The Smiley Smile Message Board

Great song, why does it get so much hate..from what i've read anyway.

bloody fantastic track

Would love to hear some thought's on it!

Mike Love wrote it, and the lyrics are really corny. That's all that really needs to be said about it.

But it's good corny.  :)

It's a decent tune, surprisingly well produced for a MIU-era Mike Love track and the lyrics have that bizarre and grotesque Beach Boys sensibility. Essential.

I think its one of those songs that I would dislike a lot more if not for Carl...his singing really makes the song for me.  I especially love his vocal at the end when he does the "You Still Believe In Me" melody.

In terms of the BB singing about themselves and their history, I'd prefer Brian's Back over Endless Harmony any day. I even have to confess I found it to be very touching upon first listen. It's still quite an enjoyable song and after all it tells you so much more about the group circa 1976 than any book could do.

Thoughts on it?

I love the song. Who wrote the music and arrangements? Good melody, touching lyrics, nice vocals. I wonder what Brian thought about it; never read any comments. I prefer the shorter version; I find the guitar middle/solo boring on the Endless Harmony version. There have been quite a few songs written about Brian. Including one written by Brian himself...

Amen! :p

The insertion of that melody and the sentiment behind it is very touching, and probably one of the cleverest things the BBs ever did.

I even dig the 2003 remake on Love's Unleash The Love album.  I thought Christian did a fantastic job supporting the 'Carl parts'.....

I do admit the lyrics are very corny.

But Mike's vocals and Carl's of course are very touching.

Very well produced track also.  :-D

It was a hypocrisy. And...if anybody else did what Mike did in that song (lift melodies from other tunes), Mike would have started so many lawsuits....

In what way(s)?

I think it's a well-intended song. Most people refuse to accept anything Mike says or does as genuine, so he's kinda screwed. But I like the song.

I really don't like the lyrics, but it the refrain is really pretty. I think the first time I heard it was in the Endless Harmony doc, and I was wondering what it was, where I could find it, etc., just for that bit. Turns out I don't like the bulk of it as much, but it's fine. And I don't doubt Mike's intentions on it. Sure, he was trying to cash in on "Brian is Back," but so were the others, including Brian. Their jobs are commercial ones: they try to cash in on their music. Brian was trying to cash in on Pet Sounds, but nobody doubts the intentions behind those songs, do they? It's not impossible to write music you believe in while trying for commercial success.

It's corny, but touching, and I take it at face value. Despite some of his actions (lawsuits, etc.), which I don't understand, I think Mike genuinely cares about Brian and for years has been nostalgic for the "old Brian" that he grew up with. And that's what the song is saying. It's got to be traumatic for the guy who was one of your best buddies growing up to basically disappear as mental illness, etc. take over.

So not the greatest song in terms of craftsmanship, but it's one of the times when Mike is writing from his heart, and it shows, I think.

I agree completely...for all of Mike's distasteful actions over the years, this song was (in his own way) a genuine tribute to his cousin.  Like you said, it's corny for sure, but touching at the same time.  Bruce's "Endless Harmony" is just as corny but doesn't seem as genuine, just schmaltzy. 

I used to hate this song with a passion, but I've grown to kinda like it. The remake on Unleash The Love/Mike Love Not War is far superior, IMHO.

I agree. The 70s version is just cheesy. The more modern version is cool. I often find myself singing it.

I've never heard the remake-- I'm not much of a Mike Love collector.   :-D   I have the version on Endless Harmony. How are they different?

What is perhaps even weirder is there's ANOTHER version, cut in Miami for L.A. Light, which Brian produced and played piano on. 

And sang bvs on. Mucho bizarro.

The 2003/04 remake is a rather nice eletric piano based arrangement. Plus the cheesy BB song references were ommitted from the modern remake save for the YSBIM quote at the end, which I don't really mind.

Is the L.A. Light version the one that has the chorus sung (I don't know if I am saying this right) kind of in a round and no verses.?

I believe it is. O have to admit, that one's good too.

Good distinction. Mike can write great lyrics, esp. if he's feeling it. You can tell the lyrics are heartfelt, and whatever they lack in poetic sensibility, they make up for in genuine affection. Bruce, on the other hand, sounds like he was just writing a song, and it shows.

