and the amazing news that Bob Gaudio would review and approve unreleased tracks from every decade ????......we believed a change of heart was happening to set down a 'library' of the career so many of us have supported since the 1970s fan clubs . Many of you have helped and searched for lost recordings and live shows. That contribution was as much part of the exercise of research that resulted in the LIST. BUT Bob Gaudio only approved 13 tracks from the 29 multi-track tapes supplied by Motown. Even though Motown's Tape Library Manager Andy Skurow admitted that at least another 15 could have been added being complete and of a similar quality. Such news is somewhat disillusioning to fans and makes us doubt the FSP commitment.
And what about Frankie and Bob's personal collection? No contributions were offered or made. And so much remains missing or not researched.
It is from the fans work over the years that I have pushed to Snapper to include unique finds.....and most of them have been accepted.......some could not be licensed but if anyone says 'This is NOT ENOUGH' I will agree. The FSP vault did not reveal the expected 'unreleased' and much of what was 'rumoured' to exist was left behind in Recording Studios. How could the music owners do this you may ask?......a good question. Take for example the superb 'Killing Time' , a superb left-over from the 'Streetfighter ' album sessions.......despite 3 years of searching the original studio tape has not surfaced......only a Larry Lingle cassette copy. And of the LIVE shows......only group members copies on cassette have survived of 3 shows.....plus a few tracks Tommy De Vito had from 1964.
Of around 818 track included around 60 could be classed as 'Unreleased' and around 40% are fan/former Four Season contributions. Why didn't Frankie's Tour Manager record more shows???
The UNIQUE Motown Vaults Mult-track Tapes could have contributed at least 20 more tacks with alternative mixes of tracks like the extended version of 'Hickory'. I have done all I can to get them but will never stop asking[Snapper, FSP, Motown Universal] for more. But as Lynn Boleyn and I have continuously supported this project we have had to be realistic!!!!!
Whilst there have previously been reasons for suppressing such releases by the FSP we had hoped this could be the ultimate collection. I started working with compiler Paul Nixon back in 2005 to try to get some of the then 1990s list of unreleased tracks at Motown released. Frankie Valli's lawyer stopped that saying any work was 'incomplete demos'. Of course at the time the build up of Jersey Boys was the main attraction.......and back in 1975 of course the Warner-Curb album 'Who Loves You' was the main focus. The FSP didn't want 'old material' competing....no matter what the quality!!!
This time with the Box Set research we had limitations to sources and time for contract approvals and Bob Gaudio assessed the Motown Tapes....NOT US!!!!! We are maybe 90% happy that the catalogue will move to its next Stage of NEW and SALVAGED Masters of great 'art' by August next year......that will make it a 4 year project due in large part to the pandemic.
Some fans have been questioning the value of this Box Set and Snapper tell me their artwork and collectible photos and picture sleeves will be superb......but it is the music that counts for most of us.......Fans will rightly ask.....'Is it all about the money the music can make? Or is there a genuine appreciation at all of the work as 'art' that should be preserved?' I can't ask Frankie or Bob but I can pass on the message that this ISN'T ENOUGH. In reality it is only us fans that care 100% about the art. But we still want this project and it will be good value for money. We will work with Snapper to bring the best sounding set of Four Seasons and Frankie Valli music to the fans.
It can't happen soon enough as we fight this pandemic and get some solace in the music we love.
We will keep pushing for more and will be calling for a Box Set based on a review of ALL the Motown Tapes.......give us the access to assess to review the material and we ask you to look in to your personal archives [Bob and Frankie]. You need to work with us to maximise your catalogue value for future generations. We are best equipped through our 'network' to achieve that....We are already planning fan based release of material not included in this package......this is how we see at present it will have to go.......Digitally Extracted Stereo[DES] is coming too and our aim is to develop NEW TRUE 21stCentury STEREO Masters.
…........so STAY SAFE and LIVE LONG........the Box Set is coming......but it shouldn't have taken this long. However we are getting nearly as much as we wanted/hoped for in 2005, when Stefan and I said.......'it has to be preserved'. But it remains 'bittersweet'. As such close friends [like Stefan and Frank Rovello] have passed away and wont experience it. It also comes at a price that is known 'true' collectors will pay but which will unfortunately put some fans off.
Other projects will follow. There will be more..........Ken Charmer
It is a difficult time with the UK Press announcing that the Government is effectively putting 'Life On Hold' as winter approaches as we all seek to stay safe and get through these unprecedented times. The sad loss of 92 year old founder 4 Season Tommy DeVito to Covid related problems only reinforces the dangers for older people in life as many Four Seasons fans feel the strain and increasingly turn back on Facebook and You Tube to the music for support. It is a sad time for his family and the fanbase who love the backstory. We have a separate blog re his contribution to our music and our lives.
As UK Fan Group managers Lynn Boleyn and I have been striving to give all fans the set of music that will completely 're-connect' the music of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons with their history and their fans and it would have been good to have done that at this time. It was just over 3 years ago we met Ian Crocket and Bob Fisher at Snapper Records in London and talked about what the fans wanted in a Mega Box Set.........we both said without hesitation......the MOTOWN UNRELEASED.....and an update from the Partnership vaults of the MONO Catalogue from the 1960s which has NEVER been released on CD. For 3 years now Ian, us and his team have been investing the time and effort to bring this to fruition.....something we see as intensely important during these pandemic times.
I spoke to Ian Crocket yesterday re progress in these challenging times and the inevitable delays to projects he is getting. Whilst we have gathered and are working on the huge artwork parts of the project, the continued closure of Curb Records and Universal Motown [until January] has put back re-mastering and quality checks so we are now looking at the set being complete and available next August. Snapper continue to invest in the project and contracts are in place. So it is a case of hanging in there and seeing the crisis through.
As all lament the sad passing of Tommy DeVito it is thanks to him that we have some awesome Unreleased Songs going into the Box Set as a result of getting hold of his 1960s Archive cassette. This has contributed 6 tracks to the compilation from the earliest days of the Four Seasons. Four are terrific good quality soundboard tracks from a Live 1964 show featuring 'Stay/Since I Don't Have You/Cry Myself To Sleep/Dawn' and two early Demos of 'I Still Care' and 'Like You' with Nick Massi's excellent vocal arrangements. Thanks Tommy!!!!
I will be featuring some other excerpts from Tommy's Archive Tape in our Facebook Group[ The Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign] and some date back to the days of The Four Lovers.
So hang on in and we will keep you posted as the Re-Mastering re-commences as we start to hear the MONO albums reproduced again for the 21st century and we continue to push this 2500 limited edition through to delivery and ordering dates. More news and rarities as and when we can.
As we enter the PRODUCTION STAGE of the Snapper box set of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons Catalogue 1962 to 2010, I will be doing Blog posts relating to the highlights and this is the story of one UNIQUE CD which developed out of the Tape research. We were given unique access to the NEW transfer from the Four Seasons Partnership [FSP] Archive.
Some tapes emerged which seemed to be related to the 'Heaven Above Me' album from 1980 and several tracks were clearly Unreleased or Alternate Versions and so we tried to analyse what MAY have happened.
Whilst Frankie was at Warners for the FRANKIE VALLI IS THE WORD album Bob Crewe[ with Bob Gaudio] recorded Back In Action/Can't Be Too Much Music/ Stagger Lee according to Warner paper records of masters completed. During this period Bob Crewe wrote[ with Larry Brown] , recorded for Warner Bros [probably late 1978] and released Fancy Dancer as a 45. [Warner Curb WBS 8734] It reached Nr 77 on the Billboard Chart and Nr 36 on the Adult Contemporary Chart in the USA. In Feb 1979 'Doctor Dance' was mixed for release but would come out over a year later as a B side.
Only 'Back In Action' appears to have been copied to the Partnership Vaults from the Warner sessions . How or why we do not know.....nor does anybody know where the other two tracks are.? [In a studio archive somewhere ….we wish we had access but probably Sigma Sound New York.. If any tapes remain unclaimed they may now be held at Drexel University, Philidelphia as noted on Wikipedia.]
A number of tracks have been found in the FSP Archive as proposed versions. Most of these tracks are known but as other recordings. Those found here are UNRELEASED. A proposed album was prepared for release on 22nd May 1979. but only one side of the album has survived on Tape.
So as a NEW Record Deal with MCA was signed it meant a Crewe and Gaudio re-recording for MCA 5134 and the result was the Heaven Above Me album in 1980. The dates for these earlier recordings are indicated as mainly in mid 1979 according to tape box dates. A number of original versions with extended mixes and alternate vocals or arrangements were laid down and remained in the Partnership vault until now. We have carefully reviewed these and although at first they just had the potential to be BONUS tracks the idea of a CLUB disco album emerged and we looked at how they might fit together as a DISCO album. HEAVEN ABOVE ME stands iconically as the last CREWE/GAUDIO masterpiece but this set stands on its own as a CLUB SET.
The result is an album that builds slowly to the break-out in 'Let It Be Whatever It Is' and then rocks TOTAL DISCO before a gentle wind-down of ALL UNRELEASED versions.
BACK IN ACTION – THE LOST DISCO ALBUM
Track 1 – Back In Action – 4mins 53secs....with fade [Unreleased]
Track 2 – Fancy Dancer – 4mins 18 secs.....longer version than 45 with fade [Unreleased]
Track 3 – Let It Be Whatever It Is – 7mins 59 secs....longer version with extra vocals [Unreleased]
Track 4 – Dr Dance – 6mins 7secs – Extended 2nd Mix with extra vocals [Unreleased]
Track 5 – Eat Your Heart Out - 5mins 24 secs – Extended mix [Unreleased]
Track 6 – Passion For Paris – 9mins 20secs – Extended Mix [Unreleased]
Track 8 – Back In Action[Reprise] TV Instrumental [Unreleased]
Wind-down Track 9 – Where Did We Go Wrong – Original Long Version Extra vocal - 3mins 58sec [Unreleased]
Wind-down Track 10 – If It Really Wasn't Love – No female backing: Valli Solo [Unreleased]
Wind-down Track 11 – Just Say That You Love Me – Valli Solo [Unreleased]
The Master Tape that contained the proposed single of 'Soul' was mixed on 19th October 1979 with a longer version for 12”. But we found the tape damaged and so we edited what was remaining and the result was a combination of the two and it runs 11 mins 19 seconds. What is different re this version is it contains a 'Latin' background singer solo in the middle...which appears twice due to this edit......as a result it is a completely different[and unique] version to the 'Heaven Above Me' album song
We think overall this works as a totally UNIQUE album set and runs 54mins 48 secs of Dance floor music plus Wind-down. We have used up the remaining space on the CD with a set of unreleased ballads found on the tapes …....as a Wind-Down set from the DANCE SET [around 10 mins] …....these are all extra alternative versions of tracks which are entirely 'collectable' and are forerunners to the 'Heaven Above Me' album.
But there is more.......
We also had some really good ALTERNATE VERSIONS worthy of inclusion as BONUS Tracks which will fit comfortably at the end of the Heaven Above Me album but that ORIGINAL and final set of album mixes is the 'creme de la crème'. These tracks are just some 'icing' on the cake for fans as alternate versions
Heaven Above Me - BONUS TRACKS
Track 9 – Back in Action – 4 mins 53secs: Alternate version with New Ending[no fade]
Track 11 – Dr Dance - 3rd Alternate – TV instrumental Mix
We have extracted all the tracks and sent them as sets for Re-Mastering and as part of the BIG LIST they have been approved by Bob Gaudio and will be Mastered for the Box Set.
This was Bob Crewe's last major Partnership work with Bob Gaudio before his retirement from mainstream production that generated the Heaven Above Me album . These tracks show it's development......but mainly the PURE ENERGY and FUN in it's DANCE productions.
In our final review of the Tape Archive finds in the Four Seasons Partnership vaults is perhaps the most surprising find of all our research over the years and confirmation of something we discovered in the Tape Index Paper records which are now proved.
Assessing the Artists Cards we found references to tracks being copied to two album tapes P5084 and 5085. So when the Tape box showed up with Side 2 of that album were we amazed......but not as much as when we played it.
It contains not only the Alternate Take of 'My Eyes Adored You' but 3 other previously unreleased tracks from the Bob Gaudio session during the summer of 1973.
All of the finds on these tapes prove to be different versions in some ways. Either an alternate vocal or instrumental arrangement. They differ from the tracks Bob Gaudio has provided for the BOX SET and we think they are essential inclusions as they are simply such good mixes.
Below is the detailed analysis of the Tape listening research we have been able to carry out.
BONUS ALTERNATE MASTER VERSIONS IN FSP ARCHIVE [Found in FSP Tapes as Tape Box Scans with Transfer Locations]
MY EYES ADORED YOU – Alternate closing lyric [FS Set 6 Tracks 2 _239]
This is identified on the Tape Box as a NEW MIX, and is clearly not the hit version bought for $4,600 when they left the label. The differences are the extra vocals by Frankie on the closing section. The question that comes to mind is “Does the Partnership OWN this Master as they bought it in 1974/ Did that purchase include all MASTER copies? An interesting but pretty minor matter with such and important and historic song.
WHATEVER YOU WANT - Alternate Harmony version[FS Set 6 Tracks 2 _239]
This is simply a different mix of the harmony vocals and the orchestration. It is the mix prepared for release on the album assembled in May 1974 in preparation for release.
INSIDE YOU – Alternate Version – Frankie Valli Solo – Less Harmony backing [FS Set 6 Tracks 2 _239]
This is alternate version to that included on the 'Inside You' album. It does not have the 'heavy' string overdub and has the instrumentation mixed higher/differently[guitars and drums] in the mix. It also has lower /less backing vocals. The result is a Frankie Valli 'solo' stripped back version which works very well. It runs 3:35 instead of the 4:05 on the album version.
LOVERS - Alternate Version - [FS Set 6 Tracks 2 _239]
This again is a different mix of instrumentation to accompany Frankie Valli. There is much better separation[placement] of guitars/drums and harmony backing. There is also a step in the instrumentation before the closing harmony outro which works perfectly. This is definitely the best mix I have heard, and was the mix prepared for album release in 1974
HYMN TO HER – Alternate Version -[FS Set 6 Tracks 2 _239]
Again this mix differs significantly. The opening choral harmonies 'fade-in' and the church organ section is different. Once again the separation of instruments individually and harmonies is superb with the Seasons 'backing' shining through. The overdub of horns on the closing anthemic vocals with guitar is again superb. This is definitely the best mix I have heard, and was the mix prepared for album release in 1974.
FUTURE YEARS – Alternate Version[FS Set 6 Tracks 1 _278]
This version differs from the one approved version because the lyric can be more clearly heard and once again separation of instruments is better. Also there is a step of orchestration in the closing section which works perfectly. This is IMO a better version than was approved.
WHATEVER YOU WANT - Alternate Version 2 [FS Set 6 Tracks 1_278] Piano Backing
The big difference with this version is that it is without the the 'Harmony' backing track. Whilst those backing vocals work superbly on the main version, this piano led 'stripped down' orchestra and Frankie version works equally well. A worthy Alternate Version.
YOU CAN'T HOLD ON - Alternate Version[FS Set 6 Tracks 1 _278]
This version varies from the approved version as it has no Vocal Backing track and Frankie's Vocal is different on the closing sections. It still works well because the alternate instrumental mix is excellent [particularly the sax] with a superb 'lead' vocal.
YOU CAN'T HOLD ON – TAKE 6 - Alternate 'FINAL MIX' Version[FS Set 6 Tracks 3 _215]
This version described on the Tape Box as 'FINAL MIX' appears as lined up for a 'B' side release with 'The Night' based on the Tape Box. It has different Vocal Backing track and Frankie's Vocal is different on the outro[superb falsetto chanting with the backing singers]. It works really well because of the alternate instrumental mix with a superb 'lead' and backing vocal. Definitely the 'best mix'.
So all these Alternate Mixes could and should be included for fans with the co-operation of Universal. They would elevate the Collectibility of the set, and demonstrate more of the 'goldmine' of these multi-track tapes for perhaps a future issue of more UNRELEASED and ALTERNATE TAKES by the Partnership in conjunction with Universal. The approved 13 tracks and these ALTERNATE MIXES are the find of the project to me after so many years of research. I never would have believed such quality could be 'locked away' for all these years. This CD could and should be the GOLD in the box set. If you want these versions included in the BOX SET let us, Snapper, Bob Gaudio and Universal Music know here.
We will continue campaigning for a future research project on the TAPES recovered from MOTOWN UNIVERSAL........but what a find these are
Continuing our review of the Tapes found in the Four Seasons Partnership Tape Archive this access got us confirmation of our research re the early 1973 sessions as Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe started working together again in the studio. This time at Motown.
Mowest was going 'down the tubes' in early 1973 and Frankie and the group were back on Motown. But the two Bob's were busy writing and recording with Frankie Valli. But not it seems with the Four Seasons. The performing group were not considered up to the productions proposed. Work started in January 1973 with the Ellie Greewich composed 'Be My Lover, Be My Friend', but it was the songs 'With My Eyes Wide Open' and 'Listening To Yesterday' that impressed Motown Execs. Initially and probably based on these STEREO Mixes during the sessions. These appear from this FSP Archive Tape Box to have been mixed to MONO/STEREO as test mixes.....final mix demos. They are different to what would eventually surface as final releases
An album was 'slated for release' as Motown 788 titled 'Inside Out' for release in August 1973 but was never developed or finished. 'How Come' from these sessions was released in May 1973 [Motown 1255F] but did not achieve adequate sales and this was perhaps why the album was abandoned.
This Tape Box show a mixing/copying date of 2nd February 1973 and the mixes of 'Listening To Yesterday' feature a harmony male vocal background, whereas the 45 release on Motown M1251F in May 1973 as a B side to 'You've Got Your Troubles' would feature female backing vocals. This 'harmony' version would eventually feature on the Motown Anthology 2CD set in 2008 but the 45 release has never seen CD issue to date and we have asked for it in the BOX SET. Another track from these sessions 'Star' will get release in the Box Set and is a revelation of these great songs and great sessions. We know of more songs from the sessions that remain completed but remain unreleased. But 'With My Eyes Wide Open' would eventually see release on their post contract Motown album 'Inside You' in 1975. These versions lack the 'finishing' orchestral overdub of that final and released version but feature great instrumental mixes.[and both MONO and 2 alternate STEREO Mixes]. But this song along with the stunning 'Inside You' from these sessions would again be lined up for release on album in a lost 1974 album listing and more on that in Part 3.
These mixes are clearly evaluation mixes but show the quality of production but makes it more surprising that a slow ballad and arrangement re-worked from 1969 at Philips [You've Got Your Troubles] should be preferred for release with these 'original' tracks in the 'can'.
We will also feature in Part 3 the next Motown Tape findings of 3 tracks we had claimed were part of a separate session that saw the release of 'The Scalawag Song' which was also released with little promotion or belief by Motown. Three superb songs shown as copied in January 1974 to producer Bob Gaudio.......were simply forgotten until now and destined for release in the forthcoming Box Set. However these tapes are alternate mixes destined for album transfer......but also for another Motown album that would not see release.
These tape boxes only confirm our data on the Tape Index and make the release of missing gems and alternate mixes a serious endeavour for us to continue. As well as Be My Lover, Be My Friend' we are missing 'Turn It All Around' and Give Us This Day' from the sessions. These remain in the Universal Archive now with Bob Gaudio. We await more news of these.
The Tape Research work by the Snapper Team is now complete and all tracks selected by fans recommendations and Snapper Team evaluation of the Four Seasons Partnership [FSP] Archive Transfers by Bill Inglot have been incorporated. It is brilliant that Bob Gaudio has approved the LIST. The QUALITY CONTROL phase starts now as the Re-mastering moves on.
The Motown UNRELEASED CD results from Bob Gaudio's review of circa 29 Multi-Track tapes supplied to him by Universal. These are as the Tape Index we have been researching for over 10 years. To date all finds have matched in some way our index and the Artists Cards that have informed the research. Only 13 tracks have been approved for inclusion . The only track previously approved and later deleted was 'I Will Love You Like A Man', and we can only think this is because the title may be interpreted as having 'gender issues'?? Such are these times.! As I have advised in this blog.....all 13 approved are top quality performances and 80% match any previously released Motown issued tracks by Frankie and the group and even album tracks from the Private Stock period that followed their time at Motown and MoWest Records.
One of the biggest surprises of the FSP Tape Archive review was that several of the 13 tracks approved were already in the FSP Archive and are ALTERNATE versions. In our continuing reporting of the facts I will be advising fans of our research as always. I have already advised of our finding of a copy of The Night/You Can't Hold On as a 45 in May 1974[see our previous blog] and this is the evidence of a second but equally well known track.
It is my assessment that consideration should be given to these ALTERNATE versions for 'possible' inclusion in the BOX SET and they should be definitely heard and reviewed by Bob Gaudio.[as he has probably forgotten that he had them]. They were clearly supplied to the FSP for approval as all are FULL STEREO MIXES and most were ready for release. The fans expected more tracks from the Motown vaults in this box set and Universal sources have confirmed at least 15 further quality tracks exist in completed form that could have been included . Perhaps time pressure prevented Bob from fully assessing the tapes.
Inclusion of these ALTERNATE versions would make this UNRELEASED TRACKS CD far more appealing to fans. The difficulty of getting ISRC numbers for the tracks and inclusion in the UNIVERSAL contract remains a difficulty for Snapper to manage but as these are simply alternate versions they can possibly use the same ISRC number. I hope Bob Gaudio will realise how good these versions are and if he does I strongly believe in their inclusion and a call to Harry Weinger at Universal would enable their inclusion in the contract to be quickly done.
These finds were at the time UNRELEASED but clearly late production STEREO Mixes ready for release [in many cases] as stored back in 1973/74, but with the group leaving the label no production commitment was made. These notes have been passed back to Snapper to inform Bob Gaudio of the finds and the tracks can be shared with him[and Universal] for assessment.
BONUS ALTERNATE MASTER VERSIONS IN FSP ARCHIVE [Found in FSP Tapes as attached Tape Box Scans with Transfer Locations] Part 1
MY EYES ADORED YOU – Alternate closing lyric [FS Set 6 Tracks 2 _239]
This is identified [as you can see] on the Tape Box as a NEW MIX, and is clearly not the hit version bought for $4,600 when they left the label. The differences are in the mix of instruments and backing vocals and the guitar is much more pronounced......and the most noticeable change is the extra vocals by Frankie on the closing section. The question that comes to mind is “Does the Partnership OWN this Master as they bought it in 1974? Did that purchase include all MASTER copies?” An interesting but perhaps not so minor matter with such an important and historic song.
