Funky Pretty

Last updated
"Funky Pretty"
Single by the Beach Boys
from the album Holland
A-side "California Saga/California"
ReleasedApril 16, 1973 (1973-04-16)
Recorded1972 (1972)
Genre R&B [1]
Length4:09
Label Brother
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys singles chronology
"Sail On, Sailor"
(1973)
"Funky Pretty"
(1973)
"Child of Winter (Christmas Song)"
(1974)

"Funky Pretty" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their January 1973 album Holland . Themed around astrology, the song was written by Brian Wilson, Mike Love, and Jack Rieley. Carl Wilson explained that the song was quickly recorded in a "spontaneous flurry". Brian was an active participant in its production, a rare occurrence at the time. [2] In April 1973, it was issued as the B-side to their single "California Saga/California".

Contents

Background

Rolling Stone wrote of the song in its review of Holland:

"Funky Pretty" is more on the guttural side of R&B. A cosmic love song to an astrological lovely, it mounts its grit in a swirl of harmonic complications, again underlining Blondie Chaplin's more straightforward vocal dexterity with a defiantly baroque choral signature: Vivaldi meets the Regents on a magic synthesizer. It makes for a beautiful track, built on economical and even monotonous musical premises that delight in their unreasonably complex development. [1]

Asked about the song in a 2013 interview, manager Jack Rieley said:

That was the test of Brian’s commitment to the idea that Bruce Johnston's not in the band, but Blondie and Ricky are. Funky Pretty is, to me, the modern Beach Boys because Mike, Carl, Brian and Blondie sing. Carl was doing funky songs as far back as to when he covered I Was Made to Love Her by Stevie Wonder on Wild Honey . It was in his bones and his blood. [3]

Drummer Ricky Fataar remembered,

I think [Brian] might even be playing drums on the song. I missed playing on that because I was sick. I had a cold or something that week. I didn't see Brian all that much. I can't even remember seeing him in the studio in Holland. Everyone had their own family situation and we'd just go to work and occasionally see each other. It wasn't like a one-big-family thing. [4]

Guitarist Blondie Chaplin stated,

On "Funky Pretty", Brian came down while we were trying to work out the vocals and he was doing a mix that I thought was even better than what eventually came out on the record. [4]

Personnel

Credits from Craig Slowinski, John Brode, Will Crerar and Joshilyn Hoisington. [5]

The Beach Boys

Additional musicians

Cover versions

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Wilson</span> American musician (1946–1998)

Carl Dean Wilson was an American musician who co-founded the Beach Boys. He was their lead guitarist, the youngest sibling of bandmates Brian and Dennis, and the group's de facto leader in the early to mid-1970s. He was also the band's musical director on stage from 1965 until his death.

<i>Holland</i> (album) 1973 album by the Beach Boys

Holland is the 19th studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released January 8, 1973 on Brother/Reprise. It is their first album recorded without Bruce Johnston since 1965, their second with Blondie Chaplin and Ricky Fataar, and their final studio album created under the de facto leadership of Carl Wilson and manager Jack Rieley. The LP was originally packaged with a bonus EP, Mount Vernon and Fairway, which consisted of a 12-minute fairy tale written and produced by Brian and Carl Wilson.

<i>Surfs Up</i> (album) 1971 studio album by the Beach Boys

Surf's Up is the 17th studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released on August 30, 1971 on Brother/Reprise. It received largely favorable reviews and reached number 29 on the U.S. record charts, becoming their highest-charting LP of new music in the U.S. since 1967. In the UK, Surf's Up peaked at number 15, continuing a string of top 40 records that had not abated since 1965.

<i>Carl and the Passions – "So Tough"</i> 1972 album by the Beach Boys

Carl and the Passions – "So Tough" is the 18th studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released May 15, 1972 on Brother/Reprise. The album is a significant musical departure for the band and is the first to feature the Flames' Blondie Chaplin and Ricky Fataar as additions to their official line-up. It sold poorly and was met with lukewarm reviews, but later gained stature as a cult favorite among fans.

<i>15 Big Ones</i> 1976 album by the Beach Boys

15 Big Ones is the 20th studio album by the American rock band the Beach Boys, released July 5, 1976, by Brother/Reprise. It includes a mix of original songs and renditions of rock 'n' roll and R&B standards. The LP was the band's first album with production credited solely to Brian Wilson since Pet Sounds (1966). As such, its release was accompanied by a controversial media campaign that declared his comeback as an active member of the Beach Boys' recording and touring group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sail On, Sailor</span> 1973 single by the Beach Boys

"Sail On, Sailor" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1973 album Holland. It was written primarily by Van Dyke Parks and Brian Wilson with Ray Kennedy, Tandyn Almer, and Jack Rieley. The lead singer on the song is Blondie Chaplin, making this one of the band's few well-known songs not sung by Mike Love, Brian Wilson or Carl Wilson. The song was released as a single in 1973, backed with "Only with You", and peaked at No. 79 on the Billboard singles chart. A 1975 reissue charted higher, at No. 49.

