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surf's up

Surf's Up is a song written by Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks for American rock band the Beach Boys. Its title is an ironic nod to the group's earlier associations with surf music; nothing in the song is about surfing. Through its stream of consciousness lyric, the song details a man who experiences a spiritual awakening, resigns himself to God and the joy of enlightenment, and prophesies an optimistic hope for those who can capture the innocence of youth. From 1966 to 1967, "Surf's Up" was partially recorded for the group's unfinished studio album Smile before being shelved indefinitely. After Wilson was filmed performing the song for Inside Pop, a 1967 television documentary covering the 1960s rock revolution, the composition acquired relative mystique. In 1971, the original studio recording was completed and served as the title track for the group's 17th studio album. It was also released as a single, serving as the A-side to "Don't Go Near the Water", which did not chart. In 2016, "Surf's Up" was ranked number 122 on Pitchfork's list of the 200 best songs of the 1970s. In 2011, MOJO staff members voted it the greatest Beach Boys song. In 1967 it was acknowledged by clarinetist David Oppenheim, who called it "too complex to get the first time around...'Surf's Up' is one aspect of new things happening in pop music today. As such, it is a symbol of the change many of these young musicians see in our future." Musicologist Philip Lambert named the song "the soul of Smile" for being the "sum total of its creators' most profound artistic visions" with its "perfect marriage of an eloquent lyric with music of commensurate power and depth."

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