He's more like an old acquaintance that constantly disappoints you with his decisions but you still let him off the hook more than you should because you both go way back or something.

Booked VIP seating for me and my wife for the April 2nd show at the City Winery in Chicago! VERY excited!

My wife and I are 22 and 23 years old respectfully so I imagine we'll probably be amongst the youngest couples there.

If my girlfriend was able to attend, we'd be matched!

That's cool if you're still able to go to one of the show's though. I love that The Beach Boys have such a wide demographic of hardcore fans.

I've relocated from the UK to the midwest in the past year so I feel pretty damn lucky to get to go to one of these shows in the first place!

Booked VIP seating for me and my wife for the April 2nd show at the City Winery in Chicago! VERY excited!

My wife and I are 22 and 23 years old respectfully so I imagine we'll probably be amongst the youngest couples there.

It's got to be The Beatles for this year, just because Abbey Road is such a fantastic album. But funnily enough when I look at my top five favourite BB songs of 1969 I think I love them about equally with The Beatles best of 1969:

I Can Hear Music (the voice of Carl Wilson, 'nuff said!)
I Went To Sleep (it may be incredibly short but its wonderful)
Time To Get Alone (an incredible production)
Break Away (post-SMiLE classic from Brian)
Celebrate The News (a hidden gem if ever there was one)

Even 2012's Isn't It Time was kind of a lame choice for a single to be honest, Shelter or preferably From There and Back Again/Pacific Coast Highway/Summer's Gone as a Vinyl EP would have been pretty cool though.

Despite being one of the all time great singles (and albums) bands ever, they made some really questionable choices. I know it was 1962 and only their 2nd Capitol single, but Ten Little Indians as an A-Side? Seriously? Even an unreleased track like Land Ahoy would have made a better choice.

Yeah, I was functioning on a lack of sleep when I wrote that

[1965]

This thread, and the last couple of threads on Beatles vs Beach Boys has got me thinking about their legacies.

My two favourite groups, as I'm sure is the case with a hell of a lot of fans of both bands.

Ideally, you would think this poll would be a win for The Beatles. It definitely is that case in terms of how you look at the albums and singles as they came out in 1965. However, when you compile 'the best' of the individual years of The Beach Boys, adding in unreleased choice cuts and using the best fidelity possible it comes across much, much closer than originally assumed in terms of musical value. In most other areas where it counts, in terms of live performances, star power, chart placements ect. The fabs knock the Beach Boys out cold.

But when you get to the heart of the best of Brian's studio work for the group, (not just starting with the coveted Pet Sounds, "Good Vibrations" and SMiLE stuff but throughout everything he/they have produced from 1961 to now) you see a sense of musical development , that is similarly awe-inspiring to The Beatles discography. The main difference when comparing both groups against each other is that the fab four distilled all of their best work between 1962-1970 into their 217 studio recordings plus maybe a mere dozen or so of their outtakes. When they broke up in April 1970 that was it, all their albums were out there in perfect fidelity. The recorded work already speaks for itself. Stuff like 'Leave My Kitten Alone', 'Come and Get It' and even the 'Strawberry Fields Demo' is fantastic but if it wasn't available it wouldn't alter the groups legacy in quite the same way that say, 40-50 of the best Beach Boys unreleased material can literally change the way you might look at their entire oeuvre. The BB's also had the unfortunate habit of spoiling a lot of would be out and out classic albums with filler and spoken word tracks with little musical value.

The Beach Boys are different, in that their musical legacy is still evolving in a way that is kind of impossible for John, Paul, George & Ringo. When John died in 1980, everyone and their mother was already familiar with everything Beatles. It took a long time, decades even, for Brian Wilson/Beach Boys music to get many of the plaudits from a musical perspective that they've always deserved. (Not saying that they weren't appreciated a hell of a lot, just saying that for years people have taken for granted just how perfect and absolutely thrilling their best work can be) Often it's seen as a case of the group sticking around and diluting their 'brand' for way, way, way, way too long,

But even as of 2018, whilst we are still getting incredible new stereo mixes, unreleased recordings, and their are accolades and exposure to new generations of fans and critics, the groups legacy will keep evolving in a way that was unprecedented even in the sixties. In this decade alone we've had the likes of, 'The SMiLE Sessions', 'Made In California', 'Sunshine Tomorrow', 'Party! Unplugged' and Live recordings from 1964, 1965 & 1966!

In quantity, the Beach Boys discography doesn't compare extremely favourably to the lads from liverpool, but separate the wheat from the chaff in The Beach Boys discography of say, '61-'71, (let's say the equivalent 217 recordings, distilled to the best available released and unreleased recordings. and you have a staggering catalog of music.

