Album Of the Day... Really?

Codemunkee

Shared on Tue, 06/23/2009 - 07:17

I use Metacritic a lot to get tipped off on new music that I normally wouldn't hear (I like a lot of different genres). Pandora works for music that sounds like something else, but Metacritic is my main source.

Anyway, their highest rated album of all time is a three way tie between Loretta Lynn (and I'm NOT listening to that, I don't care how high it's rated, this guy does not do country), Led Zeppelin's "How The West Was Won", and this album, by Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys.

http://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/wilsonbrian/smile?q=Brian%20Wilson

The first review calls it "The greatest triumph in the history of pop music". Others call it "groundbreaking", compare it to Sgt. Pepper, the most important album in the last 30 years, yada yada yada... So of course I had to give it a listen.

And I still don't get it. Nope. But maybe you will, or you do, and you can drop some science on this appparent musical Luddite. I mean, it's not bad, and I read the story behind the album and it's pretty amazing, but maybe it's because I'm not a musician that I can't pick up on how that story has been passed into the music.

  1. "Our Prayer/Gee" (Brian Wilson/William Davis and Morris Levy) - 2:09
  2. "Heroes and Villains" - 4:53
  3. "Roll Plymouth Rock" - 3:48
  4. "Barnyard" - 0:58
  5. "Old Master Painter/You Are My Sunshine" (Haven Gillespie and Beasley Smith/Jimmie Davis) - 1:04
  6. "Cabin Essence" - 3:27
  7. "Wonderful" - 2:07
  8. "Song for Children" - 2:16
  9. "Child Is Father of the Man" - 2:18
  10. "Surf's Up" - 4:07
  11. "I'm in Great Shape/I Wanna Be Around/Workshop" (Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks/Johnny Mercer and Sadie Vimmerstedt/Brian Wilson) - 1:56
  12. "Vega-Tables" - 2:19
  13. "On a Holiday" - 2:36
  14. "Wind Chimes" - 2:54
  15. "Mrs. O'Leary's Cow" (Brian Wilson) - 2:27
  16. "In Blue Hawaii" - 3:00
  17. "Good Vibrations" (Tony Asher, Mike Love, and Brian Wilson) - 4:36

Comments

rumbagod's picture
Submitted by rumbagod on Tue, 06/23/2009 - 08:37
i've got a friend who's an absolute beach boys fan and he thinks this rivals sgt pepper's (he's also a diehard beatles fan).......i think it's meh at best, poppy it is but doesn't do a whole heck of a lot for me

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