Tag Archives: pet sounds

#1032: The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds

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You know, I’ve always got time to spare for the appreciation of a good instrumental. Can’t remember the last time I covered one of those on here. Maybe one of you guys could look back and tell me. When you think of The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, your first spout of knowledge may go to ‘God Only Knows’. Considered to be one of the greatest songs of all time, that one. Maybe ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’. I’ve been hearing that in a lot of adverts lately. The instrumental title track, though? Not so much. But I honestly really enjoy this one, maybe even more than some other songs on there where the vocals are present.

‘Pet Sounds’ is the second of the two instrumental tracks on the album. ‘Let’s Go Away for Awhile’ may be in the hearts of listeners. But to me, ‘Pet Sounds’ wins the battle between them. It puts me in such a relaxed mood. Carried by a steady percussive backing of bongos, a guiro and oddly enough Coca-Cola cans with sticks, the track evokes bright sunny skies on a beach where the colours are vibrant, the people are looking their finest and the drinks are flowing. Either a beach or something like a cruise ship. You can pick whichever one you feel suits better, but the general feel always remains the same. Oh, and a huge note should go to the guitar which takes the lead, playing the song’s main melodic hook. Gotta love it on that first when it jumps an octave higher to repeat the line 52 seconds in.

Originally title ‘Run James Run’, Brian Wilson wrote the music with the intention to use it in a James Bond film. Don’t know about you, but that’s a bit humorous to me. Couldn’t think of any moment in that type of movie where this piece would work. Maybe at a point where Bond has retired, but that was never gonna be the case in 1966. It’s all too major-key in its approach. I appreciate it all the while. It’s something like the last ray of sunshine before it fades out and gives way to the album’s heartwrenching closer.

#603: The Beach Boys – I’m Waiting for the Day

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You ever come across an album where you feel that every song could be a single? The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds is the archetype of that kind of record. I’ve written about a few songs from the 1966 LP in the past, there will be more to come, and today’s post is about the album’s fifth track – ‘I’m Waiting for the Day’.

Brian Wilson had completed writing in the song in 1964 when The Beach Boys were still rooted in their ‘California, let’s go surfin” aesthetic. The track concerns a narrator who yearns to provide support for a girl who has had her heart broken by another person. It was clear that it did not fit The Beach Boys as they were in that year. However as the years went on the group turned toward more introspective and heartfelt lyricism which came to a head on Pet Sounds.

Placed right after the album’s slowest number, ‘I’m Waiting’ begins with booming timpanis and an overall uplifting introduction of flutes and a peeping organ before closing in on itself for the quieter verses where Wilson takes over with a beautiful lead vocal. The song’s quiet verse/loud chorus dynamic is a quality that was once noted by fellow band member Carl Wilson as a particular highlight and it’s hard to disagree with his sentiment. It’s very satisfying to hear that strike of the timpani after the first utterance of the song’s title followed by the addition of the Beach Boys’ glorious trademark harmonies take over the mix – and just as you think it could all burst at the seams the energy is sucked away and the focus is on Brian’s vocals again.

Talking about Brian Wilson’s vocals, he apparently wasn’t too happy with the way they turned out. He didn’t have a very strong feeling towards this song in general. The track doesn’t often get discussed to deeply. Perhaps Wilson’s attitude towards it is a reason. I still see it as a high point on a classic album.

#576: The Beach Boys – I Know There’s an Answer

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Hey everybody. Been a while since the last post…. I dunno… Just been lacking in motivation recently. With all this music you’d think I’d have stuff to say all the time, and at a consistent rate too. Sometimes I have to really be into it to even open WordPress up. It’s all good today though. Also, I graduated this week. Tuesday to be exact. The ceremony was great, but if it wasn’t clear that I had finished university since I moved out in June it definitely is now. And it’s all slowly setting in. Quietly catching up. An existential crisis looms. So that’s what’s up with me.

The last post on here was another song by The Beach Boys, I know. That’s just the way it’s sorted on my phone, can’t to anything about it. ‘Tis a fine one though, to be sure.

