View source for M.I.U. Album

{{Short description|1978 album by the Beach Boys}}
{{redirect|Pitter Patter|the Lynsey de Paul song|Storm in a Teacup (The Fortunes song){{!}}Storm in a Teacup|the video game|JoJo's Pitter Patter Pop!}}
{{Infobox album
| name       = M.I.U. Album
| type       = Studio
| artist     = [[the Beach Boys]]
| cover      = MIUCover.jpg
| alt        =
| released   = September 25, 1978<ref name="AllMusicReview" />
| recorded   = {{hlist|October 1976 ("Hey Little Tomboy")|November 1977 – June 1978}}
| venue      =
| studio     = *[[Maharishi International University]], [[Fairfield, Iowa]]
*[[Brother Studios]], Santa Monica, California
*[[Wally Heider Recording|Wally Heider]], Hollywood, California
*[[Studio X|Kaye-Smith Studios]], Seattle, Washington
| genre      =
| length     = 32:19
| label      = [[Brother Records|Brother]]/[[Reprise Records|Reprise]]
| producer   = {{hlist|[[Al Jardine]]|[[Ron Altbach]]}}
| prev_title = [[The Beach Boys Love You]]
| prev_year  = 1977
| next_title = [[L.A. (Light Album)]]
| next_year  = 1979
| misc       = {{Singles
| name        = M.I.U. Album
| type        = studio
| single1     = [[Peggy Sue]]" / "[[Hey Little Tomboy]]
| single1date = August 28, 1978
| single2     = [[Come Go with Me]]
| single2date = November 2, 1981
}}
}}
'''''M.I.U. Album''''' is the 22nd studio album by the American rock band [[the Beach Boys]], released on September 25, 1978. Characterized for its [[easy-listening]] sound, the album was produced by [[Al Jardine]] and touring member [[Ron Altbach]] during one of the most acrimonious periods in the band's history. It sold poorly, peaking at number 151 in the U.S, and was met with confused reactions from critics and fans.
The album was created to fulfill contractual obligations to [[Reprise Records]] after the group had shelved ''[[Adult/Child]]''. It was largely recorded in late 1977 at its namesake: [[Maharishi International University]] in [[Fairfield, Iowa]]. Only Jardine, [[Mike Love]], and [[Brian Wilson]] appear consistently throughout the album, with [[Carl Wilson|Carl]] and [[Dennis Wilson]]'s contributions confined to a pair of tracks. Brian was credited as "executive producer". It includes the songs "[[Hey Little Tomboy]]", the only track salvaged from ''Adult/Child'', and "My Diane", written about Brian's affair with his sister-in-law, as well as [[cover version]]s of the 1950s hits "[[Peggy Sue]]" and "[[Come Go with Me]]".
''M.I.U.'' continues to be widely regarded as one of the worst Beach Boys albums.{{sfn|Stebbins|2000|p=175}} In 1981, "Come Go with Me" reached number 18 when it was issued as a single from the compilation ''[[Ten Years of Harmony]]''. In 1998, several songs that were intended for the unreleased album ''[[Merry Christmas from the Beach Boys]]'', which was produced during the ''M.I.U.'' sessions, were released on the compilation ''[[Ultimate Christmas]]''.
