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Post by Mr. Explorer on Dec 28, 2018 6:16:34 GMT -5
Why not get this section of the forum up and running? Discussion questions: 1. This is an album I've only dove into recently in anticipation of the 1968 copyright sets, what's your history with it? 2. Favorite and least favorite songs? 3. It can (probably) be agreed on that this is an uneven album, or at the very least a poorly sequenced one. What would you change to make it better in your eyes? Attachments:
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Post by drbeachboy (Dirk) on Dec 28, 2018 6:48:45 GMT -5
I bought 20/20 about a year after release in 1970. One of the first Beach Boys albums that I bought. And of course, I bought the 8-Track, as that was the big medium of the time.
Favorites: Do It Again, I Can Hear Music, Time To Get Alone, Cabinessence
Least Favorite: The Nearest Faraway Place (I don’t dislike it)
I like the variation of music types. I never messed with the sequencing. I like it as it is.
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Post by Malc on Dec 28, 2018 8:02:02 GMT -5
One of my favourite albums, having discovered it mid-70s during my early forays with the band, despite the mixture of praise and criticism it gets amongst the community. The only down side for me has always been Mike's lead on All I Want To Do - especially after now hearing what DW brought to the song. Other than that... a great collection, and if it wasn't sequenced the way it is it just wouldn't sound right to me now...
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Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2018 9:28:12 GMT -5
I had always planned on doing the album polls on PSF as a rainy day kind of thing but never got around to it. No time like the present and a blank slate to get started.
1. I devoured 20/20 very much like I did the other BB's albums - as a new fan in 2015, I started from the beginning and listened to them in the order they were released except for one anomaly - I listened to the Smile Sessions after Smiley Smile, which might have been a critical mistake in terms of how I heard the rest of the catalogue. Had I not done that, 20/20 might have impressed me more with the inclusion of Our Prayer and Cabinessence.
2. Favorites: I Went to Sleep, Time to Get Alone, Never Learn Not to Love, Cabinessence. Least Favourites: The Nearest Faraway Place, Bluebirds Over the Mountain, All I Want To Do.
I actually think All I Want to Do is a really rockin' song - the Live in London bonus version kicks ass, and the Dennis vocal ones on the 1968 copyright extension set do too. But the studio version on 20/20 doesn't cut the mustard.
I feel very middle of the road about Do It Again and I Can Hear Music. They're good, and they both have their moments that floor me. Pretty much every Beach Boys song does have that moment, even their least good songs (I don't want to say "worst", LOL) seem to have that one magical thing about them.
3. This is definitely an uneven album that feels like a patchwork stitched together by people with disjointed visions. Maybe this should go in the Hot Takes thread, but Our Prayer and Cabinessence are so out of place on it that I feel like the album would have been better without them. They just don't belong or make sense there, even if they are among the best individual pieces on it. What would I put on in their place? Well, if We're Together Again and A Time to Live in Dreams were ready to go, those are both no-brainers to me. Of course, then that means the world doesn't get to hear Our Prayer and Cabinessence until later, which would be a shame.
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Post by kds on Dec 28, 2018 10:33:12 GMT -5
Funny how a collection of Smile songs, Friends outtakes, singles, a cover, and a collaboration with a madman resulted in one of The Beach Boys most consistently good albums.
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Post by drbeachboy (Dirk) on Dec 28, 2018 10:56:29 GMT -5
I guess I need to re-listen to the Dennis takes of All I Want To Do. To me, the song or arrangement didn't fit Dennis' vocal style, nor did either rock out. I'll assume that is why Mike wound up doing the lead.
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Post by nach0king on Dec 28, 2018 11:07:18 GMT -5
Funny how a collection of Smile songs, Friends outtakes, singles, a cover, and a collaboration with a madman resulted in one of The Beach Boys most consistently good albums. Couldn't have put it better myself. It's a bizarre stew of an album and that's precisely why it's my favorite.
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Post by Wicked Lester on Dec 28, 2018 11:09:43 GMT -5
I guess I need to re-listen to the Dennis takes of All I Want To Do. To me, the song or arrangement didn't fit Dennis' vocal style, nor did either rock out. I'll assume that is why Mike wound up doing the lead. I wish Mike had sung in that kind of style more often.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2018 15:48:09 GMT -5
Funny how a collection of Smile songs, Friends outtakes, singles, a cover, and a collaboration with a madman resulted in one of The Beach Boys most consistently good albums. Couldn't have put it better myself. It's a bizarre stew of an album and that's precisely why it's my favorite. I think this is a testament to the musicianship of the group...it didn’t matter what ‘take’ or ‘direction’ or ‘style du jour’ the band was seeking out, they were always capable of making great music. Whether it was surf rock, chamber pop, psychedelic, rock, etc. they were musicians through and through and capable of entertaining people with their songs
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dumbchops
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Favorite Album: Sail On Sailor
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20/20
Dec 28, 2018 19:26:19 GMT -5
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Post by dumbchops on Dec 28, 2018 19:26:19 GMT -5
I bought this 2-fer with Friends back in 2000 and is in my top 10 favorite BB albums. I like the variety of songs and I'm so used to the song order that I couldn't begin to change it. If I had to pick a favorite and least favorite song on it, "Cabinessence" would be my favorite and "Bluebirds Over the Mountain" would be my least favorite. Over all, I personally enjoy Friends slightly more but if I were taking a poll, I would give this album a 9 without hesitation. Friends would be a 10 because it's such an easy listen. By the way, is it just me or doesn't 20/20 sound way better sound quality wise than Friends? They were both recorded in the same year by the same engineer. Very puzzling.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2018 19:34:15 GMT -5
20/20 is what I consider to be a middling album. Well, maybe an upper-middling album. It's not among my favorites, but it's nowhere near the bottom of my list.
