Roll Plymouth Rock
Encyclopedia
"Roll Plymouth Rock" is a song written by Brian Wilson
and Van Dyke Parks
in 1966 for the unreleased Beach Boys album Smile. The song is based on the incomplete Beach Boys recording "Do You Like Worms?" which was first published on Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys
, a boxed set which included much of the unreleased Smile material. However, outakes from the original recordings have also featured on Bootleg releases. In 2004, Brian Wilson released a version of Smile
(which was mostly based on material from the original recording sessions), with this song, under the title "Roll Plymouth Rock", included as the third track.
The instrumental track for the A and C sections of the song were recorded on October 18, 1966 at Western Studios
. Brian also recorded some of his vocals at that session. The Beach Boys vocals were recorded at Columbia Studios, on December 21, 1966. The B sections of the song were recorded during sessions for "Heroes and Villains
".
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
and Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks is an American composer, arranger, producer, musician, singer, author and actor. Parks is perhaps best known for his contributions as a lyricist on the Beach Boys album Smile....
in 1966 for the unreleased Beach Boys album Smile. The song is based on the incomplete Beach Boys recording "Do You Like Worms?" which was first published on Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys
Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys
Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys is a 1993 boxed set released by Capitol Records which collects tracks spanning The Beach Boys' entire career to that point on four CDs. A fifth disc contains mostly studio session tracks, complete vocal and instrumental tracks, and rare live...
, a boxed set which included much of the unreleased Smile material. However, outakes from the original recordings have also featured on Bootleg releases. In 2004, Brian Wilson released a version of Smile
Smile (Brian Wilson album)
Smile, sometimes typeset with the idiosyncratic partial capitalization SMiLE, or referred to as Brian Wilson Presents Smile is a solo album by Brian Wilson, with lyrics by Van Dyke Parks released on September 28, 2004 on CD and two-disc vinyl LP...
(which was mostly based on material from the original recording sessions), with this song, under the title "Roll Plymouth Rock", included as the third track.
Beach Boys recording
In its original version, the song is in the form ABABCB'. The A sections feature a short instrumental section where the melody is carried by the timpani, then the lyrics "Rock, rock, roll, Plymouth Rock roll over" in two part harmony over the bass guitars. The B sections consist of the "Bicycle Rider" theme played on harpsichord. At the end of the song, the B' section, the harpsichord breaks down, only to start up again. The C section has Brian singing fake Hawaiian lyrics over backing vocals by the rest of the band and a sparse backing track.The instrumental track for the A and C sections of the song were recorded on October 18, 1966 at Western Studios
United Western Recorders
United Western Recorders, often abbreviated to UWR, was a renowned recording studio complex in Hollywood, California, which became one of the most successful independent recording studios in the world in the late 1950s and 1960s....
. Brian also recorded some of his vocals at that session. The Beach Boys vocals were recorded at Columbia Studios, on December 21, 1966. The B sections of the song were recorded during sessions for "Heroes and Villains
Heroes and Villains
"Heroes and Villains" is a song by the American rock band The Beach Boys, co-written by the group's leader Brian Wilson and lyricist Van Dyke Parks. Originally intended by Wilson to be the centerpiece of the ambitious but shelved album Smile, a re-recorded version of the song was released on Smiley...
".
Musicians
According to Keith Badman:- Jerry ColeJerry ColeJerry Cole born Jerald Kolbrack was an American guitarist who recorded under his own name, under various budget album pseudonyms and as an uncredited session musician.-Biography:...
- guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Gene Estes - percussion
- Jim GordonJim Gordon (musician)James Beck "Jim" Gordon is an American recording artist, musician and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner was one of the most requested session drummers in the late 1960s and 1970s, recording albums with many well-known musicians of the time, and was the drummer in the blues-rock supergroup Derek...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, conga drums - Al JardineAl JardineAlan Charles "Al" Jardine is a founding member of top-selling American music group The Beach Boys, a guitarist and occasional lead vocalist. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.-Early life:...
