Wow, no, I ain't seen the doco... The DVD ain't available here, Endless Harmony is though, that's a good DVD.

Nat King Cole


Johnny O'Keefe


That's where it's at.

Wow, I ain't seen much of the boys in the studio...  Some of them there pics send shivers up me spine...

Thanks aeij and Steve... much appreciated.

That looks like Ringo!

But Rob... the songs on GIOMH are terrible disregarding the performances.  The title track, Soul Searchin' being the two exceptions.

There's some bite in his voice, not the bland, processed voice we've been hearing for the last few years.

THANKYOU!

I love the vocals on this, and the backing vocalists are SO sweet... Awesome blend, great bass singer.  How these could be the worst vocals of Brians solo career, when there's GIOMH, 88, and OCA around is beyond me...

For me, the only arguable one is SMiLE... he MIGHT be better on that.

Followed by "California"... aie.  Everyone likes that one, it shits me.   

Oh, as Ian said to Bruce Johnston

 The crap bass, and the crap lead vocals do me head in.

Well, I meant that in the best possible way

I think Surf's Up is a fine album, but it's no less pretentious and wanky than Holland...  That's what I like about the albums, that they sound rather forced... part of their strange, alluring charm.

My dogs hate the 'whistles' in Funky Pretty... they go nuts whenever it's on (which is rare, as it's the weakest track on the album).

'ey, that's touching mate... but never froget who y'are.

Is it based on fact, 'tears'?  Autobiographical...

ROFL! 

BWAHAHA...

Oh dear, but seriously what made you reevaluate mate?

I don't think Holland sounds any more forced, pretentious or 'band wagon jumping' than Smiley all those years before...  I think they're both great artistic statements.

EDIT:  Or "Surf's Up" for gods sake... That thing sounds like it was squeezed out of Mike Love's ass. 

Yep, I used to be one of them, now I'm one of you.

What happened Ian?  Bruce Johnston and Peter Allen whooped your ass?   I think "Disney Girls" is better than Bruces two tunes here, but I like them nonetheless... The massed "I've got tears, I've got tears, I've got..."  is quite powerful.

I could've added the SMiLE DVD to my collection yesterday, but got my mum "Plant and Page: No Quarter DVD" instead...  I'm still some apprehensions since the Pet Sounds Live DVD rather sucked...  Is Brian much better in the Smile one?

a)  I like and can't figure out why nobody else does, and
b)  falls into that category of songs (for me anyway) where if Brian Wilson would've written it, would've been better liked and respected

God I hate category b)... Makes me hate some of the more stubborn Brian fans sometimes.

I don't mind the song, I think it's really great when it's the real piano at the beginning... but I don't like the electric keyboard sound Bruce uses for the rest of it.  Still, it's got a pretty melody.

Good, man. How bout you? Missed ya.

Fine, fine thanks mate... Y'may not know, but "Six Months in a Leaky Boat" is ACTUALLY a well clouded metaphor for female self-stimulation.

songs like Got To Know The Woman, Slip On Through, Tears In The Morining, All I Wanna Do just sound like they were made by more mature people than those who recorded the 20/20 tracks.

To me, they sound like a band who just left their record label, and are revitalised about starting something new.

That said, I like 20/20 more.  Darker, Creepier vibe.

I have to confess I also feel that those who say they can name umpteen BB albums they prefer more than Pet Sounds are just being wilfully perverse.  One or two perhaps (allowing for personal taste) but 10!  I can't help thinking this is more to do with familiarity and media hype breeding a form of contempt.

I just don't think the media hype is justified... I can't judge what I can't hear, and I just don't hear "the greatest album of all time" when I listen to it.  I don't even hear the best BB's album (Today!).

Haha.

Touche

How you beean Ian? 

I'm surprised Divinyls "I Touch Myself" wasn't banned anywhere (I don't think it was)... that too was an ode to female self-stimulation.

This one ain't funny, but in 1983, when Split Enz's "Six Months in a Leaky Boat" single was just taking off in England (stations there played the entire track, with the minute long instrumental 'Pioneer' preceeding it...)  It looked like it was about to hit paydirt and become their biggest selling single when it was banned because the Falklands dispute was going on, and a British ship had been sunk.  So any references to 'Leaky Boats' were no longer acceptable... Banned by the BBC.

Pity they didn't realise the leaky boat was a metaphor for the band.  Poor Tim didn't have a hit in England until "Weather with You" with Crowded House...

What a great thread, been very interesting  guys.

I tell ya, the best version of "Dear Prudence" is by 70's Aussie soul dude Doug Parkinson and his group "In Focus"...

Well, not best, but different... check it out... very cool.

Kiss Me, Baby
All I Wanna Do
Baby Blue

C'mon guys!  Full Sail is just beautiful... y'must be a cold, cold character not to warm to that song.  Loved it the first time I heard it.

My favourite Kinks song is "Lavender Hill", why Ray didn't put that on Village Green is one of the worst choices in music history.

That song is absolute bliss.

"Take a Load off Your Feet"... fuuuuuck.  If I had to nominate one for the title of "crap song" on this album, it'd be that... ugh... It's so much worse than Don't Go Near The Water, and yet it doesn't get singled out because Brian had some part in its hideousness?

"Wouldn't it be Nice to Live Again".

I thought "Bittersweet Symphony" was quite nice...