God Only Knows Question

[mike8902]

I read somewhere that Brian was inspired to write God Only Knows while listening to a John Sebastian song. Could anyone tell me what song it was?

[jazzfascist]

I've often pondered about that question myself. Maybe it's "Daydream", the rhythm is similar. "Daydream" was released 2/26-66 and GOK was recorded, or the recording was finíshed, 10/3-66, so theoretically it's possible. It could also be "Younger Girl" a very romantic song, that people would probably call pedophilic today.

Søren

[Reverend Joshua Sloane]

No kidding!

"And should I hang around, acting like her brother
In a few more years, they'd call us right for each other"

That's like a diary entry from an old man who hangs around school children too much. Kind creepy when thought of in that way, but I feel the sincerity in the lyric and both recognize the attraction to girls a year or so younger than myself. I hope that attraction will fade as I age though.


God Only Knows has that jaunty feel that Daydream also shares. Brian recently insulted The Lovin' Spoonful in a way.

[stevemc90]

When I first heard Lovin' Spoonful's rendition of "You Baby" (not penned by Sebastian, but Barry/Greenwich/Spector!), I immediately noticed an uncanny resemblance to God Only Knows in their respective verses (immediate beginnings of). Very similar, the melody in particular but also the rhyme ("You know I've been wanting you...). Perhaps enough to get Brian and Tony going? Seeing as the Spoonful's debut LP containing the song came out in November, and its follow up in March (the same month GOK was recorded), it's plausible "You Baby" could be the song Brian has referred to. Then again, you'd think Brian would have known it wasn't penned by Sebastian, given the actual authors, and should have known the Ronettes/Spector '64 recording if he were the fan he makes himself out to be! 

Just speculation...

[brother john]

I've often pondered about that question myself. Maybe it's "Daydream", the rhythm is similar. "Daydream" was released 2/26-66 and GOK was recorded, or the recording was finíshed, 10/3-66, so theoretically it's possible. It could also be "Younger Girl" a very romantic song, that people would probably call pedophilic today.

Søren

There's nothing paedophilic about Younger Girl - that's just a combination of your dirty mind and a PC-obsessed modern media preoccupation children's sexuality, which is creepy...

And besides, there are plenty of Brian Wilson songs much that are much more sexually questionable that Younger Girl.

Actually, if you want dodgy songs about young girls, you can't do better than Young Girl by Gary Puckett And The Union Gap: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hn0ZJHVH17I

[37!ws]

Believe it or not, before I became a BB/BW fan, I would get "God Only Knows" and "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice" confused....

[hypehat]

I've often pondered about that question myself. Maybe it's "Daydream", the rhythm is similar. "Daydream" was released 2/26-66 and GOK was recorded, or the recording was finíshed, 10/3-66, so theoretically it's possible. It could also be "Younger Girl" a very romantic song, that people would probably call pedophilic today.

Søren

There's nothing paedophilic about Younger Girl - that's just a combination of your dirty mind and a PC-obsessed modern media preoccupation children's sexuality, which is creepy...

And besides, there are plenty of Brian Wilson songs much that are much more sexually questionable that Younger Girl.

Actually, if you want dodgy songs about young girls, you can't do better than Young Girl by Gary Puckett And The Union Gap: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hn0ZJHVH17I