==Background==
At the beginning of 1977, the Beach Boys had enjoyed their most lucrative concert tours ever, with the band playing in packed stadiums and earning up to $150,000 per show.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|pp=217–218}} Early that year, Brian Wilson produced ''[[Adult/Child]]'', which would have been their final record on [[Reprise Records|Reprise]], a subsidiary of [[Warner Bros. Records|Warner Bros.]]{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=368–371}} It  was largely recorded by Brian with [[Dennis Wilson|Dennis]] and [[Carl Wilson|Carl]] while [[Al Jardine]] and [[Mike Love]] were preoccupied elsewhere.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=371}} In Love's case, he had been ensconced at a six-month [[Transcendental Meditation]] retreat, called "the [[TM-Sidhi]] program", in Vittel, France and [[Leysin, Switzerland]],{{sfn|Love|2016|p=423}} where he studied [[Yogic flying|levitation]] under [[Maharishi Mahesh Yogi]].{{sfn|Love|2016|pp=423–424}}{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=295}}{{refn|group=nb|Mike's stay at the program lasted from January to June 1977.<ref name="GIGS77" />}}
Concurrently, the band were the subject of a record company bidding war, as their contract with Warner had been set to expire soon.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=294}}{{sfn|Carlin|2006|pp=216–217}} Band manager and business advisor Stephen Love arranged for the Beach Boys to sign an $8 million deal with [[Sony Music|CBS Records]] on March 1.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|pp=294–295}} Biographer [[Steven Gaines]] writes that Warner "knew of the CBS deal" and were "so disgusted with the band at this point" that the label refused to promote the group's forthcoming album, ''[[The Beach Boys Love You]]''.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=294}} Within weeks of the CBS contract, Stephen was effectively fired by the band, with one of the alleged reasons being that Mike had not permitted Stephen to sign on his behalf while in Switzerland.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|pp=295–296, 298}}{{refn|group=nb|Gaines writes, "Insiders say this change in Mike's attitude occurred when he realized that the CBS contract did not have the special riders he wanted that would have allowed him to record solo albums under their label. Meanwhile, Dennis, through his friend [[James William Guercio|James Guercio]], was getting a $100,000 advance from CBS to record his own solo album."{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=298}}}} Mike and Jardine also vetoed the release of ''Adult/Child'' due to its bizarre content and the commercial failure of ''Love You'', issued in April.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|pp=222–223}}
Stephen's replacement was entertainment business owner Henry Lazarus, who arranged a major European tour for the Beach Boys starting in June.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=299}}{{refn|group=nb|Part of the CBS deal required the group to play a certain number of concerts in the U.S., Europe, Australia and Japan.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=295}}}} The tour was cancelled prematurely, as Lazarus had failed to complete the necessary paperwork.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|pp=299–300}} This resulted in the group being sued by many of the concert promoters, with losses of $200,000 in preliminary expenses and $550,000 in potential revenue.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=300}} In August, Mike and Jardine persuaded Stephen to return as the group's manager,{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=302}} a decision that Carl and Dennis had strongly opposed.{{sfn|White|1996|p=321}}{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=302}} On September 1, the internal wrangling came to a head after a show at [[Central Park]], when the band effectively split into two camps: Dennis and Carl on one side, Mike and Jardine on the other, with Brian remaining neutral.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|pp=218–219}}{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=371}}  By then, the two opposing contingents within the group – known among their associates as the "free-livers" and the "meditators" – were traveling in different planes, using different hotels, and rarely speaking to each other.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=302}}{{refn|group=nb|According to Love, "[T]he terms 'smokers' and 'nonsmokers' were also used."{{sfn|Love|2016|p=428}}}}
