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I was listening to 'California Girls' today and this one bit that I forgot about
https://youtu.be/fmIsdMWzdaE?t=2m35s
came up and after listening to that one bit over again 4 times I started thinking about other particular moments/bits in Beach Boys songs that always get me. I couldn't find a thread for something like this (I might not've looked hard enough but there you go), so here we are. I'm curious to see what other people choose. I could choose many more (and just all of Pet Sounds) but these are the few that immediately come to mind:

The whole flute bit
https://youtu.be/2r1V3oDSydM?t=1m40s

This little bit immediately followed by those strings always gets me
https://youtu.be/PiGGgBNon60?t=1m49s

The strings always get me, especially when he says "forever"
https://youtu.be/LU8Tpb3_2o4?t=53s

This is probably one of the most beautiful things Brian ever came up with
https://youtu.be/Uio_cnWZMsM?t=3m35s

The rest of the song from this point
https://youtu.be/QcHckXNq164?t=2m45s

The little bit Brian sings right after Mike does
https://youtu.be/mky-UhxUKoM?t=3m30s

I might be the only person that feels this way but I always felt this song was so sad because she didn't really exist and this last little verse just makes it obvious that he's really alone and she's just a dream
https://youtu.be/oTFOu8lSoYs?t=1m36s

And the ending of this song is still the most beautiful thing I've ever heard
https://youtu.be/8WUI4DhUfnw?t=3m9s

The coda in Airplane.

The build-up and introduction for the guitar in Tune X

Jay Guru Dev - All This Is That

The hawaiian chant in DYLW

1:20-1:32 in Never Learn Not to Love

"Hi Rick and Dave, Hi Pop, Good morning Mom"- Part in Disney Girls

The Coda in Dont Go Near The Water (Let's also not forget Al's "Toothpaste and Soap"- part!)

And how right-on they start All Summer Long

That bit always gets me

The part in Let Him Run Wild that goes "Guess you know I waited for you girl" is sublime.

It amazes me how Brian hates his vocal on that song. I think it's one of his greatest. His vocal is so pretty (which is why he dislikes it: "I sounded like a fairy."). The way he sings "forget" ('All the dreams you shared with him you might as well forget') and then the background harmonies that sort of stumble in immediately afterwards; I can't even think of words to describe that bit, but I felt like pointing it out. It might be the most underrated Beach Boys song (probably not but it's definitely one of them).

2Adult Child: is it different than your thread? Check: http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,8992.0.html

- Billy Hinsche "One In A million" (about Dennis) - good chorus.
- "Luau" - "Lu lulu lu luau"
- "Little Saint Nick" a la "Drivin'" - funny!
- "TM Song" - "Sometimes it goes real fast another time it goes real slow" & "Transcendental meditation should be/ really works". If smb. says Al is uncool, play this song to them.

Man, there are so many... I think my list is probably a million miles long. Off the top of my head:

This Whole World: ah-ooooooooooooooooooooom-bop-ditty (that whole “wait for it” feeling followed by “me gusta” satisfaction)   

Time to get Alone: deep and wide (makes me feel like I’m getting event horizoned – pulled apart by gravity at the edge of a black hole)

In the Parkin’ Lot – the outro harmony section, in particular, Brian’s Ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo transition

All of Don’t Worry Baby, because it is actually the sexiest song ever made

You’re so Good to Me – that hook, that groovy groovy hook

You Still Believe in Me – like I have to say which part. During the show in Toronto on last year’s BWPS tour, I could have sworn every hair on my head was standing on end and I might have floated off the ground a little bit.

Wake the world – the horn (trombone?) makes me so happy

Cabinessence – Doyng Doyng Doyng Doyng is just about the best thing ever, it’s one of those things that’s so subtle and I wish there was a whole song of just that

Funky Pretty – the part with the cutesy altered place nameseees

Talk to Me – Tallahassee Lassie... whatever I'm doing, wherever I am, when this happens I start bobbin' and struttin'

I’ll Bet He’s Nice – baby-ooooooh (chills)

Baby Blue - the synthy bits give me an achy feeling in my chestal cavity

HELP is on the way – the H E L P entangled harmony part

Wow I forgot about that.
But there is a difference sort of in that this is a list of a lot of your favorites. Like today I could put the "You've been thinkin bout some things...." bit from 'From There  to Back Again' in that thread but I wouldn't say it's one of my absolute favorites. It's not much of a difference I know but all the bits I listed here sort of loom large in my psyche and it's a little more than kicking my ass. I mean I'll probably be thinking about that end bit of 'Surf's Up' when I die. So this thread isn't about the moments that are kicking our ass right now, it's about the moments that will kick ass forever.

