Cabin Essence Blog

When I first went on the internet and connected up with Brian and Beach Boys related goodies, one of the hot debates was whether Brian really wanted this song on Pet Sounds. There were lots of reasons given on both sides of the debate, but here’s a reality - Sloop John B is on Pet Sounds, including the versions Brian has done in concert.

Having said that, it is my least favorite track on Pet Sounds, but that is also like saying mint chocolate is my least favorite type of chocolate – I would still eat it in a snap! The strength of the track is the powerful harmonies and the showcasing of the band’s vocal prowess -what is also interesting is that it ties in with SMiLE and That Lucky Old Sun in using traditional/historical songs as an integral part of a major original work. And while the track may be seen as an “entertainment”, there is a definite sense of alienation and not fitting in that almost foreshadows the latter part of Pet Sounds.

When I first bought Pet Sounds on it’s reputation (being a Beatles fan, and only knowing the hit songs from that album), the first “new song” that really struck me was this instrumental -the ending immediately struck me and made me realise that the album’s reputation was more than justified. Brian has often said that this is one of his great pieces of music, and the scale and ambition of what he wanted to put together was extremely ambitious, and fortunately, very succesful.

The power here is creating pictures in words – you may hear something different -but for me there is the bustle of every day life, the tranquility of escape and then the excitement of “getting away” in the three sections of the piece -the last section is one of the most wonderful pieces of music that I know, where there is so much going on, but it all fits together. If your first impression is that the instrumentals on Pet Sounds are filler, think again -they are core to what this album is about.

Brian’s hoarding of songs is not a recent thing- I’m Waiting For The Day is actually a 1964 Brian Wilson/Mike Love composition that was resurrected for Pet Sounds. Brian’s judgment was spot on in that this fits in completely, but it also shows the important role the other Beach Boys had in this album.

I’m Waiting For The Day fits into the first half of Pet Sounds unshakeable belief in the power of romantic love. There is an acknowledgement of time needed for healing and the imperfection of unreciprocated feelings, but a belief that true love and romance will triumph in the end -note also the sense of patience and caring in the singer’s tone, rather than bravado and arrogance. All this is backed up with the wonderful changes of pace, production and harmonies that make the entire album compelling.

One of the genius aspects of Pet Sounds is Brian’s ability to create deep emotion through music alone. And although Tony Asher’s evocative lyric creates the mood of deep emotion through physical intimacy, the song is all about things that go beyond words -hence the centerpiece being Brian’s aching vocal and the throbbing bass heartbeat. At a superficial level, we know that Brian’s basslines were hugely influential on the Beatles, but here there is even more than that -the use of music to express the highest order of romantic love.

Emotionally, this is the high of the album – even God Only Knows has an element of doubt, but on this song, there is an element of perfection that may be attainable only in a few special moments, but the song leaves no doubt that it is attainable. A wonderful coda to the impact of the song was the way that Brian was able to bring it off around forty years later when he did this song in his Pet Sounds shows.