gfxgfx
 
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
logo
 
gfx gfx
gfx
680597 Posts in 27600 Topics by 4068 Members - Latest Member: Dae Lims March 28, 2024, 09:10:11 AM
*
gfx*HomeHelpSearchCalendarLoginRegistergfx
gfxgfx
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.       « previous next »
Pages: [1] 2 Go Down Print
Author Topic: Mike Love's Songwriting Process  (Read 6102 times)
TommyPlural
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 35


View Profile
« on: June 04, 2013, 08:46:13 AM »

There's an old thread about this that devolves into a debate about Ringo Starr and Charles Manson (http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,647.0.html), but I've always been curious about how Mike Love writes songs (the 'sole credit' Mike Love songs like 'Everyone's in Love With You,' 'Sumahama,' 'Cool Head Warm Heart' etc). Has this ever been definitively addressed? Has Mike ever talked about this in an interview?
Logged
STE
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Online Online

Posts: 1116


"I'm not on top like I used to be"


View Profile
« Reply #1 on: June 04, 2013, 10:24:53 AM »



With his old guitar he makes up songs to sing.


Logged
ontor pertawst
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 2575


L♡VE ALWAYS WINS


View Profile WWW
« Reply #2 on: June 04, 2013, 10:29:20 AM »

He stares into a haunted mirror that shows a younger version of himself silently mouthing the lyrics. Over the years he's gotten pretty good at lipreading and transcribing these visions from the haunted mirror, which results in so many of the compositions we enjoy today.
Logged
Melt Away
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 186


View Profile WWW
« Reply #3 on: June 04, 2013, 10:39:28 AM »

He flings poo at a piano and whatever keys it lands on is the song! That's how we got(or didn't get) UTL.
Logged

TimmyC
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 283


View Profile
« Reply #4 on: June 04, 2013, 10:44:00 AM »

I for one think it's an interesting question for which I have absolutely no knowledge whatsoever... anyone? Bueller?? Bueller??
Logged
Mike's Beard
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 4265


Check your privilege. Love & Mercy guys!


View Profile
« Reply #5 on: June 04, 2013, 10:48:02 AM »

Mike is seen playing piano on the "Mike, Come Back to LA" footage. He can also play basic guitar. I imagine he is more than capable of writing bare boned chord progressions for his song ideas. As mentioned on the older thread he most likely sang/hummed melody ideas to someone who transcribed them. Daryll Dragon arranged "Everyone's in Love With You" and I'm guessing it was Ron Altbach who arranged "Suhamhama".
Logged

I'd rather be forced to sleep with Caitlyn Jenner then ever have to listen to NPP again.
SenorPotatoHead
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 272



View Profile
« Reply #6 on: June 04, 2013, 12:11:56 PM »

He starts with "Well" and it all flows from there.  Cheesy
Logged
Lowbacca
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 3598


please let me wonder


View Profile
« Reply #7 on: June 04, 2013, 12:17:37 PM »

He uses something that is called a "kesha": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMsZ8nGkPUM - similar to what Melt Away envisioned. Cheesy
Logged
Mendota Heights
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 927



View Profile
« Reply #8 on: June 04, 2013, 01:03:26 PM »

I see there is a lot of speculation going on here.

Mike Love actually bases his chord progressions on smoke signals he found under a rock in an underwater above ground cave in south-north Arizona in 1327.
Logged

I have been dubbed Mr. Pet Sounds and Mr. Country Love by polite and honored board member Smile Brian. I hope I live up to those esteemed titles.
Pretty Funky
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Online Online

Posts: 5855


View Profile
« Reply #9 on: June 04, 2013, 03:04:06 PM »

Most of the speculation is on music which is not Mikes bag. He's the lyric guy!

He has a spinning wheel with all hooks from the bands 60's hits, gives it a whirl, gets a phrase and builds a lyric around it.
Logged
TommyPlural
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 35


View Profile
« Reply #10 on: June 04, 2013, 03:08:05 PM »

Sounds like it's safe to say that many of Mike's mental processes are a complete mystery.
Logged
ontor pertawst
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 2575


L♡VE ALWAYS WINS


View Profile WWW
« Reply #11 on: June 04, 2013, 03:17:00 PM »

As Mike Love above, so below.
Logged
c-man
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 4941


View Profile WWW
« Reply #12 on: June 04, 2013, 03:49:26 PM »

Mike is seen playing piano on the "Mike, Come Back to LA" footage. He can also play basic guitar. I imagine he is more than capable of writing bare boned chord progressions for his song ideas. As mentioned on the older thread he most likely sang/hummed melody ideas to someone who transcribed them. Daryll Dragon arranged "Everyone's in Love With You" and I'm guessing it was Ron Altbach who arranged "Suhamhama".

The 15 Big Ones back slick credits Mike Love with the arrangement of "Everyone's In Love With You" and Daryl Dragon with the vocal arrangement.  Is more known about this?

As for "Sumahama", Bob Alcivar did the string and horn arrangements...my guess is Bruce did the vocal arrangement on the L.A. version.
Logged
SummerInParadise23
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 57


View Profile
« Reply #13 on: June 04, 2013, 03:50:28 PM »

Can anyone answer his question in a mature respectful way? I'm interested to know as well.
Logged
Mr. Cohen
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 1746


View Profile
« Reply #14 on: June 04, 2013, 03:59:51 PM »

His lyrics writing process nowadays, as gleaned from interviews and the finished materials, is to meditate about a topic and then scrawl cliched phrases with simplistic rhymes. For example, say someone told him to write about Malcom X. Mike would meditate on it by a window and then write this in 5 minutes.

