The Smiley Smile Message Board

Been considering a suitably momentous topic for my 15,000th post here, and it just came to me.

How many Beach Boys studio albums are composed of entirely newly recorded material, that is they don't include anything recorded anything from three months to ten years previously (I'll cut a lead single some slack, but not a lot) ? A quick top-of-the-head run through reveals the figure to be surprisingly low, unless I've made a few choice errors.

Here's a f'rinstance: Pet Sounds doesn't qualify as the basic track for "Sloop John B" was recorded July 12th 1965, just over six months before the sessions proper commenced.

This could be best described as educated guessing:

Surfin' Safari: This depends on how much slack you're cutting for the single, but "Surfin'" was recorded and released well before this album was, so I'll go with "no."
Surfin' U.S.A.: I remember hearing that "The Lonely Sea" was recorded before Surfin' Safari was released, so I'll again go with "no."
Surfer Girl: Obviously the song "Surfer Girl" was written well before three months ahead of this, at least if the story that it was Brian's first composition are true.  But I think it was newly recorded for this album, so I'll say "yes."
Little Deuce Coupe: A very obvious "no."
Shut Down Volume II: Yes?
All Summer Long: I seem to remember something about David Marks having recorded a guitar track for one of the tracks, and since he left the band after Little Deuce Coupe I'd say that puts that recording well ahead of three months.  "No."
Today!: I'll go with "Yes" assuming that "When I Grow Up" wasn't too far ahead as a lead single.
Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!): I'm pretty sure that this is a "yes."
Pet Sounds: You already said this is "no."
Smiley Smile: "Good Vibrations" was way ahead as a single and sounds so totally unlike everything else on the album that it's pretty obvious this was part of a separate project.  No.
Wild Honey: In another thread there was some discussion that the instrumental track of "Darlin'" was possibly (likely?) the same as the one that was intended for Redwood.  I don't know what that would do to the timeline, but given the quick turnaround between Smiley Smile and Wild Honey I think this is a yes.
Friends: I don't know very well on this one, but I'll guess "yes."
20/20: A clear "no."
Sunflower: Many of the songs on here were recorded in early 1969, so "no."
Surf's Up: Another clear "no."
Carl and the Passions-So Tough: Two of the songs are from an aborted Dennis solo album, so I'll go with "no" here.
Holland: Even though "Sail On, Sailor" was written several years earlier, I think it was newly recorded, and "Big Sur" is clearly newly recorded, so I'll guess "yes" here.
15 Big Ones: Seeing "Susie Cincinnati" was released as a single in the early 1970s, this is clearly a "no."
Love You: "Good Time" is from the early 1970s.  "No."
M.I.U.: "Hey Little Tomboy" was from Adult/Child and "My Diane" was several years old, and both used the earlier recordings.  "No."
L.A. (Light Album): Drawing from so many different aborted solo albums (well, only two I guess) as well as some older unused songs ("Good Timin'," "Shortenin' Bread"), this has to be a "no."
Keepin' The Summer Alive: I know Bruce had written "Endless Harmony" long before this album was released, but I'm not sure whether any of it had been recorded ahead of time, as I'm pretty sure it was at least partly recorded with the rest of Keepin' the Summer Alive.  Also, "Mike Come Back to L.A." was recorded somewhat earlier (I think), whose instrumental track became "Some of Your Love."  I'm going to guess this is a "no," though.
The Beach Boys: "Yes," I think?
Still Crusin': By far the most obvious "no" on this list.
Summer in Paradise: Yes.
That's Why God Made the Radio: "Daybreak Over the Ocean" makes this album a "no."

So my final answer is: Surfer Girl, Shut Down Vol. II, Today!, Summer Days (and Summer Nights!!), Wild Honey, Friends, Holland, The Beach Boys, and Summer in Paradise.  In other words, 9 albums out of 27.

… or perhaps how many albums consist entirely of tracks recorded after the last session for the preceding album? Was Sloop cut after Party! sessions had ended?

Maybe BBs85, SiP, Holland, Surfin' Safari?

Congrats on the post landmark btw! Is one entitled to ask how many - if any - temporary bans interrupted the flow of wisdom!?!?

congrats!

Friends and Wild Honey are some certains I would think.

This is a great thread and a revealing look at this band in the studio.  I think I read somewhere that Al and Mike, as late as 1980, were pushing for Loop De Loop to be included on an album as "new" material.

You have a Sunflower-era outtake on KTSA.

I didn't know (or remember) about "My Diane" being several years old. From what year does the recording come?

The Party Album... sure it had "Little deuce coup/I get around" medley but they WERE newly recorded versions  :lol ... now do rewrites count? because we know Darlin' was a rewrite of "Thinking about you baby"..also we can't forget "When Girls get together" on KTSA. how about rerecording's of song already recorded like "Surfer Girl" or "Surfin" from SIP does that technically count as a new recording since the source is older, which would also exclude the Party album? also doesn't "Surfer Moon" count as an older song when it was "Summer Moon"?

