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Poll
Question: Rate Sunflower
5 - 155 (73.8%)
4 - 45 (21.4%)
3 - 8 (3.8%)
2 - 0 (0%)
1 - 1 (0.5%)
0 - 1 (0.5%)
Total Voters: 193

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Author Topic: Sunflower  (Read 167370 times)
Heteronym
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« Reply #275 on: February 21, 2013, 10:54:28 AM »

I've been reading about and listening to this album a lot recently, maybe because I've had never dig it they way most people have. Truth is, I had never given it a proper chance.

I don't understand how Sunflower can be called "too sweet", if for the first time or so we are presented with those nice rockers by Carl and Dennis. I agree, Slip On Through as an opener might not have been the best idea: I remember the feeling of "WTF?" when I first tried to list Sunflower and those weird notes came right up. I wasn't ready for it! Sunflower has the Add Some Music kind of vibe as well as that crazy upbeat feeling you get from Slip On Through, This Whole World, Got To Know The Woman and It's About Time. Even though 20/20 was a radical shift, this album seemed quite weird to me at first listen.

By reading the thread I became aware of the Tears In The Morning's dialetic. It's a well constructed song, but the way Bruce sings it...makes it cheesy as hell, as if it were some kind of lame country tune. Plus, the opening is a little too much to digest. Deidre is awesome, though.

As a Brian Wilson fanatic, I'm obviously disappointed with how little lead vocals he got during this era, but his voice is always present in the backing vocals and it adds so much! He really made Forever sound more beautiful than it already is. Although, I think he could have gotten the lead on At My Window and Our Sweet Love.

GTKTW and SOT have really grown on me; I find it incredibly funny how Brian "answers" Dennis' lines on GTKTW. Not to mention the "aaah-haha-haaa....baby, lemme tell your something". Awesome and it gave a whole new dimensoin to the BB's world.

I'll give it a 4 because, in spite of all the good things, this album lacks moments of real brilliance that characterizes the Beach Boys I had gotten used to. Maybe that was Brian's absence, I don't know, but Sunflower is still below Today, Pet Sounds, Smiley Smile, Wild Honey, Friends and Love You in my league. Plus, it kinda started the sequence of average albums that would last untill Love You
« Last Edit: February 21, 2013, 10:56:26 AM by Heteronym » Logged
Disney Boy (1985)
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« Reply #276 on: February 22, 2013, 11:38:19 PM »

I've been reading about and listening to this album a lot recently, maybe because I've had never dig it they way most people have. Truth is, I had never given it a proper chance.

I don't understand how Sunflower can be called "too sweet", if for the first time or so we are presented with those nice rockers by Carl and Dennis. I agree, Slip On Through as an opener might not have been the best idea: I remember the feeling of "WTF?" when I first tried to list Sunflower and those weird notes came right up. I wasn't ready for it! Sunflower has the Add Some Music kind of vibe as well as that crazy upbeat feeling you get from Slip On Through, This Whole World, Got To Know The Woman and It's About Time. Even though 20/20 was a radical shift, this album seemed quite weird to me at first listen.

By reading the thread I became aware of the Tears In The Morning's dialetic. It's a well constructed song, but the way Bruce sings it...makes it cheesy as hell, as if it were some kind of lame country tune. Plus, the opening is a little too much to digest. Deidre is awesome, though.

As a Brian Wilson fanatic, I'm obviously disappointed with how little lead vocals he got during this era, but his voice is always present in the backing vocals and it adds so much! He really made Forever sound more beautiful than it already is. Although, I think he could have gotten the lead on At My Window and Our Sweet Love.

GTKTW and SOT have really grown on me; I find it incredibly funny how Brian "answers" Dennis' lines on GTKTW. Not to mention the "aaah-haha-haaa....baby, lemme tell your something". Awesome and it gave a whole new dimensoin to the BB's world.

I'll give it a 4 because, in spite of all the good things, this album lacks moments of real brilliance that characterizes the Beach Boys I had gotten used to. Maybe that was Brian's absence, I don't know, but Sunflower is still below Today, Pet Sounds, Smiley Smile, Wild Honey, Friends and Love You in my league. Plus, it kinda started the sequence of average albums that would last untill Love You

'Started the sequence of average albums that would last until Love You'? Seriously? I'd say Sunflower is more the start of a sequence of incredible albums - Surf's Up, Holland, In Concert - that would last until 15 Big Ones (Carl & The Passions is too much of a curate's egg to make the list). Don't get me wrong, I love all the '65-'69 albums as well. To me, pretty much the entire period from 1965 to 1973/4 is fantastic. But as always, each to their own...

