Some even think it sounds like Bruce.

With all due respect, "some" appears to be just you. And you've posted on this thread quite a few instances where you claim something is Bruce, when it's not, with the exception of "Thing Or Two". It's one person singing. And it's Carl.

John, thanks for your comments. There was however someone else who expressed the opinion that it was Bruce on "How she boogalooed it" way back when the "Wild Honey" album was being discussed possibly. As for the times I have heard Bruce while no-one else has said anything to agree with me, this does not prove I was wrong. I still think what I thought then.

Some even think it sounds like Bruce.

Bruce doesn't think it sounds like Bruce. Kinda convincing, huh ?

AGD, the point I would like to make is that I think Bruce may be joking or not saying everything. Perhaps he said it was Carl, meaning that Carl sang it live, or in some similar way he didn't make known that it was he himself. In my previous post on this thread I was trying to reconcile the statements of Bruce and Al with my ears.

However, I've changed my mind again from that last post. The lines I thought could be Carl or even Al or Dennis are not sufficiently different from the lines I know to be Bruce, and I even can see them as likely to be Bruce too.

In fact I agree with everyone who says it's clearly one person singing the entire song. Except that that one person is Bruce.

HSBI...For years I thought it was Al too...the first few lines give that impression...but it's definitely Carl. BW, CW and Al could all sound uncannily like each other, and this is a case of CW sounding very much like Al in places, but the grit of CW's tone and his enunciation is like a fingerprint. No possible way that its Bruce, his tone is nothing like this vocal.

It sounds like Al a little in accent, because Bruce does. It is also a bit like Al's way of singing and I wonder if Bruce is trying deliberately to sound like that. But in terms of timbre it cannot be Al because Al has a clear timbre. Bruce sounds more like Carl in timbre which is why in another way the vocal sounds like Carl. Anyway that's my opinion.

Lines that are most obviously Bruce are the third of the first verse, first of the second verse, third of the second verse and nearly all of the third verse. In fact the high second line "Don't have to worry about disturbing the peace" is very clearly Bruce. The corresponding line in the second verse is clearly not Carl and is a bit like Al except for timbre, and the word "dancin'" gives it away as Bruce. Actually the "sound of a party" line also must be Bruce, even if only because of the word "sound" which could not be Carl on that note: it just sounds totally wrong. The very last line is also clearly Bruce although it is the sort of line that sounds like a deliberate Al impression.

It seems good to turn back to give Sunflower the praise it deserves. And everyone surely makes a good subjective point about it. On the one hand I can never think of ratings for albums because it seems meaningless, but on the other hand I gave in to temptation and gave a 5/5 to Sunflower and that was the only time I gave a rating, just because I saw it as SO good. But if God is perfect, he is also infinite. Anything finite is not perfect, but it may be as good as you can imagine it being, without imagining it changing into something else.

Who sang "How She Boogalooed It":

Bruce says Carl.
Al said he sang it himself once didn't he?- because it was too high for Carl.

For ages most people thought it sounded like Al.
Many now think it sounds like Carl.
Some even think it sounds like Bruce.

Truth doesn't change, but we see different bits of it, and people only say bits of it at a time.

Until a year ago I thought it was Al. I would put the track on, think "Who on earth is that and what on earth are they saying, and then hear that "sound of a party" and think-Al. Then I would hear that screamed out "outta sight dancin'" which would clearly break out of the mud of incomprehension and anonymity as Al, before the vocal fell back to its normal puzzling sound.

Now, starting from ignorance, I suppose anyone could be singing any line or word or whatever. The lead could be passed around, or different takes could be combined in an infinite number of possible ways.

Perhaps it is meant to be a difficult puzzle because the Beach Boys liked a joke. Even if not, the difficulty adds to the depth and enjoyment of the Wild Honey album, which at first listen sounds nothing like the Beach Boys, vocally or musically. It might be partly the production which takes brilliant passionate vocal performances and of course brilliant musical compositions and preserves them in stained glass like the cover, by squashing them with a steamroller. But I love the result. (My favourite album of all time, BTW, Sunflower is 2nd and then Friends maybe).

