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If this song were written and recorded in the 60s it would be considered right up there with early songs like California Girls and Help Me Rhonda.

What do you think?


The more I listen to this new album the more I am amazed at how incredible the Brian tracks are.  An incredible achievement after 50 years.

I consider it to be up there with Don't Worry Baby.

I don't care who wrote it, when it was recorded, or that Joe Thomas was involved....it's a great song. And the boys sound phenomenal on it.

Hmmmm. I would put it on Summer in Paradise and try hard to forget it existed... >:D

That's an excellent one as well. 

The end of the album however reminds me more of Abbey Road.  It's an excellent closer to a fantastic career.

From an ear standpoint, no it isn't (imo). Pleasant enough, but no way would I put it in any kind of top 10 in terms of Beach Boys songs.

What??

It's an average-ok song, not great, not bad, nice moments, poor moments, it's... meh. Not a classic by any stretch., whenever it was recorded.

I happen to agree. The song is darn good, period. Some of the main concerns have to do with its execution, but I still find it good enough.

Those that dismiss it musically are kindly invited to grab their instrument and trying to figure out its chords and voicings.

Any impressiveness in the composition due to the inability of uncultured peasants to figure out chords is automatically detracted from with lines like "Push button heaven" and Jeff Foskett's autotuned wailing in the chorus.

"California Girls" had the complex composition, the lyrics, the production, and the 11 out of 10 performance, where as "That's Why God" has some of the former, which doesn't make a great song by itself. Songs aren't mathematical equations and nothing more, folks.

It's not even in the same league. Don't Worry Baby is teenage. It's rock and roll. You can make out to it. It's a cleverly written song; an inspired composition. That's Why God Made The Radio was a highly calculated effort on a Desmond Child/Holly Knight level. Still, it's a nice song.

It might be a complex song but it's not a very good song, imo.

Well east coast girls are hip
I really dig those styles they wear
And the southern girls with the way they talk
They knock me out when Im down there

Well....^^

No issues here. Mike's efforts to convince folks that the Beach Boys were legit Californians that surfed and lived the lifestyle (sorry to use such a meaningless word, but I don't know how else to articulate what I'm going for) when most of them didn't or didn't to a very large extent never got much better than that. I'll grant you it may be the weakest element of the song, but still.

TWGMTR is one of the worst songs on the new album. so it's definitely not a top 10 Beach Boys song.

It might have been Top Twenty in their heyday, but more so because almost everything they were releasing was going Top Twenty.
Might have made a good album track, but as a single, I don't think it would be regarded as a classic. More in the category of something like Dance Dance Dance, which is a good song, but people don't go apeshit for it like California Girls or Help me Rhonda.

Very 'meh' track on a 'bleh' album, the 'yeah' suite notwithstanding.  Nowhere near the top 10. 

Interesting ... so the new line is that people don't like TWGMTR?

That took just about two months.

All's I'm saying is there's no way I'd consider it a top 10 Beach Boys song. Like I said somewhere above, it's pleasant enough and I like it, I just don't agree with it being a top 10 track on any level. Just me, though.

TWGMTR is this week's Bruce.

Great song on a great album. If you don't agree, I feel sorry for you.

This. I happen to love both the album and the song.  Lines like push button heaven are just as endearing and 'Wilson' as anything from Solar System.

Translation:

“I know more about music than all the rest of you combined.  I have determined every song ever released by the Beach Boys to be ‘great.’  My opinion cannot be questioned, so anyone who thinks this or any other Beach Boys song is less than perfect is a f****n idiot.”

hahahahaha

With a catalogue like the Beach Boys, it might be a hasty statement to make.  That being said, having casually tried to play on the piano there really is a lot going on in terms of chord changes and the like.  With this in mind, I think it is a better a composition than the actual performance and production demonstrate.

C major to A major at the beginning of the verse (a la TWOTS, but different), C to E-flat to D-flat in the chorus, F# (G-flat) major with a sudden shift to C major via a D minor 7....I can't think of a song where the harmonic changes have seemed so bewilderingly fresh after hundreds of listens.  The bridge is weak but acceptable.  

