Pet Sounds

This article is about the Beach Boys album. For the recording studio, see Pet Sounds Studio.

Pet Sounds
Studio album by The Beach Boys
Released	May 16, 1966
Recorded	July 12, 1965; November 1, 1965 – April 13, 1966, Western, Gold Star & Sunset Sound Studios, California
Genre	Psychedelic rock, baroque pop, psychedelic pop
Length	35:57
Label	Capitol
Producer	Brian Wilson
The Beach Boys chronology
Beach Boys' Party! (1965) Pet Sounds (1966) Best of The Beach Boys (1966)
Singles from Pet Sounds
"Caroline, No" Released: March 7, 1966 "Sloop John B" Released: March 21, 1966 "Wouldn't It Be Nice" Released: July 11, 1966

Pet Sounds is the eleventh studio album by the American rock band the Beach Boys, released May 16, 1966, on Capitol Records. It has since been recognized as one of the most influential records in the history of popular music and one of the best albums of the 1960s, including songs such as "Wouldn't It Be Nice" and "God Only Knows". Pet Sounds was created several months after Brian Wilson had quit touring with the band in order to focus his attention on writing and recording. In it, he wove elaborate layers of vocal harmonies, coupled with sound effects and unconventional instruments such as bicycle bells, buzzing organs, harpsichords, flutes, Electro-Theremin, dog whistles, trains, Hawaiian-sounding string instruments, Coca-Cola cans and barking dogs, along with the more usual keyboards and guitars.

Although Pet Sounds was met with strong sales abroad, reaching number two in the UK, it charted lower in the US than the majority of the band's preceding albums, peaking at number ten on the Billboard 200. Its initial release was not awarded gold certification by the RIAA until 2000 despite eligibility since mid–1967. A heralding album in the emerging psychedelic rock style, Pet Sounds has been championed and emulated for its dramatic and revolutionary baroque instrumentation. It has been ranked at number one in several music magazines' lists of greatest albums of all time, including New Musical Express, The Times and Mojo Magazine. It was ranked number two in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.

Background

The track "Sloop John B" predated the recording of the rest of the LP by some months, but it proved to be a pivotal point in the album's development. It was a traditional Caribbean folk song that had been suggested to Wilson by group member Al Jardine. Al updated the chord progression by having the IV, D♭ major, move to its relative minor, B♭ minor before returning to the tonic, A♭. He expected to collaborate further with Wilson on the arrangement, but was pleasantly surprised by what Brian accomplished on his own. Wilson recorded a backing track on July 12, 1965, but after laying down a rough lead vocal, he set the song aside for some time, concentrating on the recording of what became their next LP, the "live in the studio" album, Beach Boys' Party!, which was provided in response to their record company so the Beach Boys could have a new album ready for the Christmas 1965 market. What would become the Pet Sounds record could not be finished in time for Christmas 1965.

The real catalyst for Pet Sounds was the US version of the Beatles' album Rubber Soul, which was released that December in time for the Christmas market. (The British version of Rubber Soul was edited prior to its release in the US to emphasise its folk rock feel that critics attributed to Bob Dylan and the Byrds.)

Wilson later recalled his first impressions of the groundbreaking album:

I really wasn't quite ready for the unity. It felt like it all belonged together. Rubber Soul was a collection of songs ... that somehow went together like no album ever made before, and I was very impressed. I said, "That's it. I really am challenged to do a great album."

Wilson found Rubber Soul was filled with all-original songs. Inspired, he rushed to his wife and proclaimed, "Marilyn, I'm gonna make the greatest album! The greatest rock album ever made!". In early January 1966 Wilson contacted Tony Asher, a young lyricist and copywriter who had been working on advertising jingles, and whom Wilson had met in a Hollywood recording studio months earlier. Within ten days they were writing together. Wilson played him some of the music he had been recording, and gave him a cassette of the finished backing track for a piece with the working title "In My Childhood". It had lyrics, but Wilson refused to show them to Asher, who took the music away and wrote new lyrics. The result was eventually retitled "You Still Believe in Me" and the artistic success of the piece convinced Wilson that Tony Asher was the collaborator he was looking for.