Anyway I don't know who sings what.

Carl then Al then Bruce and then perhaps Dennis. Then back to Carl and Al (halfway through a line perhaps) and Bruce and Carl sings "Oh" handing over a bit sudden to Al who screams out the "outta sight" line. Then Carl, Al (I think it's him now singing "Aren't you glad we gotta way in here"- admittedly it sounds a bit like Carl at the start* but the end of the line is more like Al) and then ? is that Dennis? (the line about the record player).

It's very difficult and I've probably got it all wrong.

*but the word "glad" has a prominent "gl" like Al's line** in "Aren't you glad". Yes, I mean that. I always wondered why the chorus of "Aren't you glad" sounded like it was all Brian and hence double-tracked. Then I was surprised on this message board to find out Carl was singing there. But the middle line was not him-It is Al sounding very like Brian to me-and one of my favourite of his vocals. It also makes it more clear why the parts are divided up as they are on the live version.

**I call it one line that Al sings, because the second chorus sounds like the first one copied and pasted.

Anyway maybe enough is enough. Parties are not always a good thing.

It's definitely not Bruce. Have you listened to his pre-BBs stuff? It's hard to tell from just his wimpy Beach Boys ballads that he doesn't sing like the singer on HSBI, but being a fan of his early solo albums and the Rip Chords, I'd say I'm familiar enough with Bruce's voice to know that he is not the singer on HSBI.

Maybe it's Carl using Bruce's guide vocal?

Man, I KNOW it's Bruce! It really is. I was wrong to say earlier that I was certain some lines were Carl, and equally you can't say it's definitely not Bruce (at least not accurately) unless you have certain knowledge of that. It's true I haven't heard anything by Bruce other than his Beach Boys recordings, but by comparing the accent on HSBI with Bruce's ballads I eventually can now hear Bruce singing HSBI, if you get what I mean. You know when you keep listening to something until you recognise the voice and it can't be otherwise. Admittedly, it's possible to be mistaken, but still probably every voice is unique and there must be a "minimum distance" between them so that they don't get confused. I'm sure about most lines, in fact all of them because I can hear there's no change in singer now.

I don't know how he sings on early albums, but he may be deliberately trying a new style. Isn't that possible? Of course Carl did that on Wild Honey too.

Some parts that most clearly to me show it to be Bruce are the third line ("Now my heart beat etc.), the fourth line (particularly the word "and", also the way he sings "way" and the rest of the line "aren't you glad we gotta way in here".

Another indication I think, although not a proof of course, is the line "the boys are with me to do some outta sight dancin'": it seems to me that he is referring to the other Beach boys as the "boys" as if he is not exactly a member of the group. Or perhaps not. But it might be that.

It's not that surprising to me now that he sounds different than on his other Beach boys songs, because they are all ballads.

Yeah, but if he learned to sing like Al, it doesn't matter if Al's not singing it live when Carl is. If you know how a song (especially one by your band, in which you sing the lead) goes, you don't just start singing it another way.

But this only makes sense if Carl sings it the same way live that he does in the recording. Actually, either way would be inconclusive, for if he sang it differently live, than that could also mean that on the recording he was singing to Al's guide vocal.

So I guess this post means nothing.

I agree. And furthermore there could be any differences of singer between any of the versions basically.

The strange thing is I listened to HSBI again recently and decided that it WAS Bruce after all, on all the lines I'd mentioned. It is exactly his accent and sounds nothing like Carl. Next I listened to "Carl's" lines, and, funnily enough they are not clearly Carl at all but some sound definitely like Bruce. Adding to this the theory that it's all one person (which sounds very likely of course) I am now thinking it's probably all Bruce.

So, Bruce's first full lead vocal?

Thanks Aegir. If you are right then I would be certain that its all Carl.

