I am going to start off this post with a comparison between two of the most highly regarded albums of all time, referencing the Rolling Stones magazines top 500 albums list. The Rolling Stones magazine ranks the Beach Boy’s album Pet Sounds as number two on their ‘500 Greatest Albums’ list and the Beatles album Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club as number one.  The Beach Boys’ 1966 release Pet Sounds is about as distinguished of a masterpiece as Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, and while Sgt. Peppers Lonely Heart Club is a great album in it’s own rights it pales in comparison to the 13 track brilliancy that is Pet Sounds. I would even go as far as to say Sgt. Peppers isn’t even the Beatles best album, let alone the best of all time. Anyways, now that i’ve set the record straight on the Rolling Stones mistakenly ranking Pet Sounds as 2nd best, I can explain to you why it is, in fact, the indisputable number one album of all time.

If you haven’t caught on yet, Pet Sounds is my absolute favourite album of all time and if you have never had the pleasure of spinning it up I highly recommend it. Now onto the review.

Before we can truly dissect and investigate this album, we must first understand that Pet Sounds is a very unique album in regards to composition and arrangement. To do this, we need to understand who Brian Wilson is. Brian Wilson is one of the founding members of the Beach Boys, he was born June 20th 1942 in Inglewood California. I would love to delve deeper into the hugely interesting life of Brian Wilson, but will stick to the aspects of his life that hold relevancy in the examination of Pet Sounds and his contributing role to the album. The most important and forefront element relating the two is that basically, Brian Wilson wrote and composed nearly every song on Pet Sounds. While the Beach Boys were touring Japan in 1965, Wilson was hard at work in the studio with a massive amount of musicians and wide variety of instruments. Wilson was at this time an incredible and exceedingly talented musician, he wanted to write the greatest rock album of all time, and I believe that he succeeded in this endeavour and I will try to prove this to you with the help of the songs and certain sections of the songs on Pet Sounds.

The album starts off with a song that probably everyone has heard at one point in their life, “Wouldn’t It Be Nice“. Although one of the most popular songs on the album, and no doubt a great opening track, I would say it is one of the most shallow and boring tracks on the album. The twinkling 12-string mandolin is a nice touch during the song but I would argue that the only part of the song that’s worth a damn is the last 26 seconds of vocal harmonies and beautifully arranged acapella. The next song on the album is just incredible and showcases the complete genius that Brian Wilson is. I tried to find a clip online of the technique that Wilson uses to create the sound in the first 13 seconds of You Still Believe in Me but could not so I will try to explain it to you.

Although it may sound like some sort of honky tonk piano riff, Wilson actually crawled into the back of a grand piano, he rested several bobby pins onto the strings inside the piano and physically hand-plucked the notes using another bobby pin. This is just so innovative and outside of the box, every time I hear the intro of this song it gives me goosebumps, how does one think to do that? He doesn’t stop there though, Wilson also incorporates bicycle bells (1:28), and bicycle horns (2:15) into the song. I could talk forever about the cleverness of each and every song on Pet Sounds but would end up writing a ten-thousand word novel, and I don’t think anyone would want to read that so I will stick to these few examples and move on. The next song That’s Not Me is a good track but I would like to move on and talk about the track that follows this one, my favorite song on the album, Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder). If there was ever a song that had the ability to consistently cover my body in goosebumps every single listen without fail it would be this song, (and maybe a few Frank Ocean tracks). But I am starting to think that I am too thoroughly assessing every track individually, because it is very difficult for me since there are absolutely no filler tracks on this album. Each song is special to me and holds its own unique appeal, so in the name of efficiency and for no other reason than that I am going to skip three full tracks and move to God Only Knows, the most popular song on the album, one that Paul McCartney of the Beatles once proclaimed the ‘greatest song ever written’. The remaining six songs of the album are pure masterpieces each in their own right, starting with God Only Knows, the song depicts Brian Wilson’s love for a girl, and how life would not be worth living without her, “if you should ever leave me, though life would still go on believe me, the world could show nothing to me, so what good would living do me”. These lyrics along with so many in the album are really personal and emotion bearing, they really hit home for me and I think to most people, probably everyone has felt this feeling about someone at some point in their lives. The words are so masterfully arranged which I think is the reason for Paul McCartney to have said he thinks it is the greatest song ever written. The next song Here Today is less of a love song and probably the most angsty song on the album, I would rank it lower than most other songs on Pet Sounds. The next track, I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times, is such an innovative song lyrically, I have never heard another song depict the feeling of someone feeling that they were born in the wrong era which I have felt before. This song’s highlight is it’s lyrics, as the instrumentation is sort of bland in comparison to the rest of the album. Especially compared to the very next track, Pet Sounds, which is completely instrumental, and a showcase of Wilson’s arrangement ability. Finally, my third favorite song on the album Caroline No, a melancholic track featuring (you guessed it) sappy love lyrics. My favourite aspects of this song are the falsetto vocal stylings at 0:56 and 1:35, that and im a sucker for a sad song.