"The general tenor of the lyrics was always his," Asher later recalled, "and the actual choice of words was usually mine. I was really just his interpreter."

Writing and composition

Most of the songs on the album were written during December 1965 and January 1966. While most were composed with Tony Asher, "I Know There's an Answer" was co-written by another new associate, Terry Sachen.

Mike Love is co-credited on the album's opening track, "Wouldn't It Be Nice", and on "I Know There's an Answer" but with the exception of his co-credit on "I'm Waiting for the Day", his contributions are thought to have been minimal. The exact degree of Love's contribution to "Wouldn't It Be Nice" was never fully determined, but under oath in a court of law, Tony Asher stated it consisted of the tag "Good night my baby/Sleep tight, my baby" and possible minor vocal arrangement.

Love's influence on "I Know There's an Answer" is reputed to have stemmed from his opposition to the song's original title, "Hang On to Your Ego", and his belief that it be partially rewritten and retitled. The original lyrics created a stir within the group. "I was aware that Brian was beginning to experiment with LSD and other psychedelics," explained Love. "The prevailing drug jargon at the time had it that doses of LSD would shatter your ego, as if that were a positive thing... I wasn't interested in taking acid or getting rid of my ego." Jardine recalled that the decision to change the lyrics was ultimately Wilson's. "Brian was very concerned. He wanted to know what we thought about it. To be honest, I don't think we even knew what an ego was... Finally Brian decided, 'Forget it. I'm changing the lyrics. There's too much controversy.'" Terry Sachen, who co-wrote the revised lyrics to this song, was the Beach Boys' road manager in 1966.

The album included two sophisticated instrumental tracks, the wistful "Let's Go Away for Awhile" – with a working parenthetical title of "And Then We'll have World Peace" – and the brittle brassy surf of the title track, "Pet Sounds" (originally "Run James, Run", the suggestion being that it would be offered for use in a James Bond movie). The subtitle of "Let's Go Away for a While" was a catchphrase from one of Wilson's favorite comedy recordings, John Brent and Del Close's How To Speak Hip (1959) (which Wilson can be heard talking about in a session outtake included on the Pet Sounds boxed set). Both titles had been recorded as backing tracks for existing songs, but by the time the album neared completion Wilson had decided that the tracks worked better without vocals and so left them as such. A third instrumental, called "Trombone Dixie," had been fully recorded, but it remained in the vaults until its inclusion on the album's 1990 remastered CD release.

Recording process

Further information: History of multitrack recording

Carl Wilson in the recording studio, playing his Rickenbacker 360/12 with session guitarist Bill Pitman.

With writing well under way, Wilson worked rapidly through January and early February 1966, recording six backing tracks for the new material. When the other Beach Boys returned from a three-week tour of Japan and Hawaii, they were presented with a substantial portion of a new album, with music that was in many ways a radical departure from their earlier attempts. Both Asher and Wilson state that there was resistance to the project from within the group, but on this occasion, Wilson's belief in his new work convinced the other members of the group. The backing tracks for Pet Sounds were recorded over a four-month period, using major Los Angeles studios (Gold Star Studios, Western Studios and Sunset Sound) and an ensemble that included some highly regarded session musicians, including jazz guitarist Barney Kessel, bassist Carol Kaye, and session drummer Hal Blaine. The tracks were produced and arranged by Brian Wilson. He also wrote or co-wrote every track on the album.

Wilson had developed his production methods over several years, bringing them to their zenith with the recording of Pet Sounds during late 1965 and early 1966. Wilson's approach was in some respects a refined interpretation of the famous "Wall of Sound" technique created by his former mentor and now rival Phil Spector. Equipped with newest state-of-the-art Ampex 8-track recorders, Wilson produced tracks of great complexity using his regular team of 'first call' players, sometimes known collectively as "the Wrecking Crew".

Wilson's typical production method on Pet Sounds was to record the instrumental backing tracks for each song as a live ensemble performance direct onto 4-track recorders. His engineer Larry Levine has reported that Wilson also typically mixed these backing tracks live, as they were being taped, subsequently transferring the sounds onto 8-track machines. Like Spector, Wilson was a pioneer of the 'studio as instrument' concept, exploiting novel combinations of sounds that sprang from the use of multiple electric instruments and voices in an ensemble and combining them with echo and reverberation. He often doubled bass, guitar and keyboard parts, blending them with reverberation and adding other unusual instruments.