‘I Know There’s an Answer’ is the ninth song on the group’s seminal 1966 album Pet Sounds, and again showcases Brian Wilson’s prodigious musicality with a soundscape of woodwind, horns and booming percussion. Originally the track was written as ‘Hang on to Your Ego’, in reaction to the effects that Brian Wilson – and many, many others in those times – would experience when taking LSD. I’ll put that version down below.

Not being one to partake in those activities, Wilson’s bandmate and cousin Mike Love objected to the song’s drug references and suggested that its title and some lyrics be changed. ‘Ego’ became ‘Answer’ and the beat goes on. I do prefer ‘Answer’ all the way. Something about it just sounds a lot fuller. The vocals in particular. Love sings the first line of the song, Al Jardine sings the following lines, and then Wilson takes on the track’s main refrain. It’s a very cool delivery. Not only do all three members sound like the same person, but I particularly dig how the vocals climb from Love’s trademark low voice to Wilson’s higher key. The instrumentation behind them builds and builds to kinda release itself during the chorus too. It’s very well done. Quite cathartic in some ways. Other things to note when listening is that bass harmonica solo and when, during the song’s fade out, things seem to start speeding up – though it’s just someone getting a bit too eager on a tambourine…… Oh, and a chord on a banjo is played earlier than it should be at one point too. That’s enough.

Below is ‘Hang on to Your Ego’, and if you want to observe just how the song was produced there’s a little making of video too.

#575: The Beach Boys – I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times

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You won’t find a lot of Beach Boys on my playlist. I have written a post about two of their songs before; those that I’ve yet to come to can all be listened to on the album Pet Sounds. Gotta love that album, very much a milestone in popular music.

At a time when artists were creating some far out music in the 60s, breaking boundaries and going an extra mile in terms of their sound and production, The Beach Boys – led by musical genius Brian Wilson – were drifting away from their usual surf-pop style and into a more grandiose and symphonic soundscape. People weren’t ready for that change. Not even a few of the group’s members themselves, which really got Brian Wilson down and continued to do so until he had a bit of a breakdown due to drugs and intense pressure. It was clear that something massive was happening, though why couldn’t anyone else see it?

That’s really what today’s track is about. Not solely about Wilson himself (well, obviously it is in a way), but for anyone who feel their ideas are to advanced for their peers to understand, are frustrated by the situation, and think that in another time their work would be appreciated. Quite the sticky subject. A very universal one too, I’m sure.

Took me a while to actually get into this track. It’s the most recent one from the album I decided to put on my phone. When I first listened to Pet Sounds the whole way through and proceeded to again a further few times, ‘These Times’ would start and I’d really wait for it to finish instead of really listening to its message and melodies. That was a mistake. I realised that, just like (almost) every other song on there, you give enough time to it and it slowly seeps into your mind. You’ve got the tremendous vocal group that overlap in that build-up to the chorus, and the instrumentation provided by The Wrecking Crew is perfect to a tee. And all of it was constructed by that expansive mind Brian Wilson possessed. Very admirable. Quite scary too.

My iPod #518: The Beach Boys – Here Today

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“Here Today” comes from the wonderful album Pet Sounds, released by The Beach Boys in 1966. Regarded as a timeless classic, the album was seen as a prime example of just how far pop music could be taken during the 60s in terms of its lyrical content and musical arrangement. It was the one where everybody realised that Brian Wilson was practically a compositional genius if they hadn’t done so already, and also influenced many albums to come in the future.

The last song started during the album’s recording, “Here Today” is something of a warning about the unpredictability of love; being in a new relationship may be all fine and dandy initially, but there’s always the chance that it can quickly end in heartbreak and sorrow. Mike Love takes duty of  lead vocal on the track, and does a fine job of it.

Like the rest of the songs on the album “Here Today” utilises a range of instruments to build a lush and ornate sonic landscape, with a piano, Hammond organ, and a variety of horns thrown into the track’s lavish mix. Of course the iconic backing harmonic vocals of the boys play a huge part too, I particularly like those that occur during the choruses. The ascending melodic scales provided by them played simultaneously with the downward melody on the horns makes for an enjoyable listen, but those make up only a few seconds of three minutes of beautifully constructed music.