Becoming the Beach Boys, 1961-1963 -- Available Now!

[Pretty Funky]

Andrew. 36 Pounds and up to 3 weeks delivery. Page says free delivery on orders over 10 Pounds.

https://www.waterstones.com/book/becoming-the-beach-boys-1961-1963/james-b-murphy/9780786473656

[Andrew G. Doe]

A crusty old man with a very short fuse thanks you.

[c-man]

Too bad it's temporarily out-of-stock...hopefully Andrew got the last one! 

[Jesse Reiswig]

Ordered from McFarland. Looking forward very much to this book, Jim.

[dombanzai]

Bound to be a cracking read and cannot wait to get it. Will it debunk some myths? Or has another book already done that?

[John Manning]

I've ordered it on Amazon.com Andrew. Better shipping rate, and much better cover price than amazon.co.uk!!!!!

[Andrew G. Doe]

I've ordered it on Amazon.com Andrew. Better shipping rate, and much better cover price than amazon.co.uk!!!!!

Tried that twice and always the same response - we'll tell you when we're going to send it.

[bgas]

I've ordered it on Amazon.com Andrew. Better shipping rate, and much better cover price than amazon.co.uk!!!!!

Tried that twice and always the same response - we'll tell you when we're going to send it.

Hmm....   Every time I go, it's out of stock, except for the copies offered for $2300, $3200 and $5900 each ( won't spend that much) What am I missing?

[pudge104]

Mine arrived today, can't wait to dig into it...

[ChicagoAnn]

Just got the book today and it looks incredible.  And it has a great index!

If it weren't 80+ degrees here, I'd get out the Pendleton shirt that I bought at a thrift shop in the 80s, long before I was a BB fan. 

[LeeDempsey]

New coupon code from McFarland:

We’re gearing up for the American Library Association’s Annual Conference this week in San Francisco, and this week’s deal honors the host city. Through June 28, 2015, get 20% off the following books when you enter the coupon code ALA!

Worked for me.

Lee

[Andrew G. Doe]

Amazon - and God - obviously hate me. Me, personally. The proof ? This email, from yesterday:

Your Amazon.com order (#110-3203487-4246668): your approval required
Shopping

        order-update@amazon.com
        Jun 21 at 8:13 AM

To  A G Doe

Hello,

We're still trying to obtain the following item(s) you ordered on July 30, 2014 (Order# 110-3203487-4246668):

  Murphy, James B. "Becoming the Beach Boys, 1961-1963"
  http://www.amazon.com/dp/0786473657

Still want it? We'll keep on trying. To keep your order for this item open, please click the link below. Otherwise, we'll cancel your order on July 12, 2015, if we haven't located it by then.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/css/order/edit.html?ie=UTF8&useCase=approve&orderID=110-3203487-4246668&ref=fxm_em_0

You'll still be able to cancel at any time before we ship it. If you want to cancel the item now, please click the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/css/order/edit.html/?ie=UTF8&useCase=cancel&orderID=110-3203487-4246668&ref=fxm_em_0

If there are other items in your order, they'll be shipped according to the delivery estimates listed in the order details in "Your Account" (www.amazon.com/your-account?ref=fxm_em_0).

Sincerely,

Customer Service Department
http://www.amazon.com/customer-service?ref=fxm_em_0

[Jesse Reiswig]

I'm about 2/3 of the way through the book. Let me say that it's an incredible achievement: meticulously researched, utilizing a mixture of great original interviews and well-chosen archival quotes. It is, obviously, much more of a specialist's book than one for a general audience. It has much more information than the non-geeky (i.e., those like we Smiley Smilers) would want on these pivotal years. But for us, it's a goldmine of new detail. And it certainly has a myth-busting quality. It questions many dates and sequences-of-events that have become accepted as gospel in the world of Beach Boys fandom. In particular, chapter 7 will surely be seen as the critical revisionist chapter, as it calls into question the commonly accepted dates of the first Hite Morgan sessions and the sequence of the events leading to the band's first single release. Jim reveals that the accepted dates stand on flimsy ground indeed.

Another admirable quality of the book, though one that is perhaps a bit uncomfortable for the reader, is that in cases where there are multiple accounts of how a certain event went down--and there is no independent authority to confirm which scenario is actually correct (i.e., a multitude of events)--Jim lets each voice tell its version of the story. He may let his authorial voice speak as to which scenario he finds most likely in some cases, but he allows the mutually contradictory accounts to be told in full. The advantage of this is, obviously, knowing that the truth is likely in there somewhere. But I can imagine it would make the book a bit of a slog for the non–academically inclined, who would likely wish for a more cohesive narrative that didn't repeat the same stories from as many different angles. Lest this sound like a negative, I want to emphasize that this adds hugely to the book's credibility.

Jim, congratulations on this very, very admirable achievement. I look forward to finishing the book, but don't want it to end. I can hardly put it down.

[bgas]

New coupon code from McFarland:

We’re gearing up for the American Library Association’s Annual Conference this week in San Francisco, and this week’s deal honors the host city. Through June 28, 2015, get 20% off the following books when you enter the coupon code ALA!

Worked for me.