Although the self-taught Wilson often had entire arrangements worked out in his head (which were usually written in a shorthand form for the other players by one of his session musicians), surviving tapes of his recording sessions show that he was remarkably open to input from his musicians, often taking advice and suggestions from them and even incorporating apparent 'mistakes' if they provided a useful or interesting alternative.^{[citation needed]}

In spite of the availability of complex multitrack recording, Wilson always mixed the final version of his recordings in mono, as did Phil Spector. He did this for several reasons; one of which was that he felt that mono mastering provided more sonic control over the final result that the listener heard, regardless of the vagaries of speaker placement and sound system quality.

It was also motivated by the knowledge that, back then, radio and TV were broadcast in mono, and most domestic and automotive radios and record players were monophonic. Another and more personal reason for Wilson's preference of recording in mono was due to his being almost totally deaf in his right ear, rumored to be the result of childhood injury to his eardrum caused by a blow from his violent father Murry Wilson, although Wilson has claimed that he was born deaf in one ear.

These backing tracks were then dubbed down onto one track of an 8-track recorder (at Columbia studio, the only facility in LA with an 8-track), and, although much of the fine detail in the arrangements was often covered by the group's rich vocal harmonies, they interacted effectively with the vocal tracks. This mono recording meant that a stereo mixdown could not be achieved. Wilson's partial deafness made him indifferent to stereo and it was not until the advent of digital recording that it was possible to combine the instrumental and vocal session-tapes to achieve a true stereo release. Six of the remaining seven tracks were usually dedicated to each of the Beach Boys' vocals (the five-piece group was by then being regularly augmented by singer Bruce Johnston, who later became a permanent member). The last track was usually reserved for additional vocals and/or instruments and other 'sweetening' elements.

Provisional tracks and Capitol's insistence

Wilson was back in the studio with his session band, laying down the first takes for a new composition, "Good Vibrations". Around February 23, Wilson gave Capitol a provisional track listing for the new LP, which included both "Sloop John B" and "Good Vibrations." This contradicts the long held misconception that "Sloop John B" was a forced inclusion as the hit single at Capitol's insistence: in late February, the song was weeks away from release.

Wilson worked through February and into March fine-tuning the backing tracks. To the group's surprise he also dropped "Good Vibrations" from the running order, telling them that he wanted to spend more time on it. Al Jardine remembers:

At the time, we all had assumed that "Good Vibrations" was going to be on the album, but Brian decided to hold it out. It was a judgment call on his part; we felt otherwise but left the ultimate decision up to him.

Most of March and early April was devoted to recording the remaining backing tracks and to the crucial recording of vocals, a process which proved to be the most exacting work the group had hitherto undertaken, as Mike Love later recalled:

We worked and worked on the harmonies and, if there was the slightest little hint of a sharp or a flat, it wouldn't go on. We would do it over again until it was right. [Brian] was going for every subtle nuance that you could conceivably think of. Every voice had to be right, every voice and its resonance and tonality had to be right. The timing had to be right. The timbre of the voices just had to be correct, according to how he felt. And then he might, the next day, completely throw that out and we might have to do it over again.

Heralding the psychedelic era

Brian Wilson's response when asked about acid and the song "Hang On To Your Ego":

Yeah. I had taken a few drugs, and I had gotten into that kind of thing. I guess it just came up naturally.

—Brian Wilson, Out-Of-Sight!: The Smile Timeline

Brian appeared to become interested in Eastern philosophy and the psychedelic experience, in particular; often pointing to ego loss, or ego-death, as the key to a better way of living:

Studying metaphysics was also crucial, but Koestler's book really was the big one for me.

