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Werewolves of London


Beedster

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The background to the recording of Werewolves

http://www.waddywachtelinfo.com/Nina1.html

Waddy: We were doing a lot of the record with Russ Kunkel and Bob Glaub, but when we got to “Werewolves,” we tried it with them, and it just didn't sound right. We got a decent track, but there was something lacking in it. It didn't sound stupid enough; it sounded cute. Jackson was saying, “It's really good!” and Warren and I were saying, “No, man, it's too cute. It's got to be...heavy.” So we proceeded to try five or six bands after that - Russ and Lee Sklar, Jeff Porcaro and Bob Glaub, Jeff Porcaro and Lee Sklar, Michael Botts on drums, Gary Mallaber on drums, both with different bass players - and it just wasn't working. It was getting depressing. Then, and I can't remember whose idea it was, someone mentioned Mick Fleetwood and John McVie, and I flashed, “That's it! That's who can play this flipin’ song!”

So I called them, because I'd been working with Stevie and Lindsey. They came down, we set 'em up, and we did a take, and then we did a second take. After the second take, I looked at Jackson and said, “That was pretty good, wasn't it?” “Yeah, that was pretty good, but Mick doesn't quite have it yet.” Mick says, “Yeah, we don't have it yet; let's keep going.” Well, we kept going until 6 in the morning! I remember at about 5 in the morning saying to Mick, “I think we're done!” and Mick looks at me with that crazy look he gets in his eyes and sort of whispers, “We're never done, Waddy!” I thought, “stinky poo, we've got a wild one here!” So we put in another hour, and at about 7 in the morning, we were up to about take 59, and I looked at Jackson and said, “Hey Jackson, take two was pretty good, wasn't it?” He said, “Yeah, let's hear take two.” We listened to take two, and I said, “Gentlemen, thank you very much!”

I sent everyone away, 'cause I really wanted to work up a great [guitar] solo. I got my sound set up, got a nice bottle of vodka. I said to Dennis Kirk [who helped engineer], “Okay, run the tape!” The solo came up; I played it. I looked at Dennis, I played it back and said, “That's it!” I didn't even get to open the vodka! Then I put a harmony on it, and it was finished. The solo took as long as it takes to hear it.

 

Don't you just love the swear filter? 🙂

Edited by MrCrane
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2 hours ago, PaulThePlug said:

I found the alt version a pleadure to hear, add lib vocals, seperaton between instuments, a live in the studio vibe... sounded like they were having fun to me, possibly sounding a little rushed, but natural...

Enjoyed that... will check out the album.

Yep, I agree with that, the separation was nice, and it does feel live. The album is an interesting listen, relatively cheerful sounding songs about far from cheerful topics :)

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Based on the Mr Crane info I’d have a stab that it’s Lee Sklar on the alt. version (say, vs. Bob Glaub).

There’s a quick ‘snap’ at the end of the recording/take that sounds as though it would be more his Frankenstein Bass sound than a Bob Glaub sound. There are also a couple of fills that sound like the kind of thing he’d play.

So much to ponder in life!

 

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12 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

I’m just curious about the connection. Different band, different song..?

You think so..? To me, the comparison was immediate (and not flattering...). Dull, repetitive, plodding, with a 'cute' hook 'woo hoo'. I attended the Hyde Park Stones concert (yes, the 'butterfly' one...), and left, as the Sympathy's 'Woo hoo' had quickly become tiresome. This werewolf thing has the same effect. No, sorry, I'm not a fan; it finds no saving grace in my universe. I'll pass. :|

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3 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

You think so..? To me, the comparison was immediate (and not flattering...). Dull, repetitive, plodding, with a 'cute' hook 'woo hoo'. I attended the Hyde Park Stones concert (yes, the 'butterfly' one...), and left, as the Sympathy's 'Woo hoo' had quickly become tiresome. This werewolf thing has the same effect. No, sorry, I'm not a fan; it finds no saving grace in my universe. I'll pass. :|

Crikey, think we've touched a nerve Michael :)

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No, to be fair, I listen to quite a lot of the tracks and videos posted all around the Forum, partly as a Mod (just checkin', heh heh...), but also to hear some new stuff. I get a positive reaction to about 10%, a negative for another 10%, and a resounding 'Bof...') for the rest.

Don't talk to me about Sly'n'Rob, either..! I watched a TV show in which they were guest stars. He comes out from behind the drums after a minute or so and starts tapping on the bass strings with his sticks; both of 'em smiling widely. Bloomin' awful racket, with no musical value whatever. A stupid stunt, a wasted opportunity to play summit decent, but no.
Disclaimer: I've played too many festivals and concerts where the reggae/dub band went on before us 'headliners', only to have 'em overrun their spot by ... well, even longer than that (it felt like weeks...), and drive everyone away, leaving the venue pretty much emptied except for those wasted folks on the floor that could no longer move even for Judgement Day. Reggae..? Nah; I'll give that a miss, too. -_-

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I love Warren Zevon, but am massively bored with Werewolves.

As far as radio goes, it’s the only track people like Johnnie Walker (his producers, more like) think he ever did.

I remember buying a Sony Walkman in New York in 1981, picking up a tape of Excitable Boy in a secondhand record shop and walking the streets in a daze. Amazed I wasn’t mugged, run over or both. He really got into my head.

A fan from then on, but took a while to recover from a mauling given me in person when I interviewed him for Classic Rock magazine. I quickly found out you have to be seriously warped and wounded to write stinky poo like that...

A-hoooooo!

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8 hours ago, Beedster said:

No joke, I was briefly in a band in which the guitarist told me off for adding a passing note in Take It Easy. He was anal enough to listen to the track in a break in rehearsal and then play it to us to prove the note I’d played wasn’t in the original. I lasted one gig

One band, we played Not Fade Away which is basically two chords. An OK song if you just do it short and sweet but tedious if used as platform for guitar gymnastics.

As is so often the case.

One time we were about six minutes in and I put a passing 5 in for a laugh and bit of variety. Guitarist stopped and went mental. 'Who played that 5? It creates a false resolution!'. I laughed out loud and he became even more enraged, took his guitar off and said ' I'm so angry I'm going outside to cool down'. 

Priceless :lol:

 

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12 minutes ago, Mickeyboro said:

I love Warren Zevon, but am massively bored with Werewolves.

As far as radio goes, it’s the only track people like Johnnie Walker (his producers, more like) think he ever did.

I remember buying a Sony Walkman in New York in 1981, picking up a tape of Excitable Boy in a secondhand record shop and walking the streets in a daze. Amazed I wasn’t mugged, run over or both. He really got into my head.

A fan from then on, but took a while to recover from a mauling given me in person when I interviewed him for Classic Rock magazine. I quickly found out you have to be seriously warped and wounded to write stinky poo like that...

A-hoooooo!

I'll never get bored of it - the words are fab. I'll quite happily listen to it over and over again, along with Desperadoes Under the Eaves and Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner, and... etc. etc.

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