The Smiley Smile Message Board

We're all guilty of it. There are the absolute masterpieces in the Beach Boys catalogue that, no matter how much everyone else raves on about them, they just don't strike a chord with you. From those who aren't a fan of one or two songs (I just can't enjoy Surfer Girl), to those who say Pet Sounds is half baked, where do you fit in, and where are your choices?

Like I said Surfer Girl is one of mine, although most of the album just drags on me, and yet I love everything either side of it. How Peculiar...

I've never liked "Be True to Your School," although I'm probably not alone here!

I really respect Sunflower, and love a fair bit of it, but overall, I don't think it's nearly as strong as some people do, due to several weak tracks dragging it down (Bruce and Al's stuff, plus I don't really like "Got To Know the Woman"). 

"Lonely Sea".

I respect it, but it never really hooked me in like 99.9999% of their songs do.

I got nothin.

I agree.  I really don't like that spoken interlude.  I'm also not particularly fond of "Marcella" and get very confused when people refer to it as the highlight of Carl and the Passions-So Tough when the two Dennis songs and "All This is That" are so superior.  The live version from The Beach Boys in Concert is better though.  Finally, I don't dislike the song, but "Good Timin'" always sound sort of half finished to me, particularly on the verses, so I've never had too much affection for it.

I agree with this one.

Also, outside of River Song, nothing on POB or Dennis' solo career. I know, shame on me, but maybe someday.

All the car songs.

I'm not a big fan of Sail On, Sailor.
Doesn't even feel like the Beach Boys to me.

No Thoughts Of You?
Come on, Ego!
Get with it!

I like every Beach Boys' album and 99% of Beach Boys' songs. I have a hard time picking 5 songs that I don't like. However, I do not enjoy Brian's solo music very much, going all the way back to "Let's Go To Heaven In My Car".

It's not entirely his vocals and it's not entirely "the whole is greater than the parts", but those are huge factors. After Brian re-emerged with/from Landy in 1983, he didn't seem like "Brian" anymore. And, to me, his solo music reflects that feeling, or non-feeling.

Count me as another non-fan of "Be True To Your School."  Also, I think "Caroline, No" is one of, if not the, weakest tracks on PS.  I typically skip over it.  Also, not really a classic, I guess, but I can't stand "Breakaway."

I have to say there is no 'classic' if by classic you mean 'typically overplayed hit that is included on compilations' that I don't like. I think the first song that I don't like is 'Chapel of Love' from 16 Big Ones. After that I suppose there is typically one song per album I don't like and much of SIP I don't like.

I'd have to say "All This is That" and "409".

The biggest "classic" that I don't enjoy is "Do You Wanna Dance". Something about the production of that one just turns me off. I was hoping the stereo remix would be a revelation, but... nope, still don't like it.

409 for me....

Kokomo
Surfer Girl
Surfin USA

those early surf instrumetals from "Surfer Girl" and "Surfin' usa" ,not a big fan of those....

"Be True To Your School"

for me, it depends which one. I hate the one with the Rovell sisters but I like the ES version.

You're So Good To Me is not so good...to me.

I like all the hits except Medley "Wipe Out" and "Kokomo". Honestly I have a lot of trouble finding any pre 1976 I out and out hate. None the early songs I don't like would be considered "classic".

The only song in the entire beach Boys catalog I don't like: Do You Remember?

A couple years ago, my list would've been even bigger, but things have a way of working their way into my system over time, I guess. "Fun, Fun, Fun" is a good example of this. More recently, "Be True To Your School" - I really disliked it for years until recently, but now I think it's growing on me, although that's more in reference to the album version than the single version.

Also, I'm gonna cry if someone says "Drive-In". I don't think a Beach Boys song has ever made me laugh so much.

Be True to Your School does grow on you...

And.."Drive In" ask someone from the 60's...the song might grow on you, too!   :lol

I don't think my kids even have a clue what a "drive-in" is... ;)

No Beach Boys classic is not to my taste.

Don't Back Down was my pick, until I heard it on BB50 tour. A case where the live version is far  better than the studio.
Still have to go with 'Don't Hurt My Little Sister'.

Be True To Your School and Barbara Ann

Still like them, but I don't go out of my way to listen to them.  I do like Barbara Ann in a live setting though

In My Room

It's just not my style, I guess. I haven't listened to it in years.

Do You Remember, Drive-In. Midnight's Another Day (and TLOS in general) is sooooo overrated. "look guys! he's being self referential! how deep!"

All their classics - and all their songs - are to my taste but I've grown tired or bored of many of them after all these years.
If we take the RAH setlist as a list of classics, I'm not so into these ones:

Album versions:
- Surfer Girl, In My Room, Surfin' Safari, You're So Good To Me, That's Why God Made The Radio, Do You Wanna Dance, Rock N Roll Music, Why Do Fools Fall in Love, Barbara Ann

Live at gigs:
- Sloop John B, Dance Dance Dance, You're So Good To Me, California Girls, Please Let Me Wonder, That's Why God Made The Radio, Do You Wanna Dance, Don't Worry Baby, I Get Around, Rock N Roll Music, Surfin'USA, Barbara Ann

probably even more

I don't know. I think I hate 'em both...lol. Though, in truth, I'll admit that the fact that I've always thought of the 45 as the one rote, uninspiring, annoying single of the Beach Boys early career -- compared to the company around it that is -- probably clouded my judgment somewhat. If it were just an annoying album track for me, I may not have focused on it as such.

