THE BEACH BOYS - That's Why God Made The Radio SS member reviews

[seltaeb1012002]

The album is friggin' amazing. More specifically the end, but it's got all the BW stamps you'd hope for, and then you realize he has a few melodic tricks up his sleeve. He wasn't lying when he told Charlie Rose that he still has more music in him. Even the weaker tracks have elements about them that hardcore fans will recognize as classic Beach Boys, and I mean that in the best way possible. The album DOESN'T sound forced, and rightly so considering it's about 13-14 years in the making. And I know I said it before, but good GOD the end of the album blew me away. "From There To Back Again" haunted me last night as I slept, and I woke up with a feeling of complete peace. I've never had a LEGIT new Beach Boys album come out while I was consciously aware of them and I feel truly blessed to be able to witness this. I don't know what else to say. This might be the last great album to come from one of the top 2 great act's of the 60's and I'm not taking this moment for granted. ENJOY it, for this is the real deal.

edit: one final thought... God Bless Al Jardine.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Daybreak over the Ocean - a beautiful song, in my opinion.  the instrumental arrangement is a bit busy, and you can kind of tell it's imitation Brian Wilson, not actual Brian Wilson. But what a beautiful song.  If the credit said BW and not ML, people would be ranking this one up with the suite, I really believe that.  And the vocal harmonies are amazing - Christian Love has such a great voice, sounds just like Carl.  I think it's a real shame that Christian Love didn't sing the chorus on Shelter - now that would have been incredible.  

"DOTO" is the 2005-ish Mike Love Not War recording with BB vocals added in 2012. Production credit is Paul Fauerso.

[hypehat]

Anyone else hear the Tidepool Interlude music from Al's record in Strange World?

[Alan Smith]

Nup.  Not me.  Well, maybe....

Beaches in Mind and Strange World may as well have been the same song.

[Alan Smith]

I bought TWGMTR today - in a shop, with cash (a twenty buck note, even)  .  It was cold out, but many a pretty girl was on the scene as the sun sliced through the chill in the air.

I avoided the on-line previews and the live renditions etc, in order to have an open mind (baring listening to the single, and "glancing" over the opinions posted by those who did indulge).

It was a perplexing album for me on first listen and, while typing, remains so on second listen. 

Overall, I find it's was a great collection of songs/tracks.  The BB gold, imho, is Think about the days, TWGMTR, Daybreak and Summer's Gone (love those bass bits reminiscent of I know there's an Answer).  Great tracks and a lot has been said about them already.  Spring Vacation was not half as bad as I expected.  I now get the "mellow" descriptor bandied around as album news started to form-up.

Beaches in Mind and Strange World - for me the weakest tracks and an unintended sequence; both songs sound like a poor rip of "Let My Love open the door" by Pete Townshend.

For the remaining tracks, I'm torn for 2 reasons; are they BB songs, or Brian Wilson solo cuts?  The credits indicate the BBs are singing along - Brian is prominent (really prominent), and there are some great Mike bits, and Al bits, but Bruce seems to guest starring and all are overshadowed by Jeff and the likes; sometimes it sounds like we're listening to out-takes from Imagination or TLOS.

Secondly, the autotune really detracts for me - Isn't it Time is a prime example - I like the song (sounds a bit like Aren't You Glad in parts) but the processing on the vocals seems kinda excessive and gets in the way.

Al set a high standard of vocals on Postcards, and showed you don't have to go nuts with the autotune to get a BB sound, or cool sound, out of senior citizens - it's a shame whoever didn't reign it in a bit on this one.

Anyway, I'll still be playing this all weekend, and it is 500% (although not 1000%) better than I was expecting.

[buddhahat]

Having played the album through a fair few times now here are my feelings about the tracks:

I think it starts really well - the first three songs are terrific.

Think About the Days - lovely. As someone else has noted, the chords don't feel very Brian - it feels kind of French to me, but can't quite put my finger on why exactly. Like a French perfume ad or something - sort of kitsch in a Bruce kind of way. But that's not a bad thing for me. It really reminds me of Cry off Imagination.

TWGMTR - I think this is totally great. Far better than any new Beach Boys tune deserves to be. I'm even growing fond of the cheesy 'new generation' break.

