The Smiley Smile Message Board

Commercially, and critically disappointing, which one of these albums do you think is better?

Is L.A. better just because it has "Shortenin' Bread" on it?

Actually, yes, it is.
Who am I kidding?

Definitely LA. For Good Timin' and Baby Blue alone.

 L.A. is far superior to MIU. The presence of Carl and Dennis makes that a given, much less competent pop music such as "Good Timin", "Baby Blue", "Lady Lynda", "Love Surrounds Me", "Full Sail", "Angel Come Home" and yes even "Sumahama."

M.I.U, big time. She's Got Rhythm, Hey Little Tomboy, Sweet Sunday Kinda Love...good stuff! I even like Matchpoint.

I like Good Timin' but the rest of LA doesn't do much for me.

I've always enjoyed M.I.U more.

LA because I really enjoy Angel Come Home, Love Surrounds Me, Baby Blue, and of course Shortenin' Bread. Good Timin' and Here Comes The Night honorable mention.

Can't say I like much on MIU other than She's Got Rhythm and My Diane.

I'd have to say LA....It's slicker and not as quirky as MIU but it has some superior Carl vocals and great Dennis tracks.

LA is better but MIU has several good moments.

L.A. (Light Album) is better in my opinion. There is nothing as good as "Good Timin'", "Love Surrounds Me", or "Baby Blue" on MIU. I'd pretty much have to say L.A. would probably be the newest Beach Boys album I'd show anybody until SMiLE last year, and That's Why God Made The Radio this year.

Did you really include "Hey Little Tomboy" under the "good stuff" heading?

I like Pitter Patter, My Diane, and She's Got Rhythm.  The only thing I like on LA is Good Timin'.

What next? Which is better: Summer In Paradise or Pet Sounds?

L.A. is so so so vastly superior to M.I.U. i can't even believe it's being debated. M.I.U. is an appalling album (i can't describe it in better terms than Dennis did) - there are 2, arguably 3, decent songs (She's Got Rhythm, My Diane, er... Pitter Patter?), amidst some of the worst - and worst produced - Beach Boys music ever recorded. It's not as bad as SIP, i'll give it that. But it's on equal terrible-ness footing with Keepin' The Summer Alive.

L.A. on the other hand has two classics - Good Timin' and the continuously under-rated Baby Blue, one of the finests ballads the group ever recorded - plus some beautiful Carl songs - Angel Come Home obviously, but i also think Full Sail is very nice with a gorgeous lead vocal. Why you're all sighting the throwaway Shortenin' Bread as a highlight on an album containing songs of the quality i've just mentioned is beyond me, but it is a fun ending to what remains one of the groups most under-valued records...

L.A. is a lovely, mature, shimmering album full of golden late-afternoon long shadows.

Good Timin'
Lady Lynda
Sumahama
Baby Blue
Full Sail

are all beautiful for starters. I love it all... though maybe Here Comes the Night is a bit dodgy.

Sweet Sunday Kind Of Love
Belles Of Paris
Match Point Of Love

Vs.

Good Timin'
Lady Lynda
Shortenin Bread

This a pretty tough call -_____- i'll have to go with M.I.U. though (Just because of the harmonies on Belles of Paris)...But I love Shortenin Bread the most :) I only heard the Adult Child version of it before..

LA, no question. Some may prefer MIU, but LA is by far the better album.

My vote goes to 'L.A' which I consider to be a great album, with highly enjoyable songs. It's got Dennis' soulful ballads, Carl's mellow and relaxing compositions, the great and tuneful 'Good Timin' and 'Lady Linda', which is better than all of those oldies Jardine covered on M.I.U. combined. Some week points would be 'Sumahama' because of the japanese singing (otherwise a decent song), 'Here Comes The Night', for being way too long -- the single version would've been a much better choice and 'Shortenin' Bread', which is a take it or leave it for me.

On M.I.U. there are very few songs I enjoy and even though 'My Diane' is a masterpiece, the rest of the highlights don't hold a candle to L.A.'s ones. Also, it contains some of the band's lowest points to date : 'Matchpoint Of Our Love', 'Belles Of Paris' and 'Kona Coast'.

Love seeing the L.A. love here.  L.A. is one of my favorite Beach Boys albums, so my vote goes to L.A. as well.   Though I don't hate M.I.U., but there are so many embarassing moments on it (vs. just "Sumahama" which I don't think is terrible) and the production is pretty bland and lifeless.

