The Smiley Smile Message Board

This song is really, really good. I can't stop playing it.

I've never really listened to BB85 and finally got around to cannibalizing it for a BB 80s playlist I was doing. The chord changes in this are breathtaking and the background harmonies. I can just imagine Brian hammering this out on a piano and it sounding absolutely stunning, but they fudge it with horrendous 80s production. Nevertheless, Brian's (or maybe Al's?!) chords still sparkle through all the crappy synths and drum machines.

I love it when you find a gem like this in the seedier side alleys of a group's back catalogue.

I remember other posters singing the praises of Somewhere In Japan, and Where I Belong, and I sniffed dismissively at them that there was nothing of worth beyond 1977. Well, I take it back as I love those songs now, although I can't shake the chilling image of John Phillips perving over his daughter when I listen to SIJ (it's about her apparently).

I dig that tune too, really a highlight and perhaps my favourite on that record, though I think "Where I Belong" and "She Believes In Love Again" are great too. Today I was searching through Eric's setlist page and discovered that at one point they played "Crack At Your Love" live together with "Getcha Back", "Califoria Calling", "She Believes In Love Again" and "It's Gettin' Late". Would like to know how these performances went over especially with the crowd. If you compare to other setlists from 1985 they would only play 1 or 2 songs of "The Beach Boys".

To be honest I'm unfamilar with a lot of the songs you mention, save Getcha Back which is great. I shall have another listen.

With this latest rewarding foray into the 80s catalogue I feel like I've signed over the remainder of my critical faculties to BB land. Kokomo now sounds like Pet Sounds to me. SIP here I come!

I think Crack At Your Love is a pile of arse myself. Where I Belong is a genuine 80s gem and ripe for reappraisal - would love for it to make an appearance on the forthcoming career-spanning boxset. It's A Beautiful Day is another forgotten gem.

:::::Arf!::::::

I shall have a listen to It's A Beautiful Day.

I think Getcha Back is a seriously amazing tune, with 'I'm So Lonely' a close second off that record.. can't say i'm too fond of crack at your love.

The main "woah oh-ohh" on "Crack at Your Love" is pretty good, but I have trouble getting past the cheesy slap bass. And something about Al's vocal is a little weird to me for some reason. "California Calling" is fairly decent off that album, as far as the nostalgia tunes go. I've expressed my hatred of "It's Just a Matter of Time" elsewhere on the board, but I quite like "Male Ego". Do a mix of this with some of the new tracks off of Still Cruisin' and you have a not entirely embarrassing album. Now add some stuff from BW's first solo and you've REALLY got an 80s BBs album.

"It's Getting Late" is one of the few I can even remember off BB85. Probably because there's just so much Carl on it, which makes it worthwhile.

I really enjoy my KTSA/BB85 two-fer. Some great tracks, entertaining cornball production, and a vital part of the band's evolution. As a whole, I like it better than MIU/LA although the good tracks on the latter are really, really good.

I think TWGMTR benefits when viewed in context as part of the continuum from KTSA on. Well, if you ignore Still Cruisin' and SIP (as I do).

Combining BB85 with KTSA works even better as a mix. Granted, KTSA still sounds like the instruments are being played by human beings, but it's glossy enough that they go side by side very well together. And KTSA has enough really good moments to help buoy the overall disc.

I've always loved 'Crack at your love' it is a big slice of fun on an album with some pretty dreary tracks.

I love how Al sings 'I'm gonna need a little help from above'.

I once got a DJ friend to play it, can't remember how it went down but I was happy.

To me, BB85 is pretty much a waste, except for "Crack" (awesome) and "I'm So Lonely" (even better).  "Crack" just has a great melody, great lyrics, nice vocal from Al.

Where I Belong is a great Track....melody, singing by Carl and Al.......one of the last great BB tracks, doesn't get nearly enough recognition.

Great to see some fellow crack lovers! Not sure I'd have the balls to play it in public though - kudos to your DJ friend!

It's Gettin' Late is the undisputed champion of BB85 - Carl absolutely SLAYS that one.

Crack at Your Love is a great song. and Passing Friend!

And I loathe them both...

Crack just goes nowhere.  Simplistic chord progressions that move predictably and on the beat, with no real live band to give that simplicity any kick, just a bunch of synths noodling around the major scale taking up space.

