3.05.2012
Whistling in the Wind
Ned Barthlow Quartet Whistling in the Wind 45 (Pal Recording Studio, 19??)
The Ned Bartlow Quartet takes what could be a pretty mundane song and unintentionally makes it very eerie with one simple sound effect. Right as the song starts, a hollow hiss begins. It is supposed to be the wind, but they either used a bad recording or tried to approximate the wind with chintzy electronics. Whatever the case, the sound is unsettling enough to affect the rest of the song. It makes the organ a bit more Carnival of Horrors and the vocals become disembodied. The wind effect is not only a perfect example of how one thing can change the whole nature of a song, but of how different sounds interact with each other. I doubt whomever produced this record thought of that when recording "Whistling in the Wind." I am sure they thought that they were just introducing a neat sound effect and that was that. I also expect that the producer/engineer were just recording a song. Ned Bartlow and his boys were there for a few hours and played the thing a couple times. They took the best take and Jimmy said "Hey wouldn't it be neat to have the sound of the wind in the background," and that was that. This wasn't Brian Wilson on mix number two hundred seven, desperately seeking the perfect sound. If it was the wind would have sounded like the wind and I probably wouldn't be writing about Ned Barthlow's creation. Randomness and chance are wonderful things.
# posted by Scott Soriano : 19:20
