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Post by B.E. on May 14, 2023 12:59:49 GMT
I decided to include the three Today! tracks that were released as singles in 1964. I think it makes more sense for the purposes of this thread to keep the 1965 studio albums intact (except for the talk track which isn't a song). I also included the non-album single "The Little Girl I Once Knew".
Voting is open!
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Post by Kapitan on May 14, 2023 13:50:37 GMT
Holy cow! When you see the songs of '65 laid out like that, it's mind-blowing. There are very few years of very few bands that could possibly compete with that.
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Post by B.E. on May 14, 2023 18:30:19 GMT
Perhaps the most likely unanimous vote-getter, "California Girls", is already out of the running. Interesting...
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Emdeeh
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 520
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Post by Emdeeh on May 14, 2023 21:47:16 GMT
Give it time. Only 4 voters so far, and half of them voted for "CA Girls."
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Post by B.E. on May 14, 2023 22:16:08 GMT
Give it time. Only 4 voters so far, and half of them voted for "CA Girls." Oh, I'm sure it will do well, but looking at this list of 36 songs I thought it probably had the best chance to be included in every participants' top 10. That's just a fun thing I've been keeping an eye on. So far, we've only had one unanimous vote-getter, "Surf's Up". Here have been the results: Top 10 #1: Album Openers - "Wouldn't It Be Nice" 8/10 Top 10 #2: Album Closers - "Surf's Up" 10/10 Top 10 #3: Album Covers - Pet Sounds 8/9
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Post by kds on May 15, 2023 13:27:01 GMT
Even though I think SDSN, quality wise, is right on par with Today, I wound up voting for six Today tracks to SDSN's three.
Good To My Baby Please Let Me Wonder When I Grow Up Kiss Me Baby She Knows Me Too Well Dance Dance Dance
California Girls Let Him Run Wild Help Me Rhonda
The Little Girl I Once Knew
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Post by Kapitan on May 15, 2023 13:51:01 GMT
This was the first time I really felt I had a massive overload of options. My initial notes left me with almost twice as many "top 10" songs as were possible, by definition. (Eighteen, to be exact.) I'm leaving off songs that, in a vacuum, I'd say have to be among the top 10 of 1965 ... until I go through the songs all together.
Just going in the order in which they appear:
Good to My Baby When I Grow Up (to Be a Man) Dance Dance Dance Please Let Me Wonder Kiss Me, Baby She Knows Me Too Well The Girl From New York City Help Me, Rhonda California Girls The Little Girl I Once Knew
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Post by Kapitan on May 15, 2023 13:52:25 GMT
Even though I think SDSN, quality wise, is right on par with Today, I wound up voting for six Today tracks to SDSN's three. Good To My Baby Please Let Me Wonder When I Grow Up Kiss Me Baby She Knows Me Too Well Dance Dance Dance California Girls Let Him Run Wild Help Me Rhonda The Little Girl I Once Knew This doesn't happen often: our picks are nearly identical, with the one difference being your choice of Let Him Run Wild (which was among my initial list) and my choice of The Girl From NYC.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 15, 2023 23:31:15 GMT
OK, #1 through #9 was kind of easy, but #10 was not. Here are my rankings, in order, but not etched in stone by any means:
1. California Girls - the Wrecking Crew in all their glory!
2. Help Me, Rhonda - even though it went to #1, I still think it is underrated
3. Dance, Dance, Dance - one of Brian's best rockers (Top 3 or 4)
4. Kiss Me, Baby - a lot going on in there
5. You're So Good To Me - it just makes you FEEL good; Brian had that knack and this song was a perfect example
6. Please Let Me Wonder - one of the best ballads in the catalogue 7. Barbara Ann - it's iconic, it still attracts fans to the Beach Boys; just because we're tired of it doesn't detract from it's appeal
8. She Knows Me Too Well - underrated, underrated, underrated - it should've closed The Beach Boys Today!
9. When I Grow Up (To Be A Man) - Brian was growing, spreading his wings
10. Do You Wanna Dance - For a long, long time, I liked this song but I didn't think it was anything special. First of all, the mix and mastering was so muddy and distorted that it took away from my overall enjoyment. How did that happen? Was Chuck Britz using bad tape? Maybe he/they were experimenting with a new kind of master/recording tape and it really wasn't any good. Seriously. Why does it sound so bad? Then, I recently heard one of those stereo remixes (I don't know which album/comp it was from) and it was very thrilling and enlightening to hear. I heard some different, more pronounced instruments and the familiar instruments were clearer. The track really rocked! It gave me a whole rebirth and new appreciation for the song. I'm giving it newfound respect.
