The Beach Boys song Brian Wilson thinks stands the test of time: “An absolute rocker!”
The Beach Boys may have been a product of their environment, of 1960s California, of rivalling Beatlemania, of sea, surf and sand, but their impact has persisted far beyond the decade that spit them out. It’s been over 60 years since the Wilson brothers began concocting harmonies in their family home, but their creations still resonate with audiences worldwide.
From the pioneering work of Pet Sounds to the sunny jubilance of ‘Surfin’ U.S.A’, much of the Beach Boys catalogue has stood the test of time. ‘God Only Knows’ remains one of the most hauntingly gorgeous compositions ever made, even taking the title for Paul McCartney’s favourite song of all time, while ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’ still finds its way onto film soundtracks.
Forgoing those obvious picks in favour of a more obscure number, Brian Wilson once suggested that ‘Salt Lake City’ is one of their most enduring tracks. The songwriter shared his love for the song and the album it spawned from during a conversation with Esquire Middle East.
Picking out 1965’s Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) as one of his favourite records, Wilson deemed ‘Salt Lake City’ in particular an “absolute rocker, which stands the rest of time”. The song was buried in the tracklisting of the album, overshadowed by the mammoth success of singles like ‘Help Me, Rhonda’ and ‘California Girls’, but it was no less rocking.
‘Salt Lake City’ is characteristically Beach Boys. A tale of the grooviest kids and sun in the summer, it pairs euphoric harmonies with trumpets and tambourines. It’s a sweet and swinging tale of Salt Lake, but it’s an interesting pick for Beach Boys songs that stand the test of time.
While ‘Good Vibrations’ has found fans in generations of music fans and ‘God Only Knows’ has come to be widely accepted as one of the greatest songs of all time, ‘Salt Lake City’ seems like a filler track in comparison. It’s nowhere near as complex or critically acclaimed as other elements of the Beach Boys’ discography, nor is it as enduring.
In fact, the song seems particularly rooted in the time and place that inspired it. As Wilson details the local girls and radio stations of Salt Lake, it’s difficult to imagine the song translating to a modern audience quite as well as their other efforts. It’s still a fun song to listen to, but it doesn’t entirely stand the test of time.
Still, Wilson has made a case for the song as one of their most enduring and most rocking. Revisit ‘Salt Lake City’ by the Beach Boys below.