Below are my favourite BB recordings of 1965, ideally The Beatles would probably win for this year in terms of lyrics and influence alone. But in terms of exhilarating studio performances, and musicality which do I get more enjoyment out of? It depends on the day. That these recordings were largely the work of one man's enormous vision probably seals the deal for me.

God bless The Beach Boys for all that wonderful music.

My choice cuts from 1965 (using sparkling Stereo mixes where applicable)

1. Dance, Dance, Dance
2. Do You Wanna Dance?
3. Please Let Me Wonder
4. Good To My Baby
5. Don't Hurt My Little Sister
6. I'm So Young
7. Kiss Me, Baby
8. In The Back Of My Mind
9. Guess I'm Dumb (Instrumental)
10. All Dressed Up For School
11. Help Me, Rhonda
12. You're So Good To Me
13. The Girl From New York City
14. Amusement Parks U.S.A.
15. Then I Kissed Her
16. Salt Lake City
17. Girl Don't Tell Me
18. California Girls
19. Let Him Run Wild
20. Summer Means New Love
21. And Your Dreams Come True
22. Sandy, She Needs Me
23. The Little Girl I Once Knew
24. Graduation Day
25. Tell Me Why (Party! Sessions mix) *
26. Devoted to You (Party! Sessions mix)
27. There's No Other (Like My Baby) (Party! Sessions mix)
28. Barbara Ann (Single Version)


*Yeah I see the irony of including a Beatles cover, but it's so much fun to listen to, especially in its sessions form, that I almost like it as much as the original!

The Beatles were a 'better band' than The Beach Boys, but as mentioned, they didn't have Brian Wilson (or Dennis and Carl). and nothing, NOTHING else has lifted my spirits from my worst periods of depression like Pet Sounds. I love The Beatles, but their music as brilliant as it is, never felt truly mine. Does that make sense?

I'm a pale British introverted guy, don't care about surfing, bla bla bla, but in Brian, Carl, Dennis, Al, even Mike I see people who I can relate too on a personal level. It's hard to see that in The Beatles because they've always been viewed in a god like sort of way. Nothing new can be said about them. The Beach Boys is a rollercoaster saga, that continues today, through the good times and the bad.

 I can look back on all the beautiful music they gave us in the 60s and 70s, and in some respects that Brian still continues to give into the 21st century. I feel a strong emotional connection to the man and his music. The Beatles may have songs like For No One, Here There and Everywhere and Strawberry Fields which are ridiculously well crafted songs. They may have a clearly more consistent catalog. But it was still God Only Knows I chose to walk down the aisle to when I married my wife on August 26th of this year. Nothing pulls at my heartstrings like Til' I Die or Midnight's Another Day or Only With You.

For better or worse, they are more honest in their music than almost any other band ever. Pacific Ocean Blue and Love You are perfect examples of that.

Compile the best 200 something Beach Boys songs from 1961-1974 or whatever and I couldn't tell you if they are better than The Beatles catalog, but for me they are equally satisfying. Listening to material from Wild Honey or Friends or SMiLE or Surf's Up is like climbing into a musical universe all of its own. Their music is sometimes quirky, sometimes offbeat, sometimes just lyrically clunky.. but it's most often genuine. Because Brian was/is the real deal, and that translates into all of their best material. Even with his use of outside collaborators, his music is unmistakably Brian. He's a musical painter, with an artistic palette of his choosing. Those melodies will stick with me forever.

In a way, footage like this humanises Mike in a way because it shows you that all the bullshit lawsuits and music squabbles aside these guys are still cousins first. It's a shame The Beach Boys reunion ended the way it did but at the end of the day peace between the Wilson and the Love households is something that i'm sure a lot of us wish for above all else.

I think they just need a joint mediator, ala Foskett. (but can't see that happening now, after Jeff deferring to the other side, reasons for what are still sketchy)

Heavenly vocals. That's all I can say. That and the most incredible arrangements and melodies you could ever hear. Not just the '65-'67' stuff, but littered all though-out their music, Even on a supposed filler type early song like 'Custom Machine'. Brian's wailing falsetto, crazy chord changes and a constant changing melody, out of this world harmonising. It doesn't matter if they're singing about transcendental meditation, getting married, monkey's uncle's or the solar system. Often, they're the most impassioned vocalists in pop music. Put all the band politics to one side and LISTEN to how those melodies and harmonies bring everything together.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpcGEOEeBb0

BRI License stuff aside I doubt anyone considered Brian (or any of the Beach Boys for that matter) would still be touring in 2017/2018, considering its almost been 2 whole decades since the loss of Carl and a whopping 34 years since Dennis died.

Let's be honest though, as long as we get new Brian Wilson music that's all that matters at this point. Sure, I miss Mike and Bruce in the harmony stack, (but much prefer Matt's falsetto to Jeff) but Mike has been creatively spent for years regardless.

