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Post by Kapitan on Nov 24, 2019 22:05:01 GMT
Welcome to the worst named, possibly dumbest thread ever! But indulge me...
Thinking vaguely along the rolling songs thread in the general music section, I thought it might be a nice way to keep some Beach Boys talk going on around here (since we seem to flag from time to time in this section, somewhat ironically). But rather than just a songs review thread, or a "best this or that" thread, I thought, let's just roll it as a best/worst/whatever thread. But every element is wide open. So, for example:
Brian's best song. Al's worst vocal. Mike's worst awards show speech. The Beach Boys' best album.
You get the idea. It can be anything. Chime in on what someone else said if it's interesting. Change the topic or toss in your own idea if it's not.
To kick things off, the Beach Boys' best song is "Wouldn't It Be Nice." For me, this song has everything I love about the band. The arrangement is unusual, with the bizarrely chiming introduction (in a different key than the song, no less); a generally straightforward chord progression in the verse, but with suspensions and releases and then of course a few oddball moments, including the brilliant bridge (which recalls the introduction); a killer lead vocal; amazing harmonies throughout; a rock and roll feel that somehow is an evocative near-ballad ... everything. It's the best song the band ever did.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 24, 2019 23:39:39 GMT
Yeah, let's talk about the Beach Boys for a change I think Brian’s best vocal of his career is on Don’t Worry, Baby. In that brief period where Brian Wilson’s vocals couldn’t be touched, his leads were astoundingly good on so many songs – I have a lot of favourites, including Surfer Girl, The Lonely Sea, Hushabye, Please Let Me Wonder, Wouldn’t It Be Nice, Don’t Talk, and even Blue Christmas. But his vocals on Don’t Worry, Baby are so smooth, rich, and profoundly emotive without being melodramatic. Brian at his absolute best. It sounds effortless, but that song is not easy to sing, and I imagine he worked super hard on getting it just right. Not only do I think that song contains Brian’s best vocals of his career, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard that song performed by any other Beach Boy or member of a Beach Boys related band – recorded, or live – that has come close to Brian's vocals on the original album version.
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 24, 2019 23:42:09 GMT
I have to agree with you, or at least I won't quite disagree. It's an insanely hard song to sing. There are plenty of great singers, BBs-related and otherwise, who have sung it, but as you say, nobody touches the original with Brian. Last time I saw the group live, Matt Jardine was truly wonderful on that song ... but he didn't touch Brian's original.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 727
Likes: 201
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 24, 2019 23:44:03 GMT
To kick things off, the Beach Boys' best song is "Wouldn't It Be Nice." For me, this song has everything I love about the band. The arrangement is unusual, with the bizarrely chiming introduction (in a different key than the song, no less); a generally straightforward chord progression in the verse, but with suspensions and releases and then of course a few oddball moments, including the brilliant bridge (which recalls the introduction); a killer lead vocal; amazing harmonies throughout; a rock and roll feel that somehow is an evocative near-ballad ... everything. It's the best song the band ever did.
I think that's a good pick for Beach Boys best song. On the Pet Sounds sessions, the two standouts are WIBM vocal only version and the WIBN instrumental version, so that says a lot about just how insanely good everything is on that song. When you can separate the vocal tracks from the instrumental tracks and they both sound that incredible, it's not hard to realize what a work of art that song is. Having said that, my pick for their best song would probably be Good Vibrations.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 727
Likes: 201
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 24, 2019 23:46:08 GMT
I have to agree with you, or at least I won't quite disagree. It's an insanely hard song to sing. There are plenty of great singers, BBs-related and otherwise, who have sung it, but as you say, nobody touches the original with Brian. Last time I saw the group live, Matt Jardine was truly wonderful on that song ... but he didn't touch Brian's original. I should give Matt credit for his performances of DWB, he has done a wonderful job of singing it, I agree. And I also enjoyed Rob Bonfiglio on it last year - different, more tender than Matt's version, but equally nice. So credit where it's due.
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 24, 2019 23:50:43 GMT
Please take this post in the right spirit. OBVIOUSLY I'm not trying group disparate people. But I've always enjoyed recording and playing music, including a lot of BBs (as you might guess). Maybe 18-20 years ago I did a DWB cover, just for fun. I mean, I'd sung along with that song plenty of times. I can nail a high falsetto. Seriously, how hard can it be?
Oh my god. So hard. So, so hard.
If you ever want to be humbled, if you've got an arrogance problem, try to sing Don't Worry Baby on tape. And then listen to it. What sounds lovely in the car along with the song is, uh, slightly less good in real life. It's an amazingly challenging song, switching from full voice to falsetto and back, so demanding.
Again, I'm not implying I should have been able to sing it or that it's better because I couldn't do a good job. Just adding to the praise of the song. Brian's voice was a miracle. He was my favorite Beach Boys singer by far, btw. I think his voice at least through the earlier 70s is his most underrated gift.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
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Likes: 201
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 25, 2019 0:01:16 GMT
As someone who once upon a time considered trying to make a living as a singer, I can relate to what you're saying. I set that dream aside a long time ago, but of course, singing along to Beach Boys songs is still one of my favourite hobbies. I can sing some of the songs pretty well, I think. But Don't Worry, Baby... ouch. I wouldn't ask anyone to listen to me screech my way through that one. I don't even need to hear myself on tape to know that, haha.
