I can't say the Beach Boys as I have the post Love You Beach Boys albums as exceptions

Brian Wilson
Dennis Wilson
Beatles
George Harrison
Yes
Gentle Giant
Split Enz
Crowded House
Captain Beefheart
The Fourmyula
WA Mozart
T Rex
Nick Drake
Leonard Cohen (actually I haven't got his latest album yet)

There is an appreciation thread here:

http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,94.0.html

But you're hardly the only one that doesn't like the guys music, I'd say you'd be in the majority there.

For me, Beefheart is a true original , his work bursts out with incredible vitality. Beefheart said he didn't write songs but spells. He's by far my favourite expressionist artist. There would be something missing in the world if he'd never created his amazing preposterous works.

Trout Mask is actually one of the albums of his I listen to least. It was really important as it was a break through album in his artistic development, but I preferred the albums where he consolidated his artistic space particularly:

Shiny Beast Bat Chain Puller: The first album of his I got, what a revelation, full of fruity brass and percussion and an amazing collection of songs The Floppy Boot Stomp, Ode to Alex, Bat Chain Puller. I also loved the drawings that came with it on the original lyric sheet.

Clear Spot: Really joyful, not nearly as jarring as Trout Mask. Big eyed Beans from Venus has some of the most amazing guitar work ever recorded, that is one steaming hot song!

Doc at the Radar Station: Startling, his voice has lost some of its suppleness, but these songs are MAGIC to me, his band were amazing. This is music from a different world.

But if you don't get it you don't get it. That's the way it works, I can accept Tom Waits is an amazing artist but I just don't appreciate his work. Each to their own.

The interviewer talks too much...

If he'd had any idea of how hard interviewers would try to get Brian to say stuff, he might have refrained from talking over the top of Brian as he did a number of times. But hey, he created a very interesting historic document. Anyone know of any other early Brian interviews?

Yeah, there is a great one called The 910 and it's run by Doug Sulpy, who used to publish the 910 Magazine.

It's an excellent, excellent board.  It's not just a "fan" site; there is a good mix of criticism, appreciation and discussion; not unlike THIS board.  There is a lot going on over there, trust me.

The site is:

http://dsulpy.proboards.com/index.cgi

Newguy, it's probably the closest thing to THIS board that you will find, about the Beatles.

From a quick look this seems good, there had to be one out there.

I would like to check out a few and see what their like.

Well if you find one let me know. I have been on one:

http://www.letstalkbeatles.com/forum/

But it only seems to have about 6 regular posters, must be some more active ones out there.

Love Pink Floyd. My favorite post-Syd album by them is Meddle, which I think is underrated. But like others have mentioned before, the Syd Barrett stuff is my favorite. Piper at the Gates of Dawn sounds far out and whimsical at the same time. I think that's why I like it so much.

I've listened to Pink Floyd a lot over the years, but now find much of their music too pessimistic and defeatist. But like you I still love Piper that combination of fantastical and whimsy does it for me too. I have two others that I still listen to and they are Atom Heart Mother, the title track is just so inventive and Meddle it captures a unique dreaminess. No denying Dark side of the Moon was well constructed I just don't like the place it takes me to.

I started at the blue board ...

Me too, in fact I'm still there from time to time. When the Smiley Smile board went down for a while a number of people turned up on the blue board and that prompted me to check it out, the format of the blue board sometimes gets to me so I thought it was worth checking out a more conventional format message board. So this allows more in depth continuous discussion and memory, definitely more Beach Boysistas here and it seems more male dominated. It's an interesting place though.

Yes, Dennis made that change and good on him. As i said before I don't think Dennis had any dark intent, but the songwriter did and the words can be seen as those of a cult leader talking to his followers.

Further the Beach Boys song fits in thematically with the killings.

With the Pet Sounds example Jim Gordon killed his mother 17 years after playing on Pet Sounds, you would have to be pretty strange to find any links between his playing, the album and the murder. 

alright, this part is where you lost me. Never Learn Not to Love is a little creepy, but it has nothing to do with the killings.

