The Smiley Smile Message Board

Hello,

I'm new on the forum. I'm Eric, from France (so thanks for your understanding regarding my English). I'm someone who can be called "heavy" Beach Boys on CDs collector and I will be delighted to discuss with other fanatic. I've created this topic to share information on new CD releases, interesting sellers through the world, etc. If you simply have a question on a particular CD, just don't hesitate!

Bienvenue !

I think i've found via Play.com some japanese versions of their cds, which is faaaarrr more expensive (can go to something like 50 dollars)
but the audio quality is as good as the vinyls and the slipcase is all vinyl replica (which is awesome) but most important, doesn't have two albums stick on one cd and all that stuff.. so yeah, but is it more expensive.

As for myself, i'm waiting for them to re-release all their albums separately (but that's just me).

Have you seen the book about collecting Beach Boys CDs that Joe Thomas (no, not THAT Joe Thomas, but a guy from Ireland) compiled some years ago?? It's amazing how thick it is...even without the bootlegs, you'd practically need a warehouse to store 'em all!

Never heard of that! but would love to see a picture of someone who collects it all  ;D

The Japanese PastMasters Series are very good, but they are flat transfers and can sound dull. Though on CD, they are the closest in sound quality to the original LPs.

These really are awesome, I have Surfin' Safari through L.A Album now, going back to Japan later in the year and know I will be tempted to 'finish' the collection by buying ridiculous things like Stack O Tracks for £25 but as an 'un two-fered' Mini LP it's strangely compelling!

Having the albums in 'proper' sleeves with gatefolds and inserts etc really satisfies the collector in me and it's nice to have a collection of individual albums.

The early 90's reissues (and the later 70's twofers) were a great way to get the discography cheaply and the bonus cuts and liner notes were fantastic.

However I think the my Mini LP collection is a nice way for me to have a Beach Boys 'record collection' seeing as I was just a twinkle in my dad's eye when the original records were released!

Exactly !!!
could you post some pictures of those japanese cds ? some stuff such as Love You or Surf's Up must look awesome in that vinyl replica!

Yes I know this book and I had it. When I have had all the CDs indicated in the book, I sold it. This book is quite hard to find now. Note that even it was very nice (pictures....) it was far from complete. It should've been updated but the two guys Joe Thomas and Kye M. have had some problems together (as I know).

This book fetches a mere $ 270 in 2nd hand form at Amazon.com, nowadays. A snip, beer money.

This book fetches a mere $ 270 in 2nd hand form at Amazon.com, nowadays. A snip, beer money.
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I sold it for about $100 in 2009... I had also the two other Joe Thomas' books on "Brian Wilson on CD" and on "Beach Boys Japanese CD".

I sold it for about $100 in 2009... I had also the two other Joe Thomas' books on "Brian Wilson on CD" and on "Beach Boys Japanese CD".
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You poor soul...

Apologies for crummy pic quality (and crummy carpet!), phone used as can't find camera!

(http://img840.imageshack.us/img840/714/dsc01795xw.jpg) (http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/4776/dsc01796uv.jpg)

The Love You inner sleeve houses the CD (which is in it's own vinyl style clear sleeve) and the Surfs Up lyric sheet is included in original 'format'.

Love You even has a different card type for the cover like the original vinyl :)

(http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/8443/dsc01797z.jpg) (http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/376/dsc01798xaw.jpg)

Examples of gatefolds replicated, same with Party! 15 Big Ones etc.

(http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/4103/dsc01799d.jpg) (http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/4715/dsc01800sy.jpg)

A few random 'un two-fer'd' albums.

Laughing to myself posting this as my girlfriend tolerates me spending stupid money on albums I've already got but if she came home and caught me photographing them she would mock me so much!  :-D

Does anyone know the source of these Japan mini LP's? Are they the same as the PastMasters? Any help would be appreciated. How is the sound quality compared to other releases?

Pardon me, but : HOLY f*** THESE ARE REALLY AWESOME !

