The Smiley Smile Message Board

Both albums are perfect we all know that :) ..Those 2 albums I can actually sit throughand listen without skipping a single track.(which i can't say about many albums) ..Which songs on both albums would you say are your least favorites?

Pet Sounds: Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder) (I was very close to choosing "Run James Run".)

Smile: Wonderful (The melody/vocals are pretty but it's definitely my least favorite song on Smile.)

Pet Sounds - title track
SMiLE - Fire

This is sacrilege.

If I HAD to choose one...

Pet Sounds: "Pet Sounds"
SMiLE: "Fire"

They are both fantastic, but lack the BBs vocals which is the only reason why I'd consider even picking them as "weak."

the f***?

fire is so fuckin awesome :) it's like a nightmare put inside of a song, it's brilliant.

I don't think even it's possible for me to select the "weakest" songs on these two albums.  But just for fun I'll say I Know There's An Answer (since I prefer the alternate Hang On To Your Ego) and He Gives Speeches because it doesn't fit.  The albums as released though are as close to perfect as one can get.

Sloop Jonh B
The Old Master Painter/You Are My Sunshine

As far as Pet Sounds goes "weak" is pretty relative for me. If I had to cast a vote, I'd go with the title track or "I Know There's An Answer" (but the latter might just be because it has to follow "God Only Knows.")

As for Smile, assuming we're talking just albums proper (BWPS/TSS CD1), "I'm In Great Shape." Even on BWPS, it's just a little...formless for my taste.

the only album i can think of that comes close to perfection like these albums is "what's goin on".

I also like all the tracks on both but if I had to choose:

Let's Go Away For Awhile
I'm In Great Shape (I'm In Great Shape/I  Wanna Be Around/Workshop)  (Tho it probably would have been better in its finished form.)

why let's go away for awhile? :/

Pet Sounds has only one weak track and that's blessed Sloop John B.  It would have fitted fine on 'Remember the Zoo'  but we should all curse Capitol for putting it on Pet Sounds and for Brian bottling out on his finest work. It's almost like he had to do something silly to avoid being seen as too far up his own wotsit. The Tony Asher 'Good Vibrations' or 'The Little Girl I Once Knew' sound so much better in that mix.  Alternatively he could have simply put the dub version of 'God Only Knows' as a lead in to the best track on the album!

Smile's weakest track is hard to choose. We still only have bits and pieces to listen to. For me Brian's music is essentially vocal and harmonic so Fire is a good choice for least easy to listen to. The finished songs are sublime eg Surf's Up, H&V, Wonderful, Wind Chimes etc etc.

first off, Remember the Zoo was never a real album, and even the hoax album wasn't supposed to have Sloop John B on it. secondly, Brian always intended to put Sloop John B on Pet Sounds.

This is real tough.... but:

PET SOUNDS: title track (and I feel baaaaad for even typing something like that :P).
SMiLE: yeah, I'd go for "Wonderful", too...


Weird thread... it's like debating over which one of Honey Ryder's sea shells is the prettier one:

(http://www.bondgirls.org.uk/bondgirls_pics/honey_rider_ursula_andress_02.jpg)

 ;D

Pet Sounds: The title track. I also don't really care for Caroline, No.
Smile: I Wanna Be Around/Workshop.

Yes, and musically it fits in perfectly, unless your one of those bozos who thinks lyrics are more important than music. Even if you are, then Sloop, being a tale about loss of innocence, fits in fine.

There is no weak track on PS for me. And seeing as SMiLE is unfinished, judging its weak tracks seems rather moot.

Pet Sounds - God Only Knows
Smile - Surf's Up










I am of course joking, another utterly pointless thread.

lol i feel bad for this too but i had to scope out all of your opinions :)
and wow someone finally agreed on "wonderful" ;D...i like all her shells  ;)

"it's like debating over which one of Honey Ryder's sea shells is the prettier one"

Definitely the clam.

you better be kidding!

...

I was curious to know...Are you a male or female? (& why hello kitty?)..

...

I think I once accidentally skipped 'Here Today', does that count?  :-\

As for 'SMiLE', I Wanna Be Around/Workshop.

Oh I'm going to step on a few toes now I'm sure.

Weakest song PS/Smile -> Our Prayer. It just sounds like the standard thing any given vocal group would throw together as an intro to their act. Sorry!

