I guess maybe it's worth expanding this to not only mono singles, but other single releases. What about these singles in stereo prior to the Brian's Back era, which had different single versions vs their LP recordings?

I Can Hear Music
All I Want to Do
Break Away
Celebrate the News
Add Some Music to Your Day
Susie Cincinnati
Cottonfields
The Nearest Faraway Place
Slip On Through
This Whole World
Tears in the Morning
It's About Time
Cool, Cool Water
Forever
Long Promised Road
Deirdre
'Til I Die
Surf's Up
Don't Go Near the Water
You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone
Cuddle Up
Marcella
Hold On Dear Brother
Sail On, Sailor
Only with You
California Saga: California
Funky Pretty
Child of Winter
Susie Cincinnati

susans
pscn
15bobh
ktsasoyl
hsb

Thanks for doing these, this was fun.

sdsntgfnyc
fbdn
catpsthodb (maybe?)

EDIT: Also, just tried the first one. 8-7, yikes.

tbblygt
whhsbi
whwh

How closely would it resemble the final product of CATP?

From Bellagio, these songs were worked on prior to Ricky/Blondie joining:

(1) Marcella*
(2) All This Is That*
(3) Make It Good*
(4) #5/Untitled Dennis Track
(5) Cuddle Up*
(6) Ten Years of Harmony
(7) Out In The Country
( Body Talk

Two of the other non-Ricky/Blondie songs are missing (You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone and He Come Down), not sure if they still happen given the butterfly effect. If they do, and you add Ten Years of Harmony and Out In The Country, you probably still need a couple other songs. Maybe Bruce writes another song? Or maybe they lean on Brian more heavily and one or more of the Spring songs makes the cut? Or another Dennis joint.

What do you think?

Perhaps not the most interesting question, but I was thinking about this the other day.

Maybe it comes down to when somebody became a fan? Just curious about what comes to mind first (with the caveat that 'Smile' wasn't a released album).

Do we know if there are any more unreleased/unbooted vocals from that time period? I definitely hope there's stuff that hasn't been reported on, but I think we've heard it all at this point. Well, minus the Sail On Sailor demo - which is from a few years earlier. But perhaps I'm forgetting something....

Good question, I'm actually not sure. I hope there is.

Agreed with "twentytwenty" - So much for Brian being a vegetable and not doing much but lie in bed, right? Again, the proof is on the tapes. Was he as much to the forefront? Of course not, but man his presence is there on these tapes. And how great if not melancholy is it to hear *THAT VOICE* hitting the high notes which would soon disappear entirely from BB's music.

Terrific post (and tremendous set btw, have been listening a lot the last couple days), but just wanted to highlight this paragraph, particularly the last sentence.

These sessions have been a goldmine, and even if this isn't Brian of the early-mid 60s, he can still pure those high notes. In the next couple of sets, we'll probably hear *that voice* for the last time. We have a good idea of when it happened (some point between the 1974 California Feelin' demo and the 1975 In the Back of My Mind demo), but it's going to be sad once we hear the last few unbooted recordings that showcase him losing it. Not to be overly dramatic.

As an aside, I really hope Feel Flows sells well. I think an In Concert box in a year or two, and a Brian's Back box in a few more years would be tremendous follow-ups. If Feel Flows is a commercial success (it already appears to be a critical one) we'll have more sets to look forward to from copyright extensions.

I was about to create a thread by this title, and saw that it already existed. Hope this isn't too much of a bump. Adult/Child doesn't really have much of a weak spot, maybe I don't dig Deep Purple or Games Two Can Play *as much*, but all in all it's quite good.

On the other hand, the album really suffers from a lack of unifying sound. The different arrangements/productions make it feel like more of a compilation. I don't mind the big band stuff, but it would've been nice to have an entire album in that style, or another album full of synths to follow up 15 Big Ones and Love You. I think Still I Dream of It and It's Over Now would sound amazing in the style of the previous two albums.

Honestly though, while I do love the 69-71 era songs used on Adult/Child, 15 Big Ones, and Love You (Susie Cincinnati, Good Time, HELP Is On the Way, Games Two Can Play; you can throw When Girls Get Together in this bucket too since it was considered for New Album and was used in Keepin The Summer Alive), they are a bit distracting in terms of vocals/production. There were enough great songs from this era to fill out these albums that would sound less anachronistic.

