Stephen C. Foster / George Gershwin

[Reverend Joshua Sloane]

Brian Wilson is more akin to Stephen Foster and George Gershwin than Mozart, as George Martin loves to say. 

You can draw direct inspiration for the melodies in SMiLE from those two songwriters.

Gershwin is the amusing, light hearted, jaunty melodies that are laced in songs like Heroes and Villains, Barnyard, He Gives Speeches, etc. While songs like Cabinessence, Holidays (Long, Long, Ago...), Wind Chimes, and the like are totally pastoral, idyllic Foster- inspired works.

http://www.goess.org/mason/foster-abc/ This site has some midi's.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_C._Foster
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_C._Foster
http://members.tripod.com/~REJ2/mid/rap.mid Rhapdsody In blue (midi).

Now, besides Spector's writing crew, and the Four Freshman, who else can we draw up to be a direct inspiration to Brian's work? Tracing the roots of his learning is very interesting.

[Reverend Joshua Sloane]

http://209.197.106.133/19580222/rock/beachboys/Heroes_And_Villains.mid

This melody is either the work of a stoned four year old child or a gifted genius on the level with Gershwin.

[JRauch]

Brian often named Bach as an influence. He called him a "true inventor" in an interview, if I remember correctly. And he also said that Pet Sounds was a combination of Bach, Beatles and Bacharach.

[Reverend Joshua Sloane]

Brian often named Bach as an influence. He called him a "true inventor" in an interview, if I remember correctly. And he also said that Pet Sounds was a combination of Bach, Beatles and Bacharach.

Maybe it's just me but I don't hear any Beatle influence in Pet Sounds. Perhaps the influence him to make the best music he could, but their musicial influence has no prints on the music of Pet Sounds. Bacharach and Bach, well that's different.

[JRauch]

Maybe it's just me but I don't hear any Beatle influence in Pet Sounds.

Me neither, I only quoted him.

[Aegir]

I see alot in common between Pet Sounds and Revolver. When I first got into music, two of the first albums I listened to were Pet Sounds and Revolver. And there I was, thinking the Beach Boys just sang about surfing and cars and the Beatles sang primitive 50s-derived pop songs, then listening to Pet Sounds and Revolver, weird spacey music from 1966, nothing that I had ever heard before. They both have similar moods, similar feels. I can't really describe it, but there's something in there they both have.

[Reverend Joshua Sloane]

I can understand that mood -- but Revolver was slightly post-Pet Sounds. Rubber Soul has some of that mood of course -- Girl, Norweigan Wood, In My Life.

Anyone think there's a deliberate similarity to the titles "In My Life" and the working title "In My Childhood," ?

[Ebb and Flow]

I see alot in common between Pet Sounds and Revolver. When I first got into music, two of the first albums I listened to were Pet Sounds and Revolver. And there I was, thinking the Beach Boys just sang about surfing and cars and the Beatles sang primitive 50s-derived pop songs, then listening to Pet Sounds and Revolver, weird spacey music from 1966, nothing that I had ever heard before. They both have similar moods, similar feels. I can't really describe it, but there's something in there they both have.

Revolver and Pet Sounds have some similar motifs going between them, the easiest parallel being between "Here There And Everywhere" and "God Only Knows", cited as Paul's influence for his song.  It also seems like "I Want To Tell You" is George's trippy version of "Please Let Me Wonder" (Not Pet Sounds, but close).

Revolver is definitely darker and druggier than PS, but I think both are easy to link also due to their proximity to eachother.  I love both albums, but it feels like Pet Sounds is joy permeated by sadness, whereas Revolver is the other way around.