And your the guy who also said Smile was a disaster because it was not in stereo... ::)

Never said that or anything close to that. It wasn't my thread I just agreed that many around the internetz has bashed the box set because it's in mono.  :P

+1
 In fact, anyone who says Wonderful in this thread should be, well, I don't know, it's all just... YOU'RE MAD, I TELL YOU

As for me,

Pet Sounds - I Know There's An Answer
SMiLE - Wind Chimes. I obviously love it, but I prefer the Smiley Smile version.

Yeah, but that has Save The Children on it - PS and Smile may have low points, but they never get THAT low  :lol

I swear new guy is not what he seems.

But um

Pet sounds and look.  Look was boring on bwps and even more so on tss

                                                                                                                                                           

See? I'm very consistent  ;D

I get the feeling that you're reading way too much into that quote.

(Read it again. What percentage of BB's legacy can be traced the PS sessions box? )

The pet sounds helped the legacy a huge deal, what you implied was that the smile box ruined that goodwill and the legacy is what it was before the pet sounds box.

It has a "sound" that had been done before, in a sense, but "thrown together"? You fuckin' kidding me, here? Show me any other pop music composer in the 60s, especially one who'd been criticized as a mere dipshit who could only find success after ripping off an old rock 'n' roll number a mere THREE YEARS PRIOR, who could construct something as intricate and just flat out as good as "Our Prayer" and I'll show you a green dog.

Yerp. The chord changes in Wonderful are jaw dropping and the lyrics are some of the most beautiful I've ever heard.
_____

As for me I honestly can't name a "weak" track on Pet Sounds. Every song on there means something special to me.

'Child Is Father Of The Man' disappoints me the most: It is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard - but it was never really finished.

That's a great analogy. You and me, great minds think alike!

Nice job changing my quote's "you" to "I" ::).   

Pet Sounds is easy: Sloop John B because Brian didn't write it.

SMiLE: I'm in Great Shape plus songs Brian didn't write like You are My Sunshine

I feel that. It's crushingly beautiful as it is but who knows what could have been done with Van Dyke Parks lyrics and a Brian melody and Beach Boys harmonies (on the verses). Many of you could point to BWPS and, yes, it's good but it doesn't really capture Smile-era melody (it's for this same reason that many people instinctively felt that Brian's brief singing of the Worms melody on the box was part of the original melody while the 2004 melody was from 2004-era), or 66' era Parks style lyrics.

Still one of the biggest overreactions I've seen on the board.  Completely laughable that TSS hurt the legacy

I totally agree 100%, cablegeddon changed my quote to make it look like I agreed with him.

Hey just shoot the messanger!  :3d


I didn't do it! I don't know how that happened. Maybe it was Mark Linnet's ghost who did it.

 Like a mob of people really chased Mark Linett down for ruining the smile box set by not putting it in stereo... :deadhorse

A standard thing? LOL If that is "standard" then so are pretty much every other vocal tags, rounds, and chords that Brian put together. The closing vocal tag to GOK? Standard. Girls on the Beach? Standard vocals. Background vocals on WIBN? Standard. Practically the entire flip side of Today? Standard vocals. We Three Kings of Orient Are/Auld Lang Syne/The Lord's Prayer? Standard stuff.

Yep, Brian was just your regular old standard writer of vocal harmonies and tags. Ho-hum.

 :angry If I HAD to pick one off of Pet Sounds it would be I know there's an answer, but ONLY cuz it could have been 'hang on to your ego'. anyone who said the title track.. no.. just no..

and for smile assuming we're talking the smile sessions version, i'd say look. but just in that form. Brian wilson's version is amazing. if we are talking any song from the smile era/album, i'd say he gives speeches.

Pet Sounds - Lets go away for awhile.
Smile - Old master painter/You are my sunshine/I wanna be around.

As noted, the instrumentals lack the thing most of us like most about the Beach Boys: Their vocals.  And of the two, I think the incredibly quirky title track has much more character.  Not that I don't love LGAFA too. But like I said, if I had to choose one...

They're great songs obviously, but if i really had to pick (which, presumably, i do) i'd say That's Not Me and Good Vibrations (GV because, as with Smiley Smile, i feel it shouldn't be on there - the album should finish with the reprise of Our Prayer surely...).

Pet Sounds - Pet Sounds (and what a friggin awesome track that is!)