Isn't It Time - Again, I think this is 1st rate BW material, and feels more like a classic Beach Boys song, than any other track from the album. I can easily imagine this on 15BO, or MIU. Like Message Man, it gets me grooving the minute I hear it. Shame about the autotune, which really grates when Jeff sings. I'm also not overly fond of the middle 8. But those minor gripes aside, I love It.

Spring Vacation - Like other posters, my initial disappointment over this tune has grown to a sort of guilty affection, as if a cherished elderly relative is hamming it up on the dance floor. Mike kind of rushes a lot of the lyrics on the verses, as if he'd written way too many but is determined to squeeze them in regardless. I like the chords behind the verses, but the chorus just sounds like 90s sitcom music to me - real high five music.

Bill & Sue - From this point the album takes a bit of a dive for me. Just can't get into this one. I like Brian's crazy concept, but musically I find it a bit dull.

Shelter - I think another poster noted that this feels like several songs stuck together and I'm inclined to agree. It kind of feels like Under The Boardwalk for a bit and then veers off into I Think We're Alone Now by Tiffany. In the Thomas interview he describes Brian's writing process as linking  various fragments together and I wonder if this song is a less successful example of that technique.

Daybreak Over The Ocean - I like that this sounds very 80s Beach Boys, but other than that there's not much to get your teeth into. Another skipper for me unfortunately.

Beaches In Mind - Again, this does little for me.

Strange World - I find this more interesting than the previous 4 tracks. It starts off a little like Arthur's Theme and then suddenly goes all Phil Spector.  It's interesting to hear that this is one of the suite tracks, and you can hear it with the beautiful ending (really wish they'd done more wit that).

From There To Back Again - Absolutely love this, and the following two tracks, although this is my favourite from the album. Evidence that Brian still has the ability to write really complex, exciting and unexpected changes. Where it suddenly speeds up with the descending piano run at 1.55 sounds like one of umpteen codas from Smile and makes you realise that Brian still writes that way! And what's with that crazy Bacharach whistling interlude? It's the highpoint of the album for me. That bit really makes me want to hear more from this 'suite' although I wonder if we have the best bits here, and that the rest may be a disappointment - kind of more in line with Strange World. I'm slightly disappointed that these suite tracks don't fit together well - they really feel like separate parts shoe horned together. But that is a very minor complaint - these last tracks really are a gift.

PCH - Beautiful, intriguing. I wish it was longer.

Summer's Gone - This is clearly lovely. The production is perfect: Pet Sounds without overstating it. And the line "It's finally sinking in" is perpetually heartbreaking. I love the genius of the concept of this song and the way it's designed as the last BB song ever. Then the rain and the windchimes. Perfect. If only they have had more confidence and delivered the suite with this at the end, instead of going for a bit of everyting. Well, let's hope we get to hear the entire suite one way or another.

Overall, I think I may prefer this album to TLOS. With both albums I find I want to skip about 40% of the songs, but there is a feel-good vibe to this that just inches it for me. The addition of the BB voices is probably the clincher. I hate the autotune, but I have to say, I'm beginning not to notice it.

If I was to compare it to other BB albums, I'd say it's the best since (but no where near as good as) Love You, or maybe on a par with MIU/LA/KTSA - patchy but with solid highlights. I think the last three tracks surpass anything from those albums in terms of emotional depth.

[Eireannach]

People must really hate Jeff.  I think Shelter's chorus is one of the best moments on the 1st side (so to speak) and Jeff sings wonderfully there.

I find that I am really enjoying Daybreak a lot more than I thought I would based on the samples we heard.  I don't really like Isn't It Time as much as others are, but maybe it needs to grow on me.

[Runaways]

People must really hate Jeff.  I think Shelter's chorus is one of the best moments on the 1st side (so to speak) and Jeff sings wonderfully there.

I find that I am really enjoying Daybreak a lot more than I thought I would based on the samples we heard.  I don't really like Isn't It Time as much as others are, but maybe it needs to grow on me.

Yeah I think Jeff is fine, I've only heard the chorus in the clip, but my favorite part is when Brian comes in the background

[EgoHanger1966]

Jeff sounds good on this record. He takes a much larger part on the album than he does on most BW records - maybe it was Brian or Joe's idea for him to be the prominent "Carl" voice on the album.