Wow. I really need to take a closer listen to that song...beautiful!

What about drip drop? ;D

If you cover your ears and pretend you're listening to 'Cool Cool Water' it's almost just as beautiful.

Maybe he was trying to do a punk sort of thing to get the group popular again. That's why he consciously added all those "Let's go motherf&ckas!".

Without a doubt the greatest moment in BBs history ;D

Forreal though if I could take 50 BBs tracks with me on a desert island that would be one of em.

What would the other 49 be?

Ding Dang looped 49 times ;D

Ahh, 49 desert island tracks...I'll have to think about that.

One of my favorite Beach Boys moments ever is that part around 2:00 in Susie Cincinnati where the band does those high harmonies "oooh ride oooh ride Susie Cincinnati riiiiiiiiiide" - the mixing between the vocals and the backing track is one of the coolest sonic moments in The Beach Boys catalogue.

DYLW Hawaiian chant with the crazy guitar in the background. :hat

Okay, AC----not right now, but for ever.

Two that spring immediately to mind are the swirllng synth texture at the words "long promised road" and Brian's penultimate "anyhow" in "We'll Run Away"...

I did ask this question 1st. Adult Child replied in post 7 - didn't you read, john? I think it's fair explanation.

Now you're talking, john. Thanks for co-operation. :police:
Rule of thumb: Read the whole thread before chiming in. & it's not like super-long thread either (yet).

When your span of attention is so short that you give up reading Mike's book after 10 pages, believe me this thread is long. ;D 

The way Al's vocals echo at the very, very end of TSS Surf's Up. Chills everytime.

"My love is burning brightly" part of All I Wanna Do

"Foreverrr FOREVERRR"

Good Vibrations Coda

"You know its gonna make it that much better" part of WIBN

Quit telling people what to do. You are not a mod.

I agree with Adult Child...I actually overlooked this thread...sorry for the late response

Good Time - The chorus; I love the horns.
Add Some Music to Your Day - Brian's part where he sings, "When day is over, I close my tired eyes."
Country Air - Brian's falsetto at the end of the third verse.
Wouldn't It Be Nice - The bass during the "It only makes it worse..." parts.
Do It Again - Carl's part where he sings, "With a girl the lonely sea looks good with moonlight."
Little Bird - The part where Dennis sings, "Where's my pretty bird? He must have flown away."

Brian's bridge vocal in lieu of Mike's (Maybe if we wish and dream...) on the 1997 stereo mix of WIBN.

The descending bass and ascending flutes in "I'm Waiting For The Day". Followed by the rest of this supremely uplifting song. 

"Furry, floppy easy rider" line in 'Wrinkles'. Sublime...

The entirety of Brian's 'Still I Dream of It' demo. I've probably never heard a more honest song in my life (both vocally and lyrically).

This is one song I wish to god that Brian would re-record for his upcoming rock and roll album (even just as an exclusive bonus track). Put some crazy beautiful strings in there, harpsichord, wall of Brian harmonies, etc. Could be won-won-wonderful.

edit: for anyone who hasn't heard it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKEsehvPOvM (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKEsehvPOvM)

"Still I dream of it,
of that happy day when I can say I've fallen in love
And it haunts me so,
like a dream that's somehow linked to all the stars above"

Some of the best lyrics in the entire Beach Boys catalog.

I agree. Brian is often an underrated lyricist. I think if he had more encouragement, he could have written more lyrics like these without the need for collaborators.

Hell, the BW suite of songs at the end of surf's up is epic!

His song 'Awake (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhyHSv3zDW0)' has this same feel of innocence and beauty - I really think he had so many of these types of songs inside of him. Btw, anyone know whatever happened with the 'Bedroom Tapes'?

