Underrated Gem ??

Id say underrated in that few outside of BB fans know it exists. 

From the greatest accidental album ever 20/20.

Best album review I ever read!

IWTS is a small, pastoral, highly personal piece of art.

Underrated Gem ??

Not by me, sir -

I rate it as a minor classic. Actually, if I were to compile a BBs double disk, this song would finish it.

I (all of us) noticed the distortion in 'Country Air' -

is it deliberate?

Was it meant to imitate the sound of bees?

Am I bonkers?

Hi Don

It is a Chamberlin, which is what the Mellotron was based on. A very early sample player and the distortion is either inherent in the instrument itself, or occured from the way they recorded it. Perhaps, as you say, it was intentional.

 Not sure what patch they used, some people think flute.

Many thanks! I love this kind of detail, and now I see that it is, intended or not, authentic (not an artefact).

(dp)

(dp)

Keep in mind Brian Wilson suddenly quit touring around the same age after a mental breakdown.  I can't imagine the situation for Justin Bieber is significantly different.  

I don't see the Beiber emerging from this and writing something on the level of a modern day Pet Sounds.

 

(I envision Bieber befriending a young and gifted poet and lyricist; they might ingest a mushroom or two; and suddenly the Bieb starts hallucinating about Canada's Great Past, its indigenous population, its beautiful outdoors, its modernization, and everything else under the sun. The lyricist barely can keep mental track with such an explosion of sheer creativity. He jots down his ideas at lightning speed.

The Bieb then asks his friend if he could bring a moose in there.)

Kinda makes me almost glad that these days Mike just sonically destroys our ears with covers of old songs instead of recording originals.

love that the album is demonic enough to keep playing after the stereo is shot

Hypehat's review of SIP is legendary:

Ok, so I have a half a bottle of wine in me and another to go after a steady day of drinking, and listening to Summer In Paradise seems like a fantastic idea right now. It's been so hard to live without it, so lets talk about it.

1) Hot Fun In The Summertime

DEAR JESUS THE SNARE. We will have to get used to this.
Also, "Whisperin'" Mike Love. I like to picture putting HOURS into these leads.
Carl telling me we can "Bum bum bum" is kinda flattering imo.
SAX SOLO. Those breaks make me flinch.
This thing is mixed so fucking terribly Carl's high notes vanish from the mix.
also, WHAT THE HELL IS CARL DOING. I guess given Beckley/Lamm/Wilson, it's safe to say that absolutely every vestige of Carl's taste had disappeared by this point. He might have even thought this was A GOOD IDEA.

2. Surfin'

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.
f*** me, the vocals on this are absolutely terrrrrrrrrrible. NASAL DOMINATION. Carl being SHITE. Like, even his smack-addled late 70's performances have merit. This sucks.
Not to mention ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING ELSE ABOUT THIS.
new lyrics. NEW LYRICS
MORE OF THEM.
I'm in pain. There are ten more songs. WHY.

3. SUMMER OF LOVE.

Mike Love, I will come round your house and make my fist meditate up your arse for this.
CHRIST ON A BICYCLE THE DJ SCRATCHES.
My Grandma has better flow than MC "Whisperin" Love.
attached and back don't rhyme, you bald apple juice chuggin goon.

4. Island Fever

These verse appear to be words in the english language. But they make no sense.
The Beach Boys' hymn to sexually transmitted diseases?
"My baby caught it and I'm not quite sure how/she might have got it from her travel brochure?" - Denny lives?
My baby can't dance or sleep because IT BURNS.
KEYCHANGE
f*** synthesisers, btw.


5. Still Surfin'

What the hell is this.
WHAT THE HELL IS THIS.
The fact I've spent a lot of time editing other things during this song speaks volumes.
What the hell makes ANYONE think it's ok to drop mexican terms for women in verses. Mamacita and the like. f*** YOU, MIKE.

6. Slow Summer Dancin' (Unneccesary parentheses)

IN BOTH CORNERS, BRUCE JOHNSTON
DETAILING HOW HE'S GONNA MAKE SWEET, SWEET, SWEET LOVE TO GROUPIES.
Misheard "I'll treat my angel really nice" as "I'll treat my ANUS.....REALLY NICE!"
Al "The Songwriter" Jardine keeping up his fine, fine, tradition of contributing entirely original melodic and lyrical ideas to songs. HOW DO YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT
That sax break. NO.

7. Strange Things Happen.

Ok, this is the worst thing so far.

