"Kiss Me, Baby" is a song by the American rock band

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

from their 1965 album ''

The Beach Boys Today! ''The Beach Boys Today!'' is the eighth studio album by the American rock band the Beach Boys, released March 8, 1965 on Capitol Records. It signaled a departure from their previous records with its orchestral sound, intimate subject matter, and ...

''. Written by

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...

and

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 bass-bari ...

, it was issued as the B-side of the group's "

Help Me, Rhonda "Help Me, Rhonda" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys, appearing first on their 1965 album ''The Beach Boys Today!'' (where it was spelled "Help Me, Ronda") and subsequently in re-recorded form on the following 1965 album ''Summer Day ...

" single on April 5.

Overview

"Kiss Me, Baby" is about a quarrel between the narrator and his lover, and his attempt to repair their relationship. Wilson was inspired to write "Kiss Me, Baby" while walking around a

red light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are partic ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

. He composed it at his hotel room there on November 14, 1964, days after proposing to singer

Marilyn Rovell Marilyn may refer to: * Marilyn (given name) * Marilyn (singer) (born 1962), English singer * Marilyn (hill), a type of mountain or hill in the British Isles with a prominence above 150 m * 1486 Marilyn, a Main-belt asteroid * ''Marilyn'' (19 ...

. Love said that the "wistful bass line ... led to my lyrics about a guy who has a disagreement with his girlfriend, even though they can't even remember what they fought about, leaving them both brokenhearted." The arrangement features basses, guitars, saxophone, pianos, vibraphone, drums, and

temple blocks Temple blocks are a type of percussion instrument consisting of a set of woodblocks. It is descended from the muyu, an instrument originating from eastern Asia, where it is commonly used in religious ceremonies. Description It is a carved h ...

—the sound of the latter percussion soon became a signature for Wilson– as well as

English horn The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn in North America, is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially an alto ...

and

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

. Doo-wop style background vocals sing "Kiss a little bit, fight a little bit" repetitively throughout the chorus and outro. Love described the "R&B, doo-wop, bass thing" as an "' In the Still of the Night' type vibe". Journalist Scott Interrante interpreted this part of the lyric as implying that the narrator "knows the on-again/off-again relationship ''should'' remain off. But this doesn’t stop him from wondering, as he lies awake at sunrise, 'Are you still awake like me?'" Biographer Mark Dillon cited it as "a ballad that pleaded for the romantic reconciliation ilsonanticipated with Marilyn." Conversely, Interrante said that it "doesn’t seem to lyrically parallel Brian Wilson’s personal life at the time ... For an album whose songs are so concerned with the future—whether worrying about it or anticipating it—'Kiss Me, Baby' is an odd man out, focusing on coming to terms with the present."

Recording

The song was recorded over two dates at Western Recorders, both produced by Brian Wilson. The instrumental track was recorded on December 16, 1964, with

Chuck Britz Charles Dean Britz (November 7, 1927 – August 21, 2000) was a recording engineer who worked with Jan and Dean, Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys, P.F. Sloan and The Grass Roots on numerous albums between 1962 and 1967. Biography Britz was bor ...

engineering. The vocals were overdubbed on January 15, 1965. It has the distinction of being the only track on ''Today!'' whose recording spanned before and after Wilson's nervous breakdown in late December 1964.

Critical reception

Thomas Ward of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

praised "Kiss Me, Baby" as a product of Wilson's "dense, multi-layered confessional songs, with adult themes and exploring issues previously only developed by performers such as

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

". Interrante described it as among Wilson's "most interesting compositions" in addition to containing "some of the thickest and most beautiful harmonies the group had pulled off up to that point." Biographer

Jon Stebbins Jon Stebbins is a Los Osos, California-based musician, songwriter, documentary producer and author of four books about The Beach Boys, as well as two other books. Music career Stebbins was a member of a music band called 'The Point' which was ac ...

praised "Kiss Me, Baby" as "the pinnacle of balladry", one of the group's "most romantic and emotional songs", and "a mammoth artistic achievement". ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' described "Kiss Me, Baby" as "good ballad material with strong arrangement and vocal performances." ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' described it as "a tender, slow-moving moody ballad which effectively blends in snatches of harmony and

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tradi ...

Variations

* A stereo remix of the song was released on the 1998 ''

Endless Harmony Soundtrack ''Endless Harmony Soundtrack'' is an anthology album of previously unheard material by The Beach Boys, originally released by Capitol Records in August 1998. Named for Bruce Johnston's song on the 1980 album ''Keepin' the Summer Alive'', it was ...

''. * A Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound version of the song was released on the ''Endless Harmony DVD'' as a bonus track. The track, along with the other 5.1 surround sound mixes, were produced and mixed by

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. * An

a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...

mix of the song was released on the 2001 archival release '' Hawthorne, CA''. * A performance of "Kiss Me, Baby" was included on Wilson's 2000 live album ''

Live at the Roxy Theatre ''Live at the Roxy Theatre'' is a live album released by Brian Wilson in 2000. After a successful period of touring following the release of '' Imagination'', Wilson decided to record his first-ever live solo album. Accompanied by his supportin ...

'', where he introduced it as "kind of a sweet little song".

Personnel

Per band archivist Craig Slowinski. ;The Beach Boys *

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, Rho ...

–

harmony In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. However ...

and

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

–

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

, harmony and backing vocals *

– lead and backing vocals, upright piano *

Carl Wilson Carl Dean Wilson (December 21, 1946 – February 6, 1998) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys. He was their lead guitarist, the youngest sibling of bandmates Brian and Dennis, and the group's ''de ...

– harmony and backing vocals; 12-string lead guitar *

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. ...

– harmony and backing vocals ;Additional musicians and production staff

References

Citations Bibliography * * * * * {{authority control The Beach Boys songs 1965 songs Songs written by Brian Wilson Songs written by Mike Love Song recordings produced by Brian Wilson Song recordings with Wall of Sound arrangements