As it stands for both versions, I hated them when I first heard them nearly 40 years ago, and I still hate them today. I can usually pull something good out of any BW/ML concoction from the era, no matter how formulaic it night be, but as noted, this one just tweaks me and seems so pedestrian to me on so many levels. From that opening awkward chorus lyric..."just like you would to your girl......or guy," to that bland melody. Ugh. As a good friend of mine said....."F**k school spirit!" On Wisconsin indeed.

I think I'd rather hear "Denny's Drums" on repeat.  :lol

The album version is so much better, in my opinion. the cheerleaders are pretty annoying.

and we're talking about LYRICAL CONTENT on a Beach Boys board? that's silly! sure, I never went to a school football game in my life, and I hate school spirit. (I think one of the greatest moments of my life was when I found a way to sneak out of the fall pep rally. I hated pep rallys! I'd rather take a chemistry test, which I also hate, then go to a pep rally.)

but not only is this song really catchy, it's my favorite kind of Beach Boys song, the "Mike Love Explains His Lifestyle" song, let's call it. I'm sure someone can think of a better name. This is mainly present is the earlier stuff but also exists songs like "I Just Got My Pay and "HELP is on the Way". "I Wanna Pick You Up" (using the interpretation that it's actually about a baby, and not a girlfriend) is this type of song lyrically but not musically or vocally (obviously).

It's not so much a matter of whether the lyric is deep...or not....has meaning...or not....is good....or not, etc. I can listen to plenty of songs with bad lyrics. I'm not even a "lyrics guy," in general, when it comes to the Beach Boys. It's just that, in the particular example I gave, I find it structurally annoying (i.e.  the "or guy" add-on at the end of the phrase). It really bugs me to the point where it disrupts everything else for me.

Agree about "Be True to Your School" plus "All Summer Long" for me.

I've never been a big fan of Hushabye, Surfer Moon, or Spirit of America.

They're the best, aren't they? Songs of the Mike Love listing and explaining the merits of something variety are the best!! I like 'em a lot..

Don't Worry Baby? f***.

I enjoyed that song for many years, without realizing there were car lyrics in it.

It's more of a love song than a car song even though it's about the girl making the guy feel better about a race.  I've always found it quite romantic actually.

barbara ann, wild honey, back home, kokomo, AND perhaps admission of day Cool Cool Water, any reincarnation.

I forgot "Wild Honey" on my earlier list. Can't stand any version I've ever heard.

Wild Honey is a grower, for sure.

I've always found the studio version of Wild Honey a little too tame, Darlin' too and other songs on that album.  Like they have so much potential to be fast paced rockers but the production isn't rough enough to make them that.  But the live versions of Darlin' on In Concert and the Knebworth recording, amazing.  They're still good songs though but I think they could have been done better.

409, Be True to Your School, Surfin, Ballad of Ole Betsy, Wendy, Then I Kissed Her, probably a few more.

All songs that fall into my personal "least favorites" category.

I was just listening to some Surfin USA. The Beach Boys  as a self contained unit were awesome. Great album for appreciating the part each of the guys played, and what ingredient they brought to the beach boy stew. I must say that 60's mono Beach Boys stuff sounds so fantastic, as reliably fantastic as original mono motown stuff.
Surfin USA is a damn fine song. Damn fine album. Surfer Girl is too, although not as good an album as USA imo. But you don't care for either, huh? How can you call yourself "DW" , or a "real beach boy" when you so clearly hate the beach!! The fact that you fail to groove on Surfin USA, one of his all time great drum performances is a damn shame.

Also, Kokomo is a damn fine song. I think many would regard it as a quirky oddity if it hadn't been a hit.

I like Kokomo too. But, I understand anti-kokomoism. Kokomo bashing would never provoke me to comment. It makes sense...I just don't understand a fan who dislikes Surfin USA. It's like an  Elvis fan who doesn't like Good Rockin' Tonight , Chewbacca defense!

I really can't stand "breakaway"

Is it even a classic? Maybe not but it's the best I got

Now that you mention it, that is kind of a weak track. At least on the Summer Days album.  Maybe it plays better in the context of Endless Summer. Did it attain classic status mostly because of its inclusion there? Or was it the Beatles connection... the oft-told tale of la la la la's on You're So Good To Me inspiring similar Beatle la la la la's ?

It depends on the definition of classic.  Using the C50 set list as a guideline I thought "Ballad Of Ole' Betsy" was completely unwarranted and out of place but having gone back and listened to the original version for the first time in years, I have to say Brian's original vocal makes all the difference in the world.  On the other side of that, the studio version "Wild Honey" just doesn't work for me at all, which is why I keep hoping the powers-that-be will release a live version from the 70's one day.  The combination of Blondie's vocal, the faster tempo, and the rawness of the live setting really make that song what it always should have been. 

Beyond that, there are several early songs I could do with out but I don't know if they'd be considered "classics".  The first couple albums of several 60's bands have the odd track or two that doesn't hold up but by the time of Surfer Girl, the Boys' quality had greatly improved.  However, I think "South Bay Surfer" is absolutely dreadful; much worse than some of the earlier filler.

I also think a lot of Dennis's middle period stuff is really overrated (tho I think other stuff he's done is fantastic).  Songs like "Cuddle Up" and "Make It Good" feel less like songs and more like "feels" that just build, never reaching any real resolution. 

As far as stone cold classics (50 Big Ones, etc.) I've always had less tolerance for the car songs than the surf songs but can't say any of the hits on either of those topics bother me now.  I do think Smiley, Lei'd In Hawaii, and Friends (and to a lesser extent Wild Honey) are almost unlistenable to my ears, especially coming after Pet Sounds and Smile.  I understand Brian's need to "pull back" and make "music for Brian to cool out to" but that stripped bare stuff went on far too long for my tastes, which is why I actually like 20/20.  Disjointed tho it may be, at least it sounds like a finished (albeit directionless) album and not just a collection of demos some guys made while they were stoned.

