In My Room (song)
Encyclopedia
"In My Room" is a song written by Brian Wilson
and Gary Usher
for the American rock
band
The Beach Boys
. It was released on their 1963 album Surfer Girl
. It was also released as the B-side of the "Be True to Your School
" single. The single peaked at number 23 in the U.S.
Gary Usher (who co-wrote the lyrics with Brian Wilson) further describes that "Brian was always saying that his room was his whole world." Brian seconds this opinion: "I had a room, and I thought of it as my kingdom. And I wrote that song, very definitely, that you're not afraid when you're in your room. It's absolutely true."
In 1990, Brian wrote,
, contains an early version of "In My Room" with a number of differences from the eventual official release. It is unclear if this fully developed demo was recorded the same day as the final version on July 16, 1963. The tune features six Beach Boys: both Al Jardine
(on vocals) and David Marks
(whose strumming guitar backs up Carl Wilson's picked solo notes) are present.
The demo begins with an intro that was later scrapped, and launches into the first verse with full group vocals, unlike the finished recording. There, as previously mentioned, the single brings in Brian Wilson
's voice first, then his brother Carl Wilson
and finally Dennis Wilson
. Then the final version adds, in the title/hook, Al Jardine, and Mike Love's bass voicing which both join in to complete the vocal mix.
Rolling Stone magazine named it #209 on its list of greatest songs of all-time.
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
and Gary Usher
Gary Usher
Gary Usher was an American surf rock musician, songwriter, and record producer.-Biography:Usher's early life was spent in Grafton, Massachusetts. He attended Norcross Grammar School with his sister, Sandra, who was in the same class and was likely his twin. Gary was kiddingly called "Chicken Feed"...
for the American rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
. It was released on their 1963 album Surfer Girl
Surfer Girl
Surfer Girl is the third studio album by The Beach Boys and their second longplayer in 1963. This was the first album by The Beach Boys for which Brian Wilson was given full production credit, a position Wilson would maintain until the end of the The Smile Sessions in 1967...
. It was also released as the B-side of the "Be True to Your School
Be True to Your School
"Be True to Your School" is a song by The Beach Boys. The album version of this song was recorded on Monday, September 2, 1963. It appears on Little Deuce Coupe and Endless Summer....
" single. The single peaked at number 23 in the U.S.
Writing the song
Gary Usher explained that"'In My Room' found us taking our craft a little more seriously. Brian and I came back to the house one night after playing 'over-the-lineOver-the-lineOver-the-line is a bat-and-ball sport, a game related to baseball and softball. Like those games, you have the batter, pitcher, and fielders. Because a game requires only three people per team, it's considerably easier to get a good informal game going. Equipment consists of a rope , an...
' (a baseball game). I played bass and Brian was on organ. The song was written in an hour... Brian's melody all the way. The sensitivity... the concept meant a lot to him. When we finished, it was late, after our midnight curfew. In fact, Murry [the Wilson brothers' father] came in a couple of times and wanted me to leave. Anyway, we got Audree [the Wilson brothers' mother], who was putting her hair up before bed, and we played it for her. She said, 'That's the most beautiful song you've ever written.' Murry said, 'Not bad, Usher, not bad,' which was the nicest thing he ever said to me."
Gary Usher (who co-wrote the lyrics with Brian Wilson) further describes that "Brian was always saying that his room was his whole world." Brian seconds this opinion: "I had a room, and I thought of it as my kingdom. And I wrote that song, very definitely, that you're not afraid when you're in your room. It's absolutely true."
In 1990, Brian wrote,
"I also enjoyed producing 'In My Room'. There is a story behind this song. When Dennis, Carl and I lived in HawthorneHawthorne, CaliforniaHawthorne is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California. The city at the 2010 census had a population of 84,293, up from 84,112 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
as kids, we all slept in the same room. One night I sang the song 'Ivory Tower' to them and they liked it. Then a couple of weeks later, I proceeded to teach them both how to sing the harmony parts to it. It took them a little while, but they finally learned it. We then sang this song night after night. It brought peace to us. When we recorded 'In My Room', there was just Dennis, Carl and me on the first verse...and we sounded just like we did in our bedroom all those nights. This story has more meaning than ever since Dennis' death."
