input: Recorded in the wake of California Music's demise, a supergroup that would have involved Brian Wilson, Bruce Johnston, and record producer Terry Melcher, 15 Big Ones (1976) marked Brian's return as a major force in the group. The album included new songs by Brian, as well as cover versions of oldies such as "Rock and Roll Music", "Blueberry Hill", and "In the Still of the Night". "Rock and Roll Music" peaked at No. 5 in the U.S. Brian and Love's "It's O.K." was in the vein of their early sixties style, and was a moderate hit. The album was publicized by an August 1976 NBC-TV special, simply titled The Beach Boys. The special, produced by Saturday Night Live (SNL) creator Lorne Michaels, featured appearances by SNL cast members John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.  The album was generally disliked by fans and critics upon release. During its sessions, Brian's production role was belittled as group members overdubbed and remixed tracks to fight against his desire for a rough, unfinished sound. Carl and Dennis disparaged the album to the press while Brian admitted, "[Undoubtedly] the new album is nothing too deep", but remained hopeful that their next release would be on par with the group's "Good Vibrations".  For the remainder of 1976 to early 1977, Brian spent his time making sporadic public appearances and producing the band's next album The Beach Boys Love You (1977), a quirky collection of 14 songs mostly written, arranged and produced by Brian. Brian later called Love You one of his favorite Beach Boys releases, saying that "That's when it all happened for me. That's where my heart lies." Jardine credited Carl and Dennis with having "the most to do with that album ... [they were] paying tribute to their brother." Love You peaked at No. 28 in the UK and No. 53 in the US and developed a cult following; regarded as one of the band's best albums by fans and critics alike, and an early work of synthpop.  Referring to "naysayers" of the album, the underground fanzine Scram wrote, "Fuck [them] ... [the album showcases] a truly original mix of humor and sadness. The original numbers always dance just a step away from the cliche, dealing with simple lyrical themes that make you wonder why they had never been explored before." The A.V. Club - considering the album in "the same vein" as Tonight's the Night (1975), Pussy Cats (1974), The Madcap Laughs (1970), and Barrett (1970) - described Love You as: "something almost desperately optimistic ... Wilson sings frayed songs about roller-skating, road-tripping, and Johnny Carson - like a frazzled man sitting in a corner chanting 'calm blue ocean' over and over. It's a beautiful, noisy, funny, heartbreaking work of art - one not for everybody, yet vital for anyone who wants to understand Wilson's overall worldview."

Answer this question "How did this album perform?"
output: regarded as one of the band's best albums by fans and critics alike, and an early work of synthpop.

input: The cast album of the 1945 Broadway production was issued on 78s, and the score was significantly cut--as was the 1950 London cast recording. Theatre historian John Kenrick notes of the 1945 recording that a number of songs had to be abridged to fit the 78 format, but that there is a small part of "Soliloquy" found on no other recording, as Rodgers cut it from the score immediately after the studio recording was made.  A number of songs were cut for the 1956 film, but two of the deleted numbers had been recorded and were ultimately retained on the soundtrack album. The expanded CD version of the soundtrack, issued in 2001, contains all of the singing recorded for the film, including the cut portions, and nearly all of the dance music. The recording of the 1965 Lincoln Center revival featured Raitt reprising the role of Billy. Studio recordings of Carousel's songs were released in 1956 (with Robert Merrill as Billy, Patrice Munsel as Julie, and Florence Henderson as Carrie), 1962 and 1987. The 1987 version featured a mix of opera and musical stars, including Samuel Ramey, Barbara Cook and Sarah Brightman. Kenrick recommends the 1962 studio recording for its outstanding cast, including Alfred Drake, Roberta Peters, Claramae Turner, Lee Venora, and Norman Treigle.  Both the London (1993) and New York (1994) cast albums of the Hytner production contain portions of dialogue that, according to Hischak, speak to the power of Michael Hayden's portrayal of Billy. Kenrick judges the 1994 recording the best all-around performance of Carousel on disc, despite uneven singing by Hayden, due to Sally Murphy's Julie and the strong supporting cast (calling Audra McDonald the best Carrie he has heard). The Stratford Festival issued a recording in 2015.

Answer this question "What kind of music is in this?"
output: A number of songs were cut for the 1956 film, but two of the deleted numbers had been recorded and were ultimately retained on the soundtrack album.

input: Jeff Mangum, along with high-school friends Will Cullen Hart and Bill Doss, formed The Olivia Tremor Control, with Mangum appearing on their first release, the California Demise 7".  Prior to recording for friends under the Neutral Milk Hotel moniker, Mangum recorded a few cassettes under the name Milk; the most well-known of these tapes was called Pygmie Barn in E Minor. These are the earliest known recordings that Mangum initiated and executed himself. There were only an estimated dozen or so copies ever made of this tape, none of which has been made public. It was revealed c. 2006 on the Elephant 6 online forums that another tape under said name, entitled Beauty, was released, along with several recordings under the name Ruby Bulbs (also a song dating from that era, perhaps the only Milk song to be played by Neutral Milk Hotel).  Neutral Milk Hotel began simply as a recording project for Mangum, in the late 1980s. He produced several demo cassettes, among them 1991's Invent Yourself a Shortcake, 1992's Beauty (not to be confused with the earlier cassette), and 1993's Hype City Soundtrack, along with two more from this period, seemingly unnamed. Although easily found on the Internet, these demos capture the project at a very embryonic stage: songs are played in between various sound collages and tape experiments, one of which consists only of a six-minute conversation between Mangum and Hart. Another track, "Digestion Machine", features a varied collage of voices answering the question asked by Mangum, "What does the digestion machine mean to you?". The more accessible "Synthetic Flying Machine", also titled "Up and Over", later became "The King of Carrot Flowers Pt. 3" on In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.  During this period, Mangum was wandering the country, staying with friends, and in a state of perpetual unemployment. It was in these circumstances that the band's first formal releases took shape. Strictly speaking, however, the 'band' usually consisted of Mangum and whoever else was present at the time. This is obvious on Neutral Milk Hotel's first release, a 7" record entitled Everything Is, recorded when Mangum was spending time in Seattle, Washington, released on Cher Doll Records in 1993.

Answer this question "was the band successful at this time?"
output: