The Beach Boys changed direction in 1969 with the release of Friends. The pop brilliance of Pet Sounds, the psychedelic flavor of Smiley Smile and the soul inflections of Wild Honey were all discarded by the Beach Boys in favor of the mellow and laid back sounds of Friends. While Friends does not contain the brilliant highs of the three aforementioned albums, it does have a pleasant quality and just passes by like a gently flowing stream.
In many ways Friends was out of place upon its release in 1968. The Vietnam War was raging, Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King have been assassinated, the hippie movement was alive and well, and Jimi Hendrix was changing the musical landscape. It was against this background that the tranquil Friends was released and as could be expected it encountered little commercial success.
I wrote in another review that Wild Honey was more interesting than listenable. Friends, on the other hand, is more listenable than interesting. The Beach Boys take few chances which is fine given their releases of the past few years. Friends provided a nice counterpoint to the world swirling around the group.
Friends marks the album where Dennis Wilson stepped out from behind his drum set. He co-authored and sang lead on “Be Still” and “Little Bird.” “Be Still” is a simple song but Dennis Wilson delivers a great vocal. “Little Bird” has the feel of a classic Beach Boys song. Dennis Wilson’s voice moves against traditional Beach Boys harmonies. These songs show how important Dennis Wilson’s clear and plaintive voice were to the vocal unity of the group. I have always thought that when the Beach Boys were having problems in the late 1970’s they should have re-grouped around Dennis Wilson’s voice. While that did not happen, his occasional vocal and creative contributions were always welcome.
Article comments
1 - zingzing
i love this album. as you say, it's more listenable than interesting, but it is so damn listenable... only mike's "trancendental meditation" is anything less than pleasant. i also love the bit where brian gives directions to his house in "busy doin nothin."
dennis was the undiscovered genius in the group. his solo work is quite amazing. "carry me home," which i've never found a decent solo recording of, was covered by primal scream back in 1991 or so... their recording of it is amazing. so dark.
"friends" is one of my favorite beach boys albums, but i think it's an album only a true fan can love. nothing suggests its greatness other than the general greatness of the beach boys.
2 - petsoundss66
David, another wonderful review of masterpiece theatre. Dennis sure did leap this time, didn't he?? thanks again for taking the time 40 years later to surface these realities!!!
and zingzang,, great comments, and I hope you are aware that Dennis' POB/bambu are being released very soon!
3 - zingzing
i know pacific ocean blue is being rereleased... but bambu? haven't heard a release date for that yet. but that's the one i'm after. i've got boots of lots of dennis' stuff... i wonder what's really out there.
my interest in the beach boys has been rekindled by this column. i went and downloaded some smile sessions today and have listened to friends, carl & the passions and holland. dodgy stuff, but the spark of genius is always there... i can't imagine where this column will go after love you, however... tough times await.