—Brian Wilson, Out-Of-Sight!: The Smile Timeline

According to music critic Jim DeRogatis:

Along with Revolver and The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators, Pet Sounds is one of the first psychedelic rock masterpieces with its artful experiments, psychedelic lyrics, and new sounds on guitars, organs, pianos and other instruments. Pet Sounds created worlds that only existed on tape and which couldn't necessarily be duplicated on stage, even with the help of an orchestra. The resulting album is a touching plea for love and understanding. While psychedelic drugs inspired the Beatles to look at the problems in the world around them, they made Brian Wilson turn his attention inward and probe his emotional longings and his deep-seated self-doubts.

—J. DeRogatis, Turn On Your Mind: Four Decades of Great Psychedelic Rock

Jim DeRogatis also stated:

Pet Sounds, Revolver and The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, relics of the first era of psychedelic rock and shining testaments to what can be accomplished in the recording studio when folks are fueled on the potent drug of rampant imagination.

—J. DeRogatis, Milk it!: collected musings on the alternative music explosion of the 90s

Concept

In 1966, several rock releases were arguably concept albums in the sense that they presented a set of thematically-linked songs – and they also instigated other rock artists to consider using the album format in a similar fashion: Pet Sounds was a musical portrayal of Brian Wilson's state of mind at the time (and a major inspiration to Paul McCartney). Although it has a unified theme in its emotional content, the writers (Brian Wilson and Tony Asher) have said repeatedly that it was not necessarily intended to be a narrative. However, Brian Wilson has stated that the idea of the record being a "concept album" is mainly within the way the album was produced and structured.

Title and cover art

Brian Wilson at San Diego Zoo.

Both the origin and meaning of the album title Pet Sounds are uncertain. Brian Wilson has claimed at one point that the title was "a tribute" to Phil Spector by naming the album using his initials. Carl Wilson later spoke about the album title: "The idea he had was that everybody has these sounds that they love, and this was a collection of his 'pet sounds.' It was hard to think of a name for the album, because you sure couldn't call it Shut Down Vol. 3."

Mike Love also has laid claim to coming up with the title. "We were standing in the hallway in one of the recording studios, either Western or Columbia, and we didn't have a title," he recounted. "We had taken pictures at the zoo and ... there were animal sounds on the record, and we were thinking, well, it's our favorite music of that time, so I said, 'Why don't we call it Pet Sounds?'"

On February 15, the group traveled to the San Diego Zoo to shoot the photographs for the cover, which had already been titled Pet Sounds. George Jerman has been credited for taking the cover photo. According to the Pet Sounds' liner notes, "The photos of The Beach Boys feeding an assortment of goats was a play on the album's chosen title, Pet Sounds."

Release

By mid-April Pet Sounds was finished and had been submitted to Capitol. "Caroline, No," released as a solo single; it was credited to Brian Wilson alone, leading to speculation that he was considering leaving the band. The single reached number 32 in the US.

"Sloop John B" was extremely successful, scoring a number three hit in the US. and number two in Great Britain. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" reached number eight in the US. Its flip side, "God Only Knows," was another number two single in Britain, but reached only number 39 in the US. The LP broke into the Top Ten in the US, belying its reputation as a commercial failure there. In Australia, the album was only released under the title The Fabulous Beach Boys on the Music for Pleasure label.

Pet Sounds' greatest success was in the UK, where it reached number two in the LP charts. Its success there was aided by considerable support from the British music industry, who embraced the record warmly; Paul McCartney spoke often about the album's influence on the Beatles. Bruce Johnston has often stated that he flew to London in May 1966 and played the album for John Lennon and Paul McCartney. But although it's been claimed that the Rolling Stones manager Andrew Oldham helped Derek Taylor publicize unsolicited advertisements lauding the album in British music papers, a search of the UK pop press for 1966 fails to uncover any such advert.

However, unlike Beach Boys' Party!, Pet Sounds did not enjoy commercial success. It's initial release in the US peaked at number ten, reportedly disappointing Wilson.^{[citation needed]} Much of the blame for its lukewarm commercial fortune has been placed with Capitol Records, which did not promote the album as heavily as the band's previous releases. Pet Sounds eventually went gold and platinum in 2000.

Re-issues

In 1990, Pet Sounds was released in CD format (All songs Mono) with three bonus tracks: "Unreleased Backgrounds" (actually an unused vocal section for "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)"), "Hang On to Your Ego" and "Trombone Dixie" all of which were described as unreleased.