But the Artists Card makes it very clear that the MASTER TAPE was 'Sold back to Producer'[ie Bob Crewe]. The first STEREO MIX was done on 11th December 1973[from the final recording sessions at the label] and it was over 6 months later that 2 other MIXES were done on 6th June 1974 for the album Tape P5084 and 10th June 1974[BG – low level?]. Clearly at that stage Motown intended to release an album of Frankie and the group. The Tape Box in the FSP Archive was a copy made on 25th June 1974 and lists Bob Gaudio[incorrectly] as the producer in a (NEW MIX). It clearly is and runs 3:40 [as opposed to 3:32 of the original Private Stock Issue]…...but will fans get to hear it in this Box Set? Well clearly it is in the ownership of the FSP now, but it's inclusion should definitely be on this CD of the Motown Unreleased. We will keep you informed of developments with this one.
Next time......more Tape Boxes from Motown containing UNRELEASED Tracks.
We don't do 'tribute bands' of the “That 'Four Seasons' Sound' on our blog although many artists today do their best to emulate the 'Sound of Frankie Valli' and the harmonies of the Four Seasons.
But it is time I made and exception and we have always reviewed artists efforts in commercial releases and since the 70s and 80s one group/artist stands out as the 'best' we have ever heard and that is Adrian Baker and Gidea Park
Back in the 1990's my late friend and fellow music historian Frank Rovello contacted me and we discussed Adrian's efforts not only emulating the Four Seasons but also The Beach Boys. We agreed that the songs and medley's he did worked brilliantly and were worthy of CD release.
I had several singles [all the releases being on vinyl originally] and UK Newsletter editor George Ingram had the rest so I gathered what we had and put them on cassette for Frank and sent it off to the USA. Frank had the ability and technology at the time to digitise and re-master for CD and together we designed and he issued 'Harmony Gold'......The Best Of Adrian Baker and Gidea Park'. 23 great tracks that even today stand up as a wonderful harmony set. Only a few dozen were ever issued amongst collectors at the time.
It maintains his claim to fame as....”In the United States, he is best known for being the falsettovoice for the touringBeach Boys band from 1981–1982, 1990–1993, and 1998-2004. Baker was also a member of The Four Seasons with Frankie Valli from 1994-1995. In 2006, Baker released his sixth solo album, Runaway Tracks. “
But his success in the Eurovision Song Contest during the 1980s with a group he formed called 'Liquid Gold' [a 2ndplace!!!] led to a an album or two and he has Beach Boys type songs mainly on his releases since then. He has a large catalogue of work but this set captures a balance of up-tempo/falsetto/harmony or just great songs. His outings as 'Rudy'on 'Last Time[I'll cry over you]' and 'Sylvie' set his sound-alike style just as the Four Seasons and Frankie Valli were Chart Toppers again in 1975/6 and are great efforts. But songs like 'Why Haven't I Heard From You' [1976] and'Candy Baby'[1975] are just superb.....as is this whole CD. Frank and I knew our stuff back then.
It is surprising that Adrian hasn't captured his best work in this way in a 'commercial' CD release but maybe too few remember as much as Frank/George and I and few can appreciate these long lost track as we did/do now[or so I thought!].....but hey that was before I checked You Tube.!!!!! I was able to gather all but one track into a playlist and this is presented below for your enjoyment. Although an 'imitator' in many cases of original 'harmony' innovators he is said to have recorded all the voices on his harmony mixes and his mixes are superb examples of quality tracks from the 70s and 80s.
For new members of the Motown Unreleased Campaign Facebook Group and blog fans generally I wanted to let everyone know our progress and status as we head towards Easter. We have just finished our research to identify all the tracks we can to complete the Snapper Box set. Some still need licensing clearance, and then it is up to Bob Gaudio to approve the list for production. We have searched out all we can and of course as I have advised we have 13 superb Unreleased Motown tracks already approved .
The teamwork has been great. Overall we don't think we could have done much more. Several 45 tracks did not survive on tape from the 1960s but we have good quality original vinyl dubs in place to replace these. ALL the albums will be there and all the 60s albums in MONO and STEREO except for the 'Solo' and 'Timeless' albums.[which have only survived in their STEREO versions].....but the 45 released sides from them do exist in MONO. 'Genuine Imitation Life Gazette' has been found in MONO and was never released in this form, and as well as on CD it will be a 'vinyl' insert with full artwork as the original album 'gatefold'. So all NEW Digital Masters have been extracted from analogue Master Tapes and are being re-mastered to the highest standard by Reynolds Mastering. We have heard lots of the Master transfers to the sound engineer and the quality of Bill Inglot's transfers is top quality. The first sample RE-MASTERS from the Sound Engineer are better than we have ever heard and reviewed since 1988 [see our CD Discography] and [in my personal opinion – based on me digitising all the 45 MONO tracks since 2010] are the best digitally possible.
The Four Seasons Partnership Archives have been fully researched and along with our own discoveries from connected sources this is the best that can be done in 2020. Any other unreleased tracks that exist are in 'private' collections or Studio Libraries/Archives where tracks completed have not been sent[forwarded] to the Partnership. There could be some in the Vee-Jay[now Concord], Mercury [Philips] , Warner-Curb, Private Stock, MCA and Frankie's studio storage, but such research is beyond the scope and investment of this project and would require huge research. We do know of a few tracks that are lost there but locating them has been impossible. This is we believe as good as it can get. TV show recordings have been impossible to license within the time frame and budget and so none have been included. 3 Live shows from Sound Board recordings have however been included.
We are clear that ALL potential unreleased 'quality' recordings have been found and included except for the Motown Archive. As described above this is an archive owned by a major label [Universal in this case] and not by The Four Seasons Partnership. But this project was started because of the potential of this label's library and our 10 year research to identify completed work. Snapper's project investment has allowed the multi-track tapes to be supplied to Bob Gaudio for appraisal. He has approved and forwarded 13 tracks from a potential 30+ that we identified. Campaigning will continue for as long as we can to persuade Bob and Universal to eventually give us the rest.[but not in this set] But make no mistake about it , this 'album' of 'completed' Motown tracks is the 'jewel in the crown' in this set for all fans. It is fair for me to say I believe that this album of tracks is as good as the last 'Frankie Valli Unreleased ' set from 1975.....the 'Inside You' album which Motown released following the success of The Night' [in the UK] and the 'Who Loves You' album [Internationally].
The DANCE ERA single tracks from 1988 to 2007 are fully covered too and the 00's albums up to 2010 are included.
But our 'push' since 2009 has been to get a NEW set of Masters from the analogue tapes[including the MONO tracks] originally released in the 1960s on vinyl. This set achieves this and every effort has been made to ensure ALL UNIQUE 45 Mixes are included as bonus tracks to the respective albums. The total track list at the last count was around 780 and over 200 are Unique 45s, unreleased, alternative versions or live. The focus now is on getting as much approved and licensed as possible and no corners will be cut on quality. We are all committed to making this set as comprehensive as possible. This will be the NEW set of MASTERS and is as COMPLETE as possible.
We will advise further re the final list and production as and when we can, but patience is needed as the engineer creates 'new Masters' for the 21st Century, and a final release date will only be known as the 'final approvals' work allows. But we have reached the end of the research stage and all tracks are gathered and with the sound engineer. Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli will see that the combined efforts of fans and the Partnership have created the BEST EVER set in what is a LEGACY Collection. Now we will support the Sound Engineer through the 'quality control' stage of Re-Mastering. And given the teamwork on this set we had to agree with Snapper's decision on the title for the Box. It will be called “WORKING 'OUR' WAY BACK TO YOU”.
More when we have it.
Ken Charmer – MBA – The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society [founded in 1971]
It was and remains an iconic hit and stands proud as a Northern Soul dance floor filler. It was the last track played at Mr M's [the Oldies Room] at Wigan Casino on the night it closed and as a result of it's popularity across the clubs of North-West England in 1973 and 4 became a hit upon it's re-release in 1975 reaching No 7 in the UK charts........but not a lot is known about it's origin and history at Mowest and Motown Records and the neglect of Motown Execs in 1972 to release and promote it in the US.
What we have discovered from the Artists Card for the session tape is that between 1972 and 1975 at least 43 STEREO MIXES were made from the 16 track tape [P2110]. An amazing route to find the right mix for a hit!!!!
'THE NIGHT' was a session track recorded by Bob Gaudio [producer] with the Four Season in late 1971 and January 1972. The song was written by Bob Gaudio and Four Season member Al Ruzika and scheduled for release as mixes were prepared for album release. The group's first album at the newly formed West Coast LA Record Company 'MoWest'......a division of Motown records.
The first mixes were copied to a 16 track [safety copy] and 3 STEREO Mixes [all to - 'Temporary' - T tapes] with a further STEREO Mix on 1st February and a 'dub' cut the next day by Russ Terrana[the renowned Motown Sound Engineer] for evaluation.[Mixes 13-14] The 'Chameleon' album was assembled in the following months and released in May 1971. But on 6th and 7th June Russ created Mixes 15 to 21. Again on 8th July another engineer [B.Mac?] created Mixes 22 to 34 and then on 13th July Mixes 35 to 39. What was going on? Why did they do so many mixes when the track mix was complete and approved and had been released in May on the 'Chameleon' album?. What we do know is that the track was being considered for 45 release and a White Label acetate pressing was done as an evaluation copy Mowest 5025F[b/w Sun Country] in August but it was never released. It was probably a mix from these sessions but not deemed a 'hit sound' by Mowest executives in the USA. It was eventually released but came out only in the UK[and Europe] in October 1972 and although it never got promotion it would go on to become a much beloved dance track.
We did find that although Frankie and the group were about to leave the label [in frustration at the lack of releases and promotion] by mid 1974 an album was assembled on Tapes P5084 and 5 with final mixes for release. Mix 39 on 'The Night' Artists Card is circled as selected for that album which would never see release. What the Artists Card from Motown's paper records also show is that over a year after this prepared album, on 18th and 20th August 1975 Russ once again re-visited the 16 track P tape to produce Mixes 40 to 43. Of these Mixes 42 and 43 are shown as deleted or the tape destroyed. What was Russ Terrana trying to achieve.? We will probably never know.
So where can you currently find the versions available to hear from these 43 mixes today in 2020?
Well the original vinyl album version is preserved on The Night/Inside You CD. And the Anthology Box set of 2008. This features a mix of Organ Left/Tambourine Percussion Right and Frankie/Drums and Bass Centre. I’m calling this the ‘Tambourine’ Version[the original album mix]. This version has been Re-Mastered in 2007 and can be heard on You Tube. Some would say this is the definitive version and it does sound good. It is the Rhino Official version [Re-mastered in 2007] and was also included on the Rhino Rarities Vol 2 in 1992. It runs 3:26.
But You Tube also features an Alternate Mix with the Left and Right Channels reversed and a much stronger drumbeat . And no audible Tambourine and Frankie Valli sings the ‘Beware….etc’ opening[not The Four Seasons]. This runs 3:21 and not the 3:29 indicated but is it the European issue on Rare Earth from 1972 as the scan on the video shows.? We think not!
The 1975 UK Re-issue appears to be a NEW mix running 3:24 and the promo label shows a date of 27th March 1975 but it maybe just the UK 45 from August 1972 re-issued. We think this may be the 'needle drop' version on You Tube and it is the 'Tambourine' Mix which is the original.
So mix 40 or 41 and Russ Terrana’s 18th August 1975 notes on the Artists Card may well refer to the Alternate Mix featured on the 'Inside You' Album which was released in September 1975 [a month after his session mixes]in the US. This version also has the reversed channels, lacks the overdub of The Four Seasons warning to ‘Beware…etc’ nor does it have the Tambourine Percussion overdub, and it runs only 3:21. This 'Alternate' version appears on You Tube too and on the Anthology Box set CD2.
But we have ALSO found an Alternate 3:18 version [maybe a shorter fade] with Reverb on Frankie Valli’s lead in The Four Seasons Partnership Archive which is on a STEREO MIX Master Tape. This version is undated and is also missing The Four Seasons on the intro[Frankie Valli singing 'Beware....etc]. It appears to be the same 'Alternate' Mix included on the Motown Superstars Volume 4 CD [surprisingly running at 3:14] from 1991.
What ‘takes’ and STEREO mixes have survived 'unheard' on 16 track Tape P2110 of this 'monster' hit remains to be seen but at least the 29 P tapes from 1971 to 1974 covering all their sessions are now with Bob Gaudio and so they are preserved in the Partnership's control. And Snapper will get versions for Mastering in the forthcoming Box Set for 2020 release. According to the Artist Card the last note indicates the FINAL STEREO mix of 'The Night' sits on the much later than 1972, P Tape 4336, and that remains in the Universal Motown vault.
Any 'alternate' mixes ‘stand up’ as collectible as far as fans are concerned and maybe someday someone will research whether the T tapes that Russ Terrana mixed have survived and do a ‘Beach Boys Type’ collection of ALTERNATIVE STUDIO MASTERS for us collectors. Do the T tapes still exist in the Motown vault?. Only Andy Skurow, the Motown Library Manager could find them and Universal would only allow that if someone pays for the recovery search. The track remains the most mixed of any of the group’s efforts at Mowest/Motown according to Artists Cards and we can see and hear why. We'll probably never know the full story of these MIXES but this has been a fun music detective review of many peoples favourite Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons 45.
Ken Charmer – MBA : The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society
As fans anticipate the forthcoming release of 13 previously 'unreleased' tracks from the Motown period of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons career I can't help thinking of four fans who contributed so much to fandom over the last 45 years and who would have been so excited at what we are trying to achieve in the forthcoming Snapper Box Set. Whilst I can say 'I told you so!' re the titles that have turned up as superb and complete productions, these guys were out there trying to tell the story and get the music for the fans before me and I can't play the tracks coming out without wishing they were still with us to share the happiness.
Rex Woodard contributed greatly to 'The Work' which would provide the key information to allow Jersey Boys to be created and his Billboard Articles re the history of The Four Lovers and The Four Seasons up to and beyond Motown are important reference points today in their bibliography. He provided many News articles for George Ingram's bi-yearly Newsletters during the 1970s and 80s and was a sad loss in 1991.
Frank Rovello worked heroically as a USA fan club pioneer and webmaster of the GILG web site. A terrific reference source for Four Seasons fans from 1997 till his premature passing. He collated their story and documented group news since.
Stefan Wriedt in Germany collected and re-mastered all of the Frankie Valli/Four Lovers tracks for the Bear Records collection and The First Fantastic Years [1953 to 1961] CD as well as putting 21 of the 22 released Motown vinyl tracks on CD for the first time on The Night/Inside You CD.
But just as significantly for today...... Stuart Miller[Ex UK Four Seasons Fan Club President in 1971] started the search for the Motown 'Unreleased' with his 1972 Newsletter piece and his 1972 interview with Bob Gaudio. Here is an extract from a past blog post by me......re the interview.
'The most significant interview from the Motown period was by the late Stuart Miller who visited LA to interview Bob Gaudio on 14th September 1972. At the time the UK Mowest label was soon to be launched and Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons had recorded up to 30 tracks at the label and the US release of 'Walk On, Don't Look Back' had just happened. Stuart best remembers the situation in his CD note of the interview recording.
“But I remember mentally where I was at the time and I feel my instincts were right. The group had just taken a major step in signing to a label that at first glance was not a natural home to them. Their chart success had slackened off and they had deviated away from their regular style that had been so successful for them and had been "messing" with stuff like Genuine Imitation Life. I had before me the heart and driving force of the group and I was demanding answers! "What are you doing with my 4 Seasons and when will you start making records again that the public want to buy?" seemed to be the essence of my attitude. I felt I drove Bob on to the back foot so to speak and I thought he dealt with the lobs I was chucking at him with panache and style.“
The interview covers all aspects of how Bob Gaudio took the Four Seasons sound into Motown and how 'Chameleon'written largely during the UK tour was delayed by technical issues and the start-up problems that Mowest had, which resulted in poor promotion. Bob's relationship with Bob Crewe is starkly revealed as is Bob Gaudio's writing style. The conflict of the Four Seasons past and present sound is explored.
Bob said at the time that he believes that 'if you make good product....somewhere along the line someone's gonna buy it' and this stands out as a comment. [even more so today.as the Snapper Project gathers it..ed] At no time does he criticise Mowest nor does he accept claims that the 'Chameleon' album is un-commercial (a criticism some fans made)as at the time he believed there was no 'commercial' chart formula for pop music and fans needed to move on and accept a new sounding Four Seasons. But if not and 'Walk On Don't Look Back' is the re-worked Four Seasons sound fans want and buy then Bob was happy to get someone else producing their subsequent hit records. It was fascinating perspective.....but not one that came to pass.....the next 2 years would be a roller coaster at the label.
It was a clear crossroads.......and the Motown Tape Index for this time shows this as they explored change of style and sound at Mowest up to this date. It also gives an indication of the next year's events and the further exploration of musical directions.
But what changed after this interview is significant as this Snapper release will show. Michael Masser, Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe would go on in 1973 to produce some of the most stunning tracks of their time at the label. And this year we will see that all was not confusion at Motown in 1973 in terms of recordings......but they failed to release the quality material they had then even though some Motown Exec's clearly wanted to. They lost their relationship with the Partnership and Bob Crewe and THEY moved on.....leaving what is now becoming apparent are some amazing songs that fans are now going to hear.
As Stuart recalled...”Nevertheless, I was left with this marvelous timepiece in Season's history.“ ....and it has great significance now as I continue to campaign to hear the lost recordings.
What has happened since Stuart reviewed this interview is significant....and clearly JB changed everything. But looking at what remains unheard at Motown only makes any fan want to have the gaps in this part of the story filled in and the music published. It reinforces for me the importance of maintaining this group[ie the FB Campaign group] and it's objectives to achieve that.
The interview is a good listen for group members who share my interest in the 1971/72 recordings [and there remains much to uncover here] and Frank Rovello put the Interview on the GILG web site which was handed back to Frankie Valli's management upon Frank's passing. Unfortunately the subscription lapsed and all of the site and it's data was tragically lost.
Maybe I should salvage the Interview as a podcast and put it in our Facebook Campaign group sometime.?
So with only 13 more tracks and potentially 15+ still on the multi-track tapes which are now in Bob Gaudio's possession, you can guess what we will be asking for at the Box Set launch......more please Bob? Thank you Rex, Frank, Stuart and Stefan for helping us get here. The story is still unravelling. Ken Charmer
Working hard at finding all the original Masters of the Four Seasons catalogue has been such fun, and not the least because I see these Masters as eventually replacing ALL the You Tube Official tracks and the future 'Streaming' playlists for the group for future generations.
If you want to understand how HITS are going to be an income stream over and over again just read this blog post about the industry leaders.
It is all about preservation for us collectors but for the industry it is about future income streams from streaming. Without doubt Frankie Valli has a few contenders to be 'streaming brands' in their own right. 'Sherry' and 'The Night' will be to us major contenders.
'The Night' remains our main contender as identified by Wikipedia here
This years Box Set will see a big re-juvenation in the Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons Catalogue, and we are working hard with Snapper Records to ensure the content is the best ever.
We know there were 34 Master mixes of 'The Night' done at Motown over the years since 1972.
We are searching out options and alternatives for the box set.
Analyzing the full story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons catalogue is still impossible!! With only 2 Track Master Safety Copies in the Partnership vaults of their catalogue, it is apparent very little unreleased material has survived. But what has is more than we could have hoped for!!!!!. There may be multi-tracks lying discarded and forgotten in the Mercury/Warner/MCA and Curb vaults...but such is life and we can only celebrate what we have. So the Partnership Archive is our source for 2 track MONO/STEREO Masters. The only source where any Multi-Tracks appear to exist that we have been able to identify is in fact Universal Music – The Motown Tape Archive. Even though we have paper records that are accurate and comprehensive re the Multi-track Master Tapes in the Motown vault, there are still so many questions unanswered.
With only 22 tracks released following nearly 3 years at the label and paper records indicating another 30 unreleased Masters and several alternate takes and other session songs partially completed, it has been a hard task to assess the importance and quality of this period in Frankie Valli's career as well as that of the group sound.
But as another 13 Motown songs emerge as 'approved' by Bob Gaudio for the Snapper Box set it has become apparent that these 29 tapes are the only known 'treasure' of stored Multi-Track tapes that can be located of any of the groups sessions. …....ever!!!!! They represent a huge find in the history of this iconic group and a bounty for fans........if only Universal Motown and The Four Seasons Partnership would share the rest of the finds with us. Maybe if we keep asking someday we will be able too enjoy them.
We did our research this last 10 years accepting that there may only be a few songs of adequate quality to go in any CD release. As Motown themselves had 'trawled' the tapes for the 'Inside You' album in 1975 and at that time given us an exceptional addition to the their only released album whilst at the label in 'Chameleon'....that was it. Apart from the handful of non-album singles that make up the rest of the 22 released songs captured on CD for the first time in 2008 on The Motown Anthology set......what could be left?.....particularly when both Harry Weinger and Bob Gaudio said at the time that they accepted that anything left was 'unfinished demos' and Frankie Valli's lawyer said these were 'harmful to his career and out of key'. This has proved to be a total lie and the forthcoming release of the 'approved tracks' in the box set demonstrates it.
We thought we knew better given the 2 alternative tracks on the 2008 Anthology CD Set......and this has proved to be the case. Never before heard, the extended version of 'Charisma' and the alternative version of 'Listen To Yesterday' shows how 'spoilt for choice' Motown are in Frankie Valli vocal selections. His recordings are not always with the Four Seasons maybe, but many tracks were 'laid down' by him but never heard since.
Tape Research this last year has revealed that the Partnership Archive ALSO contains 'remnants' of those days at Motown in Safety Copies. But what is of most significance from these finds is the story of how the group could have stayed at the label with at least an album of completed quality material ready for release. Motown assembled an album of tracks for release in May 1974. Tapes P 5084 and 5 contain this 'un-named' album of completed songs. And 2 tracks 'The Night'[mix39 – out of 43. The rest are still there!!] and 'You Can't Hold On' were 'pulled' for potential 45 release in June 1974.
