Talk:Al Jardine

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The statement is made:

"Despite being the only non-family original band member, Jardine's falsetto was eerily similar to Brian Wilson's and his voice was often substituted for Brian's in the studio and in concert."

I didn't change it, but I don't really agree with it at all. Jardine's falsetto was a squeak compared to Brian's, which before he ruined it with drug and tobacco, was a near mezzo soprano. Al was used to sing falsetto in the late 60s in the studio in Brian's absence, and on tour. If you've ever heard his attempts to sing falsetto live, you'll know what I mean. Al sings falsetto on "Break Away" and "This Whole World" and in both cases, it is obvious that he was double tracked and some kind of aural expansion was used. Even given that, his voice is noticably thinner and more brittle than Brian's, and any fan can spot Al over Brian right away.

This is not to detract from Al's contribution - his voice (which he did share with Brian the ability to "buzz" it in natural range) is a vital part of the Beach Boys blend, along with Carl and Dennis.

Response:

I added this comment and it is objectively true. Brian and Al frequently doubled each other in falsetto in the studio as one voice (the chorus to "Time to Get Alone" and the bridge to "Take A Load Off Your Feet" are two examples) and Al's high falsetto voice (as opposed to his lead head voice) has been mistaken for Brian's on several occasions...the most obvious one being "Be Here In The Morning" on the FRIENDS album, another example being the lead vocal on the original version of "Loop De Loop."

Respectfully, you're making a mistake in comparing Al's head voice as featured in "Break Away" to his falsetto which, though thinner was more similar in timbre to Brian's than anyone else's in the band, despite the lack of a blood relation (unless you're referring to the opening falsetto, which would prove the point as it's Brian, not Al). Al continued to sing falsetto through the early '80s, including "Barbara Ann" and the high falsetto wail at the close of "Fun Fun Fun," at which point his voice lowered considerably though constant touring. Al did indeed have trouble cutting it in the falsetto range live -- not being able to transition in and out of head voice very smoothly -- and it was a thinner tone than Brian's, but it was a similar high whiny style. Moreover, Brian's voice thinned out in the late '60s which added to the similarity. Bruce, Carl and Dennis (before he lost the range) had a smoother tone in the upper registers.

Al's falsetto to my knowledge is not featured on "This Whole World" at all. The ending falsetto is Carl.

The fact that Al, not Bruce Johnston, took over much of Brian's falsetto vocals after he left the live band is not well known and, I thought, worth mentioning in the article.

[edit] bad picture

Can't someone find a better image of Al Jardine, as opposed to this album cover from the latter half of his career? Al Jardine is known for being a Beach Boy, not for his work on his solo albums. Additionally, it's an album cover; yet, the article isn't about the album, it's about Jardine. I think the picture should be replaced or completely removed. tbone (talk) 21:36, 1 January 2008 (UTC)

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> I actually decided to remove the picture myself. I'm in search of a better one. -tbone (talk) 21:38, 1 January 2008 (UTC)