43. Pet Sounds - The Beach Boys.

This one is perplexing. The album was ranked as the second greatest album of all time. Number 2! I was expecting to be blown away. I had been looking forward to this listen, and since I was only familiar with a couple of the tracks, I figured that it would be filled with new treasures to be discovered. I am once again going to assume that the high ranking is based on the context of the album, as opposed to the content. The level of disappointment I felt on first listen led to a reluctance to familiarize myself with the album. As such it has been months since the last post. Sorry about that! Bob Dylan derailed me a while back as well, but we bounced back from that too.

 I love the song "Wouldn't It Be Nice", but I am thrown off by the second track, which continues the trend of using varied sounds and instruments, and inexplicably throws in a beeping horn at the end. It seems to be done just for the effect of creating a new sound, which at the time may have been mind blowing, but seems a little irritating to me. The lyrics seem to continue in the vein of wistful love songs from the malt shop. It is a continuation of what we heard on "Today". It is a recurring theme, and I suppose it is a nice sentiment. I stick to the idea that it is a glimpse into a simpler time.

 A standout track is "Sloop John B". It has the requisite harmonies and musicianship. And "God Only Knows" is a good example of the groundbreaking production ideas used on the album with layers of vocals and instruments, and a complex arrangement to the song. This is where the album's strength lies. The album represents a step forward in terms of production technique and song structure. Along with the aforementioned trend to use multiple and diverse instruments, this album must have stood out in its day as something very special.

 Wait! I have something positive to say! The second last track, "Pet Sounds" is very interesting; it is an instrumental, and to date seems to have gotten lost in the rest of the album during my attempts to listen to it. It has a Latin beat with the instruments layered, interesting percussion, and horns throughout. This track just grabbed my attention and is by far my favourite on the album. It is exactly the sort of thing I was hoping to hear. Perhaps if I were to listen more attentively, I would get more out of this record, but I'm pretty much going to put this one to bed as soon as I finish typing.

 The album finishes with another saccharine song and some dogs barking as a train goes past. I can see why this is an important album, and I suppose I would have liked it a lot more, if only I hadn't been expecting so much from it.  I don't agree that it is the second best album ever, but that is my opinion only. Give it a listen and see if you can glean some of the magic that I am apparently missing.


Buy it here.

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