The song was called "Cease to Exist" it's about complete submission and being prepared to die (ceasing to exist) which is what Manson wanted from his followers. They also had a saying along the lines of if you're prepared to die you you should be prepared to kill.

I'm just gonna say this right now, Manson himself never killed anyone. Jim Gordon, on the other hand, killed his mother, and he played on Pet Sounds. So if you think "Never Learn Not to Love" can't be listened to because it's a Charles Manson song, well, guess you can't listen to Pet Sounds then either.

Are you being serious here? I get it that you like the song, but don't diminish what Manson did because of that. Manson did shoot Bernard Crowe but he didn't kill him, he thought he had. Manson instigated the murder of 7 people, if he hadn't been captured there is no reason to doubt it wouldn't have been more. Further the Beach Boys song fits in thematically with the killings.

With the Pet Sounds example Jim Gordon killed his mother 17 years after playing on Pet Sounds, you would have to be pretty strange to find any links between his playing, the album and the murder. 

This is a really difficult question. And it turns up elsewhere. Sales of Michael Jackson dropped off during the child molestation charges. Phil Judd from the original Split Enz was convicted of stalking and that coloured at least his last two solo albums. Funnily enough Phil Spector's conviction hasn't much changed they way i view his records.

In this case, it's quite hard, The Beach Boys interpreted a song and made it quite strong. There was no murder lurking in their minds when they did it. However the original title "Cease to Exist" does have an all too easy link to murder and there are many sign posts of cult in the lyrics "give up your world and come and be with me"... "I'm your kind and I see". So we can recognise the strength of the song but it definitely has some creepy colourings that fit all too neatly with the fact that we know the writer instigated Mass murder.

It must have been a complete bummer for Dennis when he found out what Manson was. As far as credits for the song that doesn't bother me at all, from everything I've read Manson took way more than he gave to Dennis. In the end the song was a very mixed blessing, maybe more of a curse?

The first three albums are consistent with me, the order could change, there are a lot of albums that could slide into slots 4 & 5:

1. Sgt Pepper
2. Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE
3. Close to the Edge - Yes
4. Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) - Captain Beefheart
5. Jump! - Van Dyke Parks

Songs

1. Changing of the Guards - Bob Dylan
2. Here Comes the Flood - Peter Gabriel
3. Rain - The Beatles
4. Hear Me Lord - George Harrison
5. Big Eyed beans from Venus - Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band

[he's easily as great at arranging]

...ESPECIALLY when we're talking about backing vocals, he's easily as great at arranging that as he ever was. 

Brian has great song writing craft, he has pauses, amazing changes and always keeps it interesting. But his arranging seems to be overlooked a bit. He really is a great arranger and it is this that often makes his work such an aural delight to listen to, he sculpts with sound. The later BB albums really suffer for the absence.

From watching this video I too got the impression that Brian was active and very engaged in the recording and that more than anything makes me optimistic about what may emerge.