Analysing the reasons in favour of the opinion its all Carl:

1. There is something very constant about the voice singing on all the lines: a tone or timbre or something. It's obviously not Mike, Brian or Dennis, and also too high pitched for Mike and Dennis. It is not Al's clearer timbre. It is like enough to Carl. I'm not sure enough what Bruce would sound like singing in that pitch and that fast, although I thought it was possibly him.

2. Some times where I've noted a change from one voice to another, the second voice seems to become indistinguishable from the original voice later on, for example, for the fourth line I've put Bruce because it seems to carry on from the third line which sounds like Bruce. But then it sounds pretty much the same as the fifth and sixth lines, and for that matter, like the seventh line too. Moreover, I have changed around some lines many times. So sometimes I think the high second lines of the verses are Carl or Bruce interchangeably.

3. Sometimes even within one line the singer seems to change. "The walls are movin" sounds like what I think of as Bruce and "the ceilin's a-reeling" like Carl. "Gotta girl givin' me some lessons" even sounds like it blends seamlessly from the Bruce voice to the Carl voice. I wondered if some sort of editing of takes had done that, but perhaps it is simply because the "Bruce voice" is Carl.

4. I only started to guess it was Bruce because I sometimes couldn't hear it clearly enough as Carl, and because Bruce obviously wrote a major part of it (By the way does anyone know who wrote what in terms of words and music: that would be really interesting). Carl definitely sings some bits, for example "Come on, sockit, sockit to me".

So it could easily be all Carl.

The reasons against seem to be:

1. The lines vary so much in approach and loudness, that it almost sounds as if each line was recorded separately: There is a such a lack of continuity.

2. The vocal often sounds very strange and unlike Carl, whereas on the rest of the album I find Carl is clearly distinguishable and constant over a whole song. On this song I seem to hear a more resonant voice and a flatter, gentler voice for parts of it: the latter one I thought was Bruce. If it is all Carl, he seems to vary the amount of resonance in his voice. He also sounds unlike himself for these parts. Perhaps it is because the singing is so fast, but I think this is the best part of the argument for Bruce.

3. It almost seems like a put-on, an impression of someone, maybe of Al. I suppose that could actually be the case though, whoever is singing.

4. It is arguably a lot less great than Carl's other leads on the album, because it is so rough and unpolished. On the other hand it can easily be argued it is deliberately meant to be like that, and that "Wild Honey" (the song) is rather rough and unpolished too (as of course the whole album is in a sense).

On balance now I would guess it is probably all Carl, although it is still enjoyable to listen again and try to distinguish the voice(s) more clearly.

What a strange but enjoyable song!

"How She Boogalooed It" was Carl, as confirmed by Alan Boyd, who as I understand it, consulted Jardine to confirm it.  Don't know why the dueling Al comments, but I remember this having come up before.  It only sounds like Al to me in spots (perhaps the first two lines), otherwise it sounds totally consistent with Carl's other leads on the album.  Listen to the words "reelin'", "affection", etc., the distinctive "curl" to the end of the note.  Al never sang like that; his voice has a reedier texture.  Carl did.

The quote about Carl having Al sing it because it was too high for him doesn't make sense to me because (a) Al's name comes first as primary songwriter and (b) Carl's base vocal range was, if anything, higher than Al's (even though they both could hit pretty high notes...I'm referring to their comfort range.  Consider Carl's vocal on the first half of "Trader" which was, if anything, a little low for his voice in parts, even though he managed fine.  Now imagine Al singing it.  It's right smack in his natural register).  Now what makes more sense to me is that the vocal was too high for AL and he passed it on to CARL...since Al theoretically wrote most of it, he'd likely be the one to get first crack at singing it.  This also makes sense to me in that Al has more of a distinct crossover in his natural voice to his higher register than Carl did, so it would be easier for Carl to negotiate the top of his full voice range (though there's some overemoted notes on that tune, I grant you).  I can see Al having said that in the interview and either accidentally getting it backwards, having it transcribed backwards, or having remembered the interview backwards.

