I like Kokomo. It’s a fine part of Papa John Phillips oeuvre. It’s an excellent Jimmy Buffet type song w/o Buffet’s annoying “insightfulness.”
Everybody knows a little place like Kokomo…
It’s true and that bit of melody is sweet.
As for the OP’s question;
Their famous cover of Sloop John B.
It used to be Good Vibrations, but since it has been my ringtone since 2005 I’m getting kind of fed up with (but clearly not enough to change the damn thing) so I have to say nowadays it’s God only knows…
Early career: Fun, Fun, Fun
Later career: God Only Knows
Yay! I get to be original: Do It Again. I just love that song; it’s so darn…catchy. It’s nostalgic for their early work, and has a nice stream-of-consciousness lyric:
Suntan bodies and waves of sunshine California girls and a beautiful coastline warmed-up weather let’s get together and do it again.
crap. didn’t see #54. So much for originality.
Wouldn’t It Be Nice, as sung by Adam Sandler in 50 First Dates.
So many. So hard to choose. But if I must, I’ll take God Only Knows with a cappella ending from the Pet Sounds Sessions album. Then there’s Good Vibrations, although the correct version from the Smile album is nothing like the hit version.
Still, Surf’s Up takes the prize.
For hilarity ensues, there’s always the video on Youtube for “Don’t Worry Baby” that is chock full of b-movie dancing and surfing shenanigans.
The song however, is crystalline perfect. Their vocals are pretty much unmatched, and given the production limitations of the time, the song still stands strong as a wonderful, catchy, awesome tune.
