Music for Today!

In 1964, when the Beach Boys were at their prime commercially, their chief leader & songsmith, Brian Wilson decided to call it a day touring-wise so he could concentrate fully on crafting the group's studio sound. Influenced immensely by Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" production (& in fact, incorporating a boatload of musicians who worked with Spector into his scheme of things), Brian was out on a mission & in the process transformed the way a whole lot of folks listened to music back then. And what better way to gain new depth, strength & confidence in his production skills than with 1965's Today!

The first side reveals Wilson & the rest of the Beach Boys hitting their stride with songs like "Dance, Dance, Dance," "Do You Wanna Dance?" & "Help Me, Rhonda." In a sense, side one is a more naturally upbeat step up from the previous Beach Boys albums (e.g. All Summer Long). At the same time, it reveals a more heartfelt sound which "When I Grow Up" boldly confirms in spades: Brian was indeed maturing as a songwriter, the young buck that he was.

But side two of Today! is where everything falls into place about this album. At the time, it was risky to lay one's heart out on the line & to sound so introspective & personal as Brian did on songs like "She Knows Me Too Well," "Please Let Me Wonder," & "In The Back of My Mind." However, that's exactly what he did with the other half of Today!...good call indeed!! In fact, side two sounded like the perfect precursor to the next bold undertaking he & the rest of the Beach Boys would dive headlong into, 1966's Pet Sounds (still love that album!!) The whole second act is like listening to that above-mentioned album a year early, well before it was even released. And yet, the introspection, the aching beauty, the personal, heartfelt longing which Brian & the Boys captured so gorgeously on Pet Sounds...it's all here on the second half of Today! and is undeniably heart-wrenching.

Today! can be considered a big step forward for the Beach Boys overall. Not only that, but this effort find Brian emerging not only as a master songwriter with a great knack for crafting beautiful melodies & sounds unlike anything Spector himself envisioned throwing together: It also marked his emergence as a pretty awesome producer who knew how to make some pretty amazing-sounding songs which have stood the test of time over 4o years later.