|
Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Jan 1, 2019 14:16:38 GMT -5
Released in 1979, this album was generally not well received. It does feature the minor hit Good Timin'. L.A.'s reputation has improved over the years, but the disco Here Comes the Night has kept it from being one of the better albums in the band's discography. Attachments:
|
|
|
Post by ian on Jan 3, 2019 10:37:08 GMT -5
It’s ok. A lot of weak songs and not enough Brian. Baby blue is great
|
|
|
Post by E on Jan 3, 2019 11:19:48 GMT -5
Could have been a last hurrah (before TWGMTR) and was, I guess, but it could have been much better. The annoying thing is that there were three or four others that were better than the likes of Sumahama or Shortenin' Bread and at least one of Carl's two dreary ballads.
|
|
|
Post by Bummer In Paradise on Jan 3, 2019 15:18:01 GMT -5
I’ll give it a 6. There are some great songs, like Angel Come Home, Baby Blue and Good Timin’, but also some awful songs like Sumahama and the 11 minute disco version of HCTN that weigh it down a lot.
|
|
|
Post by dant on Jan 4, 2019 10:33:07 GMT -5
I actually enjoyed the 11 minute disco extravaganza! Don’t assume that we all disliked it!
|
|
Departed
Former Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2019 23:21:42 GMT -5
Got around to this one recently. Here are my thoughts. Good Timin' is nice. It's the old Beach Boys harmonies we all love, but it doesn't feel derivative of the old '62 Beach tunes either. My main complaint here is the lack of lyrics besides the chorus repeated ad nauseum. Lady Lynda is perhaps my new favorite post- Love You Beach Boys track. The intro was maybe a bit hokey, but certainly inventive and unexpected. The harmonies are gorgeous and it sounds sincere. Full Sail continues this album's trend of surprisingly inspired and unique arrangements. It maybe could have used a good hook, but it's gorgeous. Angel Come Home is a nice Dennis vocal. This is where the lyrics begin to bother me on this album though. It's too much "eh, just say the title in a new inflection" instead of coming up with a good chorus or hook. Like a lot of their post- Love You tracks, the foundation for a really good song is there, it just needed another rewrite or two. Love Surrounds Me has the broken sincerity of any good mid-to-late 70s Dennis track. The arrangement is still well thought out and purposeful but now it's appropriately scaled back a bit. It gives the song a suitably gentle feeling. Sumahama's intro was beautiful. I was kind of hoping this would be an instrumental, but alas. I loathed those "tell me tell me mama...sumahama" lyrics though. It's typical late-stage Mike cheesiness, completely ill-fitting of the beautiful backing track (not unlike California Girls.) It may sound like a minor complaint, but those lyrics honestly took me out of the song. I'd love to hear an instrumental version of this. And then we flip the vinyl and the entire album goes to hell in a handbasket.
