The Smiley Smile Message Board

There are certain musical patterns which often make me cry or tear up. Someday I might figure out exactly what those patterns are, but anyway, the BB's have a significant # of songs which have this effect on me. It can depend on my mood, but off the top of my head, here are some which do this to me at least sometimes. For most of these, it's just certain parts of the song.

When I Grow Up To Be a Man - usually, throughout large chunks of the song when Brian's falsettos and background vocals kick in, and the coda
God Only Knows - this used to do it all the time when Carl sings "God only knows" in the verses, but I think I've listened to it so many times the effect has worn off a good deal
Surf's Up - the coda often, the opening couple lines sometimes
Wouldn't It Be Nice - the bridge, usually
Good Vibrations - the "... I don't know where but she sends me there ..." section, very often
Don't Worry Baby - the refrain, sometimes
Let Him Run Wild - sometimes just the arrangement makes me shed a tear, sort-of a shivers-up-my-spine kind of tear, the whole song is such a great release of energy, almost liberating

There are others that come close (Warmth of the Sun comes to mind). Probably others I'm forgetting offhand.

Got your own?

Yeah, these are the songs that make me choke up and shed crocodile tears: 
Wipe Out;
Still Surfin; 
Summer In Paradise;
Viggie; 
Wrinkles;
Everything I Touch Turns Into Tears;

Still I Dream of it- Brian's hauntingly beautiful lyrics , esp. 'like a tree that's just been planted I found life today' absolutely slay me.

Yeah, I'll say that one as well.

Wouldn't It Be Nice
Don't Worry Baby
Surf's Up
It's Over Now
Our Prayer

...and the proverbial "many more."

Rockin' the Man in the Boat always makes me ball like a little baby.  :lol

In My Room
Dont Worry Baby
Warmth Of The Sun
Please Let Me Wonder
Don't Talk
Lady
Baby Blue
Thoughts Of You
Where I Belong

"A Day In The Life of a Tree"
"Life Suite" off TWGMTR...I blubber like a school girl.  Every. Damn. Time.

Many late sixties, early seventies tunes sung by Dennis.

A Time To Leave In Dreams
Be Still
Barbara
Forever
Cuddle Up
etc.

I guess, to me, he's got the most emotional voice of the boys.

ditto

.

Song For Children during Brian's Smile tour

A Day in the Life of a Tree - I really can't listen to it (big sook here)
Baby Blue
Dennis' Thoughts of you
Please Let Me Wonder

 :lol

Barbara (freakin') Ann's live incarnations make me cry like a babe in the woods

Still I Dream Of It
Kiss Me Baby -- weirdly, only the stereo version
The second movement of Smile.

'Til I Die
Meant For You
And the "Life Suite"

And also, At My Window.
It's so beautiful.

A Day in the Life of a Tree
Caroline, No
Disney Girls

I Just Wasn't Made for These Times --- "Sometimes...I feel....very sad"

You Still Believe in Me --- End harmonies

Our Prayer

Til I Die ---refrain

Don't Talk (Vocal snippet) from Pet Sounds sessions

Life Suite on TWGMTR

Break Away --- "Found it was in my head" section

Wind Chimes (Smile Sessions version) --- For some reason I always believed this song was about Brian falling into mental illness.  It brings tears to my eyes for that reason

Thoughts of You

Getcha Back
Summer's Gone

I love music, and in particular The Beach Boys' music to pieces. Rarely have I ever cried, choked up or shed tears to music. I just don't, doesnt mean I don't utterly love what im listening to...

"That's Not Me", both the full and instrumental tracks.

Brian's demo of Surf's Up from that TV Special also comes close. It's so powerful. I've always wondered if how autobiographical of Brian the song was, his delivery of a broken man - too tough to cry really seemed to hit home.

On Add Some Music, when Brian sings "When day is over I close my tired eyes" (so ably counterpointed by Mike), that gets to me. Partly because Brian sounds so infinitely weary and old, far older than twenty-seven.  The funny thing is, now that he's seventy, he sings those lines with less weariness....but then again, the situation around him is a bit less chaotic and exhausting than in late '69.

It's not so much that I choke up when I hear something like Surfer Girl, particularly the bridge, but I often do when I try to sing along with it (probably a lot of other people choke up when I do that as well) or even try to make a comment or talk about how powerful the song is for me, or the emotion of hearing Brian or whoever sing it. Other tunes that often have that affect that come to mind would be Caroline No, Add Some Music, TWGMTR, they are such beautiful, powerful and emotional songs., and then when I ponder who is behind it all - The Beach Boys and Brian Wilson - well, 50 years of incredulous head-shaking at the sheer magnificence of it all sort of takes over.

Barbara - I love Dennis' vocals and I don't think I've been able to listen to this song once without getting teary eyed.
Please Let Me Wonder - Carl's "I love you" and the instrumental track directly afterwards that fades out really gets to me for some reason.
Our Sweet Love - Carl's vocals are superb and listening to him sing that song really makes me sad.
Don't Talk - Great vocals by Brian and love the instrumental break towards the end of the song

Oh, and Only With You.
I've always loved how incredibly sweet that one is.

One night, something happened to me that changed me. A lot had been on my shoulders and I was getting more and more depressed. I put on A Day In The Life Of A Tree and just sat there.

I am not joking when I say this. I sat on my bed (not in it) for 3 HOURS. 3 HOURS LOOPING THAT SONG. I have no idea what happened, it just locked in.

I really feel changed after that, I know i'm not alone, I know I can cry for myself and let it out. That song, sung by a non band member, with an incredibly simple
track CHANGED ME. That song always makes me cry.

Shelter - this just kills me
Forever - obviously
Song for Children - especially the first few boot listens in '04
When I Grow Up to Be A Man - especially the lines of doubt: "Will I love my wife for the rest of my life?" That's a hard one--especially if you ever had a wife you absolutely loved that turned into somebody else later.

Forever
Only With You
Where I Belong.  I don't know if it's Carl's vocal or whatever, but when the harmonies kick in during the chorus, I lose it almost every time.

Warmth of the Sun
In The Back of My Mind
I Just Wasn't Made For These Times
Surf's Up
Forever
Day In A Life Of A Tree
Til I Die
Still I Dream Of It
The Life Suite (FTTBA, PCH, Summer's Gone)

Still believe In me
She knows me too well
Warmth of the sun
Forever
Surfs up
Till I die

Could name a few but, "The Warmth Of the Sun" does it for me. When Brian sings "the love of my life, She left me one day. I cried when she said, I don't feel the same way" So simple and and that voice...beautiful

jet without wings

I have just decided, moments ago, that I cannot listen to Side B of "Today" at work (esp with headphones on) because most of the songs make me tear up, and it's a bit embarassing to start crying at work.

Really nice to see so many of you mention Day In The Life Of A Tree. I got fed up of reading that this was a throwaway joke track. For me it's best thing on Surfs Up. That circus organ is so disjunct. Wonderful stuff.
I don't really tend to choke up over lyrics, but a beautiful chord change will get me. Halfway through the chorus of Don't Talk, that change gets me every time. Beautiful.

BTW, I can't help but wonder if some of the BB's cried while singing some of these songs. Was just listening to this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=m1rd9I_Wk6I#!) and Mike almost sounds like he's fending off tears during the refrain while singing the "If I've been the one you love" etc. lines. I know I sure would have.

I thought I read in a BB book, maybe David Leaf's book, that Brian was crying in the studio when listening to the playback of "A Day In The Life Of A Tree" - and Jack Reiley's vocal. :o