I'd make a case for Sloop John B counting because while it was recorded prior to the album's sessions beginning in earnest, it was still always intended to be on the "next Beach Boys album" even before that became Pet Sounds. The same with Do It Again on 20/20, more or less.

Pretty sure that "My Diane" is from '76 or so. Meant for "Adult Child."

Excellent summation. I have a few commernts to make:


Yes.


Borderline no: the track for "Drive-In" was recorded at the "LSN" session November the previous year (David thinks he was at said session)


No - the "(WIGU)TBAM" session was back in August 1964, and "Don't Hurt My Little Sister" was even earlier, in June.


Also "H&V", which used parts of the Smile sessions.


Yes - all recorded Feb-March-April.


Also "Ding Dang", from 1973/74.


Heavy "no" - "When Girls..." dates from November 1969 and "SAW" may date in part from 1978.


8 from 27.

Wow; I'm embarrassed that I missed that one.

Stars & Stripes no longer being considered part of the canon?

Ah, cool. Thanks, I thought it came from the M.I.U. period.

Extra note-don't forget that on 15 BO, the track (at least) for It's OK is from much earlier (1974, IIRC)) and Back Home was recorded in '75, but I don't remember how late in the year.
L.A. Album-Wasn't Shortenin' Bread rerecorded from scratch?
Christmas Album's a no, as Little Saint Nick was recorded much earlier. Was anything else on that album recorded earlier? Isn't even the '64 Concert a no, weren't some tracks recorded in '63?
Wild Honey-I gather Mama Says was rerecorded from scratch?
Smiley Smile-Don't forget part of Vegetables is right off the Smile sessions. And of course on Sunflower, parts of Cool Cool Water are from Smile and a subsequent session.

1 - Surfer Girl
2 - Shut Down Vol 2
3 - All Summer Long
4 - Summer Days
5 - Party
6 - Wild Honey
7 - Friends
8 - So Tough
9 - Holland
10 - BB85

Not so sure about Holland. Didn't Brian record the track for Funky Pretty much earlier?
There's also the well-known quote from Steve Desper about Sail On Sailor. "That sounds awfully like the track I recorded."

If we did this exercise for Brian's solo albums, his Gettin' In Over My Head would be a big no, I gather.

all of his solo albums would be No..lol...
1.Brian Wilson- has songs from years earlier "Little Children" etc
2.Imagination- "She says she needs me", "Happy Days", "Let him run wild", "Keep an eye on summer" (although newly recorded versions)
3. Smile- The whole thing (although newly recorded)
4.GIOMH-Most of it "Saturday morning in the city" sticking out as a track almost identical to the original.
5.That Lucky Old sun- "Going Home" "Can't wait too long/Been way too long", "Live let live". (again newly recorded version of older songs)
6. Christmas- newly recorded versions of mostly old songs with a couple new songs.
7. IJWMFTT- all re-recordings of older songs with a Demo tagged to the end of the CD..
8. Roxy- well it's live so of course it's going to be mostly older songs..
9. Andy Paley- "Dessert Drive" (salt lake city riff) "proud mary" (newly recorded song of an oldie)
10. Sweet Insanity- "water builds up" (used partly in "let's go to heaven in my car" or visa versa since I think that WBU is older)
11. First Love/country Love- "Sumahama" was used later on, "Tricia" (Sherry she needs me rewrite) I'm not sure if any of the country songs are older or not also "Every one's in love with you".
12. Looking back with love- of course "Calendar Girl" "be my baby" etc "Paradise Found" (ok this is stretching it a bit but "Let's go away for awhile")
13. POB- hmmm not sure about this one...
14.Bambu- "love surrounds me" used later on.
15. carl Wilson and young blood- "Rockin all over the world" is an oldie.
16. Postcard from California- about half of it are re-recordings..

There's an excellent reason for that - it IS the original, with a few 2003 overdubs.

Plus, you've entirely missed the point. Not talking about re-recorded older tracks, but actually recycling old masters, viz "When Girls Get Together" from 1969 on an album released in 1980.

"FP" was first recorded 8/4/72 in Baambrugge. As for "SO,S", yes, that's what Steve said to me when I interviewed him in 1985... but there's no actual documentary proof.

oh okay..thanks  ;D

Maybe the point is that you can define "totally new" so narrowly that the set of totally new Beach Boy albums is practically empty.  :)

Or you can define it as I did, with considerable exactitude, viz., "composed of entirely newly recorded material, that is they don't include anything recorded anything from three months to ten years previously".

And still have someone misunderstand.  :old

Surfin' Safari: This depends on how much slack you're cutting for the single, but "Surfin'" was recorded and released well before this album was, so I'll go with "no."

Wasn't  Surfin rerecorded for the SS album?

No.

Definitely not a re-record, but it was definitely sped up.

Thanks, re Funky Pretty guess I was misled by the Badman book, which IIRC said January 1972.

Was "Mama Says" rerecorded for Wild Honey?

Yes.