[Manchini]

I'm probably reviewing prematurely. It usually takes a good few months and dozens of listens to really solidify my opinion. Nevertheless:

"Think About the Days" is neat, but I don't really know what else to say about it. It wouldn't provoke many listens from me, except that it opens the album so I'll always let it play.

"That's Why God..." is very strong overall, but can never be perfect because the bridge is such sh*t.

"Isn't It Time" is my favorite song on the album.  I'll play this a fair amount.

"Spring Vacation" is pretty damn good. I love the melody in the verses, and the "Easy money..." lines.

"The Private Life..." is a cool concept and I do enjoy the song. There's a lot going on in the chorus somehow, it's too wordy maybe, I'm not sure. But I like the BG vox.

"Shelter" is a fine song. Doesn't really strike me yet, but I have a feeling I will like it much more later.

"Daybreak..." I really like this song. It is kind of just "Bluebirds Over the Mountain" mixed with "Kokomo," but I enjoy it, and I have since before I heard it in That's Why God Made The Radio context.

"Beaches In Mind" I just listened to it and I already forgot everything about it. So, no, I probably won't play this much.

"Strange World" A little better than "Beaches..." but still not outstanding.

I'm just not on board yet with the last 3 songs. I REALLY REALLY think they would be cooler if they were faster. I mean way the f*** faster. With a driving rhythm and rattling pianos. Sorry, I know they're supposed to be plaintive and thoughtful, but they bore me on the first couple listens. (I will edit this when I decide they are awesome just the way they are, which will probably happen.)

To provide a little background, I fully enjoy all Beach Boy's albums up through BB '85 and parts of Still Cruisin'. I like all Brian Wilson solo albums. I like about half of That Lucky Old Sun. I'm a big fan of the Gershwin and Disney projects.

In moments of honesty, I consider myself a fanboy of indiscriminate taste, enthusiastic about all things Beach Boys. I do like this album, but less than I thought I would.

[EgoHanger1966]

Did anyone notice the wierd little *blip* in Spring Vacation? I think (without checking) it's somewhere around the 1:15 mark. Sounds like a digital/technical glitch.

[Lowbacca]

Anyone else hear the Tidepool Interlude music from Al's record in Strange World?

Totally. I expected to hear his voice first on the first verse. Nice touch.

[Ziggy Stardust]

God i really hate that break between th prechorus and chorus in Shelter, kills the flow
it's like if in Good Vibrations you made that translation between the verse and the chorus disappeared and just put a break in between
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[Mark H]

Anyone else hear the Tidepool Interlude music from Al's record in Strange World?

YES!!!

I just noticed this a few minutes ago and wondered how Tidepool would sound segueing into Strange World!

[FatherOfTheMan Sr101]

Okay just listened to the WHOLE THING, 1 run through. This is the first Beach Boys album to be released in my lifetime, so here it goes...

Think About The Days- Basically, the "Our Prayer" of the album's theme, looking back on the good and bad. Love it.    8.5/9

TWGMTR- Already stated, I loved it already, but this mix makes me LOVE IT. LIKE A LOT.  9/10

Isn't it Time- I'd say this is a "single done right" song, basically, It's obviously a single, but it still works as an album track. The percussion makes me love it!  8/10

Spring Vacation- The music on this gets a 9, the lyrics get a 5, I like the song, but I wish it wasn't so cheesy 7/10

TPLOBS- I like the Brian-isms here, and I like how the theme is expressed using music as well as lyrics, but a 7X year old talking about social issues seems pretty new 7/10

Shelter- Absolutely love it. The 2nd half is amazing. 8.5/10

DOTO- I like the chorus, the rest has been untouched, so I just like it. 6.5/10

BIM- I honestly have no comment except... 4/10

Strange World- I like this one, and the link to FTTBA is AWESOME. I was wondering how'd that work!

FTTBA- If you wanted SMiLE 2, well I guess this song is as close as you'll get. Tempo changes, Key changes, LEAD SINGER CHANGES, all make this song great! The ending parts didn't immediately click with me, but the strings won me over eventually 10/10

PCH- I agree this should have been part of FTTBA, but it's a very nice song on it's own! 8.5/10

Summer's Gone- I didn't cry, but I had to hold back. The song is very VERY good, basically, I never expected a song to come along that would not only be able to sum up the Beach Boys legacy, BUT FIT IN PERFECTLY ON PET SOUNDS. It really is that nice... and the water drips, very CCW like! I Love it. 11/10 (The Unicorn.)