Now we have heard and know the full quality of this album we can also see how the re-union of Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio helped achieve superb material. Sessions together and as sole producers contributed to this set during sessions in 1973. And the hidden gem in this set is an alternative vocal ending version of 'My Eyes Adored You'. It is different to the one bought by Bob Crewe and subsequently released on Private Stock but in no way inferior. It is the Master lined up for release. If it had been Frankie would have been singing different lyrics since then......... But we are not getting that in the 13 approved for release with Universal Motown....... so as it was sold to The Partnership back then they can include it.........We have heard it now so it is in the box set too as a bonus track. And we won't stop asking for access to the rest of the known tapes and tracks.
We know that by 1974, the failure of promotion by Motown to push 'Hickory'[it barely broke the Billboard Top 100] had totally disenchanted Valli, Crewe and perhaps more so Gaudio who was driving towards new sounds and direction as the separate identities of The NEW Four Seasons and Frankie Valli 'solo' were beginning to emerge. Live shows and audience response was demonstrating the quality of the band. Bob Gaudio had a new writer/partner in Judy Parker. What was needed was the right material. New songs being written by Bob Gaudio with Judy and whilst registered at Berry Gordy's Jobete Music they would emerge at a new label and the well known story of them buying 'My Eyes Adored You' took Frankie Valli to a new 'Solo' career at Private Stock.
Motown were too late and had wasted several opportunities to generate hits during their contract and ignoring the output from sessions of great material remains inexcusable. They would get some financial success on the back of this 'walk-out' by Crewe and the Partnership as the re-issued 'The Night' soared into the UK chart on its re-release in 1975 [leading to the re-release of 'Chameleon' and the release of the 'Inside You' album] but as more quality tracks are now emerging the bad management at the label is ever more clear.
But as I said at the beginning we still can't capture the full story with at least 15 completed Masters of unreleased songs mainly from the MoWest period still unheard.We don't believe there is a lack of quality amongst this set.....it is just that we are unable to judge that YET? What will become apparent to fans with the forthcoming release is the superb quality of Crewe, Gaudio and Valli to deliver in the studio. 11 of the 13 approved songs are quite superb and a match for many that would follow at Private Stock with Frankie Valli. The Four Seasons feature[in various line-ups] on several tracks but the intense power of the NEW Four Seasons contribution[along with Nick Massi and Charles Calello] on the immense Crewe-Nolan songs 'Lovers' and 'Hymn to Her' [from December 1973] shows why Crewe and The Partnership wanted to buy more of the back catalogue from Motown at the end of their contract.
What we have achieved and will all get to hear is superb. The shame is that everyone involved has hidden this music from us [or even admitted it exists] for 45 years. As I said.....'it is all starting to unravel'.
Ken Charmer – The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society
Coming soon......The Story Of 'The Night' and its 43 Mixes
It's that time again when Lynn Boleyn and I wish our fan group friends Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year. We usually hope there will be something for fans to look forward to but this year looking forward is the most exciting since the hey-day of the fan clubs in the UK and the USA of the 1970s.
The forthcoming Box Set from Snapper Records is well into it's research and development stage as we help the team evaluate the exciting content that could be possible. Bill Inglot is steadily researching the Partnership vaults and sharing the contents with the team and we have been able to identify rare session out-takes and alternative versions. This process will develop through the New Year as we identify and propose every important Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons track that has survived from 1962 to 2010 for inclusion.
The vaults and other collectors archives will we believe ensure this is a 'Completist's Set'.
The 1960s in MONO and STEREO releases are going to be there.....and 'unreleased from every decade'.....is beginning to emerge. But our Campaign and aim was to get the Motown Unreleased from 1971 to 1974 and whilst only 13 of a potential 30 plus showing in paper records have been approved for release......this constitutes a whole album of material......and it is all worthy of release as our news over the holidays will describe.
This is definitely going to be a set for 'die-hard' collectors and we are doing all we can to make it the best set ever. What we can say is that the Re-Mastering of the 60s albums so far is superb and better than any previous CD issue to date[well all of those we've been able to check]. And the tracks WILL BE the authentic released Masters plus bonus tracks wherever we can find them. We'll keep monitoring and reporting as the project develops with the Snapper Team, who are closely liaising with Bob Gaudio, Bill Inglot and Universal Motown.
Follow our Facebook group The Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign for regular updates as we dig deeper into the vaults. Classic LIVE material is also surfacing and we are hoping much of this will also gain approval.
News and articles here and on FB as we continue the research in more depth than ever before into potential content through into 2020, which is why I am saying this is the most exciting time for fans since 1975!!!!........for those who arrived on the planet after that year or who discovered the group more recently.......you are in for a treat. Enjoy the ride......and for us 'oldies'.....'Let's Ride Again'.
Back in 2011 I was writing blogs about a project my late friend and sound engineer Stefan Wriedt wanted to tackle as there seemed no prospect of a comprehensive review of the Four Seasons Partnesrhips vaults/archive. And rumours had been rife for years that the tape vaults are incomplete in terms of the Master Sessions Matrix Index which we've developed on our web site. Do the MONO mixes we all know still exist as since 1988 and the advent of CD the output has been largely STEREO, and often wide or poorly mastered tracks of the analogue to digital transfers.?
Our UK Fan group web site index covers all known Matrix Numbers of Masters from 1962 to 1971 and an Excel Spreadsheet of what is stored in the Motown Universal vaults, much of it still Unreleased.
Here is our blog post back then and the enthusiastic response from long term fans Colin and Zane at the time. We have in the last two years achieved an amazing break through and collaboration like never before. So revisit this and then see what we are now achieving below.
Of course at that time 'Jersey Boys' was still in full flow and the 'Jersey Beat' Box set in 2007 had been the Rhino attempt at a collectors package. It underwhelmed most of us although many of us were able to comment on our fave tracks in the Charles Alexander inspired 'mini-book'. The Motown Anthology set in 2008 was 90% based on released material but on CD for the first time 'officially'. We know the 'unreleased' is there and have proved it since.
So our project work has progressed since and although sadly we lost Stefan[and GILG web master Frank Rovello and ex UK Fan club President Stuart Miller] with the help of Paul Urbans and Ray Nichol I completed a fully re-mastered set of 45 MONO A and B sides from 1962 to 1970. It's not perfect re every 45 side[as some MONO sides are very difficult to find in prime condition.....and it did not cover the 'Valli SOLO' 45s], but it is still a good consistent 'reference set' of the MONO vinyl released versions. That reference set we said in 2015 would have to do until someone found the money and as a result time to research the Tape Archive and re-digitise the Master Tapes with todays technology.
Well today as I write........ that is happening for the first time [thanks to Snapper Records of London] with a full set of specialists at work to create the 'Ultimate' salvage from the surviving tapes. Bob, Frankie, Snapper Records and the UK fan group have committed to aim for the best set of recovered Masters of Frankie and the group ever. Bill Inglot, so much the archive researcher for Bob and Frankie over the decades has reviewed in depth what analogue tapes exist and what we are seeing we will get will be a full review and NEW Analogue/Digital transfers. Coupled with Reynolds Mastering working on new Re-Masters and with record industry renowned compiler Bob Fisher they are a full team targeting the highest quality possible. A circa 40 CD set has been proposed and contracts progressed and research and transfer have been happening through the last few months. New transfers re-mastered as the best 2020 digital Masters ever is the aim. The work will bring some amazing finds.......some we have said should be there and some completely new to us all are surfacing.
Results so far show we can at last say a MONO Master set will be possible of all album and non-album 45 tracks released in the vinyl format [ie 1962 to 1970] and the surviving STEREO mixes are revisited and tapes checked for alternate versions. But perhaps the best news is that the magnificent STEREO hits set produced by Bob Crewe from surviving Master tapes [Edizione D'Oro] has been found and will be fully presented on CD for the first time ever. And a surviving MONO Master of Genuine Imitation Life Gazette will appear as a vinyl insert. Photos/memorabilia and an historic book will complete this de-luxe set.
This is a big achievement and what fans have been asking for for years. Alternate Takes/Live tracks and previously unreleased tracks have been found and these will be reviewed and approved by Frankie and Bob where of adequate quality[re performance and sound quality]. The fan group team are assisting as and when needed. Our reference set of the MONO sides has been provided for comparison purpose. 90% of sources are pulled from the Partnership vaults and transferred and review and re-mastering is well underway.
The one thing that qualifies ANY Frankie Valli/Four Seasons collection is that nowhere in the archives are copies of 'session work or multi-tracks'[unlike the Beach Boys recordings]. The whole library consists of completed Masters.....either from album /45 or left-overs in some rare cases. All previously known tracks follow the listing of Matrix numbers found in our Masters Sessions listings on our web site as far as the Vee-Jay and Philips period goes and MONO and STEREO versions do exist of most tracks. Of course several MONO only tracks like 'Ronnie' were never mixed to STEREO after the session and 45 release.
So apart from what is there we suspect nothing else has survived .......unless fans and former record company employees out there tell us. ? Now is the time to speak up if such gems exist in hidden archives. We have discovered one or two salvaged from cassette and acetate......but whether these make it into the set we can't say at present.
This investment by Snapper is the most in-depth investigation with Bill Inglot of surviving Master analogue tapes ever. As Stefan and I concluded in 2011 it is long overdue! The result will we believe establish the most accurate and comprehensive collection of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons work in 21st Century sound.
A real 'collectors piece'
The tape search goes on......'Unreleased' have been found at Philips and Motown and review and quality assessment continues with Bob Gaudio, who is fully supporting these research stages and the final product. More feedback when we have it. Target release August 2020. London.
It seems amazing to see the Four Seasons UK Fan Club still exists in 2019!!! Well really it is now a social media fan group, but with a web site full of the data we have assembled and published. We've been posting blogs about the groups career and back story since 2006 in Casey's 'Chameleon' blogand post 2011 'That 'Four Seasons' Sound blog.And it is amazing how much we have covered. So we go again!
We've had over a year now to contemplate the arrival next year from Snapper Records of London of a 40+ box set.
Well it is one of the least important things in life, but nonetheless we've achieved somethings that wouldn't have happened perhaps if we hadn't called for a properly re-mastered and presented career set and unreleased tracks on behalf of fans. This box set is one of the results of our efforts. As with most artists who own most of their back catalogue the Partnership and Rhino/Curb/ACE etc have always been thinking of timing of projects to persuade fans to part with their hard-earned money.......just as Vee-Jay/Philips/Warner/Private Stock et al did back in the days of vinyl.
To newer fans this will maybe sound strange but some of us have dozens of albums and CD's of every Frankie Valli/Four Seasons song ever!!!!!. So to strange people like us we needed something that would show us that this Box Set may definitely be the most important release ever.
So when London based Snapper Records told us their plans for a career spanning box set based on their 'brand' and quality presentation of the Four Seasons catalogue we were understandably interested......and when they said Bob Gaudio was enthusiastic about it they got our attention. A meeting in London revealed the plans were to include in a career spanning box set 40 + albums a large portion of unreleased.....and 'what did we want included?'they asked.
Lynn Boleyn and I in unison said the 'Motown Unreleased'!
You have to remember that both Bob Gaudio and Harry Weinger of Universal Motown stated back in 2008 that there weren't any unreleased'completed'Motown tracks . And imagine our surprise when Snapper announced that Bob Gaudio 'had unreleased tracks from every decade'. And he was prepared to release them.......well what a surprise and so by then we were getting excited!!.
Over the last 10 years we have researched and demonstrated a potential 30 to 40 Motown Unreleased tracks in paper records as 16 track or Stereo versions in the NYC vault[from their 1971 to 1974 contract with the label] . So the Motown Unreleased Campaign I[Ken Charmer] started 2 and a half years ago has made all this data available and this has been shared with the Partnership and Snapper. And we have posted You Tube videos of some of these songs [from demo acetate/tape] demonstrating this fact. The aim was to show that 'yes...it did still exist....and should be preserved ...and released'.
Well whether that exercise has been completed in depth and all 16 track tapes researched we do not know but we hear that only 14 tracks have been 'approved'by Bob Gaudio. Lynn Boleyn and I are extremely disappointed and it would be easy to be negative re the current proposals for the Box Set.
In response to our disappointment Snapper's Ian Crocket responded....“I must stress that with respect , your fellow Four Seasons collectors will not be familiar with the sets we produce. Nobody is producing box sets to the size quality and standard that we do and what must not be forgotten is the amount of additional content that is included (coffee table book, signature, vinyl, memorabilia etc). In my experience when fans eventually receive their purchase through the post they are generally blown away by the weight and size which is reflected in the comments on line. Whilst the unreleased Motown is key it is not the be all and end all, and we must not lose sight that this is a career retrospective.”
So after careful consideration we agreed on the following joint statement on behalf of the fans......”It is great that Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli are on board and that Bob has already approved 14 unreleased Motown tracks for inclusion along with two live show recordings. We hope that Snapper will be encouraging Bob to agree to further unreleased Motown tracks being included and also unreleased tracks from every era where we have been informed by Bob there are also unreleased tracks. We appreciate that Ian is working hard to make this box set a huge success and the more unreleased tracks that can be included the better.’
Notwithstanding the status of the catalogue in terms of career spanning material there remains no comprehensive set available and so such a compilation may be deemed value for money for some. Since 1988 and the real advent of CD [according to my count on George Ingram's US CD discography] there have been.....
33 plus Hits or Compilations of selected tracks on CD or Box Set
26 individual albums or 2fer CD sets
1 original album of new tracks
1 album of retrospective songs[Covers]
1 Christmas album of new recordings
1 Classic albums Box Set[FV/Four Seasons]incomplete career wise
1 Classic albums Box Set Frankie Valli Solo] incomplete career wise
Snapper said re this planned collection.......”I’m confident we will also have a disc of Partnership unreleased/alt takes as well as the 2 live performances [Bachelors 3 and Lucifer's] the 2 unreleased BBC tracks and the MONO vinyl, the books are also going to be very well received if previous experiences are anything to go by. Obviously we are still going to strive to make this the best Four Seasons release ever and with the content we already have I’m confident we are well on the way.”
So as we await with interest what comes together we will continue to review our research re the catalogue and in particular the Motown Period and the sessions that resulted in both superb releases and the 'unreleased' we have so long campaigned to hear. We do hope there will be more..and we get detailed feedback.....and so re the known 'unreleased' tracks completed at Motown? The campaign goes on.
2007 saw Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons 'storm' the house scene of Europe's dance floors with a song re-mixed from a minor 1966 hit by the group.
They have given us 4 decades of classic 'dance ' tracks. This is a little known or 'respected' set of music that Bob Gaudio is responsible for which should be reviewed and appreciated not only for the songs and production but also in the context of the group's and Frankie's long-term connection with 'DANCE' music........but firstly let's review the early history and their iconic place in DANCE music history.
From the very beginning THE FOUR SEASONS were not regarded for their 'dance' songs. OK 'Sherry' is urging teens to 'c'mon to my Twist Party' but nothing in the early to mid-sixties in their catalogue was focused on 'dance'. The group never turned to a 'dance' like 'The Jerk'
But with the Merseybeat era and the rise of Tamla-Motown in the UK, by 1965, the MOD Dance culture was being created in the UK[click the link]. Motown couldn't be ignored and Charles Calello has admitted the group's recordings in 1965 were mimicking the Motown Sound whilst not being able to create copies of it. 'Let's Hang On' was their best example.....and maybe 'Opus 17' in 1966.
But one track would cement their 'DANCE' reputation and it would be the UK that achieved that. The 1966 Frankie Valli 'solo' UK release of 'You're Ready Now' was a little known or remembered 45 when it surfaced at the Twisted Wheel club in Manchester in 1968 and became a 'dance floor' classic for the emerging Northern Soul Club scene. It even prompted the group to visit the UK for only the second time in their career to promote it's UK re-release with a national tour. It entered the UK charts rising to Nr 11[1970]
But the group by this time had faded to be an 'oldies' band and rock was dominant as the teen era faded into the 70s when DISCO was to become the mainstream music 'dance' craze. Before this happened however the Northern Soul club following grew strongly via North-West England clubs like The Torch in Stoke and Wigan Casino. By 1973 'I'm Gonna Change' from their NEW GOLD HITS 1967 album was 'bootlegged' on to a false SMASH label 45 with 'You're Ready Now'. These tracks today regularly feature on the still popular Northern Soul CD compilations and at evening and 'weekender' events.
But in the early 1970s the group was in disarray at Mowest/Motown and had no target dance market when 'THE NIGHT' was dropped as a 45 release in the US. It seems that 'dance' music was a UK thing!.
But following it's [only]45 release in the UK 'THE NIGHT'in October 1972 received constant play at the Northern Soul venues and by 1975 Motown UK had to see the demand and re-release it. It rose to Nr 7 in the UK charts ….just as.....the NEW Four Seasons were signed to Warner-Curb and released 'Who Loves You?'. This was a ground-breaking disco based style and took the world by storm. Their next 'dance classic' hit Nr 1 world wide as we all know and'December '63' Oh What A Night'would be their definitive 'DANCE' track for the next decades. Frankie Valli would claim'Swearin' To God'was a club classic in 1975 as he firmly entered the burgeoning DISCO market and he followed that with great 'dance tracks on his several 'solo' album tracks during the latter half of the 70s culminating in his last Nr 1 record in 'Grease'.
The demise of the group and Valli as mainstream artists would last several years following Bob Crewe's failure to keep the DISCO scene alive with the 'Heaven Above Me'album and his subsequent retirement from the music scene.
But with Bob Gaudio trying to help Frankie Valli re-establish a 'new' Four Seasons line-up with an album deal with MCA a new mix of ballad and 'dance' tracks would focus on the emerging 'dance' mix based on digital recording and drum machines. Streetfighter'album hit this scene straight on and 'Book Of Love'was the first single, catching the ear of radio audiences in the UK it was bubbling under on the BBC Chart and a UK visit to promote it was planned until Middle-East threats to bomb London caused it's cancelation and the single/12inch and album 'died'.
The album had pedigree as William Ruhlann covers at Allmusic....The primary creative force on the album, in fact, was Sandy Linzer, who had written old hits like "Dawn (Go Away)" and "Working My Way Back to You." He contributed to five of the album's eight tracks and also served as primary producer. As a result, the title song was an identifiable work of tough-guy-with-a-heart-of-gold sentiments in the mould of earlier Four Seasonsrecords, even if it sounded like it would have fit right in on the soundtrack to Beverly Hills Cop. The old doo wop hit "Book of Love" was transformed into something that could have been performed by Toni Basil of "Mickey" fame, but it was still "Book of Love." And when things slowed down toward the end of the disc, Linzer and his co-writer, Irwin Levine, provided a moving adult contemporary ballad in "Once Inside a Woman's Heart." Unfortunately, unlike the '70s, Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons were not able to mount another comeback with Streetfighter in 1985, and it was back to singing the hits on the oldies circuit.
But CD had surfaced as the NEW playing medium and would go on to subsume vinyl and CD and Techno DANCE music was on the 'up' by 1988.
This would herald the start of a Dance Era for Frankie and his 'still together' group of the early 1980s. The success of 'Dirty Dancing' – The Movie would re-introduce the Four Seasons to audiences and the re-interest in 'Big Girl's Don't Cry'from it's opening scenes persuaded Bob Gaudio and Tony D'Amico to decide to test the interest in the vogue of 'RE-MIXES'. [The 7” version would reach Nr 91 in the UK Charts in October 1988]. A 12” of the original with 'Dirty Dancing' Rap comprised....The Four Seasons Big Girls Don't Cry UK 12" vinyl single (12 inch record / Maxi-single)
1. Big Girls Don't Cry - Club Mix 5:17 2. Big Girls Don't Cry - Original Version 2:25 3. Big Girls Don't Cry/Dirty Dancing Rap 5:07 4. Big Girls Don't Cry - Enhanced Original Mix 2:24
Then........... Re-mixes of'Who Loves You' and 'Oh What A Night - (December 1963)[The 7” reached Nr 49 in the UK Charts in October 1988] emerged on CD Single[EP] Br Music CDS 277 in Europe to much acclaim on the 'dance scene' with a Ben Leibrand 'mix' of 'Who Loves You'…..giving a whole new perspective on the group's 1970s sound.
Br Music CDS 277
Oh What A Night (December, 1963) (Summer '88 Re-Mix) 3:32
Oh What A Night (December, 1963) (Summer '88 12" Re-Mix) 6:17
Oh What A Night (December, 1963) (Original Single Version '76) 3:32
Oh What A Night (December, 1963) (Summer '88 Instrumental Re-Mix) 3:43
Br Music CDS 278
Who Loves You (Single Re-Mix '88 – Ben Liebrand) 4:06
Who Loves You (12" Re-Mix '88 – Ben Librand) 7:21
Who Loves You (Original Version '75) 4:16
Who Loves You (Instrumental) 4:10
BMC Records joined in with their own MAXI single featuring the legendary DJ/Re-mixer Ben Liebrand's tracks
HITS! DIGITALLY ENHANCED would emerge at the end of the year capturing on album CD selections of these tracks ”A CD produced by Turner Di Sentri [Bob Gaudio] and re-mixed by Anthony D’Amico. ‘Enhanced’ here seems to mean ‘digital stereo’ re-masters of the several hits including Big Girls Don’t Cry from the film ‘Dirty Dancing’ and the Dirty Dancing rap version. Special mixes of Gypsy Woman (previously unreleased version of the Impressions song),Book Of Love re-mixed by Tony D’Amico and December 63 and Who Loves You produced by Bob Gaudio and re-mixed by Ben Liebrand”. The CD would be re-issued in February 1991 in Europe Curb D2-77304 and in the UK a selection on CD Single from the CD would attract reasonable sales.......as all their old 60s albums rolled off the production lines in an ever expanding CD market.
But the hits 'recycling' continued through 1990 with Rhino publishing 20 Greatest Hits and all the 60s albums before Curb re-issued HITS, Digitally Enhanced in January 1991[CurbMC (D4-77304); CD (D2-77304)] but with different play times and without the DD Rap version of BGDC. Curious indeed.!
It was a time for replacement of vinyl with CD versions of the past albums but catching the Dance Mixes of the day and cashing in on the'Who Loves You'and 'December 1963'Re-Mixes was proving addictive. These re-mixes had certainly inspired Bob Gaudio and brought a degree of success so when a collection of NEW songs was produced in the studio it was intended to develop this sound and success.
