For most people, whose impression of The Beach Boys probably begins and ends with pop ditties like "Help Me Rhonda" or "Surfer Girl," it might be difficult to fathom that the band's 1966 album, "Pet Sounds," is ranked right up there with "Sgt. Pepper."
Often called the greatest album of all time, "Pet Sounds" was in fact cited as one of the Fab Four's prime influences (Paul McCartney said it was his favorite album and that "Sgt. Pepper" was the Beatles' response to it). Its effects can still be heard in today's music. Portishead's etiolated strings, Cornelius' and Beck's dense, postmodern production and Smashing Pumpkins' complex melodies all owe something to "Pet Sounds."
The album begins innocently enough with the wistful, adolescent surf sounds of "Wouldn't It Be Nice." But underneath the pop facade are intricate production work and sculpted hooks that pushed the studio innovations of Phil Spector into new, almost psychedelic directions.