Pet Sounds—The Beach Boys—Mellope Album Review

1. Wouldn't It Be Nice (9/10)

Sadly adverts have ruined this song for me, as that's only where I've heard it, but hearing it on this album felt like a breath of fresh air. I realised this song's buildupis to a perfect key part that sounds fit for a beautiful summer. I refuse to let adverts ruin this for me, because by itself this song has some of the best-composed instruments that I've heard in a long time.

2. You Still Believe In Me (8.6/10)

The use of bicycle horns in the mix and lesser-used instruments really shows the length the band went to make their songs special, and the voice holds on this song are angelic and something straight out of heaven. Beautiful song; my only small complaint is that the horns and vocal holds shouldn't really overlap, in my opinion.

3. That's Not Me (8.8/10)

The opening, the main part, the ending… everything about this song was simplicity at its finest. Truly wonderful. It's also a good representation of the song's message of self-discovery.

4. Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder) (9/10)

A song with vocals that make you feel like you're floating, along with strings that give the song the feeling of really old church choir music (and I mean the great church choirs), too. To describe this song as magical wouldn't be an understatement in the slightest. And for its time, this just adds to the impressiveness.

5. I'm Waiting For The Day (9.1/10)

The upbeat kicks in the beat along with the changing tone, which was quite fun and honestly felt like we've hit a new peak in the album. Great song; I think everything about this was at least great.

6. Let's Go Away For Awhile (8.5/10)

This was originally intended to have vocals (which I think would've fit the range of sounds better), but this still works on its own; the mix between instruments and sound is extremely impressive.

7. Sloop John B (8.7/10)

It sounds like a lot of the album's vocal harmonies but put together to create one that's possibly the best so far, definitely a highlight of the album currently.

8. God Only Knows (8/10)

A nice song with a similar resemblance and quality to the rest of the album. Definitely nothing different from what I've already heard, though still good.

9. I Know There's An Answer (7.3/10)

According to Wikipedia, this song is about the effects of drugs on the mind, and as much as I don't believe a background that sounds jolly and the tone was the best of this, the song still ends up sounding good for anyone unaware of the topic. But yeah, this could have a better blend.

10. Here Today (8.6/10)

Love the piano and trombones coming together to make one of the most addicting parts of the album so far; this is what should be charting in the 60s.

11. I Just Wasn't Made For These Times (8/10)

The amount of focus on the layers and key changes on these songs is incredible and pays off; this track proves exactly that, yet again.

12. Pet Sounds (8.1/10)

An array of different sounds that felt like a buffet but put into an instrumental. This song, I believed, was better as just an instrumental.

13. Caroline, No (8/10)

A really respectful outro where percussion instruments and flutes play a big part in helping the song's sad reflection on a love life.

OVERVIEW:

Despite the album dropping in quality in its second half, it still remained good all the way throughout the album, which is impressive, as most don't. This album excelled in quality for its time, especially with the limited musical knowledge and items available then, and it also has some really nice melodies that always tend to be backed by mostly well-chosen meanings too. I'd definitely return to this.

Score: 8.6/10

yes adverts have a lot to answer for when they get overdone!

Paul McCartney has quoted God Only Knows as the greatest pop song - I think because its structure is so intricate. I came across this great analysis of why (I'm not a musician, but I've always wondered why nobody else has ever covered the song successfully, and this shows why!):

Your post has prompted me to take a listen to this today... in theory it should be the perfect album for such a warm day!

I've definitely heard it before because I bought it about 20 odd years ago when the Fopp record store used to regularly have 'classic albums' reduced heavily, I remember thinking at the time that it was okay but not really something that dragged me back. Will be interesting to see if anything has changed in my view now.

1 hour ago, Popchartfreak said:

yes adverts have a lot to answer for when they get overdone!

Paul McCartney has quoted God Only Knows as the greatest pop song - I think because its structure is so intricate. I came across this great analysis of why (I'm not a musician, but I've always wondered why nobody else has ever covered the song successfully, and this shows why!):

I must say that even calling this one of the best albums in terms of structure wouldn't be frowned upon by me; just thinking that this was made in 1966 is insane! The talent!

16 minutes ago, dandy* said:

Your post has prompted me to take a listen to this today... in theory it should be the perfect album for such a warm day!

I've definitely heard it before because I bought it about 20 odd years ago when the Fopp record store used to regularly have 'classic albums' reduced heavily, I remember thinking at the time that it was okay but not really something that dragged me back. Will be interesting to see if anything has changed in my view now.

The fact that my post has influenced anything makes me overjoyed! And yes, I do suggest taking a listen, or at least to the highlights. I usually listen to more newer mainstream releases, but I was brought this release as part of a competition I was running, and I must say that I'm now even more determined to review older releases. I'll have to put The Beach Boys alongside Brenda Lee for my current 60s favourites!

I had it on this afternoon - I definitely did enjoy it more this time than when I previously listened to it. I wasn't paying attention to the individual tracks but the general layering of sounds was an interesting listen, and I felt like you that it didn't seem to drop the quality too much either. As with many 60s albums, I find that the songs are often just a little bit too short (I could say the same for 2020s tbh!) but I felt there was just about enough variety in melody and approach that it didn't feel like the same sound many times over. It probably still won't be dragging me back again any time soon, but it is very rare that albums from this sort of era do

13 minutes ago, dandy* said:

I had it on this afternoon - I definitely did enjoy it more this time than when I previously listened to it. I wasn't paying attention to the individual tracks but the general layering of sounds was an interesting listen, and I felt like you that it didn't seem to drop the quality too much either. As with many 60s albums, I find that the songs are often just a little bit too short (I could say the same for 2020s tbh!) but I felt there was just about enough variety in melody and approach that it didn't feel like the same sound many times over. It probably still won't be dragging me back again any time soon, but it is very rare that albums from this sort of era do

I'm so happy that you gave it a go! I'm happy that you liked it more. :)

If you ever want anything else to listen to, then I could give you some recommendations! 😊

If ever an album warranted a 10/10 it is here.

A groundbreaking, hugely influential, masterpiece

On 13/07/2025 at 01:41, Severin said:

If ever an album warranted a 10/10 it is here.

A groundbreaking, hugely influential, masterpiece

This album is currently my 10th favourite album of all time!

I have the Beach Boys on my 60s listening list for the next artist I go to. Listened to all the Beatles which was a wonderful journey and now on Bob Dylan (his 3rd album currently).