SONG OF THE DAY

“Sloop John B” by The Beach Boys (Pet Sounds, Capitol Records, 1966).

INTERESTING FACTS (a la wikipedia)

– The song was originally a traditional West Indies folk song, “The John B. Sails”, taken from a collection by Carl Sandburg (1927). Alan Lomax made a field recording of the song in Nassau, 1935, under the title “Histe Up the John B. Sail”. This recording appears on the album Bahamas 1935: Chanteys And Anthems From Andros And Cat Island. The song was adapted by Weavers member Lee Hays, and that group recorded it as “The Wreck of the John B.” The Kingston Trio’s recording of the song, also under the title “The Wreck of the John B.”, was the direct influence on the Beach Boys’ version.

– “Sloop John B.” was ranked #271 on Rolling Stone’s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

– The John B. was an old sponger boat whose crew were in the habit of getting notoriously merry whenever they made port. It was wrecked and sunk at Governor’s Harbour in Eleuthera, The Bahamas, in about 1900.

– The Beach Boys’ Al Jardine, who was a keen folk music fan, suggested to Brian Wilson that the Beach Boys should do a cover version. As Jardine explains:

“Brian was at the piano. I asked him if I could sit down and show him something. I laid out the chord pattern for ‘Sloop John B’. I said, ‘Remember this song?’ I played it. He said, ‘I’m not a big fan of the Kingston Trio.’ He wasn’t into folk music. But I didn’t give up on the idea. So what I did was to sit down and play it for him in the Beach Boys idiom. I figured if I gave it to him in the right light, he might end up believing in it. So I modified the chord changes so it would be a little more interesting. The original song is basically a three-chord song, and I knew that wouldn’t fly. So I put some minor changes in there, and it stretched out the possibilities from a vocal point of view. Anyway, I played it, walked away from the piano and we went back to work. The very next day, I got a phone call to come down to the studio. Brian played the song for me, and I was blown away. The idea stage to the completed track took less than 24 hours.”

– Al Jardine then explains that Brian “then lined us up one at a time to try out for the lead vocal. I had naturally assumed I would sing the lead, since I had brought in the arrangement. It was like interviewing for a job. Pretty funny. He didn’t like any of us. My vocal had a much more mellow approach because I was bringing it from the folk idiom. For the radio, we needed a more rock approach. Brian and Mike ended up singing it. But I had a lot of fun bringing the idea to the band. It was very rewarding in every way but one; I was never given label credit for my contribution.”

– On the final recording, Brian Wilson sang the first and third verses, while Mike Love sang the second verse. The box set The Pet Sounds Sessions includes two alternate takes, one with Carl Wilson singing lead on the first two verses, and one with Brian Wilson singing all parts.

– The single, backed with the B side “You’re So Good to Me”, was released on March 21, 1966. It entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart on April 2, and peaked at #3 on May 7, remaining on the chart, in total, for 11 weeks.

– It also charted highly throughout the world, remaining as one of the Beach Boys’ most popular and memorable hits. It was No. 1 in Germany, Austria, Norway—all for five weeks each—as well as Sweden, Switzerland, Holland, Ireland, South Africa and New Zealand. It placed No. 2 the UK, in Canada, and in Record World, and according to music archivist Joseph Murrells (1978) was the fastest Beach Boys seller to date, moving more than half a million copies in less than two weeks after release.

VIDEO OF THE DAY

Here’s the link to a great video featuring live action of the Beach Boys set to the tune of this great classic!