I bought my first pre-Today album recently...

[Rerun]

I picked up the LDC/All Summer Long 2-fer, and I have to say...not as bad as I was expecting.  A lot of fluff, but I really like quite a few of the songs as well, particularly Hushabye and Dont Back Down, the latter especially.  It has such an odd structure to it, but I think it's great.

Not really sure what else to pick up as far as early stuff is concerned.  I'm thinking of the Surfin' USA 2-fer.

[Shady]

where did you buy it?

[TV Forces]

I picked up the LDC/All Summer Long 2-fer, and I have to say...not as bad as I was expecting.  A lot of fluff, but I really like quite a few of the songs as well, particularly Hushabye and Dont Back Down, the latter especially.  It has such an odd structure to it, but I think it's great.

Not really sure what else to pick up as far as early stuff is concerned.  I'm thinking of the Surfin' USA 2-fer.

Well, the Surfin' USA 2-fer WILL BE as bad as you are expecting..  it's about 95% fluff.

[MBE]

Here are the pre Today LPs from what I like best to least .
1.All Summer
2 Shut Down 2
3 Sufin USA (sorry I like this one a lot)
4 Surfer Girl
5 Concert
6 Little
7 Safari
8 Xmas

[Jon Stebbins]

The Surfin' U.S.A. and All Summer Long LP's are both pure ground breaking classics. Without them what came later has absolutely no relevance.

[Rerun]

where did you buy it?

It's not easy to find around where I am, so I ordered it from Borders.  I had a coupon and was able to apply it to my order when it came in.

Mostly, I just seem compilations and Pet Sounds and occassionally some 2fer stuck in there.  Meanwhile, you lift your head up and see every Beatles album they made...

[Rerun]

I picked up the LDC/All Summer Long 2-fer, and I have to say...not as bad as I was expecting.  A lot of fluff, but I really like quite a few of the songs as well, particularly Hushabye and Dont Back Down, the latter especially.  It has such an odd structure to it, but I think it's great.

Not really sure what else to pick up as far as early stuff is concerned.  I'm thinking of the Surfin' USA 2-fer.

Well, the Surfin' USA 2-fer WILL BE as bad as you are expecting..  it's about 95% fluff.

Well, I have all of the late stuff worth having (save holland/catp), so I'm getting desperate for SOMETHING else.  I guess even if a couple gems stick out, it'd be worth it.

I've been so desperate for music lately though.  I just haven't come across a lot that's clicked lately.  Maybe I'll just up another Cosby comedy album instead.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Mostly, I just seem compilations and Pet Sounds and occassionally some 2fer stuck in there. Meanwhile, you lift your head up and see every Beatles album they made...

Interesting - i'd say the same about The BB canon. You gotta have the context.. There's a goodly degree of Beatles fluff too.

[punkinhead]

we'll run away is great...wendy, little honda...just great...all summer long is great summer album.

Shut Down 2 is good as well...it's worth saying (and i've heard others say) that it coulda been the first great BB album, had it not contain a couple of clunkers...perhaps going up against a beatles' record? warmth, dont worry, keep an eye, why do fools...great tracks...

i think the LDC album is underrated...it's got some good stuff...my fav: no go showboat...

[matt-zeus]

All Summer Long is my favourite pre-Today album. So much cool stuff on here, the vocals are great and theres little filler. A great album to stick on if you're driving to the beach.

[Old Rake]

The Surfin' U.S.A. and All Summer Long LP's are both pure ground breaking classics. Without them what came later has absolutely no relevance.

Holy crap, YES. At this stage of the game I'd rather listen to the early stuff than anything. They are, as you say, groundbreaking classics.

[Roger Ryan]

Personally, I think the "Surfer Girl" album is underappreciated. There's something very spiritual about the album, as Brian might say. Maybe because it opens with the title track with its "When You Wish Upon A Star" overtones. There's something about the way "In My Room" appears in the track sequence that emphasizes the simple profundity of the song. It's also got that great Four Seasons knock "Surfers Rule". I suppose it's the first BB album where that sounds like Brian has found his footing; he knows what kind of material and arrangements make the band appealing.

[punkinhead]

yeah, surfer girl is a great album...your summer dream, our car club, catch a wave, boogie woodie; really underrated stuff

[Rerun]

It's interesting to hear about these earlier ones.  It seems like the only discussions that take place are about 1965-

I usually get the impression that people completely disregard the first albums as hits you've heard all your life and embarassing filler, so it was interesting to actually see what they were producing at the time.  I mean, who knew such greatness as "Carl's Big Chance" was out there waiting to be discovered?  Okay, that was a joke.  But, Our Car Club and Custom Machine are pretty good.

[Old Rake]

I usually get the impression that people completely disregard the first albums as hits you've heard all your life and embarassing filler

NOT AT ALL.

That might be the party-line amongst the fly-by-night half-arsed fans. The sort of "Pet Sounds And Not Much Else" fans, but heck with them -- they're missing out on some insanely brilliant gems. "Car Crazy Cutie?" How can you possibly go wrong! "No Go Showboat?" Its all great stuff on those albums, the filler percentage is actually, to me, pretty small and even the filler's fun. I like "Carl's Big Chance."

But then again: I also rate "Party," so what do I know?

