Background and Recording
In the fall of 1974, sessions were held at Caribou Ranch studio (owned by James William Guercio) in Colorado and Brother Studio in Santa Monica for an album set to be released in early 1975. It was reported that Brian was actively involved in the proceedings but no release occurred. Many of the tapes were allegedly destroyed when the Caribou Ranch and its studio burned down, with only the tapes taken to Brother Studio surviving.
By 1975, The Beach Boys' Endless Summer compilation was selling well and the band (without Wilson) was touring non-stop, making them the biggest live draw in the US. At the end of January 1976, The Beach Boys were back in the studio, with Brian Wilson producing once again. He decided the band should do an "oldies" album, but brothers Carl and Dennis disagreed, feeling that an album of originals was far more ideal. Mike Love and Al Jardine reportedly wanted the album out as quickly as possible to take advantage of their resurgence of popularity. At one point during the sessions, it was decided that a double album was to be released: one album of oldies and another of original material. In the end, a compromise of both new originals and covers was decided upon, though the younger Wilson brothers were displeased. Whatever the case, it was a radical shift from previous albums such as Sunflower and Holland.
With media coverage in high gear, The Beach Boys were given an NBC TV special heralding their return. One of the highlights of the special is a rendition of "That Same Song" with the Alexander Hamilton Double Rock Baptist Choir, where Brian looks to be more at ease than he really was. He appeared much less at ease as the center of a "Failure to Surf" comedy sketch in which "surf cops" Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi pull Brian out of bed and force him to ride the waves outside.
The group also embarked on a large US tour, with several performances including Brian. Although Dennis Wilson suggested calling the album Group Therapy, and rejecting Pick Ya Up at 8 (after the song "I Wanna Pick You Up"), 15 Big Ones was named for their fifteen years in the business and for the fact that it had the same number of tracks. It was released in late June, number 8 in the US during a chart stay of 27 weeks, went gold and became the last top 10 studio album for the band until 2012's That's Why God Made the Radio. It reached number 31 in the UK. It was the most successful Beach Boys studio album in over ten years, though the critical reaction of the album was not strong.
Album cover, art direction and logo was done by Dean Torrence and Jim Evans.
Read more about this topic: 15 Big Ones
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