Passing Friend is -- I hate to say it -- a song I would prefer to hear Boy George singing than Carl Wilson.  It would make a half-decent Culture Club tune, but it's a sh*te Beach Boys tune.  And the Culture Club would have actually played some real instruments on it.

Lest I seem too PC on the topic of '80s cheesy BBs, I quite enjoy some of Carl's stabs at '80s AOR rock.  Some work better than others, but "Maybe I Don't Know" is fun for me....but I can see why someone else would hate it.  Different strokes.

Someone pointed this out some time back, so I'll re-point it out.  Listen to "Crack at Your Love".  Then listen to "Hungry Heart" by Bruce Springsteen.  Nearly the same song.


But, that doesn't necessarily keep me from liking crack.  The song, that is.

The two new songs on Made In The USA are good as was the live Runaway on the Sunkist LP. I like the Getcha Back/Male Ego 45 and I like Somewhere Near Japan. Otherwise 1981-96 offical group releases really don't do it at all for me.  Crocidile Rock is my guilty pleasure to some extent I guess. Hate Stars and Stripes, Summer In Paradise, Still Crusin, and 85 otherwise as well as misc  45's, CD singles, and VA tracks.

I hope they will release all non album singles some day, I especially enjoy "It's A Beautiful Day" and although the lyrics don't really work I like "East Meets West", great moment at the end when Brian kicks in.

BB85 has three genuinely good songs on it (It's Gettin Late, I Do Love You, Male Ego), one absolute classic (Where I Belong), one relatively decent-ish single (Getcha Back) and the rest is almost entirely appalling.

Fully agree with this!

Am I the only one that adores "California Calling?" As for the titular song of this thread, it might be fine, it might be crap, I just can't be subjective, 'cause all I can ever think of is how much the title makes me picture an ass crack.

As if you cared, here is my opinion of The Beach Boys. It is, in fact, the first studio album the group ever released that I actively do not like. Give me MIU 'til it hurts, disco me up a savory platter of HCTN, or rub obscene dollops of creamy KTSA all over me anytime and whenever you like - I will lap it up. But the 1985 disaster? Bleech.
1. Getcha Back - tasty - 7/10
2. It's Gettin' Late - nice, in a junior high dance kind of way - 5/10
3. Crack - can't get pass the ass - ?/10
4. Maybe I Don't Know - crap - 1/10
5. She Believes In Love Again - crap, in a junior high dance kind of way - 0/10
6. California Calling - irresistible - 6/10
7. Passing Friend - boring, and yes, should have been a Culture Club track - 2/10
8. I'm So Lonely - direct (which is good) but unusually plain for Brian - 3/10
9. Where I Belong - nearly as good as people say - 7/10
10. I Do Love You - does not belong on this album - 1/10
11. It's Just A Matter Of Time - pastiche, lightweight - 2/10
12. Male Ego - I enjoy it and all but it doesn't GO anywhere - 4/10

BTW, I save my 8's and above for real prime-time, classic material. A "7" above is actually a very appreciative rating on my scale.

haha! Thought I was the only one!

Kanye West sings about crack and we think of hard drugs. Al Jardine sings about crack and it's bum cheeks all the way. Keeping it clean with Al Jardine!!

(I still love the song though)

On this album, I love She Believes in Love Again, like Maybe I Don't Know, Where I Belong and Male Ego is fun. Most of the rest is a bit average, pleasant but lightweight, but overall imo better than half of KTSA (not saying which tracks, but I think they're possibly their nadir  ;D)

They should have dropped the Culture Club reject and added Chasin' the Sky instead and probably dropped the Stevie Wonder track with Carl guesting on it and added ... er, something better  :) . At the Hop?

It's not often discussed on here, but I believe there are a bunch of non-album/ soundtrack and unreleased BB's tracks from the early- mid '80s, eg. Oh Those Girls, At the Hop, Tricia, the already mentioned East Meets West with the Four Seasons, Happy Endings (bizarre duet with Little Richard), Don't Worry Baby with the Everlys, Chasin' the Sky and others. Though most of these seem to be poor, we're always talkin' about SIP, S&S and other major landmarks of the Boys later career  ;D .

I say bring on the '80s box set - 3 CDs, alternate takes, the works!  :smokin

:thumbsup ...add "It's Getting Late".

I've always loved "I'm so lonely", the chorus with Brian singing in falsetto is gorgeous.

The old Male Ego board actually had some regular discussions about these songs if I remember correctly. A fascinating topic no matter if you actually like these songs or not (personally I have a bit of a soft spot for most of them).