Just by the pictures you can tell how well made it is, wow, wow wow! thank you soo much for the pictures, i might even think about buying them now! it's not really the price that bothered me but the japanese sticker, but apparently, that's just on the paper before you open it ? it's not actually on the cover..

man, that really looks amazing! i'm amazed, wow.

What's that white thing the cds are in tho ? are you keeping them safe into a book for cds or something?

Very nice Mark....thanks for posting.  I hope these are the kind of re-releases we can expect this year. Un-twofer the albums and give them all digipak or mini-LP designs.

Now see i don't know what to do, should i jump  on these beautiful MAGNIFICENT japanese vinyl replica but that can be quite expensive, or should i just wait ? i mean is it official, are Capitol really gonna re-release all the albums SEPARATELY and in mini-lp design ??? if so, i might as well try and wait and see if it's as good and not as expensive.

I can almost guarantee that will not happen. No one has whispered that as a possibility.

All we've heard is a new boxed set, a new hits compilation, and possibly an archival release. No catalog revamp. And given how badly most of those albums sold on their first release, we're lucky to have the twofers at all.

The Beach Boys do not sell catalog albums -- with the exception of Pet Sounds and Smile. The only thing else that moves are hits comps.

Oh man, i'm so glad we're getting this! i mean we REALLY don't have enough of these, do we? forget the albums man! COMPILATION SUPER BEST OF MEGA DEFNITIVE GREATEST HITS! yeeaaaah!

 ::) ::) ::)

Eh. No one's makin' you buy them. It's almost expected anymore that a new one will be out every couple of years, so I'm not surprised.

Poor band, they deserve so much better... but no, let's stick with the greatest hits and best of.


Also Mark, for how much did you get those ? did you buy them online ? where ?

I know, right?

I would love a full catalog, two discs for each album, stereo and mono for everything, reissue program myself. Clear the vaults.

They're not the Pastmasters series.  The Pastmasters covered the Capitol 60's albums.

These are EMI Music Japan Mini LP (CD's) with paper sleeves with the OBI strip. They're VERY well done and cover almost every regular released Beach Boys album (Capitol, Warners, Caribou) plus original artwork.  They have a "TOCP" designation for each CD of the series.

Yeah i was gonna ask if they covered all the albums, thanks Mikie! do you have them too?!

That just sounds so nice, and even by cellphone pics you can tell the high quality of the product, it is incredible! i looked through some websites tho, the cheaper i could find was Sunflower i believe for like 30 dollars.


If only ... i'm really surprised this doesn't exists yet and i still don't understand why..

I mean come on, how MANY best of/greatest hits/compilations is there under the Beach Boys name to this day ?! 500,000 versions ? jesus christ.

best case scenario would be something a la Pink Floyd or Beatles, release the entire catalogue in a boxset with some extra stuff, many fans would be pleased and it definitely would sell much better than the two-albums-one-disc deal there is right now. why is this not happening already ? they are america's most popular band!

How is the sound quality? Is the sound quality better than the U.S. releases?

That's actually the back of the SMiLE sessions set hardcover book!  Needed a white background for the pics :)

I keep 'em in a standard CD box but will probably get a few mini LP specific boxes soon.


Sound quality for these is pretty much the same as the US releases, the 70's albums are the same versions of the twofers definately.

As Mikie says these are largely the same releases but (whether it's EMI or a separate company) in Japan they package the same releases/reissues in a really cool way.  Again to echo Mikie they really are very well done.


A little story as it was a holiday to Japan which allowed the collection to start!

I would see them from time to time when I was younger, various releases for various bands as expensive imports in some record shops, they were always in my mind as a 'dream purchase!'  Visited Japan last year and the multi floor (8 I think!) Tower Records in Shibuya was a music geeks heaven as they had mini LPs for loads of bands as standard.  Got to the Beach Boys section (normally Pet Sounds and some hits CD's) and was met with every frickin' studio album as it's own mini LP!!!  I just got Sunflower as it looked so cool and was concerned at blowing too much dough.  However before we left for home I went back at got Pet Sounds through Holland  ;D

I don't think I would have imported before due to price/uncertainty of quality etc but seeing them all in person (and having holiday money to spend) I couldn't resist!  Glad to put pics up to reassure/show others about the quality.