Compositionally (harmonically) I'd put it with This Whole World, the aforementioned TWOTS, Pacific Coast Highway (drops from E-flat to D-flat) and Surf's Up. Oh hell, parts of "Love You" too (Solar System, LUGOTW).

The song is good, but it's not a "classic".  I was indifferent to it at first, but it has grown on me.  The real test is what we will think of this song several years down the road.  Will it still hold up?  I remember everyone gushing over Imagination when it came out.  I think it's fair to say *that* album didn't exactly age well...

I was disappointed in Imagination the day it came out-- and Brian even signed my cd that day. 

TWGMTR has been jizzgasmic from day one.

I think the song is definitely a classic. I don't know about top 10, but it's got serious staying power.

The way the chorus ascends is almost ecclesiastical. It's spiritual like Brian's best work, and like a lot of his music it's got a lot of deeper stuff going on even though it appears to be a simple pop song about the radio. He's sneaky like that. But then again, the word God does appear directly in the title.

Whoever said Don't Worry Baby is a makeout song, insinuating that TWGMTR is not, needs to actually give it a chance in that capacity. It works for me.

What a stupid inflammatory statement. Are you serious?
Please don't feel sorry for me. I'm enjoying plenty of other music besides one song on the new Beach Boys record.

I'm not stupid, 29-post Blohi. If you take my flippantly stated opinion seriously enough to actually take offense, you're worse off than I assumed. I haven't started the flames, you'll know when I do, trust me. Enjoy the album.

Not top ten but pretty great, in my opinion. Gets the DOES NOT SUCK stamp from me.

...Or, not.

It's not that you can't figure out the chords; it's that when you do, you realize "damn, there's a lot going on there".  Like the first time I got the chords to "This Whole World", and realized that it changes keys nine times in about two minutes, but makes it look seamless.  Sounds simple, does something unexpected and beautiful.

Cheers,
Jon Blum

Man. Fuck your avatar forever and ever.  :'(

are we really arguing that more chords makes for a better song?

I like the song, I just think it's one of the worst on the album. but I like it. the worst songs on Beach Boys albums tend to still be good songs, in my opinion, because I really like the Beach Boys.

It's my least favorite song on the new album by a country mile.

I've f***ing hated that song with a passion since the moment I heard it, and would've definitely voiced my opinion if I didn't think I would be crucified for it.

It's awful. The lyrics and production are down there with Summer of Love. "Making this night a celebration / spreading the love and sunshine / to a whole new generation" are likely the worst things they ever gathered around a microphone to sing. It reminds me of that little turnaround at the end of Randy Newman's Love Story, but infinitely more depressing.

The other songs on TWGTMR range from okay to great. The title track is just abysmal and shouldn't have even been on the album. I'd like a dollar for every new fan that put the album in recycle bin as soon as they heard TUUUUNING IN THE LAAATEST STAAAR

The comments about the chords are interesting, and I want to see somebody totally rewrite the song with new lyrics, arrangement, and without using a computer.

It might -- just about -- make the top 100 Beach Boys songs for me. Which isn't to say that it isn't very clever, but Godel's Incompleteness Theorem is also very clever, but makes a lousy pop song.

As a listener, the songs on the new album that have repaid repeated listening are Isn't It Time, Shelter, The Private Life Of Bill And Sue, From There To Back Again and Strange World. Most of the rest I can live without. That's Why God Made The Radio is one of the better less-good songs on the album to my mind, if you see what I mean. It'd probably interest me more were it not so derivative.

That said, it's caught people's imagination more than I expected -- I've had a number of non-fan friends and family mention to me how much they liked hearing the song on the radio, and the crowds at the two gigs I've seen so far loved it.

does someone want to count how many times they say "That's why god made" during the course of the song?

Very well put.

