Customer Reviews

Beach Boys Complete

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A musician capable of plugging in the holes will find this songbook useful, but it will be frustrating as well. It isn't a good research tool. Songs are missing. Sections of songs are missing. Some songs are in the wrong keys. Songs are in the wrong time signature. In one case -- "Don't Worry Baby" -- the authors of later discarded lyrics are credited for writing Roger Christian's originals. Those of us who study such things could use a good comprehensive songbook of Brian Wilson's body of work, but also of the key collaborative songs. This aint' it.

This book stinks. First, it lies--of the several hundred Beach Boys songs written, it covers perhaps 30. Second, the selection is awful--it includes songs I've never heard of, while excluding masterpieces like "God Only Knows," "Heroes and Villains," and "You Still Believe in Me." It acts as if "Pet Sounds" and everything following never happened. Third, its harmonies are often flat wrong (check out "Catch a Wave" and prepare to be horrified). Fourth, it ignores all vocal parts except the melody, even the most obvious echo lines. Fifth, there's a picture of "the Beach Boys" on the cover, and Brian isn't included--enough said! This is a book for grandmothers who want to plunk at the piano in the parlor and sing "Surfer Girl" to themselves.