Since then I have got more here and there by ordering from cdjapan.co.jp.  It's a great site and you know it's straight from 'the source' and new/mint condition. They work out as about £20/$30 an album (seemed to be the standard price for most albums in Japan) but obviously shipping and possible import duty on your end jacks the price up a bit.

Search 'Beach Boys (or whatever your looking for) Cardboard Sleeve' and that should bring up all the mini LP releases.

If any are out of print there are some good ebay sellers in Japan.  Avoid Russia and China on ebay as the fakes are rife, you can tell by the far cheaper prices!


When I saw the 50th anniversary news I did think 'oops have I just spent prematurely on these when a 'perfect box set' (ala Pink Floyd Discovery/Beatles Mono etc) could be coming?  However I've consoled myself with the idea that if they do issue such a release the 'mini lps' within wouldn't be of the same production quality etc.

If I were you Ziggy I would wait it out and see what comes down the pike, then at least there's a choice between them.

To be honest, especially with the early albums (with no inner sleeves etc), you are essentially paying $30 for a cool cardboard sleeve for each album so it is pricey but then again they are soooo good!

I collect them, as said above to 'have a proper album collection' on CD.  They are great artifacts for me as a fan.  I would be tempted to 'triple dip' however if, as Wirestone suggests, they do something similar to 'legacy editions' and clear the vaults with existing and new bonus cuts relevant to each album, maybe as 2 CD sets per release where possible, maybe with live tracks/sets from the same year etc.   

Thank you soo much Mark for that great post, you don't know how helpful and kind of you that was.

I guess you're right, i'll jsut wait and see.. but then again, maybe Capitol won't release anything and just go on with compilations again as we said earlier.

This is indeed amazing quality and true vinyl replica! my Doors collection "vinyl replica" looks very cheap compared to this !!!
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/510MdBWS4WL.jpg


Oh okay yea, i didn't recognize! thanks for taking such time and care for the pictures.
I never heard of those mini lp specific boxes i think.. do you have all the BB albums like that? everyone of them ? Party!, All Summer Long, "So Tough", L.A. Album, Keeping The Summer Alive, ect...?


Again thank you Mark, i've been lookin' for ever for some pictures of these and more infos about it.

No problem :)

I was tempted by that Doors set as it is such a great price, it's a nifty collection but, as you say, you know you're getting a thin sleeve rather than a vinyl replica.

Check how L.A Woman was done in Japan, proper shape cover, yellow inner sleeve, clear window w/band's faces etc;

http://www.minilps.net/doors/l-woman-wpcr-12721/front-with-yellow-inner-22745

However the set you have is probably half the price of that one CD for all the albums in a nice box.  I was tempted by Randy Newman's first 5 albums in a similar set. 


Currently I have all the studio albums from Surfin' Safari through L.A.  If I do a last 'hardcore' sweep it would be rounding up KTSA, 85, In Concert, Live In London, Stack O Tracks and Concert. 

Tempted by the Mini LP TLOS and VDP's Song Cycle also....  :-D

Song Cycle sounds better on cd then vinyl, IMO

Bah! Posting that link is dangerous, Mark--now I'm considering picking up a few Japanese versions of these albums!

WOW, jeez these japaneses aren't foolin' around ! that LA Woman vinyl replica is incredible!
so it's not just special issues over there, they do that for EVERY artists/bands ? all the albums over there are vinyl replica like ??? iinsane
but yeah, i already bought that collection, not real vinyl replica, but good enough, i'm that kind of guy who likes those offers, those non-expensive boxset and all where you can have all the albums from a band/artist or the majors one at least, since i still have soo many albums from many bands/artists to get yet !