If I was making my list, I'd make it like this:

MIU
great:  My Diane
good/guilty pleasures:  Winds of Change, Come Go With Me, Pitter Patter, She's Got Rhythm, Matchpoint (sorry, I like it)
mediocre/bad/pointless:  everything else.  Particularly Hey Little Tomboy

LA
great:  Good Timin', Baby Blue, Love Surrounds Me, Here Comes The Night (sorry, I like it), Angel Come Home, Full Sail
good/guilty pleasures:  Shortnin' Bread, Goin' South,
m/b/p:  the rest, but I don't hate either of 'em

A more interesting question is how does KTSA stack up?  I liked KTSA when it came out but in retrospect, it is a really empty album.  I love the title track, Santa Ana Winds and Endless Harmony, like Goin' On and School Days, and the rest just kind of falls through the floor to me.  Livin' With A Heartache, Sunshine, Oh Darlin' and When Girls Get Together in particular just bore the crap out of me.  I would probably give the edge to MIU over KTSA just because when it's bad it's not boring.

MIU for me. That whole second side starting from Sweet Sunday is gorgeous imo. I even have a soft spot for Kona Coast. Hate Brian's vocal on She's Got Rhythm though.

I've never managed to get into LA Light. Some of the Dennis numbers are good, and I love Beautiful Day, but I can take or leave the rest, and Here Comes The Night really throws a spanner in the works. Good Timing is nice enough but I find it a bit overrated.

Can we turn this into a poll to settle this once and for all!

Great summary! I would divide the songs up in much the same way that you have, although for the MIU list, I would put "Woncha Come Out Tonight" in the list of great songs--it's cheesy, but catchy, IMHO (I like "Matchpoint," too). For the LA list, I would put "Sumahama" under the "great" category--I know it's not especially popular, but something about the melody on the chorus has always stuck w/ me. I would put "Here Comes the Night" under the good/guilty pleasures category (it's good for what it is; people just weren't ready to accept a disco BB song). LA is the better overall album out of the two. Not everything works, but at least they were trying to do some (sort of) experimental things that went outside the boundaries of the surf/sun/fun box that many fans try to pigeonhole the BBs under, whereas MIU was basically a slightly better SIP (although SIP itself, of course, is way worse than MIU could ever be. At least MIU didn't have any screeching guitars, soulless synths or Mike trying to "rap."). As for KTSA...

KTSA--This goes on about a minute longer than it should, but I've always liked Carl's tough-sounding vocal, and the guitar solo is another nice touch. Good song overall.
Oh Darlin'--this song does nothing for me. It's slushier than a melted Slurpee and just...drags.
Some of Your Love--this might have been a guilty pleasure, but the saxaphone sounds like it has a sore throat, and the idea of a 40-year old Mike singing "walking down the hallway holding hands" gives me the creeps (not unike "Hey Little Tomboy"). Uh, Mike, you haven't been in high school for a very long time, buddy. Who are you kidding?
Livin' With a Heartache--I actually do like the chorus, but the verses fall flat, and Carl sounds drunk.
School Days--Good vocal by Al, but the repeated "whoo-ooh! Whoo-OOHs" during the verses have always annoyed the crap out of me.
Goin' On--the best song on the album. Slight, but basically well done, with nice harmonies.
Sunshine--catchy, but vapid. Doesn't totally suck, but it's not all that noteworthy, either.
When Girls Get Together--never did like this one. The rhythm/beat is awkward, and the farting horn section just makes an already-questionable song a disaster.
Santa Ana Winds--very nice song. Welcome change of pace after the shallowness of the other tracks. I like this one just fine.
Endless Harmony--not Bruce's greatest song ever, but worth hearing for the harmonies at the end. As a kid, I always thought the keyboard arrangement at the beginning was kind of neat.

I prefer MIU. I think it's a pretty good record.

LA > MIU

I haven't heard all of either, but I just want to put it out there that I love Matchpoint of Our Love.  Why does everyone pan it so much?  Yeah, the lyrics are beyond cheesy, but Brian's voice sounds MUCH better than it did on 15BO/LY, the chord progression is interesting, the harmonies are great (though not amazing), and I really like the bridge.   Brian sounds genuinely into "Matchpoint".  I'd pick it over his "falsetto" on "She's Got Rhythm" any day...

I agree. Brian really sounds very nice singing this song. I always thought "Matchpoint" was underrated. I like "She's Got Rhythm," but the line "last night I went out disco dancing..." Somehow I just can't imagine Brian Wilson in a John Travolta-white disco suit dancing to Donna Summer or The Bee Gees!  ;D

Were the sound quality better and Carl more audible, I'd enjoy MIU enormously, I think.

Both are OK but deeply flawed. L.A. suffers from those lounge-sounding Carl Wilson ballads. They drag too much.

And both albums share the same problem: only two or three BBs are heard consistently.

LA has Good Timin, Baby Blue, Full Sail, Angel Come Home and Love Surrounds Me that I really like.
MIU has My Diane and maybe Pitter Patter that I really like. Woncha Come Out Tonight and Winds of Change aren't bad. Don't care for the rest.