I can't be arsed trwaling through old threads to find out exactly where i said it (probably in the New Album Info thread), but i disliked TWGMTR when i first heard it and stated so on here at the time, and my opinion of the song hasn't much changed since then. The opening track on the new album is great, as is Isn't It Time, and - of course - the closing suite. I don't like any of the rest of it, and i really quite strongly can't stand Shelter and Daybreak... So there you go.

10? It is a song that sounds pretty good on cd, but it is almost impossible to recreate live. Like California Saga (Cal.) or I Can Hear Music, it's one of those songs that simply don't work in a live setting.

As compositition: I think the modulations are in a similar abrubt style like Your Imagination, esp. the chorusses. To me it's a forced, fake modern style, it doesn't flow naturaly like f.e. in This Whole World. (also famous for his many chords and modulations)

---

ps
And I should have made some rhythm variations with the line "TWGMTR", just like they did with "You need good timing"

For me, a nice song on a good album, no more, no less. I certainly agree with the notion that it's a bit Desmond Child-like (which I can accept because overall it's fairly successful at what it's supposed to be but I'm glad there are a couple of songs on the album that don't feel quite as forced as this one).

No, but you could loop that phrase and alternate it with a loop of " No go showboat" and add Bill Withers going "I know, I know, I know..." as an accompanying riff. Add a beat, and you could have a fun afternoon. Oh, and lop the intro to BW's Walkin' The Line...it would fit with the other stuff.

Or, maybe not.

Agree about TWGMTR. Disagree about the other two. Nevertheless, GV, GOK and a few others would fall into the same category of songs hard to present live. Eventually ways are arrived at to perform them in a satisfactory way. The group did not live long enough with the song; it wasn't toured first and then recorded (which is the way Brian's band has worked more recently). But they will eventually make it work. To me it flows nicely on record, but not so much live yet.

(http://i3.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/007/508/watch-out-we-got-a-badass-over-here-meme.png)

....  ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ???

YEAH, BLOHI. MORE LIKE "BLOWS-GUYS." LIKE AN INDIAN NAME. THANKS AGAIN FOR THE POSTER, "BLOWS GUYS."

In the midst of this increasingly bizarre exchange between the "29-post" guy (with whom I must say I empathize, since my "number" is similarly meagre...) and the long-time veteran whose keyboard seems all-too-often to get stuck in SHOUT mode, we have enough actual opinion about TWGMTR to provide a tentative conclusion about the OP's claim.

I read the commentary that provided opinion about the song, and assigned it to a "slot" in a hypothetical poll that would have been worded as follows:

Please state your opinion/evaluation/feelings about "That's Why God Made the Radio":

--Strongly like (6)
--Somewhat like (9)
--Neutral...or, if you prefer, "meh"  (7)
--Somewhat dislike (5)
--Strongly dislike (3)

The current (interpreted) poll responses are listed above in (parentheses).

Of course, absolutely nothing scientific here, and such a question isn't really responsive to the OP's specific claim. (But thanks to those who've weighed in on the chords and provided information/context in that area--very interesting stuff.)

As for myself, I think the chorus is beautiful, a lovely reconstitution of major-minor shifts that work so well in "All Summer Long" and "Kiss Me Baby." The rest of the song is considerably less accomplished, however.

Maybe if this song had been written in the 60s, and given a sparkling arrangement a la Breakaway or Soulful Old Man Shoeshine, it would be an underrated gem. As it is, add my vote to the 'meh' song on a 'bleh' album not withstanding the 'yeah' suite, which perfectly sums up my opinion.

A bit plastic, a bit overpolished, but "nice".

Look, sometimes it's necessary to shout. It's actually almost always appropriate to shout, especially in nursing homes and at Blohi (aka "BLOWS GUYS").