To conclude, I could never write enough about each song to exemplify my love for the album or write well enough to demonstrate the beauty that lies within Pet Sounds. So I seriously encourage you to take this (weak) review of Pet Sounds and use it as a push to go out and buy it or stream it, maybe grab it on vinyl and spin it up. It’s just an absolute masterpiece that everyone should enjoy at one point in their life.

Bibliography

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet_Sounds, Accessed on August 9th, 2018

The 50’s progression is the name given to a audibly distinct chord progression structure that utilizes, in this order, the first, sixth, fourth (or second) and fifth chords in any given key (the entire key transpositional chart will be posted at the end of the article for reference) .The progression is cornerstone to doo-wop style music and in some cases is referred to as the ‘doo-wop progression’. Utilization can be seen as early as 1934 with Richard Rodgers’ famous song Blue Moon. And since then (and long before), the progression has been used consistently all through popular music with songs even to this day showcasing it’s captivating charm, some examples being; Dy’er Maker by Led Zeppelin (1974), Take it On the Run – REO Speedwagon (1981), and Baby by Justin Beiber (2009). More often than not the 50’s progression is applied to ballad style songs as it introduces a whimsical texture to the feeling of the song. My favourite song that uses the progression would definitely have to be Telephone by Electric Light Orchestra (or E.L.O.), this example seemed glaringly obvious for me to select as the chorus literally begins  with the lyric ‘doo-wop doobie doo-doo-wop”.

The song is in the key of A which is chord number one, next the sixth chord in the key of A which is F#m, then the fourth D, and finally the fifth chord E.  You can hear the progression begin in the chorus at 1:35 into the song with an A (doo), the F#m at 1:37 (wop), D at 1:38 (doobie), and E at 1:40. This repeats once more and then a variation of the chord progression carries you through until the end of the chorus where the hook is (masterfully) introduced. So although the name implies that only songs from the 1950’s would utilize the progression, in fact, there were transcendent ramifications that resulted from the frequency of the progression’s use during that time period which ultimately lead to it’s cohesiveness in popular music. A more appropriate track to assist you in understanding the doo-wop progression might be Earth Angel by The Penguins as it was actually released during the 50’s (1955).

The progression is easier to pick out as it begins at exactly 0:01 and uses only the piano to influence the progression which continues on throughout the entirety of the song aside from the bridge at 1:05- 1:32.

Campbell, Michael. Popular Music in American The Beat Goes On. Boston, MA: Schirmer Cengage Learning, 2013.

“List of songs containing the 50’s progression.” Accessed July 20, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_containing_the_50s_progression

“Chords by Key” Accessed July 20, 2018. http://www.piano-keyboard-guide.com/chords-by-key.html

“Telephone Line Chords” Accessed July 20, 2018. https://www.e-chords.com/chords/electric-light-orchestra/telephone-line

“The ’50’s doo-wop’ progression” Accessed July 20, 2018. http://openmusictheory.com/popRockHarmony-dooWop.html

Born 1941 in Ottawa, Canada, to Camelia and Andrew, Paul Anka’s story of success can be linked to his youthful endeavours into music. In his earliest years Anka sang choir at his families church, as well as studied the piano. At the age of 13 Anka contributed his vocal stylings to a band called the Bobbysoxers, where he and his band would preform at amateur events as often as possible. It wasn’t long after that Anka had devised a plan to move in with his uncle in Los Angeles and try to score a record deal. He had his first ever meeting with Modern Records where he recorded his first single “Blau-Wile Deverest Fontaine” which although was not a successful release, (and frankly, a repetitive and uninspired track) was a commendable attempt from a extraordinarily young man, which exemplified Anka’s persistence and determination to succeed in the world of popular music.