I've heard a live version of it from '67 and it's obviously Carl on that as well.  I hesitate to contradict my esteemed friend Mr. Doe, but...Carl.

I appreciate that this is extremely good work, Adamghost, and of course you, and others, may be totally right and "How she boogalooed it" may be all sung by Carl. You notice several lines that are clearly sung by Carl and I agree now I have listened a lot.

But, I've been working on a theory that some lines are Bruce and some Carl. I wonder if anyone else hears Bruce as a possibility?

I wondered too if Al sung any lines, but I now think probably not. It is not his texture of voice as you say.

The third and fourth lines in particular are very unusual sounding, and don't sound like Carl to me, but rather like Bruce. The lines also sound a bit like a relay in places because there is seemingly a change in voice and style quite often.

I have a guess at a possible Bruce-Carl relay but it is very unsure and I have changed it many times.

First verse: Bruce, Carl, Bruce, Bruce, Carl, Carl
Second: Bruce, Carl?, Bruce, Carl (with certainty), Carl, Bruce
Third: Bruce, Bruce, Bruce, Carl (with certainty), Bruce, Carl (again definitely), Bruce.

Here's something:

Alan's first lead vocal:

Christmas Day, of course.
But has anyone noticed the short line in "Do you Remember?" that Al sings on his own? ? I wondered for a while who it was, because it doesn't come across very well- but it is Al.

But then listen to No-Go Showboat. After Brian's line, and Mike's line, there is a three part harmony line e.g. "When it comes to speed man I'm just out of luck, I'm even shut down by the ice-cream truck". The two lower parts are very quiet in comparison to the top part, which is Al. So it comes across almost as a lead vocal.

Yes, definitely just Brian, Carl, and Mike on "Things". 

But there are four harmony parts!

No, that's what happened. Listen to it:

[Carl]:  I, I love the colourful clothes she wears, and the way the sunlight plays upon her hair
[Brian]: I....hear the sound of a
[Carl]: Gentle word, on the wind that lifts her perfume on the air.

There's a switch between vocalists there. And similarly on the "Whennn, I look" on the second verse.

I'm sorry. I suppose you must be right. I had wondered why there was a bit of a break in those verses but I hadn't noticed it was Brian on the falsettos. That's strange but interesting!

Thanks also, c-man and Roger Ryan. I'd noticed that on "Live at the Roxy", someone else sings those falsettos, and Brian, I think, sings a lower harmony, down a third.

But now, this news is clearly a very important argument against Carl singing the alternate version, but I don't think it is conclusive (yet). The thing about certainty is that if one is certain, then it must be true, but if one is not, then as far as one knows it could be true or false. And it still sounds like Carl to me. I wish I was certain! There is enough error in the world, especially regarding this week in Britain.

But if Carl couldn't sing the actual note, well that's unlikely because he sang the note "a" a year before on "Girl don't tell me" which is only a semitone lower. So perhaps it was holding on the long "a#" that was the problem, or perhaps it was because it would have been too loud and/or strained in normal voice, and his falsetto wasn't good enough, or some other reason. But presumably before long he was singing it in concert. When did he first sing it, though?

But on the alternate version, in fact those falsettos do sound like Brian mostly. I didn't mention it before, except that I thought Brian might be on the lead too. Especially on "IT'S WEIRD how she comes in so strong" the falsetto sounds more like Brian, but the rest of the line is so like Carl. So maybe they're both there. 

But I suppose it makes it more unlikely still that Carl sang the chorus of the alternate version, unless one argues that he is singing loudly there and so can get those high notes, or that perhaps it is Brian and Carl together.

Some time I might go through it all and see which bits sound more like Carl and which more like Brian.

Do you mean by the verse, the "Got to keep those loving... " sections, John?

The might be a confusion here in what people mean by the verse or verses. Brian clearly sings the above mentioned section, but surely Carl sings the high notes on the two "verses" I'm talking about. I wouldn't have thought Carl would stop singing for a second and Brian fill in the highest notes, but I suppose you don't mean that.