It's got some notable high points, namely the beginning and end. Do It Again, I Can Hear Music, Bluebirds, and Be With Me make a great starter with a run of really good songs (yes, I've always liked Bluebirds, and I like it even more without the guitar noodling!). But the album does sag somewhat in the middle from All I Want to Do to Cottonfields. Cottonfields is a great song, but I always felt like this version was fairly lackluster.
Then the album picks back up with I Went to Sleep and enjoys a nice run through to Cabinessence.
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Post by maestrodavros on Dec 28, 2018 22:14:43 GMT -5
One of the many surprises of the recent 1968 sets was it made me reevaluate 20/20, and I found myself gaining a greater appreciation for it.
It definitely is the awkward middle child between the Brian-led home spun "Friends" and the group powered "Sunflower" but that gives it a charm. Compared to either it's a much darker album akin to "Surf's Up" and showcases Dennis beginning to blossom as a songwriter in his own right. But, that said, it does feel more like a compilation than a proper album, although the "I Can Hear Music" set gives a better context to the era the album was made than the album itself does.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2018 11:01:36 GMT -5
One of the many surprises of the recent 1968 sets was it made me reevaluate 20/20, and I found myself gaining a greater appreciation for it. It definitely is the awkward middle child between the Brian-led home spun "Friends" and the group powered "Sunflower" but that gives it a charm. Compared to either it's a much darker album akin to "Surf's Up" and showcases Dennis beginning to blossom as a songwriter in his own right. But, that said, it does feel more like a compilation than a proper album, although the "I Can Hear Music" set gives a better context to the era the album was made than the album itself does. Agreed on all points. The '68 has shed light on a number of things. However I don't know if I could honestly say it gives me a greater appreciation for 20/20 itself. It certainly gives me a greater appreciation for the individual songs (especially a few I previously didn't care for). All I Want to Do takes a whole new life with Dennis singing. They should have gone with that one. I've been playing around with assembling an "Alternate 20/20" and I'm coming to the conclusion that there's virtually no way to not make it sound like a comp.
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Post by drbeachboy (Dirk) on Dec 29, 2018 11:18:31 GMT -5
I have never understood the compilation tag thing some folks like you place on this album. When it was released in 1969, not one song was released on another previous album.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2018 12:40:55 GMT -5
I have never understood the compilation tag thing some folks like you place on this album. When it was released in 1969, not one song was released on another previous album. But.....singles. And although not previously released, Our Prayer, Cabinessence, and I Went To Sleep were compiled from earlier projects.
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Post by drbeachboy (Dirk) on Dec 29, 2018 12:52:52 GMT -5
I have never understood the compilation tag thing some folks like you place on this album. When it was released in 1969, not one song was released on another previous album. But.....singles. And although not previously released, Our Prayer, Cabinessence, and I Went To Sleep were compiled from earlier projects. But nobody knew that in 1969 when the album was released. When I bought the album in 1970, it would be at least another year before I had any idea that Our Prayer and Cabinessence were from some aborted album called Smile. Until very recently I did not know anything about I Went To Sleep. I also did not know that Time To Get Alone was from the Redwood project that Brian had worked on. When it was released, it was a spanking new album with never before heard songs. So, is Pet Sounds a compilation because In My Childhood and I’m Waiting For The Day were possibly written for other projects in 1964 and 1965? How about Sunflower?
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Post by Beach Boys Fan on Dec 29, 2018 20:54:03 GMT -5
I checked AIWTD with Dennis lead to compare with Mike lead - Dennis sings it better to these ears but, I still dislike this song, alongside TNFP. Still, 20/20 is cool. "Cabinessence" is definitely positively favorite.