I think I would substitute:

Susie Cincinnati->Sea Cruise
Good Time->You've Lost That Lovin Feelin (I know Love You had no covers, so maybe not ideal)
HELP Is On the Way->Sherry She Needs Me
Games Two Can Play->Marilyn Rovell

My Diane is also sublime but that probably wasn't going to come out until after Brian and Marilyn split up, I guess.

I like Sunflower and Surf's Up although I think they don't sound as interesting (to me personally) as the records that the band made when Brian was in charge. Their sound changed dramatically after Friends and while subsequent albums did still sound very creative there's a particular originality missing from most of the material. Wild Honey, for example, sounds pretty lo-fi as far as I'm concerned but it still has that sense of originality. It's hard to describe really; to me it feels like Carl's vision of the Beach Boys did not have the same level of energy as Brian's, although he did a tremendous job on those early-70s records, so please don't get me wrong.

I feel the same way often, even if I love a lot of songs from 20/20 thru Holland. Do you feel the energy returned with 15 Big Ones/Love You?

For the most part, yes. I think this is why I love to listen to 15 Big Ones although it is such a flawed record. They lost that energy for good with M.I.U. and the Light Album.

I'm really not a fan of Bruce's production on LA or KTSA. I have a love-hate relationship with MIU. This is probably a bad way of thinking about it, but when I'm convinced Brian played a bigger role on the album, I enjoy it more. When I'm convinced he was a bystander, I'm less of a fan. Reality isn't in absolutes and the quality of the music shouldn't be impacted by how involved Brian was, but it still kind of matters. As an aside, I have a (maybe twisted) obsession with the Brian's Back era live shows. They're really fun and I like when Brian had a lot of energy out there. 1977, or maybe early 1978 is the last time the Beach Boys feel fun to me. I do think that maybe in the very early KTSA sessions some of that magic might've been there too, I hope we get to see a copyright extension set on that era (the last time Brian and Mike collaborated in a major way, I believe).

I like Sunflower and Surf's Up although I think they don't sound as interesting (to me personally) as the records that the band made when Brian was in charge. Their sound changed dramatically after Friends and while subsequent albums did still sound very creative there's a particular originality missing from most of the material. Wild Honey, for example, sounds pretty lo-fi as far as I'm concerned but it still has that sense of originality. It's hard to describe really; to me it feels like Carl's vision of the Beach Boys did not have the same level of energy as Brian's, although he did a tremendous job on those early-70s records, so please don't get me wrong.

I feel the same way often, even if I love a lot of songs from 20/20 thru Holland. Do you feel the energy returned with 15 Big Ones/Love You?

Progressive as a genre of music? Hard to tell, I know some of these terms have clearly-defined meanings. For instance, 15 Big Ones had a lot of covers, but isn’t using synths to that extent inherently progressive (even if it’s not as prevalent as in Love You)?

In terms of progressing, 5 years from Surfin’ to Surf’s Up speaks volumes imo.

Was just thinking about this topic, and trying to get more context on what inspired Brian. My first best guess would be 65-67 (beginning when writing California Girls and concluding before Wild Honey, which is considered a "post-psychedelic" album).

What about the other guys? There is that comment from one of the Our Prayer sessions ("[a]re you guys feeling the acid yet?"), but I'm not sure how much it was used (I also don't know who was present at that session, offhand).

How would his presence affect the direction of the band both in the studio and touring?

There's probably not much of a reason for Glen Campbell and Bruce Johnston to join, since Brian would be able to remain off the touring circuit (aside from perhaps TV appearances and recordings intended for live albums). From this thread it looks like when the non-Brian lineup toured in 63, Al was on bass. Presumably Al would handle the high vocals (maybe Carl on some tracks?).

In terms of the studio, from a cursory glance David seemed a lot more interested in the psychedelic bag than did Bruce, so I wonder if having an extra voice for the creative/experimental path would have pushed the band more in that direction.

Thoughts?

If David doesn't leave, does Al not return? How is David as a singer?
I think having two serious guitar players in the band would keep the guitar prominent in Beach Boys music. It seems like the guitar took a backseat around the time of Pet Sounds, and never came back, with exceptions like Bluebeards Over the Mountain, It's About Time, and All I Want to Do.

Unless I'm mistaken, there's a period of time in 1963 during which both David and Al were in the band.

How would his presence affect the direction of the band both in the studio and touring?

There's probably not much of a reason for Glen Campbell and Bruce Johnston to join, since Brian would be able to remain off the touring circuit (aside from perhaps TV appearances and recordings intended for live albums). From this thread it looks like when the non-Brian lineup toured in 63, Al was on bass. Presumably Al would handle the high vocals (maybe Carl on some tracks?).