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 25, 2019 0:08:54 GMT
Make a living!? Tall order! The beauty of Minneapolis, especially in the '00s, was that any- and everyone was in a band or four, so we could all live those dreams to some extent (minus the making any money part...).
But really, I'd take Brian's voice over Carl's or Al's every single time until the mid-70s.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 727
Likes: 201
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Post by bellbottoms on Nov 25, 2019 0:19:29 GMT
What’s funny is that my post actually started out as "Al Jardine is the Beach Boys’ best singer". I was thinking about my supporting arguments and then Don’t Worry Baby slapped me upside the head.
I think there are cases to be made for all the Beach Boys as the best vocalist of different periods. They all have their individual gifts and I'm sure each member has a lead on at least one song that no one else could touch.
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Post by Kapitan on Nov 25, 2019 0:41:42 GMT
I think there are cases to be made for all the Beach Boys as the best vocalist of different periods. They all have their individual gifts and I'm sure each member has a lead on at least one song that no one else could touch. Hard to argue that.
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Post by kds on Nov 25, 2019 17:44:46 GMT
My pick for Brian's best vocal would be The Warmth of the Sun (which is also tied with Surf's Up for my all time favorite BB song).
And, yeah, it's tough to pick one from that 1963-66 period where Brian was in his prime as both a singer and a composer, but I think Brian's vocals stand out on WOTS because the backing track is rather sparse compared to many other songs from that era.
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Post by lonelysummer on Nov 25, 2019 21:40:49 GMT
Brian singing anything was always won-won-wonderful in those early years. WOTS, DWB, PLMW, TLS, I can't pick just one. When I do Don't Worry Baby, I do the Everly Brothers version (with the Beach Boys on backing vocals); i'm probably a high baritone or a very low tenor...not a falsetto singer, either.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Nov 26, 2019 13:19:44 GMT
It's so hard to pick a favorite Beach Boys' song. It changes all the time. While I love "Wouldn't It Be Nice, and it's always in my personal Top 10, I don't think it ever quite made it to the top of my list. Close, but maybe not to No. 1. The thing what always stands out to me whenever I hear "Wouldn't It Be Nice" is Brian's use of The Wrecking Crew. So many of the instruments shine with the opening guitar, the accordion, the saxophones, the kettle drum, and the strings. One of my biggest regrets or questions is why Brian only worked with The Wrecking Crew for a few short years. So much of Brian's greatest work was done during those years. I have to think The Wrecking Crew inspired him. I know it was Brian's "thing" to not stand still but to move on musically, but why so soon...
As far as Brian's best vocal or my favorite Brian vocal, there is one that ALWAYS stands out or impresses me and that is Brian's vocal on "Sloop John B". It's not as long or emotional as others, and the lyrics aren't as deep or meaningful, but it is so...perfect. Brian's voice on "Sloop John B" is the perfect synthesis of his youthful voice with his fully matured voice. It's between high and mid-range (not being a musician that's the best way I can describe it). He sounds so confident and in control, so relaxed. It's like he really wanted to sing that song, like it was perfectly suited for him.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Nov 27, 2019 3:50:50 GMT
There is one Beach Boys' video that remains a personal favorite, not just because it is so entertaining, but because it raises so many questions. I am blown away, stunned, hypnotized, and perplexed by Brian Wilson in this video. Was this the real Brian Wilson, a real view of the power he commanded in the studio that was legendary, that we only read about? He looks so...lucid. So normal. So excited. So happy. He couldn't have been acting. Did he even know he was being filmed? I never saw Brian laugh like that. I never saw facial expressions on Brian like that. I never saw him so into it. Was he on drugs? Seriously. Just watching him makes you want to put out for him, to go along with him. Of course, it's frustrating that we rarely, if ever, see/saw Brian like this, especially post-1978/79/80. But he seemed to be - and I know we get sick of saying this - back. Was this the Brian Wilson of the mid-1960's? Based on the music that became the M.I.U. album, I guess not. But it does fall in line with his fine vocal work on the album. So little has been written about the M.I.U. sessions. Most people don't care anyway. But, you know, there was a lot of music written and recorded during those sessions. I've read that Brian was in a bad frame of mind during M.I.U. I don't know. I do know that I want to believe he was into the sessions. I wish they'd do an expanded version of M.I.U. and add about a half dozen outtakes. Anyway, here's the video:
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Jan 4, 2020 14:50:59 GMT
Best Al Jardine lead vocal: "Peggy Sue" Worst Al Jardine lead vocal: tie between "Don't Go Near The Water" and "Honkin' Down The Highway"
Most underrated accomplishment: Stan and Rocky getting Brian Wilson back into good physical shape - just the physical conditioning aspect, emphasis on just the physical conditioning in trying to stay out of trouble. While the group/family could've chosen better ways to deal with Brian's...problems...in 1977-78, and you could question some of the other behavior employed by Stan Love and especially Rocky Pamplin, one can't deny that Brian literally transformed his physical appearance and condition. And, again, just addressing Brian's physical conditioning, Stan and Rocky did it without prescribing psychotropic drugs and other unethical methods used by Dr. Landy. They used primarily diet and exercise. Sadly, Brian's mental illness was not being adequately addressed, and he backslided after Stan and Rocky were terminated.
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