Here Comes The Night... Okay, first of all I want to say I have nothing against disco as a genre. In fact, I love disco music. Not just the well-known stuff like the Bee Gees and Earth Wind & Fire. I love Don Downing, First Choice, MFSB and the more obscure stuff too. " On the Radio" is one of my favorite songs. I love bands like Jamiroquai which were largely inspired by disco. Saturday Night Fever is one of my favorite movies. And for me one of my biggest regrets of being born when I was, is that I never got to go to Studio 54. In high school people made fun of me for my appreciation of this music, but I didn't shy away from it. I owned my love of this sadly unappreciated genre. Now I wanted to make all of that perfectly clear so that when I say HCTN is terrible, you understand it's not a "Disco sucks" thing. In fact, during my research into disco music, I actually learned that this existed and was dying to listen to it. I did (as a standalone, outside the context of this album) and thought it was embarrassing and out of their element. Hearing it again now, in the context of the album, it's even worse because it's so out of place. I wanted to like this track--it's right up my alley. But it's not a good disco tune and it doesn't belong on this album. Its long length only further emphasizes what a drastic halt in the momentum this is. It's not just a speed bump, it's the car breaking down completely. If they wanted to venture into disco (which they shouldn't have, not because it's bad but because it's not them) they should have gone the Holland route and attached a separate EP or something. Or gone all-in and made a full Disco LP. A Tom Moulton mix of HTCN as an extended single. This is just half-assing it though. They're trying to be hip but too afraid to actually follow through with it. As a result, all they accomplished was ruining what had been up to this point a very strong album. After that, there's almost no point in reviewing the rest. The album is dead, at least in terms of flow and cohesiveness. It's a damn shame, because Baby Blue is as gorgeous as what had come on Side 1. Going South is pretty but a little humdrum for me. Shortenin' Bread is fun but also a bit repetitive. I will give this a 7 somewhat out of sympathy, and believe me when I say I wanted to give it a 9 until HCTN ruined it. Besides that infamous misfire, this is a surprisingly well-made album. Some of their most tender production and harmonizing since the 60s. I'm surprised I never heard anyone really talk this album up on the level you see with Today or Holland.
|
|
dumbchops
Dude/Dudette
Posts: 83
Likes: 73
Favorite Album: Sail On Sailor
|
Post by dumbchops on Jan 9, 2019 2:39:52 GMT -5
I agree with the above review but my favorite song is "Baby Blue". "Lady Lynda" is Al Jardine ripping off J. S. Bach's "Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring". The man has trouble writing his own material. I give it a 7 out of 10 and it really is a better album than the one that came before it or the one that followed it probably due to more contributions from Dennis.
|
|
Departed
Former Member
Posts: 0
Likes:
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 9, 2019 11:54:20 GMT -5
LA (Light Album) gets a 6/10 from me. I appreciate its finer points, but I never listen to it as a whole. If Baby Blue and Full Sail could have switched places, Side 1 would have been perfect.
Highlights: Good Timin', Lady Lynda, Love Surrounds Me, Sumahama, Baby Blue
Lowlights: Here Comes the Night, Shortenin' Bread
|
|
|
Post by filledeplage on Jan 9, 2019 12:54:27 GMT -5
HCTN - Among my favorites on that album. Beautiful tracks - from mature adult BB's.
Good Timin' Lady Lynda (Jésu, Joy of Man's Desiring - Bach - just gorgeous) Full Sail Angel Come Home
Baby Blue Goin South (for the winter) HCTN - Changing my grade from 7 to 8 - heavy on Carl leads.
|
|
|
Post by kds on Jan 9, 2019 13:08:24 GMT -5
Seven for me. The Beach Boys went into AC / Yacht Rock territory, and I think it worked. Good Timin, Lady Lynda, Full Sail, Goin South, Angel Come Home, Baby Blue, Sumahama, and Love Surrounds Me are all really solid songs.
Normally, I wouldn't take off three points for two songs, but when one of them takes up 25% of the album, I'll make an exception. HCTN '79, an overlong, disco version of a 1967 song that, IMO wasn't that great anyway. In the late 70s, bands like Kiss, The Stones, and Floyd used disco beats in some of their songs while still retaining their sound. The BB went off the rails and went full on disco. The results are painful to listen to. Shortenin Bread was bound to show up on a BB album eventually.
|
|
|
Post by Jason (The Real Beach Boy) on Mar 28, 2019 11:31:48 GMT -5
8.5. Sure, they went soft rock. They also did it better than many of their contemporaries. A wonderful record and very underrated.
