"Student Demonstration Time" is a song by 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 ...

from their 1971 album '' Surf's Up''. It is an altered version of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller's "

Riot in Cell Block Number 9 "Riot in Cell Block #9" is a R&B song composed by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller in 1954. The song was first recorded by The Robins the same year. That recording was one of the first R&B hits to use sound effects and employed a Muddy Waters sto ...

" with new lyrics by

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 ...

Background and lyrics

The song which "Student Demonstration Time" is based on—"

"—was originally written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller in 1954, and was considered for inclusion on the Beach Boys' 1965 album '' Party!'', but was ultimately not included. The song was subsequently performed live by the Beach Boys in concert starting in 1969. In mid-1970,

re-wrote the lyrics after learning of the

Kent State Shootings The Kent State shootings, also known as the May 4 massacre and the Kent State massacre,"These would be the first of many probes into what soon became known as the Kent State Massacre. Like the Boston Massacre almost exactly two hundred years bef ...

where four unarmed college students protesting the Cambodian Campaign were killed by the Ohio National Guard on Monday, May 4, 1970. Stephen Desper, engineer of the Beach Boys during this period, explained the genesis and context behind the song: Other events referred to in the song include (in order of appearance): * Autumn 1964 – Berkeley Free Speech Movement * May 1969 – People's Park, also in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and E ...

* June 1970 – rioting in Isla Vista, California * May 14–15, 1970 –

Jackson State killings The Jackson State killings occurred on Friday, May 15, 1970, at Jackson State College (now Jackson State University) in Jackson, Mississippi. On May 14, 1970, city and state police confronted a group of students outside a campus dormitory. Sho ...

* May 4, 1970 –

Kent State shootings The Kent State shootings, also known as the May 4 massacre and the Kent State massacre,"These would be the first of many probes into what soon became known as the Kent State Massacre. Like the Boston Massacre almost exactly two hundred years bef ...

Release

"Student Demonstration Time" (backed with " Don't Go Near the Water") was released as a single in the Netherlands—where it peaked at #21—and Italy, as well as Australia, where it charted during 1972. However, for the British and German releases of the single, the A-side and B-side were switched, resulting in "Don't Go Near the Water" being the A-side.

Reception

According to

Jack Rieley John Frank Rieley III (November 24, 1942 – April 17, 2015) was an American record producer, songwriter, and disc jockey who managed the Beach Boys between mid-1970 and late 1973. He is credited with guiding them back to popular acclaim and was ...

, the band's manager at the time, "Student Demonstration Time" "had Carl and I blushing with embarrassment", while Dennis was "thoroughly disgusted". Brian disliked the song, saying that the lyrical content was "too intense".

Personnel

Credits from 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, Rh ...

- backing vocals *

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 *

- lead and backing vocals, tambourine * Carl Wilson - backing vocals, electric guitars *

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. ...

- backing vocals, drums Additional musicians *

Blondie Chaplin Terrence William "Blondie" Chaplin (born 7 July 1951) is a South African singer and guitarist from Durban, where he played in the band the Flames in the mid to late 1960s. From 1972 to 1973, he was a member of the Beach Boys and contributed ...

- bass guitar *

Daryl Dragon Daryl Frank Dragon (August 27, 1942 – January 2, 2019) was an American musician, known as Captain from the pop musical duo Captain & Tennille with his then-wife, Toni Tennille. Career Born into a musical family, Dragon was the son of ...

- tack piano, Moog synthesizer *

Glenn Ferris Glenn Arthur Ferris (born June 27, 1950) is an American jazz trombonist who has also worked in other fields. Outside of jazz he has played for Frank Zappa, Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, and Duran Duran. He studied classical music from 1958 to 196 ...

- trombone *Sal Marquez - trumpet * Roger Neumann - tenor saxophone *Joel Peskin - tenor saxophone * Mike Price - trumpet

References

{{Authority control 1971 songs The Beach Boys songs Songs written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller Songs written by Mike Love Song recordings produced by the Beach Boys Anti-war songs

Background and lyrics

Release

Reception

Personnel

See also

References