Demo version and final release
The 1993 CD box set, Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach BoysGood Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys
Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys is a 1993 boxed set released by Capitol Records which collects tracks spanning The Beach Boys' entire career to that point on four CDs. A fifth disc contains mostly studio session tracks, complete vocal and instrumental tracks, and rare live...
, contains an early version of "In My Room" with a number of differences from the eventual official release. It is unclear if this fully developed demo was recorded the same day as the final version on July 16, 1963. The tune features six Beach Boys: both Al Jardine
Al Jardine
Alan Charles "Al" Jardine is a founding member of top-selling American music group The Beach Boys, a guitarist and occasional lead vocalist. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.-Early life:...
(on vocals) and David Marks
David Marks (musician)
David Marks is an American songwriter and musician. He is best known as being a member of The Beach Boys from February 1962 to October 1963. Marks was part of the Beach Boys line-up, at age 13, when they signed with Capitol Records on July 16, 1962...
(whose strumming guitar backs up Carl Wilson's picked solo notes) are present.
The demo begins with an intro that was later scrapped, and launches into the first verse with full group vocals, unlike the finished recording. There, as previously mentioned, the single brings in Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
's voice first, then his brother Carl Wilson
Carl Wilson
Carl Dean Wilson was an American rock and roll singer and guitarist, best known as a founding member, lead guitarist and sometime lead vocalist of The Beach Boys...
and finally Dennis Wilson
Dennis Wilson
Dennis Carl Wilson was an American rock and roll musician best known as a founding member and the drummer of The Beach Boys. He was a member of the group from its formation until his death in 1983...
. Then the final version adds, in the title/hook, Al Jardine, and Mike Love's bass voicing which both join in to complete the vocal mix.
Chart action
"In My Room" remained on the Billboard Top 100 for 11 weeks, peaking at #23 in 1963. In the UPI (United Press International) weekly survey it was #17 nationally, upheld by its widespead success across the country wherever it was treated as an A-side:-
- 1 in Boston and Seattle
- 2 San Francisco;
- Top 10 Washington DC, Houston, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Columbus.
Rolling Stone magazine named it #209 on its list of greatest songs of all-time.
Recognition and cover versions
- David CrosbyDavid CrosbyDavid Van Cortlandt Crosby is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash , and CPR...
of The ByrdsThe ByrdsThe Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
and Crosby, Stills & Nash (and Young)Crosby, Stills & Nash (and Young)Crosby, Stills & Nash is a folk rock supergroup made up of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, also known as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young when joined by occasional fourth member Neil Young...
admitted to being an admirer of the song, quoting "'In My Room' was the defining point for me. When I heard it, I thought 'I give up—I can't do that—I'll never be able to do that.'" He sang a trio cover version with Jimmy WebbJimmy WebbJimmy Webb is an American songwriter, composer, and singer. He wrote numerous platinum selling classics, including "Up, Up and Away", "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", "Wichita Lineman", "Galveston", "The Worst That Could Happen", "All I Know", and "MacArthur Park"...
and Carly SimonCarly SimonCarly Elisabeth Simon is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records, and has since been the recipient of two Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award for her work...
on "An All-Star Tribute to Brian Wilson (2001)." The song was among John CaleJohn CaleJohn Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....
's selections for Desert Island DiscsDesert Island DiscsDesert Island Discs is a BBC Radio 4 programme first broadcast on 29 January 1942. It is the second longest-running radio programme , and is the longest-running factual programme in the history of radio...
. - A remake by Gary UsherGary UsherGary Usher was an American surf rock musician, songwriter, and record producer.-Biography:Usher's early life was spent in Grafton, Massachusetts. He attended Norcross Grammar School with his sister, Sandra, who was in the same class and was likely his twin. Gary was kiddingly called "Chicken Feed"...
's own band, SagittariusSagittarius (band)Sagittarius was an American late 1960s studio group, devised by the record producer and songwriter, Gary Usher.-History:Usher had been involved with music as a songwriter since the early 1960s , and soon branched out into production work...
