Beach Boys (1971) Long Promised Road - LOST 70s GEMS

Beach Boys's 1971 Surf's Up is an extraordinary album form the group primarily as they ceased to be fronted by the Wilsons but two new band members, young South African rock rhythm section Ricky Fataar and Blondie Chaplin and it's heavily submerged, murky Prog Rock sound still lifted by their trademark Barbershop and Doo Wop vocals which now take on a far more sinister air in this new Prog sound divorced from the dreamy harmless Psychedelia of the past lineup.

While I almost chose album side,the devilish Looking at Tomorrow (Welfare song) with it's dissonant, chamber vocal by Al Jardine with a slick, cracked vocal sounding almost demonic against a background of chiming capoed acoustic guitar fingerpickin and a general phased filter on both guitar and vocals for a creep sheen; not to mention the very haunted reverse echo 'ba ba ba, bup bup bup' nonsense verse and glistening organ towards the end.

Long Promised Road is the gem however as its more meaty starting with a contemplative Carl Wilson vocal with wet, plodding Wurlitzer before heavy drum and another raging chorus steps in a unabashed pure joy as Carl sings with freedom and gusto how 'But I hit hard at the battle that's confronting me, yeah,Knock down all the roaddblocks a-stumbling me
Throw off all the shackles that are binding me down'

Written by Carl Wilson and Jack Rieley it includes a dazzling synthesizer roller coaster line for the bridge where Carl's vocal gets touchingly poignant as he decries futility 'Long promised road

Flows to the source, gentle force, never ending, never ending'. Later a fuzzed out synth reminds me of modern day dubstep while the chorus stomps on in a thoroughly melodic fashion that the Beach boys rarely were able to achieve.