In a fight, has to be LA. I don't mind Goin' South and even Lady Lynda. Sumahama has some nice singing on it, but the lyrics are duff and the spoken section is awful. On MIU, I don't mind the covers, but despite the production, I think it's a fairly charmless album, more so than 15 BO, as much I wouldn't surrender my admiration for My Diane.

I sure did! It mines the same territory as "Love You" did.

Here are the songs that I like off of MIU:
She's Got Rhythm,  Hey Little Tomboy, Kona Coast, Wontcha Come Out Tonight,  Sweet Sunday Kinda Love, Pitter Patter, Matchpoint. I'm tempted to include My Diane - I do like the song, but not a fan of the vocal.

The songs I like off of LA:
Good Timin', Lady Lynda.

So, there's a clear winner for me. Believe me, I've tried with L.A, and will continue to do so, but it's not just there for me. M.I.U's songs, while cheezy and nostalgic, are not overlong, well produced,  and the drums sound awesome for a late 70s record. And, it doesn't have the disco version of Here Comes The Night.

LA is the last great Beach Boys album. MIU is the first truly bad Beach Boys album (15 Big Ones at least is interesting).

I would take a mediocre BB original over a good cover any day. That's just me, though. 15 BO, to me,  is interesting for the originals, like Had To Phone Ya and It's OK.

Most of MIU had no Carl, Dennis or Bruce while most of LA has no Mike, Brian or Al - everyone loses.

I think MIU is very solid all the way through.  It's one of my favorite albums.  My Diane, Matchpoint, and Sweet Sunday are among my favorite tracks of all time.  The album would be better with more Dennis, of course, but My Diane is one of his best vocals IMO.

On LA, I love Good Timin, Baby Blue, Love Surrounds Me, and Angel Come Home.  I like Goin South and Full Sail.  But the disco Here Comes the Night is a huge unlistenable hole in the middle of the album.  Sumahama and Lady Lynda are weak, and I do not understand Brian's obsession with Shortenin Bread.  

Obviously there is room for disagreement.  

L.A has some great tracks on it but M.I.U is a more consistent listen start to finish IMO and is therefore a 'better album.'

When I first got heavily into the band, I preferred MIU over LA; I found the former to be much more "tuneful" than the latter. As time went on I began to find the former boring except for a few tracks, and began to love the latter. LA for sure...the last great album the band made. I'd almost have preferred if they ended at LA, rather than TWGMTR.

Are you saying, RangeRover, that Baby Blue isn't a good song??

These are two albums which in my mind are almost required to be combined into one, because that's the only way you can get all six of them fairly represented. Personally it drives me up a wall that "Here Comes the Night" is on there at all. If you're going to do a disco number (which I don't object to, FWIW), at least make it a new song.

Easily two of my least favorite albums.  I even like Summer In Paradise and am well aware how bad it is.  For all the faults of Summer In Paradise (and there are PLENTY), the album is consistent (as well as consistenly bad) through out.  Mike and Terry, etc. definitely had a vision and goal.  Both MIU & LA sound like hodgepodges where the band is just going through the motions.  That's just me tho.  You're fully entitled to disagree.

I find MIU more consistent too. Most of it is crap. LA does have more genuinely good songs.

Whichever one has "My Diane" on it.

I believe that one is on the album "Pet Sounds".

I wanna say L.A.

But this is like asking which shin you'd prefer to be kicked in.

It does kind of get us back to if the question of if they had put a shorter version of HCTN on L.A. people would probably hold it in higher regard overall...

But, can you imagine Mike Love in a disco suit dancing to Donna Summer?

yes. obviously, yes.

he wrote it!

Nobody Likes Belles of Paris :/?

Bells of Christmas is better. that 70s Christmas album is a great album.

yes i prefer belles of christmas too :)

M.I.U. has grown on me a little but I prefer L.A. for the excellent Carl and Dennis material. If you removed the overlong disco remake of Here Comes the Night and Shortnin' Bread and replaced them with some early 70's outtakes or Adult Child sessions rejects/ rewrites, you'd have yourself an excellent album.

Oh, I don't know about that. Al's stuff was pretty dire on that one. I have a soft spot for "Winter Symphony", though.

I don't normally do this, but I did this. But I would never remove Shortenin' Bread.


Side 1.

1. Good Timin'
2. Baseball (It's Trying To Say)
3. Lady Lynda
4. Angel Come Home
5. Lines
6. Love Surrounds Me
7. Full Sail

Side 2

8. California Feelin'
9. Baby Blue
10. Goin' South
11. Sumahama
12. Still I Dream Of It
13. Shortenin' Bread


Howzat? You've got a album with a strong quirky Brian presence, lots of Carl and Dennis, and Al and Mike get their spots (with strategic Bruce cameo).

