I like Pet Sounds when I'm in the right mood, and I also own a vinyl copy I break out every now and again. The biggies—"Wouldn't It Be Nice", "God Only Knows" & "Sloop John B"—are just good goddamn pop songs. I also like "I'm Waiting for the Day" and "I Know There's an Answer", while "Let's Go Away for a While" is a nice little interlude.

There are some clunkers, though. Take my hand and let me hear your heeeeaaaaarrrrrrrrrrt beeeeeaaatt[i] *gag*. The interesting thing is to hear my old man talk about [i]Pet Sounds about how weird/novel it was. He's not a big Beach Boys fan, but he has the power of context over me, and it's obvious the record turned some heads in 1966.

I'm a Rubber Soul guy myself, and the older I get the goofier I find Sgt. Pepper. That's not to acknowledge the experimentation and expansion of boundaries, but sometimes you try something and it just doesn't work. I do think I'll throw it on tonight, however.

[quote="bort"Pre-Rubber Soul records were simply the hit song or two, with 10 more tracks of filler and covers.[/quote]

a hit song or two?
my head just exploded.
i am now convinced more than ever that you just had to be there.

and pet sounds...hello?
caroline, no is sublime.

i'm too fucking old to even be here anymore.

What about me?

Me too, and when I am in the right frame of mind, it sounds perfect. I'm nearing that state, so this might get a spin later on.

Give me a fucking break.

1. Rubber Soul is the album that most people ascribe Pet Sounds to be. Sgt. Pepper's is pretty unlistenable.

2. Beyond the time-bound, in-context truth of how "ground-breaking" Pet Sounds sounded in its year (odd arrangements and mixed chords, layered production...unusual song structures for pop music) it was also an obvious work of an auteur... which is why some say it was the first concept album. You heard conceptual energy behind the sweet songs... there was ART in pop music. Limits where challenged and defeated... limits that, 40 years later, are not remembered or comprehended.

3. More universally... the biggest attraction is that it is music that is a monument built on the killing floor of pop music... that border of innocense and experience. The young man yearning for life to last longer than it will. BW's lyrics, melodies, multi-tracked voices... told this story as well as anyone before or since. Oh Caroline no

the beach boys are the fucking worst

If you don't dig, you don't dig.

I feel it's weird to say that some songs on Pet Sounds are "boring," though. There are only a few songs that break 3 minutes on that record. Maybe it's not enough straight-up hummable pop for you.

Um...isn't that ALL Pet Sounds is?

Also, despite the fact that normally I would shit all over an album like this, even I must admit that I like this album a great deal. If I can enjoy an album this poppy and annoyingly happy then it has to be good on some level.

I'm going to listen to it tonight because it's been a long time. Hopefully my opinion hasn't changed or else I'm going to have to go back in and edit this post.

a hit song or two?
my head just exploded.
i am now convinced more than ever that you just had to be there.

and pet sounds...hello?
caroline, no is sublime.

i'm too fucking old to even be here anymore.[/quote]

ayah i'm not sure what you think you were responding to but what i was saying is that BEFORE Rubber Soul and Pet Sounds came along, records were mainly seen as simply the medium in which you could hear a collection of an artists songs. Rubber Soul and Pet Sounds broke that mold by filling both sides of the wax with meaningful, well-developed tunes, creating a cohesive piece of art, and NOT just filler material....

This used to rank fairly highly on my lists of favorites. I always liked "Sloop John B" so one day in my soph yr of hs, I went out and was looking for a greatest hits collection, but couldn't find one, but PS was available, so I picked it up. I remember that I didn't spin the whole record for about a month, but when I did, it was really the first pop record that made sense to me in my punk rock heyday. Why? God knows, but it made sense. Soon after it seemed like people like Matthew Sweet, etc were hyping this record, and all of the sudden there was a boxset, remasters, etc. Craziness. I think its great that people find this record appealing, because at the end of the day, to me at least, its just good. I can see how people would write this off. Its been hyped so much that you go into it expecting a revelatory album. Problem is, people have ripped it off so much in the pop world that it no longer holds so much water, because those of us late to the game have been exposed to so much prior to it.