My point isn't affected by Brian's section. Surely Brian sang that section for the contrast between their voices and for his unique falsetto? But Carl could have sung that high: Carl's "verses" go a note higher.

Am I the only one who hears both Carls on the entire thing? In verses, it's Carl, phrasing of certain words ("how she comes in so STRONG"). On chorus, it doesn't sound like Brian's unique falsetto. Carl trying to sound like Brian? Anyway, just my .02 cents.

It's definitely not Carl on the verses...he couldn't hit those high notes even in falsetto (at least not at the time of recording), and whoever is singing them on that early version is hitting it in a strong head voice, which only Brian had.

Wait a minute, Chris. It was only a year or so before Carl sang "Wild Honey" which goes several notes higher, in full voice too. And what's more compelling- he sang "Good Vibrations", same tune on the verses, just months after this demo version. It's true he is singing more forcefully on the demo, but it is usually harder to sing high notes softly rather than to sing them loudly, I think.

The chorus goes even higher than the verse, and not in falsetto either. It also is nothing like Brian's "head voice", but still it is a bit less high than "Wild Honey". It also sounds strained in a similar way to "Wild Honey". I vote, with epi, that it is Carl all the way through.

Am I the only one who hears both Carls on the entire thing? In verses, it's Carl, phrasing of certain words ("how she comes in so STRONG"). On chorus, it doesn't sound like Brian's unique falsetto. Carl trying to sound like Brian? Anyway, just my .02 cents.

I agree totally, epi. That is Carl's accent exactly ("She's already working on my brain" right at the start, the same accent as "Hi, little girl, it's me" etc. on "Girl, don't tell me"), and on the choruses too, I think. Carl trying to sound like Brian? It's probably not consciously but there were often a lot of similarities. As for my idea that there may be a partially erased Brian vocal underneath, I would now say probably not. The double-tracking is probably all Carl. But he might have erased over a Brian guide vocal, with backing vocals. There are some Brian background falsettos and some nearly erased stuff in the chorus.

Brian trying to sound like Carl?

Brian trying to sound like Brian ?

Brian just doing a scratch vocal and not really being bothered who he sounds like ?

Alan trying to sound like Brian trying to sound like Carl ? 

It's a difficult one to work out, but if anything, it's certainly not Alan!

Anyway, it's Carl. Nowhere does it sound like Brian. Brian seems very recognisable when it is him. Carl is more difficult, probably because one expects Brian, and because Carl sounds different between singing loud and soft.

Let's start over!

Yes. No harm in going through a few more times.

On "Auld Lang Syne" I get Dennis AND Al on there. This is how:

4 parts, from top to bottom: Brian, Al, Carl and Dennis together, Mike.
Comparing the two speaker channels, Carl is louder on one, Dennis on the other. Sometimes Dennis sings a little scoop to the note, whereas Carl doesn't, and on the last line Dennis seems to go above the correct note in the middle of "Syne".

Dennis and Carl often sound similar in the harmonies, because of their timbre.  Except that Carl is smoother. Dennis is very expressive and so his voice makes the harmony sound pleasant to the ear. Al is usually the hardest to pick out but always seems to sing exactly in tune and so blend in pitchwise. His voice also blends by not sounding distinctive in the harmonies. But occasionally when his voice sticks out you notice the different accent and timbre of his voice.

On "Lavender" I think it is Brian, Carl, Dennis and Mike.
On "Things we did last summer" surely it is the same four?

Maybe it's Alan... 

Seriously, though Brian & Carl can sound very similar, there's a smoothness to Carl, and Brian has that indefinable edge, a curious plantive, slightly metallic quality... plus I don't see Brian calling in Carl just to do a scratch vocal, and the aforementioned concert dates tend to rule Carl out anyway.

Yes, Brian has a certain edge and an emotion in his voice that Carl doesn't have, whereas Carl has a smooth sound and smooth way of singing phrases.

Despite the touring dates, it sounds like Carl. But it does sound like another (Brian) vocal underneath. What if Carl recorded his own vocal over Brian's when he got back from touring? It might be that someone can hear both of them clearly. I'll check again.