But as for The Beach Boys, i want it to be like it is for anyone else : each album on cd, if there's not a boxset, then i won't be buying those two-albums-one-disc stuff, i just can't.. so i'll wait and see.

Wow they even do all the live stuff on vinyl replica ? man the In Concert one must be awesome with the Dennis picture :)


Also, is there bonus stuff on the cds ?!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BEACH-BOYS-concert-1973-JAPAN-mini-lp-CD-SEALED-/140759962941?_trksid=p4340.m185&_trkparms=algo%3DSIC.NPJS%26its%3DI%252BC%26itu%3DUA%26otn%3D5%26pmod%3D110555187435%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D8695778900308634327#ht_2323wt_1185

Damn, I think I bought a few Harry Nilsson Japanese mini-LP's off Ebay last year and they were cheap...I'm realizing now they may be fakes from China  :-\


Someone snap me out of it...I have "20/20" and "Love You" in my shopping card on CDjapan....$75 for two albums I already own...I'm fighting to not click "Submit Order."  What am I doing?   ::)

Snap son, just 11 dollars! sweeeet

Careful Ziggy...Mark warned us a few posts back that the CDs sold from China and Russia are fakes.  That's why they're so cheap.

Haha oh man, i don't know how i would feel in that situation ... i can't decide myself, that's a lot of money for just 2 cds, but damn it is quality!
i might get Sunflower or 20/20 (tho Love You is my fav of all of them, but these two look amazing from the pictures Mark showed)

Oh right, i just quickly clicked, didn't look more into the infos, thanks, forgot about that.

It's tough!  I'm trying to justify the purchase because I regularly buy titles from the Elvis collectors label, Follow That Dream, and they sell their CDs for $40 a pop.  So I'm sort of pretending like I've done this before.  Knowing my luck I'll buy them and then three months later Capitol announces their own reissues--even though it's been agreed that we shouldn't expect anything of the sort.  That's just my luck.

Even if Capitol announces their own reissue, it wouldn't be as good you know, or not the same, i highly doubt they would do real mini-lp stuff

But if you guys are into that, i bought for like, just 20 dollars? the Simon & Garfunkel boxset, all their albums plus the concert in central park on dvd (but also made in vinyl replica!) it's quite amazing (and much better than The Doors collection i believe) : http://www.play.com/Music/CD/4-/3479144/The-Collection/Product.html

Yeah I bought that S&G set too...pretty nuts and bolts kind of release..just the cardboard sleeve. It's okay but you can easily see how much room there is for improvement when you see these Japanese mini-LPs!

I bought the "Sunflower" mini-LP used at a record store in LA.  $20..if only they had the others for the same price...

Man it's hard ain't it!!!

I must have stood in the aisle at Tower Records for aaaaaages, thinking which ones to get, sweating at the money I was about to spend  :-D

That Simon & Garfunkel set is a good one, got it for a friend's xmas present.  It's nice having all the albums (or main ones) in a handy set.  I tell myself that I only lay out the big spending for The Beach Boys but if the XTC ones were still in print.....  ;D

Justin is spot on with that ebay seller, the user name 'cdfrjapan' is a nice bait but the price and sellers location (China) indicate a fake.  Not necessarily a bad thing as it'll be good enough maybe but not worth the disappointment  of a poor quality product.

I have ordered from 'eiselvis' (http://stores.ebay.co.uk/eiselvis) on ebay before including Summer Days as that was out of stock at cdjapan.  A good seller in Japan with prompt delivery etc.  Prices aren't that much different from cdjapan though but good for older ones etc

I'm going to Japan in December (so hopefully after any box sets/reissues are announced) so if you wanna PM me closer to the time I could pick up the odd one or two for people and then mail them from the UK.  That way the postage should be cheaper etc.

That's a good price and great catch on Sunflower Justin!  

Jeez, Who's Next for 40!!! maaan.