|
|
Hydra
Kahuna
Posts: 222
Likes: 157
|
Post by Hydra on Apr 24, 2020 11:45:30 GMT -5
In my opinion this is the Beach Boys most underrated and overlooked album. Good Timin is easily one of the most beautiful songs that the band ever did, Lady Lynda is amazing, well done Al, Full Sail is gorgeous, Angel Come Home is fantastic and it's brilliant that Carl got Dennis to sing it, Love Surrounds Me is more Dennis brilliance that reminds me of his work on Pacific Ocean Blue, Sumahama is trash, a nice intro but the rest is just garbage, Here Comes The Night was an awful mistake and I always replace it with Constant Companion and California Feelin' which would have been far better additions to the album that this 11 minute piece of trash, luckiky Baby Blue gets us back on track, a beautiful song as one of Dennis's best, Going South is a nice way to end the album but wait then here comes Shortenin Bread for some reason to ruin what could have been the beach boys best album since Surfs Up but unfortunately ruined by 3 shocking songs
Track Ratings
1. Good Timin 10/10 2. Lady Lynda 9/10 3. Full Sail 7/10 4. Angel Come Home 10/10 5. Love Surrounds Me 9/10 6. Sumahama 2/10 7. Here Comes The Night 2/10 8. Baby Blue 10/10 9. Going South 6/10 10. Shortenin Bread 2/10
|
|
|
Post by dauber on Jun 9, 2021 10:39:30 GMT -5
[another of my reviews copied from psf]
To me, this album is a huge dud. My first warning should have been that Maharishial definition of "light" that's in the liner...and that it was (proudly, I assume) recorded on an "Aphex Aural Exciter"...that just sounds....well, about as non-suggestive as the "Love Surrounds Me" postcard on the cover. Eww.
"Good Timin'" -- strong track, enjoyable although repetitive, but still kind of...pedestrian. And too much of a "Surfer Girl" wannabe. I do enjoy it though somehow. And the weird thing about "Good Timin'"....how many of the guys took turns singing lead on this?? Carl on the studio version. Mike on the Easter Seals telethon. Dennis in concert. This was sometimes included in Brian's set list...and I seem to remember even David Marks singing this during the Milwaukee C50 stop! I've never been to a Mike'n'Bruce show, but I'd be dead surprised if Bruce didn't sing lead on this at some point -- basically, everybody but Al, Blondie, and Ricky!
"Lady Lynda" -- this track is sooooo dated. Never, ever liked it. Ever. And I also don't like "Lady Liberty."
"Full Sail" -- sounds like the early '80s fluff I used to hear in my mother's dentist office when I was a little kid. It's too bad. Carl's voice is too beautiful for this boring song....really, he peaked with "Feel Flows."
"Angel Come Home" -- Actually, this is a decent Carl composition, but...nothing special. Blah. Could have been so much better. The production on it is so dated that I'm going to call it "engaged." Nay...."married." Not even dated. Married.
"Love Surrounds Me"-- Sorry, Denny, but...it drags too much. Not nearly as much as "Make It Good," but still....blah.
"Sumahama" -- No. Just....no. (And wasn't it found out from someone who natively speaks Japanese that the Japanese lyrics in this song are bogus??)
"Here Comes The Disco" -- I agree with the fans who say the vocal arrangement is good....in fact, I would go so far as to rank it among some of the best in the catalog...but why, why, why, why, WHY did they have to waste that arrangement on such of a trainwreck of an unnecessary disco remake that came out at the height of the "Disco Sucks" movement?! REALLY?!!? Ughghgh....
"Baby Blue" -- a classic Dennis gem. Heh...ever notice that this and "Good Timin'" are the only Light Album representatives on the Good Vibrations box? Looks to me that even BRI agrees that they're the only decent songs on the album.
"Goin' South" -- just the very first line bores me to a headache. NEXT.
"Shortnin' Bread" -- with all the stuff they have in the vaults and the other stuff that was recorded around the time of the sessions for this album ("Lookin' Down The Coast," anybody?? The original "Santa Ana Winds"?? Hel-looooooo?)...hell, even "Our Team," for God's sake...yet this is what they decide should be on the album. Brian's obsession song [that to this day still creeps its way into Brian's compositions!]...and Brian's NOT EVEN ON THE THING?!?
