Is “God Only Knows” the best song from The Beach Boys?

Love this song, OP. Great choice.

Listen and weep, motherfuckers!

Paul McCartney said this is the “perfect” song. Quite a compliment from him to them.

I was going to say the same ting, R3--Paul McCartney worships that song....

Only song I can tolerate by them.

It is their only good one IMO.

They have two good songs.

“God Only Knows” and “Sloop John B”.

I like Michael Stipe and Mandy Moore's version.

California Girls is the absolute best...God Only Knows is great though.

The “promo film” of Sloop John B.

I always preferred "Help Me, Rhonda" and "Fun, Fun, Fun."

I like ONJ's version

Who is the blonde one, front right... he is hot.

Yes OP.

Good Vibrations is my fave.

I like Cabinessesnce and Heroes and Villains.

YES! The only show i watched for years but never fast forwarded through the intros even though I had seen them dozens of was “Big Love”.

The first song I ever remember hearing as a child was "Surfin' USA", so it's a sentimental favorite for me. "Don't Worry Baby" was another great one.

The Beach Boys had four No. 1 songs in their career: I Get Around, Help Me Rhonda, Good Vibrations and Kokomo.

The whole of Pet Sounds is great. Full of good songs. I’ve always loved I’m Waiting For The Day. Plus Woudn’t It Be Nice, I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times. They’re all good. Pet Sounds pre-dated and inspired The Beatles to make Sgt. Pepper’s, kids. Don’t be stupid.

Does anyone know why God Only Knows was considered to be controversial? What did Christians object to about it?

Why yes! Yes, I believe it is!

In my opinion, yes, OP, it is. With Don't Worry Baby as a runner up.

I'm partial to "Don't Worry Baby."

[quote] YES! The only show i watched for years but never fast forwarded through the intros even though I had seen them dozens of was “Big Love”.

Me too. Great song for a great opening title sequence. And Bill Paxton is hot as fuck.

R5, the remastered version of Sail on Sailor is a thousand times better - it doesn't sound like it was recorded through a sock.

I like a lot of their songs even the throwaways like Girl Don’t Tell Me and She’s Not The Little Girl I Once Knew.

[quote]Is “God Only Knows” the best song from The Beach Boys?

Nope. It's "Don't Worry Baby", followed by "Caroline, No".

This is a great version

Now that you mention it, OP, it probably is their best song and the only I really love. Not a fan of “Don’t Worry, Baby.” Do enjoy some of the light-hearted beachy stuff such as Good Vibrations, California Girls, and Fun, Fun, Fun.

I’m an elder gay but not quite elder enough to remember the days when the Beach Boys’ songs were new and airing on the radio for the first time, so can’t help you out there.

Only ONE I really love, duh.

I fucking hate the Beach Boys. I mean, I REALLY hate the Beach Boys.

I grew up in San Diego, in a beach community, in the 70's, and every summer, like clockwork, all those stupid surfing songs were everywhere. You couldn't escape them. Surfin' USA, I Get Around, Little Deuce Coupe, Good Vibrations, Fun Fun Fun, Be True to Your School, Catch a Wave, California Girls, Sloop John B, Wouldn't it Be Nice...ugh. Just, no. And then they would throw in some Jan and Dean, those two-bit Beach Boy imitators who sounded just like them.

And there was just this attitude like we were all just expected to love them, like we loved the beach itself and the sun and the sand and the waves. Fuck them.

I was really shocked, and a little horrified, when I grew up and realized they were actually thought of as this super important, respected, legendary band.

Having said that, there are a few of their songs that don't make me want to vomit. I think the melody of "Surfer Girl" is really pretty...it's a shame about the lyrics, though. "In My Room" is nice. I don't mind "Sail On Sailor". "I Can Hear Music" is OK, mainly because they didn't write it. They did a song called "Good Timing" later in their career that was basically a re-write of "Surfer Girl", so I didn't mind that one. And I can now recognize the artistic achievement of "Good Vibrations", even though I still tend to lump it in with all the other stuff I grew up hating as a kid. Ditto "Heroes and Villains".

I don't ever remember hearing "Help Me Rhonda" or "Don't Worry Baby" at that time. I first heard the hit cover versions by Johnny Rivers and B.J. Thomas, and then learned later they were originally Beach Boys songs. I still prefer both of those cover versions to the originals.

It kinda drives me nuts that everybody loves the Beach Boys so much, while I loathe them with the heat of a thousand suns. I guess at some level that means everybody else is probably right and I'm probably wrong, which frustrates me even more.

In any case, I recently came across a podcast called "The Worst Song on Earth", where 3 guys spend an entire episode trashing a particular song...and it gave me immense satisfaction when they chose "Sloop John B" as one of their "honorees". It filled me black little heart with glee to FINALLY hear some other people shitting on the Beach Boys. I needed to know I wasn't alone in the universe on this.

