New album info (as it rolls out...)

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Listening in the car with my wife and daughter...who started singing along with Isn't it Time after the first verse. There's one soon-to-be-five fan of that song.

[Jonathan Blum]

One thing that annoys me, why do the BB have to include these "tropical" elements like in "Daybreak Over the Ocean"? Here's a big misunderstanding I think. When the group started out and sang about the fun-in-the-sun stuff it wasn't about taking a f*cking vacation on a tropical island.

When the group started out 50 years ago, pretty much nobody hopped down to a tropical island for a vacation -- the international jet age was only beginning.  Couple of decades later, even college students could get down to Jamaica et cetera...

Cheers,
Jon Blum

[Ron]

Listening in the car with my wife and daughter...who started singing along with Isn't it Time after the first verse. There's one soon-to-be-five fan of that song.

Hey, we'll take it!  Good for her.  It's definately catchy. 

[keysarsoze001]

this album is way too short.

TLOS, Gershwin, Disney, Imagination....are all between 35 and 39 minutes.

Every Beach Boys and BW solo album other than SMiLE and OCA has been shorter than 42 minutes, as far as I know. Brian still thinks in terms of LPs, which were only able to fit maybe 45 minutes at the absolute most in the 60s. Right down to how he sequences the albums, I've long held the opinion that he thinks in terms of a Side 1 and a Side 2. Consider how "California Role" has an actual ending instead of crossfading directly into the next track or narrative. Even SMiLE probably shouldn't have been as long as it was. I highly doubt Brian would have sequenced it to be a 3-sided album, and he probably wouldn't have done a double-LP. Hell, I'd say we count ourselves lucky it isn't the length of Wild Honey, which is less than 30 minutes!

GIOMH is 53 minutes.

Good God, you're right. I guess I've just never once listened to it beginning to end. Still, I think it just shows that he was slapping any old songs he had finished on there instead of carefully choosing, because it doesn't feel like any kind of a complete cohesive statement whatsoever.

What I Really Want for Christmas is technically longer as well, but the last three tracks are essentially bonus tracks not really recorded to be part of the album, so I don't think of them as being part of what he intended the album to be in terms of sequencing. Otherwise why not end the whole thing with Auld Lang Syne like on the BBs Christmas album?

[Ron]

I'm pretty sure that yes the last three songs were considered bonus, remember he had already released those three songs for free on his website over the years as christmas presents to the fans. 

[Sheriff John Stone]

One of those last three songs, "Joy To The World", is my favorite song on the album. Who produced that?

[Ron]

One of those last three songs, "Joy To The World", is my favorite song on the album. Who produced that?

BRIAN IN HIS BEDROOM was the story I always heard, lol. 

To these ears, it sounds like every vocal line on that song is on "Brian Wilson Harmony", I.E., in a key that doesn't exist, but yet somehow it all fits together like it does in Brian's head and sounds incredible.  It sounds like every friekin' line is off key, but yet it all sounds great.  I don't know how he does that.  The "Bum, Bum, Bum, Bum..." thing is ACHINGLY good.  I just hurt myself thinking about it. 

[Runaways]

One of those last three songs, "Joy To The World", is my favorite song on the album. Who produced that?

BRIAN IN HIS BEDROOM was the story I always heard, lol. 

To these ears, it sounds like every vocal line on that song is on "Brian Wilson Harmony", I.E., in a key that doesn't exist, but yet somehow it all fits together like it does in Brian's head and sounds incredible.  It sounds like every friekin' line is off key, but yet it all sounds great.  I don't know how he does that.  The "Bum, Bum, Bum, Bum..." thing is ACHINGLY good.  I just hurt myself thinking about it. 

I think that developed from learning piano on his own terms.  I don't think he ever limited himself to what piano chords should be.

[Wirestone]

One of those last three songs, "Joy To The World", is my favorite song on the album. Who produced that?

Brian and Joe Thomas (uncredited on the album, but not the song's original appearance).

[Ron]

Wirestone: was "Silent Night" recorded in Brian's house?  It's much more stripped down and could have possibly been even done on a desktop computer, nothing fancy about it. 

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Listening in the car with my wife and daughter...who started singing along with Isn't it Time after the first verse. There's one soon-to-be-five fan of that song.

Hey, we'll take it!  Good for her.  It's definately catchy.  

Shelter is another song that she seems to be digging..came up with her own harmony part for the chorus that strangely fit. Huh...I'm beginning to wonder about her (in a good way).

Funny story...Little Mermaid is her favorite movie, and when she heard Brian's Disney album , specifically 'Kiss the Girl', she asked me if Sebastian the Crab took singing lessons.

Oh, and she loves the '66 and '67 versions of 'Surf's Up', and the BWPS version, but HATES the one with Carl on lead. 'Put the REAL one on, Daddy! I don't like this'.

[Wirestone]

Official production / engineering credits for those who care.

Produced by Brian Wilson
Executive Producer: Mike Love
Recorded by Joe Thomas
Recording and mixing engineer: Frank Pappalardo
Additional engineering by Michael Czaszwicz, Wesley M. Seidman, Larry Millas and Tom Gordon
Recorded at Ocean Way Recording, Hollywood CA, Ben's Studio, Nashville TN, World Stage Studios, Burr Ridge IL, Love Shack Studio, Incline Valley NV, and Chicago Recording Company, Chicago IL
Mixed Behind the Carwash, St. Charles IL
Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering, Portland ME

----------

"Daybreak Over the Ocean" has its own production credits on its page of the booklet:

Produced and Recorded by Paul Fauerso at Love Shack Studio, Incline Village NV
Keyboards, Percussion and vocals arranged by Paul Fauerso.

