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Post by The Cincinnati Kid on Jan 1, 2019 15:00:52 GMT -5
A victim of The Beach Boys' poor reputation in the US, Sunflower only reached #151 when it was released in 1970. Today, many consider it their best album after Pet Sounds. Attachments:
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Post by Bummer In Paradise on Jan 1, 2019 22:38:01 GMT -5
I think I'll give it a 9. It's one of my top 5 favorite Beach Boys albums, but IMO it's weighed down by Tears In The Morning.
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Post by kds on Jan 2, 2019 0:41:09 GMT -5
A nine. I think Sunflower is the best example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. In my mind, there are only three real standout tracks - This Whole World (which should've been album opener and lead single IMO), Forever, and All I Wanna Do. The rest of the album maintains a certain level of quality and consistency.
My one gripe is that I think Cool Cool Water is a plodder once you get past the really good vocal intro, and provides a very anticlimatic closer.
Also, I'd have liked a lead from Brian or Al somewhere instead of three Bruce leads.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 2, 2019 2:44:54 GMT -5
Pet Sounds is a great album by Brian Wilson plus the Beach Boys, and it couldn't get any better because it's perfect.
Sunflower is a great album by the Beach Boys as a band, but it could get even better with different song selection.
Both deserves 10/10.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 2, 2019 9:06:21 GMT -5
A nine. I think Sunflower is the best example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. In my mind, there are only three real standout tracks - This Whole World (which should've been album opener and lead single IMO), Forever, and All I Wanna Do. The rest of the album maintains a certain level of quality and consistency. My one gripe is that I think Cool Cool Water is a plodder once you get past the really good vocal intro, and provides a very anticlimatic closer. Also, I'd have liked a lead from Brian or Al somewhere instead of three Bruce leads. Agree with all of this. 3 top-notch classics, many more great songs (our sweet love, at my window come to mind). Cool cool water probably would have worked better in the middle of the album. The bruce tracks are nice production-wise though leave a bit to be desired in terms of lyrics and vocals. Overall, a 9/10. It's between this and Today! for the runner-up to Pet Sounds in my opinion.
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Post by Beach Boys Fan on Jan 2, 2019 9:27:38 GMT -5
7. It tells listeners about individual bandmates' talents, differences. As usual, "lead vocalists trading lines" songs appreciated, glad they used it in this album. CCW is in amongst the best examinations of the Beach Boys being stellar at building, singing harmonies, utilizing their voices to perfection.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 3, 2019 10:27:09 GMT -5
I can’t give Sunflower anything less than a 10. It’s a perfect album, in my opinion. Even the moments that I “don’t like” are still… perfect. I don’t really know how to explain it, LOL. It’s so well balanced, a real showcase of the massive amount of talent that runs through the entire band. Even the songs that I like the “least” (Tears in the Morning, Our Sweet Love) are faultless, I can’t find anything wrong with them. They’re just simply not my taste. Despite this, I never skip anything when I’m listening to Sunflower. The whole album hangs together like a dream.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2019 14:03:38 GMT -5
I give it a 7. Their best "post-Brian" album, and their best album working as a team. The really great albums before this were debatably Brian solo projects featuring the Boys. The two really great albums after it were sans Brian (who did his own thing on the EP) and, again, a Brian Wilson solo project featuring the Boys. Still, its a testament to his genius that while they other guys were doing their best to write some of their own stuff and fill the void, Brian (again, debatably) topped them all without half trying by taking an old SMiLE related fragment out of the vaults and polishing it up.
Speaking of CCW...it's pretty good but I prefer the Smiley/Wild Honey Era versions more. Those had a lot more punch to them, and with verse lyrics and a fade those could have been top tier tracks back in the day. Not a big fan of the new lyrics here by Mike. I will say tho, that this is my favorite case of a SMiLE related piece being tacked onto an unrelated album--in fact it's the only time I don't consider that a detriment. Every other instance that comes to mind, they stick out like a sore thumb as a) having nothing to do with the material surrounding them and/or b) being ridiculously better than anything else on said album and/or c) They're still unfinished...and sound like it.
As for the other stuff...I actually like Tears in the Morning. Dennis gets some really great stuff in, and showed that he could (and should have) been the one to step in as band leader to fill Brian's shoes. Im not sure if he withheld many of his own tracks out of subconscious self-sabotage, insecurity or he always wanted to go solo even then. But it would have been a fundamentally different, happier story had he not done so and led the way for the group in the 70s.
