The Smiley Smile Message Board

What is Mike Love's best lyrics and what are his worst? Off the top of my head, Id have to say that some of his best are "The Warmth of The Sun" and his worst probably "Summer of Love" but thats off the top of my head. What does everyone else reckon?

'All i wanna do' are his best lyrics, and in my top 5 songs of all time.

Salt lake city are his worst IMO

Yeh Salt Lake City is pretty bad actually, though my most hated is still probably Summer of Love. Although I like to think of that period as not really The Beach Boys, I try and erase it from my mind. I mean there was some good singing on the last two albums from Carl & Al (mainly) but the songs were pretty average on the whole and not the "real beach boys" if you get what I mean

Yeh I really like All I Wanna Do. Ive read a few people praising that song, and I really like it too, very relaxing. Aren't the lyrics about TM? By the way, does anyone know how many songs Mike or any other band member wrote in reference to TM? Obviously there is "Transcendental Meditation", "TM Song" im pretty sure "All I Wanna Do", "Everyone's In Love With You" (reference to Maharishi) and "Meant For You" are written in reference to TM, but what else is there?

Mike's Best: "Little Saint Nick", "Fun Fun Fun", "All Summer Long", "Big Sur"

Mike's Worst: "Some Of Your Love", "Male Ego", "Summer Of Love"

Good Vibrations have some really good Mike Love lyrics, as well as Let The Wind Blow. I like the lyrics to Kokomo also.

California Girls ...some of my favorite lyric, and it's got Mike's writing style all over it...

I've always thought that "Warmth of the Sun" was Mike's finest moment as a lyricist.  The lyrics compliment Brian's music so perfectly to form a beautiful composition.

Please Let Me Wonder is great
Summer Of Love worst.

The vast majority of "Kokomo" was written in 1984 by Papa John & Scott McKenzie. I recall Mike once stating that he added the "Aruba, Jamaica..." bit.

Come on Andrew I want to hear your opinion on the subject :p

Mike's written some classic lyrics, but he's also given us some steaming crap - in general, the later it is, the worse it gets ("Summer Of Love" anyone ?). Shark jumping time was pretty much 1975. That said, the stuff he did with Dennis was uniformly outstanding.

How many songs did he write lyrics for Dennis? I can only think of "Only With You", "Pacific Ocean Blues" and "Sound of Free" off the top of my head

Favorite ML lyrics: Big Sur - Warmth - All I Wanna Do

Least favorite ML lyrics: Still Cruisin' - Match Point - Lookin' Back With Love

10,00 Years had some work from both of them. Decent song.

MBE am I right in saying that this song is an instrumental? I own it, but im not sure if it ever had lyrics (I know your not necessarily saying it does) but Im just wondering if there is another version with lyrics or weren't there ever lyrics recorded?

I heard a Mike solo version with words. I think it's from his recent unreleased one. The lyrics are ok nothing amazing. If Dennis had sang them they might have carried a little more weight.

Ha Ha! This reminds me of when Mike talks about his adding 'I'm picking up Good Vibrations line', "That was me, I gave it the hook..."  :-D

Mike Love.....Super Genius

I think I've read that Mike did the "Aruba, Jamaica..."-part as well as putting the whole thing into the present tense.

I remember reading an interview where he said he wrote the line, "by and by we'll defy a little bit of gravity" and then said it had to do with yogic flying ::)

Favorite lyrics: Meant For You, Please Let Me Wonder, Summer in Paradise, Gettin' Hungry, Cool Head Warm Heart
Least favorite: Lahaina Aloha, I'm Waiting For the Day, Do You Remember

Aegir...Most of the lyrics for "I'm waiting for the Day" are actually Brian's.


Mike didn't write *any* part of "Looking Back With Love"...that was Jim Studer!

I love the lyrics for I'm Waiting....

Here's the real question.  Is Mike responsible for the "tropical contact high" lyric in Kokomo or was it one of the many others involved?  Whoever is responsible must pay!!!  I have often times wondered how it took so many people to write a song so bad!

I like that lyric too....I can defens it by saying there are worse in the BB's catalogue....like Mike Loves best Jim Morrison impression when he recited the Jeffries' poem in the California Saga thingamajiggy.

I can't wait til summer (yeah)
Cause it's gonna be a summer of love
Hey now (well it's a love thing)

People all around the world in every nation
Like to get together for some excitations
If you're a girl appreciates her recreation
Why don't you let me take you on a love vacation

Yeah I'll take you to the movies
But I'm no fool (wah wah oooo)
First I'll get you on the beach
Or in a swimming pool
Doing unto others is the Golden Rule
But doing it with you would be so
Very cool

Girls are always ready for a summer of love
Goin' out and lookin' for love (girls are always ready)
Girls are always ready for a summer of love (sum sum summer summer of love)
Goin' out and lookin' for love (sum sum summer summer of love)

I can't wait til summer (yeah)
Cause it's gonna be a summer of love
Hey now (well it's a love thing)

Everytime the weather starts to gettin' hotter
Don't worry about it toos your clothes and hit the water
We'll be California dreaminin' bay watchin' everyday
Just off the Malibu surfin' U. S. A.

Now no girl ever wants to leave their
Love back home (wah wah oooo)
So if you miss him baby
Call him on the phone
But make it quick
We're almost in a party zone

Cause summer days and nights
Aren't meant to spend alone

Girls are always ready for a summer of love
Goin' out and lookin' for love (girls are always ready)
Girls are always ready for a summer of love (sum sum summer summer of love)
Goin' out and lookin' for love (sum sum summer summer of love)

I can't wait til summer (yeah)
Cause it's gonna be a summer of love
Hey now (well it's a love thing)

Now summer is a time when there're no strings attached
But we could get together if you com on back
I'd like to tell you if it's any satisfaction
You'll always be my summer seasons main attraction

Girls are always ready for a summer of love
Goin' out and lookin' for love (girls are always ready)
Girls are always ready for a summer of love (sum sum summer summer of love)
Goin' out and lookin' for love (sum sum summer summer of love)

I can't wait til summer (yeah)
Cause it's gonna be a summer of love
Hey now (well it's a love thing)

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Oh man that is bad, i'm just glad that i haveint heard it yet.

