4th Anniversary of That's Why God Made The Radio

[The_Beach]

I can't believe That's Why God Made The Radio Is four years old already! Where does that time go! I love the album listened to it every day that whole summer and still listen and enjoy it! Do you think the Beach Boys will ever come out with a new 30th studio album? I sure hope so! hard to believe that the 50th ann. was 4 years ago? Anything planned for the 55th Anniversary???

[JK]

Do you think the Beach Boys will ever come out with a new 30th studio album? I

I sincerely hope not. if any album was a swansong, it was TWGMTR.

"Summer's gone / It's finally sinking in."

Let it be said of them that they bowed out gracefully.

[Wylson]

I hope for a new album produced by Adam Schlesinger (producer of the new Monkees album)

[RangeRoverA1]

Keep being positive, The_Beach. To finish career with "Summer's gone"? They can do better than that. Imo if they started with fun ("Surfin") they should end with fun. It just seems cliched to end with sentimental song.

[ThreeCats]

Keep being positive, The_Beach. To finish career with "Summer's gone"? They can do better than that. Imo if they started with fun ("Surfin") they should end with fun. It just seems cliched to end with sentimental song.

Well, Surfin' was their first single and Isn't It Time was their last single so they did start and end with fun.

[bringahorseinhere?]

I don't believe it will happen.  The guys don't even talk (again) anymore.  Mike has his way, Brian has his, and they are too stuck in their ways
and getting too old to compromise. Their focuses are too far apart once again.

[kwan_dk]

I don't believe it will happen.  The guys don't even talk (again) anymore.  Mike has his way, Brian has his, and they are too stuck in their ways
and getting too old to compromise. Their focuses are too far apart once again.

Agreed. But it's such a shame.

As much as I enjoy the best parts of NPP, there was something really special about them singing together again. I think the best tracks of NPP could have been fantastic to hear in a Beach Boys setting on a follow-up album to That's Why God Made the Radio.

[mabewa]

It was an excellent way to go out!

[CosmicDancer]

Wow, four years already.  The album was way better than I expected it to be.  It's not without it's flaws, but if it's the end, it's a fine album to go out with.

[phirnis]

It's still an enjoyable listen. Beaches in Mind is one of their worst songs ever and the record's overall sound is way too glossy. The high points however are all pretty strong, especially Pacific Coast Highway, which I think is as good as any BW song after 1977.

[Cool Cool Water]

Four years, wow, time flies! I'll have to listen to TWGMTR in its entirety soon as it's been a while. 

[RangeRoverA1]

2ThreeCats: good point. I went with "1st song to feature the BBs to last". Yes, IIT is fun.

2phirnis: you like Pacific coast better even than From There To Back Again?

[filledeplage]

I can't believe That's Why God Made The Radio Is four years old already! Where does that time go! I love the album listened to it every day that whole summer and still listen and enjoy it! Do you think the Beach Boys will ever come out with a new 30th studio album? I sure hope so! hard to believe that the 50th ann. was 4 years ago? Anything planned for the 55th Anniversary???

Thanks for that reminder on TWGMTR!  It hardly seems possible that 4 years have elapsed since C50.  That song was such a "full-circle" C50 event hit.  I love it, even if my favorite one on that album is Think About The Days.  Thanks again. 

[HeyJude]

I think it was also poignant that Brian reportedly chose to *not* name the album "Summer's Gone" because he didn't feel it had to be the last BB album, but then made a very obvious decision to close out their final show of the 2012 tour with "Summer's Gone" (at that point I think Brian knew it was over). How quickly the outlook on the band's future changed. Five months from start to finish on that tour.

I also think at least some of these guys don't give much weight to the context of the songs and just treat them as songs, hence Mike and his band doing "Isn't It Time" *after* the reunion, and as recently as 2015. The song, as most any, can certainly be interpreted any number of ways, but it certainly seemed to be tied to more hopeful feelings about having the band reunited.

[Emdeeh]

To finish career with "Summer's gone"? They can do better than that.

Agreed. I don't like having "Summer's Gone" as the final song on the album. That's why I reorder my playlist lineup for TWGMTR so it ends with "Strange World."

YMMV

[petsoundsnola]

I think that Pacific Coast Highway would have made a better album closer, with the group's last word being "Goodbye" sung in harmony. 

[mikeddonn]

I think that Pacific Coast Highway would have made a better album closer, with the group's last word being "Goodbye" sung in harmony.  

I agree and I also think that is one of the GREAT Brian Wilson tunes.  My playlist in the car has Think About The Days, Summer's Gone and then Pacific Coast Highway as the closer. It still works in that order.

[Juice Brohnston]

I think that Pacific Coast Highway would have made a better album closer, with the group's last word being "Goodbye" sung in harmony. 

Agree.
But I also think Spring Vacation should have been the first single. Is it the best thing on TWGMTR? Hell no, but I think it's catchy, had an easy sound and good tempo. Surely this is not a popular opinion though, lol.

The end of the album has classic cuts, no question.

What did it end up selling, 300k copies? 'Good' in todays industry?

[Lee Marshall]

Given that 100,000 seems to be a high bar for today's 'artists'  [Like Long Road Out of Eden sold what?  10 times as many copies as Brittany Spears moved in the same time-frame?]  TWGMTR did remarkably well...and is likely still selling.

Remember that when the lp was recorded...Brian expected to do another Beach Boys record and was composing/writing for that eventuality.  But then 'the fan' was used as a propellant and plans for a Beach Boys 'future' were squashed.

Summer's Gone wasn't supposed to be the LAST word.  As it turned out though...devoid of Beach Boys' harmonies...it is exactly appropriate.  The 'cruiser' was left parked...and locked.

[KDS]

I think that Pacific Coast Highway would have made a better album closer, with the group's last word being "Goodbye" sung in harmony. 

Agree.
But I also think Spring Vacation should have been the first single. Is it the best thing on TWGMTR? Hell no, but I think it's catchy, had an easy sound and good tempo. Surely this is not a popular opinion though, lol.

The end of the album has classic cuts, no question.

What did it end up selling, 300k copies? 'Good' in todays industry?

If not for Adele, it might've hit #1.  Funny how, in 2012, Adele was able to keep both Van Halen and The Beach Boys out of the #1 album spot.  (VH's album was released in February, right after Adele won every Grammy ever made). 

[RangeRoverA1]

It could be smb. worse than Adele. At least she got voice.

[KDS]

It could be smb. worse than Adele. At least she got voice.

I'll agree Adele is talented, even if she's not my cup of tea.

But wouldn't you have thought by June 5th, 2012, when TWGMTR was released, that everyone who really wanted that album would've bought it already? 

[phirnis]

2ThreeCats: good point. I went with "1st song to feature the BBs to last". Yes, IIT is fun.

2phirnis: you like Pacific coast better even than From There To Back Again?

Yeah, I like it a bit more. Love to hear Al's voice on Back Again but some of the lyrics seem a bit forced to me. Still a very good song, though!

Another thing re the album, I think I said it before but to me TWGMTR sounds pretty much like a cross between Today and Still Cruisin'. It's an odd mixture but for the most part it works.

[JK]

to me TWGMTR sounds pretty much like a cross between Today and Still Cruisin'. It's an odd mixture but for the most part it works.

I like that.

And no change to the running order (of any album).

[Eric Aniversario]

After a few listens, I realized that for me, From There To Back Again was their best song since All This is That.