My feeling is that the album is good, compares favorably with some of the "mid-level" albums in the group's catalogue and will hold up over time.
To the subject of this thread, the song TWGMTR, itself, isn't the best song on the album - its someplace in the middle - so I wouldn't consider it a "top 10" BB song (I'm basing this purely on the listening level (I know what I like when I hear it) and not considering the technical aspects (chords, key changes etc.) of which I have little, if any, knowledge. It was, however, a good choice for a single off the album as it spotlights the harmonies and the song's premise relates to the group's heyday (songs in a car on the radio). If Isn't It Time is the next single, that's a good choice also - catchy beat, use of the currently popular ukulele.
IMO, there isn't a bad song on the release. I really enjoy FTTBA (really strong), Strange World (really has grown on me), IIT and Shelter alot. The suite is excellent, though I have to be in the right mood for the mellow PCH and Summer's Gone. SV (really seems like it is about the reunion and the tour) and BIM (something about the chorus on, driving in the summer after work) are "guilty pleasures" - good melody and some catchy hooks that stay with me. TPLOBAS is "Brian being Brian" (kind of reminds me of Busy Doing Nothing for some reason) and DOTO is an ok listen (maybe slightly long). One can quibble about some of the lyrics (there is no Van Dyke Parks here) but the melodies and harmonies are good.

Then you have no right to have an opinion on music. You have no right to listen to music, really.

"I know what I like when I hear it." LOL.

To paraphrase: The world is but a (music) stage and I am just part of the audience.    ;)

yeah an uncultured audience of dotards maybe

see ya wouldnt wanna be ya

Adopting an approach and reasoning analogous to that used by Supreme Court Justice Stewart is a sufficient basis to form an opinion.    ;D

My, My, My.     Such a FUSS!!!

We all seem to like parts of the album, and many  seem to have some mixed reactions to TWGMTR.

The general response to this lp seems to be much like the general response to the song content of most BB's records over the many years; some classics, some so-so, and some filler or clinkers.

Personally, I like THWMTR best when I listen to it following the opening track.  Gets me every time.  Standing alone, I rate it as a good song, well crafted harmony and vocals, and certainly an infectious tune.  It could go in the BB top one hundred I would think.

Oh, by the way, the 29 post guy shouldn't mess with the I man  :-X :lol ;)

Agreed, there comes a time to ignore comments without substance and that time has come. Moving along...   ;)

Also agree that the harmony and vocals are good - that's why it was a good selection for a single.

I was 100% kidding, d00d. :)

You're from England, right? So you probably think that's witty by those standards?

What are you talking about? You don't know what shouting is, man. I offered my opinion, someone else didn't like how I expressed it, I didn't care, that's all.

These same standards have taught me it's utterly pathetic to be a hardman on the internet, BTW. Especially in the oh so serious domain of... (http://assets.rollingstone.com/assets/images/artists/304x304/the-beach-boys.jpg)

.

No need to further the derail. Ian is completely harmless, despite what he may think.

See ya!

STOP CALLING HIM BJ

I don't say anything here I wouldn't say in person. I can't help that it is on the Internet.

Tell that to Charles LePage.
But yeah, forget the derail. That's Why God Made The Radio is great, period. Love it.

Wow. RunnersDialZero, you are f*cked up! Honestly, where are the board moderaters when we need 'em? Please, can we have this very strange board member removed ASAP? I come on here to discuss and debate the Beach Boys, not read crap such as the above. He's clearly got some kind of mental problems, and what appears to be a violent loathing of homosexuals (possibly due to repressed homosexual urges he himself experiences and has difficulty controlling).

Blatant, over-the-top sarcasm in the form of making fun of Mr.Spaceman's recentposts calling people "pussies" and alleging that another member was a virgin for preferring emotional lyrics over car lyrics (thus making the person absolutely inferior to Mr.Spaceman and his gigantic, manly penis) is seemingly not well understood by some folks. I'll avoid it in the future - sincerely.

Sarcasm shouldn't be so blatant and over-the-top, that's the problem. More subtlety and wit, and I would be the first person laughing. Many of your other posts are quite hilarious, tho, and I enjoy them.

Honestly, all this CAPITAL LETTERS!!!!!!!! stuff is really boring, and if it's intended ironically then the joke is wearing thin.

