Danny and Chris

[bretonbanquet]

Originally Posted by aleuzzi

I hear some harmonies in the chorus of "Dust," though they are mixed down. I also hear similarly muted harmonies in "Woman of a Thousand Years" and "Sands of Time." Whether this is Danny duetting himself with a flasetto or Christine's higher alto I'm not sure.

I do know the higher backing voice on those songs sounds a lot like Chris's vocals on "Caught in the Rain."

There was a good deal of potential for the interplay of McVie-Kirwan-Welch's voices on those two albums. I assume the band didn's exploit this that much because the vocalists were, as someone already mentioned, not entirely sure of their capabilities.

I used to think for ages that Chris was on 'Dust', but now I'm sure it's all Danny. It seems though that Danny's and Chris's voices had a propensity, when mixed towards the back, to sound very similar to one another, because lots of us are unsure about it.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by bretonbanquet

I think you're right about that. It seems true that Danny was not suited to being in a band environment. Perhaps there was a big change then when Jeremy left and Bob joined, because Bob got on so well with the others, and not Danny. The personalities were such that Danny became the odd one out - maybe he was the last of the oddball members after Peter and Jeremy had gone, and the rest of the 1971-72 band were that bit more normal and easy-going... sane

I definitely do not think Danny ever fit in with any of them. I don't recall too much of what Jeremy has ever said about Danny, but Peter Green has said many of the same things about Danny that Bob and Christine (and John, for that matter) have said. Peter Green tends to be more sypathetic in his reflections, having had to deal with his own mental illness. But even he said working with Danny wasn't easy. What was different in 1972 is that they were now all living in close proximity and everybody's personality quirks became magnified as they were together on a daily basis.

Now, I know that they were basically living together during "Kiln House," but they were more focused on keeping the band together after Peter's departure than anything else. After Welch joined, and they got into a routine, I think it became harder for them to accept certain behaviors/personality quirks than it had been in the past, or future.

We already know that Danny wasn't the easiest guy to work with. Now they had to deal with him in their personal lives. And, with Peter, who was the main focus of the band, and Jeremy, who was a great showman in his own right, gone, the burden of being the lead guitarist and primary songwriter fell on Danny's lap. So, I think the proximity got to the band and the pressure got to Danny, creating a situation where he had to go. That he snapped on the "Bare Trees" tour only expedited the inevitable.

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by bretonbanquet

I used to think for ages that Chris was on 'Dust', but now I'm sure it's all Danny. It seems though that Danny's and Chris's voices had a propensity, when mixed towards the back, to sound very similar to one another, because lots of us are unsure about it.

I can see this, yeah. You know, it's strange that Danny's and Christine's voices could sound so alike because Christine's voice also meshes with Lindsey's. The vocal interplay on "World Turning" for example is so well matched it's almost eerie. And when she and Lindsey sing the third verse together, their combined voices sound not like two harmonizing voices but like one androgynous being. Anyone else notice this?

[macfan 57]

Originally Posted by bretonbanquet

I used to think for ages that Chris was on 'Dust', but now I'm sure it's all Danny. It seems though that Danny's and Chris's voices had a propensity, when mixed towards the back, to sound very similar to one another, because lots of us are unsure about it.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who's noticed this. I've actually listened to the vocal harmonies on Kiln House quite a bit just to see if I could pick out Christine's voice. It's hard to do because Chris & Danny sound so much alike. The only two I'm sure of is "Station Man" & "Mission Bell". There are a few more that are possible, but they still could be Danny.

[macfan 57]

Originally Posted by aleuzzi

I can see this, yeah. You know, it's strange that Danny's and Christine's voices could sound so alike because Christine's voice also meshes with Lindsey's. The vocal interplay on "World Turning" for example is so well matched it's almost eerie. And when she and Lindsey sing the third verse together, their combined voices sound not like two harmonizing voices but like one androgynous being. Anyone else notice this?

I've noticed this too. And, it's not only "World Turning", but "Don't Stop" is even more obvious. Their voices when they alternate lines, are incredibly similar.