THE BEACH BOYS - CALIFORNIA GIRLS

CALIFORNIA GIRLS

THE BEACH BOYS

SONGWRITERS: BRIAN WILSON & MIKE LOVE

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: SUMMER DAYS(AND SUMMER NIGHTS)

LABEL: CAPITOL RECORDS

GENRE: ROCK

YEAR: 1965

 

     The Beach Boys are an American rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished for their vocal harmonies, adolescent-oriented themes, and musical ingenuity, they are one of the most influential acts of the rock era. They drew on the music of older pop vocal groups, 1950s rock and roll, and black R&B to create their unique sound, and under Brian's direction, often incorporated classical or jazz elements and unconventional recording techniques in innovative ways.

       The Beach Boys began as a garage band, managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, and with Brian as composer, arranger, producer, and de facto leader. In 1963, they had their first national hit with "Surfin' U.S.A.", beginning a string of top-ten singles that reflected a southern California youth culture of surfing, cars, and romance, dubbed the "California sound". They were one of the few American rock bands to sustain their commercial standing during the British Invasion. Starting with 1965's The Beach Boys Today!, they abandoned beachgoing themes for more personal lyrics and ambitious orchestrations. In 1966, the Pet Sounds album and "Good Vibrations" single raised the group's prestige as rock innovators. After scrapping the Smile album in 1967, Brian gradually ceded control of the group to his bandmates.

    In the late 1960s, the group's commercial momentum faltered in the US, and despite efforts to maintain na experimental sound, they were widely dismissed by the early rock music press. Carl took over as the band's musical leader; records from this period later enjoyed a cult following among fans. In the mid-1970s, as their concerts drew larger audiences, the band transitioned into na oldies act. Dennis drowned in 1983 and Brian soon became estranged from the group. Following Carl's death from lung cancer in 1998, the band granted Love legal rights to tour under the group's name. In the early 2010s, the original members briefly reunited for the band's 50th anniversary. As of 2022, Wilson and Jardine do not perform with Love's edition of the Beach Boys, but remain official members of the band.

     Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) is the ninth studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released on July 5, 1965, on Capitol. The band's previous album, The Beach Boys Today!(released March 1965), represented a departure for the group through its abandonment of themes related to surfing, cars, and teenage love, but it sold below Capitol's expectations. In response, the label pressured the group to produce bigger hits. Summer Days thus returned the band's music to simpler themes for one last album, with Brian Wilson combining Capitol's commercial demands with his artistic calling.

       Produced by Wilson, Summer Days reached number two on the US Billboard 200 and number four on the UK Albums Chart. Two singles were issued from the album: "Help Me, Rhonda", which became the group's second chart-topper in the US, and "California Girls", which peaked at number three.

Well, East Coast girls are hip

I really dig those styles they wear

And the Southern girls, with the way they talk

They knock me out when I'm down there

 

The Midwest farmers' daughters really make you feel all right

And the Northern girls, with the way they kiss

They keep their boyfriends warm at night

 

I wish they all could be California

I wish they all could be California

I wish they all could be California girls

 

The West Coast has the sunshine

And the girls all get so tanned

I dig a French bikini on Hawaiian island dolls

By a palm tree in the sand

 

I been all around this great big world

And I seen all kinds of girls

Yeah, but I couldn't wait to get back in the States

Back to the cutest girls in the world

 

I wish they all could be California

I wish they all could be California

I wish they all could be California girls

 

I wish they all could be California (girls, girls, girls, yeah, I dig the)

I wish they all could be California (girls, girls, girls, yeah, I dig the)

I wish they all could be California (girls, girls, girls, yeah, I dig the)

I wish they all could be California (girls, girls, girls, yeah, I dig the)

I wish they all could be California (girls, girls, girls, yeah, I dig the)

I wish they all could be California (girls, girls, girls, yeah, I dig the).