The Beach Boys' 25 Best Songs of All Time

Sixty-three years ago, The Beach Boys released "Surfin' U.S.A." and the band scored their first #1 in the US. In the years that followed, the Brian Wilson-led Hawthorne, California group produced some of rock and roll's greatest songs and most influential records. 1966's Pet Sounds is one of the greatest records America has ever produced. Here are Paste's picks for the 25 best Beach Boys songs.

25. "Busy Doin' Nothin" (1968)

Brian Wilson lounge pop'a giriyor. Friends'in lo-fi sinsi cevheri. Burt Bacharach, Chris Montez ve bossa nova esintili.

24. "Big Sur" (1973)

The 2021 Feel Flows box-set version of this Mike Love-penned song is one of the most magical compositions in the band's catalog. A poetic tribute to the wonder of California's Central Coast.

23. "Please Let Me Wonder" (1965)

The B-side to The Beach Boys Today!. Pure pop glory, combining doo-wop surf-rock with Brian's orchestral vision preparing for Pet Sounds.

22. "Cabin Essence" (1967)

The closing track of 20/20. Written by Brian and Van Dyke Parks as "a frozen frame of the Union Pacific Railroad."

21. "Feel Flows" (1971)

The only Carl Wilson composition on this list. Baldwin organ, Moog synth, and pianos with taped strings.

20. "I'm Waiting For the Day" (1966)

A sadness filled with Al de Lory's snake-like piano riff and Sid Sharp Strings' strings.

19. "Disney Girls (1957)" (1971)

Bruce Johnston's greatest Beach Boys contribution. A fantasy of Walt Disney movie stars, garage wine, and "open cars and clearer stars."

18. "Surfer Girl" (1963)

The first song Brian claimed to have written. Inspired by Dion and the Belmonts' rendition of "When You Wish Upon a Star."

17. "I Get Around" (1964)

America's answer to the British Invasion. Surf-rock, doo-wop energy, and that California sound.

16. "Caroline, No" (1966)

The closing track of Pet Sounds. Hal Blaine plays a Sparklett water bottle; Brian's dogs Banana and Louie also make an appearance.

15. "Heroes and Villains" (1967)

This opera-like piece, written for Smile, is an archive of early California history.

14. "The Night Was So Young" (1977)

The heart of The Beach Boys Love You. Lester Bangs called it "the band's best album."

13. "Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)" (1966)

Chromatic perfection. Elvis Costello: "If all the record players in the world broke tomorrow, these songs would still be audible a hundred years from now."

12. "'Til I Die" (1971)

Brian's existential crisis put to sound, written after his threat to jump off the Santa Monica pier.

11. "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times" (1966)

An epic ballad co-written with Tony Asher, featuring an Electro-Theremin solo.

10. "All I Wanna Do" (1970)

Sunflower's dream-pop gem. A harbinger of a sound that would reach Panda Bear and M83 years later.

9. "Sail On, Sailor" (1973)

The opening track of Holland. Blondie Chaplin's vocal creates one of the band's most soul-influenced moments.

8. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" (1966)

The opening track of Pet Sounds. One of pop music's most perfect introductory pieces.

7. "In My Room" (1963)

A masterpiece about loneliness and taking refuge in one's room, written by Brian and Gary Usher.

6. "Surf's Up" (1971)

A long composition written by Brian and Van Dyke Parks for Smile, completed in 1971.

5. "California Girls" (1965)

A sunny manifesto inheriting Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" legacy.

4. "Sloop John B" (1966)

Pet Sounds' folk song adaptation. One of the clearest moments of the band's harmonic genius.

3. "Good Vibrations" (1966)

"Pocket symphony." A three-and-a-half-minute pop miracle built with Electro-Theremin, cello, and musical transitions.

2. "God Only Knows" (1966)

A masterpiece that Paul McCartney called "the best song ever written." Carl Wilson's vocal and a French horn-led intro.

1. "Wouldn't It Be Nice / God Only Knows" — Pet Sounds Peak

The passage in the middle of Pet Sounds, the most perfect continuity pop music has ever produced.

Source: Paste Magazine — "The 25 Greatest Beach Boys Songs of All Time".