Malcom X
Changed the world, yeah
Malcom X
For brothers and sisters, yeah

Malcom X, well he rocked the boat, now
He got their goat, now
With his autobiography
In fact, check out his bibliography
Critics said the pot called the kettle black
But he was just ahead of the pack

Malcom X
Changed the world, yeah
Malcom X
For brothers and sisters, yeah

And so on...
Logged
Mendota Heights
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 927



View Profile
« Reply #15 on: June 04, 2013, 05:21:18 PM »

His lyrics writing process nowadays, as gleaned from interviews and the finished materials, is to meditate about a topic and then scrawl cliched phrases with simplistic rhymes. For example, say someone told him to write about Malcom X. Mike would meditate on it by a window and then write this in 5 minutes.

Malcom X
Changed the world, yeah
Malcom X
For brothers and sisters, yeah

Malcom X, well he rocked the boat, now
He got their goat, now
With his autobiography
In fact, check out his bibliography
Critics said the pot called the kettle black
But he was just ahead of the pack

Malcom X
Changed the world, yeah
Malcom X
For brothers and sisters, yeah

And so on...

Can you write a song about hedgehogs dancing on rainbows? Myke Luhv style.
« Last Edit: June 05, 2013, 12:48:03 AM by Swedish Frog » Logged

I have been dubbed Mr. Pet Sounds and Mr. Country Love by polite and honored board member Smile Brian. I hope I live up to those esteemed titles.
bossaroo
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 1631


...let's be friends...


View Profile
« Reply #16 on: June 04, 2013, 08:13:36 PM »

Mike is the Executive Producer of all his songs. and don't you forget it.
Logged
Melt Away
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 186


View Profile WWW
« Reply #17 on: June 04, 2013, 09:41:04 PM »

Can anyone answer his question in a mature respectful way? I'm interested to know as well.

Why don't you tell us....MIKE?!?!?!?!?!?
Logged

Phoenix
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 1212



View Profile
« Reply #18 on: June 04, 2013, 10:31:26 PM »

Can anyone answer his question in a mature respectful way? I'm interested to know as well.

They already did!  Just a few posts above the one I quoted from you:


Mike is seen playing piano on the "Mike, Come Back to LA" footage. He can also play basic guitar. I imagine he is more than capable of writing bare boned chord progressions for his song ideas. As mentioned on the older thread he most likely sang/hummed melody ideas to someone who transcribed them.


Or do you need something more than that?  Huh
Logged
Micha
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Gender: Male
Posts: 3133



View Profile WWW
« Reply #19 on: June 05, 2013, 12:16:47 AM »

He starts with "Well" and it all flows from there.  Cheesy

...and ends on "now"! Grin
Logged

Ceterum censeo SMiLEBrianum OSDumque esse excludendos banno.
SurfRiderHawaii
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 2569


Add Some Music to your day!


View Profile
« Reply #20 on: June 05, 2013, 01:05:30 AM »

Can anyone answer his question in a mature respectful way? I'm interested to know as well.

Why don't you tell us....MIKE?!?!?!?!?!?

No, Mike is SummerInParadise22.




Logged

"Brian is The Beach Boys. He is the band. We're his f***ing messengers. He is all of it. Period. We're nothing. He's everything" - Dennis Wilson
Rocker
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Online Online

Gender: Male
Posts: 10622


"Too dumb for New York City, too ugly for L.A."


View Profile WWW
« Reply #21 on: June 05, 2013, 04:52:56 AM »

Mike is seen playing piano on the "Mike, Come Back to LA" footage. He can also play basic guitar. I imagine he is more than capable of writing bare boned chord progressions for his song ideas. As mentioned on the older thread he most likely sang/hummed melody ideas to someone who transcribed them.


Don't remember where I read it but that's the way Mike described his writing of a specific song. he hummed or sang his idea to Carl who wrote the music down for Mike
Logged

a diseased bunch of mo'fos if there ever was one… their beauty is so awesome that listening to them at their best is like being in some vast dream cathedral decorated with a thousand gleaming American pop culture icons.

- Lester Bangs on The Beach Boys


PRO SHOT BEACH BOYS CONCERTS - LIST


To sum it up, they blew it, they blew it consistently, they continue to blow it, it is tragic and this pathological problem caused The Beach Boys' greatest music to be so underrated by the general public.

- Jack Rieley
TommyPlural
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 35


View Profile
« Reply #22 on: June 05, 2013, 08:43:51 AM »

Right, I could assume that he has at least enough knowledge of chord progressions and scale degrees on different instruments that he can write and arrange ideas. Mostly I was curious if he had specifically ever addressed his process of writing music in an interview (written, audio, or visual) at any point. Seems he wouldn't shy away from a chance to show that he doesn't need a Wilson to toss some chords off.
Logged
Mr. Cohen
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Offline Offline

Posts: 1746


View Profile
« Reply #23 on: June 05, 2013, 09:34:10 AM »

I hate to say it, but I don't think anyone asks Mike Love about his songwriting process.
Logged
Shady
Smiley Smile Associate
*
Online Online

Gender: Male
Posts: 6480


I had to fix a lot of things this morning


View Profile
« Reply #24 on: June 05, 2013, 10:45:54 AM »

He makes a long list of words that rhyme with Sun, Fun and vibrations and takes it from there.
Logged

According to someone who would know.

Seriously, there was a Beach Boys Love You condom?!  Amazing.
gfx
Pages: [1] 2 Go Up Print 
gfx
Jump to:  
gfx
Powered by SMF 1.1.21 | SMF © 2015, Simple Machines Page created in 0.545 seconds with 22 queries.
Helios Multi design by Bloc
gfx
Powered by MySQL Powered by PHP Valid XHTML 1.0! Valid CSS!