That LA Times writeup of all those tracks that were in the "vault" was such a damn tease (as great as the article was). In this new age of digital releases how much could it cost to release those demos/tracks on iTunes? I would pay $20 or more for a digital set of that material.

Awake needs to be a bonus track on the next BW album!

Favorite line for me on that track is "like a tree that's just been planted I found life today". Always moves me, esp when looked at as a spiritual *lyrical* successor to A Day in the life of a tree.

The three part vocal chorus in I Just Wasn't Made For These Times
The complex backing track of Let Him Run Wild
The Grand Coulee Dam part of Cabinessence. Everything about it, vocals, instrumentation, just awesome.
The cyclical organ pattern in The Little Girl I Once Knew. Plus those knock-out vocals on the chorus.
The Hawaiian chant in Do You Like Worms?
The harmonized humming in Little Pad.
The final choral section on Surf's Up (Child Is Father To The Man)
The ending to Endless Harmony ("And we sang God Bless America....")
The last one minute and thirty seconds of All This Is That
The sax solo in Shut Down (I'm totally not kidding. It's so bad-ass and punk. Love it!)
The last 38 seconds of Wind Chimes from Smiley Smile
The 'Love To Say Da Da' part in Cool Cool Water
The 'Oomm dot dit it' parts of This Whole World
Mike Love's lead on All I Wanna Do
The middle part of Long Promised Road (long promised road, trail starts at dawn, carries on....)
Brian's "Oooooo's" on the chorus of the '67 version of Here Comes The Night
The 'success had come to my solution/my instant aid to evolution' part of My Solution

I never made the connection with ADITLOAT but I'm so glad you brought that up.

Thank you kindly!

Another one for me is the "deep and wide" part in "Time to Get Alone", although the most recent remasters have been overly compressed to the point where some of the magic is gone.

I've had this bit stuck in my head since I read this. I forgot how great this song is.

The shift of a whole tone in "The Shift".

I'd say it was upward; Lambert claims it's downward...

Whatever, it's a masterstroke and probably not attempted before or since.

And it sounds great! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_vUHgz_jGo

I forgot about this song haha. The shift does sound upward.

I suppose Ian Lambert sees the first two bars of the verse as being pushed down a tone, so to speak, and it jumps up to the right key in bar three, only to be pushed down again at the end of the verse. But that doesn't explain the bridge.   

Actually, the intro has a upward shift of its own. I can't help thinking of the extraordinary double modulation after the bridge in "Girls On The Beach". "The Shift" might be described as a first step in that direction.

To say nothing of Dennis's introductory four-on-the-floor. :smokin


Another "moment": Carl's sung "stars" during the spoken part of "Can't Wait Too Long"...

Feel Flows synth. 8 notes repeated twice. Brilliant.

https://youtu.be/gh1YKIZlXWs?t=174

Oh yes. Talking of "Feel Flows"----two more favourite moments for me are the only two BB instrumental workouts over an ostinato (rather than using the chords of a verse or chorus), the other being in "Leaving This Town". Both are simply overwhelming.   

My big-time favorite is "Lavender" - beautiful song with beautiful vocals. It's benign & joyful in understated way.
"Cabinessence" - chorus & Mike's bits. I dare say this song alone smashes Pet Sounds with 13 tracks. It's THAT cool. :3d

Mike's bass vocal in the chorus of 'Cherry Cherry Coupe' ("My cherry coupe beats em up coming off the line, and she really gets sparks when she starts to whine"). I think it's one of the most underrated songs in their catalog and that bass vocal is kick ass.

This vocal line also reminds me so much of the "truck drivin' man" line from Cabinessence; it's a completely separate line from what everyone else is singing but it fits perfectly with the song.

Deep and wide.

I mean, talking about genius. The moment lasts maybe one second, but it grabs you and never let's go... Somehow unbelievably moving.

You're right. Just checked it. :police:

Incidentally, it was WIBN with "sore throat" Brian lead that was 1st favorite BBs song. But then I listened to Pet Sounds & it's definitely best version. I'm glad the clearer vocal take is picked to be in the album.

