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Post by Kapitan on Mar 20, 2020 13:37:32 GMT
I think this is mine, subject to (endless) revision.
7. I Get Around 8. Don't Worry, Baby 9. Fun, Fun, Fun I originally had those three on my comp but removed them. Seriously. But I thought I had too many hits so took 'em off. Can I put them back on? It's surprising (I think) how similar our comps are, especially if I would've included the those three. One thing I was thinking as I assembled my album was how it included far more older songs (yes, hits) than my earlier self would have included. Had I done this same thing in, say, 2005, there is a good chance that nothing pre- Pet Sounds except maybe "I Get Around" would have been included. Instead I had, what, four? And another four or five were in consideration. There's a good chance a 2005 version would have been exclusively 1966-71 (or maybe with some Love You/Adult Child stuff).
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Mar 20, 2020 14:48:48 GMT
I originally had those three on my comp but removed them. Seriously. But I thought I had too many hits so took 'em off. Can I put them back on? It's surprising (I think) how similar our comps are, especially if I would've included the those three. One thing I was thinking as I assembled my album was how it included far more older songs (yes, hits) than my earlier self would have included. Had I done this same thing in, say, 2005, there is a good chance that nothing pre- Pet Sounds except maybe "I Get Around" would have been included. Instead I had, what, four? And another four or five were in consideration. There's a good chance a 2005 version would have been exclusively 1966-71 (or maybe with some Love You/Adult Child stuff). I love this subject. Yes, I'm the same way, and looking back at some of the comps I've made through the years (which I have stored) proves it. But I don't think there's anything wrong with that, changing preferences. It's a natural thing. With The Beach Boys, you're dealing with an extremely diverse catalogue over several decades. How many bands even remotely compare? Um, none?
I have contemplated and experimented with trying to convert or impress prospective fans for decades. And I learned one thing - you NEVER know how they are going to react, and specifically which songs will resonate, or not. Many years ago, I was trying to initiate a girlfriend to The Beach Boys, and made her a comp tape. It was one of those Maxell 90-minute cassettes, and you could fit more than enough songs on it. I decided that I wasn't going to just try to convert her to The Beach Boys, I was going to reach her emotionally, you know, make her like ME more through the/my music. I chose a smattering of hits (the most popular ones), but I mostly included bunch of post-Pet Sounds ones, purposely choosing songs that I knew she (or anybody else ) probably never heard. I went with several Friends, 20/20, and Sunflower songs. They weren't those hedonistic surf & turf & fun songs. This was real music...haha. So, I gave her the tape, waited a week, and said, "Well, what do you think? Did you like it? What was your favorite song?" And her response was, "Barbara Ann". Go figure.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 20, 2020 15:34:05 GMT
I think this is mine, subject to (endless) revision.
1. Wouldn't It Be Nice 2. This Whole World 3. I'd Love Just Once to See You 4. Time to Get Alone (1967 Sunshine Tomorrow alt version) 5. In My Room 6. Break Away
7. I Get Around 8. Don't Worry, Baby 9. Fun, Fun, Fun 10. Our Prayer 11. Surf's Up (The Smile Sessions) 12. God Only Knows
Whoever created this one is brilliant. I've been enjoying it repeatedly over the past day!
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Apr 7, 2020 17:32:14 GMT
Wild Honey has been consistently praised by many Beach Boys' fans over the years, usually appearing high on their lists of favorite albums. The album has not been one of my personal favorites, usually appearing somewhere in the middle of my lists. The reasons are - surprise! - the number of songs (or lack of), the running time of the album, the quality of the songs, and finally, the sequencing.
Wild Honey has only eleven songs, and "Mama Says" is barely a song. How about adding one or two more? I did.
All of the songs on Wild Honey are short. There's not necessarily anything wrong with that. Brian Wilson was The Master of the 2:00 - 2:30 song. But that does result in a very short album. At 23:58, Wild Honey is the shortest Beach Boys' album. In comparison, Side 1 of The Doors' L.A. Woman clocks in at 24:38.