Nice to see some love for Got To Know The Woman though. One of my biggest shocks on first joining this site was seeing all the critisim and dislike this song generated - i've always loved it from the very first listen! A few more Got To Know The Woman's and a few less Tears In The Morning's and perhaps the group wouldn't have been considered so cringingly naff at the time...
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Heteronym
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« Reply #277 on: February 23, 2013, 05:05:31 AM »

Maybe I was too harsh on Surf's Up because it has those moments of brilliance, although a track or two are really off to me. Anyway, I can't get into Holland and much less CATP. They aren't bad (especially Holland that does have some strong moments), but I can't help comparing the 70's material to the 60's ones...different times, I know (not just for the band, but musical context itself), but I just can't connect to those two albums. Well, maybe they will grown on me eventually.
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Lowbacca
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« Reply #278 on: February 23, 2013, 08:16:15 AM »

Anyway, I can't get into Holland and much less CATP.
Please keep trying.  Undecided These 2 have been my favourite BBs LPs for the last couple of months. CATP especially is one of a kind.  3D Such a cool era of Beach Boys sound.

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Les Garçons de la plage
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« Reply #279 on: February 24, 2013, 10:17:30 AM »

The last excellent Beach Boys album - (OK, Love You is cool too but a bit.... weird, what with the synth arrangements and slightly goofy lyrics). Bruce Johnston-sung tracks are a bit sappy but not bad. My personal favourite -  All I Wanna Do, almost proto-shoegazing and a pretty overlooked track.
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« Reply #280 on: April 01, 2013, 06:38:41 AM »

Why does everyone dislike Tears In The Morning? I think it's great...
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« Reply #281 on: April 01, 2013, 07:56:43 AM »

Why does everyone dislike Tears In The Morning? I think it's great...
Sappy kitsch deluxe.
But yeah, I guess it's an overall okay song..
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Dudd
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« Reply #282 on: April 01, 2013, 11:51:55 AM »

Why does everyone dislike Tears In The Morning? I think it's great...
Sappy kitsch deluxe.
But yeah, I guess it's an overall okay song..
Eh. That's just Bruce Johnston's thing. To me, it's Dierdre that's the sappy one, and I still really like it.
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« Reply #283 on: April 01, 2013, 01:17:48 PM »

Why does everyone dislike Tears In The Morning? I think it's great...
Sappy kitsch deluxe.
But yeah, I guess it's an overall okay song..
Eh. That's just Bruce Johnston's thing. To me, it's Dierdre that's the sappy one, and I still really like it.
"Deirdre" kicks major ass.  Smiley As does "Disney Girls". "Tears In The Morning" simply isn't as good a song as the aforementioned two, at least to my ears.
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bluesno1fann
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« Reply #284 on: August 30, 2013, 05:57:16 PM »

Brilliant Album!
My favourite tracks would have to be Dennis's.
Other than the Smile Sessions, this album comes closest to greatness to Pet Sounds.
But seriously, no need for hatred for any of Bruce's tracks, they're all not really THAT BAD!!!
5 out of 5
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Daniel Dolphin
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« Reply #285 on: September 30, 2013, 01:40:28 PM »

I have thought about how Alan may have felt when sunflower was finally released in 1970. All his significant contributions were dismissed during the recompilations  of the album(loop de loop, back home,susie cincinetti,feet,good time). I have a feeling that he was compensated with some cocredits om it's about time and our sweet love. Vocally he only has One solo line in ASMTYD . No wonder that he craved to have more presence on "Surf's up" the year after.
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« Reply #286 on: October 25, 2013, 11:08:46 PM »

I'll give it 4/5. It is closer to five though. I just happen to think it's slightly overrated. Don't get me wrong, I love every song on it. It's very cohesive and there's a lot of Beach Boys classics. But there is couple mediocre songs in the middle too.

Slip On Through 4.5/5
Cool opener!
This Whole World 5/5
Perfect song and one of my all-time favorites. One of the best examples of Brian's genius. Who else could make a song that runs under 2 mins and is this great?
Add Some Music 4.5/5
Wait what they didn't have autotune back in the days!?
Got To Know The Woman 3/5
Nice song but it's definetely not up there with Forever or River song.
Deirdre 3/5
Yeah same here, nice song but this is not Disney Girls.
It's About Time 5/5
Another perfect one! And this even rocks pretty hard.
Tears In The Morning 3.5/5
A little bit better than Deirdre.
All I Wanna Do 4.5/5
Wow! Mike really can sing, at least sometimes.
Forever 5/5
No words needed here.
Our Sweet Love 4/5
As the title says, very sweet.
At My Window 4.5/5
I love the organ intro. And I can't imagine anyone than Bruce singing this. The fade out is one of the best ever.
Cool, Cool Water 5/5
And another perfect one! Brian sounds so cool here. Still I think this is a little bit out of place. Reminds too much of Smile and there it should've been.

For a Beach boys fan the cover art is really cool and awesome but show that to other people and they say it's really cheesy  Tongue I think they just don't get it  Cool
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« Reply #287 on: December 28, 2013, 02:47:28 AM »

I was just wondering, has Mike Love ever given any comments about Sunflower? Propably has but I couldn't find anything from quick search. He must hate it because it doesn't have any hits and it didn't sell...
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« Reply #288 on: January 15, 2014, 07:26:42 PM »

Not as good as Surf's Up. It has many mediocre songs while Surf's Up has just one bad one. It also seems a little too saccharine, especially the Bruce numbers and Our Sweet Love. It holds together a lot better than 20/20 as an LP but still has a lot of fluff.

