THE BEACH BOYS THE SMILE SESSIONS REACTION kzfaq.info/get/bejne/sNWAgqeprdGvcp8.html

The Beatles listened to this over and over and over and John Lennon was distraught because he didn't think they could ever top it. That's what inspired Sgt.Pepper's.

I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times speaks to my soul every time. I cry or tear up every time I listen to it.

The Beatles had producer George Martin to clean up their songs, while The Beach Boy's Brian Wilson wrote, played instruments, and produced their music. That in my book is why he is the most successful musician in rock/pop

This album at the time was ground breaking. The instrument on I just wasn’t made for these times is an electro theramin and it is the first one ever used on a pop radio song. Brian Wilson is a master of the studio and nobody is his equal... the Beatles had George Martin as a producer, Brian was the producer, lead singer, arranger and songwriter!

I don't know why, but I chalked The Beach Boys as corny, everyone running happy, surfin, mass appeal stuff. Now that I'm calmed down, have wisdom from life, and I am finding these gems for the first time. This is something genius. Just wow. Top three albums of all time are this, Beatles Revolver, and Radiohead OK Computer 😊

Refreshing to see a reaction channel where the reactor doesn't love every single thing, you can tell when they genuinely like something. Sloop John B is great though 😂

Lol, when you said I feel like I wanna cry while listening to "You Still Believe in Me" I laughed really hard. Awesome review and reviewer. Keep up the good work

There are no words for the magic of the album in its entirety...breathe and enjoy.

I think the big take away from Don't Talk (Put Your Head on my Shoulder) is when he sings "...and listen to my heart beat..." and the bass just pounds like a heart.

I also discovered the beach boys as a beatles fanatic and i never thought in my life i could have found another band like the beatles but i think the beach boys are just as good. It was like finding out the beatles catalogue was twice as big.

The instrumentals are so fire because Brian Wilson used a band of studio musicians called the wrecking crew (same band Phil Spector used). Look em up if you want to see how many performance credits they have on number 1 hits from that era.

I have never heard a rock/pop song that hits as hard as Here Today. The bass-line and drums and progression and beat switch makes it impossible for me not to nod my head to the music.

The instrument on I know there’s an answer is a bass harmonica. Originally the song was let go of your ego. The instrumentation is wild. Remember in 1966 this used8 tracks and was mostly live to tape with no synths.

Great review! I had the honor of hearing Brian Wilson perform the entire Pet Sounds album live a few years ago. An amazing experience to be in the presence of a musical genius performing his masterpiece, even though he's no longer able to hit those high notes. I had to laugh at your reaction to Sloop John B. It was one of The Beach Boys' most commercially successful hits! It was a traditional folk song that was arranged by Brian Wilson for The Beach Boys' "style". But I always felt it seemed out of place compared to the rest of the album.

The whole Beatles/Beach Boys dynamic is very interesting because Rubber Soul led to the Beach Boys create Pet Sounds, which in turn led to The Beatles create Sgt. Peppers, which is just a perfect example of two great bands wanting to one-up each other and the entire world benefiting from it. Also, Paul McCartney himself thinks God Only Knows is the greatest song ever written.

Both my mom and dad sang barbershop music when I was a kid. I was born in 1957 and grew up sitting by the radio waiting for The Beach Boys to come on. I have been a fan since 1962. When I die, my kids know, play Beach Boys at my funeral.

This album is definitely Brian's album. We explore his emotions and his band merely was just his mouthpiece. Its an exploration into his heart

Crying when you listen to this album is a rite of passage, welcome. There are so many little perfect moments like the bike horn at the end of You Still Believe in Me and the organ riffs at the end of Here Today

That really low sound on "I Know There's An Answer" is a bass harmonica.

The Wrecking Crew did the instrumentation... the greatest band in the world that most don't know. Pet Sounds was revolutionary, Brian's use of 'snippets'. This changed how music was recorded forever. Now, pull up Brian Wilson Presents SMILE LIVE and you will go on the best live musical. journey.