I listened to KTSA earlier today for the first time, and actually found it enjoyable.  So there's one vote for "KTSA ain't too bad". :-P

I personally love "Passing Friend" from BB85. So much feeling in that tune.

No, no. Getcha Back is the rip off of Hungry Heart (although I still love Getcha Back).  Mike Love has as much as admitted it (I think it was in the infamous Goldmine article from 1992). In any event, Springsteen has said that he wrote Hungry Heart not so much as a tribute to the Boys, but as way of expressing how their music made him feel, or something to that effect. It has a definite Beach Boys feel to it, no doubt. Love, in response, wrote Getcha Back.  He expressed how disapointed he was with Steve Levine's production of it.  Love wanted, as he put it, a "real ballsy sax" like Hungry Heart, but Levine "just didn't hear it",and that the production kept it from being a bigger hit.

I'll tell ya what, as a completist I would buy that! While most of these stray tracks aren't that great I'd like to see them come out in one handy package.  Lob off the 60' cuts on Still Cruisin and create a SC/Summer In Paradise twofer with some bonus cuts. Yeah, I know some people would love to have these tracks locked in a vault but it's history and it happened. Capitol...release the hounds! 

Anyone got a complete handy list of the stray tracks which were released (as opposed to outtakes)?  Only ones I'm aware of off the top of my head were "East Meets West", "Rock And Roll To The Rescue", "California Dreamin", and "Lady Liberty" from the '80s, and "Problem Child" and "Croc Rock" from the '90s.  I suppose we can add the likes of "Don't Fight The Sea" and "Waves of Love" now too...

Cheers,
Jon Blum

Off the top of my head "Don't Worry Baby" with the Everly Brothers from the Tequila Sunrise sdtrk, "Happy Endings" with Little Richard from The Telephone sdtk, "Howdy From Maui" with Jeff Foxworthy, "Happy Birthday America"...and don't forget the version of "Problem Child" without the kids's "nyah nyah's".  :)

And "Chasin' The Sky" as others have mentioned. ..and assorted live tracks..like the live "California Girls" that was the B-Side of "Happy Endings" and the live "God Only Knows" that was the Farm Aid album.

Best song from the 80s, easily, Somewhere Near Japan

Maybe I could appreciate "crack" in a more basic production; the 80's sound doesn't do it for me. The song itself sounds like nothing special to my ears, but there are some good tunes on BB85. Unfortunately, the best ones weren't Brian's (my guess being that he wanted to save his best stuff for a solo album), although I do like I'm So Lonely and It's Just a Matter of Time quite well. Getcha Back has aged well, and It's Gettin' Late, Where I Belong and I Do Love You are strong songs.

Cool, glad some people like that record. For me, I can only stomach my personally programmed EP of -

Keepin' the Summer Alive (I think this is one of their best later rockers, as it actually has some balls to it relatively speaking  - great Carl vocal)
Livin' With a Heartache (it has a country feel vaguely similar to the Blondie/ Ricky tracks from CATP/Holland imo - another great Carl vocal)
Goin' On (great piece of harmony from the Boys. More great vocals from Carl)
Santa Ana Winds (I think this is just lovely. It's KTSA's equivalent of Winds of Change, which I also love. Great vocal from Al)
Endless Harmony (the guilty pleasure, unintentionally ironic lyrics, but still rather lovely imo)

I sometimes programme them to alternate with BBs '85 tracks, thus making a more diverse 'organic' listening experience.

Also just realised that the early '80s outtake Tricia is an uptempo rip off of the classic Sherry She Needs me  :-\  Also, just heard Jingle Bell Rock from the same era  :o . Sounds like a collab with the Chipmunks.

On the other hand, Hot Summer Lover is tolerable, aside from the puzzling sheep noises from I think Mike in the intro. Deeply strange. Did he think he was back in the Barnyard??

I just heard Tricia for the first time and loved it. I think I might have a new favorite 80's Beach Boys track. An album from '84 with Tricia and Chasin' the Sky would have been excellent and I hope we get both songs on the new box set.

What I discovered to my immense joy the other day was that all my favourite tracks from KTSA are grouped together on side 2! I'm going grab the vinyl off ebay, and it may end up being one of the more played sides in my BB record collection! Love me some Goin' On.

The same is also true of MIU - side 2 has all my favourite tracks (bar Winds of Change, which is awful).