Smile - My Only Sunshine (the one track on the album I could live without. decent though)

you don't like that song? it's beautiful :/

i wish it was finished :[ i love the bass on that song and the soft melody after the chorus...the bwps version of it definitely stands out more than the tss version

that's not me is definitely one of mike's best performances vocally :)

"Here Today" was well butcherd by Myke-shoulda been done by Brian, Carl or Al.

I don't think anyone could've done Here Today better than Mike. especially the verses.

I think I might agree that Wonderful is the weakest song on Smile, I think maybe it's because I heard the Smiley version first but Wonderful just seems so... normal.

The best version of Here Today is by Bobby Vee - Liberty Records, 1966. Wrecking Crew are on it as well.

The only place online I could find it (no youtube), is on this blog, transferred from a noisy 45. It sounds much better in Stereo.

http://poppacool.blogspot.com/2010/10/bobby-vee-here-today.html

THAT is not the "best" version. :o

Pet Sounds - I Know There's An Answer.... not bad, but it is nothing special
Smile (either version) - Song for Children/Child is the Father of the Man medley... it just slows down the pace of the album so much.

during the Smile listening party I attended in November, some of the casual fans / nonfans said those were the weakest songs.

To each his own of course, but I can't believe that I Know There's An Answer has been mentioned the most....To me it has the best vocals on the album, the instrumentals are fantastic. This is the song that made me do a double take when I first truly listened to this album: I couldn't believe this song wasn't more popular.
________

And ever since I first heard Look it has been my favorite SMiLE song - it just reminds me of pop meeting classical music. I recommend listening to it with a subwoofer cranked at full blast; you won't be disappointed!

It's been said already, but this is really a loaded question.  There are no weak songs on Pet Sounds.

Sounds like a Jan Berry production. Can't believe that's Bobby Vee, ol' rubber balls!

There are no weak songs on Pet Sounds or SMiLE. Least favorites sure, but nothing weak (except maybe He Gives Speeches)

Even more ridiculous than the thread title are some of the responses ...especially NewGuy's.
Don't Talk and Wonderful are two of the most beautiful, complicated, and touching songs ever written. Two of the brightest examples of Brian's genius.


having said that, my least favorites are:

Here Today from Pet Sounds, mainly because the lyrics are just bad IMO

Least favorite SMiLE song is He Gives Speeches. If we're talking the TSS tracklist, probably I'm In Great Shape. I love the song but I just can't listen to that mix. If we're talking BWPS, I'd say On A Holiday. The pirate rap doesn't really work for me, although I love the way they tied it in with Do You Like Worms and Wind Chimes.



how bout favorite songs from either album?

That's Not Me

and

Wonderful/Look/Child for me. Those are all one song in my book  ;D

Pet Sounds - Pet Sounds (A tough decision because I love them all)
SMiLE - I'm In Great Shape

ditto.

The inner groove.

+1

Mike absolutely nails "Here Today". Brian's guide vocal (while yes, being just a guide vocal, I'll grant you) is evidence enough of that. For further evidence, refrain from blind Mike hatred and listen with your ears/heart/penis.

Smile is not perfect it is unfinished. It is perfectly imperfect

I like that! :)

I like that you complain about other people's ridiculous responses and then say that the terrific Here Today lyrics are bad (and He Gives speeches is a bonus track, not a Smile track).

hey to each their own.

this line in particular just sounds like something a little kid could have written:

It makes you feel so bad/it makes your heart feel sad/it makes your days go wrong/it makes your nights so long


SMiLE was never finished, but a bunch of tracks were recorded... so technically Speeches is a SMiLE track.
It may have ended up on the album in 1967. Brian obviously thought enough of the song to rework it for Smiley Smile.

I will rep for Here Today - it's certainly no less awkward than something like I'm Waiting For The Day or That's Not Me written down, but Mike nails it - that section in particular really is about the release of the 'Love is here.....' bit.

Pet Sounds - "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)"  Great vocals but melody is a bit forced.
Smile (either version) - Wonderful.  Just have never liked parts of the song.

you are awesome :)

OK, if you think nailing it means barely making or straining your nuts to make the high notes. Should be obvious to any listener that he's struggling-don't give a sh*t who it is quite honestly.

Sometimes you just have to accept that musical opinion is a subjective thing, and that views such as the above, as brainless, stupid and criminal as they may sound, are entirely valid.