1962 - Surfin Safari
1963 - Please Please me
1964 - All Summer Long / A Hard Day's Night (a tie)
1965 - Rubber Soul
1966 - Pet Sounds
1967 - Sgt Pepper
1968 - The White Album
1969 - Abbey Road
1970 - All things Must Pass,  my favourite Miles Davis album Bitches Brew also released that year
1971 - Electric Warrior, T Rex
1972 - Close to the Edge, Yes
1973 - Flying Teapot, Gong
1974 - the Power and the Glory, Gentle Giant
1975 - Blood on the Tracks, Bob Dylan
1976 - Songs in the key of Life, Stevie Wonder
1977 - The Beach Boys Love You
1978 - Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller), Captain Beefheart  
1979 - George Harrison
1980 - DOC at the Radar Station, Captain Beefheart  
1981 - You are what You is, Frank Zappa
1982 - Time and Tide, Split Enz
1983 - London Symphony Orchestra Vol 1, Frank Zappa
1984 - Jump!, Van Dyke Parks
1985 - Little Creatures, Talking Heads  
1986 - Jazz from Hell, Frank Zappa
1987 - Cloud Nine, George Harrison
1988 - Brian Wilson
1989 - Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe
1990 - Erpland, Ozric Tentacles
1991 - Woodface, Crowded House
1992 - The Future, Leonard Cohen
1993 - Off the Ground, Paul McCartney
1994 - Civilzation Phaze III, Frank Zappa
1995 - Orange crate Art
1996 - Toltec, Jon Anderson
1997 - Shleep, Robert Wyatt
1998 - Deserter Songs,  Mercury Rev
1999 - The Ladder, Yes
2000 - Zero to Infinity, Gong
2001 - Magnification, Yes
2002 - Brainwashed, George Harrison
2003 - Abracadabra - Soft Works
2004 - Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE
2005 - Chaos and Creation, Paul McCartney
2006 - Imaginery Kingdom, Tim Finn
2007 - Memory Almost Full, Paul McCartney
2008 - That Lucky Old Sun
2009 - 2032, Gong
2010 - Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin
2011 - In the Key of Disney

1 Friends
2 Love You
3 Wild Honey
4 Smiley Smile

These first four I could easily put in a different order, they're all great albums, full of charm and originality, rich in character. They all pick me up and take me to a good place. These album show a Beach Boys that weren't competing with anyone but were effortlessly making music that was really different, full of quirky twists. Brian had given up the production race but in doing so he seemed to have invented a new art that was more personal. I also love all their covers.

5 Surf's Up

This album has some great tracks on it Until I die, A Day in the Life of a Tree, Feel Flows & Long Promised Road. These tracks alone make me rate it so highly. I don't really give it credit now for Surf's Up as the proper home for that is BWPS and TSS though Carl did do a nice job of it. The rest is only OK, so it just seems too uneven to be a really satisfying album.

6 Carl and the Passions So Tough
I love Marcella, Mess of Help, All this is that and the rest is good, it is a pretty even album and a very different direction, as others have said this with Holland is almost another band, but its a good band. 

7 Holland
I find this a bit more uneven than the previous album, but some great stuff Sail on Sailor and Trader particularly, Magic Transistor Radio is also really charming.

8 Sunflower
This has got three gems on it, This Whole World, Add some music and Forever, maybe I should rate it higher for them. But the rest of the album seems too watery, its kind of consistent but lacks vitality.

9 15 Big Ones

There is some charm to this, and i like the oldies on it, maybe it helped them get to Love You, it is weird and I do like weird.

10 20/20

This is more a collection of diverse songs than an album, Do it Again is a nice track, I went to Sleep is pretty cool, Never Learn not to Love is pretty good but the vibe is made rather fraught by being written by a mass murderer, Be With Me is good. I can Hear Music has a great lead vocal in places, but i find the arrangement lacking. Time to Get Alone is nice. The Smile tracks are obviously great, but they're Smile tracks not 20/20 tracks. Maybe I should have rated this higher.

Still all of these albums are worthwhile, something I wouldn't say about the ones that followed.

...The management team should have realized that, if they were going to make a BW solo record a priority, that the style and sound of Imagination was not the way to capitalize on the mid-90s BW underground buzz. As it was, it took them another nine years or so to regain that cred (with BWPS).

Yeah it wasn't right, I liked imagination quite well at the time, it had been so long since I'd had a Brian Wilson album of new material, but now it is one of my least favourites, the production is slick and the arrangements lack the Brian Wilson touch. I still like it more than any of the post Love You albums, but I much prefer GIOMH, it is a much quirkier album with more interesting arrangements.

For the rest of the Reunion stuff, the tour doesn't excite me as it is unlikely to get to New Zealand so I'm unlikely to see them, the new album is what excites me the most, it could be good, I'm almost sure to like it if Brian remains in charge. I like the sound of DIA and new songs would be really welcome. The archival releases I can take or leave, I haven't yet got Pet Projects which probably has more stuff on it that i would like than any unreleased material. Adult Child does interests me, i loved It's Over now & Still I dream of it from the Good Vibrations boxset. But buying a boxset for maybe one or two songs, nup.