Totally agree. A guilty pleasure when you're in the mood for some 80's. I compiled a selection of those (going back to the '70's It's a Beautiful Day) and called it Cruise Control. A nice compilation actually.

Anyone have any more info on "Tricia"? Is it just a Mike track? Cowritten with Brian? And speaking of KTSA, I've always wanted to know which track/s Ricky played on....

Getcha Back, SNJ and BW88 are tied IMO

Ya'll are on crack.

I tried to combine BB'85, Still Cruisin' and Summer In Paradise to even a passable album and even then I couldn't scrounge up enough tracks.  Somewhere Near Japan (single mix), It's Gettin' Late, Where I Belong and Getcha Back are probably the only tracks I don't mind hearing on shuffle.

There are very few live recordings of It's getting late, Crack at your love and She believes in love again. I must admit, the 85 record has really grown on me lately. Especially Where I belong and It's getting late, Carl at his best vocally. Sadly there are no high quality live versions, only audience tapes.

I think the tracks with Brian in the writing credits stand out above all the others on the '85 album as having real heart and soul.


I've read that the CD supposedly doesn't sound nearly as good as the vinyl, which may explain why I'm more partial to this album than many others are.  It was the first BB album I bought when it first came out, and the vinyl is still in good shape and sounds really strong.  My general thoughts on the album:


1. Getcha Back - Catchy enough, smooth harmonies, good to hear Brian's voice in it, but a little plastic.  Clearly the choice for a hit single.

2. It's Getting Late - Good singing from Carl saves this one, but it's too synthy and robotic.  Somehow sounds laminated.

3. Crack at Your Love - Brian's middle eight gives it the heart it needs to produce genuine feeling, although that horrible slap bass ("benk! benk!") nearly ruins the rest of it.  

4. Maybe I Don't Know - Nice guitar riff, but the song goes on longer than it needs to and doesn't get anywhere very satisfying.

5. She Believes In Love Again - It's interesting to hear Bruce working in such an 80's idiom, with the synths and big crashing drums.  The song works, but only just.

1. California Calling - This is infectiously good, even if transparently working the nostalgia button.  Again, Brian's influence comes through.

2. Passing Friend - OK, I consider this the worst song ever recorded by the Beach Boys.  Long, repetitive, boring, takes no advantage of the group's vocal abilities.  And those lyrics!  "In a child's eyes there were feelings touching my violet skin"??  A big-eyed, purple alien kid having some kind of moment.

3. I'm So Lonely - I think this stands as easily the best song on the album, even as a middle-of-the-pack Brian composition.  It has that Brian Wilson "something," the honesty, the directness you might find on the Love You album although not as cleverly written.  There's a story in the Todd Gold book about how Levine came back from a lunch break to find Brian recording the group gathered around one microphone for this song and told him "you can't do that!"   :lol  Ripping sax opening, and that middle eight is really ear-catching with the "(wop) Since you left it's (wop) been this way..." And there's a real soulfulness when it goes into the chorus with "I've wished since you went away..."  Contrast that with "Island Girl" off Still Cruisin' and hear how sterile is their attempt to do a similar chorus without Brian.  

4. Where I Belong - The singing is really good on this one.  Lush.

5. I Do Love You - It's all right, but it belongs on a Stevie Wonder album.  There's no reason for the Beach Boys to have recorded this.

6. It's Just A Matter Of Time - Great album closer, slow and meditative doo-wop draped in graceful harmonies.  The title goes beyond its meaning in the song when you contemplate the newly-felt mortality of the band members who dedicated the album to Dennis.


I don't consider "Male Ego" part of the album because it was only a B-side/CD bonus track.  It really sounds like nothing on the album and doesn't belong there.  

It's funny because I feel exactly the opposite. I find Brian's songs to be the most uninspired on the album, which is really saying something. There's no life to them. It's not really his fault, he was stuck in a very weird place. Being forced by your psychologist to write songs everyday is not going to bring out your best. Then in his case everyone was so excited to see him writing again that they were too afraid of hurting his feelings to give him constructive criticism or push him to work harder. I've probably said this before but I feel like one of Brian's great gifts as a songwriter is the joy that comes through the music even when the actual song may be tragic. I just don't see that joy in his songs from BB85 or many of the songs from the second Landy period.

Carl's songs are the ones I like best from that album. "Where I Belong" is absolutely beautiful.