Pet Sounds was released in the middle of the Beatles' recording for Revolver and had some influence on that album too. You can sort of hear a through line from "You Still Believe in Me" to "Here, There and Everywhere."

If you are inspired to do more Beach Boys albums, I would recommend either Surf's Up or Sunflower. Or, if you want a bit of that early Beach Boys sound, there's Summer Days And Summer Nights (the last studio album before Pet Sounds).

Great review, brother! Man, Pet Sounds was the most experimental, ground breaking album of it's time. Brian Wilson arranged and produced it from start to finish, took forever to complete because he was such a perfectionist. But the results are week worth it. Brian is absolutely nothing short of a pure musical genius, from songwriting to arrangement to production, in the studio, there's no equal, including Phil Spector. Bro, Pet Sounds us beautiful musical bliss, not one bad track. After all these years, I'm still amazed at the new things I discover in it. The way Brian blended the instruments and lowered or raised garden he octaves to match the voices and vice versa is beautiful. He used The Wrecking Crew for the band, and the were known as the best studio musicians on the planet at the time. It cost a fortune to make. The little nuances, tiny background percussions that I'd missed. It's just a joy. No other album does that to me. Thanks again my man, you're awesome!

Loved this reaction, could tell you were listening deeply and I dug your takes.

Nice review! While it is obvious that the vocals are the Beach Boys strength, I recommend listening to the backing tracks for these songs. Every bit as good! And they were one of the first self produced bands! The Beatles had George Martin produce for them. But Brian Wilson, who sings the high part, also wrote, arranged and produced all the music! He hired the best studio musicians called the Wrecking Crew to play the instruments for Pet Sounds, because it was too complex. Although, the Beach Boys showed they could do a good job as well, because That's Not Me is all Beach Boys and no Wrecking Crew! Also, the bass lines are so melodic, which was common in jazz, but not rock n roll! This inspired Paul McCartney, and you can hear him do similar bass lines on Sgt Pepper.

Also, the high sound you hear on I Just Wasn't Made for these Times is an electro theremin. It was also used more prominently in their single Good Vibrations. The album title track instrumental Pet Sounds was written by Brian for a James Bond movie, but it never got used.

Great reaction, I loved when all the random mix ups and odd sections threw you off and made you freak out a bit haha

that crazy horn style instrument is a bass harmonica. it's rad as hell. the music was recorded by a group called the wrecking crew. very talented people. im sorry if other people have answered this already. i didn't read the comments much lol

You were keen in your observations, and give me hope for the future. Continued success, I'll be watching :)

Excellent review, your open mindedness is refreshing. Brian Wilson invented this album on the fly and off the top of his head. Fun fact: They recorded Pet Sounds on a 3 track machine, and bounced the tracks down to mono. That's why most of it's recorded live in the studio, with what amounted to a small orchestra doing single takes. Part of the concept was having different sounding instruments play and blend together in real time. I suggest listening to the rehearsal outtakes, they are an amazing insight into his process. 14:56 That acapella break is the purest essence of the Beach Boys distilled into magic. I've been listening to it for almost 50 years, and it still astounds me. 21:16 Hal Blaine, more than likely. It's all studio musicians, and the rest of the band only sang. 25:48 They had been hanging out in Hawaii around that time, and he was trying to get that lushness into a surf instrumental. My second favorite track. 26:52 I just can't at the moment. Things have been to hard lately, and it'll just make me cry. 28:45 And then they had to figure out how to go out and play all these songs live. They had backing musicians to try and approximate what was on the record, and did a pretty good job of it. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/eryFddOr0auwf5s.html

Trust me dude this album just gets better and better.. the albums smile, sunflower and friends are also great albums..

40 years later and thousands of listens later, Pet Sounds is the best album ever made - I have loved it for 40 years. It beats Songs in the Key of Life -

I love your pet sounds reactions I watch it every day xxxx

I'm a big Beach Boys fan and I really loved watching you hear this LP for the first time! It's great that you got into it! As for suggestions about what other Beach Boys album to react to, how about Love You (1977), Sunflower (1970), Holland (1973) or Smile (which was supposed to be the follow-up album to Pet Sounds in 1967) 🙂

I absolutely love your reactions, Tatum! You really *are* keeping it real! To answer your question, by the way, the drums are being played by none other than Hal Blaine of a group of session musicians known as The Wrecking Crew.