It's something to do with the combination of SLAMMIN' MIKE LOVE JAMS and Al "Well, that never happened before!" Jardine learning about sex in 1991.

OH MY GOD. This is so so so s oo soooooo awful. I am crying with laughter.

8. Remember (Walking In The Sand)

Carl, I do love you, but when Mary Weiss dies she's going to find you in heaven and BEAT SEVEN SHADES OF CRAP OUT OF YOU FOR THIS.

"Echoing" Mike Love is also particularly ridiculous.

THE SAX SOLOS. AHSHGSHDGFXBGDGXFNJDMKYI6


GUYS I'M LOSING THE WILL TO LIVE. I HATE THIS ALBUM.

9. Lahina Aloha

Tropical beats
meaningless title
SOOOOOLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
palm trees
paradise
"Whisperin" Love

the f*** is this DRIVEL. I FEEL LIKE I'M BEING VIOLATED WITH OFFENSIVE ITEMS CARVED OUT OF JELLY OR SOMETHING. OFFENSIVE SMOOTHNESS. It's some terrible oxymoron i wouldn't believe possible if it wasn't fucking me in my ears.
THE HELL.

THREE MORE TRACKS LEFT, YOU CAN DO IT.

10. Under The Boardwalk

MIke Love, you get the f*** away from my girl.
Carl, I'm sorry, but The Drifters are also going to beat the hell out of you up there too. Possibly Carole King as well. At least they'll be tired after beating mike love to shreds. And you, Al.
ANOTHER SAXOPHONE SOLO. mo'fos.

As an aside, guys, this is one of the most awful albums in terms of production, mixing and mastering I've ever heard. IT IS THIN AS HELL.

11. SUMMER IN PARADISE.

dig that jangly fauxbyrds guitar.
THOSE 'HARMONY' VOCALS ARE CRAP. BRIAN WOULD BEAT YOU DEAD IF HE WAS IN THAT SESSION.
I think these might be EVEN WORSE LYRICS than Strange Things Happen or MC LOVE in something else.
f***, IT'S JIM MCGUINN.
that explains the guitar.
YOU BITCH, MCGUINN.

This is shite. musically, aurally, it's balls. BALLLLLLS. BIG SWEATY, HAIRY, OOZING TESTICLES. I feel ill.

12. Stamorever.

I have no more bile. I just have wine. After the systematic and calculated raping of the entire spectrum of pop music through these twelve tracks, some arsehole covering a Dennis Wilson song pales in comparison. I mean, it even has woodblocks on it, which makes it more reverent of a 'classic' bb's sound than anything on this record yet.

SEE WHAT THIS RECORD HAS DONE TO ME. I AM DEFENDING STAMOS



and with one fucking horrible sounding fake midi chord on the keyboard, that's it. The worst record I ever heard.

 

Many, many thanks for reposting this brilliant piece of serious reviewing! I just read it for the first time. Now comes the small print:

I never heard it. I actually am going to look for a copy.

I (all of us) noticed the distortion in 'Country Air' -

is it deliberate?

Was it meant to imitate the sound of bees?

Am I bonkers?

When I first read the track list for this release, tears came from my eyes. I was not expecting anything like this. It's like the 6th and 7th disc of the Smile sessions.
I'm also awed at the vastity of what must still lie unreleased in the vaults, and (again) at the greatness of the Beach Boys, which is beyond words.
Tears again as I'm writing this.

This.

I too am amazed about this 'vastity', incredible.

There's So Many

I keep coming back to this post... just to think about it, I suppose.

Cheers.

My key word: 'plodding'.

I prefer Oh Darlin', because the Brian version compensates for the slight staleness of the released version. Unfortunately, I find it difficult to listen to most of the 1985 album, with the exceptions of Getcha Back and Male Ego.

Is it the processed sound?

IMHO the '80s have a lot to answer for.

If enough ears get to hear this, I think this will increase (gradually) the audience for the BB or at least foster a greater appreciation for that era the same way Disc 3 of the 1993 box did.

...is what I actually heard at my record retailer's, today.

I told him about ST, and he was very pleased with the news (the set hasn't been announced in his database yet, but it will happen). He's no diehard, but finds this phase in their career delightful; and some minutes later a couple joined our conversation. They were Beatles fans, but still told me that they at least would listen to ST.

What I bought?

The new Big Star tribute, new re-releases of two seminal reggae albums, and Debussy's La Mer - Prélude - Nocturnes, with Barenboim.