On September 2, Mike, Jardine, and Brian met with Stephen at their hotel in New York and signed the documents necessary to officially appoint him as the Beach Boys' manager.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=302}} The next day, after completing the final date of a northeastern tour, a confrontation between the "free-livers" and the "meditators" broke out on an airport tarmac during a stopover in Newark.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|pp=302–303}} Dennis subsequently declared to a bystanding ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' journalist that he had left the band.<ref name=Swenson1977>{{cite magazine|last1=Swenson|first1=John|title=The Beach Boys – No More Fun Fun Fun|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=October 20, 1977|url=http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php?topic=6867.0|access-date=February 1, 2015|archive-date=June 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150624043744/http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php?topic=6867.0|url-status=live|url-access=}}</ref> In a follow-up interview, Love denied that the group had broken up, but Dennis maintained, "I can assure you that the group broke up and you witnessed it."<ref name=Swenson1977/> However, the group were still legally obligated to deliver one more album to Warner.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=372}}{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=224}} Two weeks later, on September 17, the band members, their lawyers, and their wives reconvened at Brian's house,{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=304}} where they negotiated a settlement resulting in Mike gaining control of Brian's vote in the group, allowing Mike and Jardine to outvote Carl and Dennis on any matter.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=371}}
==Style and production==
===Iowa sessions===
[[File:MUM campus and tower.jpg|thumb|left|[[Maharishi International University]] in [[Fairfield, Iowa]], where most of ''M.I.U. Album'' was recorded]]
To satisfy the terms of their contracts with Warner and CBS, the Beach Boys intended to record two albums – one for Warner and the other for CBS – at [[Maharishi International University]] in [[Fairfield, Iowa]].{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=305}} Mike chose this venue to keep members of the band away from their drug suppliers in Los Angeles.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=224}}{{refn|group=nb|Love later wrote, "By the winter of '77, we had grown increasingly concerned about Carl and believed that a healthier environment might pull him out of his spiral. We thought it'd be good for Dennis as well. If nothing else, we figured there were fewer temptations in the middle of Iowa."{{sfn|Love|2016|p=431}}}} At MIU, the group and their family members took residence in the university's circular dorm rooms,{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=305}} and attended meditation classes and meetings.{{sfn|Stebbins|2000|p=174}} The recording sessions lasted from November 7 to December 4, 1977.<ref name="GIGS77" /> [[American Federation of Musicians|AFM]] documentation indicates that Carl visited on two days,<ref name="GIGS77"/> while Dennis, who was busy promoting his solo album ''[[Pacific Ocean Blue]]'',{{sfn|Stebbins|2000|p=166}} played drums on an early session for "She's Got Rhythm".<ref name="GIGS77">{{cite web |last1=Doe |first1=Andrew G. |title=GIGS77 |url=http://bellagio10452.com/gigs77.html |website=Bellagio 10452 |access-date=March 30, 2022}}</ref>
[[File:Brian Wilson 1977.jpg|thumb|[[Brian Wilson]] (pictured 1977) was reported to be "miserable" throughout the ''M.I.U.'' sessions and had resented collaborating with [[Mike Love]] on most of the album's songs.]]
The album was produced by Al Jardine and, from the group's touring band, keyboardist [[Ron Altbach]].{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=224}} Gaines writes that the atmosphere was similar to when the group recorded their 1973 album ''[[Holland (album)|Holland]]'', "only worse."{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=305}} According to Love, Carl and Dennis "took the whole experience [...] as a personal affront, and they came and went with little interest in the music. Brian was with us but miserable throughout."{{sfn|Love|2016|p=431}} Brian's bodyguard [[Stan Love (basketball)|Stan Love]] described the overall proceedings as "torture. Agony. Like being put right in the middle of nowhere, frozen and cold and small, with only one decent restaurant in town. Brian was putting in his time, but he wasn't too happy. He was depressed and on medication. We passed the time playing Ping-Pong."{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=305}} Stan added that Wilson did not want to produce his bandmates because he resented them personally. In particular, "Brian didn't want to write with [Mike] anymore, but of course Mike tried to hang on, doing his arrogant pressure trip on him."{{sfn|Carlin|2006|pp=223–224}}