If I didn't choose Do You Wanna Dance at #10, the next three choices would've been:
- Let Him Run Wild - Salt Lake City - Good To My Baby
I wanted to recognize two other songs that I love - I actually like them better than most of the above 13, but in keeping with the title of the thread, I didn't think they were the best...you know what I mean. Those two songs are:
-Amusement Parks U.S.A. - I said it before (many times actually ) but I think this song might be the most intense two minutes of Brian's career. The manic organ, the laughing (which I don't particularly like), Hal Blaine's carnival barker vocal, and Mike's and especially Brian's vocal gets to me every time. It moves. It rocks. And the guitar isn't even that prominent. I just love the final 30 seconds of the song. Amusement Parks U.S.A. was probably a quickie but I think it displays Brian's pop/rock genius. Even his quickies had merit.
- Don't Hurt My Little Sister - What a cool little song. It ain't even two minutes long but it gives the listener so much. Again, the mix is muddy and that holds it back a little. But, it's typical B. Wilson/M/ Love formula - and I mean that in a good way. Mike's lyrics are simple but effective (you get exactly what he's singing about), and Brian's melody and his vocal is so great. I love these 2 - 2 1/2 minute classics that Brian and Mike were churning out in 1964-65. And, obviously Mike Love does, too, as he has consistently...refers to it...in interviews. What a time to be a Beach Boys' fan!!
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Post by kds on May 16, 2023 12:48:18 GMT
I think about including Barbara Ann, just because it's iconic, but there were just too many better tracks to me. Top 15, it probably makes it.
I also came very close to picking Do You Wanna Dance. My tenth pick was a toss up between that and Dance Dance Dance, and I gave DDD the slight edge.
Amusement Parks USA is another one that probably cracks my Top 15.
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Post by Kapitan on May 16, 2023 12:50:57 GMT
I didn't pick "Barbara Ann" because I was really just going by what I love, what I think is great. I wasn't taking into account popularity. No doubt, it's iconic. People love it. Other people! I just felt like if I just picked what's commonly believed, there's no sense in my picking at all. (That has been my philosophy through this series of threads.)
So similarly, if we were doing best songs of their career, my list would omit classics like "Surfin USA," "Be True to Your School," and "Surfin." Not to argue their massive success, but they just don't do it for me (relative to other songs).
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Post by kds on May 16, 2023 13:21:56 GMT
I didn't pick "Barbara Ann" because I was really just going by what I love, what I think is great. I wasn't taking into account popularity. No doubt, it's iconic. People love it. Other people! I just felt like if I just picked what's commonly believed, there's no sense in my picking at all. (That has been my philosophy through this series of threads.) So similarly, if we were doing best songs of their career, my list would omit classics like "Surfin USA," "Be True to Your School," and "Surfin." Not to argue their massive success, but they just don't do it for me (relative to other songs). I don't love it, but I do like Barbara Ann. But, just not enough to put in the top ten of such a great year for the Boys.
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Post by Kapitan on May 16, 2023 13:33:08 GMT
I think "Barbara Ann" is fine. I won't say I never enjoy it, for example. But as you said, when we're looking at this collection of tunes from 1965? Hit record or not, it isn't cracking my Top 10. Maybe not Top 20. (It didn't make my initial list of 18.)
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Post by carllove on May 16, 2023 16:23:13 GMT
I rarely vote for 10, so I voted for 6 must have songs. I do like quite a few of the others ("Help Me, Rhonda" and "Dance, Dance, Dance" are pretty great songs), but they aren't my "loves" and these songs are. In order of preference:
1. "You're So Good To Me" 2. "Girl Don't Tell Me" 3. "Please Let Me Wonder" 4. "Kiss Me Baby" 5. "When I Grow Up to Be a Man" 6. "California Girls"
Looks like an even spread between Today and Summer Days(And Summer Nights!!!), but I actually listen to SDSN more often because I have two vinyl copies, including one from AP. I actually don't own Today proper on vinyl. The green label Capitol re-issue that I have is called Dance, Dance, Dance.
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Post by B.E. on May 16, 2023 23:07:43 GMT
Even though I think SDSN, quality wise, is right on par with Today, I wound up voting for six Today tracks to SDSN's three. I’m more in the Today! camp. And seeing these tracks side-by-side really underscores that for me. Particularly, the significant (massive?) drop in quality from side 2 of Today! to side 1 of SDSN. And then you got the spotty ending of SDSN, too. But Today! would do that to most every album, so…
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