April 11, 2006

Here, There, and Everywhere

. . . is the name of a Beatles song and a recently published book by Geoff Emerick, one time sound engineer for the Beatles. I haven't read the book yet, but I've ordered it from the library. Elvis Costello wrote the foreword, and he writes about the conditions that Emerick worked under and what those conditions gave rise to. One of the great lines in the foreword is where Costello talks about how George Martin, Emerick, and the Beatles were struggling with the technology, how some of the great technological advances were made with chopped up audio tape, rubber bands, and whatever they had on hand. As Edwin Land said, "The problem can be solved with the materials on hand in the room at the time." Few of these tricks, so to speak, have been superceded by much more powerful technologies. At one point Lennon was looking for a certain vocal sound on "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite." Emerick's solution: have Lennon sing through a loudspeaker.

Emerick traces the advances of recording through a milieu that went from Abbey Road engineers wearing white coats to wearing Nehru jackets. The spirit of Zen comes to mind, moving from strict discipline to la la, and it probably gave this music its sense of endless possibility.

The teachers say "Learn the fundamentals first." What if the fundamentals are Sgt. Pepper's, the Banana Splits, Doonesbury, and Kerouac's "Dr. Sax"? -- which by the way, would make the foundation for a great multi-media mash up. I see that someone has already tried their hand at it.

Posted by mastr at April 11, 2006 07:47 AM
Comments

Here are some lines from Elvis Costello's foreword:

So many of the sounds in today's recording studios come out of little boxes that merely imitate the sonic innnovations of the past. The range of choices is vast but, in unimaginative hands, it seems to create fewer surprises. . . . What makes this memoir so entertaining to read is that these fabulous inventions and innovations always seemed to be made out of elastic bands, sticky tape, and empty cotton reels. It was the stuff of the hobby shop or do-it-yourself enthusiast rather than the computer-assisted boffin, and always in service of a brilliant musical idea rather than in place of it.

Posted by: Mark at May 3, 2006 10:04 AM