To me, there is one line in Endless Harmony that's heartfelt - "mid-60s screaming and that nighttime Holiday Inn scheming". It brings to my mind an image of the Beach Boys, Carl and Dennis especially, running around making mischief in a hotel after a gig. It also sounds like it's an inside joke.

Yeah, I'll grant that one.

"You fell in love with a pretty cheerleader, I even married one..."

One-up-manship or what? "Hey Brian, you wanted, but Cousin Mike got, therefore Cousin Mike is better"?

Like many of his leads from this time period, I think Mike's voice sounds really, really creepy on the verses.

Teenage gamblers sittin' in a Rambler...when it starts up the sound of his voice and the way he is singing give me the mental image that he is peepin' through somebodies blinds or something.

Plus it's just so corny, but Carl's parts make it listenable.

"It brings to my mind an image of the Beach Boys, Carl and Dennis especially, running around making mischief in a hotel after a gig. It also sounds like it's an inside joke."

Getting the clap in Europe!

"Like many of his leads from this time period, I think Mike's voice sounds really, really creepy on the verses.

Teenage gamblers sittin' in a Rambler...when it starts up the sound of his voice and the way he is singing give me the mental image that he is peepin' through somebodies blinds or something.

Plus it's just so corny, but Carl's parts make it listenable."

Yeah, I agree.

I think it's really corny and a little embarrassing, but I'm sure it's heartfelt.  After all, without whom...

It's tempting to say it beggars belief that it was actually considered for the Light Album.  Stick this and Calendar Girl on and the band would be really f***ed, never mind the record label.  However, this is the Beach Boys, so it's no surprise, I guess.  Such a shame, because there are far better ML tracks from this period they could've gone for - better than Sumahama too.

 ;D

Poor Mike,

Which album was Al's "Looking Down The Coast / Monterey" recorded for? That's a pretty good song.

Light Album.  Like California Feelin' and Santa Ana Winds. Maybe Don't Fight The Sea too - it depends which date you believe!

That would be a much better L.A. Light Album - though I do cherish the "It's Carl and Denny's show" aspect of it -- epsecially after the "It's Mike and Al's show" M.I.U.

Leaving off or putting the short Here Comes The Night would have made room for a few more good tracks. Would have made it a more solid album too.

Ironically, these changes would've meant an Al-heavy album too, but this time in terms of songwriting.  As it was, we got Lady Lynda. Not a fair trade, although I think the Light Album's worn well - apart from Here Comes The Night.

My fantasy LA :

It's a Beautiful Day okay, so it was recorded after the sessions)
California Feelin'
Down the Coastline/Song of the Whale
Santa Ana Winds
Don't Fight the Sea (who knows?)
Full Sail
Sumahama - or something better from Mike's album
Good Timin'
Thank You Baby (because we need something from Bruce)
Baby Blue
Angel Come Home
Love Surrounds Me

I quite like Brians Back, if I was sticking it on an album i'd put it on MIU as I think feelwise it fits on there.

It's a Beautiful Day makes so much sense on LA, because it's about Los Angeles.

This  song sucks.

I thought this was going to be a thread about Brian's physical state and his recent back issues...then I saw that it's a thread from 2008 :lol

It's a cute and corny song, but I like it, particularly the "You Still Believe in Me" ending. Carl's voice was just so perfect.

It is one piece of the puzzle that proves that the Beach Boys are THE WEIRDEST BAND OF ALL TIME.

Same here!!!

Carl's vocals are so good they make me forget how much I hate Mike's lyrics.

Looks like the term Brian's Back has a new meaning now!

Don't give him any ideas!

The almost entirely instrumental LA version is actually really nice, it's a very pretty arrangement. For those who haven't heard it, i recommend seeking it out. As for the released version, as has been said Carl's vocals make the track. As with Kokomo, without Carl the song would be nothing. I really dislike this sentimental singing style Mike adopted around this period - and the guy could sing so beautifully (Meant For You, Big Sur).

Who the hell bumped this thread?

Did I really like "Brian's back"  :lol

They say that Briiiiiiian's back
has been hurting him for oh so looong
Well they say Briiiiiiiiiiian's back
I'd like to give him a body massage

You saucy devil you! 

Too late!  :lol  *backs away slowly from the computer*