Brian sounds very different when I compare by listening to "God only Knows" from "Live at the Roxy" and "Good Vibrations" from BWPS.

Sorry, but you're making a joke, right ?  Comparing Brian in 1966 to Brian in 2000 and 2004 is like trying to equate 'The Last Supper' just after Leonardo finished it with the ruin we see now.

And the scratch vocal for "GV" Mk 1 is definitely Brian, because with one possible exception, the rest of the band were on tour at the time of those sessions.

I'm not joking! OK, Brian's voice changed over time, but it was still Brian's voice all along that changed. He still now has the same accent, tone with his notes etc. that is unique to him. If I want to try to sound like Carl or Brian, no matter how much it doesn't really sound like them, I have to put my mouth in a certain position and try to make a sound in a certain sort of way. I think Brian has a different way of emphasising and attacking the words and has a clearer less soft and breathy tone than Carl, as well as the pronunciation of words being different.

For "God only knows" as aeijtzsche says, it is definitely Carl. There's practically no difference between this lead and the other alternate versions on the box set.

For "Good Vibrations" I must admit I'm not so sure, but does that sound like Brian to anyone? The verses are just like Carl. The choruses are weird, but more like Carl than Brian, and surely Brian would have sung them in his special falsetto, not in normal voice like they are?

Naw, it's Brian for sure on the alternate lyric version...MAYBE Brian & Carl, but Brian is definitely there, same as the "God Only Knows" alternate vocal.

And the Boys weren't touring Japan when Brian played them the "Good Vibes" track for the first time...according to Carl, it was North Dakota.  Per the timeline on Bellagio, this would've been mid-August, which means the track Brian played down the phoneline to Carl would likely be the spliced-together master that included the fuzz bass solo that was later replaced by the organ interlude...and it would've only had Brian's work vocals, if any.  By that time, Carl had already played on at least two tracking sessions, so he was familiar with the song, but apparently hearing the pastiche stiched together from several different tracking dates resulted in Carl describing it as "disjointed".

I should have been a bit more exact. Brian is definitely singing on the track because you can hear him doing a falsetto background on the first chorus. But the lead vocal seems to be Carl. Perhaps there is a Brian guide vocal underneath it that is partially audible but I don't know. It sounds like Carl not Brian. Actually like the "Wild Honey" lead for example.

"God only knows (Brian lead)" is clearly Carl to me. Like with "Good Vibrations" he is singing louder than on the released version but there's no essential difference in the sound. Brian sounds very different when I compare by listening to "God only Knows" from "Live at the Roxy" and "Good Vibrations" from BWPS.

I know zero about the history of the demo and what the other beach boys heard etc. But I thought I'd just mention how I'm convinced that Carl is singing on that Twofer "demo" track. I said earlier on the "Definitive vocal credits thread" that I thought it could be Carl and Brian. Now I'm inclining to the view that it is all Carl-it just sounds like him, similar to on  "Girl don't tell me" or something like that.

If this is true, the track still may have been played to the other four Beach boys for all I know.

It's Bruce on "A Thing Or Two".

Reason #1 - it sounds like him.

reason #2 - I asked him. 

Thanks AGD.

Okay, changing it now.

That's great, John.

I've got my own question about "A Thing or Two" for whoever would help: Are all the chorus falsetto lines by Brian?
The only one I find to be obviously Brian is the second of the three. However I can't imagine the first one as anyone but Brian, and the last one might also be Brian but I wonder if instead it could be Bruce?

Another thing about the alternate versions of the Pet Sounds Sessions box: lead vocals on the sax solo and the a capella tag versions of GOK: Carl of Brian?

All the box set versions of "God Only Knows" are sung by Carl. The difference is on the tag: only on the original release does Brian replace Carl's part.

After listening to She's Goin' Bald, I really have to stick with the intricately researched and corrected by the board thing that's there. Brian, Mike, Dennis and Al sing the first section and Brian and Mike are the only guys doing the hammy talking bit.