So when 'Hope And Glory' emerged in August 1992 [Curb CD (D2-77546); MC (R4-77546)]it was a FOUR SEASONSalbum but clearly Valli and the group enhanced by much extra vocal harmony additions. A mixture of up-tempo and ballads and it is anecdotal that Valli disliked it and wouldn't promote it[according to discussions between Valli and fans]. It's roots as William Ruhlmann states in Allmusic reviews. Are in the then current charts.....” In the early '90s, popular vocal groups such as Color Me Badd and Boyz II Men hewed to the sounds of hip-hop and new jack swing, and Gaudioand Vallilistened carefully. They also wanted to create music that could sit comfortably on the radio among the songs of adult contemporary stars like Richard Marx, Amy Grant, and Michael Bolton. That meant that Hope + Glory was an album of melodic but highly synthesized pop with the kind of musical touches that would give it a contemporary twist, even down to the brief rap (not by Valli) that appeared on "Just the Way You Make Love." Gaudio and Valli succeeded in creating music that plausibly might have resulted in yet another in their long line of Four Seasonshits, but as with their previous effort, 1985's Streetfighter, it turned out not to be enough just to sound like the hits of the day, and Hope + Glory was not a success.”
Well for a start it was a badly mastered CD with muddy mixes burying Valli's vocal and his voice was not good on the ballads[once his 'forte']. Also the Stereo Mix was not good. And to some extent some long-termfans couldn't take to it.
Other artists on Curb where doing well and there was some fall-out between Warner and Curb Records at the time. So the album was NEVER released in the UK[always one of the groups strongest markets] and on their first UK tour in 12 years they never performed ANY of the tracks and there is no evidence that they ever did do any 'live'.
But if Valli hated it so much and the tracks were not up to calibre why in July 1993 did Curb select the up-tempo songs, team them up with the late 1980s Who Loves You and December 1963 and Re-Mix these into THE DANCE ALBUM [Curb CD (D2-77634); MC (D4-77634)]?.....(The naked I/Learn how to say goodbye/Love has a mind of its own/Help me to believe in you/Book of love/You and your heart so blue/State of my heart/December 1963/Who loves you)?
By comparison with Hope and Glorythis was a revelation with a continuous and highly infectious set of good sounding and extended dance re-mixes. It passed almost unseen until December 1963was re-mixed again and became a Dance Floor Hit. Again at Allmusic we get a somewhat disparaging review......”In 1994, a remix of the Four Seasons' 1975-1976 number one song "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)" returned it to the pop chart, peaking in the Top 20. Taken together, its two 27-week chart runs gave it the longest tenure ever on the Billboard Hot 100. To take advantage of the song's renewed popularity, Curb Records, the group's label, assembled this remix album of tracks from the '70s, '80s, and '90s. The disc begins with the 1994 remix of "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)" done by Ben Leibrand and ends with an earlier revision, the 1988 remix of the song that hit the British charts that year and was done by Les Adams. Adams' version of "Learn How to Say Goodbye," a song from the 1992 album Hope + Glory, is also included, as well as Nigel Wright's mixes of that song, "The Naked I," "Love Has a Mind of Its Own," "Fly Like an Eagle" (a retitled version of a tune previously called "State of My Heart"), and "You and Your Heart So Blue" from Hope + Glory; "The Book of Love" from the 1985 album Streetfighter; and the hits "Who Loves You" and "Silver Star" from the 1975 album Who Loves You. This is certainly not an album intended for the Four Seasons' '60s fans. The group has maintained throughout its career a commitment to keeping musically current, whether that meant mentioning the Twist in its first hit, "Sherry," or taking on disco in the '70s hits. This album is full of '90s electro-pop, and the hope clearly is that the Four Seasons can extend the second honeymoon enjoyed by "December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night)" with more dance hits, even though that doesn't seem likely to happen.”
Curb reacted with in 1995 the CD release....OH WHAT A NIGHTCurb CD (D2-77693/77693-2); MC (D4-77693/77693-4)[24/01/95] featuring (Dec 1963/The naked I/Book of love/Love has a mind of its own/Learn how to say goodbye/Fly like an eagle/You and your heart so blue/Who loves you/Silver star/Learn how to say goodbye-Euromix version/Dec 1963-Euromix version) "Fly like an eagle" is the same as "State of my heart" (alternative title)
Bob Gaudio was certainly changing with the times and allowing others to play with his music to great effect........but this doesn't detract in any way from the originals to many fans who were just glad to see them back in the charts.
Notwithstanding the limitations of the 're-mix phenomena'.......this would not be the end as although no releases followed during the next decade[and we know Bob Gaudio has other up-tempo songs unreleased. [as he told Stuart Miller this in a 2002 interview.]
The 2007 House Music scene exploded with the European Re-issue of the 1967 version of 'Beggin' Re-mixed by Pilooski to become a monster dance floor hit with this crazy series of issues in the UK [and Europe]
Beggin’ 12" promo(Pilooski Edit 5:35) No. SAM 01251 679 Recordings with Beggin' stamped in black over the white label; blank reverse side [ 5/07]
Promotional CD single – Not for resale, stereo No. SAM01252 (Tracks: Beggin’ [Pilooski Radio Edit] 3:31/Beggin’ [PilooskiRe-Edit]5:32)
Promo one track CD single Frankie Valli and Four Seasons Beggin’ (Pilooski Radio Edit) 3:31 Beggin’ (Pilooski Edit) 5:35 [6/07] [6/07] [6/07]
Promo one track CD single Frankie Valli and Four Seasons Beggin’ 679 Recordings Label 7" vinyl 45 rpm single No. 679L146/CD single 679L146CD [7/07] (32) & no. 1 on Dance Chart. (A side: Beggin' Pilooski [Re-Edit] Radio Edit 3:34;B side: Beggin' Original version 2:49) 12"vinyl 45 rpm single No. 679L146T (A side: Beggin' Pilooski [Re-Edit] 5:35;B side: Beggin' [Speaker Killer Remix] 5:26; Who Loves You Original version 4:09) Beggin’ re-entry into charts reaching no. 122 [8/08] Beggin’ 679 Recordings Label CDsingle No. 679L146CD re-entry into chart Beggin’ re-entry again in UK Non-Top 100 Chart entries at no. 131 [6/10]. And OH WHAT A NIGHTCurb CD was a CDre-issue on 06/05/08 .Pilooski's Re-Edit of 'THE NIGHT'also found a CD home and a good following although the classic original mix still stars on the Northern Soul dance Floors and this version for many fans and 'soulies' remains an 'aberration'.[sic...a departure from what is normal, usual, or expected, typically an unwelcome one.
Although the Madcon [the Norwegian hip-hop group] version of this song would become a huge hit version with 35 MILLION You Tube watches.......whose version topped the charts in Norway, France, the Netherlands and part of Belgium.......the Four Seasons Pilooski Mix remains the definitive DANCE MIX. The full story of Beggin' is found on Wikipedia.
The DANCE ERA for Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons was established and spanned the 70s to the 00s. It is an amazing record of quality and longevity. Fans from the 60s may not have been able to live with this closing 2 decades of re-mixes....and collecting them all has been near impossible.
No doubt Bob Gaudio will summarise the period in the forthcoming Box Set with Snapper but that is not an easy task without much repetition 'on the re-mix theme'??? [How many versions/variations on 'Oh What A Night' can any fan take.?]
I'll leave you with one of my favourites from this period.....the DANCE ALBUM version of THE NAKED I..........'the 'Four Seasons', Jim, but not as we know them!!' to plagiarise Scotty from Star Trek.
Ken Charmer – Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society August 2019
Back in 2009 German Sound Engineer Stefan Wriedt and I started a discography and review of all the CD issues of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons to identify the 'best mixes'. Anecdotal evidence showed that only STEREO mixes of most of the 60s material exists in WIDE STEREO– Instruments[Hard Left] : Harmonies[Hard Right] and Frankie centre.What we have is better than nothing in STEREO....and in some cases we only have the MONO. But thank God we have that......BUT this is the way it would be mixed today.
In 2009 we spent two years completing that discography[here]bemoaning the loss of multi-track Masters since the 60s and blaming bad engineers and poor re-mastering. And so we turned to the MONO mixes as obviously there we found balance in the sound and a structure that made it easy for us to say.......'this is the way producer Bob Crewe meant them to sound'. But NOT available as MONO albums and singles on CD.
It took nearly 5 years to collect and re-master all the MONO 45 mixes in our MONO Archive as we believed many may not exist as they have 'never' as a collection been released on CD. MONO has just not been the 'realm' of CD Re-issues for Frankie and the group. And we weren't alone in this as posts on The Steve Hoffman Forum' discussing all things sound and masters shows.
Yes the MONO mixes are fine with great instrumentation and harmonies gathered around Frankie's vocal......like most of the music we bought and grew up with during the 60s. Lots of great songs in punchy MONO sound.
I recently returned to that theme in a piece I wrote on this blog [post Stefan's passing] re-quoting earlier comments as we look forward to 'new transfers' from the Four Seasons Partnership to Snapper Records of London for their planned 40 album box set.
Speaking to Charlie Calello over the last two years I've been haunted by his comment that......'you are not hearing it like we heard it in the studio'. I brushed this off by saying that as Bob Crewe was 'engineering' MONO mixes then that was the way it should be....and those MONO mixes re-mastered in our MONO Archive sound great.
In the early 60s STEREO was a novelty release left to the Engineers....giving us the wide and entirely separated STEREO we've had to date.
But I met a man recently who showed me how all I've been thinking was wrong.
What we have had to date is all down to one thing......'Technology'. 1960s technology.
Bob Crewe used it like a musical instrument.....constructing instrumental and harmony backings using just 3 and 4 track recording equipment [upto 1966] and 'bouncing' tracks down to finish with the best structure for release. One track of instruments/one track of harmony/one lead vocal[sometimes double tracked]. The recording technology of the day and the 45 format and market dictated it for him as much as it did for the Beatles and every other artist of the day. The 'limits' of 'technology'! And that is what is around today and subject to some tweaking and'panning' is what we will get in this 2020 box set when it comes to STEREO. At least the plan to include the MONO mixes will give us the 'balanced' mix, which still sounds great.
But it wont be that way looking into the future. The recent Digitally Extracted STEREO[DES] creations I wrote about previously on this blog have been a revelation. Here's why DES is the future.
I realised how today's DES software with the skills of the engineer can 'uniquely' create completely NEW and aesthetically pleasing alternatives to even the best STEREO mixes from Vee-Jay and Philips STEREO Masters like not possible any other way. I realised that Bob Crewe and the group were forced to 'push'all the great instrumentation in Charlie Calello's arrangements into one channel[Left] leaving just occasional harmony backing [Right] with Frankie's vocal[Centre] so there is a lack of balance in the sound stage. The attraction of the MONO has been that at least everything is 'together'and although some would argue 'it was designed that way'…...that isn't true.......it is really just the result of the technology of the day and the constraints of the MONO 45 and it's market.
This'eureka'moment for me arrived when I realised how, in a working sample of 'Everybody Knows My Name'. the engineer was able to change the STEREO mix by placing the instruments across the sound stage so that you could hear each one. The great 'rolling' [Dylanesque?]rhythm track which was originally compressed to the left...in the DES version became a spread of the instruments across the 2 channels and brought the whole song to life like never before in any 'published' mix.
DES is getting an ever growing audience as others realise this is the only way to 'salvage' the sound of the 60s from the MONO or [limited]STEREO we have surviving from those days . Digital extraction of instruments individually and vocal elements generates a'multi-track'and allows engineers today to do what Bob Gaudio, Charlie Callelo and the group would do today with their mixes....create a balanced 'sound-stage'..as I said....it is all down to 'Technology'and we have come full circle.
Our next project is to select and persuade DES engineers and an enlightened Record Company to help recreate the TRUE 'studio' sound. But for us this is NOT a commercial venture someone else can use it to make money and build their record company. The engineers we know of do it mainly out of 'love' of the music and a commitment to preservation. Each track takes days of work of extraction. But the body of completed DES work is ever increasing on You Tube and at ERIC Records web-site.
Can a NEW set of Four Seasons Recordings be created like never before heard.......like...”what we heard in the studio” as Bob Gaudio, Frankie Valli and Charlie Callelo would say? More re the arguments for and against soon.
In researching Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons period at Mowest/Motown 1971/74 it might have been helpful to know sound engineers who either worked at the label or know the recording process from those times or are familiar with the tapes like Russ Terranawhose initials appear on some as the mixing engineer. One note shows up to 43 STEREO mix-downs by him of 'The Night' between 1972 and 1975.
So why are these cards so important now in 2019 and what can they tell us?
Well they reveal a raft of information re unreleased but completed tracks that indicates their existence and location.
When Motown moved to LA from Detroit in 1970 they adopted a different system for recording, storing and releasing recordings.
This was the Motown 60000 series of Master Numbers and this can be seen here.
These Master numbers appear on the released 45 as seen in the Cat45 listing above.
As fans we have tried to analyse the approach to session and recording management and decode some of the data records from the time based on the Analogue Tape Index and the Artists Cards.
What I believe happened was that studio sessions that resulted in a completed 16 track song generated a Master Nr [for example 60516 – Walk On Don't Look Back].
An Artists Card was produced[a simple card index] which showed the Title/Artist/Producer/Master Number/ Tape Number. The Tape Number [1stLocation] was a 4 digit code preceded by a predominantly P[Production Tape] or T[Temporary/Safety-Evaluation Copy]. Example Tape P2110 – The Night. Notes exist of mixes and dubs made and stored on many T Tapes.
The relationship with P and T Tapes has to some extent been clarified. I have a listing from the Tape Index relating to the P Tapes. These are the main Production Tapes with up to 16 tracks in sync from sessions. The big question is was a vocal lead laid down. Only playing the tapes will reveal this as tape boxes do not always reveal the accurate contents. STEREO mix-downs should also exists as these are the final Production versions for Evaluation through the Quality Assessment process meetings. There are famous stories re these reviews and evidence from Motown TCB Newsletters indicate unreleased completed tracks by the group were being assessed in January 1972 for possible single and album release. Several songs listed there appeared on the 'Chameleon'. Several have never been heard since. T tape copies existed of many tracks indicating they were completed as STEREO mix-downs. Some remain as 16 track and have never been played back since.. Research to find if these still exist but this research exercise hasn't extended to them at this point in time.
The Artists Cards were subsequently used to note transfers and copies as they are made [They are generally to T tapes but sometimes P tapes ] and this shows their locations[Master Mix/Remix] and 'Dub Cuts'.
Codes [in the Comments column] are hand written or typed and these need translation..They include.......
1. 16tRhy – which I assume is a 16 track copy
2. 02tsmx – which I assume is a stereo mix
3. SR6smx – which is a mystery but likely to be a type of stereo mix
The above Example is of an Artists Card which shows a track we found on cassette salvaged from the session, proving it existed. The track has been shared in our Facebook group.The Master Nr [not noted here] is in fact 60752 confirmed by other Motown Spreadsheets.
Sometimes there are references to the alternate 'Take' Numbers which in the case of The Night number 43.[The biggest hit.....by 1975 and the highest number of STEREO mixes made on the catalogue of the group at Motown]. Occasionally dates are shown and engineers initials. RT is probably Russ Terrana but others are a mystery. [The details behind this tracks production and surviving versions we hope to feature in the next year]
Some notes indicate that copies have been made to 'New Album' P Tapes clearly for pre-release.The Transfered/Temporay Tapes [T tapes] should be evaluated with reference to these Cards to identify copies [if necessay – should the completed tracks/mixes not appear on the Production Tapes]. Collating the Artists Cards with a Tape Index has shown over 30 tracks with Master Numbers by Frankie and the group that have never been released.Of course this analysis may be challenged by the people at Motown who know otherwise.?......but the tapes will speak for themselves!!
Will the transfer of these tapes to Bob Gaudio generate their release.? We will see, but at least the exercise has resulted in their'preservation'for posterity. Whether there is enough interest from the Partnership to invest the Sound Engineering time to mix-down to STEREO where necessary remains to be seen at the present time.? And how busy is Bob Gaudio to invest the Production time? It is perhaps also a question of what gets licensed in contract negotiations between Gene Zacharewicz at UMe and Snapper Records.
Whilst we do not expect any confirmation for release [or otherwise] for some months we will have more soon re what has been salvaged/preserved and remains unreleased.
Ken Charmer – Tape Index Researcher 2018[Updated August 2019]
Most members of this group will be aware of the amazing sets of Beach Boys 'unreleased' and session tapes that have surfaced and been released since circa 2000. Much of this has been because of the need for copyright protection but MOST of it is as a result of the amazing work of this legendary sound engineer Mark Linett. This video interview tells the amazing story of what has been found and what has been salvaged. It is a must watch for the likes of Bob Gaudio/ Frankie Vall/Bill Inglot and the folks at Snapper Records.
Unfortunately I believe we are not going to get anything like this extent of forensic work done on the Four Seasons. Well not in my lifetime or Frankie and Bob's, I would say. This goes to the root of the complaint of Four Seasons since the age of CD. No-one has respected the work as Mark has done for the Beach Boys. OK the multi-track tapes and copies stolen from now defunct studio archives have helped the process for him and them. But the very fact that Jersey Boys was such a success has impaired any attention the Four Seasons archive has had. We've done more in capturing the vinyl dubs and creating a MONO Archive of the 60s 45s than anyone over the last 10 years, and the research of the Motown vaults paper archives have been confirmed by recent tape research and transfers. But whether it is cost pressures or time/resource restrictions we are now not optimistic that the planned box set will achieve anywhere near fans expectations.
The Motown 16 track tapes need research and time to uncover the dozens of tracks and alternate takes there. And the fact that only 2 track STEREO masters exist from the 60s [as we hear about in this interview re the Capitol sessions with the Beach Boys]were thrown together back in the 60s.
But we don't see that delivering on a major scale here and it appears our high hopes and expectations will be dashed. Not something we are not used to as Four Seasons Fans.
Whatever the reasons and excuses re the Four Seasons catalogue.......it will disappoint most even though we can see from Mark's open and frank interview the problems of past digital tape preservation and digital restoration. The key is you have to care for the music....the creative process and the sound and invest in preserving it and putting it out.
This is a stunning interview and a credit to a true archivist engineer of the highest skill.
But the real future for the catalogue of the Four Seasons will be Digital Extraction and Mark touches upon it in this interview. The only way to salvage Bob Crewe's final mixes and alternative takes [with Charlie Calello's arrangements]and create NEW Masters for the future generation of collectors is coming.
The push to start this has started and we will be leading that in whatever way we can whether Bob Gaudio or Frankie Valli [or Snapper] choose to invest in the process. Someone will.......and we will be leading the campaign. We go again.....the way to the MASTERS is DES.
In March I was bemoaning the slow progress of the proposed 40 album Box Set by Snapper and the Four Seasons Partnership with Major Corporate Record Companies [Warner/Rhino/Curb and Universal Motown]
Well now it is summer and coming up a year since the fan group committed to the concept developed by Snapper Records when they 'sold' the idea to the 'majors' and Frankie Valli and Bob Gaudio. But because the list of tracks has to remain 'open' to be developed as research continues, formalising contracts was delayed and the investigation of the Master Tapes in the Motown vaults took time.
But News last week that Bob Gaudio has committed to being co-producer of the new Neil Diamond Bio Musical on Broadway prompted many fans to question his commitment to this 'Legacy' project.? And concerns have been expressed as most of the content of this set is already available and there will be no difference.?
Our recent work has reinforced the strategy of the fan group as we've developed it in the last ten years.....in our last post we said...The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society has been calling vociferously for catalogue preservation on it's web site blogs since 2008, when the paucity of the physical CD catalogue and the missing masters stories gained strength. Then it became apparent that between 30 to 40 unreleased recordings by the group existed on 16 track 'multi's' in Universal Motown's NYC vault. As we gathered evidence of what might exist uncovering several acetate copies we got resistance from UMe and the Partnership that these existed. [Just the same refusal to admit to the assets and the need to preserve them that has existed for decades]. It took 2 years of publishing evidence of the archive tracks on Facebook in the Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign for a forward thinking Record Company to ask the experts[THE FANS]....'What do you want?'
We clearly stated.....THE UNRELEASED......and have had great news of this since.
Ken Charmer will bring you news of this during the summer on the Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Facebook Group.
But progress on the box set has been made and the reason why it has been so slow is based on 3 problems.
The provisional track list and contracts have taken time to complete but the contract with Warner is complete and something like 34 of the proposed 40 albums are transferred to Snapper. Questions remain as to whether these are NEW analogue/digital transfers or existing digital copies.? Also the Re-mastering proposals and the inclusion/availability of MONO 45 mixes where different to the album mixes still needs to be addressed?
The Motown Tapes were confirmed as found in January and it took time to set up the contract to address these. Bob Gaudio's commitment was clear in his proposal to review with Frankie ALL Masters with his vocal on them. He asked for 2 track mix-downs from the 16/24 Track tapes, and with Snapper paying for these transfers he offered to mix the 16 track approved versions for Snapper. A big breakthrough and he recognises how many of you want to hear these 'lost gems'.
The sheer workload remains a problem. Memoribilia has been photographed and a designer and writer appointed.....BUT with Snapper committed to several Box Sets for the Christmas market 2019 the on-going pace of this project will slow as an issue date of August 2020 is now targetted.
Confirmation that the 'Bachelors 3' Fort Lauderdale 1974 and the 'Lucifer's' Boston 1973 concerts was really good news and Bob Gaudio will edit and provide what he has from other studio sessions. Re-mastering transfers and collation of 'Unreleased' tracks will in our view not happen till early 2020, and in the meantime the fan group will focus on locating alternative sources for missing Masters only available on vinyl. But Bob's commitment can clearly be judged as definite by this quote re the researching of the Motown Tapes......”revisiting the past can sometimes be painful. But apparently, there is a world of fans who would appreciate everyone’s efforts.”
The paper records [and cassette tapes from the studio] show Motown's tapes contain lots of unheard 'gems' and we will post re the potential finds during the summer as well as celebrating the decades of releases in the catalogue. Bob Gaudio has said he has 'unreleased' “from every decade” and we'll comment on what that might be. We are in regular contact with Snapper and whilst the transfer of the Motown material is still awaited, we will advise as soon as we know more.
