Was "Be With Me" Pet Sounds worthy?*

Do you think it would've made a great addition to Pet Sounds? (If it was recorded in 1965-1966 prior to the completion of the album.)


It certainly fits in more than Sloop John B.

 

Well...

It's not from the right era, for starters.

And, I think Sloop John B is a smashing song, arrangement, and production, not to mention a great side closer.

No dis intended to Be With Me, which shares all the same accolades as Sloop. (Except side closer)

Now, Little Girl I Once Knew - if only!

 

No, it is not. Nice arrangement, but it's a sorta simple composition with not much of a melody and the lyrics wouldn't fit in.
I do like it, though, and I think it fits in perfectly on 20/20.

 

"Sloop John B" fits in just fine on Pet Sounds. "Be With Me" is a nice song but not a fit at all.

Pet Sounds is entirely arrangements by Brian. "Be With Me" is Dennis.

 

Agree completely.

 

Great song, but… Had Dennis even written a song by 1966? Pet Sounds would have had to have been put on hold (a la Smile) for 'Be With Me' to be included on it.

 

The earliest song I know by Dennis is "I Don't Know", recorded during the making of Smile in early January of 1967.
So, maybe he wrote a song in 1966.

 

Produced by Dennis, arranged by Van McCoy.

 

I believe Denny's first composition was Little Bird in 1968, with Brian and Stephen Kalinich. The arrangement is largely based on Brian's "Child Is Father Of The Man".

 

Nothing to do with Pet Sounds or even the Beach Boys, but this classic #1 from 1974 was the best song they never did!

 

I always thought Let Him Run Wild would be a great replacement for Sloop John B.

 

It's not 15 Big Ones-worthy.

 

C'mon Guys!!

 

C'mon what? It's a good early Dennis song that has nothing to do with Pet Sounds. It's right where it belongs on 20/20.

 

I am going with no. It fits in nicely with that era of the Beach Boys it's already in. It's Pet Sounding for sure, but it's more of a homage to that album. I suppose had Dennis written it that early and let Brian produce it, then yeah... but it'd be different and I'm sure Brian would have worked wonders with it. I like it as it is though.

 

While we're at it, let's replace "God Only Knows" with "Kokomo".

 

What's with this no Sloop John B on Pet Sounds that exists in this forum world? It's theme fits in with Pet Sounds. It's an adventure the narrator goes on, but he doesn't seem to find happiness or himself. The song doesn't have a happy ending or anything... I strongly maintain Sloop John B is as essential as That's Not Me or Caroline No.

 

"Let Him Run Wild" sounds like a Pet Sounds track, the arrangement has that same sense of accomplished eccentricity. "Be With Me" might have fit on Friends, but I don't think it's strong enough to really matter one way or the other.

 

Not to second guess Brian, but in retrospect, Sloop would have fit in comfortably well on Summer Days and LHRW likewise on Sounds. Don't know when Sloop was recorded, though.

 

According to the notes in The Pet Sounds Sessions, the backing track for Sloop John B was recorded 12th July 1965 (about a week after Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) was released) and the vocals and a guitar overdub were recorded towards the end of December.

 

Noooooo!!!!! Don't ever mess with Pet Sounds! It's purrrfect! The boys are feeding goats on the cover and when you take out that magic disc and press play it's like being taken to heaven for a little while for a look around.

 

Is or is not Pet Sounds a concept album? That's always been a debatable point. I'm not sure myself, but if it is conceptual, "Sloop John B" doesn't fit the concept (Of course, it was the label execs' decision to include it to hook the album with a hit single) and "Be with Me" would have fit in much better both lyrically and musically. If it's just a superb collection of songs, "Sloop John B" fits in just fine.

 

Three songs that could have fit on Pet Sounds are "Let Him Run Wild," "Little Girl I Once Knew," and "Guess I'm Dumb."

"Sloop John B" does not belong on this album, and has been omitted from reels and cassettes I've made through the years. Thank God CDs are programmable.

 

Questionable call, there, IMO.

For one thing, the preceding song is called Let's Go Away For Awhile. Then, as advertised, we go on a journey on the Sloop John B!

Secondly, removing Sloop messes up the the flow Brian gave the album, by having each song a step upward, keywise, from the last.

This whole 'received wisdom' thing that Sloop doesn't belong is a crock, frankly.