David Leaf, Landy and Melinda's fault, surely.

[Smilin Ed H]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xyUTaUc87c

[RickD]

surrounded by schlock - the great Carl Wilson.

[MBE]

Sounds about as banal as the Landy songs on Sweet Insanity.

[Dancing Bear]

Melcher wrote better songs in his Beach Boys tenure.

[Ron]

Well, here goes my credibility but I actually thought it wasn't that bad.  We're talking about what, 1987 or so?  That kind of was how things went back then. 



Thank god the kid didn't find Brian's stash!











BTW, Carl Wilson proves once more that he was incredible. 

[Steve Mayo]

Melcher wrote better songs in his Beach Boys tenure.

the movie and song came out in 1990.

you better check out just who wrote the song.........

[Ron]

Sounds about as banal as the Landy songs on Sweet Insanity.

I hope he's not reading but I thought Carl sounded much better on this than Brian sounded on anything on Sweet Insanity. 

[phirnis]

The most downright absurd aspect of their many lackluster eighties singles is that one of them actually made it to the top of the charts... Sadly, what's most incredible about Carl Wilson here is that he obviously didn't give a toss about the group's artistic direction anymore. All this dross, like Problem Child or Happy Endings even make Keepin' The Summer Alive really shine.

[KokoMoses]

Keep in mind that for 1990 and the late 80s, this wasn't all that unusually bad. Also, maybe the  Boys just didn't have the fight left in them? I mean, we all need to make a living. and with all the ups and downs these guys had gone through.... maybe they just sucummed to bad management. or maybe they even thought it was good! Or at least that it would be a hit.

Of course, David Leaf, Melinda and Landy can't be held responsible for bad creative decisions that a group of grown men make, but perhaps the whole rock-school- of-cool contingent coulda treated Carl, Al, Mike, Bruce, (as well as Dennis) with a bit more respect when they were actually, for the most part, really trying (and mostly succeeding) to create heady, artistic, vibrant music, instead of measuring anythings worth against whatever level of Brian involvement there was. And then they even bashed Brian for not dishing out Pet Sounds 2-3-4 and 5 every year.

[shelter]

I think that the most remarkable thing about the Beach Boys' 80s and 90s material is that it sounds much more dated now than anything they recorded in 1965-1973.

I guess that's just the difference between setting and following trends.

[Alex]

It seems that from the Light Album onwards, they were basically trying to sound like whatever the current fad in music was and failing at it miserably (minus Dennis' and Carl's songs on L.A., and Where I Belong, artistically speaking, and Kokomo, Getcha Back, and Good Timin' from a commercial standpoint).

[Dancing Bear]

Melcher wrote better songs in his Beach Boys tenure.

the movie and song came out in 1990.

you better check out just who wrote the song.........

Hey, I was fooled by the youtube liner notes. 

[SG7]

Thank god the kid didn't find Brian's stash!

 

[Smilin Ed H]

By the time Melcher hooked up with the BB in this period, he'd lost it, as I suspect Usher had when you listen to the production of the usher tapes.

This is a piece of sh*t, really - but it was one among many.  What the hell were they thinking?

[carl r]

Mike does get a lot of stick, much of it deservedly, but this sort of thing does make me wonder if he is really the One To Blame.

The 80s were hard on 60s pop stars... if you could remember the 60s Beach Boys, you'd still respect them. If you were too young to know them, this  band playing this music could represent The Enemy as much as ... Celine Dion.  And making the journey to discovering the great 60s and 70s tracks a much harder trek.

So maybe Beach Boys fans under 40 years old are post-ironic ?

[punkinhead]

how is this any of their faults? David Leaf, a writer with little or no influence, and mainly with just Brian. Landy, perhaps he prevented Brian from performing in the video/song like Kokomo, so really, thanks Dr. Landy on that one. and Melinda isn't even in the picture until further down the road (influencial wise)

[Surfer Joe]

Once again, the Boys feel the lash of YouTube across their aging shoulders.  There should probably be a separate board set up for that- scourge our heroes with their latter-day indiscretions. The well is apparently bottomless.

Actually, it didn't bother me at all.  I lived through those days and found it advisable to stay inebriated most of the time. I like this song better than, say, "Rainbow Eyes". (I had sobered up by then).

And incidentally, I think most stuff sounds more dated from 10-20 years later than it does at 30-40.  Elvis' early hits sounded dated to me in the seventies, they sound utterly timeless now.

[MBE]

Sounds about as banal as the Landy songs on Sweet Insanity.

I hope he's not reading but I thought Carl sounded much better on this than Brian sounded on anything on Sweet Insanity. 

Hate to agree but Brian never did sing worse.

[Smilin Ed H]

"how is this any of their faults? David Leaf, a writer with little or no influence, and mainly with just Brian. Landy, perhaps he prevented Brian from performing in the video/song like Kokomo, so really, thanks Dr. Landy on that one. and Melinda isn't even in the picture until further down the road (influencial wise)"

Sorry, it was meant to be ironic.  

[MBE]

how is this any of their faults? David Leaf, a writer with little or no influence, and mainly with just Brian. Landy, perhaps he prevented Brian from performing in the video/song like Kokomo, so really, thanks Dr. Landy on that one. and Melinda isn't even in the picture until further down the road (influencial wise)

Obviously this was a joke

[Smilin Ed H]

Livin Doll/Barbie's a lot worse than anything on SI. And Landy probably was behind that!  That was awful too.   Maybe they were looking for a new audience?  Bring on Make It Big!

[Sam_BFC]

I guess that's just the difference between setting and following trends.

100% agree...well said

[wiggbuggie]

good song I like the stuff the beach boys made during the 80's and 90's

[punkinhead]

sorry, i guess i didnt catch that...i was in the mind-set of someone new was writing it, i'll look at the author next time

[MBE]

Livin Doll/Barbie's a lot worse than anything on SI. And Landy probably was behind that!  That was awful too.   Maybe they were looking for a new audience?  Bring on Make It Big!

It's not a great moment but it was admitedly for kids. The other songs have no excuse.