News broke this week that Universal Music Group had hidden the devastating losses from a fire 10 years ago. It was something most of us had heard about but the NYT disclosed the full extent and exposed it as a scandal of mismanagement. “ The severity of the fire long went undisclosed”, according to an article published by TheNewYork Times Magazine on Tuesday, despite the fact that a confidential report inIn June 2008, confirmed a fire roared through a building at Universal Studios Hollywood, destroying thousands of audio recordings by music luminaries like Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong and Tom Petty. The severity of the fire long went undisclosed, the loss being estimated at about 500,000 song titles.”
“The vault fire was not, as UMG suggested, a minor mishap, a matter of a few tapes stuck in a musty warehouse. It was the biggest disaster in the history of the music business. UMG’s internal assessment of the event stands in contrast to its public statements. In a document prepared for a March 2009 “Vault Loss Meeting,” the company described the damage in apocalyptic terms. “The West Coast Vault perished, in its entirety,” the document read. “Lost in the fire was, undoubtedly, a huge musical heritage.”
The successful effort to play down the scope of the loss was a triumph of crisis management that involved officials working for Universal Music Group on both coasts. Those efforts were undoubtedly aimed at minimising public embarrassment, but some suggest the company was also particularly worried about a backlash from artists and artist estates whose master recordings had been destroyed.
…...”but it was only the most recent disaster to strike the masters holdings of American record labels. These disasters include not only events like fires but also instances of neglect and even wilful destruction by the labels themselves, a hair-raising history that reaches back to the beginnings of the music business.
…....UMG began Project Phoenix in October 2008. The plan was to gather duplicates of recordings whose masters were lost. Those copies would then be digitally transferred to reconstitute the lost archive — albeit in sonically inferior form, with recordings generations removed from the true masters. UMG undertook a global hunt, searching for safety copies and other duplicates at a variety of locations in the United States and abroad. The project lasted two years and, by Aronson’s estimate, recovered perhaps a fifth of what had been lost.
The subsequent largely unknown world-wide search for duplicates and sources continues and as I'll show [or should I say I remain to be convincedabout is....] no-one can trust the 'Major Record Companies' as they continue to show little action as they focus on 'streaming' profit and on the basis that 'any old master' will do and unreleased tracks are of no significance. Asset Management and Preservation the NYT claims is not on the balance sheet or in the strategic direction. The question of whether such Boards at the Majors are 'fit for purpose' needs to be asked and answered.
If nothing else this is a wake up call to UMG and the industry that such assets[ie musical art] has been mismanaged for decades, and raises the question 'Should legislation and regulation be implemented to protect such assets?'
But this blogs concerns has always been for 'long-suffering' 4 Seasons fans as their losses roll back in the 1960s when first Vee-Jay went bust.....and subsequently Philips cleared out tapes to skips. But all this is no worse than the BBC recording over classic music and TV shows during the decade. Examples of lack of foresight and horrendous strategic management are endemic in the music industry. This current expose fits very nicely with the book 'Appetite for SELF-DESTRUCTION – the spectacular crash of the record industry in the digital age – by Steve Knopper
But for readers here the only concern is THE FOUR SEASONS CATALOGUE. When Vee-Jay went bust the Four Seasons got 'access' to their masters.......well a 'copy' of their ALBUM MONO and STEREO Masters. These were the 'mix-downs' from the 3 track Masters. And what of the highly produced 45 MONO Masters?. Never available in CD or streaming format. Do they still exist? And what has survived from the Philips/Mercury vault with so many Bell Studios masters dumped in a skip in the late 60s.? We are asking Snapper and Bob Gaudio the question.?
Music historian's like me have been maintaining that CD and streaming masters are inferior to the original vinyl in many cases. Sound Engineer George Schowerer told us that the CD Masters on the 25th Anniversary 3 CD Box Set in 1988 where [in many cases] 'inferior' to the Masters that left his Mirasound Studio in 1967. So what happened and what has survived?
It is clear we have never had the MONO tracks on CD as a comprehensive set. The STEREO versions are alternative versions in many cases, so it is time we had the catalogue sorted out with what has survived from the 1960s.
We have to be aware of the background as the New York Times goes on to say....”Today industry professionals familiar with archiving practices question the big three labels’ commitment to preservation. [Ed we do to. See below] (A number of these insiders, including individuals with knowledge of the backlot fire, spoke on condition of anonymity, concerned they could face professional consequences with UMG and other labels.) One audio specialist said: “Labels need to see payoff: ‘We have a release next year from this artist.’ But as far as, ‘We have this inventory on the shelves, let’s preserve it’ — that’s not the attitude. An old recording that’s deteriorating on the shelf is not causing alarm.”
The result is a crisis, a slow-motion assault on our musical heritage that is poorly understood by many within the record industry, to say nothing of the public at large. Had a loss of comparable magnitude to the Universal fire occurred at a different cultural institution — say, the Metropolitan Museum of Art — there might have been wider awareness of the event, perhaps some form of accountability. Yet the conservation mission faced by record labels may be no less vital than those of museums and libraries. Recorded music is arguably America’s great artistic patrimony, our supreme gift to world culture. How should it be safeguarded? And by whom?”
Today several of the company’s nearly 1,500 facilities are devoted to entertainment assets. Warner Music Group stores hundreds of thousands of master recordings in Iron Mountain’s Southern California facilities, and nearly all of Sony Music Entertainment’s United States masters holdings — more than a million recordings — are reportedly kept in Iron Mountain warehouses in Rosendale, N.Y. The Boyers, Pa., facility where UMG keeps most of its United States masters is a 1.7-million-square-foot former limestone mine. The facility offers optimal archive conditions, climate control and armed guards. For labels, Iron Mountain is a one-stop shop. In addition to providing storage, it runs on-site studios, so staff members can pull tapes and send digital transfers to labels online, avoiding any need for recordings to leave the premises. Yet some music-business insiders regard this arrangement as a mixed bargain. When masters arrive at Iron Mountain, they say, institutional memory — archivists’ first hand knowledge of poorly inventoried stacks — evaporates, as does the possibility of finding lost material, either by dogged digging or chance discovery. (Many treasures in tape vaults have been stumbled upon by accident.) Tapes can be retrieved only when requested by bar-code number, and labels pay fees for each request. For years, rumors have circulated among insiders about legendary albums whose masters have gone missing in Iron Mountain because labels recorded incorrect bar-code numbers. The kind of mass tape-pull that would be necessary to unearth lost recordings is both financially and logistically impractical.
“I’ve always thought of Iron Mountain as that warehouse in the last scene of ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark,’ ” says Thane Tierney, who co-founded Universal’s now-defunct reissue label Hip-O Select. “Just endless rows of stuff. It’s perfectly safe, but there’s no access, no possibility of serendipity. Nearly all the tapes that go in will never come off the shelf. They’re lost to history.”
So this summer is a 'landmark' moment in deciding the future catalogue of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. Snapper Records [with a reputation for 'ground-breaking catalogue wide sets] have challenged the Four Seasons Partnership to [GO TO THE MASTERS -BOTH RELEASED AND UNRELEASED]. A mega catalogue wide Box Set is in prospect.
The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society has been calling vociferously for catalogue preservation on it's web site blogs since 2008, when the paucity of the physical CD catalogue and the missing masters stories gained strength. Then it became apparent that between 30 to 40 unreleased recordings by the group existed on 16 track 'multi's' in Universal Motown's NYC vault. As we gathered evidence of what might exist uncovering several acetate copies we got resistance from UMe and the Partnership that these existed. [Just the same refusal to admit to the assets and the need to preserve them that has existed for decades]. It took 2 years of publishing evidence of the archive tracks on Facebook in the Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign for a forward thinking Record Company to ask the experts[THE FANS]....'What do you want?'
PRESERVATION.....RE-MASTERING.......RELEASE.
Audiophiles and audio professionals view such recordings with special regard. “A master is the truest capture of a piece of recorded music,” Adam Block, the former president of Legacy Recordings, Sony Music Entertainment’s catalogue arm, says. “Sonically, masters can be stunning in their capturing of an event in time. Every copy thereafter is a sonic step away.”
This week after months of negotiation the known archive tape masters are being transferred to Four Seasons 'Brand' owner Bob Gaudio for evaluation.
And he has said he has 'unreleased tracks from every decade' since the 60s and is committed to the project.
We've told him of the rumours of tracks and given him the salvaged acetate digitised copies we have preserved. The hope is that this first true 'collaboration' between fan/collectors[who know the whole catalogue as released and much unreleased] and the 'artists' and an innovative Independent Record Company will show the 'majors' the way to a proper catalogue management strategy.
It is time for us THE COLLECTORS to address THE OWNERS.....in Andy Zax words from the NYT article.....”The most powerful argument for preservation is simply: ‘We don’t know.’ The sounds from the past that seem vital to us in the present keep changing. Since we don’t know what’s going to be important, we have to err on the side of inclusivity and insist that the entities that own our cultural history do the same.”
But as for the Universal fire 'what's lost is lost' ….but what remains is that Universal Motown has a HUGE catalogue of tapes in NYC that needs to be SALVAGED and heard. We are on the verge of chasing down the masters of their released and unreleased this summer...for their contract with Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons....on 29 Production Tapes [P Tape]and numerous Temporary Tapes [T Tapes].......and we'll keep chasing them notwithstanding we had a 'gagging order' whilst the tapes were pulled for transfer.!!!!!!! We accepted this whilst the transfers were paid for and completed.......but all bets are off......we want to know what is there and what are the best surviving MASTERS for both the released and unreleased and I for one want to hear all 34 mixes of 'The Night' by legendary sound engineer Russ Terrana and others.......what were they looking for......and have we got it?????. The wait goes on this summer for how we will be told what has survived and in what format?
Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons have had many CD releases since the advent of the CD in the mid 1980s. So many licensing deals have been done that 'nobody' has a comprehensive assessment of the 'Best Masters'. Between 2007 and 2010 we started a mammoth review of what is available for 'Collectors' of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons on CD, publishing our findings at the time in our CD Buyers Guide
Stefan Wriedt, a professional Sound Engineer based in German and our own Music Historian Casey Chameleon began the daunting task of compiling and reviewing as many as possible and published this listing[see link above]. In it we stated....”With so many commercial releases on CD since 1986 it is a problem finding the best quality copies and those rare versions of tracks. This listing is fairly comprehensive with over 160 CD’s listed but it is not a complete list. It is also a work in progress as we review and assess each release. With so many of these CD’s now only available on E-Bay or as ‘out of print/deleted’ copies which sometimes appear on CD supplier sites, fans need a guide. CD’s are rated as :-
EC= Essential Collectors Item
CU = Collectible for it's unique/alternativetracks
NV=No value to collectors”
The intention at that time was to support 'collectors'in finding the best Masters until a fully comprehensive set of NEW Masters was available through a catalogue review by the Four Seasons Partnership. [That has never happened]. We did highlight a few Essential Collectors titles and these can be found coded 'green' on our CD Discography pages.
But we never got to collect and review everything as the list was ever growing and at the time had over 160 CD's listed. Obtaining all copies of albums releases is of course cost prohibitive and the assessment tools[and ears not easily available] It is impossible to estimate if this is as much as 90% of releases given the world popularity of the group. Whatever we were able to gather was to be assessed.
BUT then we got side tracked into 'preserving the MONO 45 Masters'when news filtered through that the Partnership 'may not have the 45 Masters' in every case.' And MONO on CD was not the CD concept of the re-issue of past albums at that time, even though during the groups hey-day all mixing was targetted to create the BEST MONO Master for vinyl. But by 2012 we decided that this MONO sound must 'rule'for this 'career' period as the production and engineering standards at the time focused on that output for Radio and records. STEREO remained a novelty and today we can see the weaknesses in the STEREO engineering.[As with many 'pop' artists of the day eg Beatles, Beach Boys etc]
Even with the sad loss and passing of our key engineer Stefan in 2014 we completed [with great help from US collectors] that MONO project by 2016 for ALL the MONO Vee-Jay and Philips 45s now preserved as reference copies for future access in the UK Fan club Archive.
With news in early 2019 that Snapper Records are in contract talks for a NEW catalogue spanning LUXURY Box Set in 2020 we have been asked what the fans would want? That was easy. ALL the 60s albums in original MONO and STEREO versions with alternative versions and all 45 non-album tracks plus the 70s through to the 00's STEREO albums plus as much unreleased as can be found. And all re-mastered tracks to recommended standards as established by our 'Sound Tests Page'and current engineering standards.
Lots of people have committed to this project already [including the Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society] and Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli have been confirmed as fully supportive. The Majors in the form of Warners and Universal [as the Motown arm of UMe] and Curb Records are also expected to collaborate. The Music Industry has finally realised that comprehensive 'catalogue' is the product for future customers to find their 'niche' artists.
So MAYBE next year fans will get the chance should they are able to......to invest in this set.
We will be asking for the best quality RE-MASTERS and are advising Snapper Records re this. We are encouraged that our request for the best 2020 Engineered Quality Masters to be delivered is currently accepted.
With this in mind and to set a minimal standard reference we are reviewing past issues on CD to advise here what CD's stand up as 'Quality' Re-masters.......focusing on 'Essential Collectors' physical Masters. Whilst much of the catalogue is available on You Tube or as 'downloads' or on 'streaming' services we are going to the CD source as only a quality wav file [ie CD] can create a good compressed[mp3 or AIFF]. No research is available re the availability of 'lossless' versions [FLAC]. We've judged the STEREO image on a clock face basis with 9 and 3 being the extremes of left and right channels with 12 centre vocal. Instrumental detail and vocal harmony background sounds best when spread between 9 and 11 left and 3 and 1 right. Beware that many CD's are far left/far right mixes [9-Left and 3-Right] and sound dreadful on headphones. We have reviewed Peak Volume, Loudness[RMS] and Dynamic Range[DR] as well as STEREO image. But for both MONO and Stereo it is the clarity and ambience that can only be assessed by the subjective 'ear'
It is fair to say that there are significant imperfections in ALL the album sets on CD for the 1962 to 1970 period. Inconsistencies in masters occur,[imbalance] with mistakes[dropouts – audible Tape hiss] and STEREO mixing issues [Channel crossover] in many tracks so any re-issue may not be able to address these as multi-tracks ARE NOT AVAILABLE. For that reason alone the issue of MONO Masters in 'pristine' sound is essential[More re this below]
Many collectors may dispute some of our review results but this is an honest assessment intended to be a guide to a better quality catalogue..IZOTOPE.COM says of best STEREO mixes......”The instrumental separation, definition of instruments within the stereo field, and sense of depth” should be sought. Re-mastered analogue transfers should be....”an engaging, lively sound that you can practically close your eyes and visualize where each instrumentalist is on the soundstage. The use of dynamic range is also exceedingly important in the sense of depth and clarity” so that it “ensures that the energy and vibrance of the performance shines.”
Fans should expect “a masterclass of effective panning and EQ for instrumental separation. Additionally, the availability of dynamic range (not over-compression) ensures that separation is maintained through the mastering stages. The dynamic range and smart EQ choices (along with effective use of reverb) can also result in an exceptional sense of depth within the mix.”
We do not believe these exacting standards have been fully achieved in past releases particularly of the groups 'classic' hits period as we'll comment below. But with the the restriction of STEREO only masters this limits STEREO as instruments and vocals cannot be spread across the sound stage – they are either left or right. So what can be done in Re-Mastering.? For today's market we would expect the STEREO catalogue of the Four Seasons to be Mastered with this definition in mind whilst accepting the restrictions of the discrepancies and flaws in the surviving STEREO Masters. “Think of mastering as the glue, varnish and polish that optimizes playback quality on all devices — from tiny iPhone speakers to massive dance club sound systems. Mastering bridges the gap between artist and consumer. The term itself comes from the idea of a master copy. All copies or duplications of the audio come from the master. These copies can be distributed on multiple formats like vinyl, CD’s or Tape, and streaming services like Spotify, iTunes and SoundCloud. Additionally, mastering allows for restoration of hisses, clicks or small mistakes missed in the final mix. Mastering also ensures uniformity and consistency of sound between multiple tracks on an album. Ultimately, what mastering does is create a clean and cohesive feeling across all your audio......A good mastering job makes an album consistent and balanced across all tracks....An ideal master is well-balanced and proportional. This means no specific frequency range is left sticking out. A balanced piece of audio will sound good on any playback system. ”
The CD's reviewed below, it can be argued, DO NOT fully achieve these exacting standards which is why we are doing this exercise and telling Snapper of our 'expectations/hopes'. We'll provide feedback to Snapper on what they propose.....if asked but will ultimately sit in judgement of a final product which we expect to be as good as is possible.....and certainly exceeding what we have had before on CD whilst enhancing what we have on 'vinyl'.
Part 1 – The Vee-Jay albums
The Masters used for all CD releases of the Vee-Jay recordings are based on the outcome of the Group's dispute with Genius Inc[who contracted their work to Vee-Jay]. A fuller explanation of the story and data re these is contained in our Masters sessionography[here].
So the CD re-issues are from the recovered tracks from the bakruptcy of Vee-Jay. The Partnership received MONO/STEREO album Masters supplied to Philips in 1964. No review of surviving Multi-tracks in the Vee-Jay Archive [now owned by Concord Music Group[should they still exist] has been attempted or appears likely given the Four Seasons Partnership Ownership rights.
All CD issues to date are, we believe, based on Analogue/Digital transfers done in 1986/87.[No evidence exists of any A/D transfers since as far as we know.] It is believed that for the Snapper project NEW A/D transfers have been done.
Early CD re-issues in the late 1980's where on compilations and although Rhino , Br music(Netherlands)[and Curb – in Japan]issued album re-masters on CD these are very rare and have been unobtainable except for Curb BVCP-2050 [Sherry & 11 Others].
This was a very wide[9-3] STEREO mix with little to commend it based on the above. As a result we did not obtain/review the rest of the Japanese releases from this early CD period.
We moved on and focused on the Curb releases Volumes 1,2 and 3 of 1995 [Curb D2-77695 to 7] and compared them with the ACE 2fer releases of the same period.
Without doubt the ACE CD's [507,615 and 596] offer the best collections and sound [in the main – for these catalogue albums].This is primarily because of the benefit of their 2fer format and the bonus non-LP sides. Sherry/Big Girls Don't Cry[plus bonus sides]507although not stated we assume was mastered by Bill Inglot....as the subsequent CD's were. It has a good STEREO image[Left 9/11: Right 3/1] and good Loudness [Range -11db to -16] as does the Christmas Album/Born To Wander CD 615, but something slips on Ain't That A Shame/ Live On Stage [plus bonus sides]596.
The clarity and ambience is somehow lost, and comparison with Curb CD D2 – 77967[Ain't That A Shame +11 Others]shows this. This Curb CD offers an impressive STEREO image [Left 9/11 : Right 3/1] but with great clarity and ambience [Loudness -12 to -16] making it by far the best set of Vee-Jay album Masters on CD we have found.The backing vocals and instruments are still split left and right but these mixes have clear separation, depth and warmth. They hang together around the centre vocal. They are not the TRUE STEREO we can get with multi-track tapes or with DES [Digitally Extracted STEREO] but they are the best you are going to find until another source is created. For more reading re creating a good mix try this link.
The MONO and MONO only at Vee-Jay
Three years of studio work in dubbing vinyl MONO and re-mastering for our reference set of 45s/MONO album Masters gave us a good reference set and generally all the MONO sides included on the CD's reviewed fall short of the standards defined above regarding clarity and ambience in Mastering. We can only put this down to poor transfer quality or poor re-mastering of MONO at that time. 24 bit 96 khz dubs from vinyl enabled us to get sparkling clarity and ambience capturing the original 'sound' much better than the 'dull' MONO re-masters found on many CD issues and we expect equivalent 'good' results in the Snapper Box Set. Whilst the 2 Real Gone releases from 2016 of Sherry and Big Girls Don't Cry albums appear to be re-mastered from the MONO album Masters [they say] we still believe these lack 'punch' and ambience on the vocals compared to the vinyl dubbed re-masters in our own MONO archive.This is an EQ problem.
The release and re-mastering of the MONO Master Tapes is a crucial part of this Box Sets market potential, With the inconsistencies of the STEREO Masters these will become the groups reference tracks and possibly a preferred play for future fans via all formats.
So to summarise there are currently many STEREO tracks from the Vee-Jay period in good/fair sound quality if you carefully search them out on 'out of print' CD's. But there are few MONO versions in adequate sound quality
In Part 2 we will look at the early Philips Masters in STEREO on CD and the inconsistencies and flaws that [surprisingly] became much worse at Philips when sound recording equipment and engineering was improving in most studios.
Footnote
Fans may consider a luxury BOX SET unnecessary as currently available are two Box Sets on Amazon covering 'most' of the 'Group'and 'Solo'albums but these are far from comprehensive.
These box sets have been criticised for content and quality with comments that show the lack of the Majors respect for the fans perspective...as these example quotes from reviews show...”What a lot of people fail to realize is that Rhino stopped being Rhino when it was sold to Warner Brothers in 1998, and the original Rhino guys left in 2003. The label became "Warner Strategic Marketing" and reverted back to their "special products" mentality of the 70s and early 80s - that is, that any "masters" will do, and the public will eat it up no matter what we do with it. This attitude is especially prevalent on stuff that's been placed with WEA rather than with their homegrown artists.”.....and“the Press release from Rhino/Warner stated"Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - The Classic Albums Box is an 18-disc set that includes the vast majority of the group's albums in mini jackets with original artwork”. So they acknowledged the missing ones up front. But using old Curb 1990s CD sets that are not the original albums was a big and careless mistake....also...”there are still 7 CD's missing from this package”.....”Rhino should have just reissued them like the ACE series, where you would have have had every track from the Vee-Jay, Phillips & Warner labels....maybe even had the MoWest stuff thrown in and make it a true set. It's overall shoddy work from a Label that I used to admire, it's like no one cares anymore.”… One reviewer commented “ The sound quality (on my copy) is identical to the ACE label releases which were issued in the UK and Germany between 1994 and 1996...and copies were produced in the EU. “
The 'Solo' Work set was described as....”This is NOT an anthology, best of, greatest hits, or even, as titled "Selected Solo Works". What this is, plain and simple, are eight (8) complete LPs recorded by Frankie Valli between 1967 and 1980. Each album is presented in its entirety exactly as originally released - no remastering of the original recordings.[or non-LP sides]”
We haven't obtained or 'forensically' reviewed these 2 sets for sound quality but have tracked back through album 'styled' releases [Rhino/Warner/Curb] during the 90s and some appear to be identical to CD albums released at that time and 'casually' reproduced and included in these sets. More re this in our next part. Ken Charmer June 2019
When the the Partnership/Snapper Tape Archive review is complete it seems inevitable that the tracks THAT NEVER DID APPEAR IN STEREO during the 1960s will still be MONO only.