, peaked at #86 in 1969. - A recording by E.G. DailyElizabeth DailyElizabeth Ann Guttman , better known by her stage names of Elizabeth Daily and E.G. Daily, is an American voice actress, actress, singer-songwriter, and musician...
& the Sydney Children's Choir appears in the 2006 computer-animated film Happy FeetHappy FeetHappy Feet is a 2006 American-Australian computer-animated family film with music, directed and co-written by George Miller. It was produced at Sydney-based visual effects and animation studio Animal Logic for Warner Bros., Village Roadshow Pictures and Kingdom Feature Productions and was released...
. - A cover of "In My Room" by Grant Lee BuffaloGrant Lee BuffaloGrant Lee Buffalo is a rock band based in Los Angeles, California, consisting of Grant-Lee Phillips , Paul Kimble and Joey Peters . All three were previously members of another Los Angeles band, Shiva Burlesque.-Career:...
appears on the soundtrack to the FriendsFriendsFriends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
television series. The song was used in a Season Two episode entitled "The ListThe ListThe List is an Edinburgh-based fortnightly entertainment event listings magazine first published in 1985.It contains listings, news and reviews of film, music, shopping, books, comedy, clubs, art, sports, LGBT, food and drink in and around Scotland....
". - A cover of "In My Room" was recorded by Best CoastBest CoastBest Coast is an American indie rock band based in Los Angeles, California, and is often categorized under the subgenres of garage rock, surf pop, and lo-fi. The band currently consists of Bethany Cosentino, who writes all of the band's songs and fronts the group, multi-instrumentalist Bobb Bruno, ...
on their Make You Mine EP. - The lyrics of "In My Room" were the inspiration for the song "Brian WilsonBrian Wilson (song)"Brian Wilson" is a song by the Canadian musical group Barenaked Ladies. It was released a single from the band's debut studio album, Gordon.The song was written by singer/guitarist Steven Page in his parents’ basement on his twentieth birthday, in 1990...
" by Canadian rock band Barenaked LadiesBarenaked LadiesBarenaked Ladies is a Canadian alternative rock band. The band is currently composed of Jim Creeggan, Kevin Hearn, Ed Robertson, and Tyler Stewart. Barenaked Ladies formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario, then a suburban municipality outside the City of Toronto...
("Lying in bed/just like Brian Wilson did"). Written by Steven PageSteven PageSteven Jay Page , is a Canadian musician. Along with Ed Robertson, he was a founding member, lead singer, guitarist, and a primary songwriter of the music group Barenaked Ladies ; he left the band in 2009 to pursue a solo career....
, "Brian Wilson" tells the story of a man whose life parallels that of Brian Wilson, particularly during his time spent with psychologist Eugene LandyEugene LandyEugene Ellsworth Landy, Ph.D. was a controversial American psychologist and therapist known for his unconventional treatment and eventual exploitation of composer/musician Brian Wilson...
after he was diagnosed with mental illnessMental illnessA mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
. - Version played on Jimmy Buffett's "Live in Anguilla" CD (2007) Jimmy Buffett and Jake Shimabukuro sing duet "In my Room" on Disc 2, cut 6
Performers
- Brian WilsonBrian WilsonBrian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
: Lead Vocals, Bass - Mike LoveMike LoveMichael Edward "Mike" Love is an American singer/songwriter and musician with The Beach Boys. He was a founding member of the band along with his cousins Brian, Carl, and Dennis Wilson, and their friend Al Jardine, and continues to perform with the band to the present day...
: Backing Vocals, Lead Vocals (bridge) - Carl WilsonCarl WilsonCarl Dean Wilson was an American rock and roll singer and guitarist, best known as a founding member, lead guitarist and sometime lead vocalist of The Beach Boys...
: Backing Vocals, Guitar - Dennis WilsonDennis WilsonDennis Carl Wilson was an American rock and roll musician best known as a founding member and the drummer of The Beach Boys. He was a member of the group from its formation until his death in 1983...
: Backing Vocals, Drums - Al JardineAl JardineAlan Charles "Al" Jardine is a founding member of top-selling American music group The Beach Boys, a guitarist and occasional lead vocalist. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.-Early life:...
: Backing Vocals - David Marks: Guitar
- Maureen Love: Harp