[the captain]

I was definitely late in coming to those early albums. I heard about and got Pet Sounds first, then the stuff that came just after (through about Surf's Up), then worked slowly backward from PS and forward from SU. I've got to say...I still don't like the early albums much. There are great, great songs here and there, but I'd take pretty much any album from Today through Holland before anything pre-Today.

That said...it's worth it to buy them if and when you have a few spare dollars. You can always find something cool, be it a chord change, a song, a harmony, a tone. Whatever.

[Don't Back Down]

I usually get the impression that people completely disregard the first albums as hits you've heard all your life and embarassing filler

NOT AT ALL.

That might be the party-line amongst the fly-by-night half-arsed fans. The sort of "Pet Sounds And Not Much Else" fans, but heck with them -- they're missing out on some insanely brilliant gems. "Car Crazy Cutie?" How can you possibly go wrong! "No Go Showboat?" Its all great stuff on those albums, the filler percentage is actually, to me, pretty small and even the filler's fun. I like "Carl's Big Chance."

Not to mention superb harmonies such as on "In The Parking Lot", etc. on earlier albums.

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

Please just get Surfin' USA.  The title track is iconic, obviously, but Farmer's Daughter, Lonely Sea, Lana...that trio of songs are just as interesting melodically as anything Brian ever wrote.  Beautiful melodies sung by Brian at his purest.

Since my move to LA, I've gone to the Beach a couple of times with my iPod and played Surfin' USA in it's entirety.  The first time I did, not long into I said aloud: "Oh."  I got it.  I could feel the zeitgeist, even in the "filler" tracks.  Maybe even especially in the filler tracks.

[Jon Stebbins]

Please just get Surfin' USA.  The title track is iconic, obviously, but Farmer's Daughter, Lonely Sea, Lana...that trio of songs are just as interesting melodically as anything Brian ever wrote.  Beautiful melodies sung by Brian at his purest.

Since my move to LA, I've gone to the Beach a couple of times with my iPod and played Surfin' USA in it's entirety.  The first time I did, not long into I said aloud: "Oh."  I got it.  I could feel the zeitgeist, even in the "filler" tracks.  Maybe even especially in the filler tracks.

I'm so glad you did because it means a lot. In 1963 to us suburban California kids that LP was as liberating and youth-power as punk rock could ever be. It was truly a progressive record. It had an edge. It had heart. And it was good from beginning to end. A total Califonia garage band statement. Everyone in my neighborhood wanted to buy electric guitars and grow their hair out when they heard it and saw it. The Beatles were still a year away, but the BB's had it down already. To think of those early LP's as somehow unimportant is ridiculous in my opinion. Today is great, Pet Sounds sublime, but the Beach Boys were never tougher than they were on SUSA...and yeah...Farmers Daughter, Lonely Sea and Lana just ripped our raw little souls out. Brian turned us inside out and made the girls cry, and all to a reverbed Fender symphony.

[PMcC]

Whenever I vacation on the Gulf coast, I bring 2 Beach Boys albums along for ambience..The Boys never sound as good as they do on the coast, with the waves crashing, dolphins jumping..I got it , as well..6 summers ago..now I spend my time trying to capture that feeling with my own music, writing words and melody while I'm near the Gulf of Mexico....

[Rerun]

Please just get Surfin' USA.  The title track is iconic, obviously, but Farmer's Daughter, Lonely Sea, Lana...that trio of songs are just as interesting melodically as anything Brian ever wrote.  Beautiful melodies sung by Brian at his purest.

Since my move to LA, I've gone to the Beach a couple of times with my iPod and played Surfin' USA in it's entirety.  The first time I did, not long into I said aloud: "Oh."  I got it.  I could feel the zeitgeist, even in the "filler" tracks.  Maybe even especially in the filler tracks.

I love Lonely Sea and that was the main reason I wanted to pick up that album specifically.  I'm sure at some point I'll pick up everything excluding the 80s stuff.

My sister, brother-in-law, and I went out to the beach today, and all day we kept singing this cheesy Beach Boys rip off my sister made up:

Gonna get down,
Gonna boogie.
Gonna boogie on my boogie board.

[jeffh]

Hell, the early albums were the GREATEST, especially if you lived through those times as I did. Each album release was an event, fans waited for their release. The songs were fresh and were considered ground breaking. Even the non hits like Custom Machine and No Go Showboat were loved by many.

[Chris Brown]

I love all the early albums too, and probably listen to them just as much as Pet Sounds/Smile.  Its fascinating to me that I can actually hear Brian's artistic progression as its happening.  I can only imagine how cool it must've been to be around for it as it was happening.  There are, of course, early gems that hint at future greatness (Lonely Sea, Warmth of the Sun, etc), but even the supposed "filler" is fantastic to me.  Farmer's Daughter is ridiculously simple, but I love it.  That to me is why Brian is so good, he can make a simple 3 chord song (actually I think there's a minor in there but you get my point) into somthing original and interesting.  All of the early BB albums have wonderful things to offer, you pretty much can't go wrong no matter which you choose. 

[Daniel S.]

The songs were fresh and were considered ground breaking.

Did the teenagers buying Beach Boys albums back in the 60's really consider the music ground breaking? I know the records were hits, but the release of a Beach Boys record was an event? I know they were very succesful but I didn't think they were taken terribly seriously by the general record buying public.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Here comes some blasphemy...

I prefer All Summer Long to Today.