L.A hands down and its not even close.  Some of Dennis' best and final work.  Him and Carl kill it on the album

LA = Dennis + Carl with limited Mike

MIU = Mike + Al with Limited Dennis & Carl

LA > MIU even with the biggest abortion in BB history

Nope, "Pet Sounds" is the album with "Cuckoo Clock."

If I had to choose between MIU and LALA, I would take Adult Child.

I like some of those cuts too, but 'Santa's On His Way' and 'Xmas Time Is Here Again' kill it for me big time.

Hey, that's my favorite too! Now count me in BOP fan club!  ;)

You read my mind....

;D hell yeah!

Heh, I do think Adult Child is better than both albeit barely over LA. They're pretty much in the same boat with some great tunes mixed in with middling fare.

Whereas MIU is a turd. It's not a smelly bit of fecal matter like The Beach Boys or a bucket of diarrhea like Summer in Paradise. But it certainly still squishes in between your toes.

Songs I really enjoy listening to on MIU:

She’s Got Rhythm
Kona Coast
Wontcha Come Out Tonight
Pitter Patter
Winds of Change

Not a bad song, but not that joyful to me:

My Diane

Songs I really enjoy listening to on LA:

Angel Come Home

Not bad songs, but not that joyful to me:

Good Timin’
Full Sail
Baby Blue

That makes MIU my preferred album of those two.

Wow...MIU vs LA...that's like deciding which testicle I'd rather have shorn off without anesthetic...

All i can say is....in 2000 when the post-Capitol albums were reissued as twofer CDs, I found out that the guy working checkout at the store where I bought it is also a fan, because I went in to get Holland / So Tough and I didn't see it (the others were there), and the guy said, "I'll check the back room. I already put my own copy aside, and if we don't have any more copies, you'll have to fight me for mine." When the rest came out, the same guy was there. He gave me a dirty look and said, "You're actually BUYING MIU and L.A.?!"

A fecal matter containing Where I Belong, I Do Love You and Male Ego is a piece of fecal matter that i'd be personally happy to smear about my body quite contently for several hours at a time...

and you can smear some Getcha back and Californai Calling on me too. Both guilty pleasures.
I still love Rock 'n'Roll to the Rescue !

Light Album for me, even though it could've used A LOT more Brian and it doesn't contain one single song that blows me away the way "My Diane" does. Still very solid and enjoyable and I love both "Good Timin'" and "Baby Blue". "Lady Lynda" is pure cheese but I like it. Despite the notable inclusion of "Shortenin' Bread", L.A. really could have used some actual humor, it sounds very grown-up and safe in a bit of a boring way to me. They probably should've included "Calendar Girl", which is one of my favorite 15BO-like covers. And the last song on the album definitely should've been "California Feeling" - that would've made up for the lack of Brian I'm sure. Perfect way to end such an overall mellow record I think.

It's not supposed to be joyful. it's very good at not being joyful. and it's still pretty catchy.

Easily M.I.U. for me, although I'll admit that I probably haven't listened to Light Album enough. I hated M.I.U. the first time I heard it then returned to it two years later and fell in love with a few tracks:

She's Got Rhythm
Wontcha Come Out Tonight?
Pitter Patter
and My Diane

I can't say that I feel that way about any tracks of of L.A. yet.

I can't understand the love for Pitter Patter, it precisely fits the definition of "banal" imo. What should I be listening out for?

it's really catchy and the lyrics fit in really well with the melody. the harmonies are pretty cool, especially Mike's "pitter patter pitter patter, of the rain" bass vocals.

Listen out for the opening line, as a prompt to skip to "My Diane"

What I meant to say (not being a native English speaker) was that there are sad BB songs that I still enjoy listening to. I guess something in the arrangement of My Diane bugs me, however I can't name it.

I love 5 songs on MIU:
-Hey Little Tomboy
-Sweet Sunday Love
-Belles of Paris
-My Diane
-Match Point

Most of the rest is cringe worthy, although She's Got Rhythm is growing on me.

LA has nothing cringe worthy on it. No, not even Here Comes the Night. But outside of Good Timin, Baby Blue and Shortnen Bread, most of LALA is kind of boring to me. If I am in the mood, I can enjoy songs like Lady Lynda, Full Sail and Sumahama, but they don't have that magic that many BB songs have. Angel Come Home has grown on me a bit.

So I would say LALA is more consistent, but the top 5 songs on MIU, I listen to the most along with Good Timin.

I'll say this again, I LOVE the drum sound on M.I.U!

