Help Me, Rhonda

"Help Me, Rhonda"
"Help Me, Rhonda"
Single by the Beach Boys
from the album Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)
B-side	"Kiss Me, Baby"
Released	April 5, 1965
Recorded	February 24, 1965
Length	2:46
Label	Capitol
Songwriter(s)	Brian Wilson, Mike Love
Producer(s)	Brian Wilson
The Beach Boys singles chronology
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"Help Me, Ronda"
"Help Me, Ronda"
Song by the Beach Boys
from the album The Beach Boys Today!
Released	March 8, 1965
Recorded	January 8, 1965
Length	3:04
Label	Capitol
Composer(s)	Brian Wilson
Lyricist(s)	Brian Wilson, Mike Love
Producer(s)	Brian Wilson
Endless Summer track listing
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"Help Me, Rhonda" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1965 albums The Beach Boys Today! (where it was spelled "Help Me, Ronda") and Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!). It was written by Brian Wilson, with additional lyrics by Mike Love. The lead vocal was sung by Al Jardine. The Summer Days version is a later recording with a different arrangement that was first issued as a single in April, one month after The Beach Boys Today! was released. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, making it their second chart-topping single following "I Get Around" (1964).

Overview[]

"Help Me, Rhonda" was written by Brian Wilson with additional lyrics by Mike Love.^[1] The lyrics tell a story of a man who was attracted to a woman who then found another man; to aid the healing process, he begs a woman named Rhonda to help him get over her. According to songwriter Brian Wilson, "Rhonda" was not based on a real person.^[2]

The vocal overdub session for this song was notable for resulting in a particularly heated confrontation between Wilson and his father Murry, who at the time had been dismissed as the group's manager for nearly a year but was still present in the studio on occasion. After Murry continually critiqued and ridiculed the group's singing (Brian's especially) throughout each take, Brian complained and got into a tense argument which ultimately led to a physical altercation over control of the soundboard. The unedited session tape has been extensively copied and shared among Beach Boys fans.^[3]^[4]

Upon release, Billboard described the single version as "an intriguing off-beat rouser" which "can't miss."^[5] Wilson later said of the song, "I would've made a better rhythm — it wasn't in the pocket."^[6]

Personnel[]

Today! version[]

Per Craig Slowinski.^[7]

The Beach Boys

Al Jardine – lead vocals
Mike Love – harmony and backing vocals
Brian Wilson – harmony and backing vocals
Carl Wilson – harmony and backing vocals, 12-string electric guitar
Dennis Wilson – harmony and backing vocals

Additional musicians and production staff

Bill Pitman – electric guitar
Glen Campbell – 12-string acoustic guitar
Billy Strange – ukulele
Ray Pohlman – bass guitar
Leon Russell – grand piano
Hal Blaine – drums, timbales
Julius Wechter – claves
Billy Lee Riley – double-reed harmonica
Steve Douglas – tenor saxophone
Plas Johnson – tenor saxophone
Jay Migliori – baritone saxophone
Chuck Britz – engineer
unknown – tambourine (possibly Ron Swallow)

Summer Days version[]

Per Craig Slowinski.^[8]^[9]

The Beach Boys

Al Jardine – lead vocals
Mike Love – harmony and backing vocals
Brian Wilson – harmony and backing vocals, upright piano, Hammond B-3 organ
Carl Wilson – harmony and backing vocals, 12-string guitar
Dennis Wilson – harmony and backing vocals, tambourine

Additional musicians and production staff

Billy Strange – 12-string guitar
Glen Campbell – electric guitar
Barney Kessel – ukulele
Carol Kaye – bass guitar
Larry Knechtel – Wurlitzer electronic piano
Don Randi – grand piano
Hal Blaine – drums, timbales
Steve Douglas – tenor saxophone
Plas Johnson – tenor saxophone
Jay Migliori – baritone saxophone
Chuck Britz – engineer

List of cover versions[]

1970 – Roy Orbison, The Big O.
1975 – Johnny Rivers, New Lovers And Old Friends (with an assist from Brian Wilson on back-up vocals); reached #22 on the Billboard Hot 100.

References[]

^ Slowinski, Craig (2007). "The Beach Boys - The Beach Boys Today!" (PDF). Retrieved October 27, 2012.
^ Will, George F. (June 20, 2012). "The Beach Boys still get around". Washington Post. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
^ https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1997-11-02-9711020329-story.html
^ https://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2005/10/im_a_genius_too.html
^ "Singles Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. April 10, 1965. p. 48. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
^ "Brian Answer's Fans' Questions In Live Q&A". Brianwilson.com. January 29, 2014. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
^ Slowinski, Craig (2007). "The Beach Boys- The Beach Boys Today!" (PDF). Retrieved April 4, 2019.
^ Slowinski, Craig. "Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)". Retrieved April 8, 2019.
^ Stebbins, Jon (September 1, 2011). The Beach Boys FAQ: All That's Left to Know About America's Band. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-1-4584-2914-8.

External links[]

Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics

[Slowinski-1] Slowinski, Craig (2007). "The Beach Boys - The Beach Boys Today!" (PDF). Retrieved October 27, 2012.

[2] Will, George F. (June 20, 2012). "The Beach Boys still get around". Washington Post. Retrieved July 12, 2012.

[3] ttps://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1997-11-02-9711020329-story.html

[4] ttps://blog.wfmu.org/freeform/2005/10/im_a_genius_too.html

[bb-5] "Singles Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. April 10, 1965. p. 48. Retrieved April 2, 2021.

[6] "Brian Answer's Fans' Questions In Live Q&A". Brianwilson.com. January 29, 2014. Retrieved June 27, 2014.

[7] Slowinski, Craig (2007). "The Beach Boys- The Beach Boys Today!" (PDF). Retrieved April 4, 2019.

[8] Slowinski, Craig. "Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)". Retrieved April 8, 2019.

[9] Stebbins, Jon (September 1, 2011). The Beach Boys FAQ: All That's Left to Know About America's Band. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-1-4584-2914-8.

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Related articles	Discography

"Help Me, Ronda"
Song by the Beach Boys
from the album The Beach Boys Today!
Released	March 8, 1965
Recorded	January 8, 1965
Length	3:04
Label	Capitol
Composer(s)	Brian Wilson
Lyricist(s)	Brian Wilson, Mike Love
Producer(s)	Brian Wilson

Endless Summer track listing
show 20 tracks Side one "Surfin' Safari" "Surfer Girl" "Catch a Wave" "The Warmth of the Sun" "Surfin' U.S.A." Side two "Be True to Your School" "Little Deuce Coupe" "In My Room" "Shut Down" "Fun, Fun, Fun" Side three "I Get Around" "Girls on the Beach" "Wendy" "Let Him Run Wild" "Don't Worry Baby" Side four "California Girls" "Girl Don't Tell Me" "Help Me, Rhonda" "You're So Good to Me" "All Summer Long"
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