Yeah the S&G little box isn't exactly vinyl replica but you know what i mean, of course nothing will be better than those Japanese mini-lps i believe, that's why, it's better to wait and see what happens with Capitol, but still i don't believe it will be as amazing! if you love the BB and you really love these albums, get them Justin imo.

I need more time thinking, i need more time mostly because i bought soo many things lately and still few things i really need to buy (RAM deluxe edition!) but when the time will come, i'll seriosuly start thinking about getting them!

Thanks Mark for the offer! i already asked but you must have not seen my question : is there actually some bonus on some of these cds (if not all of them) or it's just the original tracklist ? i can't really see on the pictures, it's written so little haha
edit : i can only see for Surf's Up, obviously no bonus, but like, maybe 20/20 has Breakaway ?

haha sounds like something I'd do!  Like you, when I came across "Sunflower" I couldn't just leave it on the rack...I just had to grab it.  Can't imagine if I saw all the albums sitting there...I would've froze.  :lol

Haha! it reminds me of when i last went to NYC : i visited St Jones, where Bob Dylan did the picture with his girlfriend back then Suze Rotolo for the cover of his famous album Freewheelin' right
i took pictures and all, and at the end of the block there's actually an record store (these are so rare now) and it's owned by an old guy you know, and what made his record store so different from the others is that all the vinyls in there were original edition/pressed/version, so it was very expensive right, like it could go up to 90 dollars! but they were the "real vesions"! so i was like, man this is heaven, but i gotta be careful.. but i had to at least pick one ! so i picked the Freewheelin' vinyl, it was expensive, but ain't that cool? original edition, and bought on the street where the picture was taken ! where that's what i can remember, it was aybe not on that very street but just few feets away i believe, so i'm very proud of that.

I'm just sayin', it's a lot of money, but it's worth it if you really love it.

Thanks Ziggy...I'm still on the fence...maybe I'll decide in a few hours.  Let's see if I feel the same way later today! I just picked up the 2 CD version of RAM....are you getting the bigger set?  Looks good!

That's a great story, Zig.  Those are one of those instances where you just have to walk away with something. Those moments are great especially when you're traveling, it kinda makes it a bit more special like it was fate or something that you came across that store and those records.

Ahah yeah good idea, always wait a day or two and see how you feel about it, if you really want it !
most of the time i buy the stuff i feel like buyin' in the followin' second, fearin' the offer could disappear for ever (haha) but would be better to wait and see to make sure you don't regret it!

Nah yeah just getting the simple deluxe, it's cheap and it's a great offer ! i don't think i'll get the big deluxe one, as much as i love Paul, his music, and mostly this album, i'm not a buy who really goes that much INTO albums collection, big deluxe boxset and all.. as i said, i'm just trying to find the best stuff there is out there for the cheapest price, so no time for bonus boxset, so many albums out there to buy yet ! that's why i love boxset of full catalogue, after buyin' the Doors and S&G one, i don't have to worry anymore, i have all their albums on cds! haha (yeah i also buy lot of vinyls, so that's that to..)

So true! i will for ever remember that moment.
(sorry i meant Suze* of course, i do some few mistakes, i'm quite tired atm..)

Yeah it's sort of a trick I do...put it in the shopping cart and then hold off a day or two before actually purchasing.  It works most of the time!

Gonna give Ram a listen this weekend....should be good!

So, Justin ?

I wonder if that french boy who did the thread ended up buying those japanese import also! haha

Yes, I have almost all of them, in both regular and sample (promo) release. Note that there are two releases for these items (1998 and 2008) with different OBI.

haha Ziggy, well my trick worked again...and for the best!

I waited the other day and postponed me buying the CDs....the feeling sort of passed and thought it'd be wise to hold off--it was justifiable considering I already own these CDs.  Good thing I did wait because I ended up spending a nice wad at the Merch table at tonight's show in Santa Barbara...so the money I would've spent on those CDs--I used here for a shirt and poster etc... 

So, disaster averted--but I'm sure I'll try and get them again when the next paycheck comes around  ;D

Random CD news, mini LPs of POB, Youngblood, Bruce's Going Public and Surfin round the World are being reissued in Japan next month.

