Hello everyone/question

[FeelFlow]

Hello everyone,
    I'm a growing Beach Boys fan. I got Pet Sounds in high school, hated it on the first listen, then loved it the second time. But for some reason I never bought anything else--I think I was a little unsure where to go. After I saw "Love and Mercy" I had to hear more, so I got the Smile Sessions, and gradually started buying up their late 60s-early 70's work. I'm blown away by how great this music is (even if some of the albums have some weak points), and how unappreciated it was at the time. My 1.5 year old daughter is already a huge fan, and my wife is getting into it.
    What brought me to this site was an interest in collecting their earlier work. It's good stuff, but I'm not sure I want to buy the albums before Today (I have Today and Summer Days already). So I was hoping to find the best compilation for the early stuff that doesn't overlap too much with the later 60s work. I wasn't sure the best way to ask that (or if I'm even allowed to start a topic yet).

[The Cincinnati Kid]

Welcome!  If you're trying to get as little overlap as possible, I would go with the Endless Summer and Spirit of America compilations from 1974 and 1975.  They have very little material post Pet Sounds since it wasn't appreciated yet.  You can find them both on iTunes and Amazon should have the CDs.


Edit: I would at least buy All Summer Long though.  It's a very good album. 

[B.E.]

Great question. Honestly, I don't believe a compilation exists that focuses exclusively on '62-'64. Which is too bad, because it would serve a purpose, as you have illustrated. A lot of people distinguish between the '62-64 and '65-66 material. The earlier albums are uneven. The closest thing to a pre-Today! comp would be disc 1 of either the Good Vibrations or Made In California box sets, but obviously, that's not an option (nor ideal). I tend to agree with Cincinnati Kid that Endless Summer and Spirit of America may be the closest you get, but there's a lot of overlap with Today!/Summer Days. I'd suggest listening to the earlier albums on Spotify and deciding to buy albums that way, or even making your own playlist on Spotify of your favorite early material. You won't get much of a consensus around here (outside of the hits), but there's a lot of good music to find. Again, I agree with Cincinnati Kid regarding All Summer Long. 10 very good to great songs on that album alone.

Edit: Actually, here's your best bet https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Original_US_Singles_Collection_The_Capitol_Years_1962%E2%80%931965. You can get it on itunes for $30.

[rab2591]

Agreed with Cincinnati Kid about getting the Endless Summer compilation.

Also, I highly recommend the Surfer Girl and Little Deuce Coupe albums. The former is Brian's first real crack at taking the helm on an album - and it's like an early version of Pet Sounds, imo: each song is a little early pop symphony, nearly each one has at least one incredible hook that makes you want to relisten. 'In My Room' is like a precursor to the serious nature of Pet Sounds, 'Surfer Girl' 'Your Summer Dream' 'The Surfer Moon' are some of the most beautiful love ballads they recorded, and it still has energetic tracks like 'Catch A Wave' that are instant classics. There is a far more cohesive feel to Surfer Girl than the previous two albums (which truly do feel like filler albums) and even some later albums (Shut Down Vol II for example). The Little Deuce Coupe album always seemed the most uninteresting Beach Boys release to me. An album with nothing but car songs? Meh. But I found over time it's probably their most beautiful vocal album....each song is an amazing example of how great these guys could harmonize.

I don't want to over-hype those two albums, but I was really glad I delved into them after ignoring them for a couple years after I got into this band. One great thing about the Beach Boys is that no matter how much you have heard, there is always another gem waiting to be heard.

One suggestion: in the age of digital subscriptions I possibly recommend you look into Apple Music or Spotify. I realized in the course of a year I spend far more on individual albums than a music subscription costs over that same time period. Being able to have access to most of the released Beach Boys discography (I mean, even the 5 discs of the Smile Sessions are on Apple Music) for $10 a month is wonderful (not to mention having access to basically any other artist's discography). And for a newcomer to the Beach Boys it would probably be great to be able to hear everything and explore the catalogue without breaking the bank. Just an idea though!

Welcome to the board!

[SMiLE Brian]

Welcome!

[FeelFlow]

thanks everyone for the welcoming words, and the great advice. I'll start looking into these albums.