The Beach Boys

Released: March 15, 1972

Songwriter: Jack Rieley Brian Wilson

Producer: The Beach Boys

[Verse 1]
I need a breeze blowing softly
To keep my wind vane from standing
I need a whole lot of sunshine
To keep my sundial advancing
I need some soil before my grass will grow
I need some spark to make my candle glow

[Chorus 1]
Relief I cried
There is no shuck 'n' jive
I need a mess of help to stand alone

[Verse 2]
I need a spark by a fire
To stop the cold of my winter
I need a burst of your raindrops
To keep a flow in my river
I need a call for my phone will ring
I need your song for my voice will sing
Please realize
I'm not half alive
Without a mess of help to stand alone

[Chorus 2]
(She don't know me)
(She don't know it)
(She don't know)
(She don't know me)
(She don't know it)
(She don't know)
(She don't know me)
(She don't know it)

[Verse 3]
I need the warmth of your smile
To heat my frostbitten sorrow
I need your hand on my shoulder
To lead today's to tomorrows
I need your strength to lock me to the track
I need your trust to bust the things I lack

[Chorus 1]

[Chorus 2] [x2]

The Beach Boys are one of the world’s best-selling bands of all time and the first American pop band to reach the 50-year milestone. Their vocal harmonies are among the most unmistakable and enduring of the rock and roll era.

Formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California, by Brian Wilson, his two brothers Carl and Dennis, their cousin Mike Love, and classmate Al Jardine, the group’s first single “Surfin'” got them signed to Capitol Records and they quickly became one of the most popular and successful artists of the surf music craze of the 1960s. From 1962 to 1966, The Beach Boys scored over twenty top 40 hits in the US including the chart-toppers “I Get Around”, “Help Me Rhonda” & “Good Vibrations” along with the top 5’s “Surfin USA”, “Fun, Fun, Fun”, “California Girls”, “Barbara Ann” & “Sloop John B”. Several of the band’s singles also found top 40 success in Canada, Australia, Sweden and the UK. In 1965, de facto leader Brian Wilson suffered a mental breakdown due to the stress of writing, producing & touring combined with substance abuse issues, causing him to step down and stop traveling with the band on tour.

Inspired by producer Phil Spector and The Beatles' Rubber Soul, Brian focused on studio work, determined to keep the group relevant as the surf music scene was fading with their 1966 album Pet Sounds. Despite tension between members in the studio about this new direction, lack of faith from the record label, mixed reviews, and comparatively lukewarm reception initially in the US, the album still found massive success in the UK and earned accolades from fellow artists including The Beatles, who acknowledged that the album was their inspiration to further push the boundaries of pop music with their landmark album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Eventually Pet Sounds would be acknowledged as one of the greatest albums ever recorded by several media outlets like The Times, Mojo Magazine, The Guardian, VH1, BBC and Rolling Stone.

more tracks from the album

Carl and the Passions - “So Tough”

From the albums

Carl and the Passions - “So Tough” (1972)
Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of the Beach Boys (1993)

The Beach Boys popular songs

You Need A Mess Of Help To Stand AloneThe Beach Boys

The Beach Boys

Carl and the Passions - “So Tough”