Which album is the Beach Boys' most polarizing release?

[kookadams]

I don't think the general public (today) even knows what a Beach Boys album is, save Pet Sounds.  They only know the summer comps.

ARE YOU SERIOUS?? WOW.

[kookadams]

So... I looked thru this whole thread and I still havent figured out if it pertains to the BBs albums that had the most departure musically or the actual covers of the albums. There seems to be a lot of digressing here.

The best way to sum this up is to dissect every "era" if you will of their existence album wise.
Surfin Safari, Surfin USA, Surfer Girl- the "surf" albums.
Little Deuce Coupe, Shut Down Vol2 - the "hot rod/car" albums.
All Summer Long, Today, Summer Days- the "fun in the sun" albums.
Pet Sounds- the pinnacle.
Smiley Smiley, Wild Honey, Friends, 20/20, Sunflower, Surfs Up, Holland- the progressive albums.
Love You- the last breath of life.

Everything else after '77- A WASTE.

~as Beach Boys advocates we can find the good in ALL their albums but to "polarize" them is stupid.

[halblaineisgood]

.

[Please delete my account]

So... I looked thru this whole thread and I still havent figured out if it pertains to the BBs albums that had the most departure musically or the actual covers of the albums. There seems to be a lot of digressing here.

Neither. It's about which album most polarises listeners (i.e. creates the greatest divide between people who love it and people who hate it).

The album cover thing started from a pun on "polar" when the thread had already run its course.

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

I cast my vote for Smiley Smile as well.

[JK]

It's about which album most polarises listeners (i.e. creates the greatest divide between people who love it and people who hate it).

Based on this definition, I would say it was Love You.

[CenturyDeprived]

It's about which album most polarises listeners (i.e. creates the greatest divide between people who love it and people who hate it).

Based on this definition, I would say it was Love You.

It's gotta be Love You (as opposed to Smiley Smile). Love You, for as way, way awesome as it is, has some genuinely bad or questionable vocals (lots of them)... mind you, I still dig the vocals and most of the songs. I think many if not most people can agree about the vocal thing, even if we still think they are rad.

Whereas Smiley Smile is polarizing for being weird, underwhelming, and a big letdown. But outside of maybe a song or two, I don't think many will say that there's a large amount of anything that is outright "bad" on the record?

Just IMO...

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

It's about which album most polarises listeners (i.e. creates the greatest divide between people who love it and people who hate it).

Based on this definition, I would say it was Love You.

It's gotta be Love You (as opposed to Smiley Smile). Love You, for as way, way awesome as it is, has some genuinely bad or questionable vocals (lots of them)... mind you, I still dig the vocals and most of the songs. I think many if not most people can agree about the vocal thing, even if we still think they are rad.

Whereas Smiley Smile is polarizing for being weird, underwhelming, and a big letdown. But outside of maybe a song or two, I don't think many will say that there's a large amount of anything that is outright "bad" on the record?

Just IMO...

I think perhaps we're defining polarizing in two different ways. You seem to take it as one person having mixed feelings, while I see it as the general public's reaction being evenly split.

[CenturyDeprived]

It's about which album most polarises listeners (i.e. creates the greatest divide between people who love it and people who hate it).

Based on this definition, I would say it was Love You.

It's gotta be Love You (as opposed to Smiley Smile). Love You, for as way, way awesome as it is, has some genuinely bad or questionable vocals (lots of them)... mind you, I still dig the vocals and most of the songs. I think many if not most people can agree about the vocal thing, even if we still think they are rad.

Whereas Smiley Smile is polarizing for being weird, underwhelming, and a big letdown. But outside of maybe a song or two, I don't think many will say that there's a large amount of anything that is outright "bad" on the record?

Just IMO...

I think perhaps we're defining polarizing in two different ways. You seem to take it as one person having mixed feelings, while I see it as the general public's reaction being evenly split.

Yeah, I guess I just ultimately think that people will find more justifiable ways to state that Love You either rocks or stinks (and being firmly in one of those camps), as opposed to SS's bizarreness, which I see fans generally as feeling having relatively less "sharp" negative feelings for (outside of disappointments about what it "could've been"), ya know? What a couple of baffling albums to give to a new fan as a gift

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

It's about which album most polarises listeners (i.e. creates the greatest divide between people who love it and people who hate it).

Based on this definition, I would say it was Love You.

It's gotta be Love You (as opposed to Smiley Smile). Love You, for as way, way awesome as it is, has some genuinely bad or questionable vocals (lots of them)... mind you, I still dig the vocals and most of the songs. I think many if not most people can agree about the vocal thing, even if we still think they are rad.

Whereas Smiley Smile is polarizing for being weird, underwhelming, and a big letdown. But outside of maybe a song or two, I don't think many will say that there's a large amount of anything that is outright "bad" on the record?

Just IMO...

I think perhaps we're defining polarizing in two different ways. You seem to take it as one person having mixed feelings, while I see it as the general public's reaction being evenly split.

Yeah, I guess I just ultimately think that people will find more justifiable ways to state that Love You either rocks or stinks (and being firmly in one of those camps), as opposed to SS's bizarreness, which I see fans generally as feeling having relatively less "sharp" negative feelings for (outside of disappointments about what it "could've been"), ya know? What a couple of baffling albums to give to a new fan as a gift

I gotcha, but for me that's the very reason to pick Smiley over LY. There's really not much to debate...you either "get" it, or you don't, love it or you hate it.

