"Good Timin’" is a song written by brothers

Brian Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish and Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. It is possible that the name is derived from an Old Celtic word me ...

and Carl Wilson for the American rock band

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by the ...

. It was the second single released from the album ''

L.A. (Light Album) ''L.A. (Light Album)'' is the 23rd studio album by the American rock band the Beach Boys, released on March 16, 1979, and their first issued through CBS Records. Recorded during a period of acrimony between the band members, it was a critical an ...

'' (1979); the B-side was "Love Surrounds Me".

Recording

The track was initiated during the group's sporadic sessions at

Brother Studios Brother Studios (later renamed Crimson Sound) was the name of a recording studio located at 1454 5th St, Santa Monica, California established by brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, co-founders of the Beach Boys. History Brother Studios ...

and

Caribou Ranch Caribou Ranch was a recording studio built by producer James William Guercio in 1972 in a converted barn on ranch property in the Rocky Mountains near Nederland, Colorado, on the road that leads to the ghost town of Caribou. The studio was in op ...

during 1974, with Brian contributing on the piano and harpsichord. The basic track was completed and Carl Wilson recorded the lead vocals. Initially intended for release on their next album, ''

15 Big Ones ''15 Big Ones'' is the 20th studio album by the American rock band the Beach Boys, released July 5, 1976 on Brother/Reprise. It includes a mix of original songs and renditions of rock 'n' roll and R&B standards. The LP was the band's first albu ...

'', it ultimately remained unreleased until 1979. Due to the negative reception following the release of the Beach Boys' unconventional disco remake of "

Here Comes the Night "Here Comes the Night" is a 1964 song, written by Bert Berns. It became a hit for Northern Irish band Them, fronted by Van Morrison, in March 1965, charting at No. 2 in the UK and No. 24 in the US. Them's single is listed at either No. 33 or No. ...

", "Good Timin'" was hastily assembled with necessary vocal overdubs by Carl Wilson and Bruce Johnston and released as a single. Johnston recalled: I'm not putting Al down or Mike but the real soldier who stuck with me the whole time was Carl. The two us sang the verses on 'Good Timin, the two of us sang the four vocal parts." It was the lead track on their subsequent ''L.A. (Light Album)'', which was released later that year.

Live performances

"Good Timin'" was performed live on tours throughout the early 1980s following its release. Brian sang the lead vocals during

The 50th Reunion Tour The 50th Anniversary Reunion Tour was a 2012 world concert tour by the American rock band the Beach Boys. The tour marked the first time since 1982 that founding member Brian Wilson had performed on a full tour with the band, although from 1965 t ...

with

Al Jardine Alan Charles Jardine (born September 3, 1942) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys. He is best known as the band's rhythm guitarist and for occasionally singing lead vocals on singles such as " Help Me, Rh ...

also on vocals filling in for Carl Wilson.

Charts

"Good Timin'" reached No. 40 in the U.S. during a stay of ten weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart; and peaked at No. 33 on the ''Cash Box'' sales chart. It was their first single to reach the Top 40 portion of the chart since " It's OK" in October 1976. It also reached No. 12 on the ''Billboard''

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

chart.

Personnel

Sourced from sessionography archivist Craig Slowinski.http://beachboysarchives.com/page12

Good Timin'

;The Beach Boys * Carl Wilson – lead and backing vocals, guitars * Brian Wilson – piano, harpsichord, organ *

Dennis Wilson Dennis Carl Wilson (December 4, 1944 – December 28, 1983) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys. He is best remembered as their drummer and as the middle brother of bandmates Brian and Carl Wilson. ...

– drums *

Bruce Johnston Bruce Arthur Johnston (born Benjamin Baldwin; June 27, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who is a member of the Beach Boys. Johnston also collaborated on many records with Terry Melcher (his bandmate in Bru ...

– backing vocals, Fender Rhodes *

Mike Love Michael Edward Love (born March 15, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys with his cousins Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson and their friend Al Jardine. Characterized by his nasal tenor and occasional bas ...

– backing vocals *

– backing vocals ;Additional personnel *

Jim Guercio James William Guercio (born July 18, 1945) is an American music producer, musician, songwriter, and director. He is well known for his work as the producer of Chicago's early albums as well as early recordings of The Buckinghams and Blood, Sweat ...

– bass

Love Surrounds Me

;The Beach Boys *

– lead, harmony and backing vocals, Fender Rhodes,

Oberheim Oberheim is an American synthesizer manufacturer founded in 1969 by Tom Oberheim. History and products Tom Oberheim founded the company in 1969, originally as a designer and contract manufacturer of electronic effects devices for Maestro (most ...

and Moog synthesizers, additional drums,

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally ...

, arrangements * Carl Wilson – backing vocals *

- backing vocals ;Additional personnel *

Christine McVie Christine Anne McVie (; née Perfect; 12 July 1943 – 30 November 2022) was an English musician and songwriter. She was best known as keyboardist and one of the vocalists of the band Fleetwood Mac. McVie was a member of several bands, nota ...

– backing vocals * Ed Carter – electric lead and rhythm guitars *

Neil Levang Neil is a masculine name of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an anglicisation of the Irish ''Niall'' which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "honour" or "champion".. ...

– dobro during closing vamp *

Joe Chemay Joe Chemay is an American bassist and background singer, known for his recording session work. Biography Chemay started out working as a session and touring support musician in Los Angeles, but moved to Nashville in 1989. Chemay has worked wi ...

– bass * Carli Muñoz – grand piano * Phil Shenale – Oberheim synthesizer during closing vamp * Bobby Figueroa – drums * Steve Forman –

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though ...

mark tree A mark tree (also known as a nail tree, chime tree, or set of bar chimes) is a percussion instrument used primarily for musical colour. It consists of many small chimes—typically cylinders of solid aluminium or hollow brass tubing 3/8" in di ...

bell tree A bell tree, also known as tree bellsBeck, John. ''Encyclopedia of Percussion.'' Taylor and Francis, 1995. or Chinese bell tree (often confused with the mark tree), is a percussion instrument, consisting of vertically nested inverted metal bowl ...

cabasa The cabasa, similar to the shekere, is a percussion instrument that is constructed with loops of steel ball chain wrapped around a wooden cylinder. The cylinder is fixed to a long, wooden or plastic handle. The metal cabasa was created by Mart ...

during closing vamp

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Good Timin' (Beach Boys Song) 1979 singles The Beach Boys songs Songs written by Brian Wilson Songs written by Carl Wilson Song recordings produced by James William Guercio Song recordings produced by Bruce Johnston