When I'm assembling "Best Of" or "Greatest Hits" Beach Boys' comps, I usually choose just one song from Wild Honey, and that is "Darlin'". Are there any other songs from the album that deserve "all-timer" status? One of Wild Honey's strengths IS that it does contain a bunch of very good relationship and slice-of-life songs. I'm going to attempt to add two other songs, one an excellent cover ("The Letter") and the other a possible "all-timer" ("Can't Wait Too Long", the long version).
Finally, the sequencing...I think it was the right choice to open the album with the title track, but why did they follow the R&B feel with a mellow, non-R&B, Mike Love-sung song. Keep the R&B going! Go with Carl again on "I Was Made To Love Her", and use the extended version with the cool tag. How about following "Country Air" with "Let The Wind Blow" - air into wind. And it was just about time to slow things down on the album anyway with a ballad. Sometimes songs are just meant to go together, not just musically but lyrically. When I hear "I'd Love Just Once To See You", emphasis on SEE you, I think that "A Thing Or Two" has to follow it with "when I SEE my woman, I gonna tell her about...". I went with "Can't Wait Too Long" then "The Letter" to create a reunion. Our guy has been waiting too long, then his baby wrote him a letter. Lonely days are gone! And then, of course they celebrate ("Here Comes The Night"). How she boogalooed it, indeed. Sadly, there's no good album closer on Wild Honey. Actually, I think "Darlin'" is the best closer, but I stuck with "Mama Says". If the album wasn't so short I would delete "Mama Says". It doesn't fit on this album, and it's sad how Brian butchered it.
So, in the end, I added two songs (going from 11 to 13), increased the running time (from 23:58 to 32:28), and re-sequenced it. Oh, and I used some of the Sunshine Tomorrow versions in some places, too. So, get a taste, a new taste of Wild Honey!
The Beach Boys - Wild Honey
Side 1 1. Wild Honey
2. I Was Made To Love Her (Extended Version) 3. Aren't You Glad 4. Country Air 5. Let The Wind Blow 6. I'd Love Just Once To See You 7. A Thing Or Two
Side 2 1. Can't Wait Too Long (Smile Smile/Wild Honey CD Version) 2. The Letter (Sunshine Tomorrow Version) 3. Here Comes The Night 4. Darlin' 5. How She Boogalooed It 6. Mama Says
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Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Apr 7, 2020 17:59:07 GMT
Wild Honey and Friends are both missed opportunities in my book. They're both needlessly short considering what was left on the cutting room floor and some of what was released is worse than what they were originally working on or left out. One example is Busy Doin' Nothin'. It's almost hard for me to enjoy it now knowing that "Even Steven" was an option to be released instead. The 1968 sets kind of soured my enjoyment of Friends, unfortunately.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 7, 2020 18:08:12 GMT
I'll stick with my alternate Wild Honey from almost exactly a year ago! As I mentioned in the "blew it" thread, I started messing with an alternate Wild Honey album. This assumes there was no Smile, but also that there was no Smiley Smile. It also assumes "Heroes and Villains" was still released as a single when it was.