Speaking of Wouldn't It Be Nice:

First verse, the way the bass line interacts with the lead melody; then second verse, with the group vocals on top. These are two of my favorite BB moments ever, pure genius.

Among my favorites: The a capella vocal break on "Why Do Fools Fall In Love". A fully stacked wall of jazz vocal harmony that explodes, then drops out entirely switching to only Mike's bass vocal riff. That is stunning vocal arranging, right there. Pure excitement.

The outro/round/fade of "Til I Die" has become even more of a favorite recently - I don't think there is anything quite like that in popular music. Sonic bliss.

I think there's nothing like the whole song 'Til I Die in popular, or any music. It has been my fav BB/BW song for some years now.

The first time I heard "It's Over Now" and "Still I Dream of It" I was horrified. How wrong I was! Now they are among my favourites, particularly "Still I Dream of It".

The great thing about Til I Die is not only did we have the original track, but seemingly out of nowhere we got the Stephen Desper remix of the track that was simply stunning. Put them both together as bookends and it's pure sonic bliss. Both the vocals and the instrumental background (with that haunting vibraphone) heard in a new way in the remix made them even more poignant.

My favorite individual part on the track(s): Right before the song shifts to the outro/round section, that falsetto voice comes in "until I die" like a voice from the past, and it just destroys you when you hear it. I've seen people brought to tears after hearing that song for the first time. Just incredible.

Nothing like it, nothing touches it. The closest I can think of came not long after with Shuggie Otis' "Strawberry Letter 23", with his psychedelic guitar fadeout round that is a psychedelic and emotional release captured in music. Shuggie's instrument of choice was the guitar and tape flanging...but still, another genius musician in the studio putting his soul into music and sound.

That is also my favorite part of the song. I don't remember anyone else ever saying so. It doesn't strike me as a voice from the past, but it does strike me.

Yes, there is nothing in the world like the "A Day in the Life of a Tree - 'Til I Die - Surf's up" tryptic. Though Brian managed to come near it many years later with "From There to Back Again - Pacific Coast Highway - Summer's Gone". :)

Well, I think it's my turn to contribute something else than cheerleading now. I'll mention three things from my favourite Brian, the "lunar" one:
Wind Chimes (Smiley version)
The Fairy Tale Music (condensed "Mount Vernon and Fairway") in the GV box
Night Bloomin' Jasmine section in Rio Grande

There is not enough of this kind of stuff around.

It's one falsetto vocal line dropped in, it comes and goes that fast...but that line slays me every time. I hear it as that same classic Brian falsetto tone that closed out "Caroline No" and was such a devastating sonic and emotional element of so many BB's classics, and here it was reappearing for one lone vocal phrase on Til I Die. It sounds to me like a nod to the past, especially how the vocal quality and sound of that one line stands out so much amidst the music that surrounds it. That one, lone falsetto vocal line is what transitions the track itself from the A section to the B section (the fadeout/outro).

Absolutely brilliant and crushing moment. Nothing like it.

To be honest... for me there are few moments among what the Beach Boys recorded, in their best years, which are NOT favourite moments. :)

I agree with that! I'm a fan of the littlest musical moments that jump out of the speakers when you're listening, and often it's just one phrase or one sound or one surprising moment. And it's ironically the fastball Brian had and used on so many of his productions, and BB's records in general.

I have always found it hard to name favorites because moment to moment, different things strike me differently. And with some bands--ahem, this one--there are of course many such worthy moments. Album, song, moment, it's very hard to just stay in the same mental and emotional place for the same moment to be "my favorite." I've actually been amused when sometimes people resurrect old threads and I see a current favorite listed by me five or 10 years earlier as a least favorite, or vice versa.

The final 3-track suite off Surf's Up made me sob on the bus the first time I listened to it. My favourite moment of Till I Die is all of it.

Not a favourite or a least-favourite moment, but extremely effective in terms of eliciting an emotional response: The first time I heard Happy Days off Imagination, it literally stopped me in my tracks and I felt like I was going to throw up. The feeling eased up by the time the song entered it's happy phase, but my reaction was so visceral that I'll never forget it. I should add that I was just sort of walking down the street with my earbuds in, and I was not expecting... that.