So fans are stuck with those versions……you can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear!! Or can you.?
These are the tracks from the early 1960s known to have only ever been issued in MONO
I’ve Cried Before
Soon
Ain’t That A Shame[45 version with Nick Massi overdub]
New Mexican Rose
Little Boy In Grown Up Clothes[45 mix without audience overdub added for ‘Live On Stage' album]
Dawn [45 version]
No Surfin’ Today
Big Man's World
Huggin’ My Pillow
There are also some very poor STEREO Mixes of some tracks[ like 'Beggar's Parade'] which can't be repaired or re-mixed to a balanced STEREO.
But there are a group of enthusiasts interested in sound technology and the ability of modern tools to ‘Re-Create’ TRUE STEREO from classic MONO recordings of the 1960s[or earlier]. The process is Digitally Extracted STEREO[DES]and it is increasingly being seen as a new way to enjoy the producers and the artists skills as they would use them with today’s technology.
One of the member of this group of engineers told us….’The only true stereo from MONO using modern software is DES. 'Digitally Extracted Stereo'. Anything else is not true stereo. DCS 'Digitally Constructed Stereo' can sound really good, & I used to do that before I started doing DES, some still do it. Stereo synch can sound very good, it is close to real stereo but is not the original single in stereo, it is usually an overdub or underdub placed alongside the mono record. ……only DES is true stereo.’
Christopher Kissel promotes the technique on a dedicated web site and states..’This website will focus on audio spectral editing, sound source separation, and other related tools and processes used specifically for the purpose of upmixing mono source material to stereo, with the goal of creating stereo mixes that are virtually indistinguishable from stereo mixes created using multi-track session tapes, had they existed.’
Most of such STEREO re-creations appear on a Record Label called ERIC RECORDSThe tracks take several days for re-construction but this work is not commercially driven.
Some have simply been shared on You Tube.
Published versions by our engineer friend on other artists include the following...
We asked the question….’Could this technique produce good results on the Four Seasons tracks only in MONO?’
Our engineer friend has updated us on work on-going on some of the Four Seasons MONO only tracks with these samples.
No Surfing Today.
Our engineer friend said….’This is how the parts are placed on the mix. Firstly this song seems to feature the group more than Frankie in places, & the normal place for the group is on one side of Frankie, therefore they are on the left & middle most of the way through.
So the Layout is. Group Left & Center. Drum rim tap on Left. Effects on left.. Guitar 1 on left. Falsetto group backing ('Don't Go' ….Don’t Go]on Left. Piano where featured on right, Harp? on right, clapping on right, Guitar 2/3? on right. Frankie, Drums, Bass etc in center.
'No Surfin' Today' does make a good DES, but it is also a hard one, [challenging]& a lot of work had to go into it, & a little more has to be done. I have made one or two very good DES records, in two or three days. That was because everything just fell into place, but most (probably 150 that I have done) take one to two weeks to do.’
To fans ears these are tremendous achievements and highly in demand if available.
The question to Snapper and Bob Gaudio is...'Is there any interest of including such NEW mixes in this box set?' It is the equivalent of adding 'unreleased ' tracks and would add attraction to this proposed Box Set in terms of quality and marketing and adding uniqueness to a quality catalogue spanning set of music.
If final versions are commissioned they would of course become a NEW copyrighted track for the Partnership
We will continue to pursue these UNIQUE MIXES either for this project...or for a future 'Four Seasons in TRUE STEREO' CD project if necessary.
When we met Snapper last August re the proposal of [up to] a 40 CD album project on Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons - 'What Do Fans Want?' seemed a daunting question nor one the Four Seasons Partnership or any previous Record Company had ever asked us.!! When asked what our priority was we all said the Motown Unreleased. When we were told Bob Gaudio was totally on board with the project and he had 'unreleased' tracks from every decade, the project became a NO BRAINER.
With a list of 'assets' in the Partnership of MONO and STEREO 'available' seen for the first time the objective became compiling 'The List'for licensing and contracts. The big news was that the MONO album Masters are available [for most of the 60s albums] and the proposal is to include both MONO and STEREO Masters as new transfers 're-mastered'.
So what about the 'Non-LP 45s'.......and the 45s that are different mixes from the album MONO?
Well the search is on in the Tape Archive with long-term archivist Bill Inglot 'on the case'. By November 'The List' was needed to prepare contracts and the proposal was to have the Non-LP 45s on a separate CD.....but we advised straight away that this would break the timeline of the set and so we suggested a structure like the ACE CD's from the 1990s with Bonus tracks to each album be the preferred approach. We burned the midnight oil to help construct the set 'list'
So the list included for relevant CD's album 'Bonus' tracks for 45s and 'special' STEREO mixes from the 'Golden Hits' album and where possible for all the 1960s albums to add to the MONO and STEREO versions.
MONO versions of 'Solo'and 'Timeless'albums have not been found and were never originally issued.[Possibly 'destroyed']. Philips we believe always intended these albums for STEREO only issue, and this seems to also be the case with the 'Half and Half' album.
BUT a MONO Tape of 'Genuine Imitation Life Gazette' has been found and is being proposed as a vinyl album insert to the box with FULL replica artwork
Bob Crewe's 'special' STEREO re-masters for 'Edizione D'Oro' have been found on Master Tape and will be included. Only 29 tracks are proposed as 'Peanuts'[special Golden Hits 'Re-mix]is included elsewhere.
A 'Rare 45s and Unreleased'CD is proposed for 1968 to 1972including releases on various labels and late Philips sessions plus the UK Warner 45 sides from 1971.
Snapper Records have said Bob Gaudio will supervise the Master tape availability/transfers with vinyl dubs from mint/Promo copies used by Snapper to achieve the list if necessary.
What a wonderful set of tracks if it can be achieved . This will be in new re-mastered sound and has never ever been attempted or achieved since the advent of CD re-issues.
More re the Motown Unreleased and other decade tracks in future blogs.
Casey Chameleon
PS. Back in 2013 we published the following blog note re our work on the MONO Archive and why it was so important. Click the Link Below.
Looking back at 5 decades of your musical creations must be both 'uplifting' and 'painful' at the same time for Bob Gaudio, Frankie Valli and their families. Fans can appreciate that.
Not many artists in 'pop' music have as much music to put into context with their personal life experiences, the changing times lived through, friends and family lost and the huge change in musical influences over that period. We know that this will be difficult for Bob and Frankie and we want them to know the fans appreciate this.
When Snapper Records proposal for a circa 40 album CD box set got a positive response from the Major Record Companies and The Four Seasons Partnership last summer it was a huge surprise for fans but one we have totally embraced. Mainly because Snapper asked us what WE, the fans wanted and said they would do all they could to persuade and help Bob and Frankie to include that.
For the fan groups it is perhaps easier 'looking back' because, for us, it is easy celebrating the 'music of our lives'. Whilst we all have those we have loved and lost over the decades....it is the music of Frankie and the Seasons that has carried us through the good and bad times and it still rings 'warmly' in our heads and hearts.
So whilst compiling the 'Track List' of our lives was easy for the fan group, it was an opportunity to research and find the 'Unreleased' tracks sitting in the Motown Vaults that 'added icing to the cake'. Sceptics still doubt that delivering the Box Set will be close to these expectations.
Today over 6 months after the proposal was enthusiastically received by the 'majors' and the previously reluctant Bob Gaudio ….......we hear contracts are reaching completion and Tape Archive Research is showing exciting potential. But much work is needed to achieve what we want as the volume of tracks needing 'salvage'[either in terms of re-mastering to modern standards and checking of 'unreleased' multi-tracks and mixing to final STEREO ] is huge.
We will expand on this in subsequent blogs as the process unfolds. But there remains great potential.
Back in 2009 German Sound Engineer Stefan Wriedt and I commenced what has become a 'forensic' review of the status of the CD released Masters and the prospect of 'unreleased' tracks. For ten years [5 without my late friend Stefan] my research and blog writing with collectors and fans has uncovered the huge potential for such a set. Only now[post Jersey Boys] has a commercial 'model' for its delivery in the form of a luxury Box Set emerged as viable..
Now we anxiously await feedback from Tape Research and hope for the best.
In the next few weeks I'll document what we have asked Bob and Frankie for [through Snapper] and what is emerging. Getting our 'wants list' may not be possible in every respect but it remains in Bob and Frankie's control what we get to hear. With so many 'unreleased' and completed tracks having emerged in our research we remain confident much 'collectible' work will make it into the final set.
Snapper know that to succeed the product must be 'quality' as we have defined with them. Frankly the message to Bob and Frankie is 'listen to us'. We will be the ultimate critics and Facebook remains the voices of you the fans. Speak up!
Today on a morning debate TV show they asked.....'Will you live long enough to see Brexit?'
Well with an extension to the 'Brexit' leaving process looming......most UK people have lost any interest and are simply focusing on keeping 'body and soul' together. Well Four Seasons fans had better do the same!
Everything is running slow and for Four Seasons fans I'm afraid the story is the same. After the great enthusiasm of Snapper Records concept of a mega/luxury BOX SET of 40 albums spanning the career of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons and the news of Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli's enthusiasm, it is becoming ever more apparent that 'delivery' is the problem. So we can ask the question.....'Will we live long enough to see Snapper's and our concept?' Bob and Frankie may also be asking that question.
The problem is, 'The Majors'...ie Rhino/Warners and more importantly Universal Motown.
Licensing and legal delays have prevented the completion of contracts....and although we had been promised a high proportion of 'unreleased'....'from every decade'......no news has surfaced on the Tape Archive review at the Partnership or from the Motown Archive research.
In many ways this is not a surprise. Whilst Rhino and the Partnership have regularly licensed tracks in their ownership, and were positive when the concept was launched....and Universal Motown saw the potential of the 'unreleased' track they were able for the first time to put before Bob Gaudio.......the administrative problems of licensing when you do not have a definitive 'final list' of tracks to be included appears to becoming problematic. Firstly this is the first time since 1988 that NEW transfers from the analogue tapes has been a viable proposition and the identification of material for inclusion cannot be underestimated. There are so many diverse problems re the Masters to be resolved. Also anecdotal evidence shows Universal Motown are renowned for not having a 'can do' approach to licensing and many projects in recent years[and still today] have been bogged down in their 'processes'. Other licensees have been tearing their hair out and abandoning projects because Universal will simply find excuses for not licensing songs. There is too much evidence for anyone to argue that this criticism is unfair.
In the meantime Snapper and the fan group members have been positively gathering 'memorabilia' from our archives to illustrate how the groups music was presented in the media in past decades for potential inclusion in the proposed /Book'.
On the music catalogue side we have been commencing a 'forensic' review of what is important to be included and the limitations of surviving Masters. What fans want[as far as we know from vinyl and CD issues] has been documented and this has been shared with Bob Gaudio as our 'wants list'. Questions of copyright and royalties payments on 'live' recordings have arisen and at present remain unresolved and the content....remains unclear.
Snapper are not unfamiliar with such problems and have both the determination and experience to manage such issues, but how much time it will take and the compromises necessary are just emerging several months into the design development.
We continue to back the idea of a project that is based on fan input/wishes, as this would be the first time ever in the history of the group that it has happened and we have great confidence in Snapper's leadership and drive. Their track record shows this.
In our forthcoming blogs we will be tackling issues that have become an intrinsic set of problems for the sound we have and what legacy will the groups catalogue leave. The question is how much work is necessary to salvage, repair and issue a representative version of their 'body of work'. We'll be posing questions and potential solutions. But can the music industry be moved by the innovative ideas of a small independent Record Company [with the backing of the artists] and the fan group? It is a bit like the question....'Can 'democracy' survive?'.....Only time will tell......hang in there everyone. We owe it to the next generation of fans.
Casey Chameleon
Next time …..Part 2 - Repairing the 1960s Catalogue.
Maybe as 2019 hits home and the anti-climax of post Frankie Valli Farewell Tour sets in, fans and collectors have become depressed....but there is no need to be.
There are different perspectives on the future of music......“It’s human nature to attempt to conceptualize the future. All civilizations, from the ancient to the modern, have had some tradition of divination or fortune telling.' says Kate Morgan at Medium, but to her it seems we are very bad at forecasting the future!
So as I read forecasts of the dying Music Industry by Dan Fieberger on the BSN Forum I began to smile.....
”Once enough Boomers are dead, music sold in tangible form will cease to exist entirely.
Then x-years from now, all those older tangible music formats will be rare collectors items (cuz so many of them were just initially thrown away).
Then a hundred or so years from now, they'll be so rare as collectors die and the entire collections are thrown into dumpsters to sell their houses as fast as possible, that the occasional rare tangible piece of music will be extreme rarities in museums worth millions of dollars. Eventually they'll be taken down from display cuz nobody cares about them, and/or thrown away or stolen by thieves who then discover that they can't sell them on the black market and so they throw those final copies away also.
Once repository websites like You-Tube collapse cuz it isn't profitable for the webmasters to maintain anymore, eventually, there will be no evidence available that any of the music we produced in the 20th century (or us) ever existed at all. “
OMG.......the end of the world?
And when Rolling Stone recently said its 'piece' about last year, change becomes more real and apparent.'Thanks to the still-expanding streaming industry, overall music consumption grew in double-digits for the second year in a row. But the way we think of “music consumption” itself is permanently changed, and it doesn’t show any signs of going back to what it used to be. The dwindling popularity of music purchases — which is driven by listener preference as well as the music industry’s shift of focus away from [physical] sales, giving it a knock-on effect for retailers and buyers — can also be seen in the shares of total album consumption in 2018. '
The music industry may appear to be totally committed to streaming income and whilst some have been trying to kill of the CD in the last 2 years, physical product still exceeds 48% of income.......but formats don't die.....they just become 'niche' as these articles show
Clearly it is science-fiction to conceptualize the future and there is counter evidence to the revenue analyses showing that physical collecting will continue to accompany the ever expanding streaming industry as music on-line simply becomes an alternative to physical or digital form collecting. And not EVERYTHING is available on stream!!! So whilst we are entering the 'End Of The Boomers Era' and we have to accept that we, our friends and music heroes will inevitably pass on....the music of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons and their fan base is growing and will live on. And we are working to see the best sounding Masters and the 'whole' catalogue [including previously 'unreleased']on CD Box Set. That way the world will retain a 'physical' presence for the groups work long into the future.
There is still a real focus on physical media with rising vinyl sales and even the humble cassette being re-energised. Collecting of both used vinyl and CD is strong and prices are holding and in many cases increasing as rarity impacts.
There are some brilliant sets here and our discussions with Snapper Records in 2018 have left us optimistic that this year will bring a similar stunning 'Tribute' to the career of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons that will fuel our playing, writing and review of their music for many years.
We've been championing the need for 'preservation since 2010 and we made it clear in our 2019 Press Release what we are doing to support the 'Project' and memorabilia research will continue this month. We want the released and unreleased in MONO and STEREO all re-mastered like never before. Capturing a catalogue that was 80% analogue tape stored with today's technology has long been our aim ….so what was either 'unreleased' or recorded to Analogue Tape is 'Digitally' salvaged for posterity. That will superced all the CD re-issues and the previous Analogue transfers of 1987 and provide the classic 60s MONO mixes plus the rest.
The products in this 'Second Disc' 2018 review and in the content of Snapper's cataloguedemonstrates that this small element of the music industry's turnover is both in demand and profitable. But perhaps most important is the close 'bond' such collections are building between fans and artists. Fans can tell their music heroes today what they have collected and loved. Archivists can fine tune released, unreleased and live career spanning work in high quality audio and paper products. Such 'curated' sets are a forensic examination of the 'legacy' left by a great artist and group including amazing memorabilia. We don't want 39 versions of Heroes and Vilians as The Beach Boys have done in their box sets and this Guardian article somewhat cynically examines.
Those that can afford it will want “L'Eridata” and those that can't will wait for a 'torrent' or You Tube version. Or maybe one day it will eventually be streamed.
The collectors groups are too big and 'connected' via social media and the marketeers know 2000 + copies sold will generate enough income and profit[and fund the restoration]. We in the collectors groups will see it as a 'treasure trove' and the legacy of our favourite artists musical careers.
Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli have it seems 'embraced' this and shown enthusiasm to start the process of archival research and we have given them the collecting content 'wants' list that represents 'essential' masters from the past on both vinyl and CD[and 'live']. There is much to treasure and to be collated and this year has the promise of a great future 'box set' for fans. What we all want is the top quality that 'Snapper' have achieved with other artists
Music is a celebration of our times and will always be a portrayal of history, so why not keep celebrating it for as long as we can and the part it has played in our lives, and in doing so let the future take care of itself.
Happy New Year to followers and Facebook group members from Lynn Boleyn, George Ingram, Ray Nichol and myself.
2018 was a 'special year' in the history of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons.
It was a year we discovered more unreleased tracks from the past since the 1975 release of 'Inside You'!
We were able to bring all of the data we have on the groups history up to date on our revised Web site in November
This was followed by the 'Farewell Tour' of the UK by Frankie and his Team for several memorable concerts to huge audiences.
The release of Charlie Calello's biography 'Another Season' in November [just out on Amazon.co.uk]
But perhaps more importantly it was the year we helped 'connect' Bob and Frankie with a high quality Record Company who want to celebrate the history and 'legacy' of their careers.
Not bad for a group that started as a small UK fan club 48 years ago.
Lynn told me that during the concert 'meet-ups' people were asking her.....'What is left now after a 'Farewell Tour?' Is it the end of the road? '
Well not as long as we can keep breathing that is!!
2019 may be the biggest year of our lives 'musically' as 'The Project' takes shape.
In January we hope contracts will be concluded on the 40 album box set featuring we believe 'unreleased tracks from every decade of the Partnerships existence. Tape research has started and the 'wishlist' of album tracks 45s and known 'unreleased' has been supplied to Bill Inglot and Bob Gaudio and Motown Universal have mobilised tape research of the 1971 to 1973 archive tapes. Live 'quality sound' shows are being researched to capture the legendary sound of the group from the 60s and 70s.
This blog will keep you informed of progress as will the Facebook group[The Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign]
What could surface has already been amazing. In November we published 2 previously unheard unreleased but 'completed' Motown tracks from the Chameleon album sessions and before Christmas we heard Snapper Record's contact with the BBC Archive manager has unearthed 2 radio recordings for a Saturday morning 'Top Pops' show from 1963 when the Four Seasons visited the UK for a brief tour. 'Big Girls Don't Cry' and 'Ain't That A Shame'....LIVE at The BBC. Amazing news.!
Super rare photos are also emerging for the box set book and work starts this month on the memorabilia of unique material to illustrate the musical dynasty the group created. We will, during the year in our blogs, be revisiting album releases and special MONO and STEREO rarities that need to be included. The whole set will include amazing 'unseen' and 'unheard' material.
Whilst the aim is a 2019 release, we and Snapper are working together to bring the best ever Four Seasons product to the fans...with the support of Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli and their team.
So as I said Happy NEW YEAR 2019 to all involved and to you 'the fans'
I was listening to the ACE CD transfers from the 1990s on my I-pod on headphones the other day and realised they were nearly all STEREO but were making me cringe!
Why? Well..... every track in STEREO from every album from 1962 to 1970 was in wide STEREO ,,,,in many cases the instruments were across the park and the harmonies in my neighbours garden and Frankie Valli's vocal was in my head!!!! I decided.....I've moved beyond that.
Here is a retrospective re the background as to why this happened.....what the sound engineers tell of the times the first STEREO albums were created back in the 60s......”those early stereo mixes were limited by the technology of the time. The industry was still learning how to bring this newfangled thing into the world. It is really common to hear a ‘60s stereo mix where all the guitars are on one side, the vocals on the other, and the drums in the middle with absolutely no bleed-through at all. This is called “hard panning” and it can definitely make for a challenging listening session, depending on your room setup and personal preferences. It may or may not be fun with headphones too. At first, Stereo was something of a novelty. It wasn’t commonly listened to, and therefore was a bit of a gimmick. The first Stereo mixing consoles were typically 2 track or 4 track mixing desks. This meant you were limited to separating only 2 or 4 individual elements in the Stereo image. Using The Beatles as an example, the first two albums in Stereo were 2 track, so if you listen to them, you will notice all instruments are on one side, and all vocals on the other. This is what people mean when referring to ‘hard panning.’ This even continued when they started using a 4 track desk (I Want To Hold Your Hand), and even the incredibly dense sounding Sgt Pepper was made using a 4 track desk. Mixing huge instrumentation arrangements was possible on 4 track by using a technique called ‘bouncing.’ I won’t go into that here, but you can google it to find out more.
Because Stereo on commercial pop records at this point was a novelty, and a new exciting technology, and because engineers and producers of popular music were new to the idea, early 60’s music in Stereo generally sounds quite primitive. When you have only 2 track Stereo, hard panning is the only option to create a crude Stereo image, and is essentially redundant. But even with the advent of 4 track stereo, you will find that instruments were still hard panned (i.e the drums all on one side, vocals one side, guitars in the middle etc….) It is only towards the latter part of the 60’s, and with 8 track or 16 track becoming more common, that Stereo mixes started to sound like what you would hear [created] today, with instruments placed in a realistic and pleasing stereo image.One danger today is that I know that for one or two big labels, once Stereo became the standard, they thought their mono masters were now worthless, and they destroyed them (or wiped them and reused the tape.) So the mono 45's of these songs are the only way to hear the best-sounding mixes of these songs.”
[Mirasound 8 track Ampex? tape console 1966- Courtesy of George Schowerer]
The main thing is that the whole production was geared to a MONO product. All the hits were made that way and heard that way....on record players and radio....throughout the first 7 years of the decade hardly anyone[fans] had a STEREO record player.....and as stated above that was the gimmicky alternative version. BUT what was the 'Best Mix'? Well in the case of the Four Seasons Catalogue we've been asking that for a long time!!
First of all it seems [or it has been stated in several anecdotal sources] that the 2 and 4 track masters did not survive a Bell Studios clear out. BUT STEREO masters in this 'crude' wide form have survived. Some are different to the MONO that appeared on 45 and album. They don't contain late dubs by Bob Crewe added at Bell after he had taken the MONO master from Stea-Philips or Mirasound studios [according to sound engineer George Schowerer]. And Vee-Jay supplied Philips with MONO and STEREO album mixes only[according to Philips Master lists]. We wonder if that means there are missing 45 MONO Master mixes? On the evidence of post 1987 CD releases that seems to be the case[eg I've Cried Before].