I have absolutely nothing whatsoever to contribute to this thread. However I elected to post this because I wanted to see my avatar. It is a picture of a man with his head up his ass. Thank you very much for taking the time to read this. Unfortunately you will never get that particular part of your life back.

thanks I guess...

I don't think musical opinions of favorite, and least favorite, Beach Boy favorites are stupid. Soem love Barbara Ann, some hate it with a passion.

 The thread isn't "Bad songs on Pet Sounds and Smile".  Top to bottom, PS is the greatest album ever, in my opinion. I love the title track and "Let's Go Away For Awhile" from PS but they are instrumentals and some people just want to hear vocal songs.  LGAFA is a musical prelude to the Smile sound.  I love the these instrumentals from Brian.  Like Diamond Head, it shows his genius as a musical composer.

Wonderful has just never grabbed me.  "Surf's Up", on the other hand, is, I think, the greatest song ever written.

Sloop John B.  It doesn't fit on Pet Sounds.

(http://i.imgur.com/Vp7cz.png)

...hopefully that image worked out okay. Right click->view image to see it all.

Anyway, I guess whenever I listen to Pet Sounds, I tend to skip over Don't Talk and occasionally the instrumental tracks. And usually by the time I'm at Caroline No, I tend to skip ahead at the end to move on to the next track (so I think the playcount there is artificially low).

As for SMiLE, I'd have to say Mrs. O'Leary's cow. It's not a BAD song but it's less enjoyable for me to listen to than the others.

as noted in the Diamond Head thread, Brian didn't actually compose the song.

Co-wrote it.  Unless you were at the session or know otherwise, to me it sounds like a BW directed composition.

Why would you ruin a perfect album?

Sorry! I'll... make it up to you. I'll go buy a copy of Summer in Paradise right now and listen to it all the way through, no skipping-- I promise!

LGAFA is one of my all-time favorites. There are so many layers to that song; and the chord changes are phenomenal.

I mean, it is LIGHTYEARS ahead of 'Summer Means New Love' - it is just astonishingly beautiful.

Agree. The song is just amazing!

The first Pet Sounds I had, I downloaded from Napster and the entire album was one track, no skipping.

My least favourite Pet Sounds song is Trombone Dixie  :)

Firstly - Napster was for those who didn't like paying for music.
Secondly - Pet Sounds on low quality MP3 is just.... Oh Dear!

Weakest song on Pet Sounds - Sloop John B - Great Song but it doesn't work on that album at any level
Weakest song on Smile - Fire/Mrs O'Leary's Cow - Far too discordant - hard to sing along to

Too bad Napster only lead to me purchasing dozens upon dozens of records back in the day, records which I never would have heard or purchased, otherwise. D'you work for the RIAA or something?


This was 1998 or 1999. Connections were slow, bandwidth was limited, and hard drives were extremely small, and 128 was considered the "standard". It's not as if he still chooses to listen to that copy today.

C'mon d00d.

How do you sing along to a song that's instrumental?

What weak songs???  :o





 ;D

Al Vescovo said he wrote the song. It is a steel guitar instrumental after all. Brian directed the session and came up with the concept and title, but Vescovo wrote the thing. Brian was more involved with creating all the different sound effects.

Whatever. I don't know Al Vescovo. Sounds like a BW production to me. 
I'd have to hear something more corroborative - like Brian saying A V wrote it.  Not saying he didn't.  It is unusual for Brian to put his name on a song he didn't write.
He is credited first though, "Al Vescovo/Lyle Ritz/Jim Ackley/B. Wilson"

The song has a lot of parts.  It's not a strictly 'Steel guitar instrumental' (which, living in Hawaii, I've heard tons of).
It's as much a Percussion song, Ukulele song. The Uke chord structures differs from the preceding steel guitar part and the steel guitar follows suit.  Sounds like a collaboration to me.
Lyle Ritz played ukelele on the track.  The Steel guitar is great though!  Love it!

...

It's clearly a Brian Wilson production.

And it's a steel guitar tune with ukulele and light keyboard accompaniment. The solo uke part is just a standard turnaround followed by the same chord progression as the rest of the song.

I think Al's name is listed first (and Brian's last) for a reason.

I love everything on Pet Sounds, there's no weak moment IMHO.

