Melcher Manson Byrds Beach Boys

November 22, 2004 11:05 PM

Record producer Terry Melcher dies.Melcher, one of the creators of the 1960's Los Angeles sound produced the Byrds hits "Turn Turn Turn" and "Mr Tamberine Man" and he also played on the Beach Boys seminal album "Pet Sounds." At one time, Melcher also owned this house and, for a while, he believed that the murders that occurred there might have been in retribution for not signing this guy to a record contract.
posted by thedailygrowl (25 comments total)

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posted by drezdn at 11:15 PM on November 22, 2004

Funny ... when I read this (elsewhere), my first thought was on the Manson connection.
posted by RavinDave at 11:29 PM on November 22, 2004

we all live in a yellow tamberine.
posted by quonsar at 11:36 PM on November 22, 2004

"This house" link didn't work. But I'll still drop a big ol'

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posted by rooftop secrets at 11:48 PM on November 22, 2004

The Melcher-produced Byrds albums are true masterpieces. He was either way ahead of his time or perfectly tuned into it - not sure which.

If you like the Byrds albums and/or the symphonic pop of the Beach Boys, I urge you to check out the work of Curt Boettcher, who produced and was a member of The Millennium and also Sagittarius, two marvelous symphonic pop / gorgeous psychedelia groups of the '60s. Boettcher was also involved with The Association. I am on a personal mission to spread the Gospel of Boettcher. Terry Melcher, I'm sure, would approve.
posted by Dr. Wu at 11:49 PM on November 22, 2004

Ooh, I second the Sagittarius recommendation -- Present Tense is great.
posted by scody at 12:06 AM on November 23, 2004

What Ravin Dave said. Oh, and
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posted by zorro astor at 2:49 AM on November 23, 2004

According to the summation of prosecutor Bugliosi in the Manson trial :

On the evening of August the eighth, 1969, when Charles Manson sent his robots out on a mission of murder, since the only qualifications the victims had to have was that they be white and members of the establishment, obviously, it made immense sense to Charles Manson, so he may just as well select a residence that he was familiar with, particularly one where he had been treated rather shabbily and whose former occupant, Terry Melcher, had rejected him.

I've often wondered whether Charlie would have ordered the murders and in the process ended the whole 60s movement for a lot of people, if Melcher had given him that record contract. Some of his music really was quite recordable.
posted by DirtyCreature at 3:00 AM on November 23, 2004

I find it a bit weird that he wrote Move Over Darling for his mum....
posted by gdav at 3:06 AM on November 23, 2004

I find it a bit weird that he wrote Move Over Darling for his mum....

Who did Elvis Presley record "That's Alright (Mama)" for?
[...]
"I need your lovin'. That's all right,
that's all right, now, mama, any way you do."
posted by davy at 3:16 AM on November 23, 2004

oh mama, can this really be the end?
posted by Satapher at 3:41 AM on November 23, 2004

The Millennium rulez!

It's a funny thing that some has mentioned the drums in the opening "Prelude" to be one of the first hiphop drums in a rock context, just recently someone used the track and mashed it up with The Beastie Boys "So whatcha want?"? It's the first track on this 45-minute real audio mixtape grabbed from this site.
posted by iwanttobuild at 3:57 AM on November 23, 2004

A small bit of trivia, but the stunning (C Dm F G) intro to "Turn, Turn, Turn" was of Melcher's creation and not McGuinn's. The version McGuinn's brought to the studio had as its intro the C - F - G riff that is prominent throughout the rest of the song. Melcher though it sounded a bit lifeless, and came up with the intro we all know today, which is part of the signature Byrds sound. What a difference one chord can make!
posted by Flem Snopes at 4:58 AM on November 23, 2004

I find it a bit weird that he wrote Move Over Darling for his mum....
>The next year he composed Move Over Darling, the title song for the film remake of My Favorite Wife, in which Doris Day starred with James Garner and Polly Bergen.
Think he made it for a movie, not his famous mom, Doris Day.
posted by thomcatspike at 5:23 AM on November 23, 2004

Not only was his work with the Byrds great for its time, but those albums influenced tons of musicians who work in alt-country or whatever you want to call it today. Darlings Wilco would be very different if not for those Byrds albums.
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posted by OmieWise at 5:27 AM on November 23, 2004

Who did Elvis Presley record "That's Alright (Mama)" for?

Sam Phillips.

He recorded "My Happiness" for his mom in Phillips' vanity record booth at Sun studios which Phillips secretary noticed and passed on, although his mother's birthday was months away, so maybe Elvis had ulterior motives.

Sad about Melcher, though. He'll always have a place in my patheon for his work with Paul Revere & the Raiders and The Rising Sons, as well as the Byrds and the Beach Boys.
posted by jonmc at 7:02 AM on November 23, 2004

What is sad is that the first thing mentioned in the obit featured in my local daily was that he wrote "Kokomo"

"." indeed.
posted by Quartermass at 7:11 AM on November 23, 2004

The death of Terry Knight.
posted by clavdivs at 8:09 AM on November 23, 2004

Mr. Melcher (with Candice Bergen) and more photos of the house in question.
posted by fandango_matt at 9:11 AM on November 23, 2004

I agree with Quartermass. I heard about his death on the radio with the tagline of "writer of the Beach Boy's biggest hit Kokomo died...". That is just wrong for so many reasons. I never thought of Terry Melcher as having greatness himself, but he's been part of greatness so many times he obviously did something right! He's been part of so many of my favorite records.
posted by HifiToaster at 9:24 AM on November 23, 2004

A lot of old record execs are croaking these days. It comes in waves, I think.
posted by echodolphin at 11:09 AM on November 23, 2004

I actually installed an old Real Player to hear those Manson songs. During the recorded conversation apparently with whoever was in the booth, Charlie had one of those nervous little schoolgirl giggles. THIS guy was Bugliosi's "Devil On Earth"? He sounds more like a petty shoplifter.
posted by davy at 12:32 PM on November 23, 2004

Whoa, claudius, Terry Knight? Dead? Long before Grand Funk, former DJ Knight had a regional hit in Detroit and Ohio with a super-reverby version of the Yardbirds "I Who Have Nothing." He was a near-permanent presence on the syndicated "Upbeat" show, looking a little old for the part of a rock star. I can only assume he had terrific organized crime connections. If he indeed died defending his daughter, honor him.
I also honor Melcher, and thank Flem Snopes for that excellent piece of information (news to me) about Melcher's role in creating the intro to "Turn, Turn, Turn" -- possibly the greatest single of the 1960s... maybe of all time. The fact that the producer of this song and Charles Manson ever crossed paths is one of those unaccountable ironies, like the proximity of the organs of procreation to those of elimination.
posted by Faze at 1:35 PM on November 23, 2004

By the Yardbirds?
posted by emf at 5:05 AM on November 24, 2004

Sorry, emf, I was confusing it with "Mister, You're a Better Man Than I," also covered by Terry Knight and the Pack. Thanks for the correction.
posted by Faze at 6:45 AM on November 24, 2004