Overall 8/10 from me, the middle lags, but the bookends are AMAZING. Like the "Surf's Up" album, Brian again saves the best for last, and hits another homerun.

[Lowbacca]

Summer Vacation- The music on this gets a 9, the lyrics get a 5, I like the song, but I wish it wasn't so cheesy 7/10

"Spring Vacation". 

[mike s]

Pacific Coast Highway - stunning, I've got it on repeat play - one of their finest ever moments for me,  easily the best song - why didn't they make it 3 times as long..??

overall after 1 listen I think the album is ok, prob equal to BB 85 or Imagination

[Mr. Cohen]

Overall, this album is what you'd expect from the a reunited BBs. It comes from the same spiritual vein as albums such as MIU, Keepin' The Summer Alive, and BB85. The only difference I can tell is that BW is more in charge this time around, but you still have people like Joe Thomas and Mike Love calling their fair share of the shots.  Still, BW's increased involvement brings the album up a few notches, even though he's far from perfect or whatever.

"Think About The Days" has some solid, cool little vocal arrangements mixed with Bruce Johnston-style syrup (yes, I know Bruce had nothing to do with the writing of this song).

"That's Why God Made The Radio" definitely deserved to be the lead single. It's got a decent mix of Mike Love positiveness and nostalgia with BW's spiritual honesty. The songwriting is pretty strong, too. I even find myself singing along with it. You gotta love that breakdown before the outro. That's vintage BW.

"Isn't It Time" has some serious Wild Honey touches going on, while vaguely sounding like it could've been a Maroon 5 instrumental in different circumstances. The bass line sounds so funky. The best way to describe this song is that it's like a combination of "Aren't You Glad" and "Sunshine". It's pretty catchy, and the hand claps are cool. After the middle 8, I hear some kind of sound being played in reverse and old school electronic drums - very interesting for BBs record. However, "Isn't It Time" kind of brings up a complaint I have - does some "super creative" middle 8 have to be jammed into almost every song?

"Spring Vacation" is a typical BW and Mike latter-day collaboration. "Match Point of Our Love" or "Belles of Paris", anyone? The instrumental break is so crazily cheesy. This is some serious Christian rock. I'm not surprised it started out as a gospel song. Bleh. It's listenable, I guess. I do like the "hallelujah" bit a lot, and the "get up, and hit up" melody is nice. Otherwise...

"Private Life of Bill & Sue" is not bad, reminds me of an average song off of TLOS, or perhaps one of the outtakes. It's enjoyable, but I doubt it'll be anyone's favorite. You could tell Joe Thomas was overexcited at the prospect that his tropical schmaltz would be topical and went at it with gusto!

"Shelter" has a great chorus. I like the interplay of the harpsichord and the acoustic guitar during the verses. The song is too long, though. It should've been maybe 2:20 tops, and would've benefited from a fade with all the cool parts BW saved for the ending tacked on in a 10-20 second space. Actually, i think a lot of the songs are a tad long (how many times do we have to hear the choruses during "Spring Vacation" and "Beaches In Mind"?).

"Daybreak Over the Ocean" is better than I expected. It's decent. Good job, Mike. The vibe is similar to songs like "Getcha Back" or the BBs cover of "Come Go With Me". The retro vibe is fun here, and again you knew Joe Thomas was elated to break out the bongos and nylon strings.

"Beaches In Mind" is kinda catchy in the chorus, but that electric guitar needs to die a quick, painful death. The verses do nothing for me. At least we get some nice tambourines and shakers on this track. Bad lyrics again.

"Strange World" has a Christian rock intro. In a way it's an inspiring and uplifting song, but I like I've said before, I can't help thinking of some kind of cheesy Disney movie when I hear it. I love the loud snare drums. I don't mind this song. It could maybe become a guilty pleasure over time - I'm not sure.

"From There to Back Again" is great. The outro rocks my world. Paul Mertens or whoever (maybe even BW?) does a great job with the woodwinds here. The guitar reminds me of Summer Days & Summer Nights, both in terms of melody and tone. It's such a pretty melody, and the "just call" part is memorable.