Melodically it's one of the strongest of their songs from that era. Plus I like the arrangement.  Especially the country guitar part that comes in at the line "a rain swept plain". It's a good guilty pleasure later tune with mediocre/unimportant lyrics, but the same could be said about a lot of the stuff in their prime. The early surfy stuff comes to mind along with songs like "Vegetables".

Plus, I'm biased. I loathe astrology, so I'll take unimportant lyrics with a good melody over most of Mike's lyrics from that decade.

Well 30 years ago i would have said I prefer LA. Today I would say MIU is a not necessarily better more more enjoyable. When I listen to LA today it makes me sad knowing these were Dennis' last vocals. His voice ragged he lost his range. I know a lot of people like that about his voice.  I don't necessarily like the record less but I hear it differently today. 

 MIU, call it a guilty pleasure but I like Woncha come out tonight, Belles of Paris, Matchpoint, and especially Carls vocal Sweet Sunday Kind Of Love. I also appreciate what ron Altbach brought to the project. I think what maybe gets forgotten, somehow, during that time in Iowa, Brian was (perhaps for a brief time) focused. His vocal range seems strong.  I enjoy today listening to Woncha, or Shes got rhythm.
Some great songs on LA too. I like Good Timin' Lady Lynda and Sumahama.  Here comes the night is fine (even the Stones and RodStewart offered a dance tune back the)  but 3-4 minutes too long. 30 years later its MIU.

jet without wings

"I don't believe in that album and it's an embarrassment to my life. It should self-destruct.. I hope that the karma will f*** up Mike Love’s meditation forever."

- Dennis Wilson on the MIU album
Just stronger songs and less embarassment on LA album.  Plus a lot more Dennis and Carl on LA.  For me again its a no brainer.  Though "Sweet Sunday Kinda Love" is a great forgotten gem of MIU.  

(http://www.thatericalper.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Dennis-Wilson-flips-Mike-Love-the-bird-while-brother-Carl-looks-on-in-astonishment..jpg)

D'ya know - I'm a late comer to post Love You Beach Boys, and I have to say the more I listen to MIU the more I think it doesn't deserve its dire reputation. It sounds more consistent than LA to me. There's something kinky and perverted about the whole thing but in a creative way, if that's possible. I stated previously that I only care for side 2 but after blasting Wontcha Come Out Tonight in the car today which sounded INCREDIBLE I'm thinking, Peggy Sue aside, side 1 is not looking too shabby either.

I say poll this thing and let's be done with it.

Or are you LA freaks chickensh*t!?

I tried L.A again today. Good Timin' is the standout track, and the fact that it comes first means everything else doesn't measure up. Lady Lynda is...nice. Sumahama is kinda cool. I'm not a fan of Dennis' gravel voice, so his tracks don't do anything for me, and Carl's tracks are O.K but there isn't any excitement.

Say what you will, but M.I.U has so much more energy than L.A. It's cheesy energy, sure, but there's loads of cheeze on Love You and that album gets praised all over the place.

I only have these two albums on vinyl, as the CD is crazy expensive. Wish I could hear what they sounded like remastered from the twofer.

I'm telling you, lose the HCTN disco mix and sling on your favourite Adult/Child songs in it's place and L.A becomes one of their strongest 70's albums.

Side A of L.A. (Light Album) is a fine side. You have a BW classic ("Good Timin"), IMO Al's best song ("Lady Lynda"), a decent Mike song ("Sumahama"), and plenty of Dennis and Carl. A nice overall team effort.

It's Side B where things start to go wrong. Think about it: Side B only has 4 songs, and 3 of them are "Here Comes The Night" (11 minute version), "Goin' South", and "Shortenin' Bread". It's very hard to rank that side over many other BB sides. That Side B was just crying for another Brian Wilson composition.

It's interesting, but Brian Wilson can barely be found on L.A. (Light Album), and, he's all over MIU - composition and vocals wise - yet there is still much debate. I'll go with MIU. If you end MIU with "Our Team", which they should've, I'd put MIU right behind Love You and ahead of the rest (post 1978).

M.I.U. for me
Alan at least got Brian to sing a lot better than he had in years. Corny Lp but full of energy and fun to boot when compared to that clunker L.A.

You're all mad, i tell you, mad! MIU is 90% dreadful. At least half of LA is great. It's a no-brainer.

They're both good. The beach boys always make good albums. Always.

I wish I could agree with that but I can't . I can barely sit through 15 Big Ones. That album is awful imo.

As much you're a sound poster, musician and dude, this is wrong.

I thought he was being sarcastic.

Same thing here. Though with LA, Sumahama and Dennis's songs aren't bad.

Nah, i just really like the beach boys. Sorry that's weird even on a beach boys board.

