29 in 2009 - The Beach Boys: "Pet Sounds"

The Beach Boys:  Pet Sounds

Originally Released:  May 16, 1966

Genres: Rock, Pop

Rating:  9 out of 10 Stars

I know, I know; the idea of writing an article in a series called "29 in 2009" seems a bit silly now that it's February 2010.  But duty calls, folks.  Though I wasn't able to write about all of the albums in this series by December 31, 2009, I was able to listen to all of them at least once.  So that's got to count for something, I assume.

Speaking of assuming, when I saw Pet Sounds would be appearing at the end of this series, I assumed I'd be listening to a collection of the band's more notable hits.  Song like "Surfin' USA" and "California Girls," are what I usually associate with the band.  But to my surprise, Pet Sounds is a subdued album that focuses more on soft, emotional ballads than upbeat, beach party tunes.  When I first downloaded this album in December, I figured I could knock it out in a week because I would already be familiar with the majority of its songs.  False.

Of course, the album's best tracks are still the ones I had heard before.  "Wouldn't It Be Nice" is a fun lead-off track that I've been jamming to pretty consistently for the last month or so, while "God Only Knows" is surprisingly touching, even for a chronically single guy such as myself.  When people say they're influenced by The Beach Boys' sound, I've never really been able to hear it.  But Pet Sounds seems to be incredibly influential!  I'm hearing bits of pieces of some of my favorite artists in here (and even some that I don't like...Panda Bear).

The cool thing about Pet Sounds, for me, is that every song on it sounds unique and yet they all seem to fit together.  There's not a bad one on here.   And that makes this whole series of mine end on an extremely positive note, which is nice.

Verdict:  Classic