In a 1995 interview, Brian stated that he could not remember making the album, claiming that he had gone through a "mental blank-out" during this period.<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Jacopo|last=Benci|title=Brian Wilson interview|magazine=Record Collector|date=January 1995|issue=185|location=UK}}</ref> He was credited as the album's "executive producer", but according to biographer [[Peter Ames Carlin]], the credit was likely for contractual reasons.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=225}} Carlin characterizes the record as having "a generic easy-listening sound, heavy on the tinkly keyboards and sweeping strings, with nary a trace of Brian's ear for quirky texture."{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=225}} It included the ''Love You'' outtake "My Diane",{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=368–369}} sung by Dennis, and written by Brian as an expression of anguish following the end of his affair with his sister-in-law, Diane Rovell.{{sfn|Stebbins|2000|pp=174–175}}
===Discarded tracks and further recording===
''[[Merry Christmas from the Beach Boys]]'' was the other album that the band produced at these sessions, consisting of reworkings of tracks that had dated from the early to mid-1970s, as well as alternate Christmas-themed versions of songs from ''M.I.U.''.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=226}} Biographer [[Timothy White (writer)|Timothy White]] reported that ''Winds of Change'' and ''California Feeling'' were both working titles for ''M.I.U.''.{{sfn|White|1996|p=322}} According to music historian Andrew Doe, {{blockquote|[F]or the longest time, it was accepted that the band recorded the seasonal set first and when that was (rightly) rejected, they reworked some of the tracks into another album, ''California Feeling'' (which evolved into ''M.I.U. Album''), but research into the sessions held at MIU reveals that songs from both albums were recorded in tandem, often at the same session, and that the ''California Feeling'' album was assembled at the end of 1977 back in Los Angeles. Confusing, to say the least.<ref name="UnreleasedDoe">{{cite web |last1=Doe |first1=Andrew G. |title=Unreleased: The Ones That Got Away... |url=http://bellagio10452.com/unreleased.html |website=Bellagio 10452 |publisher=Endless Harmony Quarterly |access-date=March 31, 2022}}</ref>}}
On December 13, 1977, the band held a session – for the vocal to "My Diane" and a [[Toys for Tots]] PSA – at Kaye-Smiths Studios in Seattle that was filmed for the television special ''Our Team''.<ref name="GIGS77" /> Intermittent sessions for ''M.I.U.'' – specifically, for the tracks "My Diane", "Belles of Paris", and "Winds of Change" – continued at [[Brother Studios]] and [[Wally Heider Recording]] from February 22 to June 28, 1978.<ref name="GIGS78">{{cite web |last1=Doe |first1=Andrew G. |title=GIGS78 |url=http://bellagio10452.com/gigs78.html |website=Bellagio 10452 |access-date=March 30, 2022}}</ref> The outtakes "Our Team" and "Why"<ref name="DoeVaults"/> were released on the box sets ''[[Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of the Beach Boys|Good Vibrations]]'' (1993) and ''[[Made in California]]'' (2013), respectively.<ref name="UnreleasedDoe"/> Still-unreleased tracks include "Beach Burlesque", "Go and Get That Girl", "How's About a Little Bit of Your Sweet Lovin'?", "Mike, Come Back to L.A", a demo of "[[Almost Summer]]", and other tracks related to the ''Merry Christmas'' album.<ref name="DoeVaults">{{cite web|last1=Doe|first1=Andrew G.|title=From The Vaults...|url=http://esquarterly.com/bellagio/vaults.html|website=Endless Summer Quarterly|series=Bellagio 10452|access-date=March 24, 2022}}</ref>
==Release ==
[[File:The Beach Boys Konzert Michigan 1978 (cropped).jpg|thumb|The Beach Boys performing a concert in Michigan, August 1978]]
