Pop Kulcher

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Member Since: 7/1/2002
Total Mixes: 376
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Hold On, Dear Brother: The Ultimate Beach Boys, Volume Three (1970-1977)

Artist Song
Beach Boys  Add Some Music To Your Day 
Beach Boys  This Whole World 
Beach Boys  Forever 
Beach Boys  All I Wanna Do 
Beach Boys  Our Sweet Love 
Beach Boys  I Just Got My Pay 
Beach Boys  Loop De Loop 
Beach Boys  Feel Flows 
Beach Boys  'Til I Die 
Beach Boys  Surf's Up 
Beach Boys  You Need A Mess Of Help To Stand Alone 
Beach Boys  Marcella 
Beach Boys  Hold On Dear Brother 
Beach Boys  All This Is That 
Beach Boys  Sail On, Sailor 
Beach Boys  California Saga/Big Sur 
Beach Boys  California Saga/Beaks of Eagles 
Beach Boys  California Saga/California 
Beach Boys  The Trader 
Beach Boys  Fairy Tale Music (excerpts) 
Beach Boys  It's OK 
Beach Boys  Had To Phone Ya 
Beach Boys  That Same Song 
Beach Boys  Johnny Carson 
Beach Boys  Good Time 
Beach Boys  The Night Was So Young 

Comment:

Hot on the heels of volumes one and two comes our third and final volume tracing the evolution of one of America's finest and most significant bands. Here we find the relevance and innovation of the band on the serious decline, with troubled genius Brian Wilson stepping even further into the shadows than he had in the late 70's. (The exception being 1977's Love You, the final album captured here, where Brian makes a significant return, though I find it vastly overrated and nowhere near the stunning return to glory touted by revisionist fans). Though the decade found the moments of true greatness few and far between, there are still plenty of "pretty good" songs, and even the weaker or less noteworthy tunes still featured the trademark harmonies that could make even the worst songs shine. Tracks range from retro attempts at recapturing the 60s (i.e. "I Just Got My Pay") to sad but ok indicators of the blandness that would characterize their post-77 work (i.e. "That Same Song") to the truly bizarre (i.e. Brian's ridiculous "Fairy Tale" suite). There were some noteworthy singles (i.e. "Sail On, Sailor") aided by some temporary new members; and a few more epic works (i.e. Smile leftover "Surf's Up," "The Trader"). The era may best be summed up by Mike Love's "California Saga," which has some dippy nature-loving lyrics but is still full of some of the best hooks they'd written in years -- I even included the middle section ("Beaks of Eagles"), which consists of a horrid, horrid narrated poem, interspersed with perhaps the catchiest chorus of the entire decade.
Anyway, undoubtedly the least significant of the three mixes (and I didn't even bother with anything post-1977), but in some ways the most interesting given the increased reliance on multiple songwriters and the absence of overplayed radio standards.
image for mix

Feedback:

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mahdishain
Date: 7/20/2007
other than sail on, sailor i know none of this. perhaps worth investigating.
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Mark Petruccelli
Date: 7/20/2007
Just picked up Sunflower / Surf's Up and, while its spotty, there's still alot to like from that era. Nice Trilogy.
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sphere
Date: 7/20/2007
Nice finish to a great collection. I always had a strange fondness for the quirky Love You album.
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Rob Conroy
Date: 7/20/2007
This is well-done, overall. I just don't understand your apparent aversion to Dennis' work ("Cuddle Up," "Slip on Through," "Make It Good" and "Baby Blue" are certainly near the top of my list of post-'69 tracks).
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Pop Kulcher
Date: 7/20/2007
I was torn on the Dennis stuff, Rob. I think, on its own merits, it's not bad -- maybe not something that would stand out if he wasn't associated with the Beach Boys, but pleasant enough in an early 70s singer-songwriter way. But I view much of it as stylistically different than the stuff the rest of the band wrote -- slower, and less often infused with the harmonies and musical flourishes that salvaged their later-period work. So I didn't work much of it in here; that said, a truly great Dennis Wilson-themed disc could be compiled. Oh, wait -- you've already done that! (Fine mix, that one...)
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doowad
Date: 7/20/2007
What, no Kokomo? ;-)

This is a very interesting period. The Mike Love-Brian Wilson relationship is so similar to the Robbie Robertson-Levon Helm relationship. Mike and Robbie did their very best to piss on the other side, who represent the heart and soul of their respective groups. Also of note is the obvious financial/physical health contrast in each pair today. Of course, this is not to disparage anything Rick, Richard, Garth, Dennis, Carl or Alan brought to their respective groups.
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sammyg123
Date: 7/20/2007
A wonderful 3Cd set. 15 stars from me. Actually, this could be my favourite of the three. If I had to take just one with me to a desert island it would probably have to be vol2. But Forever, Til I Die, Feel Flows and Mess Of Help are some of my all time fave Beach Boys tracks.
Unsure on the last dozen or so tracks on this, though I'm sure I own the Cds they come from, they've just never made it as far as my player.... Oh, and I love Kokomo :)
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The Misfit
Date: 7/20/2007
This is an amazing set. I don't know as much of the later stuff, though.
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Moe
Date: 7/22/2007
Fantastic trilogy PK! Excellent liner notes too. Quite a few songs I don't recognize either, so perhaps it could be part of a future trade, along with the forst two volumes. Sail on, sail on, sailor.
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Salman1
Date: 7/23/2007
Wonderful endeavor. I think a lot of there early 70s tracks and albums are underrated. I like practically all of your inclusions on this disc. Nice work.