In 1997, The Pet Sounds Sessions box set was released which included the original mono release, the first stereo release and three CDs of out-takes and rehearsals. The stereo mix was released in 1999 on vinyl and on CD. The current CD release has the original mono version, followed by "Hang On to Your Ego" (the original version of "I Know There's an Answer") as a bonus track, and the album remixed in stereo.

Recordings from Brian Wilson's 2002 concert tour, in which he reproduced the whole album live on stage, were released as Pet Sounds Live.

On August 29, 2006, Capitol released the 40th Anniversary edition of Pet Sounds. The new compilation contains a new 2006 remaster of the original mono mix, DVD mixes (stereo and Surround Sound), and a "making of" documentary. The discs were released in a regular jewel box and a deluxe edition was released in a green fuzzy box. A two disk colored gatefold vinyl set was released with green and yellow disks with the yellow one having the mono mix on it and the green disc having the stereo version.

On September 2, 2008, Capitol reissued a single LP version replicating the original artwork (including the inner sleeve) with the original mono mix on 180 gram vinyl.

Reception and influence

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Blender
Chicago Tribune
Entertainment Weekly	A+
Q
The Rolling Stone Album Guide
Slant Magazine
Sputnikmusic	5/5

Although not originally a big seller for the band, Pet Sounds has been influential since the day it was released. According to music journalist Stephen Davis, it was the first rock album that could have been considered a concept album. In his 1972 review for Rolling Stone, Davis called it "by far" Brian Wilson's best album and said that its "trenchant cycle of love songs has the emotional impact of a shatteringly evocative novel". Yahoo! Music's Bill Holdship later called it "the masterpiece" and "perhaps rock's first example of self-conscious art ... a beautiful reflection of romanticism in the modern world by an artist who probably wasn't made for these times." By contrast, Robert Christgau felt that Pet Sounds was a "good record, but a totem." It has often been cited by both critics and musicians as the greatest rock album of all time, including by Mojo magazine and by Paul McCartney, who acknowledges that it was the primary source for the Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. He later said of the album:

It was Pet Sounds that blew me out of the water. I love the album so much. I've just bought my kids each a copy of it for their education in life ... I figure no one is educated musically 'til they've heard that album ... I love the orchestra, the arrangements ... it may be going overboard to say it's the classic of the century ... but to me, it certainly is a total, classic record that is unbeatable in many ways ... I've often played Pet Sounds and cried. I played it to John [Lennon] so much that it would be difficult for him to escape the influence ... it was the record of the time. The thing that really made me sit up and take notice was the bass lines ... and also, putting melodies in the bass line. That I think was probably the big influence that set me thinking when we recorded Pepper, it set me off on a period I had then for a couple of years of nearly always writing quite melodic bass lines. "God Only Knows" is a big favourite of mine ... very emotional, always a bit of a choker for me, that one. On "You Still Believe in Me", I love that melody – that kills me ... that's my favourite, I think ... it's so beautiful right at the end ... comes surging back in these multi-coloured harmonies ... sends shivers up my spine.

Other artists have also cited Pet Sounds as one of the all time classic albums. Eric Clapton stated that "All of us, Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce and I consider Pet Sounds to be one of the greatest pop LPs to ever be released. It encompasses everything that's ever knocked me out and rolled it all into one."

Elton John has said of the album, "For me to say that I was enthralled would be an understatement. I had never heard such magical sounds, so amazingly recorded. It undoubtedly changed the way that I, and countless others, approached recording. It is a timeless and amazing recording of incredible genius and beauty."

Beatles producer George Martin stated that "Without Pet Sounds, Sgt. Pepper wouldn't have happened... Pepper was an attempt to equal Pet Sounds."

"It was just so much more than a record; it had such a spiritual quality. It wasn't going in and doing another top ten. It had so much more meaning than that."

Carl Wilson's reflection and response about the album.

Bob Dylan has said of Brian Wilson's talents, "That ear – I mean, Jesus, he's got to will that to the Smithsonian."

Roger Waters stated that along with Sgt Pepper, Pet Sounds "completely changed everything about records for me."