One year later Anka decided to try his luck in the rapidly expanding city of New York, which is where he got a big break and landed a meeting with ABC-Paramount Records artist and repertoire man Dan Costa where he played for him some of his songs. One of the songs Anka showcased for Costa was ‘Diana’, which was impressive enough to not only spot him a record deal but a number one single as ‘Diana’ settled on the top of the charts in 1957 just months after Anka had moved to the big apple and released the track. The first hurdle had been cleared for Anka on his path to stardom and, just as most other notable artists who achieve a number one single this early in their career, released a handful of [career best] tracks, including ‘Lonely Boy’ and ‘Put Your Head on My Shoulder’. Touring with big name acts like Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry, the young man had solidified his position with the big dogs of the industry.

The late 50’s was an unfortunate time period for Anka to enter the scene considering his style of music, as the uprise of psychedelia and rock led by the Rolling Stones and the Beatles was taking over and attracting young people all around the planet. Anka, although still preforming, cleverly invested his musical talents into the world of lyrical construction and song writing alongside his performances as a sort of fall-back. Anka wrote and co-wrote songs for some high profile acts such as Tom Jones, and Michael Jackson which is a showcase of the versatility Paul Anka possesses.

One of Anka’s most recent releases “Rock Swings”, landed on the top 10 in the UK and sold more than 500,000 copies.

Put Your Head on My Shoulder – Paul Anka

Put Your Head on My Shoulder, released May of 1959 on ABC/Paramount Records is a shining example of the tremendous quality of music released and preformed by musicians during the conception of rock music. It’s no wonder the popularity of rock music compounded and flowered into the mammoth industry it is today. Put Your Head on My Shoulder features a 4/4 time signature with a consistent tempo of about 116 beats per minute which was generally standard practice in popular music of the 50’s, and actually still, for the most part, the norm today in popular music. The song begins with a very short intro and leaps into the chorus about 9 seconds in, where Anka introduces his vocals with the title of the track, this is the hook of the song and is sung every second time immediately before the chorus begins and after a whole rest by the band. Although this strategy of lyrical placement is not groundbreaking in anyway, it is beautifully executed and an example of the alluring simplicity of Anka’s earlier releases. Behind Anka’s lead vocal stylings is the harmonizing backup vocals which act as the melody in the song alongside the reverberating guitar and steadily chattering piano. The song features painfully simple percussive work as the kick and snare consistently pound at beats 2 and 4 respectively, throughout nearly the entire song, yet although the beat is simple, the track still provokes a swaying feeling in me which I would attest to the synergy of the backup vocals and piano.

In comparison to artists of similar general song structure such as the likes of Frank Sinatra and Nat Cole, Anka’s music is much more distinct due to the higher frequencies and faster tempo, but to compare two complete monsters like Sinatra and Nat Cole to Paul Anka is fairly straightforward; the truth is, Anka is not even in the same league musically. The masterfully crafted music of Sinatra and Cole compared to Anka’s repetitive immature compositions alongside teenage romance lyricism, is insultingly cheap when standing next to monstrous tracks like Fly Me to The Moon by Frank Sinatra or When I Fall In Love by Nat Cole. The similarity in the three artists is all of their music is driven by vocals, and I would say that is about it. The instrumentation in nearly all of Anka’s tracks are laughably simply while you experience impossibly intricate orchestrated masterpieces in nearly all of Sinatra’s and Cole’s tracks. It’s like trying to compare a wine cooler to a 15 year aged single malt scotch whiskey, it’s clear which one is of better taste, but each has it’s own appeal and seductiveness.

Anka’s real talent lies in his songwriting ability. Writing and co-writing for big name acts like Tom Jones, Micheal Jackson, and Sinatra, Anka made a living with his simplistic song lyrics that fit so well in popular music throughout the late 20th century. His significance in Canadian culture can be explained by this. It is the reason for his admittance to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and success later on in his career.

The 1966 album Pet Sounds, by the Beach Boys (the undisputed best album of all time) has a similarly titled track named “Dont Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)” which bears a resemblance in it’s theme to Paul Anka’s Put Your Head on My Shoulder, although it is slower and more endearing.

Campbell, Michael. Popular Music in American The Beat Goes On. Boston, MA: Schirmer Cengage Learning, 2013.

“Paul Anka – Singer, Songwriter, Television Actor, Film Actor, Guitarist, Pianist, Actor – Biography.” Accessed July 12, 2018. https://www.biography.com/people/paul-anka-3424.

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