There's no noticeable stinkers here like on sister-album Surf's Up, which was dragged down by Feet and SDT. No self-conscious attempts to be cool either, just the group being themselves and writing their own music. I appreciate that. There's a nice aesthetic and it mostly fits together. No annoying TM-related songs.
All the same though...I find this a little overrated. There's no big standout tracks to me except MAYBE Forever. It's not something I listen to frequently, like Pet Sounds, SMiLE, Love You or even Holland. It's just kind of there. On subsequent listens I found myself less interested even than before. It's solid, but I can understand why this wasn't a big seller and didn't save their reputation.
I absolutely hate the title and cover. It's just so random, Sunflower, and I think another name might have boosted sales. Maybe naming it after Forever? Or if you're just gonna name it after generic summery imagery, why not call it Sand Castles? Or Orange Groves? IDK. And the cover is just tacky and vaguely creepy. Too much white space, and while I know showing them with kids was meant as a "we've grown up!" message...it just strikes me as ill fitting. I don't wanna picture a bunch of bearded daddies when I listen to my music. Weird thing to get hung up on I know, but again I think the lousy cover probably hurt sales. The last couple albums in a row all had really nice cover art too, and while I personally don't care for it, many like the cover of Surf's Up. It just makes this stand out all the more.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 6, 2019 16:29:55 GMT -5
I absolutely hate the title and cover. It's just so random, Sunflower, and I think another name might have boosted sales. Maybe naming it after Forever? Or if you're just gonna name it after generic summery imagery, why not call it Sand Castles? Or Orange Groves? IDK. And the cover is just tacky and vaguely creepy. Too much white space, and while I know showing them with kids was meant as a "we've grown up!" message...it just strikes me as ill fitting. I don't wanna picture a bunch of bearded daddies when I listen to my music. Weird thing to get hung up on I know, but again I think the lousy cover probably hurt sales. The last couple albums in a row all had really nice cover art too, and while I personally don't care for it, many like the cover of Surf's Up. It just makes this stand out all the more. I agree on both counts. The title Sunflower is quite generic. And on top of that, it has nothing to do with the beach and maybe just a little to do with summer. Do you think the prototype title "Add Some Music" would have faired any better? As for the cover, yes they could have done much better there. I find it odd that my top favorite Beach Boys albums have some of the worst covers (except for Wild Honey, which is perfect!).
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Post by Jason (The Real Beach Boy) on Mar 28, 2019 11:45:12 GMT -5
10, and only because I can't rate it higher. The other best album they ever made. Everyone firing on all cylinders. So much greatness and it only gets better with each listen. The album that made me the fan I am today.
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Post by Hydra on Apr 24, 2020 23:20:46 GMT -5
The second best Beach Boys album, full of amazing tunes. Not a bad song on this album, really shows off how far the others have come, especially Dennis who also had other songs hanging around that didn't make the album that were also fantastic like Lady and San Miguel. Best songs on the album are All I Wanna Do, Slip On Through, This Whole World, don't really know how to review this one it's just a fantastic masterpiece of an album.
Track Ratings
1. Slip On Through 10/10 2. This Whole World 10/10 3. Add Some Music To Your Day 9/10 4. Got To Know The Women 7/10 5. Dierdre 8/10 6. Its About Time 9/10 7. Tears In The Morning 9/10 8. Forever 10/10 9. All I Wanna Do 10/10 10. Our Sweet Love 10/10 11. At My Window 8/10 12. Cool Cool Water 10/10
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Post by Maci Eascra on Nov 12, 2022 16:45:40 GMT -5
A nine. I think Sunflower is the best example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. In my mind, there are only three real standout tracks - This Whole World (which should've been album opener and lead single IMO), Forever, and All I Wanna Do. The rest of the album maintains a certain level of quality and consistency. My one gripe is that I think Cool Cool Water is a plodder once you get past the really good vocal intro, and provides a very anticlimatic closer. Also, I'd have liked a lead from Brian or Al somewhere instead of three Bruce leads. I think that's the perfect phrase for Sunflower...."the whole being greater than the sum of its parts." It's a pop album, great harmonies drawn out by the song and production, and they had to be both baffled and disheartened that it couldn't find an audience. Brian is really leaning in here, but this is a true product of the entire band, and like most Beach Boys albums, there is even greater potential when looked at in hindsight. Perhaps it's that album lacked that clear hit, but the quality and depth of the product as a whole is really impressive.