Elvis Costello stated "Last summer, I heard "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on my Shoulder)" played on the cello. It sounded beautiful and sad, just as it does on Pet Sounds."

In May 1966, Bruce Johnston flew to London with copies of Pet Sounds and recalls Keith Moon loving the album. Keith later stated "Pet Sounds was too far removed from the style he loved".

Pete Townshend stated "'God Only Knows' is simple and elegant and was stunning when it first appeared; it still sounds perfect".

Tom Petty stated "I think I would put him up there with any composer – especially Pet Sounds. I don't think there is anything better than that, necessarily. I don't think you'd be out of line comparing him to Beethoven – to any composer."

Legacy

In 1995, nearly thirty years after its release, a panel of top musicians, songwriters and producers assembled by MOJO magazine voted it "The Greatest Album Ever Made." It was number one in New Musical Express's list "The 100 Best Albums". In 1997, Pet Sounds was named the 33rd greatest album of all time in a poll conducted in the United Kingdom by HMV, Channel 4, The Guardian and Classic FM. In 2006 Q magazine readers voted it the 12th greatest album of all time; critics of German magazine Spex voted it the best album of the 20th century; in 2001 the TV channel VH1 placed it at #3. The Times magazine ranked it the greatest album of all time.

It also placed number two on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time behind only Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Beatles. In 2004, it was one of 50 recordings chosen by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. In 2006, the album was chosen by TIME as one of the 100 best albums of all time. The album has inspired many progressive rock bands and was later named as one of Classic Rock magazine's "50 Albums That Built Prog Rock".

Tributes

Pet Sounds has inspired a number of tribute albums such as "Do It Again A Tribute To Pet Sounds" by Patrick Wolf. Many songs on "Pet Sounds" have appeared on many Beach Boy and Brian Wilson tribute albums like Making God Smile by Sixpence None the Richer and Smiling Pets by various artists including Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore. There are many Pet Sounds tribute parodies including Punk Sounds by the Huntingtons. There have also been track-for-track mash-ups such as Sgt. Petsound's Lonely Hearts Club Band which is a blend of "Pet Sounds" with the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". It was released under the pseudonym "The Beachles". Seattle-based folk band, the Fleet Foxes have often been seen paying tribute to the album. Simon Neil of Scottish band Biffy Clyro has the lyrics "God only knows what I'd be without you" tattooed across his chest which refers to the song and to his wife Francesca. It was the first song they danced to. A song entitled "Caroline, Yes" appears on the Kaiser Chiefs' 2005 album Employment in reference to "Caroline, No".

Accolades

Publication	Country	Accolade	Year	Rank
The Times	United Kingdom	The 100 Best Albums of All Time	1993	1
New Musical Express	United Kingdom	New Musical Express Writers Top 100 Albums	1993	1
Mojo	United Kingdom	Mojo's 100 Greatest Albums of All Time	1995	1
The Guardian	United Kingdom	100 Best Albums Ever	1997	6
Channel 4	United Kingdom	The 100 Greatest Albums	1997	33
Grammy Awards	United States	Grammy Hall of Fame Award	1998	*
Virgin	United Kingdom	The Virgin Top 100 Albums	2000	18
VH1	United Kingdom	VH1's Greatest Albums Ever	2001	3
BBC	United Kingdom	BBC 6 Music: Best Albums of All Time	2002	11
Rolling Stone	United States	The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time	2003	2
Jim DeRogatis	United States	One Hundred and Ninety Eight Albums You Can't Live Without	2003	2
Robert Dimery	United States	1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die	2006	*
Time Magazine	United States	The All-TIME 100 Albums	2006	*
Q	United Kingdom	Q Magazine's 100 Greatest Albums Ever	2006	12
The Observer	United Kingdom	The 50 Albums That Changed Music	2006	10

(*) denotes an unordered list

Track listing

Pet Sounds has had many different re-issues since its release in 1966, including remastered mono and stereo versions. The first release of the album on CD came in 1990, when it was released with the addition of three bonus tracks. In 2001, Pet Sounds was re-released with "Hang on to Your Ego" as a bonus track.

All songs written and composed by Brian Wilson/Tony Asher except where noted. 

