therisingblues wrote:Dogwatcher wrote:Apparently the Beach Boys used to pray in the studio - literally asking the man above to help them make a better album than the Beatles.
I don't think they specifically worded the prayer to include the Beatles, but Brian Wilson did pray with the orchestra during the recording of Pet Sounds to make that album as good as it could be.
Apparently the release of "Revolver" signalled the age of the album as a single complete work of art, and Brian Wilson set out to outdo it with "Pet Sounds". Obviously marketing wasn't high on his list of considerations, the cover alone must have driven away hordes of teenagers ie. The Beach Boys looking very straight lace at a petting zoo, feeding goats! If that wasn't enough then the music within would have shocked most fans into despair, they are great numbers on that peice of vinyl, but I can imagine the disappointment felt by the kids of the time, expecting girls, girls, girls, surf, surf, surf, fun, fun, fun and getting a lot of mood music best aimed at a more cultured minds in its place. Surely steps should have been taken to ensure this music would be accessible to those that could appreciate it most. I know a music lover from California who grew up in that era and he heard and loved Pet Sounds for the first time just a few years back. It is also true that Pet Sounds again and again tops the personal favourite album lists of famous musos. It is definitely a great work but the sales manager/director deserved a kick up the rear IMO. I think it has been said that the lack of recognition received by Pet Sounds was one of the things that drove poor old BW a little loopy a bit later on, from what I understand he was making a few other songs at the time that just weren't understood and were shunned ("The Little Girl I Once Knew" being a classic example) he'd then do remakes of simple rock and roll lines like "Barbara Ann" and quickly grab No 1 spot on the charts. For an artist wanting to wrest more serious musical accolades away from across the Atlantic, his postion must have been pretty frustrating, especially when he had the talent at his disposal to at least give his goals a good shake, his fan base however, just couldn't follow his lead.
I haven't read/seen much about this guy Wilson, but what little I have heard makes him one of the 20th Century's more interesting songwriters.
Theri check out an absolutely brilliant book called Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall & Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. One of the best rock bios I've read. Also I Just Wasn't Made for These Times: Brian Wilson & the Making of Pet Sounds.