Music journalist [[Richard Williams (journalist)|Richard Williams]] reported, "Love and Jardine tried to offer ''M.I.U. Album'' to [[Epic Records|Epic]], as the first delivery under their new deal. That they were turned down, on grounds of quality, is a tribute to Epic's discretion."{{sfn|Williams|1997|p=153}}
Lead single "Peggy Sue" was issued in the U.S. in August and peaked at number 59.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=372}} ''M.I.U.'' was released in September and reached number 151 in the U.S, becoming their first album to miss the UK chart completely since ''[[The Beach Boys' Christmas Album]]'' (1964).{{sfn|Dillon|2012|p=234}} The Jardine-led cover of [[the Del-Vikings]]' "[[Come Go with Me]]" became a U.S. No. 18 hit in late 1981, when it was released as a single from the ''[[Ten Years of Harmony]]'' compilation.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=373}}
==Critical reception==
{{Music ratings
| title = Contemporary professional ratings
| rev1 = ''[[Sounds (magazine)|Sounds]]''
| rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{sfn|Goldman|1978}}}}
{{Music ratings
| title = Retrospective professional ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1Score = {{Rating|2|5}}<ref name=AllMusicReview>{{cite web|last1=Bush|first1=John|title=M.I.U. Album|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/miu-album-mw0000320469|publisher=[[AllMusic]]}}</ref>
|rev2 = ''[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]]''
|rev2score = {{Rating|2|5}}<ref>{{cite web |first=Douglas |last=Wolk |url=http://blender.com:80/guide/reviews.aspx?id=2257 |title=The Beach Boys ''M.I.U. Album/L.A. (Light Album) '' |magazine=[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]] |date=October 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060630150449/http://blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=2257 |archive-date=June 30, 2006 |access-date=June 2, 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|rev3 = ''[[Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies|Christgau's Record Guide]]''
|rev3Score = C<ref name="Christgau">{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|year=1981|title=[[Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies]]|publisher=[[Ticknor & Fields]]|isbn=089919026X|chapter=Consumer Guide '70s: B|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_chap.php?k=B&bk=70|access-date=February 21, 2019}}</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
| rev4Score = {{Rating|1|5}}<ref>{{cite book|editor-first=Colin|editor-last=Larkin |year=2006|title=[[The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]] |edition=4th|location=London |publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-531373-4|page=479}}</ref>
| rev5      = ''[[MusicHound Rock]]''
| rev5Score = '''woof!'''<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Graff|editor-first1=Gary|editor-last2=Durchholz|editor-first2=Daniel|title=MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide|publisher=Visible Ink Press|location=Farmington Hills, MI|year=1999|isbn=1-57859-061-2|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578590612/page/84 84]|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578590612/page/84}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev6Score = {{Rating|1|5}}<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Brackett |editor1-first=Nathan |editor2-last=with Hoard |editor2-first=Christian |year=2004 |title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide |edition=4th |location=New York, NY |publisher=Fireside/Simon & Schuster |isbn=0-7432-0169-8 |page=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/46 46] |url=https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/46 }}</ref>
}}
''M.I.U Album'' was met with confusion from critics and fans,<ref name="CD2000" /> and continues to be widely regarded as one of the Beach Boys' worst albums.{{sfn|Stebbins|2000|p=175}} According to music critic [[Nick Kent]], the album was so "dreadful" that its "pitiful content" was ignored by critics.{{sfn|Gaines|1986}} Upon release, ''[[Rolling Stone]]''{{'}}s Tom Carson stated, {{blockquote|''M.I.U. Album'' seems contrived and artificial right from the start. The tracks strive to recapture the dreamy, adolescent innocence of the Beach Boys' earliest hits, and fail not so much because the concepts are dated but because the group can't infuse the new material with the same sense of grandeur that made the old songs such archetypal triumphs. [...] Throughout, the lackluster playing and singing has a melancholy edge, almost as if the Beach Boys are fully aware that they've outgrown this kind of teen fantasy, but can't think of anyplace else to go.<ref name=RS1978>{{cite magazine|last1=Carson|first1=Tom|title=M.I.U. Album|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=November 16, 1978|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/m-i-u-album-19781116}}</ref>}}