R6 and R7 are pretentious twats

"Warmth of the Sun" is about as beautiful as a song can get.

Love that song.

I grew up listening to The Beach Boys, my dad had those weird 8-track cartridges. He was an immigrant from a tiny rural European village and he embraced The Beach Boys as quintessentially American (he loved Willie Nelson, too). He also played music from his homeland; lively accordions and yodeling. He was conflicted, as many immigrants are, with love for America and loyalty to their roots.

God Only Knows is the only Beach Boys song I've ever liked. I know Brian Wilson is considered a musical genius and I can't argue with that knowing nothing about music itself only what I like or don't like.

I love 'Wouldn't It Be Nice?" It evokes all the excitement, hope, and joy of being young.

R35

R34 Here. I forgot about Wouldn't It Be Nice - that is another Beach Boy goodie.

R30 sorry but you were a huge outlier in an iconic era in an iconic location

I like the very underrated song “ lonely sea” by them.

[quote] I’m an elder gay but not quite elder enough to remember the days when the Beach Boys’ songs were new and airing on the radio for the first time, so can’t help you out there.

Well I AM old enough to remember when those songs and I loved them all.

Sorry R30, but this Californian (San Francisco) has nothing but fond memories of listening to Beach Boys songs on KYA and taking trips to Santa Cruz, seeing all those hunky surfer boys, and watching Frankie and Annette movies at the drive-in during endless summers.

Life seemed so much more optimistic back then (although a recent watching of WHERE THE BOS ARE revealed how dark that movie was).

No wonder my first boyfriend was a blond-hair, blue-eyed, California surfer type.

[quote] Well I AM old enough to remember when those songs and I loved them all.

s/b " Well I AM old enough to remember when those songs were new and I loved them all.

It’s great but I am partial to Heroes and Villains.

Surprisingly their 2012 album "That's Why God Made the Radio" is quite good.

[quote]Who is the blonde one, front right... he is hot.

R13, that's Al Jardine.

In the 70s, it became tradition amongst a group of us to see the Beach Boys in concert, as they were one of the first acts to open up the outdoor concert season each year.

Besides "God Only Knows" I also love "Warmth of the Sun".

[quote] In the 70s, it became tradition amongst a group of us to see the Beach Boys in concert, as they were one of the first acts to open up the outdoor concert season each year.

Day On The Green, Oakland Coliseum, May 24, 1975!

[quote] Were they huge while out in real time or did they become bigger years later with their legacy?

Are you trolling, OP?

This song was used to great effect in Boogie Nights and it kind of resurrected it. Even Rolling Stone listed bear the top of the greatest pop hots of all time . I think it was number one. A classic, beautiful song.

The Beach Boys are my favorite group. I'm of that age where I heard each and every one of their singles come out on the radio in the the 1960s. And I bought all the albums. My very favorite Beach Boys song is "Heroes and Villains," and everything that flows from it on the album SMiLe.

I love "God Only Knows," but my favorite song from Pet Sounds is "You Still Believe in Me," with its 16-"ahhh" chorus.

The only Beach Boys songs I dislike are "California Girls" and "Barbara Ann." I'm tired of "Wouldn't It Be Nice?" and "Sloop John B."

After SMiLe and Pet Sounds, my favorite Beach Boys albums are The Beach Boys Today and Summer Days, (and Summer Nights). And any album that contains "Don't Worry, Baby."

As a teenager growing up in the Midwest, I couldn't relate to the BBs surfing sound.

But like R22, I do like "Don't Worry, Baby," ironically because it sounds so "California surfing."

[quote] It kinda drives me nuts that everybody loves the Beach Boys so much, while I loathe them with the heat of a thousand suns.

Familiarity breeds contempt, r30, or it can, at least. I can see why you might hate Beach Boys given your circumstances and I'll bet there are others from your beach community who feel the same.

One of my HS teachers loved them. They were her favorite band her whole life.

I swear, they’re all she listened to.

Love that song. Went to a concert of theirs once and was shocked by how many great songs they came out with. "Don't Worry, Baby" is one of my favorites. Something about it is so romantic and hits me in the heart every time.

Of all people, Joey Heatherton did a nice cover of this.

Heroes and Villains

"Wouldn't It Be Nice" was used to very haunting effect at the end of "Shampoo".

I remember it from Boogie Nights, too. After all that happened to these characters, playing that song sort of gave them hope.

Love many of their songs. My family had a home at the shore, when young, and their music was part of my life there. I think I like many songs on "Pet Sounds"...Good Vibrations is one I love. Brian Wilson is so talented..probably a genius. Even the Beatles took note of their music.

Just watched the video you posted, r27. Fabulous.

Yes, I totally agree. The whole album is brilliant.