I guess boring isn't the best word. I don't mean boring as in it doesn't keep my attention. I mean there are songs on there that don't grab my attention from the get go. And I've never really thought of myself as being the victim to a hummable pop song. I hardly listen to any pop as it is.

But, I do think that Flying Rabbit added to what Phil stated, and it applies to me. I think my initial listens were just "late to the game". I am going to listen to this some more and pay more attention, give it a real listen and try to notice some of the subte complexities that many of the fans of this album have referenced.

Dooder--Don't hurt yourself trying to like the album. I mean, I don't think anyone is gonna revoke your card if you don't enjoy the album.

Well, I figure my curiosity is definitely piqued. I feel like I have never really listened to it. I have had it on in the car I have listened to it while doing other things. And, as I have said before, it's not that I dislike the album. It has just never hit me as this amazing groundbreaking thing. I haven't listened to it in a while, so I will listen again just to see if it's different now after some time elapsed and my tastes have grown/changed.

No, I'd say there are some gorgeous melodies and harmonies, but not all of the jingle-jangle poppy popilicious variety.

I think some people believe the record to be a lot less melancholy than it is.

Cue vigorous scolding by loogar.

I'm Waiting for the Day

not the same medium, but

I just watched the Best of Saturday Night Live: Eddie Murphy after watching vols. 1 and 2 of Will Ferrell and I didn't laugh a single time at the Eddie. Funny thing is, I can remember seeing a lot of that stuff live when I was a teenager (Buckwheat, Velvet Jones, Mr. Robinson) and absolutely losing it. Stomach cramping losing it.

I hope this is accepted as what it is in context.

completely.

I think Pet Sounds is a sad album, it's wistful and hopeful and insecure. This is the soundtrack for guys who end up in The Friend Zone.

alright POD....you sold me...

05 I'm Waiting For The Day

GREAT TUNE

what?

Well, I can see how someone would feel this way, but I've always kind of felt like Rubber Soul was seriously overrated (as is Sgt. Pepper's to a degree). As an album, though, it isn't close to being the work that Pet Sounds is.



huh?

"Unlistenable"? I mean, really. I don't really listen to The Beatles anymore, and this definitely isn't one of my favorite albums of theirs. Still, can anyone really call that album "unlistenable"? Not everything about music is subjective.

Anyway, I like your other two points.

"Unlistenable" is, of course, a silly thing to say about it, granted. It's just that Sgt. Pepper is so familiar I almost can't hear it as music. And it sounds too overworked, and some of its baroque flourishes and production has gotten tired over time. Whereas if I listen to Revolver or Rubber Soul I am always struck by what glorious noise they made. Pop music at its best.

This isn't overrated to me:
Side one
"Drive My Car"
"Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"
"You Won't See Me", featuring Mal Evans on Hammond
"Nowhere Man"
"Think For Yourself" (Harrison)
"The Word", featuring George Martin on harmonium
"Michelle"
[edit]
Side two
"What Goes On" (Lennon-McCartney-Starkey)
"Girl"
"I'm Looking Through You"
"In My Life" SAMPLE (217k), featuring George Martin on piano
"Wait"
"If I Needed Someone" (Harrison)
"Run For Your Life"

I listened to Sgt. Pepper's last night for the first time in a long while, and it's just plain silly. The songs don't sound bad, but the first three songs are flat-out dumb, not to mention "Lovely Rita" and "When I'm Sixty-Four". Let's also not forget the obligatory opportunity to allow George Harrison to hack up another sitar-laden hairball, "Within You Without You", which also happens to be the longest song on the album.

That said, I like "Good Morning, Good Morning".

she's leaving home.