No, I don't actually hate Pet Sounds. But I will say this: it doesn't contain either of my favorite Beach Boys songs (and I'm not even talking about "Don't Worry Baby" and "Heroes and Villains"!). That's right. The Beach Boys (as an entity distinct from Brian "God" Wilson) reached a creative peak during the Brother Records era with 1970's Sunflower, which is in every way a group effort, with a message of togetherness and love that is perfect for these post-classes springtime days. WMCN may be off the air, but we're doing our best to keep bringing you the love.

Sunflower is the album where Dennis Wilson emerges as a songwriter to rival his brother and Bruce Johnston announces himself as a groovy manufacturer of breezy love songs, but once again Brian Wilson comes out ahead (with a little help from Mike Love). Here he is to spread the word. It's painful to think that someone somewhere might not have heard these songs.

Late at night I think about the love of this whole world...

[mp3] The Beach Boys - "This Whole World"

All I wanna do is always bring good to you...

[mp3] The Beach Boys - "All I Wanna Do"

Appropriately, Sunflower, like Pet Sounds, was a commercial disaster.

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Coming soon: The decidedly non-optimistic 1970s pop stylings of Randy Newman.