They were huge on the West Coast

Horrible release - it sounds like they were recording it on a bus and the bus stopped short.

R60, the mono recording is better than the later stereo recording.

The greatest piece of music Brian Wilson composed. The absolute pinnacle is baroque pop.

Love their harmonies..

I hate it. So mawkish and cringey. A low-self-esteem anthem, too.

[quote]They were huge on the West Coast

And in the NYC tri-state area, especially in New Jersey, where a lot of kids went surfing.

This is the best song on Pet Sounds as far as I'm concerned

It really is, r66.

Here's the live version from Brian's Pet Sounds tour, sometime in this century. If the link doesn't take you there automatically, go to 4:50.

"Wouldn't It Be Nice"

"Good Vibrations"

“Wouldn’t It Be Nice” is one of the saddest, most heartbreaking songs ever written. You can draw a direct line between Brian Wilson and Ian Curtis of Joy Division.

For those who love Don’t Worry Baby, this version is my favorite. I think the song was actually written for her.

Yes, OP, it is a PERFECT song.

Feel Flows is also great.

"I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" is a personal favorite.

How about Forever sung by Dennis?

Yes.

I’ve always liked the Claudine Longet version.

I really kind of hated them when I was younger, mainly because I was in high school when that abysmal “Kokomo” came out. I hated it then and now, but all my friends loved it. I was into REM, The Smiths, The Cure, etc...I was so “edgy” haha...I even went with some friends to see Beach Boys in concert. I just got high. All I remember about it is John Stamos was the drummer.

I’ve rediscovered a lot of their music and have an appreciation for it now. GOK is far and away my favorite, but “Wouldn’t it Be Nice” is right up there.

Just heard this song and I forgot how much I love it!

"The Little Girl I Once Knew"

"She Knows Me Too Well"

I really like this version from BBC music with 1. Dave Grohl / 2. Alison Balsom / 3. Lorde / 4. Pharrell Williams / 5. Zane Lowe / 6. Sam Smith / 7. Paloma Faith / 8. Eliza Carthy / 9. Nicola Benedetti / 10. Chris Martin / 11. Jaz Dhami / 12. Martin James Bartlett / 13. Danielle de Niese / 14. Stevie Wonder / 15. Florence Welch / 16. Lauren Laverne / 17. Brian Wilson / 18. Jake Bugg / 19. Katie Derham / 20. Gareth Malone / 21. Kylie Minogue / 22. Chrissie Hynde / 23. One Direction / 24. Emeli Sandé / 25. Elton John / 26. Baaba Maal / 27. Ethan Johns / 28. Jools Holland / 29. Jamie Cullum / 30. Brian May / 31. Tees Valley Youth Choir / 32. BBC Concert Orchestra

Brian wrote "Don't Hurt My Little Sister" hoping the Ronettes would record it. Phil Spector wouldn't let it happen.

"Don't Worry Baby" with "God Only Knows" at its heels.

My favorite is "Heroes and Villains"

What do you all think of "Love and Mercy", the movie about Brian Wilson?

Anyway, it took me a very long time to appreciate the Beach Boys, as of course I'm going to be resistant to any group whose primary subjects seemed to be surfing, girls, and cars, particularly as the whole Frankie-and-Annette fluffy beach culture thing was desperately out of date by the time I was old enough to have a clue about anything. But their later works are spectacular, even to an adult with sophisticated tastes, it's a pity they flamed out when they did. But that's how you get to be a legend, the band died young even if the members didn't.

Men who sing falsetto are creepy.

I was a teen in the 60s in LA and they were huge back then starting in around 1963. Most of their early music was surfing music Their later music was so much better, especially pet sounds. God only knows is one of my favorites but The Warmth of the Sun is my favorite. Brian Wilson was one of my friend's cousins but I never met any of them.

The lyrics are terrible, but the song “Darlin’” makes me happy.

I also like GOK, DWB, Heroes and Villains, Good Vibrations. They were very popular when I was growing up and were one of the first groups I recall having “music videos” or animated films to go with their songs. I’ve seen them in concert several times, it was like a summer tradition for my friend group. Yet if you asked me to name my top 50 musical artists I would probably not think of them. It’s strange but they’re a presence in my life that I’ve taken for granted. They really are very good.

Those of you who like "Heroes & Villains"—r88 r84 r53 r47 r41 r16 at the very least—owe it to yourselves to become familiar with the SMILE album it was originally supposed to be released on.

I loved the song when I first heard it on AM radio in 1967, but had no idea it was the cornerstone of this larger work until the 5-CD box set GOOD VIBRATIONS was released in 1993. It starts with "Heroes and Villains" and expands upon it musically and thematically. I couldn't stop playing the 30 minute sequence on disc 2 of that box set.

It quickly became one of my favorite pieces of music; I like SMILE even more than Pet Sounds.