I really like the Beach Boys too. Hell, I love the Beach Boys more than I love almost anything. But that still doesn't make Stars and Stripes or Summer In Paradise a good album :)

I honestly feel like i'm forcing myself to listen to it anymore. Sure their are great songs on both, but my mind usually wanders to something else very quickly. if i had to choose probably MIU. LA just seems too thin for some reason.

M.I.U
 

Are you seriously describing Baby Blue - one of the finest ballads in the bands entire catalogue - as 'not bad'?
Ok all you MIU fans, excluding My Diane, name me one song on MIU that even comes close to either Good Timin' or Angel Come Home?

Kona Coast and Hey Little Tomboy are definitely better than Good Timin'.

Hey Little Tomboy, Kona Coast, Wontcha Come Out Tonight, Sweet Sunday Kind of Love, Belles of Paris, Matchpoint & Pitter Patter are all preferable to me. Whether they're technically better songs I don't know, but I enjoy them more.

I like Good Timin' as much or more than my favorites on MIU. As far as Angel Come Home, I think most of MIU is far better than it. Just my opinion.

It's a tough call.  M.I.U. flows more like an album, seeming too nostalgic and saccharine at times but quirky and melodic at others.  L.A. probably contains the songs I like the least but also brings more songs to their full potential.

M.I.U. Album

She's Got Rhythm (strained but oddly appealing Brian falsetto and a decent enough tune)
Come Go With Me (I waver on this one, but it's a competent and safe cover)
Hey Little Tomboy (I usually don't care about lyrics, but they're slightly uncomfortable here; would be Love You-worthy if the production were different I think)
Kona Coast (a little too banal and generic, and the Hawaii section with I merely liked in its originaly form is weaker here)
Peggy Sue (fairly pedestrian sounding cover that I'm not too fond of)
Wontcha Come Out Tonight (a slight song reasonably performed)
Sweet Sunday Kinda Love (I don't think it's Carl at his best, but I enjoy the song overall)
Belles of Paris (never was a fan of this one; not overly impressive as a song and feels overproduced)
Pitter Patter (nothing breathtaking, but solid all around)
My Diane (easily the best song of the album; nice tune, well-produced and performed)
Match Point of Our Love (sue me, I really like this; Brian sounds amazing here and the lyrics are more cheesy than offensive)
Winds of Change  (schmaltzy and a departure in sound, but a couple nice moments such as the tag)

L.A. (Light Album)

Good Timin' (very pleasing opener with a simple structure and good vocals)
Lady Lynda (used to like it more; think it's still alright but not a big fan of the production)
Full Sail (verges a bit on the slow side, but nice enough)
Angel Come Home (Carl's best on the album with Dennis wisely being given the lead)
Love Surrounds Me (gritty, dark, and probably the coolest late 70's track credited to the Beach Boys)
Sumahuma (I think there may be a decent song in there, but I can't say the production or general performance works for me here)
Here Comes the Night (didn't mind it the first time around, but on repeated listens the disco cliches becomes grating and the length is ridiculous)
Baby Blue (very pretty Dennis ballad, a strong track all around)
Goin' South (sleepy Carl tune, a little too sleepy)
Shortenin' Bread (apologies to Brian but this bores me to no end)

Ideally I'd combine what I like of both into a decent late 70's album.

She's Got Rhythm
Come Go With Me
Wontcha Come Out Tonight
Sweet Sunday Kinda Love
Pitter Patter
My Diane
Match Point of Our Love
Good Timin'
Full Sail
Angel Come Home
Love Surrounds Me
Baby Blue

I suppose M.I.U. gets the edge in track presence but L.A. has more highs.

Speaking of Good Timin' - all the songs, even She's Got Rhythm. But I suspect it's because Good Timin' itself is a bore to me. Every time I fail in my attempt of liking it.
If Angel Come Home - not all the songs come close to this. But if name only one song I'd vote for Winds of Change.
[/quote]
Belles of Paris :) the harmonies on that song are beautiful but the lyrics are pretty cheesy lol

Well each to their own i suppose...

But you are all wrong you know that? Winds Of Change better than Angel Come Home? Hey Little Tomboy better than Good Timin'? Baby Blue average? Only opinions i know, but what opinions!!

MIU is the lowest point for the Brother-era Beach Boys in my opinion.  The only song I like on it is "Come Go with Me."  LA on the other hand has "Good Timin'" which is one of my favorites, two solid Dennis numbers in "Baby Blue" and "Love Surrounds Me" in addition to "Lady Lynda" which is one of the better Al Jardine compositions.

I would call "LA" the better album but all in all, they're both duds by Beach Boys standards.

I think LA has the stronger material but I enjoy and listen more to MIU.

Since it's unlikely these albums will get a remaster, does anyone know of a place to get the twofer affordably? I have vinyl copies of both albums, would like to hear what they sounds like off the tapes - maybe I will gain a greater appreciation of LA in that context.