It's Getting Late.

And I love Passing Friend.

Kokomo.

Honest.

I missed all the expectation before it got eventually released, perhaps this makes me someone in a small group of folks.

It is a good, pleasant song. It is not the Greatest and Sadly Unreleased Dennis track ever, but then: I didn't know what I was in for in the first place.

I will play it many times again.

And it is just as fine as any Dennis track on Friends, 20/20, Holland, and Pacific Ocean Blue (thought the latter has a few that I would rate above WIBNTLA (Moonshine and the title track, notably).

This came up on another thread, but "Crack At Your Love" on BB85.  It's generally considered one of the better tracks on the album but I just can't stand it.  It sounds like a Casio demo.  It lays there and dies.

"Sunshine" is just a two chord bleah that goes on FOREVER.

But my greatest apostasy is "Feel Flows."  It has grown on me over the years - I no longer hate it, I have actually grown to like it - but it sure took a long time to warm to. 

I guess tediousness is a common thread running through all those three songs.

Agree on all three -

'Casio Demo' is probably the best nano-review I ever read.

Thanks so much, Don. There's a lot to go through here...I just made a few notes from a first-cut look at these items...list here is in order of your presentation.

--Jade O'Regan's PhD thesis is going to require a great deal of time & attention, but looks very promising--those with hard-core musical backgrounds are going to need to weigh in on this eventually to determine how useful it actually is.

--Luis Sanchez’ thesis, at first glance, looks like mostly a rehash of well-worn ideas.

--Daniel Harrison’s essay has been around for quite some time, and is still a rather awkward mish-mash of technical analysis and anecdotal commentary.

--Not to get crosswise with Emily or Debbie, but Mandy Jo Smith’s essay on gender relations is just way too scattershot and falls down rather hard when it tries to cover post-1965 material. This topic deserves something more cohesive...

--David McCarter’s “spatial analysis” of surf music really just has a lot of geographic charts buttressing a pretty straightforward history, but that history is well-researched and pretty interesting…worth a look.

--Philip Lambert’s essay on Pet Sounds has been around for awhile—it’s a pretty good piece, though it makes a lot of claims regarding what I’d call “subliminal musical unity” that require a lot of very careful listening to verify.

--Stefano Belli’s psychobiographical analysis of Brian is a bit jargony, but interesting nonetheless.

--Finally, nice to have the complete version of Andrew Florey’s look at fandom and SMiLE. I’m still waiting for the paperback version of Lambert’s book, however--$70 is too much even for a BB freak to pay!

Hi Don -

thank you for your fine reply!

I will see if I can come up with more. It's interesting search work - and yes, Lambert's book is very expensive... I hope it'll be out in paperback some day.

I hope to be back in this thread with more.

Oh: and I'd recommend people who want to read Belli's psychological text to start with the last paragraph of the story.

There's So Many

I think I threw up in my mouth. I may have pissed a little too, thanks.

Thanks for your comments, folks - I had to laugh several times again, while reading your replies to this, erm... 'phenolic balls item', so to speak.

Could it be Mike contributed to the vocal arrangement and how they were sang/what parts were sang? I'm just wondering because his songwriting credit on Mama Says has confused me as well. Maybe it goes beyond lyrics?

Maybe he came up with "Poof!". That one wasn't on earlier versions I believe

Great psycholinguistic contribution, sir -

there should be a symposium on this.

(double post)

(RangeRover)
Besides, NO musician - Beatles too - is good in films. It isn't just BBs. For some weeeeeird reason, people downplay BBs with these shoulda/ woulda/ coulda been bad actors when nobody could, in fact.

I respectfully disagree. Ithink there are bunches of musicians/singers that were great in films:

Elvis (pre 65')
Sinatra
Crosby
Judy Garland
Neil Diamond - Jazz Singer
Johnny Cash (pride of Jesse Hallam/columbo/five minutes to live)
Willie Nelson
Kris Kristofferson
Dolly Parton
Meat Loaf
Queen Latifah
Dean Martin
Sammy Davis Jr
Will Smith

that's off the top of my head.  I think these guys have done some
wonderful films in multiples over the years

Good call -

I recall Sinatra in The Man With The Golden Arm, and especially Kris Kristofferson in the great, great Lone Star (by John Sayles, an all-time great movie for yours truly).

what brand of hair gel does Mike Love use?

What brand of hair gel does Brian use?

 

Incredibile!

What brand of hair gel does Brian use?