15 Big Ones: The Original Concept of a double LP

[the captain]

Good Time: no. This is, for me, the sore thumb on 'Love You'. An awful song. The singer tries way too hard, also.

One of my 15-20 favorite Beach Boys songs ever. You, sir (to quote yourself elsewhere in the thread), will get YOUR come-uppance. YOU will get boxed.

[Sheriff John Stone]

Good Time: no. This is, for me, the sore thumb on 'Love You'. An awful song. The singer tries way too hard, also.

One of my 15-20 favorite Beach Boys songs ever. You, sir (to quote yourself elsewhere in the thread), will get YOUR come-uppance. YOU will get boxed.

The song's good, but I gotta agree with The Don. "Good Time" SOUNDS out of place, and it wasn't even necessary. Brian had enough other new(er) songs to use. I used to think they should've re-recorded the lead vocal, but that probably wouldn't have worked either.

[the captain]

I don't mean to say it fits in on that album: it doesn't. Frankly, I think it should have made Sunflower (it was done by then, wasn't it?). And it would have been one of the better songs there, too.

[Bicyclerider]

I thought I'd resurrect this thread just because I've made my only ipod playlist "15 Big Ones" oldies only album, in line with the original double album concept:
Side One
Rock and Roll Music
Come go with Me
Sea Cruise
Chapel of Love
Talk to Me
A Casual Look
Shake Rattle and Roll

Side Two
Palisades Park
On Broadway
Mony Mony
Blueberry Hill
In the Still of the Night
Peggy Sue
Just Once in My Life

I realize that's only 14 big ones, but I think it makes a pretty good oldies album.  The "originals" album is more problematic - I can see why Brian gave up on the concept and went for a combined single album, there just weren't enough good originals.  At least not that were finished.   Assuming they took some extra time to finish songs they had started, the originals album could have been something like:

Side One
It's OK
Had to Phone Ya
Susie Cincinatti
Pacific Ocean Blues
That Same Song
California Feeling
Ding Dang

Side Two
River Song
Back Home
Everyone's in Love with You
Good Timin'
Rainbows
Child of Winter
TM Song

[ESQ Editor]

You could add "Runnin' Bear," to make an official 15 songs. Spoke to Dean Torrence on Thursday about this album design. He told me that Mike Love came up with the Olympics concept because it was an Olympic year. The images in the circles were the promotional stills being used by Warner Brothers at the time, and Torrence used them. The now, most recognizable Beach Boys logo, was designed by hand by Dean. He had no idea it would go on to become "the" Beach Boys logo. He did not the 15 Big Ones cover with that in mind.

[Ed Roach]

Would be interested to hear a good quality version of that so called 'Hot Mix' of "Rock 'n' Roll Music" that was previewed on radio when 15BO was still a double album project. A bonus track-candidate for the 40th anniversary CD-reissue of 15BO in 2016.

You know, they had put together a whole cassette of 'rough mixes' of the album, and that was the version of R&R Music heard on the radio - although not from a cassette.  (Earle Mankey used to run off 1/4" reel to reels for the radio things like this one).  As was too often the case in those days, many of the songs seemed to have lost far too much when it came to the final mix/mastering stage...
By the way, I'm pretty sure some of these cassette copies led to early vinyl boots; I'm sure that's where early "Adult/Child" leaks came from.  There probably wasn't as much interest in these songs, as people believed that they were already 'officially' released.