"Wouldn’t It Be Nice" - Beach Boys

My original Capitol 5706 "West Coast" pressing 45 (deadwax 45-55558-F-5) has an actual running time of 2:22, as does my mono reissue "Pet Sounds" LP Capitol N-16156 (deadwax N-1-16156). So the 45 length and vinyl LP length are identical.

The run time of the song on my "Pet Sounds" mono/stereo reissue CD (Capitol 72435-21241-2-1) and "The Very Best Of/Sounds Of Summer" CD (Capitol 72435-82710-2-7) conform with Pat's listings in the database.

I am sure someone will correct me if I am wrong but I do not think that the song was issued in stereo on any vinyl LP. Rather, the stereo debut was on the "Pet Sounds Sessions" CD box set and then was repeated in the mono/stereo reissue CD referenced above.

The liner notes from the mono/stereo issue make fascinating reading, particularly as to "Wouldn't It Be Nice." The mono mix and stereo mix differ in that the bridge section is sung by Brian Wilson in the stereo mix and by Mike Love in the mono mix.

According to the liner notes: "The bridge originally was sung by Mike during the sessions for the song, and a mixdown was made of the song that included Mike's bridge vocal. But at some later point, Brian decided he was unahppy with Mike's vocal for the bridge and re-recorded it himself, in the process erasing Mike's vocals from the vocal multi-track tape. Then, after mixing down a version with his vocal in the bridge, he decided that he liked Mike's vocal better after all. He literally cut the bridge (with Mike's vocal) from the earlier mono mixdown and spliced it into the finished mono mix in place of his. However, that meant, when it came time for [Mark] Linett to create a stereo mix three decades later, all that survived on the vocal multi-track wa Brian's vocal for the section."

Good stuff!

The first version of "Wouldn't It Be Nice" was created in the '90s. It had, in fact, been floating around in the '90s, amongst BB collectors/fans, before the first official stereo version was commercially released a few years later.

satchdr, great story!

I agree with Todd that I wouldn't label the stereo version as the "hit version"; however, this song is an unusual case and I wouldn't call it an "alternate mix" either. That unfairly negates its value. I think the best option is to simply have a description under the title that says something like:

All stereo versions come from a mix created in the '90s, which substitutes a bridge lead vocal by Mike Love for one by Brian Wilson.

Really, Andrew? Which CDs?

Andrew, these stereo versions you speak of with the Mike Love bridge flown in - do they go to mono for the bridge and then back to stereo for the chorus? (That would be really weird sounding, especially on headphones). Or did they somehow find a way to make the bridge stereo with Mike's voice?

Mono hit version (multi-tracked Mike Love vocals from 1:06 to 1:19)

This version first appeared on CD on Motown's More Songs From The Original Soundtrack Of The Big Chill (1984). It sounds surprisingly good here, with a low-generation source tape, nice dynamic range, decent EQ, and no evidence of added noise reduction on the fade (not that such NR existed in 1984). The same analog transfer is used on:

• Capitol's Pet Sounds (1990)
• Capitol's 5-CD Good Vibrations (Thirty Years Of The Beach Boys) (1993)
• Capitol's 20 Good Vibrations The Greatest Hits (1995)
• Simitar's Love Rocks Tonight's The Night (1998)
• Capitol's Pet Sounds (1999)
• Capitol's Capitol Records Sixtieth Anniversary 1942-2002 (2002)

There's a new, and significantly inferior, analog transfer on Rhino's 3-inch CD Lil' Bit Of Gold (R3 73001, 1988). Here, it has a wobbly soundstage, almost like fake stereo, with sounds and detail bouncing from ear to ear. Avoid. The same analog transfer is used on:

• Capitol's The Greatest Hits Vol. 1 20 Good Vibrations (1999)

Non-hit mono version (single-tracked Mike Love vocals from 1:06 to 1:19)

I don't think this version was ever released on record, but I can't confirm.

I think this mix first turned up on CD on Capitol's Beach Boys collection Made In U.S.A. (1986). It sounds just fine here. The same analog transfer is used on:

• Time-Life's Classic Rock Vol. 7 1966 The Beat Goes On (1988)
• Time-Life's Rock 'N' Roll Era Vol. 3 Beach Boys 1962-1967 (1988)
• EMI-Capitol's Ten Best Series (1990)
• Heartland/Warner Special Products' 2-CD Hooked On A Feeling (1995)

Non-hit 1996 stereo remix by Mark Linnett (Brian Wilson vocals from 1:06 to 1:19)

It's neat to hear Brian sing the bridge, but I can see why he much preferred Mike Love's multitracked vocals in that portion of the song.

This mix turned up first on Capitol's multi-CD The Pet Sounds Sessions (1996). It sounds just fine. The same analog transfer is used on:

• Capitol's Pet Sounds (1999 reissue)
• Time-Life's 2-CD Singers And Songwriters Vol. 14 1964-1969 (2001)
• Capitol's Pet Sounds 40th Anniversary (2006)

Non-hit 2001 stereo remix by Mark Linnett (multi-tracked Mike Love vocals from 1:06 to 1:19)

It first appeared on Capitol's Sounds Of Summer The Very Best Of (2003).

I have it on Capitol/UMe's 6-CD Made In California (2013), which sounds just fine.

My recommendations

For the hit mono version, anything in the first batch that I listed above will work just fine. But if I have to pick, I'll go with Motown's More Songs From The Original Soundtrack Of The Big Chill (1984). None of the later releases improve on the Motown disc.

For the non-hit mono version, in which the vocals in the bridge are single-tracked rather than multi-tracked, go with Capitol's Made In U.S.A. (1986).

For the stereo remixes, anywhere you can find them will work just fine. They all use the same analog transfers, and any CDs with those versions will sound just like Capitol's The Pet Sounds Sessions (1996) or Capitol's Sounds Of Summer The Very Best Of (2003).

Edited by crapfromthepast