I rated this a 2.
|
|
|
Post by Awesoman on Apr 26, 2022 7:50:29 GMT -5
I think I once commented over on the Smiley board that had they combined all the best tracks from this album and KTSA and omitted the worst ones, you might have yourself a "not bad" album. Mix the ballads on here like "Good Timin'", "Baby Blue" and "Love Surrounds Me" with the livelier songs on the follow-up album like "KTSA", "Goin' On" and even the guilty pleasure that is "Some of Your Love" and I think the whole album would be stronger in execution. I went and made a playlist of what that might sound like: music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTW0vj0JZx5oE0ZwbtL43aKXRYhi7YOxN&feature=shareWhat do you all think?
|
|
|
Post by drbeachboy (Dirk) on Apr 26, 2022 9:43:01 GMT -5
I think I once commented over on the Smiley board that had they combined all the best tracks from this album and KTSA and omitted the worst ones, you might have yourself a "not bad" album. Mix the ballads on here like "Good Timin'", "Baby Blue" and "Love Surrounds Me" with the livelier songs on the follow-up album like "KTSA", "Goin' On" and even the guilty pleasure that is "Some of Your Love" and I think the whole album would be stronger in execution. I went and made a playlist of what that might sound like: music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTW0vj0JZx5oE0ZwbtL43aKXRYhi7YOxN&feature=shareWhat do you all think? I only have two changes. I am not a fan of Sunshine and would rather replace it with the single edit of Here Comes The Night. I would also remove Livin’ With A Heartache and add Oh Darlin’.
|
|
|
Post by boogieboarder on Apr 26, 2022 10:30:15 GMT -5
With Sunflower, Surf's Up, Carl and the Passions, and Holland - we got a mix of Brian Wilson songs and songs from the other members of the band. Then after the Brian's Back campaign, we got mostly Brian songs, with all the weak vocals and quirkiness.
Then Brian was sick again, and the rest of the band had to pick up the slack. It was nice, actually, to get some new Dennis songs, Carl songs, and a Mike Love song. But, to honor their new contract by having (I forget exactly what) percentage of Brian Wilson songs on the album, they dredge up "Good Timin'" and "Shortnin' Bread from older rejected and/or unfinished sessions, and the disco "Here Comes the Night," which was actually started as a non-Beach Boys recording.
It never really happened again - where we got a wonderful Beach Boys album featuring excellent new Brian Wilson, Carl Wilson, Dennis Wilson, Al Jardine, and Mike Love written songs. It could have.
|
|
|
Post by E on Apr 26, 2022 12:10:46 GMT -5
Must admit that I've always liked most of LA and think it's their best album between Love You and Radio - by some distance. That doesn't mean I see it on a par with Sunflower or anything like that, but there are four or five good songs and I think they're of a better quality than the four or five good songs on 85, and most of the others aren't too bad. I draw a line at the length of Here Comes the Night. I don't think it works terribly well anyhow - it's not as good as Miss You which was written for the genre but still sounds like the Stones. This sounds forced (in fact, I think Brian and Mike's Matchpoint comes off much better as disco-lite). The other song I don't like on the album is Shortenin' Bread - and it goes on too long, though thankfully not for 10:51. I did try an alternate LA using tacks that were being worked on (though not necessarily finished) at the time and cheated somewhat to include It's a Beautiful Day and Don't Fight the Sea. I think I re-did this at some point to get rid of at least the latter track, but I can't remember what I added. I did try a combo of MIU, LA and KTSA in the classic 12 track mode: 1. It’s Beautiful Day 2. Goin’ On 3. Love Surrounds Me 4. Santa Ana Winds 5. My Diane 6. Winter Symphony 1. Keepin’ The Summer Alive 2. Angel Come Home 3. Good Timin’ 4. Baby Blue 5. Pitter Patter 6. Winds of Change
|
|
|
Post by Awesoman on Jul 15, 2022 8:04:46 GMT -5
It would seem that most of the band's albums from the 70's (including the good albums) all suffered from rather dry, unremarkable production. Were these albums being mixed in a desert somewhere? Some of the weaker material might have benefited from better mixing. This is one of the few albums from that era where the production and mixing sound pretty competent, even though much of the material from this album was pretty average.
