Thing about you

Hi all,

i just listen to "Thing about you" from The Brian Setzer Collection 81-88.
Is this song also recorded by someone else?
Or is only recorded (and never released on a album) by BS.

Thanks

Brett

Although I don't really like most of the pop/rock stuff there are some pretty cool songs on this album and Thing about you is one of them. But my unbeaten favourites on this album are Echo Park and Waiting For Desiree.
Apart from the rockabilly stuff of course

Brett wrote:

Hi all,

i just listen to "Thing about you" from The Brian Setzer Collection 81-88.
Is this song also recorded by someone else?
Or is only recorded (and never released on a album) by BS.

Thanks

Brett

Regarding Thing About You, I only know of 3 versions.

Let's Go Faster (Original Album)
Let's Go Faster (Demo Recordings Album)
The Brian Setzer Collection 81-88

I'm not sure though if anyone else has recorded a version of it.
I really like this song by the way, great guitar solo!

Guitarmaniac wrote:

Although I don't really like most of the pop/rock stuff there are some pretty cool songs on this album and Thing about you is one of them. But my unbeaten favourites on this album are Echo Park and Waiting For Desiree.
Apart from the rockabilly stuff of course

I absolutely love the song Waiting For Desiree, I can't understand why it was never on an official solo album.
It's also on the Let's Go Faster (Demo Recordings Album) but called Can't Stand Losing You.
I've never heard the Spanish version by Los Rebeldes though

steb74 wrote:

Regarding Thing About You, I only know of 3 versions.

Let's Go Faster (Original Album)
Let's Go Faster (Demo Recordings Album)
The Brian Setzer Collection 81-88

LETS GO FASTER!!!!!

Sure, this is not my favorite album, but i know it. Sometimes it´s so easy...

Many thanks Steb74,

The version contained on Let's Go Faster DEMOS is the same as the one released in the BS Collection... Same with Cross Of Love

Brett wrote:

Many thanks Steb74,

My pleasure Brett, glad to help

Slim Jon Phantom wrote:

The version contained on Let's Go Faster DEMOS is the same as the one released in the BS Collection... Same with Cross Of Love

Hi Jon, the Let's Go Faster demo version of Thing About You is different from the BS Collection version, the tempo in the latter feels a fraction faster and the guitar solo is different.
You're right about Cross Of Love though, which comes from the days of Live Nude Guitars as I suspect some of the other tracks from the Let's Go Faster demos do also.

Cheers guys

Hey Steb,
you're right about the tempo thing in Thing About You but it's the same mix
BTW, how are you mate?? it's been a while since we last spoke

Slim Jon Phantom wrote:

Hey Steb,
you're right about the tempo thing in Thing About You but it's the same mix
BTW, how are you mate?? it's been a while since we last spoke

I'm ok thanks man, I hope you're doing well also!
Well, the heat in Madrid over the summer has been too much for me so hopefully it'll start cooling down soon!
Did I read on here that you spent some of the summer working in Scotland?
I'll have to message or email you to chat about a couple of things.

Anyway ....Thing about you.
I'm sure the 2 versions are not the same mix and that the version from the Let's Go Faster demos is an earlier draft than the BS collection version due its rawness.
There is also a pitch difference, the Let's Go Faster demo version is about a semi-tone lower in pitch than the other one.
Although this is probably a tape/transfer issue and also accounts for the slighly slower tempo.
The main mix/performance differences though are:
The guitar figure that starts the song and is repeated periodically
Let's Go Faster demos - left channel
BS collection - right channel
Let's Go Faster demos - cowbell in intro, right channel
BS collection - not present
Let's Go Faster demos - 1 rhythm guitar, right channel
BS collection - 2 rhythm guitars left & right channel
More backing vocals in the BS collection version.
The guitar solo in both versions start out similar but change in the second half of the solo.

There are other things but I'm far to tired man, gotta get some

Talk to you later

I'll have to check this again... but the sound is more like Setzer solo rather than the Stray Cats.... it might be a different take, but I am completely sure that version wasn't by the Cats

And Steb... Aye! I've been in Edinburgh working for a few weeks

Yeah, I´m sure everything on the LGF demos is not played by the Cats, the sound and style is certainly from his solo period, I think they´re all first/second drafts, more or less.
The recordings sound very home studio/rehearsal room vibe-ish.
The version on the BS collection sounds like a studio recorded demo, is it with the Cats though? I don´t know, possibly?

Apart from certain production choices in the final Let´s Go Faster album, I think the fact that the songs more than likely come from Brian´s solo period is a big factor in why the album didn´t resonate with Cats fans as much as other works.
Almost all electric bass and most of the beats are straight as opposed to swinging.
There are certain things I wish had been done a little differently on the album but I actually like it alot.

Completely agree with you; I think Brian had those songs out of Live Nude Guitars and obviously, he made an album called Let's Go Faster with them, heheh; the Demos are by far, much better than the released album, which does sound quite pop and unnatural for the Cats... I wonder whether they really like that album. Let's Go Faster is a blast when played live, but in the album, it sucks. Cross Of Love (one of my favs!) is so kitch in LGF but when it comes to CCHF, is beautiful.... but well, that's the way it's been and since we do have the LGF Demos, we can listen to them as if that was the released album!

Yeah, it´s a shame the final record didn´t stick closer to the rawness and energy of the demos.
I first saw the Cats live in ´90 in London where they played:
Let´s go faster, Struck by lightning & Give it to me.
Considering I had never heard those tracks before, they were actually 3 of my favourite songs played that night and I couldn´t wait for them to be recorded for an album.
Like I said, I do like the album alot but the songs just didn´t rock as much as they did live, I felt a little frustrated that Struck by lightning was so much tamer than how I´d heard it live.
So it was great to eventually hear the demo recordings, I listen to them alot.

I also love Cross Of Love, one of my favs too, the original version, which does indeed date back to Live Nude Guitars and although it appears on the demos album, I don´t think it sounds like a demo, not how the other tracks do, its recording is much more polished and the fact that it was also released as a B-side many years before.

Well, I´ve still not had any sleep man, so I think I´m gonna take an early siesta

Just a question,

The intro of the song is played with a keyboard or guitar ?

laurent327 wrote:

Just a question,
The intro of the song is played with a keyboard or guitar ?

Hi Laurent, as far as I can tell it's just done with a guitar, I'm not sure what type of guitar exactly but if you listen to the LGF demo version and the BS Collection version you can hear more clearly two other strings/notes ringing under the high melody line.
You can do that by putting a capo at the 12th fret, playing the melody on the B string and have the G & D strings ringing through.
To me it has a kind of acoustic guitar sound, it reminds me of a mandolin but I don't think it is one.
Cheers

Errrm Steb, weren't you having an early nap?? yay! sorry, just kidding.

I agree with Steb, Laurent; I think it's a guitar and I've been listening to both versions, LGF Demos and BS Collection; They have been recorded by Setzer, no Stray Cats in any of them, but they are different takes.