Damn! Someone beat me to the "critical list" comment.

I once saw a video on YouTube with Brian at the piano attempting to imitate Mike's singing style circa 1979 or so. Al is standing next to him and he asks (a very embarrassed) Al to hold his nose while he's singing -- which Al does! I wish I'd earmarked this video -- it was hilarious.

It's on the Endless Harmony DVD

It's from 1996 or so. The Stars and Stripes sessions.

How could someone possibly mistake a 96 Brian for a 79 Brian? They practically look like a different person. (Well, as most people do over the course of 17 years)

Because I saw it only once in a fleeting moment over a friend's house circa 2006-07. Plus, I associated it with another video we were watching of the 1976-era Brian at the piano singing "I'm Bugged at My Old Man" with Carl and Dennis on backups. That one is still on YouTube.

I've heard it said on here that Carry Me Home was dropped from the final track-list because Brian found it too upsetting...

Is this just rumours or is it based in fact or what? It seems likely really, considering how Brian is on record as having been so affected by Dennis' death and what with the song containing lyrics such as 'I'm afraid to die'.

But it's a pity because it's a stunning song.

 It's a shame, but at least "Carry Me Home" is fairly common in the hands of "collectors". 

Yeah, but the sound quality is garbage.

I heard they couldn't find a proper master for "Carry Me Home." Shame too, because I second (or third) everyone here who says it's a powerful piece of music. I first heard it on the "California Feeling" LP in the '80s and more than anything it convinced me Dennis was a first-rate talent. Who leaves something like that unreleased? I've read the quote where he talks about it (in the Byron Preiss book? Can't remember), saying it didn't fit with the Beach Boys. But it should have come out somewhere.

That said, I also think the "Big Sur" in 4/4 time blows away the one on "Holland," which is saying something because I always loved that version. If "Our Team" can get an official release, maybe they could find this worthy someday...
 

Oi, don't knock Our Team. It's great!

Haha - I modified my post and removed that...tried to make things more constructive.

I've heard it said on here that Carry Me Home was dropped from the final track-list because Brian found it too upsetting...

Is this just rumours or is it based in fact or what? It seems likely really, considering how Brian is on record as having been so affected by Dennis' death and what with the song containing lyrics such as 'I'm afraid to die'.

But it's a pity because it's a stunning song.

 It's a shame, but at least "Carry Me Home" is fairly common in the hands of "collectors".  

Yeah, but the sound quality is garbage.

I heard they couldn't find a proper master for "Carry Me Home." Shame too, because I second (or third) everyone here who says it's a powerful piece of music. I first heard it on the "California Feeling" LP in the '80s and more than anything it convinced me Dennis was a first-rate talent. Who leaves something like that unreleased? I've read the quote where he talks about it (in the Byron Preiss book? Can't remember), saying it didn't fit with the Beach Boys. But it should have come out somewhere.

I agree with everyone else who wants "Big Sur" in 4/4 time,"Santa Ana Winds" (early version), "I'm Begging You Please."

But I have one request:

"All This is That" -- the early version. This version is spoken about at length in the Preiss book. It was Al's original draft of the song before Carl and Mike modified it by going in and recording a new melody on different tracks. You can hear Al's original vocal in spots "underneath" the first verse of the released version -- it's that vocal line that pops up now and again (I'm pretty sure that's not a backing vocal, that's an unused vocal line faded in and out). This might be worthy of a post itself. Has anyone ever noticed this but me? It goes like this:

"...into the pool of peace inside..."
Right channel original vocal line: "...travel..."
"two waves and I..."
Right channel original vocal line: "....make a difference to me..."

There's more to it than that, but if you know what to look for, it's easy to spot. I've been curious about this for a long time, so if anyone had noticed it I'd like to know...

Damn! Someone beat me to the "critical list" comment.

I once saw a video on YouTube with Brian at the piano attempting to imitate Mike's singing style circa 1979 or so. Al is standing next to him and he asks (a very embarrassed) Al to hold his nose while he's singing -- which Al does! I wish I'd earmarked this video -- it was hilarious.

This is my first post and I'm completely embarrassed about the song I'm going to address, but what the heck.

I think when assessing "Hey Little Tomboy," it makes more sense to think that it was most likely written from the point of view of a teenager and not an adult and was meant to be cute, not sexual. Three songs on the original vinyl side one of "Love You" were written from a teenager's perspective ("Let Us," "Roller Skating" and "Honkin'") and Brian had previously done this earlier, with songs ranging from "We'll Run Away" to "I Get Around" to "Wouldn't It Be Nice."

"Tomboy" might have made more sense conceptually had it been placed on side one of "Love You," where it would have fit in amongst the references to going to school, folks letting kids stay out late and the like. It definitely doesn't fit on "MIU," where it's the only song written from such a perspective (excepting maybe "Wontcha Come Out Tonight"). Nor does it really work on "Adult Child," surrounded by big band numbers (etc.), and containing that ridiculous spoken word section that unwittingly anticipates David Lee Roth's rap on "Panama."

It's up for question whether Brian wrote from the perspective of a teenager because that was his mindset or because he was writing with an imaginary audience in mind (and yes I know Usher and Asher co-wrote two of the early songs I mentioned, but Brian sang them and was the auteur). I say it's the former. But I always wince when I see people criticizing the song as "pervy" when I had always assumed it was written from the perspective of a 16-year-old to another 16-year-old. Songwriters often conjure "characters" when they sing in first person, and I think that's what Brian was doing here. This once came up on an NRBQ board regarding a "sexist" Al Anderson song called "Feel You Around Me;" my feeling was that Al was playing a character and that he really didn't "work two jobs just to pay (for a girlfriend's) clothes."

Funny enough, as a 21-year-old discovering "MIU" many years ago, it was "My Diane" that gave me the willies, not "Tomboy." The latter reminded me of high school, but when I read a Dave Marsh article that said "Diane" was about his sister-in-law...weird!