----------

A few notes on session players:

Darian S. appears on only two tracks, playing vibes each time.
Scotty B. appears and Probyn G. each appear on six tracks.
Nelson B appears on five tracks.
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter is on both "Spring Vacation" and "Beaches in Mind."

----------

Except for "Daybreak," the only vocalists credited on the album are BW, ML, AJ, BJ and Jeff.

[Runaways]

i still can't believe that part of the album was recorded at ben folds' studio. so weird.

[Ron]

Listening in the car with my wife and daughter...who started singing along with Isn't it Time after the first verse. There's one soon-to-be-five fan of that song.

Hey, we'll take it!  Good for her.  It's definately catchy.  

Shelter is another song that she seems to be digging..came up with her own harmony part for the chorus that strangely fit. Huh...I'm beginning to wonder about her (in a good way).

Funny story...Little Mermaid is her favorite movie, and when she heard Brian's Disney album , specifically 'Kiss the Girl', she asked me if Sebastian the Crab took singing lessons.

Oh, and she loves the '66 and '67 versions of 'Surf's Up', and the BWPS version, but HATES the one with Carl on lead. 'Put the REAL one on, Daddy! I don't like this'.

out of the mouths of babes oft times come gems....

[keysarsoze001]

i still can't believe that part of the album was recorded at ben folds' studio. so weird.

I think it's kind of fitting. Ben's style of songwriting doesn't really seem to be terribly influenced by the Beach Boys, but his harmonies definitely do. Something like the acapella tag at the end of "Rock Star" is vintage BBs.

[Ron]

I'd imagine most people are influenced by the Beach Boys, even if just a little bit, and would jump at the chance to work with them. 

10 bucks = if you call 50 Cent he'd drop everything to come do a song with Brian. 

[Runaways]

i still can't believe that part of the album was recorded at ben folds' studio. so weird.

I think it's kind of fitting. Ben's style of songwriting doesn't really seem to be terribly influenced by the Beach Boys, but his harmonies definitely do. Something like the acapella tag at the end of "Rock Star" is vintage BBs.

eh, i can kidna hear it.  The harmonies in ben folds five days were pretty fun.  Heh, rock star.  i haven't heard that one in a while, that was right about when i started losing interest in him.  his songwriting quality took quite a dive around then.  

[phirnis]

Only Ben Folds song I've ever heard is his cover version of "Bitches Ain't sh*t" (which is great, though!).

[runnersdialzero]

I'd imagine most people are influenced by the Beach Boys, even if just a little bit, and would jump at the chance to work with them. 

10 bucks = if you call 50 Cent he'd drop everything to come do a song with Brian. 

I can't imagine 50 Cent even knows who Brian Wilson is.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

I'd imagine most people are influenced by the Beach Boys, even if just a little bit, and would jump at the chance to work with them. 

10 bucks = if you call 50 Cent he'd drop everything to come do a song with Brian. 

I can't imagine 50 Cent even knows who Brian Wilson is.

Wrong. Allegedly he is a fan....

[runnersdialzero]

They don't take Spring Vacations.  They're all retired, there's nothing to vacate from.

I wouldn't call being in a touring group for hundreds of days out of the year "retired". That sh*t's intense even when you're young, I can't imagine doing it in your 70s even under the pampered circumstances that these guys probably tour under. So yeah, it's real work, so there's plenty to vacate from when you're able to.

[runnersdialzero]

I'd imagine most people are influenced by the Beach Boys, even if just a little bit, and would jump at the chance to work with them. 

10 bucks = if you call 50 Cent he'd drop everything to come do a song with Brian. 

I can't imagine 50 Cent even knows who Brian Wilson is.

Wrong. Allegedly he is a fan....

LIAR.

(Weird. Very weird.)

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

I'd imagine most people are influenced by the Beach Boys, even if just a little bit, and would jump at the chance to work with them.  

10 bucks = if you call 50 Cent he'd drop everything to come do a song with Brian.  

I can't imagine 50 Cent even knows who Brian Wilson is.

Wrong. Allegedly he is a fan....

LIAR.

(Weird. Very weird.)

If I can find the link to the interview, I 'll post it. He threw them in along with other artists as groups he likes, but the interviewer didn't follow up on it. I don't know if he was serious or not.

I will say, though, that the Beach Boys are surprisingly popular in certain sample-happy circles...

[Ron]

50 Cent has really matured a lot over the years. 

To be honest though the Beach Boys are part of everybody's child hood, it doesn't matter if you're a black kid growing up in the city you still know who the Beach Boys are.  I've heard Dr. Dre and Eminem seperately mention them before too. 

Back to fitty, he's an intelligent cat.  He's had his idiot ways in the past, but right now when you talk about him, you're talking about a media mogul who's a big mover in the music industry.  He's got a really solid head on his sholders, so it's no surprise to me that he's able to look outside of his stereotype and see value in other types of music.  I"ve seen him talk about how much he admired country singers too, believe it or not. 

Basically if you're in the music industry and a big deal, 50 cent is a fan because he wants to learn from you. 

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

I"ve seen him talk about how much he admired country singers too, believe it or not. 

Yup...specifically, George Jones and Johnny Cash.