The drummer was Hal Blaine. He was part of a sessions group known as the Wrecking Crew. He played on over 35,000 records. He passed away about 5 years ago.

Probably one of the greatest if not the greatest album of all time. With the exception of Sloop John B, which is a great classic folk song, the album is the story of a love relationship from beginning to end with all the emotions contained within it, from bright beginings to wistful reflection looking back at what was. Thanks for reviewing!

My man I just love this album more and more as I get older. Thanks for your thoughtful insights!

The Bridge on Don’t talk Put Your Head on My Shoulder is one of the most amazing pieces of music ever recorded .

Pet Sounds is definitely the album that I can listen to at any time. All of the emotions and themes touched on feel honest and vulnerable and the production and instrumental backing is good enough for the 2 instrumentals to not only be good, but able to be considered the best songs on the album. I don't usually watch reaction videos but I'm glad I clicked on this one.

If you like the harmonies and production on this, I'd recommend Fleet Foxes's self-titled debut. It's hard to compare what is considered one of the greatest albums of all time with an album which is only over a decade old, but I do feel they share strengths.

Loved your reaction. I didn't look through every single comment to know if this was answered, but the instrument you heard in the song I Know There's an Answer that you thought was a horn is a bass harmonica.

You did an excellent job of reviewing this album and thank you. I do own a copy and the three cd box set of the making of Pet Sounds and listen to it often. It would be great if you could review the Four Seasons Genuine Imitation Life Gazette which was released in 68-69. You may have to listen to it a few times but it is an excellent album. Thank you again and just subscribed to your channel.

Pet sounds was the beach boys 10th album in 4 years. Brian wilson was 23 when he wrote arranged and produced it. But check the 2 albums that came in the year before to see how it came to be. Mindblowing pop. The beach boys today and the beach boys summer days( and summer nights! ) albums. Both from 1965. But the beach boys all summer long album from 1964 might be a better start cos this was the first album influenced by the beatles and this is where the beach boys step up the game.

Before this album brian stopped touring. So the others were on tour, while he recorded the music with the wrecking crew. When they came back from tour, he dragged them to the studio to record the vocal harmonies. The drummer is a guy called Hal Blayne. Bass is played by Carol Kaye. Hal was the session drummer for 150 US Top 10 singles and around 35000 songs all together. He played on: Neil Diamond - I Am... I Said Barry McGuire - Eve of Destruction Cher - Half Breed Tommy Roe - Dizzy The Mamas and the Papas: California Dreamin’ Nancy Sinatra: Boots Frank Sinatra - Strangers in the Night The Byrds - Mr. Tambourine Man Dean Martin - Everybody Loves Somebody Elvis - You’re the Devil in Disguise Simon & GarfunkelBridge over troubled waters 5th Dimension - Aquarius/Let the sun shine Scott Mc Kenzie - San Francisco

Nice review, keep in mind that a lot of these sounds were created before synthesizers and software... crazy sounds might have been done by plugging a piano and guitar into the same amp, and/or purposely allowing sound to reverberate into the microphones of the other instruments for an extra layering and sound, or using new for pop music instruments, like banjos, harps, theremins, tambourines, tack pianos, fuzz basses, cellos, the list goes on... blending the music around notes of blues, jazz, rock, and classical. Everything done on magnetic tapes and blended in the double tape voices, mostly the songs were perfected over dozens of takes... when it came to "Good Vibrations", Brian took it to a new level and made the song from modules, each module stressed over and perfected before blending into a complete work. That is why it took 9 months to record. As Brian evolved, he wanted to take modularization to a whole new level, but unfortunately the Smile album melted his brain (literally) and he refused to work or acknowledge it for 20 years. When his new band approached him to rethink about doing Smile, Brian was terrified of it. Slowly, his loving band showed him that not only could he finish it (to some extent), but not be afraid of it and assure him that his loyal audience will love it.

