In honor of the recent release of the Beach Boys box set, Political Whore Wayne Garcia and yours truly, humble copy editor Anthony Salveggi, have put together our individual Top 10 lists of our favorite Beach Boys songs.
Anthony's list
10. Our Sweet Love — Carl Wilson’s high vocals sell this gorgeous affirmation of romantic love: “I thought about a summer day/ And how the time just floats away”
9. Disney Girls — Penned by Brian Wilson’s tour replacement, Bruce Johnston: “Oh reality, it’s not for me/ And it makes me laugh”
8. This Whole World — Clocking in at under two minutes, but packed with Brian's genius for melody and orchestration: “You are there like everywhere/ Like everyone you see”
7. 'Til I Die — Try listening to this without your blood running cold: “I’m a leaf on a windy day/ Pretty soon I’ll be blown away”
6. Warmth of the Sun — “I loved like the warmth of the sun/ It won’t ever die”
5. I’m Waiting for the Day — Like nearly everything else on Pet Sounds, pure magic: “He hurt you then, but that’s all gone/ I guess I’m saying you’re the only one”
4. I Can Hear Music — A soaring cut off 1969’s 20/20: “This is the way I always dreamed it would be/ The way that it is, when you are holding me”
3. Please Let Me Wonder — A honey-drenched, hook-filled gem with melancholy lyrics that sound as if they must have been written on a California beach at sunset: “If I’m the one you’re dreaming of/ Please let me wonder, love”
2. Don’t Worry Baby — Sonically stunning layering of vocals and instrumentation: “But she looks in my eyes/ And makes me realize when she says “don’t worry baby.”
1. Caroline, No — See Wayne's description below. This is the track off of Pet Sounds that sent shivers down my spine the first time I heard it: “Break my heart/ I want to go and cry/ It’s so sad to watch a sweet thing die)
Wayne's List
10. Wouldn’t It Be Nice — “Maybe if we think and wish and hope and pray it might come true/ run run weee-oooooo”
9. All This Is That — The most obscure cut here, a Mike Love TM effort that is hypnotic, from Carl and the Passions
8. Long Promised Road — A great Carl Wilson composition.
7. Don’t Worry Baby — A simple heartfelt love song. Nothing better than that.
6. Surfer Girl — Cuz it’s all about the sun and sand and boys and girls.
5. Surf's Up — An orchestral tour de force that Van Dyke Parks’ baroque lyrics lift to another level. Leonard Bernstein thought this song was the future of pop music. Unfortunately, he was wrong.
4. 'Til I Die — Yes, zen buddhism makes a wonderfully sad vehicle for Brian accepting the fact that he will be mentally confused and in emotional pain until the day he dies.
3. Friends — The sonic bed here is tremendous, with simple keyboard figures augmented by bass harmonica over waltz time. “I talked your/ folks out of/ making you/ cut off your hair.”
2. Caroline, No — Brian’s whine on “No” is an indication of the pain that he poured into his music. I remember seeing an interview with his ex-wife, who says that part of the song always runs right through her, it was such a personal statement about their relationship at the time.
1. Warmth of the Sun — Written the evening that JFK was assassinated, Wilson’s simple inverted chord structure and Love’s heartfelt lyrics perfectly capture the start of one era at the end of another, and the trademark layered vocals and soaring falsetto continue to stun the listener.
This article appears in Jun 11-17, 2008.