[[Vivien Goldman]] of ''[[Sounds (magazine)|Sounds]]'' found the album to be "magic" and added that she "played it non-stop, even if it seemed a baffling sconed adolescence" before concluding, "If there weren't some weirdo psychological reason, how could I get so involved with lyrics that one part of mind is consciously stating: this is moronic drivel?"{{sfn|Goldman|1978}} Richard Williams, who had championed the Beach Boys' work in the 1960s, wrote a negative review which stated, in part,
{{blockquote|How tragic that Brian is saddled with other people's imagination, that he should be reduced to the role of a hack, setting his impassioned melodies and arrangements to laughably juvenile lyrics....those songs of which Brian has sole charge exemplify his dilemma: he is obviously encouraged to deliver the adolescent pap of "Hey Little Tomboy", so that the dark emotions and warm textures of "Diane" are thrown into even higher relief. Should you choose to ignore the rest of the album, at least hear "Diane" and be assured that the spark still glows.{{sfn|Williams|1997|p=153}}}}
In his 2006 biography of Wilson, Carlin referred to it as "the most cynical, spiritually void work the group ever produced", a "gruesome album", and perhaps "one of the worst records ever made by a great rock band."{{sfn|Carlin|2006|pp=224–225}}  [[AllMusic]]'s John Bush stated, "The mainstream late-'70s production techniques are predictable and frequently cloying. ''M.I.U. Album'' also included several of the worst Beach Boys songs ever to make it to vinyl. [...] Compared with what had come before, ''M.I.U. Album'' was a pathetic attempt at music making; compared with what was to come however, this was a highlight."<ref name=AllMusicReview/>
Conversely, [[Jeff Tamarkin]], who wrote liner notes for the album's CD reissue, decreed that the album "stands on {{sic|i|t's}} own as a lovely, unique work."<ref name="CD2000" /> In 1981, [[Robert Christgau]] called the album "dumb [...] despite a lot of fairly pleasant music and a few passable songs".<ref name="Christgau"/> Reviewing the album's 2002 reissue, ''[[The A.V. Club]]''{{'}}s Keith Phipps stated, "''M.I.U.'' is competent enough, but it's also the sound of a group buying into its own mythology, a retrograde salute to the pinstripes and sunshine image it had abandoned years before."<ref name="avclub.com">{{cite web|last1=Phipps|first1=Keith|title=The Beach Boys: M.I.U. Album/L.A. (Light Album)|url=http://www.avclub.com/review/the-beach-boys-emmiu-albumla-light-albumem-21875|publisher=[[The A.V. Club]]|date=Mar 29, 2002}}</ref>
==Legacy==
Reflecting on ''M.I.U. Album'' in a 1992 interview, Mike Love opined that "there's some neat gems there but there wasn't a coherence."<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Good Vibrations? The Beach Boys' Mike Love gets his turn |magazine=[[Goldmine (magazine)|Goldmine]] |date=September 18, 1992 |url=http://troun.tripod.com/mikelove.html}}</ref> Asked about the album in a 1979 interview, Dennis Wilson said, "I hope that karma will fuck up Mike Love's meditation forever. That album is an embarrassment to my life. It should self-destruct."{{sfn|Stebbins|2000|p=175}}<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Williams |first1=Richard |author1-link=Richard Williams (journalist)|title=Dennis Wilson Loves Christine McVie |url=https://www.rocksbackpages.com/Library/Article/dennis-wilson-loves-christine-mcvie |magazine=[[Melody Maker]] |via=[[Rock's Backpages]] |date=March 24, 1979 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
==Track listing==
Track details per 2000 CD liner notes and the Winter 2023 issue of Endless Summer Quarterly.<ref name="CD2000">{{cite AV media notes |title=M.I.U./L.A. Light Album|others=[[The Beach Boys]] |year=2000 |first=Jeff |last=Tamarkin|author-link1= Jeff Tamarkin |type=booklet |url=http://albumlinernotes.com/M.I.U._L.A.html|publisher=[[Capitol Records]] |location=California}}</ref><ref name="Slowinski2023"/>
{{track listing
| headline        = Side one
| extra_column    = Lead vocal(s)
| title1          = [[She's Got Rhythm]]
| writer1         = [[Brian Wilson]], [[Mike Love]], [[Ron Altbach]]
