Had Sunflower been a hit...

[DSamore]

being a beach boys fan is frustrating, but I wouldn't have it any other way...too many "what if" scenarios....

[Custom Machine]

..i would have merda my pants from shear delight, if sunflower had been a hit. back then i lived and breathed anything beach boys. took a lot of merda from a lot of people liking them then. would have been in heaven if i saw sunflower high on the lp charts and all over the radio.

Hey, me too!  No one I played it for back in 1970 had anything negative to say about the album.  Many said they really liked the music on Sunflower, but some seemed surprised that The Beach Boys were still making music. Unfortunately, most people didn't consider the Beach Boys to be hip back then, so many simply ignored or were unaware of what they were doing.  

But Sunflower has withstood the test of time, and that's worth a hell of a lot to me.  It initially stayed in print for almost 10 years, is regarded as one of the Beach Boys finest, made the Rolling Stone list of the Top 500 albums of all time, and was recently rereleased on vinyl.  Yes, it was disheartening to see Sunflower practically ignored back in 1970 - 71, but the fact that it is so highly regarded today makes me feel vindicated that so many others now also recognize the sheer musical brilliance found in my favorite album of all time.

[slothrop]

"All I Wanna Do," "This Whole World," and "It's About Time" scream counter-culture to these ears. Granted I wasn't around at that time, but they definitely sound of the era. As much as Warner promoted the album I think they missed out on that angle.

IAT was the only thing close to "counter culture" at the time. That, along with CCW and surprisingly ASM got decent airplay, but it didn't help sell the album. It just wasn't their time yet. After Big Sur, things started turning around for their live act.

Agree to disagree... . I think "All I Wanna Do" blasting at full volume and a "J" ( ) would definitely sway your opinion however...

[Mike's Beard]

No doubt Brian would have had a bigger hand in the following couple of records if Sunflower had hit it big. I think the difference is the mindframe Brian had to the rest of the band at the time. Each flop seemed to spur the band on and make them more determined to succeed in the future while lack of sales disillusioned Brian more and more till he just couldn't face doing it anymore.

I do wonder how Surf's Up would have differed creatively if Sunflower had sold? Surf's Up is my all time favourite record btw. It could only have been improved if the Dennis stuff hadn't been yanked off. Not sure if there was room on the album for anymore BW to be honest.

[Mr. Cohen]

the feeling that they needed to be hip and individuals as artists.......

Weren't the BBs always that way? Surfing and cars seems cheesy to us now, but that was hip at the time and no more alien to the BBs for the most part at the time than the themes they would explore later on. If anything, the BBs seemed more honest as time went on. Pet Sounds is Brian's personality 100%, and so is Friends.  Songs like "This Whole World", too.  Aside from a few of Mike and Al's efforts in the early 70s, I don't see any of the BBs acting particularly unnatural.

[Magic Transistor Radio]

Brian would have regained his confidence and done something like the Polyphonic Spree back in the 70s...

http://www.youtube.com/v/GewbAuTgu5g&hl=en_US&fs=1&