Yes, this is an interesting point. But, Tabalt, let me just address some of your points-
You wrote “But some fans feel cheated or deseaved & question the guys' musical abilities.”
I don’t think anyone is questioning our guys’ musical abilities. It is just that, if the lead guitarists weren’t Bogle, Edwards, or McGee, are we listening to the Ventures? Were those pieces by the Ventures? If Duane Eddie or Hank Marvin played lead on a piece in a Ventures album, is that piece by the Ventures? What if all the musicians were session players, or if the Shadows actually played the piece, is the piece still by the Ventures, just because it was branded as such? And if the piece becomes a hit, is it truly a hit by the Ventures? It doesn’t seem so to me. Slapping on the name “Ventures” doesn’t make a piece “Ventures.” My opinion only.
“The group has displayed their prowess many times over in their live performances.”
Of course, but that’s not the point. The point is that they didn’t play in recordings attributed to them. If that recording became a hit, that’s a credit to the session or other musicians that played on them. If Nokie didn't play on Hawaii Five-O, the hit wasn't his. He of course plays it very well on stage, but is he then just covering a hit played by someone else originally?
“Others like myself seem to accept the often stated 'can't be in two places at once' theory.”
What if the Ventures had two concerts on the same day, one in Japan and the other in California. When you show up at your concert in California, you find that the drum kit does say “The Ventures,” but only session musicians are there. The organizer says the Ventures 'can't be in two places at once.' I don’t think you will be happy.
What if the session musicians played behind the curtain or on a dim stage; they play really well, and the audience goes wild. The curtains open or the lights go on, and … they’re session players. Should that matter? Would you then go home, saying, “boy, the Ventures played really well tonight.” That’s exactly the situation with recordings done by session musicians. Should we care? I think so.
“They grew up listening to & collecting Ventures albums …”
True, but some of the guys playing in those albums, who contributed to the popularity of the Ventures, really weren’t the Ventures. The fans were listening and collecting recordings by musicians other than the Ventures. "In Space" is one of my favorites; it is recorded really well. And, if as you say, half of the pieces weren't by the Ventures, then I am a fan of the guys who actually played, and they aren't the Ventures. If they were identified as a separate band, I would look for their records.
Don’t get me wrong here. I really like a great number of pieces attributed to the Ventures; that is why I am here on this forum. The “Ventures,” I sometimes feel, is actually several bands, each with a different sound and style. They could have been called “Bogle’s Ventures,” “Nokie’s Ventures,” etc.
In UF2, I mentioned Abe Lincoln’s statement that “calling a tail a leg doesn’t make it one.” Calling a band wholly made up of session musicians, using their own instruments, playing their own songs, “The Ventures” doesn’t make them The Ventures. I’m not from the US, but they have this rhetorical question about the authenticity of one George Washington’s axe, whose head and handle have been replaced a number of times …