| "Girls on the Beach" | |
|---|---|
| Song by the Beach Boys | |
| from the album All Summer Long | |
| Released | July 13, 1964 |
| Recorded | April 10 – May 19, 1964 |
| Studio | Western, Hollywood |
| Length | 2:24 |
| Label | Capitol |
| Songwriter(s) | Brian Wilson, Mike Love |
| Producer(s) | Brian Wilson |
"Girls on the Beach" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1964 album All Summer Long . Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, the song is in the vein of the band's previous surf ballads and features Four Freshmen-inspired harmonies. The song also served as the title track to the movie The Girls on the Beach .
"Girls on the Beach" was written by Brian Wilson, whose 2016 memoir, I Am Brian Wilson , described it as "our last real surf-type song." [1] It is a ballad in a similar vein to Wilson's 1963 song "Surfer Girl", but more musically complex [2] and sexualized. [3] Musicologist Philip Lambert notes the influence of the Four Freshmen on the song's vocal arrangement. [4]
Biographer Peter Ames Carlin writes of an "erotic" quality in the song, reflected "both in the lyrics and in the voices themselves, which fall, climb, and tangle languidly through a series of augmented chords with a loving intimacy that communicates all the passion simmering beneath the words." [5] Lambert says, "'Girls on the Beach' is less romantic and more lecherous, sung about the girls but to the other guys." [3]
"Girls on the Beach" was recorded on April 10 and May 19, 1964 at United Western Recorders. [6]
In addition to appearing on the band's 1964 album, All Summer Long , the song featured as the title track to the surf movie The Girls on the Beach , filmed in April 1964 and featuring performances by the band. In the film, the band performed "The Girls on the Beach", "Little Honda", and "Lonely Sea". [7]
Writing retrospectively for AllMusic, critic Richie Unterberger described the song as a "sumptuous ballad" and a "relatively little-known treasure," also noting that the song features "some of their best early harmonizing." [8]
Dennis Wilson sang lead on the song's middle eight; brother Brian later commented, "Dennis does a nice job on the bridge". [1] Biographer Jon Stebbins praised Dennis's line "the sun in her hair / the warmth of the air" as "[o]ne of the most perfect uses of [his] sexy voice", and the closing block harmonies as "one of the group's finest moments". [9] In addition, he notes that the song "shows off Brian's incredible vocal-arranging skill, with complex group blends and multiple key changes". [9]