<i>Ten Years of Harmony</i> 1981 greatest hits album by The Beach Boys

Ten Years of Harmony is an official double album compilation album released by the Beach Boys in 1981, and spanning their entire Brother Records-era up to that point (1970–80), including some unreleased or rare material. Although the song "Darlin'" had originally been recorded in 1967 while the group was signed to Capitol Records, the version on Ten Years of Harmony was recorded live in 1973 for the album The Beach Boys in Concert.

<i>Classics Selected by Brian Wilson</i> 2002 compilation album by The Beach Boys

Classics selected by Brian Wilson is a compilation of songs by The Beach Boys and released through Capitol Records in mid-2002. It was compiled by Brian Wilson himself that February. It includes a new recording of an unreleased 1970s track, "California Feelin'" not by The Beach Boys but Wilson and his live band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blondie Chaplin</span> South African musician; member of the Beach Boys

Terrence William "Blondie" Chaplin is a South African singer and guitarist from Durban, where he played in the band the Flames in the mid to late 1960s. From 1972 to 1973, he was a member of the Beach Boys and contributed to their albums Carl and the Passions – "So Tough" (1972) and Holland (1973). During his stint with the Beach Boys, he sang the lead on the popular song, "Sail On Sailor". Chaplin was a long-term backing vocalist, percussionist, and acoustic rhythm guitarist for the Rolling Stones on their recordings and tours over a 15-year period, starting in 1997. Chaplin has released two solo albums, Blondie Chaplin (1977) and Between Us (2008).

"A Day in the Life of a Tree" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1971 album Surf's Up. It was written by Brian Wilson and the group's manager Jack Rieley, who also performed lead vocal. The lyrics were inspired by Wilson's feelings toward environmental pollution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California Saga/California</span> 1973 single by the Beach Boys

"California Saga/California" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their January 1973 album Holland. It was written by Al Jardine and is the third and final part of the "California Saga" series of songs on Holland. In May 1973, a remixed version was issued as a single under the title "California Saga ".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcella (song)</span> 1972 single by the Beach Boys

"Marcella" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1972 album Carl and the Passions – "So Tough". Written by Brian Wilson, Jack Rieley, and Tandyn Almer, the lyrics were inspired by Wilson's fixation with a local massage therapist. It is the last song to feature Bruce Johnston during his original tenure in the band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone (song)</span> 1972 single by the Beach Boys

"You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1972 album Carl and the Passions – "So Tough". It was written by Brian Wilson and Jack Rieley, and was issued as the album's lead single with the B-side "Cuddle Up". The single failed to chart.

"All This Is That" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1972 album Carl and the Passions – "So Tough". Written by Al Jardine, Carl Wilson, and Mike Love, the song was inspired by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Transcendental Meditation teachings and the Robert Frost poem "The Road Not Taken".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long Promised Road</span> 1971 Beach Boys song

"Long Promised Road" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1971 album Surf's Up. It was written by Carl Wilson and Jack Rieley. Aside from a few guitar instrumentals written in the early days of the band and collective co-writing credits, the song is Wilson's first solo composition, and he plays all of the instruments himself.

"Feel Flows" is a song recorded by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1971 album Surf's Up. It was written by guitarist Carl Wilson and band manager Jack Rieley, and was one of Wilson's first songs.

"Student Demonstration Time" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1971 album Surf's Up. It is an altered version of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller's "Riot in Cell Block Number 9" with new lyrics by Mike Love.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Rieley</span> American DJ, record producer, and songwriter (1942–2015)

John Frank Rieley III was an American businessman, record producer, songwriter, and disc jockey who managed the Beach Boys between mid-1970 and late 1973. He is credited with guiding them back to popular acclaim and was described by New Statesman as "a radio DJ turned career mentor."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Flames</span>

The Flames were a South African musical group formed in 1962, with their best-known lineup consisting of guitarists and vocalists Steve Fataar and Blondie Chaplin, bassist Edries "Brother" Fataar, and drummer Ricky Fataar. Considered one of the most important and unique bands of 1960s South Africa, they stood out with their blend of soul and rock music, Indian background, and material centered around albums and covers rather than singles and original songs. Their 1968 cover of The Impressions' "For Your Precious Love" reached #1 on the domestic charts and has since been considered their most popular and enduring song.

<i>Mount Vernon and Fairway</i> 1973 EP by the Beach Boys

Mount Vernon and Fairway is an EP by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was included as a bonus record with their 1973 release Holland. It is a 12-minute musical fairy tale, primarily composed by Brian Wilson, assembled by Carl Wilson, and narrated by manager Jack Rieley. Brian provided the voice of the Pied Piper and drew the sleeve cover.

References

  1. 1 2 Miller, Jim (March 1, 1973). "Holland". Rolling Stone .
  2. Planer, Lindsay. "Funky Pretty". Allmusic.
  3. "The Life of RIELEY". Record Collector Mag. September 6, 2013.
  4. 1 2 Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio . Backbeat Books. p. 320. ISBN   978-0-87930-818-6.
  5. "Sail On Sailor Sessionography". The Beach Boys. Retrieved 2023-01-21.