My worst would be Hey Little Tomboy. Brian wrote the lyric but Mike sang it. Does that count? :p


Hey, little tomboy, sit here on my lap
I got things that I gotta tell you
No more skateboards, put away your baseball mitt.
Your rough livin days are through
You could find places to go
You could see that boys love you so
Theyre doin it all over the world
Hey little hey little hey little tomboy
Time to turn into a girl
Hey little hey little hey little tomboy
Theyre doin it all over the world
Hey, little tomboy, Ive had my eyes on you
Thinkin what a girl you could be
Mmm, I smell perfume, lets try some cut-off jeans
Look at all the changes I see
Im gonna teach you to kiss
Youre gonna feel just like this
Theyre doin it all over the world
Hey little hey little hey little tomboy
Time to turn into a girl
Hey little hey little hey little tomboy
Theyre doin it all over the world
(hey little hey little hey little tomboy)
Im gonna make you a girl
(hey little hey little hey little tomboy)
Youd make a beautiful girl
(hey little hey little hey little tomboy)
Theyre doing it all over the world

I actually like the lyrics of that song. Not very poetic, but humorous.

Big Sur is my favorite Mike Love song. I love the music and the lyrics. In fact its one of my favorite BBs songs. Most of the lyrics he did from 15 Big Ones and after sucked.

I do find it quite odd that Dennis used Mike Love more then any other Beach Boy for lyrics. Didn't they hate each other?

Yeh that has always been quite strange. Maby he just liked his style. I think also that Dennis forgave Mike despite what they had been through, for example on the Knebworth DVD, Dennis looks at Mike like he geniully loves him and forgives him. Im probably wrong but who knows?

Magic_Transistor_Radio do you like the Big Sur version off Holland better or the unreleased version? I prefer the unreleased version myself.

Mike and Dennis are an interesting duo, they seem to have been the most tempermental people in the Beach Boys,  I have heard both praise each others work. Dennis also is the only other one who said nobody gave Brian a hard time over Pet Sounds, and Smile, that the problems were drugs. So they shared some of the same viewpoints. Ec Roach has said that Mike was ok with Dennis when they first met and that it was the Manson business that ruined Dennis' standing with much of the band.  Of course by this time Dennis had slept with Mike's second wife, and in retaliation Mike gave Dennis acid without telling him taking him on a fast motorcycle ride. The last six years of Dennis' life things fell apart and Mike was not understanding about this at all. Mike had a right to be mad at someone who wrecked a show of course. The whole thing with Shawn is beyhond the realm of good taste though and that had to have been the last straw.  I guess you could say their interaction was as varied and dysfunctional as any of the relationships they had with each of the people in the group. Personally I understand why Mike would not like Dennis around in the last few years, yet I come down on Dennis' side 100 percent as to the creative direction he wanted the group to go in. Before 1977 though I think their sense of competition was not really unhealthy, in other words both became the performers they did partially to show up each other.

Forgave Mike for what?

Well I dont know exactly (Im not Dennis am I), but its been well discussed and written about the bad things Dennis did to Mike and Mike did to Dennis and their volatile relationship. But I just think that Dennis was looking at Mike saying sorry for what Ive done but also forgiving Mike for what he did to Dennis. Thats just my opinion. Obviously Dennis could just be looking at him that way and he could be really thinking "I want to kill you" or something stupid but obviously we don't know, but to me it just looks like Dennis is saying I'm sorry for what Ive done and I forgive you for what you've done and lets just forget about everything in the past and forgive each other and forget about our differences. Just my take on it anyway... Im probably wrong and as I said there is no way to tell what Dennis was thinking but he looked like he was sorry to me

Dennis was a good dude and would've taken the Beach Boys into new and exciting directions had it not been for the drugs. Mike Love's lyrics and ideas can be pretty freaking lame in my book, but Dennis was too strung out to be taken seriously, and look what happened to him. He was dating a girl that could've been his daughter and ended up drowning. Look at what we ended up with...forgettable BB songs, a Mike Love act that will never end, and more stupid Mike Love lyrics than the world could ever use...

From all that I read about Dennis having a soft side (and I don't doubt it), I have seen some interviews where he comes across as a jerk. I have also read a lot about Mike being a jerk, but I he seems very polite in all of his interviews. I am not saying that this is an accurate dispription, but I just don't buy into everything positive Dennis and negative Mike. When it comes to the music, that's a different story. Dennis was light years better then Mike.

Yeah, I'll bet you 20 bucks he at least wrote that first little bit, lol.  "Aruba, Jamaica, Ooh I Wanna Take Ya" is right on par with "I'm pickin' up Good Vibrations, she's givin' me the excitations". 

Really though, Rock & Roll music is full of nonsense lyrics like "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Papa Oom Mow Mow" pop to mind.  "Excitations" isn't that bad in comparison. 

I totally agree with you there. Isn't that like every human being though. Everyone can act like a jerk and everyone can be really nice. That's just how humans are.

I believe that the media can at times go on a wave of critisism on somebody and it becomes the cool thing to do. Or give high praise to somebody else. Of course I have never met any of the BBs personally, and perhaps a lot goes on behind the scenes that I am unaware of.

I just saw the music video for F#*k You Mike Love on Youtube....it's funny....check it out and try to not take it too seriously....

I have seen that. It is funny.