"Pacific Coast Highway" is kind of heartbreaking. It's a very touching song, and simple but sweet. It leaves you wanting more, and that's what a BW song should do. There are way too many songs that last for more than 3 minutes on this album.

"Summer's Gone", as everyone says, is reminiscent of Pet Sounds. Brian can do pretty, slow ballads in his sleep. The last three songs here remind you of those heady days in the '70s when the BBs would hand over the end of a record or the end of album side for Brian to just do what he wanted. Beautiful.

While I want to give the album a 6/10, the end bumps it up to 7/10.

[Ron]

Jeff sounds good on this record. He takes a much larger part on the album than he does on most BW records - maybe it was Brian or Joe's idea for him to be the prominent "Carl" voice on the album.

Is Jeff the one singing the cool synthetic part in "Isn't it about time" or whatever it's called? 

[shelter]

My impression after three listens:

Think About the Days - 'Our Prayer Part II'. Absolutely stunning.
That's Why God Made the Radio - Great vocals, excellent chorus, nice 50s touch on the verses. Like it a lot.
Isn't It Time - A bit lightweight but good fun and catchy enough. I like the sparse backing track with the ukelele and handclaps. Almost has a 'Friends' vibe.
Spring Vacation - Mike rarely sounded this cool. Very sunny and energetic.
The Private Life of Bill & Sue - Somewhat insignificant. Gotta love a typically wacky Brian song like this, though.
Shelter - Not one of the most significant songs either. Still OK.
Daybreak over the Ocean - Meh. Wasn't one re-writing of 'My Bonnie' enough for the Beach Boys catalogue?
Beaches in Mind - Another insignificant song. Probably the weakest track on the album.
Strange World - Not sure what to think of it yet. So far I'm not really impressed, but this might be a grower.
From There to Back Again - Mind-blowing. I didn't expect, or even hope for, something this good. Al sounds as good as ever, the harmonies recapture a bit of that old Beach Boys magic, there are echoes of 'Pet Sounds' all over the arrangement while the complexity and diversity of the composition are a bit 'Smile'-ish... Maybe I'm overreacting, but this could be Beach Boys all time top 25 (or 20 even) material.
Pacific Coast Highway - Very, very touching. Almost as good as the previous one.
Summer's Gone - Magical. And let's call this 'Caroline, No Part II'. If this actually is the final Beach Boys album, than this would be the most suitable closing track possible, and a worthy farewell song.

For my rating, I'd like to cut this album into three pieces: 8,5/10 for the first four songs, 6,5/10 for the next five and 10/10 for the last three.

[buddhahat]

For my rating, I'd like to cut this album into three pieces: 8,5/10 for the first four songs, 6,5/10 for the next five and 10/10 for the last three.

I like that idea!

7, 3, 10 from me.

[EgoHanger1966]

Did anyone notice the wierd little *blip* in Spring Vacation? I think (without checking) it's somewhere around the 1:15 mark. Sounds like a digital/technical glitch.

I'm sorry, guys - the wierd sound is around 2:15 of Spring Vacation.

[Aegir]

"Daybreak Over the Ocean" is better than I expected. It's decent. Good job, Mike. The vibe is similar to songs like "Getcha Back" or the BBs cover of "Come Go With Me". The retro vibe is fun here, and again you knew Joe Thomas was elated to break out the bongos and nylon strings.

stop blaming everything you don't like on Joe Thomas. Daybreak is a Mike Love solo song that was recorded around 2004 (and written in the 70s), Joe Thomas had no involvement in the instrumental arrangements.

[Mr. Cohen]

He didn't do any overdubs? Interesting. I blame BW plenty for what I don't like on this album. I just feel like Joe Thomas was probably responsible for most of the tropical touches. Maybe I'm wrong. In which case, bad on you BW or Mike.

[Lowbacca]

Did anyone notice the wierd little *blip* in Spring Vacation? I think (without checking) it's somewhere around the 1:15 mark. Sounds like a digital/technical glitch.

I'm sorry, guys - the wierd sound is around 2:15 of Spring Vacation.

You mean the slight organ glitch at 00:02:13 into 00:02:14? I can tell you it's there on the (European) retail (CD) version. Just checked.