| extra1          = B. Wilson and Love
| length1         = 2:27
| title2          = [[Come Go with Me]]
| writer2         = [[C.E. Quick]]
| extra2          = [[Al Jardine]] with Love
| length2         = 2:06
| title3          = [[Hey Little Tomboy]]
| writer3         = B. Wilson
| extra3          = B. Wilson, Love and [[Carl Wilson]]
| length3         = 2:25
| title4          = Kona Coast
| writer4         = [[Al Jardine]], Love
| extra4          = Love and Jardine
| length4         = 2:33
| title5          = [[Peggy Sue]]
| writer5         = [[Buddy Holly]], [[Jerry Allison]], [[Norman Petty]]
| extra5          = Jardine
| length5         = 2:15
| title6          = Wontcha Come Out Tonight
| writer6         = B. Wilson, Love
| extra6          = B. Wilson and Love
| length6         = 2:30
}}
{{track listing
| headline        = Side two
| extra_column    = Lead vocal(s)
| title1          = Sweet Sunday Kinda Love
| writer1         = B. Wilson, Love
| extra1          = C. Wilson
| length1         = 2:42
| title2          = Belles of Paris
| writer2         = B. Wilson, Love, Altbach
| extra2          = Love
| length2         = 2:27
| title3          = Pitter Patter
| writer3         = B. Wilson, Love, Jardine
| extra3          = Love and Jardine
| length3         = 3:14
| title4          = My Diane
| writer4         = B. Wilson
| extra4          = [[Dennis Wilson]]
| length4         = 2:37
| title5          = Match Point of Our Love
| writer5         = B. Wilson, Love
| extra5          = B. Wilson
| length5         = 3:29
| title6          = Winds of Change
| writer6         = Altbach, [[Ed Tuleja]]
| extra6          = Jardine and Love
| length6         = 3:14
| total_length    = 32:19
}}
==Personnel==
Credits sourced from Craig Slowinski, John Brode, Will Crerar, Joshilyn Hoisington and David Beard.<ref name="Slowinski2023">{{cite magazine |last=Slowinski|first=Craig |date=Winter 2023 |title=The Beach Boys M.I.U. Album Vol 1.|issue=144|volume=37|magazine=Endless Summer Quarterly Magazine |location=Charlotte, North Carolina|editor-first=David|editor-last=Beard}}</ref>
'''The Beach Boys'''
*[[Al Jardine]] – lead (2, 4, 5, 9, 12) and backing vocals (all but 3), electric (4, 9) and acoustic guitars (2, 8), tack piano (2), bass guitar (2, 3?, 10?), handclaps (1, 2, 5), fingersnaps (2), glockenspiel (2), vocal arrangements
*[[Mike Love]] – lead (1–4, 6, 8, 9, 12) and backing vocals (all but 3), handclaps (1, 5)
*[[Brian Wilson]] – lead (1, 3, 6, 11) and backing vocals (all tracks), piano (1, 6–8, 10, 11), tack piano (3), electric piano (9), electric harpsichord (5), [[Minimoog]] (3), handclaps (1, 5), vocal and horn arrangements
*[[Carl Wilson]] – lead (3, 7) and backing vocals (2, 3, 5, 9, 10), 12-string electric guitar (1, 6, 9), electric guitar (3), handclaps (1, 5)
*[[Dennis Wilson]] – lead (10) and backing vocals (3, 10), drums (3, 5, 10), additional drums (1)
'''[[The Beach Boys (touring band)|Touring musicians]]'''
{{div col}}
*Michael Andreas – saxophone (1, 6, 11), flute (1, 12), horn arrangements
*[[Ron Altbach]] – piano (12), electric piano (1, 4, 6–9, 11), accordion (6), [[ARP Omni]] (1), vibraphone (3, 4, 10, 11), xylophone (4), trombone (1, 12)
*Lance Buller – trumpet (12)
*[[Gary Griffin (musician)|Gary Griffin]] – electric piano (4), organ (1, 6, 7, 11), Minimoog (3, 6), tubular bells (1), string arrangements
*Ed Carter – electric (1, 6, 7, 11) and acoustic guitars (8), bass guitar (3?, 4, 8, 9, 10?)
*John Foss – trumpet (1, 12), flugelhorn (12)
*[[Billy Hinsche]] – backing vocals (10), electric guitar (10)
*[[Mike Kowalski]] – drums (1, 3, 4, 6–9, 11, 12), congas (1, 11), bongos (1), sleigh bells (1, 3, 4, 6, 9), tambourine (7, 10), shaker (3, 11), guiro (3, 11), wood block (12), tubular bells (8), mark-tree (9, 11)
*[[Charles Lloyd (jazz musician)|Charles Lloyd]] – flute (12)
*Charlie McCarthy – flute (12)
*Rusty Ford – bass guitar (1, 7, 11)
{{div col end}}
'''Additional players'''
*Chris Midaugh – steel pedal guitar (4, 9)
*[[Marilyn Rovell]] – backing vocals (6)
*Diane Rovell – backing vocals (6)
*[[Jay Graydon]] – electric guitars (5)
*[[Frank Marocco]] – accordion (5)
*[[Ray Pohlman]] – bass guitar (5)
*[[Ricky Fataar]] – drums (2)
*[[Julius Wechter]] – sleigh bells (5), vibraphone (5)
*[[Matt Jardine]] – handclaps (2), fingersnaps (2)
*Michael Sherry – handclaps (2), fingersnaps (2)
*Richard Hurwitz – trumpet (6)
*Raymond Brown – trumpet (6)
*Vincent Fanuele – trombone (6)
*[[Steve Douglas (musician)|Steve Douglas]] – tenor saxophones (5)
*[[Jay Migliori]] – baritone saxophones (5)