Well I have to differ, but I appreciate the fact that a lot of work has already been done on Smiley Smile and Wild Honey. It's just that the more I listen to them, I find more and more difficulties in trying to decide who is singing what. Some of these I have resolved to my own satisfaction and others I haven't.

For example: "Country Air": I actually thought all the falsetto bits were Brian until recently, but the first two that follow the first two choruses come out from the second from top harmony, not the top part! Which creates a difficulty if Brian sings the top part. They also don't sound exactly like Brian.

What I'm saying is that these two albums are very complicated in terms of lead vocals, I expect more so than we thought.

I meant 'a thing or twooo' before the first and last choruses, sorry I wasn't clearer. It just sounds like Bruce to me, but you're probably right. How much was actually Bruce involved in WH and SS? I don't hear him anywhere on those albums, I just know he played a organ solo in Wild Honey (song) and bass?

I agree with you epi. In fact I'm certain that that line you mention before the first and last choruses is Bruce. It is not only the "a thing or two" lyrics he sings but "I'm gonna tell that little girl" as well before the first chorus.

Bruce must have been quite involved in "Wild Honey" judging by his vocals. He also is audible on "Let the wind blow" in my opinion-"What would I do without her tell me now" and the last line.

I agree, John, that he can sound like Mike, just that in this case it actually is Bruce on "A thing or two".

Man, Dennis singing "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times" would've been great.  It's actually pretty perplexing how absent Dennis is on Pet Sounds, even in the background vocals, where you can usually pick him out.  I wonder how many sessions he actually showed up for during this period?

And without the session tapes it's hard to know this for sure, but I'm pretty positive Brian isn't singing anything but the lead vocal tracks for Car Crazy Cutie, as in 1963 they were still doing vocals in just two separate overdubs, no more than that.  The first time Brian would sing both lead and on background vocals would be on tracks like "The Warmth Of The Sun", "Don't Worry Baby" and "Keep An Eye On Summer", where even without session tapes it's pretty clear that some bouncing was done and that Brian is audible everywhere.

I can't hear Brian either on the backgrounds to "Car Crazy Cutie": It seems to be Mike, Dennis and Carl only.

But perhaps Brian did sometimes join the backing vocals when he sang early leads: on "Lonely Sea" aren't Mike, Carl, Dennis and Brian on backing vocals, as Adamghost worked out on the "Definitive vocal credits" thread?

Here's a hypothetical compilation. It doesn't exist (as far as I know). But it's not that much stranger than some of them that apparently do exist (all 1700 or whatever).
It's a little skimpy in running time, but that isn't unusual. A little unbalanced betweeen the two sides, but again when has that mattered?, and the choice of tracks is at least different.

Side One

Bull session with the "Big Daddy"
Our favorite recording sessions
I'm bugged at my ol' man
Auld Lang Syne [original, with voiceover]
I'd better get back in bed

Side Two

Whistle in
Carl's big chance
Denny's drum [that's how its spelled on the label and sleeve]
Winds of change
Goin' south
White Christmas

Guess what? I have seen a vinyl compilation that seems to consist of one track from about twelve 60's BB albums but the track chosen would usually be about the third weakest on the entire album! I can't think what the point of the compilation might be, but I remember it contained "How She boogalooed it", "Summertime Blues" and "Boogie Woodie". Actually I like all those songs, but it's still a strange set of choices.

I have one just like that, and it adds the entire TODAY album to make it a double.  It's some kind of a European release, with some oddball pix as artwork...

That is truly weird. Does that mean a song from "Today" is on there twice? I think there was one from "Today" on the album but I can't remember which. I'd like to see the track listing again. I remember seeing the single album, just called "The Beach Boys" possibly, very cheap in many used record shops in Britain.

Ah yes, but there is a hint of reasonableness (even if mock reasonableness) in the voice, like in Al's introduction to "Cassius Love" (which I compared it with).

Whereas Brian's line is completely serious.