Lee

should have bought two copies, you could have saved 30% !!

[Ian]

I am working my way through it but so far it is incredible! A great achievement.  Tons of fresh info and enthusiasm.  And Jim uncovered a wealth of new dates/shows for that crucial year 1962 that eluded Jon and I when we wrote The Beach Boys In Concert.

[bgas]

I guess the publisher only printed about 100 copies, as I ordered it on Wednesday, had the order confirmed and they charged my card.
Today I received a letter  telling me it's on backorder and isn't "projected" to be available until at least July 7th.
What a forlorn laughable little company! I presume they're waiting to get enough orders to pay for another printing....

[SBonilla]

I guess the publisher only printed about 100 copies, as I ordered it on Wednesday, had the order confirmed and they charged my card.
Today I received a letter  telling me it's on backorder and isn't "projected" to be available until at least July 7th.
What a forlorn laughable little company!

The publishers' stock is probably mostly on distributor and retailer shelves and racks; they may have gotten a surprising amount of initial direct orders . I seriously doubt they pressed such a low number. 500 would be the lowest feasible number. Even that is too small an amount to fill the distribution pipeline.

I wouldn't laugh at them. I'd congratulate them.

[ianeh]

Jim, any information as far as when a digital book may be available. Thank you.

[bgas]

I guess the publisher only printed about 100 copies, as I ordered it on Wednesday, had the order confirmed and they charged my card.
Today I received a letter  telling me it's on backorder and isn't "projected" to be available until at least July 7th.
What a forlorn laughable little company!

The publishers' stock is probably mostly on distributor and retailer shelves and racks; they may have gotten a surprising amount of initial direct orders . I seriously doubt they pressed such a low number. 500 would be the lowest feasible number. Even that is too small an amount to fill the distribution pipeline.

I wouldn't laugh at them. I'd congratulate them.

Sure. I'm on backorder and their site shows it available for Immediate shipment.
Either they don't know how to update the site, or they're crooks taking orders for more $$ to print more copies

[jeffh]

Amazon just told me that my copy is shipping today!!!!!!!

[SBonilla]

I guess the publisher only printed about 100 copies, as I ordered it on Wednesday, had the order confirmed and they charged my card.
Today I received a letter  telling me it's on backorder and isn't "projected" to be available until at least July 7th.
What a forlorn laughable little company!

The publishers' stock is probably mostly on distributor and retailer shelves and racks; they may have gotten a surprising amount of initial direct orders . I seriously doubt they pressed such a low number. 500 would be the lowest feasible number. Even that is too small an amount to fill the distribution pipeline.

I wouldn't laugh at them. I'd congratulate them.

Sure. I'm on backorder and their site shows it available for Immediate shipment.
Either they don't know how to update the site, or they're crooks taking orders for more $$ to print more copies

Dealing with a turnaround time issue is not crooked business.
Bad rapping the publisher does the author no favors.

I do hope your book arrives soon.

[Ian]

I have to say, I just finished it and it was well worth buying! Excellent book

[bgas]

I guess the publisher only printed about 100 copies, as I ordered it on Wednesday, had the order confirmed and they charged my card.
Today I received a letter  telling me it's on backorder and isn't "projected" to be available until at least July 7th.
What a forlorn laughable little company!

The publishers' stock is probably mostly on distributor and retailer shelves and racks; they may have gotten a surprising amount of initial direct orders . I seriously doubt they pressed such a low number. 500 would be the lowest feasible number. Even that is too small an amount to fill the distribution pipeline.

I wouldn't laugh at them. I'd congratulate them.

Sure. I'm on backorder and their site shows it available for Immediate shipment.
Either they don't know how to update the site, or they're crooks taking orders for more $$ to print more copies

Dealing with a turnaround time issue is not crooked business.
Bad rapping the publisher does the author no favors.

I do hope your book arrives soon.

I have to say, I just finished it and it was well worth buying! Excellent book

Only worth buying if the sellers are honest in their dealing.
And I say dealing with a turnaround is crooked if they're still promoting the book as being available for immediate shipping while holding my order and not shipping

[Jim Murphy]

Thanks everyone for your support and patience . . . the book is being reprinted and more copies will be making their way out soon . . . As I receive more information from McFarland, I'll share it here . . .

ianeh -- I'll ask McFarland when they expect the e book to be available and get back to you.  Thanks for your interest!

Thanks Jesse for your very kind and thorough early review. Glad you enjoyed it. When I read your comments, I immediately thought two things -- this is really well written and McFarland should hire you for publicity!  

Thanks Ian for your continued support and enthusiasm. In light of the massive amount of work and time that went into your superb In Concert, I truly appreciate your praise for Becoming. Glad you enjoyed it. A few more pieces of the puzzle.  

I've had some really positive feedback on the book from other sources and am working on some exciting promotional opportunities to help bring the book to a wider audience.

As you read it, please share your honest thoughts and opinions. It lived in my room for eight years, so I am glad to see it finally enter the real world and stand on its own!

[Andrew G. Doe]

I'll offer up my considered thoughts when I actually get a copy (on current form, this should be July 2018...) but the few pages I've read on Google have impressed me deeply.