Your mileage may vary.

I'm pretty sure that's not Dennis on Surfin' USA though, right?

As for "classics" that aren't to my taste I would agree with those who say "Be True to Your School" and "Barbara Ann".

I understand the hate for Be True for Your school, and I too was always cheesed out by high school patriotism; but now I can appreciate that the song captures that spirit, which is uniquely American, I think, pretty well. I think the lyrics are great, among the best those two wrote. Look at it as a sociological study of American teenagers in the late twentieth century.

Really not a fan of Surfer Girl, I skip it every time, the same with Do You Wanna Dance.  I don't really like listening to 409 either, but the damn chorus gets stuck in my head for hours!!

well put.

Huh...seems you're right. Frank DeVito is the drummer... with Dennis on another kit playing fills or something?

surfer girl, fun fun fun, barbara ann,

I don't consider that a car song. It's not specifically about cars, is it?

I'll second that. In fact I can't stand it!

Car songs and Kokomo for me. I dig most of the songs about surf culture but the hod rod thing never bit me.

Edit: I LOVE 'Don't Worry Baby' especially the In Concert live version

A lot of Carl's lead vocals.

Man, what a depressing thread.

I never liked the song till the C50 tour. Seeing the guys perform it with the high school pictures in the background was something else.

Pretty powerful song, as you said it's "uniquely American". Very well put.

I go from asking for the most emotionally powerful songs to asking for everyone's hated songs. Whatever next!

It's actually kind of interesting, but I can see how people knocking some of your favorite songs would make you feel that way. Like, more than one person on this thread dislikes Surfer Girl (the song), and I find that one of the most perfect things to have been created, ever.

Haha, precisely. Not gonna go after Mr.Runaways, but reading "A lot of Carl's lead vocals"... well, :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'(

I don't know why, but Breakaway has never managed to convince me. Also, some of Denny's "bellow or mutter 'oooo, love you' over formless backless tracks" tend to be rather boring.

At least no one's said "Please Let Me Wonder"! I don't know how truly classic anything on Surfin' Safari is but I dislike that album -- even songs like "Surfin'" or "Surfin' Safari" -- and never listen to it. (But... I kinda dig "The Shift"...) I also dislike some of their showcases for vocals, "Auld Lang Syne" and "The Lord's Prayer".

edit: Dennis's two tracks on Carl & The Passions go nowhere and I'm glad "Barbara", incomplete as it may be, was saved from the same overproduced, half-baked fate...

Word.

"Breakaway" ??
"Surfer Girl" ??
"A lot of Carl's lead vocals" ??

Are you guys f*cking crazy?  :-\

The one about Carl's lead vocals was probably joke/sarcasm, I believe. Got to be.

This thread makes me realize that I may be the biggest Beach Boys fan ever!

I honestly find Carl & The Passions as a whole overrated. I love "Here She Comes" and "All This is That", but that's really it. The rest range from decent (YNAMOHTSA) to bizarre and laughable (He Come Down, Denny's schaltz-fests).

Part of what puts it off for me is the length of the tracks. Nearly every song is over 3 and a half minutes, with two of the worst (Cuddle Up and Hold On, Dear Brother) dragging on for over five minutes.

Also, I never liked "Do it Again". It sounded like the bland reunion song TWGMTR could have turned out to be (and thankfully, didn't).

Problem is, with things like Surfer Girl, it could almost be an over played factor, but also how each song was introduced. My BB introduction was PS then a UK Best of (The original '66 one), and that has nothing from surfer girl on it, sooooo...

most of the hits, I never actively listen to them anymore unless I'm listening to a full album, because I'm just so tired of hearing them. why listen to Surfer Girl when you can listen to Our Team?

Because I like "Surfer Girl" much more than "Our Team"?  ;)

+1

They are totally mental...

And comon', Jon Stebbins, why no love for the tub thumping garage stylings of You're so good to me?

 :lol - yeah, this! And, also, I'd heard all of the hits growing up on oldies radio + my appetite for all things 60s, but I wasn't really a megafan - so now coming back and listening to Surfer Girl, Help Me Rhonda, Barbara Ann....I am listening to them through different ears - same song, new perspective.

haha that's like my favorite album. ITs them basically experimenting with different sounds. Make It Good and Cuddle Up sort of sound like precursors to stuff in POB. "Hold On Dear Brother" is them trying to sound like Neil Young.

It's one of MY favorite albums by them too but like I said, those Dennis tracks sound more like DEMOS than precursors; ideas that go nowhere.  I like all of his tracks on Sunflower and (for the most part) on 20/20, as well as Holland, and the stuff he had ready around the time of Surf's Up but the two tracks on So Tough are way more style than substance to me.

Never really loved Warmth Of The Sun, no idea why.

HCTN - disco version (although I'm not calling it a "classic").  Skip over it every time.

Holy sacred cow, Batman. Next you'll be telling us you don't like Wrinkles.

I don't dislike "Little Deuce Coupe," but it wouldn't bother me if I didn't hear it again, either. I think "Shut Down" blows "LDC" out of the water.

Right on with both. I really tried to like "Breakaway", and it's a nice song, but I can see why it wasn't the hit that they were hoping for. It didn't have that punch that stuff like "Wouldn't It Be Nice", "Heroes And Villains", and "This Whole World" has.

And on the Dennis stuff, it's just the truth. His stuff of Carl and the Passions especially. They just aren't really songs. However, I do think a lot of Pacific Ocean Blue is great, but I feel like he does fall back into that trap with some of Bambu.

