The Beach Boys Pet Sounds: The Greatest Album
of the Twentieth Century (Kingsley Abbott)
Earcandy:
Although a "simple" objective, it is
also a large bill to fill. When it comes to the PET SOUNDS album,
expectations are high. To be thorough, you've got to have a
"before, during and after" in regards to PET SOUNDS.
Abbott gives the reader a concise, 19 page "intro"
which covers the biography of the Wilson's and a history of
the Beach Boys leading up to the album. But, what about the
“during and after” of PET SOUNDS?
Unfortunately, when it comes to the “during”,
Kingley Abbott is a little too concise when it comes to such
chapters as: "the writing of Pet Sounds" (a mere 10
pages), "instrumental tracks" (18 pages), "vocal
sessions (8 pages) and "the finished album" (10 pages).
I expected a little bit more in these sections, because part
of the allure of PET SOUNDS is "how and why it happened"!
For example, when I saw Brian perform Pet Sounds live, he explained
that he wrote "Pet Sounds" with a James Bond film
in mind. This piqued my curiosity as I wanted to find more about
this little fact. Did "Let's Go Away For Awhile" originally
have vocals? If so, why weren't they used? Maybe I expected
more of a song-by-song analysis. However, "the album arrives"
gives a fascinating account of how the album was recieved in
both America and England.
One of the best parts of the book is its coverage
of the post-PET SOUNDS Brian Wilson. Brian's released (as well
as unreleased) solo albums, the release of the PET SOUNDS SESSION
box set, the PET SOUNDS symphonic tour and the 2001 TNT Tribute
to Brian Wilson show are all covered. This book preceded the
recent PET SOUNDS LIVE CD, since as it was going to press, Brian's
London dates had just been announced for January of 2002.
The author also talks about the wealth of written
testaments that he received on PET SOUNDS. Thankfully, he doesn't
go overboard and list testament after testament. He lists both
the well known and the best-stated tributes. I found a few of
the appendix sections very interesting and a few I found superfluous
to the book. There are very cool sections on the Theremin and
the chart history of the album. I found the "covers of
Pet Sounds songs" and "Pet Sounds influenced works"
to be a little bit tedious. Also, the entire song order of the
PET SOUNDS SESSIONS box set is listed in appendix 4....but why?!
Despite my few complaints about the content, I
still feel the book is vital to Beach Boys fans. But what about
just the casual rock 'n roll fan? For this person, I would first
recommend David Leaf's excellent "The Beach Boys and the
California Myth" as a great intro to the Beach Boys. All
in all, “THE BEACH BOYS PET SOUNDS: THE GREATEST ALBUM
OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY” balances between being a loving
tribute, historical essay and collection of interesting factoids.
It succeeds in its premise, providing at entertaining book on
PET SOUNDS, which the Beach Boys fanatic will enjoy. My recommendation?
Read this book while listening on the headphones to the PET
SOUNDS SESSIONS box set!
