The Smiley Smile Message Board

Listening to Brian's Love You demos today, I realized just how much potential the demo of "I'll Bet He's Nice" has. It's a model of the pop songwriting form, has a killer melody and progression, and captures Brian's genius for pure pop better than any of his other late 70s work. In its stripped-down form, it seems to be begging for a lush, vintage arrangement - in my head, it's arranged a la "This Whole World" or another Sunflower-era track, albeit with a bit more late 70s-Brian soul.

I'm a defender of Love You til death, but does anyone else feel like this song could have been a hit if produced differently? Especially after paying attention to the demo, the album version sounds plodding and dull, like a great pop song with barely-audible rhythm parts buried under Moog gurgles.

Agreed 100%

Ever since I first heard that demo my biggest wish has been for Brian to do a more 'Beach-Boys' arrangement for this song while he's on tour. I would love to hear his band tackle this song, make it into what it could truly be.

When Brian croons into that middle-eight on the demo - I think that's one of the most beautiful moments of recorded Beach Boys history.

I still think "The Night Was So Young" would have been a better single.

Always liked it, but don't think the song was going to scale the charts in '77 for a number of reasons. I'm not sure they could have produced it well enough to put it over for a mainstreeam audience at that point in time--the song is just a tad old-fashioned (IMO). Maybe if the production had managed to max the chord change to the middle-8, and the middle-8 had been sung with skill and passion comparable to the similar type of material on SUNFLOWER.

Truly!

relevant self promotion: https://mikeleroy.bandcamp.com/track/i-bet-hes-nice

"Roller Skating Child" for the single, no contest.

Seconded, if "Hey Little Tomboy" could be a single....  :o

I think Mike sums my feelings up best in the demo: "sh*t, ain't that a motherfucker!"

Not sure I'm picking up what you're putting down.

Awkward wording I admit, what I meant was that Tomboy was a single for MIU and that song is terrible. I agree that TNWSY would have been a great single.

The album version of "I'll bet he's nice" has a strange kind of jarring thing where it goes into the "as nice as me...." part, the background vocals (or something) come in right then and it really breaks the flow up, the production is a little lacking.  The demo may have been a decent single, I agree, or Brian could have rerecorded it and tried to polish it a bit, I think a lot of people would relate to the song and enjoy it.

the song is great; the treatment on Love You is not.

I don't care if the Love You production is what prevented the song from being a hit because that very production/arrangement, to me, is one of the most amazingly creative things the group put to tape in the 1970s. What had begun with Cool Cool Water and Funky Pretty finally came to full fruition on I'll Bet He's Nice.

(Also, do you guys really believe they could have had a hit in 1977?)

I think it could dent the top 40, not a chart topper by any means but I think it woulda had a good chance

  Why not? The Beach Boys had singles in the Top Ten and Top 40 in 1976.

b-side.

I agree with the OP!

No way it could've been a hit. LOVE the song but there's almost no drums or steady beat, the subject matter is kind of strange as is the arrangement. If they went for a more RnB feel with a strong groove then maybe. That record doesn't have anything that would be single-worthy though it's still in my Top 5 of their LPs.

<<I don't care if the Love You production is what prevented the song from being a hit because that very production/arrangement, to me, is one of the most amazingly creative things the group put to tape in the 1970s. What had begun with Cool Cool Water and Funky Pretty finally came to full fruition on I'll Bet He's Nice.
(Also, do you guys really believe they could have had a hit in 1977?)>>

Having been there, and in radio at the time, 77-78, yes I do.  The post 1966 Beach Boys have always had a problem with timing.  Matchpoint of Our Love would have charted well in 77, as would Good Timin and Lady Lynda.  Classic sound with a smooth polish.  Roller Skating Child might have done well in 77 with a better production, bass, more instrumentation.  A Disco remake would have done better on the charts in 1979 than HCTN, in my opinion.  Country Pie would have been a hit in 1978.

In 1977, the Beach Boys were competing head to head stylistically with Chicago, The Eagles, CSN, Jackson Browne, Fleetwood Mac. ELO, etc.  If they'd done something with the feel/production prowess of Baby What A Big Surprise, New Kid in Town, Just A Song Before I Go, Go Your Own Way or Sweet Talkin' Woman, they'd have charted well.

I like to think that there's a universe where I'll Bet He's Nice was redone in a Nelson Riddle-style orchestrated version on the Adult/Child LP and was a hit single.