So detailed research of the Tapes surviving [in all potential locations] is necessary to preserve the radio sound that really is the Sound of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. With work, the STEREO versions would be a bonus to todays and future listeners. They could in a decent sound stage reveal more detail than the MONO and be more akin to a 'live' performance. One of the reasons why MONO has some renewed interest though is exactly because STEREO replaced it. By the time CDs arrived, the stereo 'wide' mixes of most albums had become the “official”[defacto]mix.[now on CD] As vinyl records went out of print, people were left with only this STEREO option when they bought a new copy on CD. Within 15 years of the advent of CD, many MONO mixes were more or less forgotten about.
But today my argument is we need top re-mastered versions of BOTH.! So I researched back what my best friend, Stefan Wriedt, a German sound engineer had told me several years ago about STEREO mastering.
But ‘how do fans make their own assessment of what is a good stereo mix?’,.................. we asked him.
“Stereo images are best assessed on headphones. You have to listen. Wide is 120 to 180 degrees, anything between 60 and 30 degrees is small[narrow], 60 to 120 is normal (90 degrees as usual). I haven't found any meter / display that can show this.[only our ears on headphones]”
So I started doing further research on the 'best mixes' in STEREO and the groups catalogue and realised all the 'best' sounding STEREO were recorded in the 1970s and obviously on vinyl. There are some rogue STEREO mixes that surfaced on 'special' vinyl HITS albums during the 60s[eg Edizione D'Oro] that improve the mix, but every STEREO version is different as the content is more detailed than the MONO and can be panned differently.
The 60s STEREO limitations are clear . CD's with WIDE STEREO can sound good on an 'old style' listening environment when the speakers are the right distance apart and the listener is in the 'sweet spot'. This represents only about 5% of anyones listening experience today as we all listen on headphones/ear-buds/in-car or on the go Boom boxes. The STEREO becomes just like MONO. And after spending 3 years collecting and restoring MONO mixes from vinyl it has become obvious how the groups PRIMARY catalogue elements should be delivered.In MONO with 'enhanced' STEREO versions as a bonus set.
This guide from the WWW to assess STEREO supports this idea.Mixing engineers should mix tracks with a live sound stage/concert stage perspective in mind . We found an audio blog that defines this.
“'Panning' is how the instruments are arranged within the stereo image. By properly using this mixing feature you can create a very realistic sound.
Vocals are always in the centre because the band lead singer is the star of the show. At the back of the vocals is the bass player. Typically at the back of the bass player is the drummer. The band's two guitarists are on the left and the right. Although, different panning arrangement are possible for additional instruments (such a band with piano or others), this concept illustrates the basic things on how to do panning in audio mixing to create a very realistic stereo image.
Live sound monitors for vocals and bass are placed up front facing the audience, so that fans can get a great feel of the vocals and the bass groove. On the left and right loud sound monitors are the guitars.
In the best commercial audio production and using software, panning can be controlled between -100 to +100. Where mostly -100 is the leftmost part of the stage and +100 is the rightmost part of the stage.”
Stefan agreed…..”In the case of the Four Seasons recordings that we have[on CD in STEREO]……….. listen to any track on headphones and see how much these principles are adhered to. Many of the early stereo recordings fall short of this standard (with instruments and vocals panned far left and far right with acres of space between occupied by ‘nothing’).Today the listening experience is different, Everybody who bought a Four Seasons CD already has got the wide-stereo version[except for the tracks NEVER RECORDED IN STEREO by the Engineers] which again goes to the root of the original purpose.....a RADIO 45 mix.”
["What do you think of that 'mix' Ellie?" - Bob Crewe to Ellie Greenwich late 1966 - Mirasound - Courtesy of George Schowerer]
With the ‘MONO only’ versions [that often don't exist in STEREO] we are listening to the only example of what the producers sought.....and record company put out originally on vinyl. So we might as well have that....well mastered with the punch and ambience of Bob Crewe's mixes....in the correct MONO 45 and album mixes. They sound great when mastered well. And the STEREO tracks can be the bonus if mixed perhaps to a 90 degree sound mix as identified above.?
There are 3 examples of Four Seasons tracks from the early 60s given this treatment by Bob Gaudio and that is on the 1988 CD 'HITS – Digitally Enhanced'. Bob Gaudio commissioned an engineer to prepare this type of 'modern' STEREO mix on 'Marlena', 'Sherry' , 'Why Do Fools Fall In Love' and 'Stay'...[check out the mp3 samples if you don't have the CD]......That is what the fans need by 2020...But with ALL the 60s STEREO in this enhanced form.. The technology is here in 2018 to do this for all our playing equipment and listening needs. A completely NEW set of Masters
As Stefan said and we found doing the MONO ARCHIVE......”. The fun is when you are re-mastering and you are trying different settings. Sometimes you suddenly find the groups sound just works better. That is such a ‘buzz’. ..a real adrenalin rush.”
[Bob Crewe with George Schowerer....Artie Schroeck in background - Mirasound - late 1966. Courtesy of George Schowerer]
Our research makes the case for the catalogue of the future to enable you to 'feel' the MONO original sound as intended by Bob and the Group or Frankie in his 'solo' efforts and to also create NEW 'life-like' performances from the STEREO Master[NEW STEREO MIXES - as appropriate]
This is a potential Box Set that needs doing that can be sold to the fans of yesterday and today. There is the 'traditionalist' argument to not change the 'original'....but would we buy that AGAIN? After all we have all the WIDE-STEREO already on CD.We should be able to fully appreciate the transition from MONO to STEREO and capture the punch and thrill of MONO and the 'performance simulation' of STEREO in a modern presentation of their music as it is now understood. So NO hard right/left panning STEREO for me....thank you.!
The possibility that some-one will listen to this option and take it on board is something we will consider and we'll no doubt debate. More soon.
As the visit of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons for the UK Farewell Tour rapidly approaches we are working towards a big celebration and reinforcing the sense of connection with long term and new fans.
Lynn Boleyn has organised get togethers with the fans before each concert and I have updated the web site for the tour and to support research and fan interest into the future....as well as preserving free downloadable data about the past.
WE have big hopes for the future and after the unfortunate demise of the late Frank Rovello's Genuine Imitation Life Gazette Web Site we became the main fan club site remaining on the WWW. So we spoke to our web Hosting company Northbrook Web Consultants and they are moving us to a new server and helping make future updates to www.seasonally.co.uk easier. Everything is based on picture links on our web page to our data and we retain our 'pop-art' design.
We have now made access to our specialist collectors Facebook Pages re 'The Unreleased Motown Tracks' and 'Charlie Calello's 'Lost and Found' Tracks' and a link to our Twiiter page.
All our data pages are preserved with links to download George Ingram's Newsletters [Nrs 47 to 68] packed with newspaper and magazine articles from the past.
Our research into the history of the group is also preserved with our two blogs we've run since 2006 and our part drafted E-book based on the 60s and 70s 'Rise and Fall of The NEW Four Seasons.'
The list of all the Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons 'HITS' is on the web site in a special Page based on Charles Alexander's research which is the cornerstone of the groups 'legacy' and we have big plans to celebrate that in the future with a mega project we hope will completely re-vitalise the whole catalogue and it's history.
The 'Farewell' tour is not the end...nor the beginning of the end....but in the words of Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio......A NEW BEGINNING.
Most fans of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons know that they had less than half the tracks they recorded released by Mowest/Motown during their contract there. So the collation of collected and researched data on the Four Seasons 'Lost Masters' at Motown from 1971 to 1973 has been drafted into a Project Plan to allow engineers and compilers to research the 16 track [multi-track] Tape Masters in the Universal Motown Vaults in NYC.
In summary the research has identified that there are:
28 Master Tapes[of released and un-released tracks, including multi-tracks and alternative 'takes'/'mix-downs']
36 identified and located 'mixed' tracks that have never been released[many with Motown Master Nrs]
12 identified alternative versions/mixes of released songs requiring research
9 individual producers as well as Crewe-Gaudio
8 listed titles for unknown songs with no location information.
Background notes to the sessions and the songs, their writers, producers and how they were covered by other artists
This information is collated from anonymous donation of lists from within Motown Universal's paper/digital records but gives no indication of whether the tapes still exist or what their condition is. This is basically a log of the analogue sources with no confirmation of digital recovery/preservation. The recently released Bobby Darin 'Lost Masters' CD confirms that such tapes still exist in good condition from this period when Valli/Gaudio and the Four Seasons were recording. This shows in some cases the same producers are present with each artist. So we can be pretty confident that the tapes are there.
The Project Plan will be made available to the artist and tape owner when confirmation that no barriers to such research exist. In the meantime we will be posting an updated Tape Index this summer.The Project Plan covers:-
Introduction – Background to the Universal Motown Vaults and Tape Index
Session Review Plan Part1 - Period 1971[Oct] – 1972[Aug] - Artist:Frankie Valli - Various Producers
Session Review Plan Part 2 - Period 1971[Oct] – 1972[Aug] - Artist:Four Seasons – Various Producers
Session Review Plan Part3 - Period 1971[Oct] – 1972[Aug] - Artist:Four Seasons - Bob Gaudio produced 'Chameleon' Sessions and other tracks
Session Review Plan Part4 - Period 1972[Aug] – 1972[Dec] - Artist:Frankie Valli Sessions Mid-Late 1972 – Various Producers
Session Review Plan Part5 - Period 1973[Jan] – 1973[May] - Artist:Frankie Valli - Bob Crewe Early 1973 Sessions Frankie Valli [with Motown Session singers as the Four Seasons]
Session Review Plan Part6 - Period 1973[Mid] – Bob Gaudio sessions - Artist:Frankie Valli
Session Review Plan Part7 - Period 1973[Oct- Dec] - Artist:Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons - Bob Crewe Late 1973 Sessions Frankie Valli[ Four Seasons][lncluding Charlie Calello and Nick Massi]
Further research this year will be based on more salvaged tracks from the sessions [copied and preserved during the sessions]and known information on the individual tracks and their background and web site updates will document their part in the 'Four Seasons Story'.
Ken Charmer – Webmaster/chief blogger and lead music historian[team leader] at The Four Seasons UK Appreciation Society. www.seasonally.co.uk
It was 1976 in the UK and music was exploding into the charts again. The excitement of collecting records and going to see it performed 'live' was everything to us. We'd had 'My Eyes Adored You' hit Nr 1, 'Who Loves You' change the Radio Airwaves and 'The Night' emerge from the club scene to rocket into the charts as a 'long-lost' oldie re-issue. Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons where about to hit the peak. Overnight top stars and their biggest ever hit was about to hit Nr 1.
They toured, we saw them, they were 'our' Four Seasons. We saw them on TV every other week . It was 'hedonistic' and the natural and only way to find out more about the music and the band was to join the fan club. Friends were made , expectations raised and support given to the group and their management. They were all great musicians, all but Don had been trained by Jazz musicians, and so their performances were superb then and remain historically important.
Well 42 years on it is a different world as we approach the end of the line in terms of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The fan club died in 1981and the fan group that succeeded still hoped for whatever line-up Frankie Vall could employ to come visit and take us back to those times. There will be time to reflect on this life of fandom and The Four Seasons Story for old and new fans post the November/December UK tour but for now we can reminisce.
John Hornsby[a long-standing fan from the US fan club] sent me his cassette tapes and I have managed to salvage in reasonable sound the Midnight Special TV Shows from the mid 1970s. They don't do full justice to what we experienced 'live' but these tracks capture the essence of what I wrote in the opening paragraph. It's good to have been able to tweak these old tape recordings and share them with you in a CD Download.
And to finish as Bonus Tracks is what I have been shouting about for the last 8 years. It was 37 years since Valli/Gaudio left Motown and that music ended with the 'Inside You' album when these songs surfaced. Something Vall and Gaudio had nothing to speak about as they didn't own the masters. They still don't. Motown Universal do. No completed songs remained we were told. Jersey Boys was the big earner.......nobody wanted to know nor do they now. That is oficial as far as BG and FV are concerned. But we have these hissy old acetate recordings. I've re-mastered these again this last year with new tools to clean them without damaging the detail. The completed Masters are sitting in the Motown Vaults with up to 50 other unheard and unreleased tracks. We know exactly where and they could be recovered tomorrow. Motown Universal wont act without FV and BG support and that is not forthcoming. Hence our continuing campaign for their official release sometime. I spoke to Lee Shapiro back in 2011 when these acetate dubs turned up and he recalled the session, the fact that Motown musicians played and the Seasons[including Gerry Polci and Nick Massi sang, Charlie Calello arranged with Kenny Nolan] and Bob Crewe danced on the recording console! He also confirmed Bob Crewe had them complete union session contracts and the masters were completed and handed to Motown. As was ‘I Wonder Why’ . More re all the sessions down the line!!!!!
So as we head into the Farewell Concert Tour of the UK and US just enjoy what the 70s gave us and still could if sometime someone listens to our Facebook group – The Four Seasons UK Motown Unreleased Campaign. You'll find links there to this music for a short period. Enjoy. Casey Chameleon
As 2018 develops as probably Frankie Valli’s final touring year we are able to celebrate 2 anniversaries. This blog has been running for 7 years this month and February is the 2nd Anniversary of the formation of The Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign on Facebook. Our 253 members are able to share news, views and music in a very easy way and Lynn Boleyn and I use the blog to regularly publish news and research re the group’s tours, former group members and the back catalogue of music.
But as we celebrate these 2 anniversaries in February 2018 two things stand out.
Firstly our ‘brand’ has become firmly established as a linked ‘fan club’ community and information centre for the few hundred international friends who want to share their common interest. The old style newsletters and e-mail groups have literally been ‘retired’. Facebook is too easy and powerful a tool today.
Secondly, our joint ‘positivity’ through Facebook and our blog that eventually our voice will be heard. Our focus remains strong on discovering and celebrating music we have never heard; and we continue to believe that we can one day convince the artist we admire and respect to help release this music unheard for over 45 years. That is perhaps because as a result of the shared objective we have in the last few years unearthed and shared more ‘unreleased tracks’ than in the whole of the previous history of the group. The recent release of the ‘Lost and Found Vol 3’ which followed our April 2017 CD of ‘The Best ‘Unreleased UK Collection 2017’ demonstrates this.
That in itself is a positive outcome. So over the next year I’ll be continuing our efforts [God willing!]. But we are adapting to change.
We now know from our Motown network that the release of the 50 plus tracks in the Motown vault at UMG by Frankie and the group is ‘just a phone call away’!!!!!
We have good reason to believe that it simply needs Bob Gaudio to pick up the phone and ring Harry Weinger at UMG and he would initiate the project to recover the tapes and the unheard music and release a second Motown Anthology – The Unheard Masters. Harry as he has previously shown wants to be a friend to ‘the stars’ and in so doing strengthen the Motown Brand. He has done it many times before and will do it again. It just needs the artist to give it the ‘green light’ and he will we believe empower the legal and commercial processes. With this in mind we will devote this year’s research to the project plan for when that happens.And we will 'reach out' and try to establish a dialogue with Bob, Frankie or their representative. Whether that achieves dialogue we'll continue to publish the latest we can for fans
That is the more positive approach than the alternative which is to wait till Bob and Frankie ‘pass away’ with the release to then be a posthumous tribute to their time at Motown.
In the forthcoming months we will outline the sessions from the groups Motown period and the tape research strategy for the engineers and compilers we know are ready to work on the project. BG/FV only have to say 'go' and we will be ready.
We will also continue our salvaging of re-mastered rare, live and ‘unreleased’ tracks to be shared on the Facebook group. It will take time but we hope to bring group members more treats during the year. Thank you all for your continued support and ‘likes’.
Ken Charmer
[Previously unseen photo courtesy of James DiNapoli: Photographer Bobby Valli]
Addendum April 1st2018
This will be our last subscription blog post with links to our web site. We'll explore News posts in the future
Lynn Boleyn and I have been discussing the future of our collaboration to maintain fan access to data and news re Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons given Frankie Valli's Farewell Tour and impending retirement. So as of today we are closing this blog and moving all support services to fans to our Facebook page ' The Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign'.This has over the last 2 years become our research base and discussion channel for all historical research and data re the group. I'm mindful that the web site www.seasonally.co.ukis in need of an update to preserve and provide access to ALL the data and articles published since April 2006 in George Ingram's Newsletter and in Discographies, our 1970s E-Book and past blog posts.
The aim is to continue to supply this data long term as a key reference for the most accurate historical data for releases and recording sessions by the group and the articles and research published to date. 'Chameleon's blogand 'That 'Four Seasons' Sound' blog will still be accessible and our past articles will crop up whenever you do an internet 'search' re the 'Four Seasons'. Published blogs will be accessible through the web site and our on-going research will continue to be published on our Facebook page. We are also researching using the non-subscription Typed blog service or a possible Facebook Page totally devoted to the forthcoming UK tour for attending fans. Lynn and I will advise re this by Summer 2018.
When I was working through old cassettes in the studios this autumn I got to thinking that UK Fans of Four Seasons back in the sixties never got to see their group live[apart from a very brief 1964 UK tour visit that nobody i know ever saw!] and they never appeared on UK TV during the 60s as far as we know. Experiencing that unique 'live' atmosphere and Frankie Valli's stratospheric falsetto was something we eventually heard about from US fans. Those that experienced that live sound are now in their mid/late 60s and will struggle to remember the 'live' sound. In fact even during the 70s when many of us joined the fan club we had no 'live' recordings of their shows from the 60s and only the 'Live On Stage' album to judge from. The earliest audience recorded cassette tape was from Clearwater in Florida 1964 which hardly captured the ‘real’ in concert sound.
So when I picked up a tape titled 'Tommy De Vito Archive' I wondered what I might find. This tape it appears was given to Rex Woodard during his now 'legally' infamous interviews for Tommy's biography now known as 'The Work' and claimed to be the inspiration for the musical play Jersey Boys. What I found inspired me to collate as much as I could of the 'experience' of the group 'in concert' that would create the legend they are. A key collectors set was the result.
I recalled the script of Jersey Boys and Bob Crewe's response to a group disenchanted and wanting an identity and a hit of their own. “Bring me 4 songs......and I'll record you!” is the fictitious line in the play and fans have discussed whether this was true or not....and if so what were the songs? Well it could be that Bob Gaudio and the group presented Crewe with these songs as 4 demos....in late summer 1961. The opening four tracks of this set we discovered can be placed clearly at that time as two would be re-recorded and released in October by the group then named as Billy Dixon and the Topics on Bob Crewe's new label Topix 45 – 6002[I Am All Alone/Trance]. Here we present the original acetate demo versions taped by Tommy DeVito for preservation. This presentation was a big improvement on the Village Voices 45 they did during the Spring of 1961. Possibly recorded 'live' rather than using 3 track studio machines, they feature a group arranged by Nick Massi with a styling distinct from the 45 release versions.[We've finished the CD set with Re-mastered versions of the 45s for comparison]. But two other tracks emerged from these sessions surviving on this tape. 'I Still Care' also appears in Jersey Boys being sung by Miss Frankie Nolan[ABC 10231], with Frankie Valli's soaring falsetto backing and the rest of the group in harmony. This version is in a subdued harmony style that would be a feature of their early albums. The final unheard side was an early version of 'Like You'[which turned up as another alternative version unreleased demo from 1963 only in Spring 2017]. This earlier version by the full group has slightly different lyrics and probably went by the title 'That's You'.
Another discovery from the archive tape would prove to be the earliest good quality 'live' concert recording by the original group that we have ever heard. Featuring a sequence of four songs, 'Stay/Since I Don't Have You/Cry Myself To Sleep/Dawn' we believe this is from 1964 and presents Frankie and the group as we have never heard them...the 'original' superb live concert sound.
Wanting to develop a set worthy of collectors of Four Seasons music we set about gathering as many true live performances from VT recordings during the decade. We were able to gather a good number of songs and medleys that continue to illustrate the 1960s live concert sound of the group. We were even able to include 2 versions of the rare 'Sound Of Music' medley from TV shows. We finished the set with NEW creations in STEREO of some tracks that only ever featured as MONO tracks in their original form re-engineered by sound engineers in the USA.
We re-mastered the archive collections in Wavelab Elements 9 using our MEDSS mix sound treatment[Mono Enhanced with Digital Stereo Simulation]. This removes as much noise and crackles as possible without removing original music and creates a wider/deeper sound stage to enhance the raw MONO.
It is in our view a unique and enjoyable snapshot of the group we love and have collected since our youth. As a step forward it follows on from our late friend Stefan Wriedt's 'The Fantastic First Years'.....taking us through some of the most collectable performances of the 50’s/60s. This set is dedicated to the memory of the late Rex Woodard and Stefan Wriedt but also Frank Rovello and Stuart Miller....who would have loved it. We hope fans enjoy it as much as we we did assembling it. Happy 2018.[47 years on from when those Billy Dixon demos were recorded] . Thanks to John Hornsby and George Juba for their help with this collection. Special thanks to Jim DiNapoli for source tapes. Photo courtesy of Bobby Valli. The download is available for a short time to members of The Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign Facebook Group.
The button badge is from 1976 and the hey-day of the UK fan club when we would have raved about finding 'unreleased' Frankie Valli/4 Seasons tracks but amazingly another one has turned up from an unexpected period. The song discovered this year [2017]we now think dates back to Autumn 1961 and the sessions that resulted in 'I Am All Alone/Trance' -Topix 45 6002 released in October 1961. This is before the first appearance of the group as The Four Seasons in December 1961[Bermuda/Spanish Lace- GONE 112] More re those sessions in the future.
We believe it may be from the 'between labels' period when the group were in dispute with Vee-Jay. It appears that after their mid 1962 preparations for the Copa cabaret show they didn't go into the studio again except as back-up singers until they recorded 'Dawn' at the Atlantic Studios prior to signing with Philips in late 1963. They did work on several projects with other artists including the 4-Evers on 'Be My Girl' with Al Kasha producer and it has been suggested this may be from that period/sessions. But finding another version by the Four Lovers last week was a shock. I've asked Casey to carefully restore that version too and we'll share that in due course. This is a much more refined arrangement than the 4 Lovers version and is listed under Bob Gaudio's BMI listing as 'Like You'[Composition 100].