Side one
No.	Title	Lead vocals	Length
1.	"Wouldn't It Be Nice" (B. Wilson/Asher/Love)	B. Wilson and Love	2:25
2.	"You Still Believe in Me"	B. Wilson	2:31
3.	"That's Not Me"	Love with B. Wilson	2:28
4.	"Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)"	B. Wilson	2:53
5.	"I'm Waiting for the Day" (B. Wilson/Love)	B. Wilson	3:05
6.	"Let's Go Away for Awhile" (B. Wilson)	instrumental	2:18
7.	"Sloop John B" (trad. arr. B. Wilson/Jardine)	B. Wilson and Love	2:58

Side two
No.	Title	Lead vocals	Length
1.	"God Only Knows"	C. Wilson	2:51
2.	"I Know There's an Answer" (B. Wilson/Sachen/Love)	Love and Jardine with B. Wilson	3:09
3.	"Here Today"	Love	2:54
4.	"I Just Wasn't Made for These Times"	B. Wilson	3:12
5.	"Pet Sounds" (B. Wilson)	instrumental	2:22
6.	"Caroline, No"	B. Wilson	2:51

1990 CD reissue bonus tracks
No.	Title	Lead Vocals	Length
14.	"Unreleased Backgrounds" (B. Wilson)	The Beach Boys	0:50
15.	"Hang on to Your Ego" (B. Wilson/Sachen/Love)	B. Wilson	3:18
16.	"Trombone Dixie" (B. Wilson)	instrumental	2:53

2001 CD reissue bonus track
No.	Title	Lead Vocals	Length
14.	"Hang on to Your Ego" (B. Wilson/Sachen/Love)	B. Wilson	3:20
27.	"Vocals on "Wouldn't It Be Nice" (hidden track at the end of the Stereo of "Caroline, No")" ((B. Wilson/Asher/Love))	The Beach Boys	3:34

Notes

• Al Jardine's contributions to the arrangement of Sloop John B remain uncredited.

Personnel

The majority of the groups, session musicians and engineers information has derived largely from musician union contracts, web sources and books stating information about the record. This means that some of the information isn't certain or accurate. Furthermore, while contracts contain the session date, song title and hours booked, none was required to be precisely accurate. The date on the contracts were often changed to comply with union requirements.

According to Russ Waspensky, Laura Tunbridge and Brad Elliott, except as noted.

The Beach Boys

• Al Jardine – lead, harmony and backing vocals, tambourine
• Bruce Johnston – harmony and backing vocals
• Mike Love – lead, harmony and backing vocals
• Brian Wilson – lead, harmony and backing vocals, producer, arranger, conductor, organ, piano, dog whistle, train whistle, sound effects incl. barking dogs
• Carl Wilson – lead, harmony and backing vocals, guitar, twelve-string guitar
• Dennis Wilson – harmony and backing vocals, drums

Session musicians and production staff

• Ralph Balantin – engineer
• Arnold Belnick – violin
• Chuck Berghofer – upright bass
• Hal Blaine – drums, percussion, bongos, tympani, temple blocks*
• Bruce Botnick – engineer
• Norman Botnick – viola
• Chuck Britz – engineer
• Glen Campbell – guitar, twelve string guitar
• Frank Capp – percussion, bells*, vibraphone, timpani
• Al Casey – guitar
• Ray Caton – trumpet
• Jerry Cole – guitar
• Kyle Burkett – guitar
• Andrew Maxson – bass
• Gary Coleman – percussion, bongos
• H. Bowen David – engineer
• Mike Deasy – guitar
• Al de Lory – piano, harpsichord, organ, tack piano
• Joseph DiFiore – viola
• Justin DiTullio – cello
• Steve Douglas – saxophones, clarinet, percussion, flute
• Jesse Erlich – cello
• Ritchie Frost – drums, percussion, Coca-Cola cans
• Carl Fortina – accordion
• James Getzoff – violin
• Jim Gordon – drums, percussion
• Bill Green – saxophone, flute, percussion
• Leonard Hartman – english horn, clarinets
• Jim Horn – saxophones, flute
• Paul Horn – saxophone
• Harry Hyams – viola
• Jules Jacob – flute
• Plas Johnson – saxophones, percussion

