Song by Song: "God Only Knows" Quiz

Answer: What I'd be without you

The ending verse of each stanza, and the chorus of the song, is "God only knows what I'd be without you." The song is typically classified as belonging to the baroque pop genre. Baroque combines elements of classical music with rock. The harpsichord is a prominently used instrument in this genre. Larry Knechtel played harpsichord for "God Only Knows."

Answer: Wouldn't It Be Nice?

"Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?" is a Van Morrison song while "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" is from the Clash. "Do You Wanna Dance?" was covered by the Beach Boys and released as a single in 1965. But it was the single "Wouldn't It Be Nice" to which "God Only Know" was the B-Side.

While "Wouldn't It Be Nice" reached number eight on the Hot Billboard 100, "God Only Knows" peaked at only number 39, having spent eight weeks on the charts.

Answer: Tony Asher

Written by Brian Wilson and Tony Asher, the song was produced by Wilson and released in May of 1966 by Capitol Records. Tony Asher co-wrote eight songs for the Beach Boys, including this one, "Caroline, No," and "Wouldn't It Be Nice."

Answer: Pet Sounds

"Pet Sounds" was the eleventh studio album of the Beach Boys. It hit number two on the UK albums chart and number ten on the U.S. Billboard Top LPs chart. Their album "Surf's Up" was not released until 1971. The other two albums are titles by the Pet Shop Boys.

Answer: Paul McCartney

This quote comes from Rolling Stone magazine. The magazine reported that Lennon and McCartney's "Here, There and Everywhere" was influenced by the song "God Only Knows." Charles Granata, in the book "Wouldn't It Be Nice," quotes McCartney as saying "God Only Knows" was the "greatest song ever written."

Answer: Carl

Rolling Stone magazine writes that Carl Wilson's vocals are "note-perfect." Bruce Johnson and Brian Wilson provide backing vocals for the song. Dennis Wilson, the middle Wilson brother, played drums and did backup vocals for the group, but his contributions to "Pet Sounds" were limited.

Answer: Electric organ

The song employed approximately twenty musicians, many of them session musicians known in the industry as "The Wrecking Crew." Alan Robinson was on French horn while Hal Blaine contributed drums and sleigh bell. Lyle Ritz played the upright bass. The song also included flutes, clarinets, strings, accordion, guitar, and harpsichord.

Answer: Orange juice bottles

In the liner notes to this album, David Leaf writes that the song "was done with a strip of masking tape over the strings of my piano. This gave the piano plucking sound. I also used the bottoms of two plastic orange juice containers for our percussion. This track was holy."

Answer: Lyle Lovett

The original Beach Boys version of "God Only Knows" peaked at number six on the Canada RPM Top Single chart. On the Ireland IRMA, it also reached number six.

A cover version of "God Only Knows," featuring the "Impossible Orchestra," was simulcast on TV and radio channels to commemorate the launch of BBC Music in 2014. That version peaked at number 20 on the UK Singles (OCC) chart.

Answer: leave me

"If you should ever leave me
Though life would still go on, believe me,
The world could show nothing to me.
So what good would living do me?
God only knows what I'd be without you."

American rock band The Vogues did a cover of "God Only Knows" that peaked at number 21 on the U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. The song has also been covered by artists as diverse as Neil Diamond, David Bowie, Olivia Newton-John, and Taylor Swift.