*William Collette – saxophone (6)
*Bill Green – saxophone (6)
*Maureen Love – harp (10, 12)
*Roberleigh Barnhardt – string arrangements
*Bernard Kundell, Alfred Breuning, Thomas Buffum, Herman Clebanoff, Cynthia Kovacs, Jay Rosen – violins (6, 8, 10, 12)
*Rollice Dale, Mark Kovacs, Linda Lipsett – violas (6, 8, 10, 12)
*Marie Fera, Igor Horoshevsky, Victor Sazer – cellos (6, 8, 10, 12)
*Unknown – saxophones (2), strings (7, 11)
'''Recording engineering personnel & assistants'''
{{div col}}
*[[Al Jardine]] – producer
*Ron Altbach – producer
*[[Brian Wilson]] – executive producer
*Diane Rovell – music coordinator
*[[John Hanlon (record producer)|John Hanlon]] – recording engineer
*[[Earle Mankey]] – recording engineer
*Stephen Moffitt – recording engineer
*Jeff Peters – recording engineer, final mixdown producer
*Bob Rose – recording engineer
{{div col end}}
'''Artwork'''
*[[Dean Torrence|Dean O. Torrence]] – album design, graphics
*[[The Beach Boys]] – album design, graphics
*Warren Bolster/[[Surfer Magazine]] – front cover photography
*Guy Webster – back cover photography
==Charts==
{|class="wikitable"
|-
!Chart (1978)
!Peak<br/>position
|-
| US ''Billboard'' Top LPs & Tape{{sfn|Dillon|2012|p=234}}
| style="text-align:center;"|151
|}
==Notes==
{{reflist|group=nb}}
==References==
{{reflist|20em}}
==Bibliography==
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite book|last=Badman|first=Keith|title=The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio|url=https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm|url-access=registration|year=2004|publisher=Backbeat Books|isbn=978-0-87930-818-6}}
* {{cite book|first=Peter Ames|last=Carlin|author-link=Peter Ames Carlin|title=Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson|url=https://archive.org/details/catchwaverisefal0000carl/|year=2006|publisher=Rodale|isbn=978-1-59486-320-2|url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book|last=Dillon|first=Mark|title=Fifty Sides of the Beach Boys: The Songs That Tell Their Story|url=https://archive.org/details/fiftysidesofbeac0000dill/|year=2012|publisher=ECW Press|isbn=978-1-77090-198-8|url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book|last=Gaines|first=Steven|author-link=Steven Gaines|title=Heroes and Villains: The True Story of The Beach Boys|url=https://archive.org/details/heroesvillainsth00gain|year=1986|publisher=Da Capo Press|location=New York|isbn=0306806479|url-access=registration}}
* {{cite magazine|magazine=[[Sounds (magazine)|Sounds]]|title=Beach Boys 'Miu' (Weak MSK 2268) ****|last=Goldman|first=Vivien|page=40|date=September 23, 1978}}
* {{cite book|last=Love|first=Mike|author-link=Mike Love|title=Good Vibrations: My Life as a Beach Boy|url=https://archive.org/details/goodvibrationsmy0000love_u3b0/|year=2016|publisher=Penguin Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-698-40886-9|url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book|last=Stebbins|first=Jon|author-link=Jon Stebbins|title=Dennis Wilson: The Real Beach Boy|url=https://archive.org/details/denniswilsonreal0000steb/|year=2000|publisher=ECW Press|isbn=978-1-55022-404-7|url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book |last=White |first=Timothy |author-link=Timothy White (writer) |title=The Nearest Faraway Place: Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys, and the Southern Californian Experience |date=1996 |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=0333649370 |url=https://archive.org/details/nearestfarawaypl0000whit/ |url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book|last1=Williams|first1=Richard|author-link1=Richard Williams (journalist)|orig-year=1978|editor1-last=Abbott|editor1-first=Kingsley|chapter=M.I.U. Review|date=1997|publisher=Helter Skelter|location=London|isbn=978-1900924023|edition=1st|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/backtobeachbrian0000unse/page/153/|chapter-url-access=registration|title=Back to the Beach}}
{{refend}}
==External links==
* {{Discogs master|type=album|207940|name=M.I.U. Album}}
* {{YouTube|x0vqbDwRjOI|Our Team}}
* {{YouTube|MRo7rq-EZ7s|Why (Instrumental)}}
{{The Beach Boys main}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:The Beach Boys albums]]
[[Category:Capitol Records albums]]
[[Category:Reprise Records albums]]
[[Category:1978 albums]]
[[Category:Brother Records albums]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Al Jardine]]
[[Category:Albums recorded at Wally Heider Studios]]
[[Category:Albums with cover art by Dean Torrence]]