Responses to comments in the "Groups you're glad with just a greatest hits collection" topic...
I could readily make do with just a Beach Boys Greatest Hits but I really must listen again to Pet Sounds which I do own... although I always feel it is a very overpraised album (yes, I know it was hugely influential - not least upon Paul McCartney). Apart from "God Only Knows" which I regard as one of the most perfectly crafted masterpieces in the history of rock & pop, nothing much else on there really grabs me. But I'm going to give it another go for sure.
I guess that 'Pet Sounds' just has a certain kind of mood that you either get, or don't get. Probably a matter of taste. And then again, you should give it another chance because I do think it's an album that just needs a while to sink in. I also wasn't impressed the first few times I heard it. But once the quarter dropped, it became my favorite album of all time and now I can easily listen to it several times in a row without getting bored of it.
In the mid 70s I had an unusual compilation album of theirs called "Spirit Of America" and I absolutely loved it. It had a mixture of interesting tracks, many of them very, very good (I became obsessed with the brilliant "Break Away") but included a pretty awful rendition of The Beatles' song "Tell Me Why".
That is indeed a strange album. It was released as the "volume 2" to the 'Endless Summer' double LP, which compiled their best songs from 1961-1965. So 'Spirit of America' is basically no. 21 to 43 of the band's top 43 of their first four years (plus 'Break Away', which is from 1969).
'Tell Me Why' is indeed pretty bad, but that one's from the 'Party!' album, which was a live-in-the-studio acoustic cover album that was only made to bridge the gap between 'Summer Days' and 'Pet Sounds'.
I've just heard a couple of hits from 20/20 ("I Can Hear Music" and "Do It Again"), they certainly sound different. Soon or later I will hear those records.
'20/20' is comparable to the full length version of 'Magical Mystery Tour'. It's a very mixed bag, a mixture of new material and recent non-album singles (like 'I Can Hear Music' and 'Do It Again').
If you want to check out some highlights from the post-'Pet Sounds' era, look for these songs on YouTube or somewhere else:
From 'Friends':
Friends Most brilliant albums have a few specific songs that make it stand out. 'Friends' doesn't. It has an overall warm, rich, soft and gentle mood that makes it stand out. The title track might be the best example of this mood, so if you do have to appoint a standout track, this one's probably it. If the early Beach Boys albums represented a hot summer day that you spend with hot girls on the beach, cruisin' down the boulevard and surfing the waves, than 'Friends' represents a hot summer that you spend lying in your back yard with a cool drink, without a care in the world. Both can be equally pleasant and satisfying, just in an entirely different way.
Wake The World A simple song that carries on in the same mood as the previous one. 'Wake the World' makes simply waking up and going to sleep each day sound like something magical.
Be Here In The Morning Although this song is a strange mix of quasi-Hawaiian sections, castrato vocals and wobbly vocal effects, it still keeps the mood of the previous two songs.
From '20/20':
Time To Get Alone Originally given away to Redwood (a band that would later become famous as Three Dog Night), but The Beach Boys took it back when they heard how great it was. Definately one of their most atmospheric and magical songs.
Our Prayer No words and no music, just oh's, ah's and mmm's. Probably the best example of how brilliant The Beach Boys were vocally. Originally recorded as the intro for the 'Smile' album.
Cabinessence One of the highlights of the abandonned 'Smile' album, finally released on this album.
From 'Sunflower':
This Whole World Anyone who thinks that Brian Wilson "lost it" after the 'Smile' debacle should just listen to this. It has so much chord and key changes that purely theoretically it's a big mess, and yet it works perfectly. Probably one of their richest songs.
All I Wanna Do Very mystical, and probably the most moving lead vocal Mike Love ever recorded.
Forever I always saw this as Dennis Wilson's response to his brother Brian's 'God Only Knows'.
From 'Surf's Up':
Long Promised Road Carl Wilson's first major composition, and probably his best.
Surf's Up Another recycled 'Smile' track. Without a doubt my favorite Beach Boys song after 'God Only Knows'.
From 'Carl & The Passions - So Tough':
All This Is That A very gentle, slightly mystical song that might take a while to sink in, but it's absolutely beautiful.
Cuddle Up If there's a heaven, this should be the "theme song" playing at the gates.
From 'Holland':
Sail On, Sailor Some people say that The Beach Boys couldn't rock, and that they were the whitest sounding group ever. They should listen to this.
California Saga/Big Sur Mike Love was never a great songwriter, but he did write one great song: this one. A beautiful tribute to one of California's most beautiful places.
