Unpopular Beach Boys opinions

[RangeRoverA1]

All Summer Long on the other hand I find to be the most overrated album, hands down. There's a few great songs, but after listening to the whole album, I just didn't understand why it's so highly rated!

You're only the 2nd poster who says so, from what I gather. We all think it's great.

[bluesno1fann]

All Summer Long on the other hand I find to be the most overrated album, hands down. There's a few great songs, but after listening to the whole album, I just didn't understand why it's so highly rated!

You're only the 2nd poster who says so, from what I gather. We all think it's great.

Who's the first?

[Freddie French-Pounce]

I do not get into The Beach Boys when other people are listening with me.

Can't explain it, but their songs sound very sub-par when I am not listening alone.

I know what you mean. They don't seem to mix in sadly.

[Please delete my account]

All Summer Long on the other hand I find to be the most overrated album, hands down. There's a few great songs, but after listening to the whole album, I just didn't understand why it's so highly rated!

You're only the 2nd poster who says so, from what I gather. We all think it's great.

Who's the first?

Aegir.

[mikeyj]

I do not get into The Beach Boys when other people are listening with me.

Can't explain it, but their songs sound very sub-par when I am not listening alone.

I have experienced the same thing too. I thought I was the only one! I wonder why we feel that way though?

[Micha]

SMiLE, had it come out in '67 as intended, would most certainly have been known as THE textbook definition of a summer of love psychedelic album, IMO. I don't think many people would dispute this (so this is actually probably a popular BB opinion).

I dispute this. In all friendship, of course.

[Micha]

I Went To Sleep and Time To Get Alone from 20/20 I find overrated as well. Always found them to be the most boring tracks off that album.

Ha! Finally someone who agrees with me on this! I never dared to admit that before.

Do It Again IMHO is a horrible track, and is the worst song off 20/20.

Couldn't disagree more!

[Gohi]

 The way the C50 ended and Mike continued touring his version of the Beach Boys is embarrassing and indefensible, despite what many around here have conditioned themselves to believe.

[zachrwolfe]

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[Niko]

My guess is that there is concern that whoever else is listening is only going to hear the music at face value. You have to listen to Surf's Up more than once to really get it, and I think that goes for a lot of their music.

[SMiLE Brian]

The way the C50 ended and Mike continued touring his version of the Beach Boys is embarrassing and indefensible, despite what many around here have conditioned themselves to believe.

I take it you took the red pill to escape the Mike-trix....

[The Heartical Don]

My guess is that there is concern that whoever else is listening is only going to hear the music at face value. You have to listen to Surf's Up more than once to really get it, and I think that goes for a lot of their music.

I think that is spot on, albeit that it may not be the only reason.

But I had that indeed with 'Surf's Up'. I myself got its utter brilliance, its being pure art, only after repeated listening. And when I introduced newbies to it, they response almost uniformly was: hm, not much of a melody, is it? And it's so slow, and it has no beat...

For the as-yet-unknowing, even Pet Sounds will be pretty inaccessible at first, I bet. It is so atypical a pop/rock record, and its gazillion details only reveal themselves after numerous attentive listens...

Throw in Today, Smiley Smile, Friends, Wild Honey, Holland, CATP, Love You,,, same characteristics. And there you go: their best is way more complex than we hardcore fans may believe. Which is great praise, as for me.

[Micha]

But I had that indeed with 'Surf's Up'. I myself got its utter brilliance, its being pure art, only after repeated listening. And when I introduced newbies to it, they response almost uniformly was: hm, not much of a melody, is it? And it's so slow, and it has no beat...

I personally know someone who thinks Surf's Up is great!

[The Heartical Don]

But I had that indeed with 'Surf's Up'. I myself got its utter brilliance, its being pure art, only after repeated listening. And when I introduced newbies to it, they response almost uniformly was: hm, not much of a melody, is it? And it's so slow, and it has no beat...

I personally know someone who thinks Surf's Up is great!

It may sound surprising, but I think I know whom you mean.

BTW: Surf's Up is, should I have to make a choice, my all time favourite pop song.

[Cyncie]

I do not get into The Beach Boys when other people are listening with me.

Can't explain it, but their songs sound very sub-par when I am not listening alone.

No offense, but I don't get this. The Beach Boys become sub-par because of what? The fact that your friends aren't fans? None of my friends "get" Mozart, but that doesn't make his music sub-par. It makes them clueless.

[The Heartical Don]

I do not get into The Beach Boys when other people are listening with me.

Can't explain it, but their songs sound very sub-par when I am not listening alone.

No offense, but I don't get this. The Beach Boys become sub-par because of what? The fact that your friends aren't fans? None of my friends "get" Mozart, but that doesn't make his music sub-par. It makes them clueless.

I apologise for throwing in my two cents' worth (= interpretation of 'sub-par'):

I did not take that literally. I took it to mean what I experience: I myself have a tendency to explain to others what is so great about the BBs. But this thought process, and my being wary of the other(s) not getting what I mean to say at all, makes the music itself become 'unravelled' in my own perception/brain/other. And then I think: gosh, they might find it very mediocre...

...I know all of this sounds very bizarre. But I love to hear my BBs alone, or in the company of fellow fans; preferably not with total newbies (after the experiences I described somewhere above).

[donald]

I do not get into The Beach Boys when other people are listening with me.

Can't explain it, but their songs sound very sub-par when I am not listening alone.

No offense, but I don't get this. The Beach Boys become sub-par because of what? The fact that your friends aren't fans? None of my friends "get" Mozart, but that doesn't make his music sub-par. It makes them clueless.