- vocals - Carol KayeCarol KayeCarol Kaye is an American musician, best known as one of the most prolific and widely heard bass guitarists in history, playing on an estimated 10,000 recording sessions in a 55 year career....
- bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Mike LoveMike LoveMichael Edward "Mike" Love is an American singer/songwriter and musician with The Beach Boys. He was a founding member of the band along with his cousins Brian, Carl, and Dennis Wilson, and their friend Al Jardine, and continues to perform with the band to the present day...
- vocals - Van Dyke ParksVan Dyke ParksVan Dyke Parks is an American composer, arranger, producer, musician, singer, author and actor. Parks is perhaps best known for his contributions as a lyricist on the Beach Boys album Smile....
- tack pianoTack pianoIn music, the tack piano is a permanently altered version of an ordinary piano, in which tacks or nails are placed on the hammers of the instrument at the point where the hammers hit the strings, giving the instrument a tinny, more percussive sound... - Lyle Ritz - upright bass
- Brian WilsonBrian WilsonBrian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
- vocals - Carl WilsonCarl WilsonCarl Dean Wilson was an American rock and roll singer and guitarist, best known as a founding member, lead guitarist and sometime lead vocalist of The Beach Boys...
- vocals - Dennis WilsonDennis WilsonDennis Carl Wilson was an American rock and roll musician best known as a founding member and the drummer of The Beach Boys. He was a member of the group from its formation until his death in 1983...
- vocals
Brian Wilson version
The 2004 Brian Wilson recording of "Roll Plymouth Rock" differs from the original Beach Boys recording in two ways. There are lyrics throughout the song; they were written by Van Dyke Parks in 1966 but never recorded by The Beach Boys. The final sections of the song are not the same. The 2004 recording ends with a vocal siren which leads into the next song on the album, "Barnyard".musicians
- Scott Bennett - keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, vocals - Nelson BraggNelson BraggNelson Bragg is a drummer-percussionist-vocalist from Rockport, Massachusetts.-Early years:Nelson Bragg played in several bands from 1979 to 1999 including positions as a pit drummer for over 20 stage musicals...
- percussion, vocals - Staffan Findin - bass trombone
- Jeff FoskettJeff FoskettJeffrey Foskett is a guitarist and singer best known for his work with Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys.Foskett originally came from San Jose, California, where in the early-1970s his first band was a surf group named "Cherry", after the Willow Glen area street on which he lived. He attended Willow...
- guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, ukuleleUkuleleThe ukulele, ; from ; it is a subset of the guitar family of instruments, generally with four nylon or gut strings or four courses of strings....
, vocals - Probyn GregoryProbyn GregoryProbyn Gregory is a composer and musician who was raised in the disparate climates of New Hampshire and California, and is now based in Los Angeles...
- guitar, vocals - Jim HinesJim HinesJames "Jim" Ray Hines is a former American track and field athlete, who held the 100 m world record for 15 years. He was the first sprinter to officially break the 10-second barrier in the 100 meters.-Track career:...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Anna Landberg - celloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
- Bob Lizik - bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Paul Mertons - bass fluteBass fluteThe bass flute is the bass member of the flute family. It is in the key of C, pitched one octave below the concert flute. Because of the length of its tube , it is usually made with a "J" shaped head joint, which brings the embouchure hole within reach of the player...
- Taylor Mills - vocals
- Bjorn Samuelsson - tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
- Markus SandlundMarkus SandlundMarkus Sandlund was a Swedish cellist.-Biography:He began playing the cello when he was six years old and he studied at the Royal College of Music, Stockholm, Sweden. He played in several orchestras in Sweden and has also played on many studio recordings. He also played with Ray Charles on a tour...
- cello - Darian SahanajaDarian SahanajaDarian Sahanaja is a singer, songwriter, and is currently playing in the Brian Wilson band with The Wondermints. He has also collaborated with numerous other artists in the genre of orchestral/underground pop, including Baby Lemonade, Wonderboy, Aimee Mann, Now People, Lisa Mychols and Donna Summer...
- keyboards, vocals - Nick Walusko - guitar
- Brian WilsonBrian WilsonBrian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
- keyboards, vocals