Gosh, I'm totally in love with Breakaway.
I couldn't see anyone disliking it.
This thread is a revelation to me.

WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THIS THREAD?  :o

You people are on crack. Square crack.

 :lol

Break Away is such a great song, although I think that maybe the melody seems instantly familiar, like you've heard it a million times before. I love it to pieces, but maybe that deters some people. That's part of the genius of Brian (and Murry! in this case), elements of this catalog seem so conventional at a distant glance, but taking a closer look reveals some unbelievable craftmanship.

Warmth of The Sun....I have no insight as to how a hardcore Beach Boys fan wouldn't melt for that.

I can't get behind this..

wow!!

I like Breakaway but I think the ending is really weak.

I'm not a fan of Surfin' USA, any of the car songs (excluding Don't Worry Baby) or Fun, Fun, Fun.

I absolutely despise Be True To Your School and Rock & Roll Music.

Some of you need to relax and stop being such fan boys.  Who gives a sh@t if someone doesn't like what you like?

An echo chamber seems to be what most of you want, but it's a very confining place.  Branch out.  Listen to other opinions.

Agree with most of you on "Be True to Your School" and "Barbara Ann".

Perhaps slightly more controversial: "Fun, Fun, Fun" and "Add Some Music to Your Day".  :P

And "That's Why God Made the Radio", if we're considering that a "classic".

I've brought The Beach Boys fandom to its lowest!

I can't get behind people not liking some of my favourite songs and yet I'm not freaking out about it.

...same here. I find the 'fairground' impression, the simple thumping rhythm, and the 'la la la la-ing' mildly irritating. Childish, even.

The slow ones, e.g.
In my room
Surfer Girl
Betsy (why did they do that on the tour this year?)
Disney Girls
The ones with Blondie/Ricky on lead, but I love Brian's Sail on Sailor

Some here have singled out "Be true to your school", I just love it (both versions) and also "Do You Wanna Dance". The teste  is different, as it should be.

Calm down please. This thread is a healing thing. It will prevent some folks around here buying three copies of the Made In California set simultaneously (just in case one drops and the cat merrily chews away at the second). And subsequent divorce from their better halves. Bankruptcy. The lunacy of total fandom. You know the score.

So I'm actually the saviour of the fandom? WOOOHOOO!

(Never give me power - ever)

I have more posts than you do.

Period.

Be True To Your School

It was not cool to be proud of your high school where I came from - even the jocks hated the school. I really dig the chord changes and harmonies, but I can't get with those lyrics.

Oh, I was just joking. Please take it lightheartedly, I was, um, donning the mantle of the senior poster, or something like that... you are completely right in your assessment of Brian's singing. He's totally involved and 'lets loose'. But it doesn't save the track for me, at the end of the day.

I always thought the lyrics were supposed to be a little tongue-in-cheek.

Given that Brian had been somewhat of a jock himself I find that somewhat unlikely. But I know too little about the song to make any conjecture.

Tell Mike Love that. :lol

Never really dug it until I heard the live version on CD #5 of the Good Vibrations box set. To this day I like any live rendition of BTTYS whilst still not being wild about the tamer studio version. But it's definitely a situation I can live with.  ;D

I really never liked Fun, Fun, Fun. I like a lot of their early stuff but FFF has always sounded so cheesy. Also, I like I Get Around but off the bat you can definitely tell it's not a Brian Wilson song and it never fit in with a lot of their music.

Please explain why one of Brian's greatest songs is not his? And how does it not fit with their music? I've read a lot of strange comments on this message board and this is right up there.

Sorry, I should rephrase my statement as it sounded incredibly vague and misleading.

I've always felt that I Get Around didn't fit in with their other 1964-era music and didn't sound like a song composed by BW. To me, it always sounded like the song haphazardly found its way into All Summer Long.  However I don't think I can elaborate any further as to why I feel this way exactly.  


Actually I know why, up until know I've been viewing I Get Around as apart of All Summer Long as opposed to just a single. Derp!

Hawaii. I don't mind Break Away, but the drums are way too shallow for my tastes, each time I hear that intro I wish they had got some big ass timpani to bash on. Not too keen on the word "vibrations" being used in the coda either, it kind of gives off a "REMEMBER US?!!!! WE ARE THE GUYS WHO DID GOOD VIBRATIONS!!! IT GOT TO NUMBER ONE SO LOVE US FOR THIS SONG TOO THANKS!!!" vibe which I'm not too partial towards.

And they're no different 43 years later...

'I Get Around' is a perfect followup to a hard-rocking song like 'Fun Fun Fun' - the vocal melodies aren't unlike those heard in 'Hawaii' and the rhythm guitar mirrors that of 'Surfin' USA'. Also, the a cappella intro is trademark Brian Wilson.

Same here. I enjoy the 'Live At Knebworth' version tenfold over the studio recording.

No one has mentioned "The Little Girl I Once Knew" yet...I like it, but I'm not nearly as into it as most hard-core BB fans are.  It seemed to fall flat on the reunion tour, did not sound as good as when Brian first started playing it on his solo tours.  This song has not aged as well as its same-era counterparts.

Eric - odd you mention that song, as it was my real coup de foudre for this music, which was played among The Beatles, The Stones and Motown. And, it might be a function of being omitted from the Summer Days and Summer Nights, though now, appears on the remaster version.  It was almost always in Brian's set list, and was a thrill to hear it on a sound check of the Reunion Tour.  Yahoo!  I sort of find it almost in the same genre as Rhonda (not Ronda from Today, which had less "punch".)