My thinking on this was to basically present an album in the spirit of Wild Honey, which is to say relatively straightforward, most of the instrumental tracks done by the band, but also to incorporate back in some more harmonies to remind everybody who this band is, after all. It avoids the bulk of the far-out psychedelia that doesn't really jibe with that aforementioned sound. I'm not saying this would have been a #1 record or anything, but I do think it would have been a better--if much delayed, by the standards of the time--follow-up to Pet Sounds. Side One: 1. Wild Honey 2. Good Vibrations 3. Let the Wind Blow 4. With a Little Help From My Friends 5. I Was Made to Love Her 6. Aren't You Glad? Side Two 7. Darlin' 8. I'd Love Just Once to See You 9. Time to Get Alone 10. Vegetables 11. Here Comes the Night 12. How She Boogalooed It 13. With Me Tonight
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Apr 12, 2020 19:27:16 GMT
Did anybody ever attempt an Al Jardine comp? Even without dipping into his two solo albums and his work on No Pier Pressure, there is enough Beach Boys' material to assemble a strong compilation CD featuring Al on lead vocals:
Al Jardine Sings! - A Collection
01 Radio Concert Promo - "This is Al Jardine and I am a Beach Boy..." (from Endless Harmony) 02 Runaway (from Made In California) 03 Help Me, Rhonda (from Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)) 04 Loop de Loop (from Endless Harmony) 05 Island Girl (from Still Cruisin') 06 Crack At Your Love (from The Beach Boys) 07 Come Go With Me (from M.I.U. Album) 08 Susie Cincinnati (from 15 Big Ones) 09 Peggy Sue (from M.I.U. Album) 10 School Days (from Keepin' The Summer Alive) 11 Then I Kissed Her (Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)) 12 Strange Things Happen (from Summer In Paradise) 13 TM Song (from 15 Big Ones) 14 Be Here In The Morning (from Friends) 15 Christmas Day (from The Beach Boys' Christmas Album) 16 Bells Of Christmas (from Ultimate Christmas) 17 California Dreamin' (from Made In The U.S.A.) 18 Santa Ana Winds (from Keepin' The Summer Alive) 19 Winds Of Change (from M.I.U. Album) 20 The Times They Are a-Changin' (from Beach Boys' Party!) 21 Lookin' At Tomorrow (from Surf's Up) 22 Vegetables (from Smiley Smile) 23 Heroes And Villains [Live] (from Endless Harmony) 24 Take A Load Off Your Feet (from Surf's Up) 25 Cottonfields [Single Version] (from Hawthorne) 26 From There To Back Again (from That's Why God Made The Radio) 27 Lady Lynda (from L.A. Light Album)
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Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Apr 12, 2020 22:58:34 GMT
I really like the sequence of the final three tracks.
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Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Apr 24, 2020 1:08:56 GMT
A Day In The Life (Of A Beach Boy)
1. Wake the World 2. Be Here In The Mornin' 3. Had To Phone Ya 4. Add Some Music To Your Day 5. I Can Hear Music 6. Wontcha Come Out Tonight? 7. Here Comes The Night 8. Time To Get Alone 9. The Night Was So Young 10. I Went To Sleep
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 23, 2020 14:41:48 GMT
That's Why God Made The Radio and No Pier Pressure are complementary albums. They share some Beach Boys, some background vocalists, some musicians, the same studio, and the same Producer(s). Many of the songs are interchangeable; they could've fit on either album. Sometimes I'll be listening to a song and have to think for a second which of the two albums it appeared on. To some Beach Boys' fans, No Pier Pressure will always be one of those woulda/shoulda/coulda beens - a follow-up album to That's Why God Made The Radio and a continuation of the group's reunion. But, alas, it wasn't to be.
The purpose of this compilation is to merge the two albums, a "best of" if you will. It's a fair representation of the later - actually the latest, maybe the last - recordings by Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys. This is some good songwriting, good singing, and in my opinion, good productions. It's fun, sentimental, quirky, and still the Beach Boys - 60 years down the road.
That's Why God Made No Pier Pressure
01 Think About The Days 02 The Right Time 03 Isn't It Time (Single Version) 04 Spring Vacation 05 That's Why God Made The Radio 06 Strange World 07 Half Moon Bay 08 Sail Away 09 One Kind Of Love 10 This Beautiful Day 11 I'm Feeling Sad 12 Summer's Gone 13 Tell Me Why 14 Pacific Coast Highway 15 Whatever Happened 16 Daybreak Over The Ocean 17 From There To Back Again 18 Somewhere Quiet 19 Saturday Night 20 The Last Song
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Post by kds on Jun 10, 2020 19:14:22 GMT
I like that list, but my only gripe is splitting up From There to Back Again, PCH, and Summer's Gone. The Beach Boys aren't always great with their sequencing, but that's one they got right.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Jun 11, 2020 11:54:17 GMT
I like that list, but my only gripe is splitting up From There to Back Again, PCH, and Summer's Gone. The Beach Boys aren't always great with their sequencing, but that's one they got right. Yes, it was hard separating "From There To Back Again" from the TWGMTR trifecta, but I needed a song for "reuniting", and that was the one that fit best.
