The Beach Boys

Released: September 18, 1967

Songwriter: Van Dyke Parks Mike Love Brian Wilson

Producer: The Beach Boys

[Verse]
Silken hair, more silken hair fell on her face
And no wind was blowing (She was kinda hip)
Silken hair, more silken hair lay near her pillbox
Down at her feet (She'd been on a trip)
I peek in and when I saw she'd lost her hair
I thought I would tell her (She was goin' bald)
When she saw her shining forehead, didn't stop
She swooned to the ground (Really flipped her wig)
Laughed so hard, I blew my mind
I blew my cool and blew myself over
Oh, oh, oh, oh

[Bridge]
What a blow (Sha-na-na)
Sha-na-na, na-na-na-na-na-na (Yeah, blow)
Sha-na-na, na-na-na-na-na-na (What a blow)
Sha-na-na, na-na-na-na-na-na (Yeah, blow)
Sha-na-na, na-na-na-na-na-na (Mmm, what a blow)
Sha-na-na, na-na

[Interlude]
She drew a comb across her scalp
And brushed what she had left
I tried to salvage what I could
And threw it in a sack
She made a bee line to her room
And grabbed all kind o' juice
She started pouring it on her head
And thought it'd grow it back!

[Chorus/Outro]
You're too late mama
Ain't nothin' upside your head
(No more, no more, no more, no more)
Upside your head
You're too late mama
Ain't nothin' upside your head
(No more, no more, no more, no more)
Upside your head
You're too late mama
Ain't nothin' upside your head
(No more, no more, no more, no more)

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.

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