The Smiley Smile Message Board

Is it the short or long version?

Album version - full intro & outro.

Thanks. I guess they thought American radio wouldn't like the interludes. Turns out it wasn't played much anyhow.

At least not the stations we were all probably listening to at the time.

But "Lady Lynda" did make it to #39 on the Billboard's AC chart back then.  Since we weren't listening to those stations we never heard it.  The US promos had both the edit and the full length version, so given the choice some of the AC stations may have played the long version.

And "Good Timin'" had previously made it to #12 on that same chart.

It was a lame song, any talented songwriter/producer could have made more of it.

While you're certainly entitled to your opinion I happen to quite like it.

But I can understand where you're coming from saying Bach isn't a talented songwriter.   8)

No, I like the Bach intro, leads you into thinking there's more coming than actually was delivered.  Like I say, more could have been done to develop this song lyrically and production wise.  "Evolution is drawing us near," hmmm.

Yeah, "Evolution is drawing us near," is pretty wretched, but I don't go to many BB lyrics looking for great art (though there are lots of great lyrics in the repertoire).  But I have no problems with it musically.

Though it's not as good as "Winter's Children" by The Capes of Good Hope, a great 1967 Left Banke-ish single by a Chicago group that's similarly based on a classical theme.

I tend to like Lady Lynda for what it is: a nice yet horribly overblown little ditty by Alan Jardine at his cheesiest ever. The Knebworth version I do even find highly enjoyable and the group seems like having a blast performing it (whereas I'm not too sure what's to be read into both Brian and Dennis being absent from stage during the song - they probably had other fish to fry).

I was a Beach Boys obsessed 15-year-old (now I'm a BBs-obsessed 44 y-o) at the time Lady Lynda was released and was very relieved they picked that track of LA (Light Album) as a 45rpm; at the time I figured it was the best track on the album and the most commercial. I wasn't wrong -  Top 10 hit here in the UK. Meant I could hold my head up at school!

I always liked "Lady Lynda", too. I think it's the best song Al ever wrote. I heard it in concert a couple of times before it was released on L.A., and it was very well recieived, unlike some "new" Beach Boys' songs at that time. I agree with others that it might've been stronger live. I especially liked the 1979 Midnight Special version.   

Al told me that Dennis helped him with some of the LL vocal arrangement.

I love Lady Lynda. It's my favorite Al Jardine song. The live version is much better than the studio cut, though. I love the accapella break that they did in concert. To bad that Mike occasionally had to butt in and almost ruin it.

I think Dennis also helped Al with the musical arrangment if not writing the music itself. Dennis had worked more with strings at that point.