The Smiley Smile Message Board

Ok, so Wendy and Carnie are not actually Beach Boys, not even boys but what the heck, so maybe this thread doesn't belong here.

BUT - I fell in love with this album right out the gate back in the '90's. So much so that I'd even listen to it in the summer. In Florida!

And I often thought then, and now, that this is what a Beach Boys' album should sound like, melodically, harmonically and production-wise.

And then, I hear at least Carl vocally on the title track, and the full band vocally on I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus. .

And so I'm gonna push the envelop here and say that this is the best post-classic "Beach Boys" album until That's Why God Made the Radio. Maybe better.

been searching for a copy on CD of this one for years....

"Hey Santa" gets regular airplay on most music services that cater stores in my area.. and may I be so bold to say, I think that this song will be a large part of the girls legacy in the future.. ( 50 years from now, I wouldn't be surprised to still hear it as good original Christmas songs are so hard to find...

IMHO
Doc Smiley  :)

Yup.  Great song and a good album.  No staggering work of genius but an enjoyable Christmas confection.

Hey Doc, I have a few extra copies on cd if ya have anything neat-o to trade for it!
Cheers,
Rich from Canada

Interesting - and good - Christmas album. Interesting when it came out as ONLY Carnie & Wendy Wilson because of all of the success Wilson Phillips had. The production was modern but it did have its fill of BW/Spectorian "wall of sound", too. Carnie Wilson was an underrated singer. I used to DJ a lot of Christmas parties back then and I would play "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" as a slow dance song; I could always count on somebody coming up to the DJ booth and asking who sang that song. The medley, "We Three Kings/Silent Night/The First Noel" is as good as ANY Beach Boys' related Christmas song. Yes, any! It still gets to me. And, of course, a la The Beach Boys, they screwed up the ending of the album. Instead of ending with the aforementioned medley, they tacked on "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus", which totally ruins the mood and would have fit so much better BEFORE the medley.

I heard "Hey Santa" played on in-house music today. I also heard a track from Wilson Phillips' Christmas album in another store over the weekend.

You must not be searching very hard!  I counted about 25 copies for sale on EBay, from $75 on down to $1...

true, just figured I'd stumble into one at a used CD shop over the years, but never seemed to find one... think I'll do the ebay thing this year on it... while there are some none gray hairs on my head  ;D

Sometimes there will be copies at Staples this time of year.

Russ