Are the Beach Boys prog?
Printed From: Progarchives.com
Category: Other music related lounges
Forum Name: General Music Discussions
Forum Description: Discuss and create polls about all types of music
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=19425
Printed Date: April 28 2024 at 03:15
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 11.01 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Are the Beach Boys prog?
Posted By: aprusso
Subject: Are the Beach Boys prog?
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 11:50
| ... probably not. Even though all the records from Pet Sounds (1966) to Holland (1974) are much more experimental of many other mainstream bands in their age. And in any case, I absolutely fell in love with the Beach Boys and co. some years ago, and it didn't go away. And it is a cheerful addition to my otherwise "heavy" musical tastes. After listening to Pawn Hearts, Larks' Tongues in Aspic or Animals, you do want to have your share of Good Vibrations. The personal history of the band and of the leader Brian Wilson in particular is the greatest unwritten American novel. The musical talent of Brian is above any other musician I know (maybe except Zappa?) and his sweet madness is beyond belief. I have seen three times Brian Wilson live since then, and I loved every single second of it. The last time in Barcelona he played the whole "The Beach Boys Today!" album, 1965. The El Pais newspaper wrote a fantastic review: (brian) was in barcelona, but he had the voice somewhere at the Balears islands, the gaze in America, and the thoughts lost somewhere in the middle of the galaxy.... |
Replies:
Posted By: Catholic Flame
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 11:59
|
There is more going on in the 2 and 1/2 minutes of Good Vibrations than in most 25 minute songs. I've never been a Beach Boys fan but I do agree that Brian Wilson is a musical genius.
------------- “Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion.” ~Jack Kerouac |
Posted By: Kid-A
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 12:09
|
in a word, NO I think that if the beach boys go on here the site will loose all credibility ------------- 
|
Posted By: Empathy
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 12:10
|
Proto-Prog, _perhaps_. Perhaps. Probably not, though. ------------- Pure Brilliance: 
|
Posted By: Viajero Astral
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 13:24
|
NO WAY
------------- 
|
Posted By: Blacksword
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 13:31
|
Not really no, but they did inovate. I've grown to respect them more with age. Pet Sounds and Smiley Smile are pretty good albums. Good Vibrations is kind of proto prog and IMO one of their best songs. I also really like Heroes and Villains & Vegetables. The latter was the only incidence, I'm aware of' where the crunching of raw vegetables made up part of the rhythm section.. Interestingly one of the reasons Bruford left Yes, was that he wanted to play in a band that sounded less like The Beach Boys.. ------------- Ultimately bored by endless ecstasy! |
Posted By: chopper
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 13:45
Smiley Smile is pretty awful (Good Vibrations aside) - you need to hear the proper Smile. By the way, did you know Paul McCartney did a bit of vegetable crunching? Anyway, Brian Wilson is one of the great geniuses of music and the BBs probably deserve a place in proto-prog for inspiring the Beatles to greater heights, but they aren't prog. |
Blacksword wrote:Posted By: Andrea Cortese
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 13:47
|
Heroes and Villains and Good Vibrations: always liked these songs!!! If they're prog? No! If they made some prog? Maybe...I have to check it out, though! |
Posted By: Snow Dog
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 13:59
|
Well if ir wasn't for Pet Sounds, Sgt Peppers would never have been made. That doesn't answer the question though. ------------- http://www.last.fm/user/Snow_Dog" rel="nofollow"> 
|
Posted By: Guests
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 14:06
  WHAT ARE YOU F$#KING CRAZY
|
Posted By: marktheshark
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 15:00
 I was wondering when someone was going to come up with an opinion like that! Proto maybe on the later stuff, but Surfin USA? Forget it! |
Posted By: dralan
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 15:14
| I wouldnt classify them as prog, but their arsty tendencies did indeed influence alot of our favorite artists. Paul McCartney openly cites Pet Sounds as a major influence on Sgt Pepper. Prog or not they still have some of the best vocal harmonies ever recorded. |
Posted By: Syzygy
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 15:16
|
Progressive rock, no, but they were as progressive as pop ever got - Brian Wilson was as inventive and innovative in his field as Zappa was in rock music. The albums from the mid 60s to the early 70s contain songs complex and imaginative enough to satisfy any progger. ------------- 'Like so many of you I've got my doubts about how much to contribute to the already rich among us...' Robert Wyatt, Gloria Gloom |
Posted By: ANDREW
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 15:40
|
It's true, "Pet Sounds" influenced BEATLES's "Sgt. Pepper", it could be classify as a proto-prog album, but they were famous to be a surf-pop band. Anyway Brian Wilson is a genius |
Posted By: TheProgtologist
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 16:19
|
Prog??? ; NO. But Wilson was/is a musical genius,and his talent for harmonies is unbelievable. -------------  |
Posted By: King of Loss
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 16:44
| Beach Boys is the poster-boy for being really NOT PROG |
Posted By: Certif1ed
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 17:07
"Pet Sounds" influenced the Beatles conceptually - the music is otherwise unrelated to Sgt Pepper. It's progressive in its use of "homely" or "pet" items to make sounds, and use of the Theremin, but the songwriting itself is above average to excellent - and not really progressive in that the structures break no boundaries, there's not a lot that's progressive about the beautifully catchy melodies, those infectious surfing rhythms are more restrained on the whole - but there's no real interest in the rhythmic interplay. The harmonies (as always with the BBs) are superlative though - I'll give it that. So maybe Prog-Related at a distance... but I wouldn't include them here if it was my choice. |
