353: WILD HONEY | THE BEACH BOYS
Wiki: Wild Honey is the 13th studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released December 18, 1967 on Capitol Records. It was the group's first foray into soul music and was heavily influenced by the R&B of Motown and Stax Records (artists such as Stevie Wonder). The album was the band's worst-selling at that point, charting at number 24 in the US. Lead single "Wild Honey" peaked at number 31, while its follow-up "Darlin'" reached number 11. In the UK, the album peaked at number seven.
The album's sessions began immediately after the recording of Lei'd in Hawaii, a failed live album, and the release of Smiley Smile, their previous LP. Like Smiley Smile, Wild Honey's core instrumental combo consists of organ, honky-tonk piano, and electric bass. The Beach Boys were inspired to regroup as a self-contained rock band, partly in response to critical assertions that they were "ball-less choir boys". They also purposely distanced themselves from psychedelia and high-scale recording or thematic conceits—the prevailing rock trends of the time.
It was the second album to credit "the Beach Boys" as producer instead of Brian, who gradually withdrew from the band following the difficult sessions for the aborted Smile project. At Brian's request, his younger brother Carl began contributing more to the recording process, a trend that continued on subsequent albums. Mike Love also returned as Brian's main songwriting collaborator for the first time since Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) (1965). It was the last Beach Boys album to feature Brian as a primary composer until The Beach Boys Love You (1977).
Wild Honey was later credited with pioneering DIY pop and with anticipating a back-to-basics trend followed by other acts of the era, including Bob Dylan, the Byrds, the Beatles, the Band, and the Kinks. Most critics initially viewed the album as inconsequential, but after the mid-1970s, it was highlighted by fans and critics who appreciated the record's simplicity and charm. In 1979, the track "Here Comes the Night" was redone by the group as a disco single. In 2017, a complete stereo mix of Wild Honey was released for the first time on the rarities compilation 1967 – Sunshine Tomorrow. In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked Wild Honey number 410 on its list of the greatest albums of all time.