I apologise for throwing in my two cents' worth (= interpretation of 'sub-par'):

I did not take that literally. I took it to mean what I experience: I myself have a tendency to explain to others what is so great about the BBs. But this thought process, and my being wary of the other(s) not getting what I mean to say at all, makes the music itself become 'unravelled' in my own perception/brain/other. And then I think: gosh, they might find it very mediocre...

...I know all of this sounds very bizarre. But I love to hear my BBs alone, or in the company of fellow fans; preferably not with total newbies (after the experiences I described somewhere above).

Every time I tell some one I am a big beach boys fanI get the impression that they are thinking of Barbara Ann or Fun Fun Fun and may think I'm a simpleton who only likes catchy oldies.  But on occasion someone takes the opportunity to ask about Brian Wilson, Dennis, or the reunion tour.  Sometimes I just get a blank stare or forced smile.  The older I get the less I give a sh*t.

[Rotat]

I do not get into The Beach Boys when other people are listening with me.

Can't explain it, but their songs sound very sub-par when I am not listening alone.

No offense, but I don't get this. The Beach Boys become sub-par because of what? The fact that your friends aren't fans? None of my friends "get" Mozart, but that doesn't make his music sub-par. It makes them clueless.

I apologise for throwing in my two cents' worth (= interpretation of 'sub-par'):

I did not take that literally. I took it to mean what I experience: I myself have a tendency to explain to others what is so great about the BBs. But this thought process, and my being wary of the other(s) not getting what I mean to say at all, makes the music itself become 'unravelled' in my own perception/brain/other. And then I think: gosh, they might find it very mediocre...

...I know all of this sounds very bizarre. But I love to hear my BBs alone, or in the company of fellow fans; preferably not with total newbies (after the experiences I described somewhere above).

I'm sure some people here know the exact feeling of that. I wouldn't say at all that the music is "sub par" with others, but I'm definitely more insecure with others when I put on something Beach Boys (or really anything) that they're not familiar with or I'm not sure there even gonna like. Or if they're even gonna laugh at me or be confused or give me some kind of weird reaction like that. It's like you're listening closely than usual and trying to hear it in their ears. A lot of times it can makes you think negatively like "Oh that main melody isn't that great, they're not gonna like this" or something like that.

That is why I too prefer to listen to the BBs alone. Then again I listen to all music I love the most alone anyways. I find it's pretty rare to find people with really close musical tastes to me, but that's because I listen to anything and I don't judge so harshly. It's almost like people who have no clue about anything to do with music (or films or whatever) are the people to most bitch about it or criticize it.

[Shady]

Most of the songs on 85 and KTSA are fantastic

[Myk Luhv]

The Beach Boys are pretty corny -- maybe admitting that is my unpopular opinion? -- so I can totally understand why most people my age (early-to-mid-20s) don't really like them, whether or not they're aware of their more "artistic" material like Pet Sounds or Smile, and whether or not their favourite band is influenced by this group and makes mention of this. (To say nothing of even more obscure albums like Friends, Surf's Up, Wild Honey and so on.) At the same time though, I obviously like them a lot and can at times appreciate, tolerate, or even share in that corniness. Smiley Smile and Love You are two of my favourite albums, ones which I will sometimes think are better than their aforementioned artistic high watermarks. (Another unpopular opinion, surely...) Some people can't, which is fine too. I've tried to get people into them before and more often than not it hasn't worked out so I've pretty much stopped trying. I like them and if I can get people into a couple of their lesser-known songs, as I've have with "Celebrate The News", great! I don't really mind though if this never happens. I mean, really, as much as I like songs about birds flying around windows with lovely but rather fey arrangements... I'm not really surprised many people think otherwise!

[Rotat]

They can be very corny, I agree, which is maybe the difficulty they've always had finding success after Smile. Even when they tried to be a "serious" group, they can be corny at times still. CATP and Holland are probably the most "hip" and least corny albums I guess.

Still, I'm looking forward to show the next person I meet Smiley Smile and see what they're reaction is to that. I never listened to that with anyone else before. That one at least is pretty scary and disturbing at times, and it outweighs the corniness.

[startBBtoday]

I don't like most of the Smiley Smile and Wild Honey albums. 1970s Beach Boys > late 1960s.

I also only really like Heroes and Villains, Cabin Essence, Wonderful, Surf's Up and Good Vibrations from Smile. A lot of Smile seems like repetitive filler.

I think Carl Wilson was a really underrated song writer for The Beach Boys. Long Promised Road, Feel Flows, The Trader and Leaving This Town are all standout tracks.

I also love everything Ricky and Blondie wrote for The Beach Boys. Hold On Dear Brother is a fantastic song.

[bluesno1fann]

Here's an apparent big one:

I never understood all the hate for Bruce Johnston around here.
People seem to criticize a lot of his music and I seem to notice there's a lot of people who doesn't like him.

People around here also make Bruce the most ridiculed member.


Anyway, why? Why the lack of love for Bruce?

[retrokid67]

Here's an apparent big one:

I never understood all the hate for Bruce Johnston around here.
People seem to criticize a lot of his music and I seem to notice there's a lot of people who doesn't like him.

People around here also make Bruce the most ridiculed member.


Anyway, why? Why the lack of love for Bruce?

for me, if Bruce wasn't a member of a rock group and was a solo artist on his own his stuff isn't that bad.  people like Barry Manilow and David Cassidy whom he's worked with seem to fit more in his category.  The BB are a rock group and there's nothing really "rock" about Bruce you know what I mean? I mean this was the same guy that suggested that "Here Comes the Night" should be a disco song and by 1979 disco was dying out thanks to angry rock fans  .  Maybe if they had done that two years earlier with the rise of Saturday Night Fever they would've gotten away with it, who knows? 

[urbanite]

I think the Beach Boys over-used the falsetto sound in their music as they moved the early to mid 60's sound.  A little less of it would have done them some good.