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Thank you Compost for preserving runnerz original post. I got a hearty har-har-har out of it.

I like TWGMTR. It's a good song. No where near in the top 10. Top 40 maybe. The album maybe in the top 15 for me though.

It makes Pet Sounds stink. That's how good it is.

Recently played keyboard for a wedding service.  They gave me a list of songs (mostly country pop, ugh) to play before the service started.  I found out they didn't give me enough songs to fill the time allotted so I decided to learn TWGMTR and stick it in there.  Thanks to this site in a previous thread I found the chords.  I played it right before the bridal party song.  I think only my friend that went with me knew the song, but oh well it sounded great.  A new favorite of mine, not top 10 all time but then what is?  Killer harmony (not just vocal) in that song, Brian's got a heck of a musical mind. 

In this title track, Dave is playing his same part from "Keep an Eye on Summer" (if not from any number of similar early groves). That alone is wonderful.  Try singing the various parts as you cruise along in your car; it's not so easy.  On the iPod I "play all" the BB songs, and i't amazing how the new album tracks fit it, echo, and reference the older songs. Dave's sound has a lot to do with that. I'm sure each component in the song has various, similar early BB analogues to this one I am hearing so clearly.

Actually I think that is a reason why TWGMTR will not become a true classic. It is to hard to really sing along. I appreciate the song however, and when they played it in Berlin, I closed my eyes to enjoy its beauty better.

They could have played more songs from the new album live had the audience consisted of more me's. :wink

I disagree with the topic title.

I think it's okay, but a little cheesy. I don't think it measures up to any of the better 60s or 70s stuff at all. From There to Back Again is a different matter.  A song of real beauty.

I can't believe people here can't see past Runners' sarcasm  :lol. The dude often posts some real intelligent, coherent posts, it should be clear that 'insane' posts such as the one above is satirical. Are they necessary? Probably not, but he does add a little punch to what is sometimes a pretty dry board with them and I do think this place would be worse off without him (no homo).

I support all of Hello Kitty's posts

No homo

Same here. Honestly runners is one of the best posters on here and his use of sarcasm is obvious. So if you don't get it, shame on you.

I didn't read any of the replies, but thought I would just chime in with my two cents to your original post. 

I agree, it's a very good song.  I've been listening to the album pretty much everyday since it came out, and I've gotten to the point where I don't skip any of the tracks.  I would say "Beaches in Mind" is the weakest, just because I don't really like the theme (I love Spring Vacation). "That's why God Made the Radio" is a really great track; it's very similar in vibe to Good Timin (to me) and I've always thought that was one of their best singles too.  It has a really mature sound to it, so it's missing that early, kind of rough, young, enthusiastic sound the Beach Boys had with the early songs you mentioned (California Girls... Help Me Rhonda).  It's much slicker, and much more thought out... but it's the Beach Boys sounding impossibly good at 70 years old.  I much prefer the album mix to any of the other mixes of the single (the radio single...the video single... etc.).  Everybody condemns the "Trucker's Key Change" or whatever they call it, but I think it fits the song great.  The song is incredibly well composed, and then very well produced.  I keep coming back to it as pretty much a 'can't miss' song on the album. 

Brian's other compositions on the album, like you mentioned, are all really strong. "Shelter" has really grown on me and may be the best song on the album.  Just under 3 minutes long, it's like a classic, brilliant Brian Wilson production.  Yet 1 more love song for his long-lost Surfer Girl.  Effortlessly great.  Even the theme of the song, the idea of a song about "Shelter" is brilliant; in the quirky "I didn't catch that at first, but now I see it's greatness" way that the absolute best Brian Wilson songs are brilliant.  Beautifully sung by everybody.  Brian doubles himself apparently in places.  For whatever reason, in the first chorus, they go "Oooohhh ooooh oooooh....." but in the second chorus they go "Ahhhh ahhhh ahhhh......".   Little touches like that.  The master still has a little paint left in the bottle.