But to find this version after so long is truly the discovery of the year. Our 'music detectives' are always searching through old cassettes and looking for demo's and acetates and when this surfaced we wondered when it was recorded. Further research hasn't confirmed definitive information or it's source. Our continued investment in technology and sound editing software[and our buddy Casey]have enabled the recovery and sharing of this nice song and performance. He told me 'We owe much of the pre-Four Seasons history on CD to Stefan Wriedt who collected and re-mastered many of the earliest Frankie Valli recordings on The Fantastic FIRST YEARS CD on Sparkletone. He taught me how to re-master old vinyl dubbed in Wavelab and as collectors we owe him so much for preserving those early recordings from 1953 to 1961. His legacy is the on-going emergence of tracks like this we are able to restore and share”
For now let's celebrate another great find....and although it is unlikely much else survives from this period we do have some interesting acetates and 'live' material coming up to share with members of our facebook group as we assemble 'More UK 'Best' Un-released and 'Live' Tracks' by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons.
Over the summer we've seen the emergence of one of the most successful 'Motown Unreleased' CD's for many years. Brenda Holloway's ' Spellbound' is full of rare and unreleased tracks many of which have surfaced during the last 2 years and have only been available as mp3 downloads. This CD set is fully re-mastered from 8 track and in great sound.
The anticipation[almost hysteria] in the build-up to it's release provided a substantial pre-order and fuelled by 'word-of-mouth' on speciality Facebook groups and the Northern Soul scene the CD achieved a UK Top Ten album position in the weeks following it's released and a second pressing as copies quickly sold out. In this day-and -age of dying CD sales this is pretty phenomenal.
But what are the lessons learned from this release and does it give hope to Four Seasons fans that the large 'cache' of unreleased Valli/Seasons tracks may soon achieve a similar fate?
Well to me there are five important 'lessons' to be learned from this release not only for collectors but for Universal Motown Group and the independent Record Companies that seek to license such tracks and invest in such release programmes.
Facebook groups are a clear market for unreleased material in new CD compilations. With ever increasing numbers of people gathering in interest groups that research Motown 'treasures' or rare and vaulted material it's pretty obvious that marketing is easier than ever .....thus targeting sales with little or no financial investment.
Quality control of 'sound mixes' is still an important consideration with 'hard copy' wav files preferred by collectors to mp3 downloads.
Artist involvement is a major marketing necessity. Brenda was fully involved with Cherry Red Records and producer Paul Nixon to help compile and approve this release.
Record Companies with belief in the project and the launch process are essential. ACE Records lost out to Cherry Red in licensing this music and they must be 'devastated' at getting that wrong. But the big future problem appears to be UMG[we are currently researching their policies and processes for future releases]
Such projects need a top compiler/producer with knowledge of the artist and the market[ie collectors like us]
What this demonstrates is that there is still a substantial demand for the release of tracks from the vaults of UMG [ie Motown Unreleased] and everyone we contact whether a Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons fan club member or collector of their music..... knows the strength of their 'brand' …...their 'image' is huge. They remain top stars of the 60s and 70s music scene. Their unreleased music is clearly in demand as the steady growth of members of this group has shown. This is a project waiting to happen. So what is the problem.?
There are Record Companies who license tracks from UMG and top compilers who would promote the project IF......UMG and The Four Seasons Partnership would support it.
BUT the recent decision by UMG to cease third party licensing of tracks to independent record companies not only threatens to stop ALL new projects but threatens perhaps the role and purpose of those collector labels. Some projects are in the pipeline and will 'probably' surface in time...... but this is a real threat to collectors of this material and a huge disappointment to Four Seasons fans.
Our role is to publicise the lack of transparancy by the parties[i.e. artists and track owners]. Our sister blog site 'That 'Northern Soul' Sound' will consider this in more detail as we bring the situation to the attention of the Four Seasons Partnership. Then there is the Corporate 'animal' that is UMG? Whether they respond or not only time will tell. We won't hold our breath based on past experience.......but past experience doesn't always shape the future. Times are changing and the Facebook groups are becoming stronger and more influential. More questions than answers again!!! Hope remains that sense will prevail and the UMG policy will change in the light of this clear enhancement to Motown's music image. More when we have it!
This years UK Tour has provided us with an opportunity to let Frankie Valli know there are a number of unreleased songs in either acetate or 'live' show versions that are in the hands of fans. Some have been around for years and some are new discoveries. I promised to compile sleeve notes re the tracks so here goes.
Track 1 – Like You
Our latest discovery thanks to one of our longest standing 'music detectives'. Recovered from acetate this song he tells us comes from sessions Valli did at the same time as he did the 'Be My Girl' session with the 4-Evers. If so this would date the session as early 1964. Perhaps producer Al Kasha was involved but the writer was Bob Gaudio[see his BMI listing]. Perhaps Valli's earliest idea for a 'solo' career whilst with the 4 Seasons this remains our top find in recent years. A song and delivery reminiscent of solo artists of the time like Bobby Vinton. The acetate was clearly in good condition and we were able to clean and re-master to a very enjoyable version.
Track 2 – Hymn To Her
Again the same 'music detective' discovered acetates produced by Bob Crewe from the sessions in December 1973 after Bob persuaded Motown he could generate a 'hit'. Bob Gaudio was not involved and Crewe was confident that assembling past expertise would make a difference. He persuaded Nick Massi to come back to arrange vocal harmonies and Charles Calello to arrange and he had a bunch of songs he'd written with Kenny Nolan [a singer songwriter with a studio group Crewe was producing called The Eleventh Hour]. 'Hymn To Her' returns the Seasons backing sound to an anthemic harmony with Valli hitting falsetto in his traditional style. An unusual but intense lyric that hints at religious connections[“my very own Madonna'] this acetate dub was sufficient for us to recover a very listenable version. It remains in the Motown vault as a completed master Nr 62523 and although it didn't convince the Motown Execs it was slated [in mid 1974] for album release just when the group left the label.
Track 3 – You Are The Sunshine of My Life
This Stevie Wonder original was arranged as part of the NEW Four Seasons 'live' shows during 1974. Frankie Valli had promoted the young Lee Shapiro to be his musical director/arranger for live performances. It was a transitional period for Frankie and the group. He had enlisted Gerry Polci, Don Ciccone[who sings the lead in parts] and John Paiva had joined the backing band, joining Joe Long in what some rate as the best 'ever' Four Seasons. John Paiva's personal tape collection allowed us to salvage these tracks from their Bachelors III Cabaret Club show in mid 1974 at Fort Lauderdale. With many of Frankie's 'New Jersey friends' there this show contains more 'unrecorded' songs than any other we know of.
Track 4 – I Wonder Why
Mid 1974 with a new 'settled' line-up Lee Shapiro and Joe Long persuaded Frankie that they should show Motown bosses that this line-up were capable of good things and so the group whilst on the road, wrote and produced this song as a demo and presented it to Motown boss Susan De Passe. The full story is told here. This copy survived on tape which although somewhat deteriorated shows a great song and the groups ability as writers, producers and performers. We'd like to find a better copy for re-mastering and wondered if Lee Shapiro had one? But thanks to Joe Long at least we have this. I'd forgotten we had re-mixed a stereo version of this and I'll try to find it in September
Track 5 – Hickory[Alternative Extended Mix]
Whilst the shorter version of this was released in 1974, this original extended version with extra verse at the beginning and a falsetto ending comes from a Bob Crewe acetate. The Master tape we believe still contains this version from the December 1973 sessions. Motown Master Tape 2664 will reveal that.
Track 6 - Killing Time
This left-over track has been around for a while. It didn't make the 'cut' for the 1984 album 'Streetfighter'. We don't know why as it is a very strong song and performance. Perhaps it's length didn't allow it to fit the vinyl format. It's source is unknown and we have just added to the mp3 version some EQ and punch.
Track 7 – Michael and Peter
Bob Gaudio did a whole album of demos of the 'Watertown' project for Frank Sinatra and sang most of the songs himself but this track was done with Jake Holmes opening the song in spartan style before a tremendous fully arranged solo by Frankie Valli. This has been around collectors circles for many years and a cleaner version [with less clicks and pops] was not possible without a better original dub and top sound engineering skills.
Track 8 – I Got Love
This song was an fairly frequent opening 'live' show number from around 1970 till this concert in 1974. From the stage show 'Purlie' it was allegedly arranged by Charles Calello but never done as a studio recording. Always a favourite with the band members this slightly shortened version still rocks. Recovered from the Bachelors III Show tapes it has been specially cleaned and re-balanced by the late Stefan Wreidt and Ken Charmer.
Track 9 – Golden Slumbers
When the tribute movie/album to The Beatles was being done in 1977[All This And WWII] Frankie Valli appeared on TV doing 2 Beatles songs which he never did for the album. A fan at the time recorded the [to us in the UK] unknown song on we believe 'reel to reel' and it subsequently surfaced on cassette. This is the first of these. We've added EQ and Punch to improve this for CD and it once again shows Frankie Valli's vocal interpretation skills
Track 10 – If I Were A Carpenter
Another Bachelors III salvaged track done quite often in concert in 1974 this is another example of Lee Shapiro's arranging skills and the great playing skill of the NEW Four Seasons.
Track 11 – One Man
Discovered in the Mercury vault by a researcher looking for Lesley Gore tracks this was on a tape can that said, “One Man - Mono Master : The Four Seasons” it was donated to us in 1997 on the basis that we make it a free issue to fans. From the 1970 final sessions at Philips this Bob Crewe-Larry Brown song has a somewhat 'dated' lyric and unpolished production. Perhaps raw and unfinished it remains all we have of the 'several' unreleased Bill Inglot reported tracks discovered during tape research. This good tape transfer has been re-mastered from the original cassette copy for this CD.
Track 12 – Bridge Over Troubled Waters[Medley]
A big production 'live' track in shows since 1970, Joe Longs skills are all over this arrangement and although not the best group performance of this medley it is the best sound quality version we have. By combining the title track with The Long and Winding Road and McArthurs Park Valli and the group created a stunning mid-show classic.
Track 13 – We Had It All
Somehow a backing track surfaced 10/15 years ago of a song rumoured to be a Motown recording. Probably recorded to cassette at the session. Believed to be titled 'Walking In The Sunshine' for some time we had confirmation in 2016 it was completed by Valli as a Motown Master Nr exists for it. Nr 60769 means it sits between 'Touch The Rainchild' and 'The Night' in the Motown vaults. It's all we've got for now but is a demonstration of the 'treasure' still unreleased by Universal Motown.
Track 14 – All In Love Is Fair/The Way We Were [Medley]
A new arrangement in 1974 by Lee Shapiro for 'live' performances this medley survived through into the concerts of the mid to late 70s. This salvaged from tape version is from Bachelors III again and features great harmony support by The Four Seasons.
Track 15 – Close Your Eyes
During the early fan club days of the 1970s when audience recorded 'live' tapes were frequently in demand, the earliest cassette based recording of the 4 Seasons was from Clearwater in 1964. Poor sound of course but it contained this gem. When Nick Massi died and as a tribute to him this 'duet' with Frankie Valli was salvaged from tape and added to You Tube. It's amazing that we have managed to get as good a version of this from the tape as a demonstration of respect for Nick's unique contribution to the group.
Track 16 – The Fool On The Hill
The second Beatles song from circa 1977 recorded from TV by a fan. It is enhanced here for CD listening.
Track 17 – If
With 'Bread' amongst the most popular group's of the time in mid 1974 it was another chance for Lee Shapiro to show off his emerging arranging skills and for Valli to give a masterful vocal on this David Gates classic for the Bachelors III cabaret audience.
Track 18 – You're Never Too Old To Rock'n'Roll
This song was included in the early 1980s 'live' shows and was intended for album /single release. But with the record industry being in recession no company was prepared to offer Frankie and the group a recording contract and it remains unknown if a studio version of this exists. The writers are unknown but in concert Frankie Valli is said to have claimed he and Jerry Corbetta wrote it.
Track 19 – Natural Morning
I can remember the late Frank Rovello searching for this nearly 20 years ago as a relation to the writer[reputably an 11 year old?] was sure Frankie Valli had recorded it. Paper records discovered in 2015 confirmed it was recorded in 1968 with Artie Schroeck arranging but it seems it was never finished. This version is re-mixed to stereo from faded tape Mono versions and was in 2 parts....combined here. Not the best of songs but an interesting vocal and arrangement.
Track 20 – Lovers
Unfortunately this Bob Crewe acetate has been over-recorded during dubbing and the restoration of this superb Crewe – Nolan composition has been limited. It was recorded at the same session as 'My Eyes Adored You' and was slated for album release prior to the group leaving the label. Clearly a completed and superb recording it remains in the Motown vault. An alternative dub may be possible in the future but a Master Tape re-issue is our constant aim.
Track 21 – Make Your Tomorrow Tonight
The final acetate from the December 1973 Motown sessions this was clearly Bob Crewe taking a re-visit to the Wonder Who sound in 1973 as a joke for Motown execs. They were unimpressed with the result and although probably never intended for release we are unsure if a normal vocal was ever done. This did not make the 1974 proposed Motown album Master Tape.
With several of these tracks 'culled' from the Bachelors III concert in Ft. Lauderdale I thought the original article on this 'salvaged' concert would be relevant and interesting in the context of this 2017 collection. Here is the link.
Many thanks to all those who have contributed to this collection in terms of the music and the background. Anonymity is necessary for some but they know we appreciate their contribution and we are happy to have been able to share this with you to brighten your day. Casey Chameleon
PS The CD has been made available to members of our Four Seasons Motown Unreleased Campaign Facebook Group.
It has been a huge year for the touring Frankie Vall and the Four Seasons with amazing summer dates this week in Tel Aviv, Israel[4th July] and Cork, Ireland on Thursday and a 'private' London wedding on Friday. Lynn Boleyn will be in Cork and will post this blog with her thoughts soon but as we reflect on the immense appeal of this 'live' show it is interesting to consider the big differences of a legendary career spanning 55 years since The Four Seasons first major musical success.
When the UK fan club started[1971] Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons were already an 'oldies' band and during the 1970s they became truly legendary as the 'renamed' Four Seasons hit Nr 1.
Live performances today and back then have their very different styles. We've accepted the development and celebrated the songs then and now.
This Tel Aviv performance is well videoed and recorded and captures what we enjoyed so much about the April concerts in the UK. When the UK fan club started[1971] Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons were already an 'oldies' band and during the 1970s they became truly legendary as the 'renamed' Four Seasons hit Nr 1.
But I was talking with John Paiva today about the 'aura' the whole group had back in 1976-78. We argued about then and now. 'Today' John said is the 'show sound' Frankie wants to project [an evolution of Jersey Boys]whilst I argued that the sound of a 'Band' not enhanced by technology with Frankie's voice at its peak is unsurpassed!! I experienced as will some of you reading this the stunning Four Seasons(featuring the 'sound' of Frankie Valli') during the early 60s (some may actually remember seeing them!)but [surely?]they never truly became 'legendary' till the mid 70s. John and I agreed the merits of both but as I've said before we celebrate all eras of the Four Seasons today [one joke going the rounds is that to date there may have been '4000 Seasons'....all but 4 'employees']
During the UK tour in April we told Robbie Robinson about our research to uncover 'unreleased' tracks for this historic 2017 Tour. We looked at how much the groups recording career and live performances have meant to us. Our research team of US and UK collectors had gathered 21 of 'collected' unreleased recordings from acetates/demos/masters and live performances for 'The Best of the 'Unreleased' UK Collection 2017'. A set assembled to preserve the rarities from the past in as good a quality as possible[given their source quality] We asked Robbie to pass it on to Frankie for him, his sons and to share with future generations of fans. Some tracks have been around for years and some are on You Tube but some are only recent discoveries, now digitally enhanced for CD /digital storage for the first time. Every track has a story behind it and we'll document as much as we know about their background in due course.
In a letter to Frankie we made it clear that our Campaign on Facebook continues in an attempt to persuade Universal Motown to act to preserve [and commercially release] the 30+ completed tracks which we now know are in their tape vault of recordings done by Frankie [with Bob Gaudio, Bob Crewe and the group] between 1971 and 1973 which have never been released. Bob Crewe prepared acetates of some of these Motown sessions in late 1973 and we have been fortunate enough to get hold of tape dubs to salvage a reasonable restoration of these. The masters we know are still in Motown's vault. Plus we have 'never recorded' songs from the 1974 Bachelors III shows at Ft Lauderdale which are in excellent sound. The resulting CD[with some recently discovered gems] is, we believe, an enjoyable and historic celebration of the tremendous career and the work of Frankie, the group and other collaborators.
Our research promises to uncover more salvaged songs from old fans cassette tapes over the next year.
Another project we have completed focused on digital preservation and took 3 years but resulted in digital copies of all the MONO 45 mixes recovered from best quality vinyl and re-mastered to preserve these often unique mixes which we know never survived the Philips contract. These are reference copies for anyone researching the 'original' music in the future. We've forwarded these to Bob Gaudio as a reference set. We have also archived all of the Vee-Jay 45 MONO mixes including the rare 'B' side version of 'My Mother's Eyes' done before the Philips 1967 LP version with a different arrangement.
We re-assured Frankie that as the 'unofficial' [but recognised and accepted] UK fan club we have never operated or intentionally acted in breach of copyright and will continue to do all we can to preserve and educate for new fans, the legacy of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, in all line-ups and in every decade. All our music restoration is focused on preserving/assessing the 'art' of Frankie and the group.
The hope is that one day maybe Frankie or one/all of his sons will agree that his legendary career could be better researched, documented and published with 'unreleased' tracks made available. [This has happened with Roy Orbison's sons who now manage his archives]
To modern day fans of the Four Seasons it may seem amazing that there was a time when we were scambling around for news, backstories and lost tracks on cassette tape. There was no internet and a quarterly newsletter was all we had and the group were regarded as an oldies group with no future. It's easy to forget how hard it was then to get information and even released music on vinyl or cassette..
But then came 'My Eyes Adored You', 'The Night', and 'Who Loves You' before their biggest ever success as a group 'December 1963(Oh What A Night)'. Back then during the early 1970s Rex was gathering research that would decades later lead to the record breaking show 'Jersey Boys'. Rex Woodard was a champion of today's Four Seasons 'music detectives' still gathering information and seeking out more 'lost' music by them than we could ever have imagined existed.
So it was with a degree of pride that I read of his widows success in establishing his contribution to the show 'Jersey Boys' was finally recognised. 'Then and Now' the jointly written bio by Rex and former Four Season Tommy DeVito was judged to have contributed to 10% of the shows success.
It's never been seen by the fans except in it's interpretation in the show. When will Rex's work finally go public? Well not soon it seems which is a shame as damages assessment by the court will take a few months and the case will probably go to appeal: it's not over yet!. But Valli and Gaudio will probably get pulled into it yet again for solid legal reasons. They licensed the play as owners!!! And they knew of Rex's contribution. He was never a 'ghostwriter' but the real 'author'.
Rex's contribution was based on years of research and 'foundation' articles that resonate today as we still fight to get the full story of the group's lives and music available to us. When he persuaded Tommy DeVito to 'dish the dirt' back in 1989 it should have been a coup for Four Seasons fans but back then their 'brand' was low key and after Rex's premature passing in 1990 the draft understandably didn't surface. It had lost it's champion. But we're all to be grateful Tommy DID make it available to the scriptwriters. We got JB and history made The Four Seasons 'iconic'.
But Rex also anticipated the continuing battle to recover the Motown unreleased without realising what we now know. Rex wrote in Goldmine in August 1981[A Lesson in Survival].....”The myth must die! For several years now, almost every rock and roll encyclopedic source has faithfully instructed it's readers that the legendary Four Seasons bit the dust sometime around 1969, only to be resurrected as an entirely new group in 1975. Lies!”
Well the 'myth' is dead BUT no-one wants us to hear the truth even as 2017 begins.
In the 1980 article he documented the history of those intervening years and the groups creative work during that time. Today with the inspiration of that work and data from some anonymous Motown connections we have in 2016 extended his work by subsequent research to reveal the deliberate suppression of between 30 and 50 tracks completed and left in the Universal Motown vaults unheard by the fans. Rex's research is at the heart of our campaign for their release.
And to follow that in June 1982 he published what is regarded as the definitive article detailing the history of the Four Lovers in the same magazine.
As we enter the post 'Jersey Boys' era.....now the shows in New York and London are closing.......we are hoping the bio that has been the subject of so much legal time over the last 10 years will finally be published. It is time to herald a new period of documenting and restoring the history of the group and their music over the next few years. Rex's legacy should be the cornerstone of that objective. And our battle to get the music left in the vaults will continue. He'd want us to fight for that.
This time of the year I can't wind things down for Christmas without thinking about the lost friends and music detectives who have helped create 'the body of knowledge' that exists about the Four Seasons which we have accumulated over the last forty years. So rather than comment on the latest effort by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons – Tis The Seasons I'd rather reflect on the fans contributions to our musical knowledge and remember them.
Stuart Miller presided over the UK fan club in the early 1970s and this led to all that followed for the fan club during the 1970s. His legendary interview with Bob Gaudio remains one of the most insightful interviews he has ever given. Right in the middle of the Motown contract it shows the thirst for a new direction that would strike 'gold' by 1975. And the pressing of a bootleg album of rare sides by Stuart kept the fan club going through the darker days at Motown
Frank Rovello single handedly ploughed the furrow for US fans and collectors when the WWW arrived and founded the Genuine Imitation Life Gazette website and packed it full of articles, interviews and information that stretches back to the 70s.He was a great friend and collaborator we shall never forget.
Stefan Wriedt, my German sound engineer friend taught me how to use sound engineering software to restore vinyl gems. Through his work as a restoration engineer he brought us The Fantastic First Years CD of all the pre-Four Seasons tracks from his personal collection and the first CD release of the Motown tracks since they were previously only available on vinyl, with The Night/Inside You CD back in the 1990's. He also helped me establish the CD Discography Index at our website an invaluable reference for finding the best Four Seasons Masters on CD.
And finally Rex Woodard who did more than anyone to research the history of the Four Seasons and may well provide us with their first bio book in the next few years. We now know he contributed 10% to the success of 'Jersey Boys' . That's 'official'. I'll write separately regarding Rex and his contributions.
All these friends and former 'curators' are sadly missed by all as we close 2016. But their legacy lives on as we continue to seek more music and backstories to our favourite group. They'll never be forgotten.
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