I'm a big Beach Boys fan. I enjoyed this video. I like your reaction. My favorite 3 are I'm Waiting For The Day, Wouldn't It Be Nice, and You Still Believe In Me.

Never seen your content until this video. I like the areas of the music that you honed in on, while only just hearing these tracks. After a few listens and some dissection, I'd love to hear you're full thoughts on the production and musicality of this album. Not holding you to it. Nice

What you are not aware of is that Sloop John B was a very big song for the Kingston Trio, a popular folk group at the time. Everyone knew it! And the Beach Boys did their version which was revolutionary.

Brian WIlson -- the greatest producer-writer-arranger in rock music history. Period. SLOOP JOHN B doesn't belong on the album. It was put there by the label for commercial purposes.

"I Know There's An Answer" was originally titled "Hang On To Your Ego". The original lyrics were about LSD. Needless to say, that didn't end up on the final product. However, it can be found on their Pet Sounds Sessions box set.

You brought tears to my eyes sir. Thank you very much. Get ready to go down the beach boys rabbit hole.

man it's been a while since I listened to this album in full - If you're a fan of J Dilla you should check out the mashup album 'The Beach Boys vs J Dilla - Pet Sounds: In the Key of Dee,' although it wasn't made by Dilla himself it uses a lot of the same sampling and production elements he was known for with samples from Pet Sounds - I only found out about the album a few days ago but it sounds pretty cool imo :)

It's hard to really listen to this record and not cry at some point or another. Beautiful. A couple of notes based on your feedback: - Brian basically wrote every part (vocals and music) on the records, then got the best people to play out his vision. - the drummer was Hal Blaine (legend) / Carole Kaye plays bass mostly (also legend) the rest off the band was called the Wrecking Crew - Brian was a bass player originally. there is amazing musicality and harmony going in the bass end of things which was pretty unique. one of the biggest impacts on the Beatles that everyone mentions is how it freed up McCarthy to write much more active and melodic bass parts (along with so much else). - Brian as a producer is very much the marriage of Phil Spector and Motown. The density of Spector and the clarity/lushness of Motown - "Pet" sounds refers to Brian's favorite sounds (like a pet project), not an actual pet, tho his pets Banana and Louie do feature at the very end :) Also you mentioned a spot sounded like a good sample. Lushlife took Kanye and mashed him up with a bunch of samples from Pet Sounds. I couldn't find a proper playlist but here's a link to Jesus Walks featuring The Beach Boys :) kzfaq.info/get/bejne/jJyEa9Klm9ORnX0.html

Sloop John B was sort of an odd one out. It's an old folk tune that member Al Jardine suggested they do a cover of and it was released as a single months before they started work on the album and then the record label insisted that they put it on the album since it was their latest single and usually singles go on albums. So what they did was to put it away on it's own on the album sandwiched in between an instrumental and the end of the A-side since it doesn't really fit with the style of the rest of the album. Production wise though it has a lot of similarities and is sort of a precursor to the production of the album itself.

That hook in the outro of “waiting for the day” kills me every time.

This was an incredible reaction. Love this album so much, and currently on another kick. I don't know why it just dawned on me, but this is essentially a Brian Wilson solo album. The other members made almost no contribution to its writing or recording besides vocals. Realizing that, it makes me wonder about what could have been if Brian Wilson had continued to have the creative confidence and inhibitions that were empowering him at the time he made this album. Sadly, the circumstances surrounding the aftermath of this album seemed to conspire to derail the magic he had really tapped into here. There is a lot of Beach Boys magic both before and after Pet Sounds, especially the 70s albums. But it feels like you have to be able to see through the weeds a little bit to get to it, or strip down some other questionable elements to get to it. Brian has always had a whimsical side to him, but sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. That being said, both Carl & Dennis really start to blossom as songwriters in the 70s. Dennis's first solo album is pretty beautiful.

