Wouldn't It Be Nice

Brian Wilson and Tony Asher wrote it for Pet Sounds, one of two songs on the album where Asher wrote words to a melody Wilson had already finished. The lyric describes a young couple dreaming of the freedom they would have once married. Mike Love's credit was not officially recognized until 1994, when he won co-writing credits on 35 songs. Asher said in 1996 that Love's contribution was none whatsoever, though under oath he said it was the line good night my baby, sleep tight my baby and maybe a small vocal arrangement.

The backing track was recorded from 7 p.m. on 22 January 1966 at Gold Star Studios, with the engineer Larry Levine, in 21 takes, and the session closed at 11:30 p.m. with a lead vocal from Wilson. A 12-string instrument plugged directly into the recording console plays the harp-like intro, two accordions play a shuffle beat, and reverb is applied only to the timpani. The vocals took longer than any other track on the album. Love said they did one passage close to 30 times and nicknamed Brian the Stalin of the studio, and Carl Wilson recalled at least ten vocal sessions. A tape splice is audible between the chorus and Love's bridge entrance.

Released on 18 July 1966 with God Only Knows as the B-side, it entered the Hot 100 at number 84 on 30 July and peaked at number 8 on 17 September. It reached number 4 in Canada and number 2 in Australia. Pitchfork ranked it number 7 among the songs of the 1960s in 2006, and Rolling Stone number 297 in 2021. In concert Al Jardine usually takes the lead Wilson sang on the record, and 2,522 logged setlists include it. The 1989 documentary Roger and Me used it over scenes of closed auto plants in Flint, Michigan.