Both albums have their moments but neither one are "essential listening" as far as the Beach Boys go. The last good album was Love You. After  that it's ehhh

IMHO, the last good album was Sunflower. I admit though that Love You was the last unique album.

That kind of sums up my opinion. MIU has some bad songs, but then some very enjoyable songs, and LA while it hasn't that many bad songs is overall a bit boring - to me.

I agree ..

lol

L.A. Light Album, hands down!  :bow It isn't even a contest!

Let's see: M.I.U. has:
My Diane
Pitter Patter
and maybe Match Point Of Our Love for it's beautiful music and one of Brian's last great vocals. The lyrics are rubbish though.

L.A. has:
Good Timin'
Lady Lynda
Love Surrounds Me
Angel Come Home
Baby Blue

Hell, even give me the Disco Here Comes The Night over most of M.I.U. Though Sumahama is worse than anything off M.I.U.!

L.A., although M.I.U. has its moments.
I know everyone hates the Here Comes The Night disco remix, but it's still a great song in disco form. imo.

Agreed. People talk about how horrible the disco Here Comes The Night is and how it's one of the worst BB's songs ever made, yet it isn't even the worst song off L.A. Light Album!  :lol
Honestly though, the disco version is very underrated, I've always liked it although I prefer the original Wild Honey version

L.A. definitely had the better merchandise, including coloured/picture disc vinyl, posters, displays, towels, postcards, buttons, etc... ;D

It's all subjective. In my mind:

MIU has

1. She's Got Rhythm
2. Kona Coast
3. Woncha Come Out Tonight
4. Pitter Patter

LA has
1. Angel Come Home

which I would include in a best of 70s compilation. MIU beats LA 4-1 in my mind.

BTW, does anybody have Good Timin' in its 2004 unplugged live incarnation? That one is awesome.

Seriously? Kona Coast?
The song with some of the lyrics taken from the classic Hawaii from 1963?

I completely agree with this with one small addition:
add "Full Sail". I know it's wimp-rock (MOR) or whatever but it has an instant calming effect on me and Carl sounds nice and not forced on it.

But I completely agree with Fading Rock Genre (thought it was Group?) Revival. Those are the only 3 songs on MIU I can handle. I absolutely hate Brian's vocal on "She's Got Rhythm". "Pitter Patter" starts off sounding almost like a rock song. "My Diane" is very emotional but does suffer from some bad editing on the ending loop. "Kona Coast" is so awful it makes my ears bleed. "Shortenin' Bread" should have remained in the can as well (or at the very least been edited down to "Ding Dang" length).

Nobody asked me but I like M.I.U better.  Half of it is horrible but the other half is good. Whereas L.A. is so boring I can hardly bear to listen to anything on it except Love Surrounds Me and Angel Come Home. And even those twain are further into the realms of AOR than I normally allow myself to go.

Though in fairness L.A. is more artistically valid as it sounds like they were engaging with their times and doing stuff they'd never done before, and it could have been a path leading to better things. 

Both albums are flawed vocal wise. MIU has hardly any Dennis and Carl, LA is missing Brian, Mike and Al for the most part.

Not to mention MIU has literally no Bruce and LA has

I listen to MIU much more than LA. MIU sounds like an album, but LA sounds like a collection of unrelated songs with transitions between tracks I find quite jarring. Production is pretty poor too on LA.

Baby Blue is the best song on either album, but i find i rarely listen to it.

Yup. I like its cheerfulness and enjoy listening to it. It has a nice drum sound and a nice melody too. I don't care they cite a 1963 song, it's only in the fade. I told you this was subjective.

Nothing to add, big fan of Kona Coast right here. Even more so, I prefer it over Hawaii (though it's still a good song).

LA by far, for Baby Blue alone. And if the album had the short single version of Here Comes the Night and Shortenin' Bread (or Sumahama) replaced with the wonderful California Feelin' from '78 we've heard on the Made in California box, it would have been even better.

I don't dislike MIU as much as some others. The lyrics of Tomboy may be rancid, but the song is very easy to listen to musically. My Diane is great. I cringe at She's Got Rhythm, with the reference to disco dancing. Al's covers are good, and I like Wind of Change. Matchpoint is also easy to listen to, notwithstanding the lyrics, and is similar in mellow tone to Busy Doin' Nothing. Pitter Patter is slight, but good. The album would have been much improved if Belles of Paris was replaced with Our Team, and She's Got Rhythm and Wontcha Come Out Tonight replaced with It's Over Now and Still I Dream of It.

M.I.U. is Pet Sounds compared to L.A.