I agree with your assessment 100%. Carl's songs and the overall vocals are what saves this album. Male Ego is the only Brian tune with any bite. A real shame that it was not included on the LP.

There Myke goes again blaming someone else-it couldn't have anything to do with his drippy lead vocal centered on his nasal bleating could it??

I also agree with Amanda's excellent post. Not a fan of "Male Ego", however. I think it has been overrated. Brian's vocal is very shouty, the lyrics are terrible, and, frankly, the melody isn't anything special either.

Male Ego is what "love you" would sound like if  it was made in the 1980s. Brian knew where music trends were going.

Oh yeah, Male Ego is definitely in the Love You mold. I think Brian & Carl sound fantastic on ME. Mike is a little too soft and nasally for my taste, but overall it is the best Brian tune and performance on '85.

Seriously?!  The Beach Boys produces the most unremarkable BW-penned songs of any Beach Boys album. I greatly prefer all the Carl stuff (except for "Passing Friend"), and "Getcha Back" is a decent Love/Melcher tune as well.

Errr....Brian is on "Island Girl" actually. He is VERY audible in the intro vocal part.

I can state without shred of irony that Crack At Your Love is currently one of my top 5 BB songs. Admittedly this may be because it's one of the less overexposed to me but nevertheless - Buried under the terrible 80s production and ill conceived lyrics is a typically soulful and moving Brian Wilson chord sequence. I would love to hear him hammering this out on a piano cocaine sessions style.

Passing Friend is one of my favorites on that album. Carl nails that vocal and the lyrics are a notch above a lot of the other ones on that album.

Sorry, I meant not written by Brian.

It's interesting how different people can have such divergent opinions about this album and Brian's contributions. 

"Male Ego" is easily a Love You reject.  It's not at all a song you'd ever want to introduce to a new fan (but then again, you could arguably say the same thing about the whole Love You album itself...).  Hell, even the vinyl version of The Beach Boys couldn't be bothered with it, making it a bonus track for the then-new pristine CD format.  I can see why some people might find its charm, but let's not kid ourselves: the song sucks.

I'm not a big fan of Brian's 'doo-wop' numbers here. I'm not even a fan of Isn't It Time (but it's better than those on 85); the one  I prefer is Soul Searchin'. I listen to the 85 album and apart from Al and Carl's vocals, it could be someone else.

Discovering the BB's as a 16/17 year old around dare I say it, the Kokomo period, the 80's albums/singles hold a special place in my heart. BB85 and KTSA were two of my earliest forays into The Beach Boys, and although the passage of time I have obviously seen these albums in a different light musically, when I play them now they still bring back wonderful memories of that time of discovery. Sometimes I get a song stuck in my head and just need to go play it. Where I Belong is one that pops up regularly. Love it!

I understand where you're coming from. The first new BB album I ever bought was 15 Big Ones. I still have many happy memories of spinning the vinyl on my bedroom turntable. It does make you, maybe subconsciously, defend the album. And, wow, 15 Big Ones sure did need some real consistent defending. :police:

I bought the 85 album on vinyl at the time of it's release.   I played it on my "big" component stereo system and  it sounded GREAT (80's production sounded good at the time remember?) .

 After MIU and KTSA, I found it pleasing to hear some songs that sounded current and weren't embarrassingly nostalgic and trying to recapture FUN, FUN, FUN.  Sure, there were a couple of these on 85 but songs such as Maybe I Don't Know, Its Getting LAte, I'm So Lonely, She Beloves in Love Again were a real treat and gave hope that the BeachBoys were, on some songs,   finally able to get past  their identity crisis of the previous 15 years and just make some great songs. 

Carl Wilson was on fire on this album and during this period (early to mid 80's).  If you want to make one fine cd comp of this period, , put the CW songs from this lp on a disc with the best songs from the CW  solo albums. 

I DID NOT LIKE The Culture Club and Stevie Wonder stuff . 
And as for CRACK,  I cringed at the crack references. 
California Calling sounded like it too should have been on the soundtrack for Americathon.
I'm so Lonely.......classic BW.  Wouldn't change a thing on that one.

And of course, Getcha Back!

Crack at Your Love isn't about butts or drugs. it's an idiom, "let me get a crack at this", "you wanna try a crack at it?"

it means, like, giving something a small try even if it probably won't work. I'm sure most of you knew that, but in case anyone didn't, there you go.