Had it been on the LP, the recognition factor might have resulted in more enthusiasm during the tour...

It's always been music to my ears!  ;)

I definitely enjoyed it more in my earlier years of fanhood (early 90s)...still like it, but not nearly as much as before.  I definitely champion the idea of having lesser known gems in the tour setlists, it just sounded like it was a bit overplayed and the guys were tired of playing it (not saying that's accurate...just a feeling I got)...I think Breakaway or Wild Honey or It's About Time or Keepin The Summer Alive would've made cooler additions to the setlist.

There are ZERO classics that are "not to my taste". But I will say that I just don't love Surf's Up and Sail On Sailor the way other folks on this board seem to....

Hmm...not a lot of songs I dislike, but it would probably be the car, girl pre 1965 stuff.  Not that I don't necessarily dislike them, but I've heard them a million times.

Y'know, I just can't see what you folks hear in "Good Vibrations." SO over-rated and weird for weird's sake...how did the public hoodwink itself into thinking this was the "new sound at last"? Was everyone passing around the pipe and rolling their eyes back up into their heads? Falling for herbified Mike Love lyrics like "I don't where but she sends me there"?? I mean, give me a BREAK!  ::)

Dude I know why it really actually sucks...not because of the stupid lyrics(which is what you thnk), but beacuse its that mike love actually helped out and wrote  alot of the melody, trhats why even the version on Brians 2004 Smile with the AWESOME shes already working on my brain, mike didnt obviously , yeah, do the lyrics on that particular version but, then why did it still suck donkey balls?? it was because mike did music!!! "Mike love is a f888cking tool,

 Help.     
 I've :ahh
lost   :ahh
 :ahh my
making :ahh
:ahh sense
mojo!! :ahh
 :ahh

I don't really hate anything pre-15 Big Ones, however Our Car Club - which lots of fans seem to rave about - i don't find particuarly good, and Breakaway is ok, but again not a favourite and i'm always slightly perplexed when critics and fans bang on about how tremendous it is. For my money Celebrate The News is infinitely better - it's got way more punch and a much stronger melody. Breakaway just sort of peters out, Celebrate The News goes down screaming!

California Girls, Marcella, Sail On Sailor, finished versions of Surf's Up (thus excluding the "demo").

I'm not a fanboy, tho I have noticed that you think I am in the past. I think Funky Pretty, for one, bites the bag. All This Is That too. But those aren't classics to anyone who isn't a BB nerd. So it has to be Rock And Roll Music, one of the worst dad-rock hits of all time. Showaddywaddy is better than that.

i had already formulated my opinion before I read this thread, but it seems many share my feeling, which is that "Be True to your School" sounds a lot better without the cheerleading and faux marching band arrangement. This may be due to the fact that I first heard the stripped down version as a nine year-old on Endless Summer.

I always liked the song, however. At first, I bought into the lyrical sentiment whole-heartedly, but in later years I remember singing "bah bah bah be true to your school" in the hallway of my high school and getting a hearty laugh out of our senior class president.

i do agree that "girl or guy" is, although almost proto-feminist, a highly awkward moment.

Love You, for the most part, still hasn't grabbed me.

But what if those opinions are that they prefer stereo to mono?

Almost all of Brian's solo career while we're at it. I don't particuarly like his later songs, i don't like his barking vocals, and hearing the Wondermints singing just always makes me feel as if i'm in a pub somewhere watching a Beach Boys tribute act.

Really vicious thread  :o

Some of you guys got pretty bad taste  :p

IMO - Help Me Rhonda = Dull  (all versions I've heard). Nearly always a skipper for me

Barbara Ann = Irritating vocals

Not mad on most of the Wild Honey album either.

Would rather listen to selected Mike Love solo tracks  ;D

"Don't Worry, Baby" & "Please Let Me Wonder" - leave me cold, both of them.

And don't get me started on "Barbara-fucking-Ann"...

Little. Deuce. Coupe. This tune just leaves me kind of cold. The long extended "got" vocal always sounds really shaky and annoying to me. IMO, maybe the weakest song of theirs to be so friggin' popular.

Hmm, your book indicates otherwise, I think Andrew is trying to trick us!

No...he can't be!! "Barbara f***ing-Ann" makes it so sincere!!  :-D

Andrew? Trick us? Never!

The good thing is nothing is wrong with it. I prefer mono to stereo (when both formats are available), but I will definitely listen to stereo. Mono sounds more whole and complete, a stereo mix has to be fantastic for me to prefer it over mono and usually that isn't the case.

To each his/her own!

Yes I have and it is mind blowing. Makes me wish the original mono version had the single lead vocal and the extended fade.

Yeah, it's beautiful!

I have a pretty strong dislike for "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times," in part because I find the lyrics difficult to relate to. I'm pretty sure it's right on the money for a significant number of folks here, but it doesn't work for me. (Add obvious song title pun here....)

do you even like the Beach Boys?

more or lees all their early songs sound much better live.

I dont care for Surfer Girl or Dont Worry Baby in their studio formats, but live in the 70's onwards they had something extra in them given that they were very dated and represented a glimpse into the bands past. For example the live in Knebworth version of Surfer Girl with Dennis up-front is gorgeous because their voices have aged and 18 years stand between the original and their performance. I feel that stuff adds warmth to these songs and allows me to appreciate the pre-65 material much more.

I don't like "Good Timin'".

MODIFY

Will you explain further ? :)
On a hunch, I feel that you have some sort of deeper bone to pick, maybe you think they're indulgent?