C-man posted this great run-down of all the competing agendas in play during the whole Paley/O'Hagan episode.

http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,9255.msg158623.html#msg158623

Interesting post, seems to be another case of not being on the same page. I think it may well work this time as they seem to have made official agreements already, I think Brian is happy to write with Mike and  the Beach Boys are happy for Brian to produce. Carl not being there anymore sadly may actually be a factor in favour of it all working now, having another BB with strong musical opinions might have been too much to keep together.

Concisely, Brian's management decided he'd be better served by recording a solo album. Bruce has been very vocal in the past about how dumb a stunt that was.

Didn't Carl walk out of the sessions? And call the material weak? If that's the case, it's hardly surprising Brian pursued a solo path rather than deal with a resistant group.

That seems to be pretty much the picture painted in Carlin's book. Carl didn't think the material was commercial enough, the Beach Boys apparently wanted to bring in Sean O Hagan, which looks like a vote of no confidence in Brian. Brian had developed most of the material prior to what little Beach Boys involvement there seems to have been, so it was his to take away. Maybe Carlin's book is pro Brian but there does seem to be more to it than that it was Brian's management's fault.

 

That's it!! That's all we need! Brian is there all right, it's that look!

Ain't it priceless?

I'm a little non-plussed by the red warning and by the reasoning behind it----why start a new topic when there's an old one with relevant information in it?----but I see I shall have to control myself in future. ;=)

I don't get it either, if the discussion is good it really doesn't matter how old it is surely, after all the Beach Boys just dusted off some old recordings recently, they're OK even if they are a bit old. Some topics just don't generate the amount of interest as others so it makes more sense to add more posts to a thread that has 6 replies than have two threads one with 6 and another with 3. We should be conservation minded and recycle our old threads.

And by the way thanks for bumping the Beefheart thread I enjoyed that & posted, i was delighted to see there are other fans here.

It's great to see Brian interact with the guys too.  He actually looks very calm and very content. ...  Looks like it went fine.   Brian may have realized at the end of the session that hanging around his old friends wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be...

I'm more of a Brian Wilson fan than a Beach Boys fan and I wouldn't have thought the Beach Boys would let Brian have control and that bugged me. But in this video Brian seems really confident and they're all listening to him. On top of that this track to me sounds like something Brian would be happy with, I really like it, their voices sound good, nice arrangement, good sound overall. I hope they're having as good a time as they seem to be. I'm starting to get optimistic about this album.

haha, yeah, Melinda looks so angry.

Perception is an interesting thing, to me she looks relaxed and grooving to the music.

Hasn't Brian said it's all new stuff?

I don't believe so.

And this press release flatly states that the DIA re-record is part of the album.

Actually, it doesn't. My bad.

The caption at the start of the video states that the footage is of the band recording DIA for the as yet untitled new album. It could change but i suspect not.

I have very little faith for this album, but even though I don't expect it to be that great it will probably be their best one since LA

Given that I don't think much of LA or MIU I'm hoping for their best one since Love You. But I'm a Brian Wilson solo fan so I'm not full of confidence that it will be as good as his solo albums, at least it seems as though it has got new material on it. That's a good sign.

I just hope to god that the new album doesn´t sound anything like "Beach Boys", "Still Cruisin", "Summer in paradise" or "Stars and Stripes" 

I'm with you on this. I'm hopeful as Brian is producing, I suspect he will do most of the arranging and I'm glad Joe Thomas' name has gone. It could go either way, but if Brian does the producing and arranging I think it'll be better than those. I think Brian's solo work may have proven to the other BBs that he can produce a sound that they'd be happy with. I hope Brian gets some percussion into the mix, that is the "spice" or as Zappa would say it adds the "eyebrows".