• Carol Kaye – electric bass
• Barney Kessel – mandolin, guitar
• Bobby Klein – saxophone
• Larry Knechtel – hammond organ
• William Kurasch – violin
• Larry Levine – engineer
• Leonard Malarsky – violin
• Frank Marocco – accordion
• Gail Martin – trombone
• Nick Martinis – drums
• Terry Melcher – tambourine*
• Mike Melvoin – harpsichord
• Jay Migliori – saxophones, clarinets, flute
• Tommy Morgan – harmonica
• Jack Nimitz – saxophone
• Bill Pitman – guitar
• Ray Pohlman – mandolin, electric guitar, six string bass
• Don Randi – piano
• Jerome Reisler – violin
• Lyle Ritz – upright bass, ukulele
• Alan Robinson – french horn
• Leon Russell – piano
• Joseph Saxon – cello
• Ralph Schaffer – violin
• Sid Sharp – violin
• Billy Strange – guitar, twelve-string electric guitar
• Ron Swallow – tambourine
• Ernie Tack – trombone
• Paul Tanner – electro-theremin
• Darrel Terwilliger – viola
• Tommy Tedesco – guitar
• Julius Wechter – percussion
• Jerry Williams – percussion
• Tibor Zelig – violin

(*) denotes uncertainty where or if the musician plays the instrument on the album.

Sales chart positions

Albums

Year	Chart	Position
1966	US Billboard 200 Albums Chart	10
1966	UK Top 40 Album Chart	2
1972	US Billboard 200 Albums Chart	50
1990	US Billboard 200 Albums Chart	162
2001	Top Internet Albums	24

US Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1966	"Caroline No"	US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart	32
1966	"God Only Knows"	US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart	39
1966	"Sloop John B"	US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart	3
1966	"Wouldn't It Be Nice"	US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart	8

UK Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1966	"God Only Knows"	UK Top 40 Single Chart	2
1966	"Sloop John B"	UK Top 40 Single Chart	2

Chart information courtesy of Allmusic and other music databases.

See also

• The Pet Sounds Sessions
• Pet Sounds Live
• History of multitrack recording

Preceded by Revolver by The Beatles

The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time 2

Succeeded by Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles

References

• "List of Pet Sounds Accolades". Acclaimed Music. 2007. Retrieved July 5, 2011. 
• J. DeRogatis; "Milk it!: collected musings on the alternative music explosion of the 90s", ISBN 0-306-81271-1
• Jim Fusilli; Pet Sounds, Continuum International Publishing Group, 2005, ISBN 0-8264-1670-5
• Pet Sounds CD booklet notes, David Leaf, c.1990 and 2001.
• The Pet Sounds Sessions box set notes, David Leaf, c.1997.
• "The Nearest Faraway Place: Brian Wilson, The Beach Boys and the Southern California Experience", Timothy White, c. 1994.
• Laura Tunbridge; The Song Cycle, Cambridge University Press, 2011, ISBN 0-521-72107-5
• "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. 2010. Retrieved May 24, 2010. 
• Badman, Keith; Bacon, Tony The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band on Stage, Backbeat Books, 2004 ISBN 0-87930-818-4
• Doe, Andrew; Tobler, John Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys: The Complete Guide to Their Music, Omnibus Press, 2004 ISBN 1-84449-426-8 с. 46–53
• J. DeRogatis; Turn On Your Mind: Four Decades of Great Psychedelic Rock,ISBN 0-634-05548-8
• The Rock Canon: Canonical Values In The Reception Of Rock Albums,ISBN 0-7546-6244-6
• Bill Martin; Listening to the future: the time of progressive rock, 1968–1978, Open Court Publishing, 1998, ISBN 0-8126-9368-X
• Peter Ames Carlin; Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, & Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson, Rodale Books (New York), ISBN 139781594863202
• David Stuart Ryan; John Lennon's secret, ISBN 0-905116-08-9
• Jim DeRogatis; Kaleidoscope eyes: psychedelic rock from the 1960s to the 1990s, Fourth Estate, 1996, ISBN 1-85702-599-7
• "Pet Sounds". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 8, 2011.