Posted By: aprusso
Date Posted: February 24 2006 at 20:02
|
Listen to the first side of "Friends" or some songs or "Sunflower" and then tell me this isn't experimental music. And always remember that Yes did "The rhtyhm of love", Genesis did "That's all" and Pink Floyd did "One slip" |
Posted By: marktheshark
Date Posted: February 25 2006 at 02:22
Vocally the BBs were well ahead of the game. 3,4 or 5 part harmony were no doubt even ahead of the Beatles. But the Beatles had a compositional edge over the BBs. Bob Dylan's folk influence to take their lyrics more seriously kept the Beatles in a more serious and thoughtful limelight. Writing something as auto biographical as Help by Lennon didn't come from any influence by the BBs. And while Paul may shoot his mouth off about Sgt Pepper influenced by Pet Sounds, we seem to forget that there were 2 other parties involved in that album too. John, George and Paul too ackowledged Frank's Freak Out as a contributor as well. This business of Pet Sounds influencing Sgt Pepper has been so overplayed. No doubt it has had "some" influence. But John has always maintained that his songs, Lucy, Mr Kite, Good Morning, Day In the Life have had no connection whats-so-ever on it. They were just good songs that just happened to click with the whole thing. Sgt Pepper has always been looked at in 2 ways for me in the 39 years I've listened to album. Great song writing and production. And a great coincidence! Fate played a great part in that album as well. Pet Sounds may have contributed to the "color" of the album, but not the substance. |
Posted By: Moogtron III
Date Posted: February 25 2006 at 03:56
|
The Beach Boys influenced the Beatles a bit, and vice versa, so maybe they're proto-proto-prog or something like that Brian Wilson's Smile is very much prog related. The album consists more or less of three long epics. Many prog fans will like this, highly recommended! It's the best new album I heard in the last three years. |
Posted By: Paleviper
Date Posted: February 25 2006 at 04:01
|
No The Beach Boys and Brian Wilson in particular are brilliant, one of the highlights of last year for me was buying Brian Wilsons - Smile concived in 1969's and finally released in 2005 a work of genius but not what I would call progressive ------------- http://www.last.fm/user/Paleviper/?chartstyle=basicrt10"> 
|
Posted By: Easy Livin
Date Posted: February 25 2006 at 05:27
|
In 1976, Alan Freeman, a well known British DJ had a Saturday afternoon rock show on the BBC in which he played a lot of wonderful music. At the end of the year, he did a run down of the 50 best selling rock albums of 1976. It included such great albums as "Ommadawn", "Led Zeppelin 4", "Viva - Roxy Music live", "Olias of Sunhillow", "L (Hillage), "Wish you were here", "Trick of the tail" etc. I will never forget my disappointment, when after waiting two days to hear what the number one was, it turned out to be "The Beach Boys greatest hits"! Now I love the msuic of the Beach Boys, but a great rock album? I think not. |
Posted By: oliverstoned
Date Posted: February 25 2006 at 05:53
It will loose really much credibily than with Queen and Radiohead's inclusion? |
Posted By: MikeEnRegalia
Date Posted: February 25 2006 at 06:13
------------- https://awesomeprog.com/users/Mike" rel="nofollow">Recently listened to: 
|
Posted By: oliverstoned
Date Posted: February 26 2006 at 04:40
| Yes, nice coincidence! |
Posted By: daz2112
Date Posted: February 26 2006 at 14:33
|
NO! ------------- In the constellation of cygnus,There lurks a mysterious force...The black hole |
Posted By: Thyme Traveler
Date Posted: February 26 2006 at 21:30
I was about to say Pet Sounds was "proto-proto-prog" until I saw your post. The question is , is there enough "there" to consider it prog, and I think the answer is no. Perhaps the Beach Boys were "Proto-Progressive Pop". I think the Proto-Prog category is a little bit dangerous. Did Chuck Berry influence prog ? Certainly, just as he influenced all Rock music. Buddy Holly ? Les Paul ? Beethoven ? Pythagoras ? I think the Beatles are as far down that road as we want to go (and should go). Some of us didn't even want to go that far. |
Posted By: DrWizard
Date Posted: March 19 2006 at 16:38
|
NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! What is the world coming to!? |
Posted By: Dragon Phoenix
Date Posted: March 19 2006 at 16:40
|
Please let it stop.
------------- Blog this: http://artrock2006.blogspot.com |
Posted By: stonebeard
Date Posted: March 19 2006 at 17:04
"Surfin' USA" was the first prog epic! Of Course they should be included!  ------------- http://soundcloud.com/drewagler" rel="nofollow - My soundcloud. Please give feedback if you want! |
Posted By: Moogtron III
Date Posted: March 20 2006 at 03:04
I do think the Beach Boys with their subtle harmonies and adventurous production were an influence that can easily be underrated. You're right, though, with your Chuck Berry-remark. The Beach Boys weren't prog rock, but maybe proto-proto-prog pop. Still, many prog fans would like Brian Wilson's Smile, I still mean that. Many would hate it too |
Posted By: Dick Heath
Date Posted: March 20 2006 at 04:42
Always felt it was odd the stereo version was an afterthought........ |
Posted By: Chicapah
Date Posted: March 21 2006 at 12:26
If the Beach Boys are prog then so are Jan and Dean, especially for their song "The Anaheim Azusa and Cucamonga Sewing Circle, Book Review and Timing Association." I can't tell you how embarassing it is to admit that I can remember that song title. Kinda like remembering Dave, Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tish. Jeez.... ------------- "Literature is well enough, as a time-passer, and for the improvement and general elevation and purification of mankind, but it has no practical value" - Mark Twain |
Posted By: Meddler
Date Posted: March 21 2006 at 17:03
If the Beach Boys are inducted to the archives, then surely Matisyahu should be.  |