About 4/5. Probably their third best of the 70s, after Love You and Surf's Up.

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bluesno1fann
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« Reply #289 on: January 15, 2014, 07:28:43 PM »

Not as good as Surf's Up. It has many mediocre songs while Surf's Up has just one bad one. It also seems a little too saccharine, especially the Bruce numbers and Our Sweet Love. It holds together a lot better than 20/20 as an LP but still has a lot of fluff.

About 4/5.



For once I agree with you!  LOL
Except for the part about Surf's Up being better than Sunflower. Don't much care for Don't Go Near The Water, Take A Load Off Your Feet and the out-take 4th Of July as well as Student Demonstration Time!
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« Reply #290 on: February 20, 2014, 10:27:58 PM »

In Sunflower you can feel all the heart and soul they put into this record to make it as good as they could. They're all great songs. My favourite would have to be the opener "Slip On Through".

5/5 easily.
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« Reply #291 on: March 03, 2014, 03:24:47 PM »

Album + cover art.. 5/5.. Music 5/5.. The only track im not crazy about is GTKTW.. Altho I don't skip it either.. Summer of 1970 this was a guilty pleasure that I only played when I was alone.. BB very unhip at the time and I was laughed at when I played it at a couple of party's .. I knew it was excellent but back in those hippie macho days this was too light + tender for the masses .. Doesn't matter quality always  shines thru.. A true group effort  from everyone and a true desert island disk..
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« Reply #292 on: March 03, 2014, 04:32:49 PM »

Album + cover art.. 5/5.. Music 5/5.. The only track im not crazy about is GTKTW.. Altho I don't skip it either.. Summer of 1970 this was a guilty pleasure that I only played when I was alone.. BB very unhip at the time and I was laughed at when I played it at a couple of party's .. I knew it was excellent but back in those hippie macho days this was too light + tender for the masses .. Doesn't matter quality always  shines thru.. A true group effort  from everyone and a true desert island disk..
We must be very close in age, as I went through much the same thing.
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The Brianista Prayer

Oh Brian
Thou Art In Hawthorne,
Harmonied Be Thy name
Your Kingdom Come,
Your Steak Well Done,
On Stage As It Is In Studio,
Give Us This Day, Our Shortenin' Bread
And Forgive Us Our Bootlegs,
As We Also Have Forgiven Our Wife And Managers,
And Lead Us Not Into Kokomo,
But Deliver Us From Mike Love.
Amen.  ---hypehat
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« Reply #293 on: March 03, 2014, 05:10:16 PM »

Yes sir I believe we are.. I noticed your posts years ago and had that feeling.. We grew up in a very special time ..
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Little Pad
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« Reply #294 on: August 23, 2014, 05:17:30 PM »

5/5. A little bit too saccharine at times, but I can't fault any album with "Forever" on it too much.
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JK
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« Reply #295 on: August 24, 2014, 04:29:30 AM »

5/5. A little bit too saccharine at times, but I can't fault any album with "Forever" on it too much.
Replace "Forever" with "All I Wanna Do" (my road-to-Hawthorne moment) and I couldn't agree more. :=) Same score for me too.
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"Ik bun moar een eenvoudige boerenlul en doar schoam ik mien niet veur" (Normaal, 1978)
You're Grass and I'm a Power Mower: A Beach Boys Orchestration Web Series
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« Reply #296 on: August 24, 2014, 05:31:54 PM »

5/5. A little bit too saccharine at times, but I can't fault any album with "Forever" on it too much.
Replace "Forever" with "All I Wanna Do" (my road-to-Hawthorne moment) and I couldn't agree more. :=) Same score for me too.

That one's probably my 2nd favourite!
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« Reply #297 on: August 25, 2014, 06:26:52 AM »

I never understood the appeal for "All I Wanna Do". It's cool, yes, but not sth. earth-shattering. I certainly like it, but it's not my Top anything BBs (100, 50, even 200).
"All I Wanna Do" draws the listener into a unique sonic world----unique even by Beach Boys standards. Mr Desper's finest moment, in this poster's humble opinion.
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"Ik bun moar een eenvoudige boerenlul en doar schoam ik mien niet veur" (Normaal, 1978)
You're Grass and I'm a Power Mower: A Beach Boys Orchestration Web Series
the Carbon Freeze | Eclectic Essays & Art
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« Reply #298 on: August 31, 2014, 01:13:49 PM »

All I Wanna Do is in my top twenty, possibly top ten.

So ahead of its time...
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Niko
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« Reply #299 on: August 31, 2014, 01:19:00 PM »

I never understood the appeal for "All I Wanna Do". It's cool, yes, but not sth. earth-shattering. I certainly like it, but it's not my Top anything BBs (100, 50, even 200).
"All I Wanna Do" draws the listener into a unique sonic world----unique even by Beach Boys standards. Mr Desper's finest moment, in this poster's humble opinion.

Indeed. One of my favorite songs.
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