The weakest song on SMiLE, well, I hope I don't get banned from the board now, is ... drumroll ... "Hereos & Villains".
It just doesn't work as a song for me. Everytime I have to listen to it I go "Oooh no, boring". I like the melodies of chorus, verses, etc, it's not that it's not good, but it's just... boring. Sorry.

I only buy music if I can't figure out a way to download it.

Maybe cause Brian is a sweet and generous man.  I do the same thing on my songs - usually always put my name last.

It's not a unique chord progression - it's the style and flair of the steel guitar playing.

So what's your proof besides your claim that 'you say' Al says he wrote the song.  He doesn't claim to on his website.

You'll find all the same 'chords' here and 100's of Hawaiian steel guitar songs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2s0K8TCMjGA

Give it a rest, bub. Your excuse of "I don't know Al Vescovo" comes off as kind of dumb. If Brian was so "generous", then why wasn't he listed last on all the other songs he wrote?

If the guy who is given the absolute first credit in the songwriting credit says it was mostly his song and Brian produced it and maybe did a bit with the arrangement, well, does that really seem like such a far-fetched story?

Bud, and or dude, -claiming to have written a Beach Boy song and not be fully credited is kinda a big deal.  Just ask Mike Love.

What's curious is that you have nothing better to do that jump into a discussion you have no information on whatsoever.  In other words, your talking out your a s.s.
I bet your one of the Bubs who believes Carol Kaye's claims.

Just for you edification, Brian is listed last as is the standard alphabetical practice for publishing in years past - "Wilson".  The DH credits aren't alphabetical.

I will log into ASCAP and see what they have listed for % of credits.

I'm told Jim Ackley was the an engineer on the session. Helped Brian get the reverb sound; so Brian gave him a writers credit it seems.  So the theory of why Brian's name comes last doesn't hold water in this case. (writing this as I overlook Diamond Head in Waikiki).

Brian is sweet and generous. So is Al for letting everyone else share a credit.

You're right... it's not a unique chord progression. Al said he came up with it on the spot, and he didn't really seem very proud of it. It's fairly standard stuff.

'I don't say' that Al wrote it... this is what Al himself told me. I wish I still had the email he sent, but it was over a decade ago and was deleted by Hotmail before I thought to save it.

unfortunately Al is no longer with us to verify the tale or give any more insight into the session.

Please forgive me. I'm still thinking "high school teacher throws together an opening for the choir to sing  to the Christmas pageant".

You're absolutely insane.

So the truth comes out about your Smile disappointment...

"Throws together"?

:'(

His name is first in the credits.


My name is not Edification.


Oh yeah, that totally explains why Mike Love's name goes ahead of Brian's on all the songs they wrote together.


What "information" do you have that I don't? Do tell. I'm going by the guy who is given the first songwriting credit saying he wrote the basis of it and that the other people credited helped flesh it out. His story kinda checks out given he was there and his name is first in the credits, right?

"Your" the one saying, "I don't know this guy, I don't trust him, I just assume Brian Wilson did everything even though I wasn't there," which is textbook talking-out-the-ass imo.

I guess you're right about the part where you said I had no right to "jump into" the conversation, though. I mean, this isn't an internet messageboard and you didn't "jump into" the thread, either.


Go for it, Chuckie.

This thread is like asking which one of the apostles is your least favorite.  And you can't pick Judas. 

AND THAT'S HOW IT'D STILL BE YOUNG WHIPPER SNAPPER IF THE GOT DAM CD HADNT BEEN INVENTED!!!!

LP's
8 Tracks
Cassette Tapes

all very hard to change tracks on.  You have to physically move instead of just pressing a button. 

If it wasn't for Judas there wouldn't be Christianity. ;) And yeah, this thread is useless.

I've skipped over Don't Talk a few times.   Sometime seems to be a bit dreary and slow in the overall contest of the lp.  Doesn't make it a bad song buy any means though.


As for SMiLE?   Its ALL weird.  And ALL good.  In its own modular way.   Wouldn't even have a single  opinion for more than a minute.  I' still listening to the SMILE SESSIONS trying to absorb it all.

Yawn! 8)
Does Bubbie have ANYTHING intelligent to add here? Because it's obvious my comments are beyond your comprehension. You seem to take issue with my 'factual statement' that four people are credited with writing the song, not solely Al Vescovo. and that someone saying Al Vescovo wrote the song doesn't make it so.  In legal tems it's called heresay.