I'd love to hear some of their other albums be treated to a "wetter" mix; might inject some life into those songs. Despite the contentions some fans have had with the new mixes in recent Beach Boys' releases, I'm curious to hear how the next box set will sound when dealing with two of the band's most dry-sounding albums they ever recorded.
|
|
|
Post by tomtomplayboy on Jul 16, 2022 15:50:45 GMT -5
A generous 8/10 from me.
The good stuff on LA Light Album is often sublime. Good Timin' is two minutes of harmony heaven: as a song it's pure fluff, but it sounds absolutely gorgeous, and it's so short that I never grow tired of listening to it. And Baby Blue is quite possibly the single greatest ballad Dennis Wilson ever wrote, and I say that as a huge fan of Dennis's songwriting. It's sheer perfection.
Also very good indeed is Angel Come Home, which is a decent song elevated to greatness by Dennis's heartfelt lead vocal. It was a masterstroke of Carl's to have his brother sing lead. Love Surrounds Me is another strong Dennis track, a little overproduced in places, but hugely effective nonetheless. And I've always had a lot of time for both Lady Lynda (the 'ooh lady, won't you lie lady' section at the end is particularly fine) and Carl's Full Sail. I can understand why some find the latter to be boring, but personally I find it pleasantly relaxing. It really captures the mood of being out at sea on calm waters.
Of the rest of the album, I really don't mind Sumahama. Yes, it's cheesy, and Mike singing in Japanese wasn't a very good idea, but it sounds nice, especially the instrumental break, and the melody is rather lovely. Goin' South, though, is pretty dull. A few nice moments, but not really my cup of tea.
Shortenin' Bread - it's good fun, but the (still unreleased) Adult/Child version with the Spring backing track is much, much better.
Which only leaves Here Comes the Night. I don't mind a bit of disco, and HCTN isn't bad for a first attempt at the genre, but a) it's about three times as long as it ought to be, and b) it is wildly out of place on LA Light Album. It just doesn't fit with its surroundings at all, and having it arrive slap-bang in the middle of the album only compounds the problem. I dread to think of the number of listeners who missed out on hearing Baby Blue because they stopped the record when HCTN started pounding out of their stereo for eleven momentum-murdering minutes.
In an ideal world, HCTN would have been a standalone single, and LA would have included an extra three or four tracks in its place, whether more from Bambu or First Love (It's Not Too Late, Love Remember Me and Viggie would all have fit well with the LA vibe), or perhaps California Feelin', Lookin' Down the Coast or the original (and best) version of Santa Ana Winds.
|
|
|
Post by boogieboarder on Jul 16, 2022 23:03:54 GMT -5
[Here Comes the Night] just doesn't fit with its surroundings at all, and having it arrive slap-bang in the middle of the album only compounds the problem. I dread to think of the number of listeners who missed out on hearing Baby Blue because they stopped the record when HCTN started pounding out of their stereo for eleven momentum-murdering minutes. Before the CD and streaming era, you would have the album on vinyl. Side one would end with Sumahama, and so “Here Comes the Night” wouldn’t arrive unless you got up, turned over the record, and deliberately put the stylus down at the beginning of side two. You could easily skip it. The CD era ended the separation and distinction between sides 1 and 2 of albums, and many, many CDs do not have an attractive segue between the last song of side one and the first song of side two.
|
|
Moon Dawg Vol II
Grommet
Formerly known as "Moon Dawg"
Posts: 49
Likes: 61
Favorite Album: Surf's Up
|
Post by Moon Dawg Vol II on Sept 10, 2022 14:34:17 GMT -5
Anyone ever hear the "Angel Come Home" cover by Mick Fleetwood's Zoo? THAT is how the song was meant to be done, in my opinion. I believe the sprightly tempo is an improvement. Don't get me wrong, it's a fine Carl Wilson effort with an affecting lead by Dennis, but the Mick Fleetwood bests The Beach Boys. My two cents anyway.