You are correct that Crack at Your Love isn't about butts or drugs, but the song title is a double entendre.

says who?

I'm guessing just about anyone listening to it.

I love that song, and I really don't think it's meant to be a double entendre at all.

Probably the same people who see something sexual in "crack at your love" are the same people who think there's "hey hey you son of a bitch" backing vocals in I Was Made to Love Her.

The 80's was a time of decline for the Beach Boys. Dennis dying, Brian + Landy, Mike taking complete control. Musically their decline accelerated here, as did their image.

But it doesn't mean there wasn't any Gems the Beach Boys made during that time. The 85 album is studded with them, with Maybe I Don't Know and Getcha Back being the best ones by far. Both absolutely excellent tracks, they each deserve a spot on any career-spanning Beach Boys compilation. I Do Love You, She Believes In Love Again, Where I Belong, etc. All great tracks. The rest of the songs off that album are average but worth listening to (With the exception of the awful California Calling).

Aside from the underrated 85 album, there really isn't much worth listening to. The only other obscure gems would be Keepin' The Summer Alive, Rock And Roll To The Rescue, Still Cruisin' and Make It Big. The rest aren't really worth listening to.

You're right, it's really not. (Awesome tune, by the way.)

Crack at Your Love is a nice tune but almost completely ruined by the production. There is probably no chance of this but if Al were ever to go out playing club shows and singing some of his own material then it would be interesting to hear a simple acoustic version of this.

I feel the same about Brian`s I`m So Lonely. If it were recorded with a very simple piano accompaniment then it could be quite affecting.

It`s unfortunate that Bruce was friends with Culture Club`s producer rather than the producer of U2 or The Smiths say...

I don't know if this song is a 'gem', but it is an obscure one from the 80s...
...and I have been curious about this song since I first heard it...

What the hell is up with Can't Stop Talkin' 'Bout American Girls??? I can't tell if Mike's lead is off a half-note or if it's the music track that's off. Does an 'on-key' version of this track exist?

Just wanna say, this thread has finally convinced me to buy the KTSA/'85 two-fer, which was the only two-fer I missed out on. 


You look nice.  What's your name?  You smell nice.  I like you!    ;D

It does not get better than Male Ego.

I totally agree. I think there's a good song in there somewhere.
Brian's piano could probably bring it out better than a sax solo could.

Mike's overly-nasal vocal dragged down Getcha Back.

The Brian Wilson-related songs on The Beach Boys 1985 album were the first indication, to me anyway, that something was not quite right with Brian. Those four songs - "Crack At Your Love", "I'm So Lonely", "It's Just A Matter Of Time", and "Male Ego" - were everything that NO previous BW songs were...meaning overly simplistic, non-interesting (boring!), and basically lacking the old Brian Wilson magic that only he could conjure up. The songs sounded to me that he simply cranked them out because that was what he was being employed or assigned to do. I don't hear or feel any other inspiration. Unfortunately, again for me anyway, it was the beginning of a trend in regard to Brian's (future) songwriting. Never again did I hear or feel that magic, that "how did he he write something like that" quality. And I pinpoint that starting time frame to precisely when Brian re-emerged with Dr. Landy in 1983. I remember thinking, in the words of Jim Morrison, "Something's wrong, something's not quite right.

I agree about Brian's songs on the 1985 album, but I think he was saving his best stuff for the solo album. Are you telling me you don't hear the BW magic in "Love and Mercy", "Melt Away", "Baby Let Your Hair Grow Long", "There's So Many"?

"Love And Mercy" is a fine song, but, the other songs on BW88, no, I do not feel the magic. And I tried, believe me I tried. I made a tape of that album and played it constantly in my car for a year! The songs are a full grade or standard below Brian's work with The Beach Boys. I really don't think Brian had anything to share musically, or musically IMPORTANT, on that album. Other than "Love And Mercy", the only other song that kind of got to me was "Let It Shine" - specifically Jeff Lynne's contribution.

Brian Wilson 1988 received a lot of hype and publicity. There was a major article in Rolling Stone, several other magazines reviewed it, and Brian appeared on all of the morning TV shows like Today and Good Morning America. And that album came and quickly went. Why do you think that was so? The music?

EDIT: I just thought of another part of Brian Wilson 1988 that I like - two parts of "Rio Grande" - the "I want the river to take me home" part and the "night blooming jasmine" part. Those segments are excellent.