 Yeah, jackass. Not jumping the thread, it's jumping back your  crap.  And,as typical with A holes like you, you are offended when people respond to statements like "Give it a rest bub", "kind of dumb". You get personal and then get all crazy when it's thrown back at ya.

Yes, songwriters have been historically listed in alphabetically order  - Love/Wilson; Lennon/McCartney; Goffin/King; Leiber/Stoller; Bacharach/David; Page/Plant.  Let me recommend a book to further your edification (you seem to have bucoo spare time) "All You Need to Know About the Music Business" by Donald Passman. In this case, the writers weren't.  The recording engineer was even listed before Brian.  Point being: You can't base anything on the songwriter order in this case.

And what's consistently "kinda dumb" are your posts on this board.   :smokin

that someone is me. Al told me everything he remembered about the song Diamond Head. i have no reason to disbelieve him, nor does anyone else unless they were there and tell a different story. that hasn't happened yet.

i admit i was initially disappointed when i discovered Brian didn't actually come up with the tune. but now i just think it's way cool that he gave a pedal steel player free rein to write a Beach Boys song. I'm a steel player and a big Al Vescovo fan. I grew up in Hawaii too, so Diamond Head is such a favorite of mine... it's Beach Boys, it's pedal steel, it's Hawaii... it's heaven. another reason it's near the end of my SMiLE mix.  :)


as stated, it is a fairly standard chord progression and it's what all those guys did with it that really makes the tune special. it's no Let's Go Away For Awhile, yet it has a similar feel and transportive quality.

Based on the documented evidence, Al co-wrote it.  I believe Al wrote you that he wrote it, and you believe him. But let me give you some Carol Kaye.  Email her and you can sing her false claims too.

From the BMI Music database = http://repertoire.bmi.com/title.asp?blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&page=1&keyid=299742&ShowNbr=0&ShowSeqNbr=0&querytype=WorkID

   DIAMOND HEAD (Legal Title)
   BMI Work #299742
Songwriter/Composer    Current Affiliation    CAE/IPI #
ACKLEY JAMES                    SOCAN                    56384366
RITZ LYLE                       ASCAP                    26160120
VESCOVO ALBERT E            BMI                      42041336
WILSON BRIAN               BMI                       33029517
 
Publishers
IRVING MUSIC    BMI    355698807



Now, I over this jump in thread. My apologies.

No one wrote it, it's a jam.

I think you guys should go ahead and whip 'em out and settle this once and for all. 

it's silly to compare Al to Carol Kaye just because you don't want to believe that he wrote Diamond Head. for whatever reason.

Carol has taken credit for all kinds of famous songs and sessions she wasn't even a part of. Al claimed credit for one very obscure steel guitar instrumental.

thanks for the BMI database info. Have you seen all the names on Thelonious Monk's 'Round Midnight'?

I've seen a lot of ill-informed and idiotic comments on this board over the past 2 + years but this one takes the biscuit, there are so many things wrong with what you have said I don't even know where to begin. :angry

Relax. Don't get so upset over a 65 second intro.

I remember nearly two years ago I was ridiculously drunk and I blasted Our Prayer on my friends $$$$ stereo system - hearing that reverberate against the cathedral ceiling of his house was utterly spiritual.

Ie: it's one of the best tracks on SMiLE. But to each his own.

I don't think you can really call that song weak, it's like a Gregorian Chant or something.

No rhythm/time signature
No lyrics

only melody, and harmony.  Pretty amazing. 

Again, I don't say he didn't write it.  It appears that he "co-wrote it".  That is what the evidence shows.  It was a collaboration. He wrote the steel guitar pat.  Did Brian suggest chord and key changes during the session.  Have no idea but it wouldn't surprise me.  But to say he "WROTE IT" is incorrect.

I don't think anyone's upset about the song.

For those of you who do love Steel Guitar and "Diamond Head", check out Bossaroo's Myspace page. He is one talented guy!!!!!!

http://www.myspace.com/rscottmurray

thanks SRH. that page is pretty old... could really use an update!

Diamond Head was indeed a spontaneous collaboration, based around Vescovo's steel guitar. don't think Brian suggested chord or key changes, or anything more than "play something Hawaiian". I'd love to hear what Brian remembers about it, he's clearly fond of the song... Lyle and Jim too.