Hey man, It's kind of funny that you didn't like Sloop John B because many of us fans believe it doesn't fit on the album. However, l do love the song. I suggest you get the Pet Sounds Sessions box set and dive in. You won't regret it. If you do, let me know and I will buy it from you. There is so much to learn about the production and I am satisfied you will actually become a Brian Wilson/Beach Boys fan for life if you spend the time listening to the entire box set. I am 69 years old and have been a fan from the beginning. When I got my first copy of Pet Sounds, I only played the three hits . WIBN, GOK, and SJB for a while. Then eventually I started playing the entire album. From then on I always played it start to finish. There was no turning back! Almost every night during my high school years, l would start the record, go to bed and listen, then go to sleep. It didn't take long for me to realize I needed to buy a 2nd copy so I could play the entire album without having to get up after side one ended to flip the record. (Some readers will understand and some won't). I have never grown tired of Pet Sounds, and for me, it is my deserted island record. It has been my favorite album for more than 50 years, bar none. And I have a fairly decent collection of LPs from the sixties and seventies, and Pet Sounds is still the most-played of them all.

"That was pretty cool" is a massive understatement.

The drummer is Hal Blaine, the greatest drummer in the history of pop music, played on many famous songs by the Fifth Dimension, Elvis Presley, Nancy Sinatra, Frank Sinatra, the Byrds, the Righteous Brothers, the Ronettes, the Crystals...

That sound you were wondering about on I Know There's An Answer is a bass harmonica

Love your review of pet sound's

Seeing as you had enjoyed this Beach Boys album and liked the productions so much. There was another album meant to come after this titled "SMiLE". Similar, different, you decide. Anyways the whole story of it is very complicated but long story short it's release date was cancelled from 1967, and only very later released in full form by Brian Wilson himself. Someone else previously had taken the liberty of taking all the original tracks and sounds and all the bits, and combining them into the cohesive album it may have been. Sincerely, Binx Link to album: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/nbqkacmAltzNiWQ.html

"a spooky love circus"❤

Daaaamn you are the first person I've seen who also likes Sloop John B the least! Never got what people liked about that song

"This better be good" ~ God Only Knows plays, musical and auditory perfection my friend

That wasn't a horn on I Know There is an Answer....it is a bass harmonica. Love the french horns and harmonies on God Only Knows....

Love your honesty

I hope you listened to the MONO version as that's the definitive version. The stereo version is an after thought. It was originally recorded in mono.

You should reacts to the first 19 tracks of the Smile Sessions. It’s history is also incredibly interesting.

Drums were studio ace Hal Blaine, who was a father figure to Brian Wilson.

The drummer is Hal Blaine. Iconic member of the Wrecking Crew. He played on over 150 top 10 hits during the 60s and 70s. 40 of them were #1

A note on sloop John B. (since it was your least favorite) it originally was a Caribbean folk song, and I would argue what Brian did with the harmonies on it were nothing short of genius for 1966 (it arguably has the most complex backing vocals of any song on Pet Sounds). Admittedly the song has aged and sounds twee/light in this day and age, but if you listen to say Dick Dale's version of it (1961 I think) and compare (especially if you listen to just the isolated vocal track) you'll see Brian's arrangements shine through.

Speaking in Tongues- Talking heads next while you're already at my favorite lps😭😂

man shiiiiiiit...even the really early beach boys were unreal!!! listen to the surprisingly haunting "When I grow up..."

There is a film out now called long promised road. Bruce springsteen , " there is no greater world in rock and roll than the beach boys. That level of musicianship. I dont think anyones touched it" check it out man. It will change your world. Peace .

the instrument that you asked 'what is taht' during i know there's an answer a bass harmonica. The drummer is Hal Blaine. Brian Wilson's wife was Marilyn Wilsong. Substittute the name Caroline for Marilyn. She had just cut her hair when it was written. Next time you listen to pet sounds, listen to it in the dark wiith just a few or low lights. also have a joint if you smoke, just a week one, not strong. If you do that, you will get totally lost in the insturments, vocals and production.

The arrangements on this album sounds like the maker was insane ! I mean that in a good way. The album is about insanity !

