Week 4: The Beach Boys

For my third week, I have listened to music by the Beach Boys. I never listened to many Beach Boys songs before this week. They are actually a very unique band as they possess a sound that no other band has. Many of the songs have various instrumentations and vocal harmonies. The songs “God Only Knows”, “Surfer Girl” and “Wonderful” are examples on how the Beach Boys use vocal harmonies with multiple singers. “Our Prayer” was one song that was basically all vocal harmonies. The harmonies switch between consonant and dissonant throughout each song, such as “You Still Believe In Me” and “Barbie”. Many of the songs with vocal harmonies also contain many leaps between notes. However, there are songs where the Beach Boys define their surfer sound, such as in the pop melodies “Fun, Fun, Fun”, “Drive- In”, “Karate”, “Sail On, Sailor” and “Catch A Wave”. I found that The Beach Boys use many bluesy bass lines, electric guitar solos, and repeating melodies. In addition, the song “Barbara Ann” has one of the most catchiest hooks I’ve heard in a long time. I enjoyed listening to the Beach Boys and becoming familiar with their songs.