In terms of the studio, from a cursory glance David seemed a lot more interested in the psychedelic bag than did Bruce, so I wonder if having an extra voice for the creative/experimental path would have pushed the band more in that direction.

Thoughts?

There are a lot of terrific candidates, which would you guys select? In terms of songs on which they're the only two with writing credits.

Good Vibrations and I Get Around have to be way up there.

Side two of Today and Summer Days both have a ton of great stuff.

Post-Smile, I love Let The Wind Blow, Do It Again, All I Wanna Do, Cool Cool Water, That Same Song, Let Us Go On This Way, Goin On.

What are your favorites?

I've seen Brian twice, but haven't seen Mike and Bruce yet. Hoping to see that at the August show in CT. Wonder if they'll play any Sunflower/Surf's Up stuff or deep cuts.

Thinking back to this, it's probably either 67 (Smile comes out) or 71 (it doesn't), I think there is no higher high to go out on than having Surf's Up as your swan song (I'm assuming it would've been the closer had Smile been finished).

I am obsessed with the Brian's Back era (listening to some late 77 concerts right now) but it didn't have the same widespread appeal. I'm happy they didn't break up then because there's a lot of great music, but I think that would really enhance the band's legend.

Which instances would you count in this? Al going to dental school probably counts, as does Bruce leaving in 72 and coming back to produce LA. Beyond that it gets a little trickier.

Does Carl embarking on his solo tour count as leaving the band and rejoining? Or just taking a break from the touring band? Likewise, Brian's time off from touring while he stayed home to write/arrange/produce probably don't count. But what about periods when he was neither touring nor recording music for the band for at least a few months or more? Mike probably never left, though I guess it depends on if you count his hiatuses in 68 and 77 for (I believe) TM. Dennis at the end wasn't touring with the band, but they weren't really recording much either, so it's not like he missed out on all that much.

edit: never mind

Since the interview was conducted in 1977, maybe that's a bit more defensible. Especially if this quote comes from earlier in the year, and prior to the release of Love You.

Songs written by Brian released in that span:

So Tough - You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone, He Come Down, Marcella
Holland - Sail On, Sailor, Funky Pretty, Fairy Tale
15 Big Ones - It's O.K., Had to Phone Ya, That Same Song, T M Song, Back Home
Singles - Child of Winter (I think this is it?)

I would take Til I Die over this selection, I think. Sail On, Sailor is very likely a great song. Marcella might be. I actually really like all of the originals on 15 Big Ones as well (and the covers), but I'm not sure if they're Bruce's cup of tea. Same with the Fairy Tale.

it's a shame both Mike and Bruce have no problem making such bold and rather negative statements about Brian. Mike has said similar things about Heroes & Villains being the last great record that Brian produced.

Do you have the source for that quote? I think I've seen it before too, I just can't seem to find it right now.

EDIT: Found it, from the Endless Harmony Doc

Mike: Heroes And The Villains is a very powerful track, very dynamic. That was the last of the super-dynamism from Brian I think. That was 1967.

Which do you personally think is better? Which do you listen to more often?

So if we count Cool Cool Water, the 1972 shows (from 3/17/72-11/23/73 on setlist.fm) had 5/6 (Vegetables missing). Vegetables (10/3/70-6/29/71) was phased out before Surf's Up was added to the list, so that's only four. The Good Vibrations semi-acoustic sets in 93 (11/18/93-11/29/93) had 4/6 (no Cool Cool Water or Surf's Up).

Our Prayer was performed three times in 2012 it appears, but the only other Smile era songs on the setlists were Good Vibrations and Heroes and Villains.

I wouldn't agree with Bruce, but which songs that Brian wrote after would you guys say were better? Better is subjective, but I think I would definitely say Still I Dream Of It fits the bill.

I was thinking about this a bit, and was trying to pinpoint a good time when this would've happened. Obvious preface - Smile never came out, the line between Smiley and Smiley Smile is fuzzy, and some things that originated from the Smile Sessions popped up elsewhere. That said...

In the early 70s, it seems that these songs were regularly in the rotation:

Good Vibrations
Heroes and Villains
Surf's Up
Vegetables
Wonderful (as part of Wonder-Bill)
Cool, Cool Water (I know, really blurring the line here)

I think that's about everything. From looking at setlist.fm I don't *think* any shows had all six of these songs. But I wonder if any shows had at least 5 of these 6? Especially the first 5.

Any shows come to mind?