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Post by kds on Jun 11, 2020 12:16:01 GMT
I like that list, but my only gripe is splitting up From There to Back Again, PCH, and Summer's Gone. The Beach Boys aren't always great with their sequencing, but that's one they got right. Yes, it was hard separating "From There To Back Again" from the TWGMTR trifecta, but I needed a song for "reuniting", and that was the one that fit best. Fair enough. I like the list overall though, even though it somehow took me like two weeks to see it.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Jul 19, 2020 15:08:32 GMT
A question for serious Beach Boys' fans...Does the group's history or the backstories of the music affect your enjoyment of their music? For me? Sometimes yes, sometimes no.
Surf's Up is one of those instances, one of those albums. Ever since I read about the Dennis Wilson songs that woulda/shoulda/coulda been on Surf's Up, it has affected how I perceive the album, and sometimes the way I enjoy it. I think Surf's Up is a good album. I place it somewhere in the middle of the pack. A lot of fans think Surf's Up is a great album. I think it could've been, I think Surf's Up could've been a Top 5 Beach Boys' album. And that's what I'm trying to do here, make it a great album.
I need two things. First I need those Dennis Wilson's songs. We know that "(Wouldn't It Be Nice) To Live Again" was very much considered for the Surf's Up album, but was "4th Of July" a candidate, too? Maybe. How about "Lady"? Possible but doubtful. Well, I'm using all three! How could the band go from four Dennis Wilson-composed/performed songs on Sunflower (not to mention some excellent songs on Friends and 20/20) to zero on Surf's Up? Whoever was to blame, it was a big, big mistake.
And, one song has to go. Through the years, "Take A Load Off Your Feet" has consistently appeared on my "Worst Beach Boys' Songs" lists. I just don't see any redeeming qualities with the song. Maybe Surf's Up could've used a little humor to offset the seriousness of the other "deeper" songs, but "Take A Load Off Your Feet" has to go.
So, I'm adding three songs and deleting one (going from 10 songs at 33:49 to 12 songs at 37:45). I'm doing some serious re-sequencing; four different lead vocalists on Side 1 and five different lead vocalists on Side 2. I think this version of Surf's Up challenges Sunflower! The Beach Boys - Surf's Up (1971)
Side 1 1. Feel Flows 2. Lookin' At Tomorrow (A Welfare Song) 3. Long Promised Road 4. Lady 5. (Wouldn't It Be Nice) To Live Again 6. Disney Girls
Side 2 1. Student Demonstration Time 2. 4th Of July 3. Don't Go Near The Water 4. A Day In The Life Of A Tree 5. Til I Die 6. Surf's Up
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Post by Kapitan on Jul 19, 2020 15:19:15 GMT
I've written a lot over the years about the way narratives influence musical appreciation. I think it's inevitable, and especially so in the case of a band like the Beach Boys that not only has an interesting story, but one that is so contrary to their most popular public image of fun-in-the-sun, All-American family and friends making harmony. The story is just too juicy to not insert itself into every situation, almost every song, once you're aware of it.
As for how it affected Surf's Up, I'm of a different mindset than you, SJS. I do think it's a good-to-great album already, probably in the ballpark of their top five. I think it's far better than Sunflower already, just as-is. And I don't see the lack of Dennis Wilson material as such a tragedy, though neither do I think including some of it would have hurt the album. More often than not, I think swaps would have been roughly neutral. (I don't like "4th of July" at all, and so am glad that didn't appear; conversely I'd be sad to lose "Feet," even if I'm the only person on this Earth not named Jardine who thinks so.)
That said, I have messed with the track list over the years. I'll give it a little thought today and post my results.
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