Seems strange but the mini LPs do get reissued near to tour dates of bands etc.  I picked up some Yes albums (out of print for ages) as they were reissued for their Japan tour.  Interesting that the BB albums aren't being reissued, don't know if that's because they are readily available or due to Capitol's reissue plans for the catalogue (if any).

The weirdest thing about these reissues is Terry Melcher's Royal Flush seems part of the same reissue programme. There's even a 'Beach Boys Family' promo box apparently.

Has the 'Carl Wilson' album ever been offered on CD outside of Japan (I've only seen Youngblood), was there ever a twofer of his albums on CD?  Strange that the Melcher album is there and not both Carl albums.

Even though the 2 cd release of POB is a gorgeous package I got suckered in by the mini LP and went for the pre order on that one.

I should have used Justin's '3 days in the basket' method!  Bah!

Dude, whatever POB format it is, if i see it in a store and i don't own that version i just couldn't resist, POB is one of my all time fav album, classic.


Maaan! wow, would love to see a picture of that collection, i don't think i've seen quite often pictures of Beach Boys collection.


Haha right on bro, good for you! how's that poster ? just the beach boys 50th anniversary logo and all?

Another cool thing about the mini lp's was that promo boxes were available. The boxes featured Beach Boys lp's up through the 1980's titles.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BEACH-BOYS-ALL-SUMMER-LONG-RARE-OUT-OF-PRINT-JAPANESE-6-MINI-LP-CD-BOX-SET-/350572369237?pt=Music_CDs&hash=item519fbdd555

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Japan-3-Mini-lp-CD-THE-BEACH-BOYS-Keepin-Summer-Alive-Promo-Box-Set-LE-/190687829659?pt=Music_CDs&hash=item2c65e15e9b

I've ordered from these guys before and they are fantastic. Never had a problem from Japan to the U.S. Purchased Beach Boys mini lps and other titles. You can check their store to see the different titles and bands available. The Beach Boy titles have gone up quite a bit since I last purchased any.

http://myworld.ebay.com/eiselvis&ssPageName=STRK:MEFSX:SELLERID&_trksid=p3984.m1543.l2533

I'll recommend that seller again (another link a page back) very prompt delivery and goods as described.  As you say, does seem like the prices have gone up a little bit though.

I love those boxes but to buy them with no CDs is usually around £80!

Wish they did a mini LP style release for TWGMTR like they did for TLOS.

omg holy cow, is this heaven?
can't find any box for the 70's ones tho (or late 60's) :(

aren't they officialy available anymore? isn't there an website other than stuff like ebay where you can buy those?

As I understand it they are only 'promo' boxes normally available when you purchase a 'set' of releases.  After the initial release of a series they are no longer available AFAIK.

As I know, the boxes were given for free to people who purchase all the set by Disc Union, a Japanese retailer. They are often called "promo boxes" but in fact they are not. When I say that there is promo of these CDs, I mean classical japanese promo CDs with a sticker on the back cover and "sample not for sale" printed on the center of the disc. I would like to provide you a picture of the 1998 and 2008 front covers (with the different OBI strips) but I get an error message even if the size of the files is really small... Sorry! If you want all the set, promo and not promo, 1998 and 2008, you have to purchase 70 items! There are also 7 different boxes.

Go for it guys :
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Beach-Boys-Love-You-Japan-Mini-LP-CD-Sealed-/260620880281

I've got a few of the mini-LPs and generally feel bad about losing the obi.

Ziggy...the ones from China are the fakes, 'member? :police:

Oh.. OH GOSH DARN IT ! i just saw the offer, the price and jumped on it :(

damn it, China.

Yeah I jump whenever I see these  pop up too but then when I see where they're from I'm bummed!  Then again, I've never bought one of these so I'm not sure how "bad' they are as fakes.  So maybe they're not so bad?  For just twelve bucks or whatever...it's not a huge loss!