TGIF! presents...The Beach Boys' "California Saga/California"!

Heading out tomorrow (Saturday) for 10 days in Cali-for-ni-a with brother Jason. Solstice in Santa Barbara, Santa Inez wine tasting, Yosemite & Sequoia National Park, see my goddaughter, Gwyneth and family, and a few friends in LA. Aunt Ev and Uncle Bob will be visiting as well so look for blog posts and pics after the 29th. See ya!

The song you're listening to, "California Saga/California", was written by Al Jardine of The Beach Boys. It was released on the BB's 1973 album Holland. Issued internationally as a single in early 1973, and performed in the same loping country-shuffle beat, it garnered great reviews likening it to classic "California Girls" status. The song reached #84 in Billboard, but performed better in the UK (#37) and New Zealand (#15). I've been to some of the locales discussed in this tune. If you haven't - you should.

On my way to sunny California
On my way to spend another sunny day

Water, water get yourself in the cool, clear, water
The sun shines brightly down on Penny's place
The sun shines brightly down on the bay
The air's so clean it'll just take your mind away
Take your mind away
Take your mind away

Have you ever been south of Monterey
Barrancas carve the coast line and the chaparral flows to the sea
'Neath waves of golden sunshine
And have you ever been north of Morro Bay
The south coast plows the sea
And the people there are of the breed
They don't need electricity
Water, water, cool cascades of clear, clear water
The sun dance final scene sets the hills ablaze.
Horizon edges quick up the mountain's way.

Have you ever been down Salinas way?
Where Steinbeck found the valley
And he wrote about it the way it was in his travelin's with Charley
And have you ever walked down through the sycamores
Where the farmhouse used to be
There the monarch's autumn journey ends
On a windswept cyprus tree

Water get water get yourself in that
Get yourself in that get yourself in that cool, clear, water
The sun shines brightly down on Penny's place
Get yourself in that water
The air's so clean that it just takes your mind away
Take your mind away
Take your mind away

Have you ever been to a festival, the Big Sur congregation?
Where Country Joe will do his show
And he'd sing about liberty
And the people there in the open air, one big family.
Yeah the people there love to sing and share
Their new found liberty