Where to Start
| "Where to Start" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Outtake by Weezer | ||
| Recorded | July-October 2004 at Grandmaster Recorders - Los Angeles, CA |
|
| Writer(s) | Rivers Cuomo | |
| COR# | 532 | |
| Producer | Rick Rubin | |
| Status | unreleased | |
"Where to Start" (also known as "All I Need to Know Is Where to Start", formerly known as "Clearer Eyes" ) is an unreleased and unheard Weezer song originally recorded for Make Believe. It is part of the so-called Fallen Soldiers.
Overview
The song, when it was still called "Clearer Eyes", was first demoed acoustically by the band in July/August of 2003 at Rod Cervera's studio. During the band's first attempt at making Make Believe at Cello Studios in December of 2003, the song was not considered for the album. However, for 2 days late in the Cello session, Rivers Cuomo decided to record solo demos of many songs (including "Clearer Eyes") that had been dismissed in the weeks of pre-production. The likely purpose was to revisit the material to either insure it wasn't needed, or resurrect it for the album. Cuomo recorded another demo, now titled "All I Need to Know Is Where to Start", on February 3, 2004 at the S.I.R. rehearsal studio. Another "S.I.R. pre-production demo" recorded by Cuomo followed in May of 2004 with the shortened title "Where to Start".
The final studio version of the song was mostly recorded during the band's second attempt at making Make Believe, at Grandmaster Recorders in Los Angeles, CA. The sessions lasted from July 22 to October 22, 2004. It was not among the 12 songs that Cuomo asked to band to only concentrate on, which he felt were the right songs for the album. It was brought back by Pat Wilson, Brian Bell and Scott Shriner while Cuomo was back in Harvard. Wilson, Bell and Shriner used one of Cuomo's demos as guide to record the song from scratch. When Cuomo returned from his semester in February of 2005, he overdubbed new guitar parts and lead vocals to fisnish the recording. Ultimately the song was excluded from the final track list for unknown reasons and remains unreleased to this day. "Where to Start" is the only song that was brought back by Wilson, Bell and Shriner (the others being "We Are All on Drugs", "Peace" and "The Damage in Your Heart"), while Cuomo was at Harvard, that did not end up on Make Believe. It was listed on Cuomo's spreadsheet of 4 and 5 Star Demos.
Karl Koch named the 11 songs that were finished but not used for Make Believe "The Fallen Soldiers".
Personnel
- Rivers Cuomo – guitar, lead vocals
- Patrick Wilson – percussion
- Brian Bell – guitar, backing vocals
- Scott Shriner – bass guitar
- Rick Rubin - producer