It flows and it's only bad song is in the end (Winds of Change). L.A. has songs that are miles ahead of any song from M.I.U., that's for sure. Those include Baby Blue, Love Surrounds Me and Angel Come Home. But L.A. has the worst song Beach Boys propably ever recorded: Sumahama. Plus a lot stuff that's just... not so good. (By the way, I love Here Comes the Night.) M.I.U. is a lot more cohesive. It's corny as hell, but so what. Actually that's the main reason why it is so great. Neither of them are bad. M.I.U. is just much more listenable as an album. L.A. beats in the song section, but it ain't a great listening experience. 

I'm in for that.



Oooh, no!!! Those are the most cheerful tracks, I'd rather drop the cover versions.

I can think of worse songs than "Sumahama" without even thinking about it. How about "Belles Of Paris"? Hell, let's just be honest and admit that their greatest run was from 1963 - 1975 and there is an occasional diamond in the rough after that. Never try to turn somebody on to the BB by playing them the 1985 album for instance (or MIU, LA, KTSA, etc.).

I'm going to have to agree with RiC here. Had it not been for the SIP album, I'd consider Sumahama to be the absolute worst song the BB's ever made!

For me Summer In Paradise lives in a whole other univers. There's definetely songs worse than Sumahama on it, but I think everyone knows that. I don't find Belles of Paris that bad. It's definetely one of the worst songs on M.I.U. with Hey Little Tomboy. But the latter is a classic in it's own weird way...

Throw out Sumahama and replace the long diso HCTN with the short single version and add 2-3 songs buy Dennis/Carl/Brian and we'd have one of the best BB 70's albums, not one of the worst. And that would definetely beat M.I.U.

Yeah, throw out Sumahama, replace the long Disco version of HCTN with the single version, and edit Shortenin' Bread to make it similar to Ding Dang.
Then, add the underrated It's A Beautiful Day and at least one more Dennis song (either My Love Lives On or a Bambu song), and one more Carl song, and you've got yourself a possible classic!

LA by a long shot.

I find these albums very interesting to analyze.  It was one of the early CDs I got from the Beach Boys because I was just getting into them and happened to stumble into the twofer.  It's given me plenty of listens and much time to really work through how I feel about that.  In both cases, I think the enjoyment soured a bit.  M.I.U. sounds like a poor Beach Boys album with some worthwhile highlights, while L.A. sounds like a late 70's band with a mixture of good and bad tracks.

M.I.U. is far more listenable as an album, while L.A. has more songs that work completely and are artistically interesting.  The production is a little cheesy and pedestrian in the former and can be dull or glossy in the latter. 

I like M.I.U.'s vocals quite a bit better because it sounds like the band members actually singing naturally in a studio.  I find the vocals on the two Bruce Johnston produced albums to have a habit of sounding processed or at the very least not tapping into that clean group harmony sound that pervades most of their previous work.

These two would have been better with one album I suppose, although they don't necessarily gel stylistically.

sh*t vs vomit

M.I.U. may be sh*t for the most part, but L.A. is in no way vomit! (Except for Sumahama, of course)
In fact, I'd dare say it's their last near-classic album, just as Holland is their last classic album, The Beach Boys 85 is their last great album, and TWGMTR the last good album

My view of MIU sometimes depends on context. When I listen to it on its own, it's OK (pun not intended) but very slight except for My Diane. When I listened to it on my USB compilation of Beach Boys and solo tracks in (approximate) chronological order, and Dennis's Mexico is immediately followed by MIU's Won'tcha Come Out Tonight., I cringe.

(http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/99pgXBv33kI/hqdefault.jpg)

Always been a fan of the slight MIU - from the second I first put it on when the 2000 twofers came out.  It was just fun and easy to listen to.  And still retains that "Brian is back" 15 Big Ones/Love You-era feel for me -- which is a personal favorite.


LA always seemed a little more distant.  Unfocused, perhaps lethargic.  Overall, fairly uneven and not very Beach Boys-y.  Totally phoned in feel.  The 35 minute disco romp?  Most importantly there was no Brian.

But time has been kind to LA.  I like Dennis' stuff, and Lady Lynda and Full Sail and Goin' South.  I love these songs.  It's a much deeper album than MIU and I wish there was more late 70s polished gems like these from the Beach Boys.  In many ways -- more than the any other 70s album -- it hints at what they could have been in this decade.

If I read about MIU -- and the relations between the Wilson Bros and the rest of the band -- it makes me mot like MIU.  It maybe the single worst recording experience they ever had.  Just an awful location -- cold, middle of nowhere.  Bored.  It started out as an Xmas album??  Then was retooled.  Or was it the other way around.  No Carl.  No Dennis.  A lot of Mike.  A lot of Al.  If I think about this dreadful, dismal experience -- it makes me not like MIU.  So... I just hit myself in the head with a hammer.   :lol