As for LA as whole, The Beach Boys go yacht rock with generally decent results. Despite its chilly reception from both critics and the public, there are some quality moments on this record. The band did make an error or two in sequencing and track selection, putting LA about two steps away from being a really good album.
|
|
|
Post by Awesoman on Sept 13, 2022 7:23:03 GMT -5
Anyone ever hear the "Angel Come Home" cover by Mick Fleetwood's Zoo? THAT is how the song was meant to be done, in my opinion. I believe the sprightly tempo is an improvement. Don't get me wrong, it's a fine Carl Wilson effort with an affecting lead by Dennis, but the Mick Fleetwood bests The Beach Boys. My two cents anyway. As for LA as whole, The Beach Boys go yacht rock with generally decent results. Despite its chilly reception from both critics and the public, there are some quality moments on this record. The band did make an error or two in sequencing and track selection, putting LA about two steps away from being a really good album. "Yacht Rock". Never thought of it that way but it's an absolutely accurate term to describe the whole album. And here's said Mick Fleetwood's cover of "Angel Come Home": music.youtube.com/watch?v=g0C0gJu_j3E&feature=share
|
|
|
Post by lonelysummer on Sept 13, 2022 23:20:39 GMT -5
Anyone ever hear the "Angel Come Home" cover by Mick Fleetwood's Zoo? THAT is how the song was meant to be done, in my opinion. I believe the sprightly tempo is an improvement. Don't get me wrong, it's a fine Carl Wilson effort with an affecting lead by Dennis, but the Mick Fleetwood bests The Beach Boys. My two cents anyway. As for LA as whole, The Beach Boys go yacht rock with generally decent results. Despite its chilly reception from both critics and the public, there are some quality moments on this record. The band did make an error or two in sequencing and track selection, putting LA about two steps away from being a really good album. "Yacht Rock". Never thought of it that way but it's an absolutely accurate term to describe the whole album. And here's said Mick Fleetwood's cover of "Angel Come Home": music.youtube.com/watch?v=g0C0gJu_j3E&feature=shareThat's a great version of Angel. I recall hearing that on the radio back in 1984, should have been a hit.
|
|
Moon Dawg Vol II
Grommet
Formerly known as "Moon Dawg"
Posts: 49
Likes: 61
Favorite Album: Surf's Up
|
Post by Moon Dawg Vol II on Sept 18, 2022 19:28:44 GMT -5
"It's A Beautiful Day" was recorded about June 1979. Let's imagine the band had held back L.A. a few months and come up with the following LP, circa July 1979:
Side 1 It's A Beautiful Day Good Timin' Lady Lynda Full Sail Love Surrounds Me Sumahama Side 2 Here Comes the Night Angel Come Home Baby Blue California Feeling Shortenin' Bread
It's a similar album but in my view somewhat better. We get a slight uptick in Brian Wilson content and Mike Love vocal presence re his co-lead on It's A Beautiful Day. In addition, the sequencing of side one is a bit better without two Dennis leads in a row, IMO.
6 minute edit for Here Comes the Night.
LA (LIGHT ALBUM) is a record that has grown somewhat in stature over the years, but it is not an unjustly ignored masterpiece. It was always about two steps away from being a good album and to my ears the above puts it over the hump.
|
|
|
Post by E on Sept 19, 2022 4:13:59 GMT -5
I'd rather go whole hog and imagine they finished Lookin' Down the Coast and Santa Ana Winds - and recorded Country Pie, since they were doing it live around then
|
|