"My Solution" is a song by the American rock band The Beach Boys that was recorded during the early sessions for their 1971 album Surf's Up. The track is a novelty Halloween song that features Brian Wilson doing an impression of Vincent Price over a descending chord progression and test-tube sound effects.^[1] The song was officially released as part of the 2021 compilation Feel Flows.^[2]

"My Solution" was written by Brian Wilson and recorded on October 31, 1970, shortly before the sessions for the group's album Surf's Up.^[3] Photographs of the session show the band dressed in Halloween costumes, including Wilson, whose face was painted green a la Frankenstein.^[2] Band archivist Alan Boyd said: "It’s kind of jokey track, Brian is playing a mad scientist and talking like Boris Karloff while the Beach Boys are singing (recites lyrics) 'What I have done with my solution, my instant aim to evolution.'"^[4] His colleague Mark Linett surmised, "It's just having the studio in the house, and deciding, 'Let’s do a Halloween-inspired, clubhouse kind of event.' I don’t know that it was ever intended to be released."^[2]

In a 1976 interview, Brian said: "We have a song called 'My Solution' which is a very odd song that has chromatic—strange chords, not regular triad chords. The notes are bunched up. It tells the story about how a guy found an old damsel outside his castle and decided to make her part of an experiment. ... It's about a guy who found his solution. It's a very odd, Boris Karloff-eerie type of thing, so it's one of our more far-out, left-field things that we've done."^[5]

Biographer David Leaf mentions "My Solution" in the 1985 edition of his 1978 biography The Beach Boys and the California Myth:

One of the most unusual visits [since I had published my book] was when Brian came to my home to borrow a tape of one of his unreleased songs. He wanted to work on a new arrangement of the still-unreleased 'My Solution' and needed to hear how the old version went. I'd never told Brian about my tape collection. He just knew that I had it. Brian's behavior consistently demonstrated an uncanny omniscience which extended far beyond his musical gift and was most surprising, given his public playing of possum.^[6]

Another attempt at "My Solution" was recorded during the summer of 1980, though no vocals were recorded.^[3] This version was retitled "Song Within a Song" in medley with "Shortenin' Bread".^[7]

In 1998, Wilson reworked the melody into the verse of a new song, "Happy Days", for his solo album Imagination.^[4]

Credits from Craig Slowinski^[8]

The Beach Boys

• Al Jardine - group vocals
• Bruce Johnston - group vocals
• Mike Love - group vocals
• Brian Wilson - group vocals, narration, Hammond organ, Moog synthesizers, drums
• Carl Wilson - group vocals, electric guitars (fed through a Moog)

• List of unreleased songs recorded by the Beach Boys

• My Solution (Track & Backing Vocals) on YouTube