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Post by filledeplage on Dec 30, 2018 14:13:18 GMT -5
But.....singles. And although not previously released, Our Prayer, Cabinessence, and I Went To Sleep were compiled from earlier projects. But nobody knew that in 1969 when the album was released. When I bought the album in 1970, it would be at least another year before I had any idea that Our Prayer and Cabinessence were from some aborted album called Smile. Until very recently I did not know anything about I Went To Sleep. I also did not know that Time To Get Alone was from the Redwood project that Brian had worked on. When it was released, it was a spanking new album with never before heard songs. So, is Pet Sounds a compilation because In My Childhood and I’m Waiting For The Day were possibly written for other projects in 1964 and 1965? How about Sunflower? Exactly - I bought it hot-off-the-press, and Dr. BB is correct. No one knew that there was stuff from Smile. Definitely not a comp. I loved 20/20. It was what I think of as one of the more "confident" albums.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 30, 2018 14:59:30 GMT -5
But.....singles. And although not previously released, Our Prayer, Cabinessence, and I Went To Sleep were compiled from earlier projects. But nobody knew that in 1969 when the album was released. When I bought the album in 1970, it would be at least another year before I had any idea that Our Prayer and Cabinessence were from some aborted album called Smile. Until very recently I did not know anything about I Went To Sleep. I also did not know that Time To Get Alone was from the Redwood project that Brian had worked on. When it was released, it was a spanking new album with never before heard songs. So, is Pet Sounds a compilation because In My Childhood and I’m Waiting For The Day were possibly written for other projects in 1964 and 1965? How about Sunflower? I understand what you're saying, and you're absolutely right. In no way could 20/20 be considered an actual comp. So why is there a somewhat general perception of it being so? Well my statement above was only a partial explanation. It's also possibly due to the fact that there's seemingly little continuity among the songs. Starting with Pet Sounds, BBs album had a theme where all the songs belonged to the same "family" (although it could be argued that some of the earlier albums were also this way). Pet Sounds was Wall of Sound teenage musings, Smiley Smile was (mostly) low-fi psychedelia, Wild Honey was R & B, and Friends was lounge-style feel good tunes. 20/20 really had no theme. And that's certainly not a bad thing. The emphasis was on individual songs again. I see it as sort of their own Get Back in a way.
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Post by filledeplage on Dec 31, 2018 9:18:42 GMT -5
But nobody knew that in 1969 when the album was released. When I bought the album in 1970, it would be at least another year before I had any idea that Our Prayer and Cabinessence were from some aborted album called Smile. Until very recently I did not know anything about I Went To Sleep. I also did not know that Time To Get Alone was from the Redwood project that Brian had worked on. When it was released, it was a spanking new album with never before heard songs. So, is Pet Sounds a compilation because In My Childhood and I’m Waiting For The Day were possibly written for other projects in 1964 and 1965? How about Sunflower? I understand what you're saying, and you're absolutely right. In no way could 20/20 be considered an actual comp. So why is there a somewhat general perception of it being so? Well my statement above was only a partial explanation. It's also possibly due to the fact that there's seemingly little continuity among the songs. Starting with Pet Sounds, BBs album had a theme where all the songs belonged to the same "family" (although it could be argued that some of the earlier albums were also this way). Pet Sounds was Wall of Sound teenage musings, Smiley Smile was (mostly) low-fi psychedelia, Wild Honey was R & B, and Friends was lounge-style feel good tunes. 20/20 really had no theme. And that's certainly not a bad thing. The emphasis was on individual songs again. I see it as sort of their own Get Back in a way. Probably eclectic or no general theme but does not stunt it's value. Enjoying 20/20 and WildHoney so much, when they were released just makes the new 2018 releases all the more delicious.
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20/20
Dec 31, 2018 12:44:59 GMT -5
Post by kds on Dec 31, 2018 12:44:59 GMT -5
Speaking of 20/20, if the Beach Boys or Brian Wilson don't do a 20/20 themed tour in 2020 (366 days away), that's a missed opportunity.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 1, 2019 20:29:04 GMT -5
Just added my ranking - 7/10. I'd have given it 7.5 if I could.
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Post by E on Jan 13, 2019 5:16:43 GMT -5
Love: Our Prayer, Cabinessence, Time to Get Alone, Do It Again, Cotton Fields, Be With Me Less keen on Bluebirds, All I Want To Do and Nearest Faraway Place, but there's nothing I don't like on this album.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 15, 2019 1:59:14 GMT -5
I give 20/20 a 7.
It's a pretty good album despite being a general mishmash of what they had lying around. It's a good blend of Friends' mellowness and Wild Honey's happy energy. Unfortunately, some of the tracks are obviously not related to the others. The singles stand out to me, and while it must have been exciting at the time, the SMiLE stuff does too. It's like Surf's Up, the appeal at the time was great, but now that we actually have SMiLE these tracks sound very out of place with this new material. Cabin Essence is one of my favorite Beach Boys tracks, but it's not a closer; when this album ended I found myself expecting something else to come after.
My favorite tracks are Be With Me, All I Wanna Do and Nearest Faraway Place. I thought the last was a genuine Brian instrumental until I saw the credit on wikipedia. Why does no one mention this song when talking about Bruce?
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20/20
Jan 15, 2019 3:12:44 GMT -5
Post by Deleted on Jan 15, 2019 3:12:44 GMT -5
My favorite tracks are Be With Me, All I Wanna Do and Nearest Faraway Place. I thought the last was a genuine Brian instrumental until I saw the credit on wikipedia. Why does no one mention this song when talking about Bruce?Good point. It has a definite Pet Sounds influence but the ambience is all Bruce. I always imagine a Disneyesque townscape at night with snowflakes falling when I hear it.
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