The story of ‘Holland’: The Beach Boys album rejected by their record label
Time is excellent when providing us with perspective. We can look back at The Beach Boys‘ career and see just how much of an influence they have had within music. When bands write choruses today or experiment with different recording techniques, they are often taken from plants that grew from seeds The Beach Boys planted. However, time helps us see this: the band went through quite tricky phases throughout their career.
One of their turbulent times was in the early 1970s, as the band steadily slid out of relevance and wanted to try and rebuild their image. The pressure of LA was getting to them slightly, as it does with many acts, so they decided to hop on a plane and get some seclusion. They landed in the Netherlands, and thus, the process of making Holland began.
The first thing that the group needed to do was find somewhere to record. They spent a lot of money converting space on a farm to be used as a studio, putting the band at a loss before they even started. After that, it was a case of getting to work on the album as they came together to create something that sounded cohesive and they could be proud of.
Brian Wilson took a backseat when it came to the writing process, and in the Netherlands, he only wrote the final track on the album, ‘Funky Pretty’. The rest of the band were involved in the writing process, and the likes of Ricky Fataar, Blondie Chaplin, and Mike Love all put their heads together to create Holland. The result was something they all liked, but the record label didn’t agree.
The problem with the album wasn’t that it was bad, far from it; like a lot that The Beach Boys did, it had an inept ability to make those who listened smile and inject positivity into their day. However, for whatever reason, maybe the fact the band were living in close proximity to an area they weren’t familiar with, the whole thing came together in a way that was a bit too cohesive. In other words, the album flowed well, but nothing stood out. As a result, the label turned the album down, saying they weren’t happy because there was nothing they could release as a single.
Brian Wilson got back involved in writing ‘Sail On, Sailor’, the track that would eventually be released as a single. It was a messy recording process in LA, as nobody knew who should lead the vocals. Blondie Chaplin remembers trying to get Dennis Wilson to do them, but his mind was… elsewhere.
“Carl asked Dennis to sing the lead,” he said, “Dennis took one pass – not even a pass really – and said, ‘Carl, this is not for me. It doesn’t sound good for me. And by the way, the surf is up, and I’m going surfing.’” Instead of recording the vocals, Dennis opted instead to take to the waves. Carl had a go at the singing, but it didn’t land, and eventually, Chaplin himself took to the mic.
The track did okay, but it wasn’t the hit that the band – or the label – were particularly after. It charted at number 79 and then, when it was re-released a couple of years later, reached 49. The album charted slightly higher as it was certainly something that had to be listened to as one rather than being a record flooded with singles.
Chaplin stands by the album, saying, “Now, when you listen to it as a whole album, it plays pretty good.” It certainly does. The Beach Boys were the victims of what befalls a number of pop bands, as the label became so obsessed with hits that it got in the way of artistic integrity. Still, Holland holds up, and The Beach Boys’ legacy is undeniable.