(https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR0ETFbmnh6tGUCXv1bkHfJZV_A55dlA0P_5nA-T2DNZS4BvB5a)
Brian Wilson was a melancholy pot brownie eating cry baby, huh? Invoking Weller's Law. Post an image of actor Fred Weller. Then say  "Oh, that sounds a whole lot like what the producers of an American Family thought.." Conversation over.

I don't understand people's love of the In Concert version of "You Still Believe in Me". Sounds to me like Al can't hit those notes, it's an off-kilter (in a way not endearing) and paltry sounding rearrangement on an album where that is otherwise not so much a problem.

Of the "classics" on my iPod, I usually skip "Be True To Your School,"  and "When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)."

Thank God. I thought it was just me! :-[

That's pretty close to the mark on how I feel about IJWMFFT. Too indulgent, bordering on whining.

dat track, melody, and arrangement, though. Jesus. High point of Brian's creativity, possibly.

The self-indulgence and sentiment of the lyrics are EXACTLY why it's one of my favorite songs of all time. I relate to that song so much, and I'm sure a lot of members here do to, although it's for a different reason than Asher/Wilson intended. Brian felt out of place in his time period, seemingly the man was ahead of his time - his ideas and thought processes on modular recordings alone testify to this. For myself, as long as I have been alive I have never felt quite 'with it' amongst my peers and today's society. I was obsessed with The Beatles and the 60s by the time I was 4. I've never stopped. I truly don't feel as if I was meant to be in this time period - I often feel kind of lost. It's a little messed up, and I don't let it get in the way of my life, but I feel like everyone I know is content to be living in the now, and I'm just not. So, when I really listened to the lyrics of that song for the first time, it just hit me in a totally different way than any other song had ever hit me. I felt that. Yeah, it's 'ego music'. I dig it.

Part of the genius of Pet Sounds is the way the music beautifully accompanies the lyrics - and on IJWMFTT they fit together so perfectly. It's another of many reasons why that song is such a knockout.

+111111111111111111111111

The concept of personally "relating" to the lyrics of a song, as a positive or negative, is one major reason why true appreciation of a wide range of music is a thing of the past in most music circles. I don't "relate" to being a black blues musician in the 1920's being tormented by inner demons, but Robert Johnson is one of the greatest artists I have ever heard. The great artists can always make the feeling behind their music "relatable" on a purely emotional level.

Don't get me wrong - as I said earlier, I read the lyrics to "IJWMFTT" a few minutes before hearing the song, and it was much more the music, the arrangement, the production, and the vocals that really drew me in. If there were ever a case to be made for a good example of putting a huge amount of "feeling" into their music that transcended lyrics, Brian would be one of the first people that would come to mind, for me. Smile is a great example, as I doubt most people who love "Heroes And Villains" (and other songs) have... y'know, been in the situation described in the lyrics. They're great lyrics that complement the song and experience well, don't get me wrong, but still, you know what I mean.

Oh yeah, absolutely, I knew what you meant. You're a righteous guy and I agree with at least 90% of your posts here.
I just hear that relatability thing so much in Beach Boys-land, usually by people who criticize Mike Love for saying the Smile lyrics weren't relatable.

okay, so Mike is pegged as this guy who wants all their songs to be about surfin' and hot roddin' and cruisin' and stuff. Well, how relatable are those things?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_aVYWYyMXk
"Hawaii" from The Lost Concert

How many of those kids in the audience have ever been in a drag race? exactly.

For me, I love to listen to music about things I can't relate to. It creates a whole new world in my mind.

If I only listened to songs about stuff I had personally experienced then my music collection would be a hell of a lot smaller.

I think the same thing about "Don't Worry Baby," from that album.  The high notes sound very strained.

there is like a billion more soul in that version than in the original studio version. It sounds far more genuine in Concert. Al is really singing the words there as if they were applying to his situation right at that moment. Very few artists manage to pull that off as well as Al did that night!

Sail on, sailor... I don't like that boat trip. I like the version without the vocals though.

A Day in the Life of a Tree

I hate the lead vocal.

People like an Al Jardine live vocal more than one of Brian Wilson's greatest studio vocal performances. Whatever.

I disagree so much. It's totally the opposite way. There is more emotion in Brian's vocal on the studio cut than almost any other song in the catalog. Forgetting that the lyrics can also be construed as a car song (it's really not), I hear so much truth in that studio vocal. It's not like he's a singer describing a situation of another fake world scenario, like he is with something like No Go Showboat - this is REAL. Brian puts himself into that song as a person and it shows so much. Just one of the most beautiful things ever.

It is funny that folks relate to I Just Wasn't Made For These Times because they love the 60's, when Brian wrote it about not relating to the 60's.

See my post - I totally get that. I relate to it for the reverse emotion Brian was feeling. But if it hits you in that way, and you realise the original intent of the song regardless, what does it matter? It makes me feel a certain way and that satisfies me.

.

.

Absolutely! For instance, my own personal reading of God Only Knows relates to how incredible it is to eat roast potatoes with gravy on them. Yumsville.

I thought we all agreed that song was about blowing your fucking head off.

Of course. And then serving that head up with Roast potatoes and gravy. Cannibalism included there! (Brian is some sick minded freak!)

You need to get past the dire vocals and hold out for the coda, pure magic.

You will understand one day

Dance Dance Dance. Too teeny-bopper for me. For some reason I love Be True To Your School though, maybe because it has a really great melody.

Shut Down and Little Deuce Coupe. They both just sound like primitive 50s rock and roll. I don't understand the appeal.

Those vocals don't bother me at all, for whatever reason.  Although, a Brian or Dennis sang version could have really been something.

Primitive 50's rock and roll? Awesome! Where do I sign up?