I've seen Brian five times since 2010, and new music is all I desire at this point (with or without Mike or Bruce) As long as Brian's in a good and creative place, all is good.

There's a difference between being political and showing some basic human decency..

Here's hoping for a speedy recovery!

Smiley Smile, but particularly Wild Honey and Friends are surefire attempts at the boys (largely Brian) stripping it down to basics and involving the band more in the proceedings. The main reason for The Beach Boys production credit?

1. To get rid of a lot of the pressure from Brian.
2. Try and step away from the godlike adulation of one Brian Wilson and to get The Beach Boys to be taken seriously as a democratic band, not just one with a puppet master pulling all the strings. (Which is how many fans and critics have viewed the group since the mid-60s. Deserved or not)

I think when I wrote my opening post I should have been clearer that believing that Brian was not the mastermind behind Wild Honey was never something i've actually believed, rather that Sunshine Tomorrow shatters the myth that a lot of people have believed and continue to believe which is that Brian was barely hanging on after SMiLE's collapse and The Beach Boys immediately took up the mantle from Brian. Documentations such as this release show that he was in the drivers seat for the next several albums. Even during his psychiatric troubles during the 20/20 era it was still him the other boys relied on heavily. The I Can Hear Music single and the Sunflower album seem to be the real start of The Beach Boys functioning as a democratic unit in all sense of the word.

I know it sounds pretty obvious but something that these outtakes and clearer mixes of this period reveal is that despite the collapse of SMiLE, Brian was still the same mastermind behind the Smiley Smile and Wild Honey sessions. In fact when you actually look at it, he is far and away the most involved member, still in SMiLE mode so to speak.

I know to many of you the answer to that is 'well, duh!'

But seriously guys, this changes all the myths about what the public assumed happened to the Beach Boys post-Smile. Now it's available for the public to hear with their own ears that Brian as he was during the Pet Sounds-Smile was still the same musical genius afterwards. The main ingredient he changed was switching from the session musicians back to the beach boys, so to speak. The innovation is there for everyone to see. You can hear him ALL OVER THIS THING.

So in a sense that makes this not only the most important Beach Boys release since the SMiLE Sessions but possibly the 2nd most important Beach Boys archival release to date. (Not counting the Pet Sounds Sessions for the simple fact that everyone knew it was an astonishing record)

God bless Brian, god bless the Beach Boys. God bless Mark, Alan, Capitol, Howie and everyone involved.

Selfish as it sounds, it desperately makes me want to see whats next in store, a Friends-20/20 release? The Sunflower Sessions?

This release will make you fall in love with The Beach Boys all over again.

As if we needed a reason.

Thank you SO MUCH to everyone involved: Mark, Alan, Howie, Capitol Records and of course, Brian & the boys back in 1967. Just further proof of something that we've always known, that this is the greatest American band of all time

WOW. Is all I can say.

How She Boogalooed fucking cooks like crazy.

Sweet fancy moses! It's like hearing it for the first time!

Happy Birthday to the guy who is the reason behind us all being joined on this message board! Not to mention whose music has brought my spirits up more than any other person, living or deceased.

In other words, here's to a man that has enriched my life and whose music has given me direction when i've needed it most. Thank you for Pet Sounds, SMiLE, all those classic hits and many cherished memories in the past and yet to come.

This is going to sound horribly cheesy, but Brian's music and spirit has enriched my life so much, I can't even express how much I love him and how much his music has helped me in my life.

Susie Cincinnati
Loop De Loop

[Sunflower 2]

Man, you could construct a really excellent Sunflower follow up without even using any Surf's Up material!

Sunflower 2

Side One
1. Soulful Old Man Sunshine
2. I Just Got My Pay
3. Good Time
4. Fallin' In Love (Lady)
5. Big Sur (4/4)
6. Loop De Loop
7. H.E.L.P. Is On The Way

Side Two
1. California Slide (I'm Going Your Way)
2. San Miguel
3. Where Is She?
4. Sound Of Free
5. Games Two Can Play
6. Back Home
 
That would have been an awesome album in between Sunflower and Surf's Up!

I probably like at least 96% of Beach Boys tunes, including Summer of Love (in a sort of ironic way ofc)

I think Stars and Stripes contains most of my least favourite recordings, mostly because I hate The Beach Boys being back up singers on their own tunes.

Wow. I can't believe this thread was 5 years ago already. Where does the time go?

Man, I don't know what happened to Bruce's creativity post 1971.

The Nearest Faraway Place
Deirdre
Tears In The Morning
Disney Girls

and then... not much of note really. You figure there would have been at least a good couple of outtakes during the 1972-1977 hiatus. (or especially after the success of Manilow's recording of I Write The Songs)