You are obviously a musician I love you

Wonderful reaction. The more you listen to this, the more you hear, and the more you love it. It's an absolutely brilliant album. Brian Wilson was a musical genius. When Brian was sidelined they became a kitchy bad band in the late 70s-90s... the 60s and early 70s stuff, though... really good. Cheers!

cool fact for you on this album. this was one of the first rock albums that really took "recording in sections" to the extreme. Before Pet Sounds, you recorded your part all in one take. Brian's found ways of recording the whole album in tons of sections, LIKE WE ALL DO NOW....

Your pet sounds reaction is the best I have ever heard

"I feel like I want to cry." You and Brian both, dude.

Congratulations. You just listened to one of the best recordings in pop history. It's a grower. It's not a dance album and it's a personal album with no fórmula. It will affect you if you listen and you wont forget it. It's a pity the way this music has to be chopped up for copyright reasons. That's harmoníca on "I know theres an answer". Thank you.

this is a WIN for music

the magic of YT bring me here so happy and enjoy this video about this incredible album intemporal "pet sounds" salute from paris France ! try the "friends"&"20/20" album :) merci ami.

Heard this album for the first time in 1989, after hearing Paul McCartney heap his praises on it for the hundredth time. My Favourite band was The Beatles & I always thought of the Beach Boys as a silly American DooWop Surf band. I was not prepared for the immensity of this album & how it would change everything for me. In short it blew me out of the water. 'Don't Talk, Put Your Head On My Shoulder' is my favourite track; the perfect ecxample illustrating how Brian Wilson invented Symphonic Rock. Pet Sounds is my favourite album of all time. The other great albums in my top 5 are 'Tapestry' by Carol King, 'What's Going On' by Marvin Gay, 'Astral Weeks' by Van Morrison & 'Bookends' by Simon & Garfunkel.

Drummer is Hal Blaine and bass is Carol Kaye two of the best studio musicians of the 60d

"A spooky love circus!" Absolutely!

Drummer: Hal Blaine -- Great reaction btw

You loving 'I Know There's an Answer' makes up for you not liking 'Sloop John B' (a jam!). :)

The french horns in God Only Knows is just beautiful. Sloop John B is maybe my favorite.

So you didn't realize it going in, but you just reacted to one of the greatest albums of all time! What you mainly heard was the genius of Brian Wilson who wrote and arranged all the music while the rest of the band was on tour. He mainly worked with the Wrecking Crew, a group of California session musicians to record the music and then taught the rest of the boys the words and harmonies after the music was complete. You are also right that this record had a huge impact on the Beatles including Paul who called the song "God only knows" the greatest pop song in history. There was a lot of competition back and forth between the two bands in the mid-1960s until Brian had a nervous breakdown. After a long struggle with depression, Brian finally was able to return to making music in the 1990s and ever since. I saw him perform this entire album in concert about 20 years ago and he needed a 26- piece orchestra to make all those "pet sounds." He is truly the Mozart of pop music. As for the Motown influence that was definitely in the air at that time. Check out the Boy's version of the Stevie Wonder classic "I was made to love her" on their Wild Honey album that came out the following year. Good job!

You should probably listen to the instrumental version of this album (sometimes just the amount of vocals pushes the instrumental to the background) if you like the production, then you can listen to the whole thing acapella if you want :P

Do yourself a favor and listen the the vocals only version of Wouldn’t it be nice. It will blow you away!

Crazy that u haven’t heard “god only knows” before!

When you have a chance, watch the movie The Wrecking Crew…a movie about the studio musicians in Los Angeles during the 60s through the early 80s, and all the recordings they played on. It changes one’s perspective on a whole host of bands, including The Beach Boys. And there was a terrific reverence for Brian Wilson’s work amongst the Wrecking Crew musicians.

Sloop John B is a cover song that was never intended for inclusion on this album. It was added at the insistence of the record label who claimed that they couldn't hear any hit singles among the rest of the songs on the album. It just never really fit.

1965. So that's even before Revolver, let alone Pepper.