For me, I'm not so crazy about The Little Girl I Once Knew, Marcella or Add Some Music.

In the Back of My Mind

I do hope that you don't actually think that God Only Knows is in any way about eating human heads and roast potatoes.

To reply to earlier comments (regarding my post):

To me, Shut Down's and Little Deuce Coupe's melodies are pretty generic old school rock and roll. Both of the songs have kind of silly hooks too. SHE'S MY LITTLE DEUCE COUPE... YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I GOT!!!

Just not my taste I suppose.

Of course not! God Only Knows is clearly a homophobic statement.

That's not a silly hook - that's just ear candy.

Fuck you, man. I'm not gonna have you or anyone else following me around the board now making fun of me.

Don't say that to me, bitch. You just guaranteed I'll make fun of you forever. What are ya gonna do about it?

whooops, oh well

Honestly not that fond of Fun Fun Fun. Not a fan of Barbara Ann either, though The Who's cover from the Kids Are Alright documentary kicked major ass.

I've probably posted this already, as this thread is old, but Sail On Sailor I find very boring

The entire Pet Sounds album.

Love Sloop John B though.

I don't like the studio version of Surfer Girl. Maybe the Candix records version, but the one from 1963 is pretty dull imo. Great song live though!

+1 (and that goes for the entire Holland album... sorry...)

having said that, my 6 year old LOVES Sail On Sailor - which I think is such a funny song for a 6 year old to like.

Have to say that I pretty much love all of their other classics (e.g. I love every other song 50 Big Ones...)

Re A Day In The Life Of A Tree: Anyone who complains about Rieley's lead vocal has just completely missed the point... His 'dire' vocal works perfectly within the context of the song and it just wouldn't have had the same emotional effect had it had a nice, angelic lead vocal.

Not sure if you'd call Getcha Back a classic (people seem to be calling it one of the best tracks from their crappy album period), but I'm really not a fan. I'd take Summer of Love over that one any day.  ;D

I love the Pet Sounds sound, but I find myself skipping the majority of the tracks.  Least favorites: That's Not Me, Caroline, No, Pet Sounds.  However, WIBN, Sloop JB, and GOK are among my favorite BB tracks.

EDIT: While I'm thinking about it, I can't stand Disney Girls.  HATE that song.  Sounds like something I'd hear in an elevator of a proctologist's office.

This song will never be the same for me again.!

Clearing skies (The snap of a latex glove)

And drying eyes (The squelch of the lube)

Now I see your smile..................

Most of POB. Actually, almost all of it except for River Song really.

Dennis' voice ruins it. Like Randy Newman drinking 10 bottles of tequila a day.  :P Sometimes his voice from this era does work (River Song, Baby Blue, etc...) but ugh, here it really is not great at all.

ewwwwwwwww

Songs from Sounds of Summer I don't like much. I don't think the 80s songs on the compilation are classics so I won't count thos.

Little Deuce Coupe - It just sounds like a basic 50s rock n roll song to me.
Shut Down - ^. I think this might be the weakest 60s song on the disc.
Help Me Rhonda - It's okay...

I don't suppose anyone would call it a Beach Boys "classic," but "Hey, Little Tomboy" just makes me squirm.

It starts off well-intentioned enough, I think (as if the guys were going for an innocent, "Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen" type of coming-of-age vibe).

But when listening to the Adult/Child boot, at about :50 seconds in, things start to turn and by the time we get to the "lipstick" and "shave your legs, for the first time" voice-overs, I'm actually uncomfortable listening to the track.  Frankly, it creeps me out to the point that, before listening to it to use as reference for this post, it's something I haven't played back since the first time I heard it, and honestly, that first time I did hear the damned thing, it had the effect of making me look at the guys in the group differently for quite a time.

Maybe it's because I first heard "Tomboy" not long after my daughter was born, but it contrasted so sharply with something like "I Wanna Pick You Up," which to me, was like a joyous ode to new parenthood.  That sounded like the innocent type of song that I hope the guys were striving for with "Tomboy."

I feel like I said this before, but songs like "Tomboy" just strike me as songs where Brian is writing about something to have something to write about. This is especially true of the stuff he was writing from 75-78 or so. "Honkin' Down The Highway", "Roller Skating Child", "Hey Little Tomboy", "Let Us Go On This Way", "Mona", "She's Got Rhythm", "Lazy Lizzie", "It's Trying To Say", etc.

Some are "character songs" of sorts where he's definitely not singing from the perspective of a guy in his 30s and/or Brian Wilson. I don't think that's rationalizing it, I think Brian just said "Need something to write about. Hm. What about a tomboy who decides to be more feminine?" etc. etc. etc. Keep in mind this was the era when Landy was trying to get him more active with writing songs, too.

Yes, I realize the end result is hilariously inappropriate in the case of "Tomboy", but then it wasn't the first time he wrote or said something that was hilariously inappropriate. That's part of why we love 'im, amirite? ^_^ On that note, nor was Brian ever a surfer, nor did he ever really strike me as a full-blown "car guy", nor did he date a girl who was a hardcore roller-skater in 1977, nor was he ever a tree, etc. etc. etc.

Don't get me wrong, not saying those songs are insincere, I'm sure the guys were really into writing the songs when they were doing so, just saying with some people, it's just writing and not every single song is a super-personal confession. Considering how impersonal some of the songs are from the late 70s, I think it's really cool that Brian was able to make the lyrics so unique, occasionally clever, often convincing, and above all else really interesting. Not many people are especially good at that.