For me, Forever is "the" Dennis Beach Boys song. No offense to John Stamos. Bruce gets a showcase here, a bit too much, and Tears in the Morning is a weak track (replace that with Good Time, for example, and the album is even better). Slip on Through and This Whole World always strike me as being cut off and worthy of a bit more time, literally, in the song. I think All I Wanna Do is arguably Mike's best vocal work and a great example of early chill-pop, and they Feel Flows compilation shows they had some solid work in reserve. It's really a quality album, just lacking that one track that would be a lead single, and perhaps it just came at a time when the lack of edge on Sunflower just wasn't as appreciated. That's a shame and it's a great piece of work.
When a band's peak is Pet Sounds, well, everything will pale in comparison. That might be true here, but as an overlooked and even forgotten album, damn, this is good. 9/10
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Post by Awesoman on Feb 15, 2023 10:01:01 GMT -5
𝑆𝑢𝑛𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 probably wins the award for being the band's best collaborative effort with maybe only receiving competition from 𝑆𝑢𝑟𝑓'𝑠 𝑈𝑝 in that regard. While some songs are definitely better than others, this is still a pretty uniformly strong album from start to finish. It's definitely a product of its time capturing that "groovy" early 70's pop sound but by no means does it sound dated.
And it's here where Dennis Wilson's songwriting efforts really took form providing the band with a solid album opener with "Slip On Through". And "Forever" is to the Beach Boys what "Something" was to the Beatles (even if the latter song is a far more well known song). Even if Brian was in a downward spiral at this point he still could deliver some high quality material including "Add Some Music", "All I Wanna Do", "Our Sweet Love" and one of my all-time favorites, "This Whole World". And the album closes nicely with the somewhat experimental 𝑆𝑀𝑖𝐿𝐸 rewrite track "Cool Cool Water". The album stumbles just a tad with "At My Window" and Bruce's somewhat whiny "Tears In The Morning", but even those tracks aren't necessarily bad.
It's just a shame that one of the group's strongest efforts was pretty much ignored when it first came out but I'm glad to see it get more attention and respect over the years. Definitely an essential album to own if you're a fan of the band.
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Post by boogieboarder on Feb 15, 2023 12:29:35 GMT -5
There's a whopping five songs on Sunflower I don't care for at all. But I still rated the album a 9, because the other seven songs are some of the best Beach Boys songs ever recorded. Here's the songs I really, really love.
This Whole World Add Some Music To Your Day Forever All I Wanna Do Our Sweet Love At My Window Cool Cool Water
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Post by radiokingdom on Mar 12, 2023 12:59:45 GMT -5
Slip On Through - 8 This Whole World - 8 Add Some Music - 5 Got to Know the Woman - 6 Deirdre - 5 It's About Time - 7 Tears in the Morning - 5 All I Wanna Do - 10 Forever - 9 Our Sweet Love - 8 At My Window - 9 Cool Cool Water - 10
Each song ranked from 1 to 10, according to my taste.
A couple lowish scores (I have never cared for the Bruce songs, no offense to Bruce at all), sure. But this is relative to the other tracks on Sunflower.
To me, All I Wanna Do is the top, basically untoppable track in its own realm. CCW is below that, but still a 10.
I've never liked Add Some Music, although I can hear that it's a cool tune and cool vocal arrangement.
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Post by jk on Mar 13, 2023 8:46:58 GMT -5
Slip On Through - 8 This Whole World - 8 Add Some Music - 5 Got to Know the Woman - 6 Deirdre - 5 It's About Time - 7 Tears in the Morning - 5 All I Wanna Do - 10 Forever - 9 Our Sweet Love - 8 At My Window - 9 Cool Cool Water - 10 Each song ranked from 1 to 10, according to my taste. A couple lowish scores (I have never cared for the Bruce songs, no offense to Bruce at all), sure. But this is relative to the other tracks on Sunflower. To me, All I Wanna Do is the top, basically untoppable track in its own realm. CCW is below that, but still a 10. I've never liked Add Some Music, although I can hear that it's a cool tune and cool vocal arrangement. Ha yes. This!!
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