But I guess a lot of the hate comes from the "I'd rather Brian had just finished SMiLE!" ideology. I share that sentiment, but also love Smiley for what it is.

[CenturyDeprived]

It's about which album most polarises listeners (i.e. creates the greatest divide between people who love it and people who hate it).

Based on this definition, I would say it was Love You.

It's gotta be Love You (as opposed to Smiley Smile). Love You, for as way, way awesome as it is, has some genuinely bad or questionable vocals (lots of them)... mind you, I still dig the vocals and most of the songs. I think many if not most people can agree about the vocal thing, even if we still think they are rad.

Whereas Smiley Smile is polarizing for being weird, underwhelming, and a big letdown. But outside of maybe a song or two, I don't think many will say that there's a large amount of anything that is outright "bad" on the record?

Just IMO...

I think perhaps we're defining polarizing in two different ways. You seem to take it as one person having mixed feelings, while I see it as the general public's reaction being evenly split.

Yeah, I guess I just ultimately think that people will find more justifiable ways to state that Love You either rocks or stinks (and being firmly in one of those camps), as opposed to SS's bizarreness, which I see fans generally as feeling having relatively less "sharp" negative feelings for (outside of disappointments about what it "could've been"), ya know? What a couple of baffling albums to give to a new fan as a gift

I gotcha, but for me that's the very reason to pick Smiley over LY. There's really not much to debate...you either "get" it, or you don't, love it or you hate it.

But I guess a lot of the hate comes from the "I'd rather Brian had just finished SMiLE!" ideology. I share that sentiment, but also love Smiley for what it is.

Yeah... basically I think that even though I love both albums to death, LY has more valid things to call out as being questionable, as opposed to SS which is rarely judged independently without the SMiLE deflated expectation on its back.

Personally, I'll take LY as more of a go-to album, but they're both in my absolute top tier BB albums. And I can't get enough of the SS stereo remix.

[bluesno1fann]

It's gotta be the 85 album for me. It gets a lot of hate mainly due to it's heavily 80's production, but there is a vocal minority who see it as a great album and can look past the production (and maybe even enjoy it).

[alf wiedersehen]

I would certainly say, from what I've seen around here, that Love You seems to be the most polarizing.
Some people can't stand it and other (read: cool) people love it.

[Blue2013]

 I don't personally love or hate Love You (while most of it is great, I can't stand tracks like Solar System and Love Is A Woman), so where does that put me?

[VanDykeParksAndRec]

Of all the BB albums,  my friends seem to enjoy Love You the least,  I love it in context, but I will admit I find it a little taxing to listen to at time, I have to be in the irght mind set.  I love Smiley Smile,  it's where I went after Pet Sounds (duh?)  and it's what got me "into" the band as a whole. 

That being said I think Smiley SMile is the most polarizing,  as far as love/hate.  I don't think Love You get's quite enough Love to counter the hate.

[JK]

Of all the BB albums,  my friends seem to enjoy Love You the least,  I love it in context, but I will admit I find it a little taxing to listen to at time, I have to be in the irght mind set.  I love Smiley Smile,  it's where I went after Pet Sounds (duh?)  and it's what got me "into" the band as a whole. 

That being said I think Smiley SMile is the most polarizing,  as far as love/hate.  I don't think Love You get's quite enough Love to counter the hate.

I get the impression, looking back through the above, that Love You does get enough love. And the "hate" is not real hate, surely? It's more bemusement, as in "What is this??"

If any BB album could be said to deserve any hate thrown its way, in my opinion it's 15 Big Ones. No other BB album makes me cringe, not least thinking of first-time BB record-buyers who bought it purely on the strength of the Boys' legendary reputation. Many of them must have had a Yetnikoff moment of their own.   

[donald]

In the final analysis, Love You is the most polarizing.   People are at opposite ends, opposing  opinions about it, very few if any people having mixed feelings, such as you might get with 85 or Smiley Smile.  I just flat out DIG Love You and have to return to it periodically.  it is among my favorite Lps of the band.     but as I say this, I realize it really is a Brian album, so really can't be compared to the other group efforts.  Having said that I would default to 85 or SS as most "polarizing".

[Nicko1234]

In the final analysis, Love You is the most polarizing.   People are at opposite ends, opposing  opinions about it, very few if any people having mixed feelings, such as you might get with 85 or Smiley Smile.  I just flat out DIG Love You and have to return to it periodically.  it is among my favorite Lps of the band.     but as I say this, I realize it really is a Brian album, so really can't be compared to the other group efforts.  Having said that I would default to 85 or SS as most "polarizing".

I really don`t think that`s true. Many people on this very board have stated that they have mixed views in the past.

For example I think The Night Was so Young is great. I think Love is a Woman is terrible.

[donald]

In the final analysis, Love You is the most polarizing.   People are at opposite ends, opposing  opinions about it, very few if any people having mixed feelings, such as you might get with 85 or Smiley Smile.  I just flat out DIG Love You and have to return to it periodically.  it is among my favorite Lps of the band.     but as I say this, I realize it really is a Brian album, so really can't be compared to the other group efforts.  Having said that I would default to 85 or SS as most "polarizing".

I really don`t think that`s true. Many people on this very board have stated that they have mixed views in the past.

For example I think The Night Was so Young is great. I think Love is a Woman is terrible.

Yeah, I forgot about that one, it's pretty bad.   Makes me think of Elmer Fudd singing