I'm certain you probably have.  I can't imagine my take on the recording is unique.  ;)

I think I've got as healthy a sense of humor as the next guy (and certainly, Brian's off-beat work is something I embrace), and there just might be something to your 'song-a-day' theory, but when it comes to this one piece, I can't see my way to "hilariously inappropriate."  Just inappropriate.

Life, eh?

Listen to Stebbins at this point.

YSGTM is too simple a fairground ditty.

*that said, in theory it could have fitted in on Love You, radically reworked, with burping synths, snares, and lead vocs. By you-know-who.

Tish and piffle! You're So Good To Me is the greatest song the Who never wrote. Bow-bow-da-da-baa-da. What's not to love?

You've already posted similar thing about the song. I even had some argument with you on the subject. At one of the latest pages, if I recall.

Catch A Wave, Be With Me and The Trader are the three biggest favorites that i tend to stay away from. I know that I should like them, but I just... don't. Catch A Wave is too hokey (I hope that's a word) to me, and the other two come off as slightly pretentious. Hey, what can I say? To quote Gary Usher, "That's just the way i feel".

I don't like The Trader either. Never got why people like it so much.

It's something to do with the incredible moog bass, the stunning backing vocals, the killer melodic first half and the gorgeous second, the career-best Rieley lyrics and Carl delivering one of his best, most heart-felt vocals ever... At least that's why I like it.

I thought as much. Well, my bad.

I wish I were hearing the same song you are, Friend.

It's THE best song on Holland, by a mile. And I love all of Holland. What about Long Promised Road and Feel Flows - you dislike them too? Curious how some people just do not like Carl's song-writing, period. Whereas to me, when he was really on form he equalled his brothers.

On the contrary, Long Promised Road happens to be one of my favorite Beach Boy songs, and Feel Flows is great as well. The Trader however has never really appealed to me. I understand that it's a great artistic achievement, but it just isn't to my taste. The first half is fine, and the second half is good enough, but it goes on just a bit too long for me. Don't get me wrong, I think Carl is a great songwriter, I just think he's got better things to offer than The Trader.

I'm a HUGE fan of Long Promised Road and Feel Flows. Those two songs are much better than a lot of songs Brian or Dennis wrote. I'm not trying to take anything away from Carl. I just don't like the feel of the song I guess. To each his own.

I think it's Dennis voice that actually makes Pacific Ocean Blue work as an album. It's raw, its powerful, its full of emotion, and it's this combination that makes the album a beautiful thing.

:) Mark

Seconded, thirded, and fourthed.

fifthed.

Cottonfields....... just don't like it ..... Jardins attempt as some sort of sequel to Sloop John B which is one of my favorite BB numbers

Be true to your School

Student Demonstration Time...... Just doesn't sound authentic to me as though Mike Love is desperate for relavence

Rock n Roll Music....... Never liked it at all..... a bit lame

I'm being picky...... for the most part Brian Wilson has no equal

Damn right. It's the voice of a tortured soul on the verge of collapsing - it's supposed to be raw and coarse. It's supposed to not be easy to listen to. There is a lot of pain in his vocals, as is emotion. It's simply Dennis as he was at the time - a perfectly captured image of his life, not one bit sweetened (sweeten?).

Well they aren't classics at least some of them aren't so here goes..1} A Day in the life of a tree. 2} Got to know the woman 3}Student Demonstration time 4} Make it good 5} Steamboat 6}Blueberry Hill 7} In the still of the night 8) I never play BB Party lp.. 9} Side 2 of Friends lp 10} I never appreciated Pet Sounds or Lets go away for awhile till I saw them performed live.. 11}I rarely play Surfin Safari + Surfin USA lp"s  In fact the 1st lp I can play all the way thru without skipping tracks is: All Summer Long 12}Don't like the lead vocal on In the back of my mind..13}Wipe Out  14} Lonley Sea 15}The Surfer Moon 16)Problem Child 17} Happy Endings 18}Summer of Love 19}When Girls get together 20}Love Surrounds Me..

.... what?
You... don't like Summer Of Love?
AND YOU CALL YOURSELF A BEACH BOYS FAN

Rock and Roll Music. I cannot for the life of me understand why this is included on so many best-of compilations and why it was at the end of the C50 setlist amongst songs like GV, CG, etc. It's embarrassingly bad. The Beatles did it much, much better. Let it die.

Yes, they sure taught that Chuck Berry a thing or two.

‍

I'm no fan of John's voice, but I too think he did excellent lead on R&R Music. Chuck's original take is way-way weak than the other 2. Yes, Mike sounds nasal, so what? It still is a fun cover & one of my favorites on 1976 BBs record.

The single version is much better, to my ears - the thing just takes off thanks to Dennis' drumming. The 20/20 album version is really flat.

- Be true to your school. Especially with Mike's live-intro. But I had fun when he messed up during the song last year in concert.
- Rock & Roll music. That's not the kind of music Chuck Berry sang about.

The early slow stuff:
In my room
Surfer Girl
Graduation day

Wow, those 3 are on my top 15 list of songs I love.

Caroline, No is grating. I skip it on pretty much every album it's on that I listen to.

And, while I'm not really defending it, Rock and Roll Music is on so many compilations because it was a top-5 single. Seems kinda obvious.

What the hell, Caroline No is amazing to me - sublime melody and arrangement. What grates you?

I usually listen to the regular speed version on the PS Box. It is more haunting and you truly feel the lyric. I also enjoy Carl's take on In Concert. He gives the song a lot of feeling, as well.

I used to think it was actually impossible for anyone to be a fan of the Beach Boys'/Brian Wilson's music but not like In My Room - however, you've proven me wrong...

Surely that one song encapsulates everything there is to love about the band, no?