I really wish we had more in the way of outtakes from 'Friends'

amen.

No, I take issue with your saying, "I don't trust this guy, I don't know him, I just choose to blindly believe Brian wrote everything ever."

I have no idea Al Vescovo's original words on the matter, but if he outright said, "I wrote it," I'm sure he meant the basis of it, not the entirety of it. I write a song - my band embellishes upon it in a way I never could have, but I still wrote the basis of it. Some would choose to give the original writer the sole credit, others would give the whole band credit.


o yeah. I see Dennis Wilson getting the sole credit for "Never Learn Not To Love", I think Charles Manson claiming to have written it is total hearsay.


And what does "Jumping back your crap" mean in legal terms?


I got personal? Naw.


Funny, because every single instance I've seen of this, it's listed as "Written by Brian Wilson/Mike Love". Not alphabetical. Brian is listed first because he wrote the basis of the song, Mike helped. How about the Smile material? "Written by Brian Wilson/Van Dyke Parks". Again, not alphabetical. "Written by Brian Wilson/Tony Asher". "Friends" lists Al Jardine last in the credits, not first. Is it a matter of always listing Brian first? No. "Take A Load Off Your Feet" lists Al before Brian because it was mostly Al's song.

Seeing a pattern, here? Nothing is alphabetical among Beach Boys credits. Ever. Seemingly, the person listed first always wrote the basis of the song or the majority of the song, the names that follow helped. Thus, given Al's statement that he wrote the basis of the song and him being listed first, what conclusion can we draw from that?

That was my point - you failed to pick up on my sarcasm.

Based on Beach Boys credits likely almost always being listed as such, wouldn't this mean Al Vescovo likely wrote the basis or the majority of "Diamond Head", with the other four credited people writing less or just assisting? Wouldn't Al Vescovo claiming to have written the majority of it back that up?

Not everyone is a lying con artist like Carole Kaye. Carole has been CAUGHT on her lies multiple times, where as I've never once heard anyone calling out this Al Vescovo for claiming songwriting credits when he didn't do it.

If Brian Wilson said he wrote something, wouldn't you believe him until proven otherwise? How is Al Vescovo any different? You're the one blindly assuming Brian wrote everything, ignoring facts and statements contrary to the matter.


OUCH.

I just have a problem with people talking out their ass and ignoring facts.  Like you.

For example, You can't even bother to go to BMI and get the real, legal info.

DO IT AGAIN (Legal Title)
   BMI Work #309166

Songwriter/Composer    Current Affiliation    CAE/IPI #
LOVE MIKE E                    BMI                            18590870
WILSON BRIAN                  BMI                            33029517
 
Publishers
IRVING MUSIC    BMI    355698807

SURF S UP (Legal Title) - http://repertoire.bmi.com/title.asp?blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&keyid=1434517&ShowNbr=0&ShowSeqNbr=0&querytype=WorkID
   BMI Work #1434517

Songwriter/Composer    Current Affiliation    CAE/IPI #
PARKS VAN DYKE            ASCAP                    23519307
WILSON BRIAN                    BMI                        33029517


GOD ONLY KNOWS (Legal Title)
   BMI Work #484174

Alternate Titles:
DIEU SEUL SAIT
DIO SOLO SA

Songwriter/Composer    Current Affiliation    CAE/IPI #
ASHER TONY                     BMI                           1472335
WILSON BRIAN DOUGLAS     BMI                       33029811
 
Publishers
IRVING MUSIC    BMI    355698807
 
I don't know where you are getting your "Wilson.Love" or "Wilson/Parks" listings.  Booze or drugs can do some crazy things to a mind.
Brian has traditionally had his name listed last - ala: alphabetically.

(http://www.goldminemag.com/wp-content/uploads/BeachBoys_SurfinSafari45.jpg)

Ohhh.  Officially wrong but I am wrong. Dang. I hate when that happens.  Gotta lay off those shrooms :tm :tm.

Christ almighty, honestly Diamond Head doesn't even sound like a Brian Wilson tune. Brian's instrumentals are full of layers and/or harmonies. Diamond Head is beautiful, but not at the calibre of Brian Wilson.

To me, i'd say Brian had no problem with Al writing the gist of this tune. But I'm drunk, so what do I know?

My opinion?  Brian Wilson has a long history of not really giving a sh*t about business matters like who gets paid for a song. 

Simple as that.