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Author Topic: Every Beach Boys album ranked!  (Read 3617 times)
godette502
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« on: April 11, 2020, 03:20:01 PM »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XflUxvVGrXM



With the extra time as of late, I decided to make a video ranking every Beach Boys album from beginning to end. Obviously there's no correct order to these and it's all subjective but I'd be curious to hear everyones feedback and see where we agree/disagree. If I got any information wrong in the video please let me know. I've done my fair amount of research but I wouldn't be surprised if something slid by me. Thanks and hope you enjoy!
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Summer_Days
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« Reply #1 on: April 11, 2020, 07:47:24 PM »

Interesting as always to see differing opinions - sometimes wildly different. I wouldn’t have Surfer Girl, Shut Down Volume 2 or the Christmas Album at the top like that. No matter the greatness of the highlights on SG and SDV2, the filler tracks really bring them down for me, especially the latter. And I’ve never really loved the Christmas Album. Instead I would absolutely have Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!), Wild Honey, Sunflower, Holland and Love You at the top alongside Pet Sounds, Today, Friends, and I guess Smile, if I counted it. My favorites.
I’d also put Summer In Paradise down in the dregs with Still Cruisin’. The absolute nadir. I also commented on your video (I’m wildsmiley) about Stars & Stripes. I don’t think of it as a Beach Boys album.

Anyway, nice job.

About ‘Mount Vernon & Fairway (A Fairy Tale)’ on Holland - this was mainly Brian’s baby, where he was at at the time, it’s meant to be it’s own piece separate from the album, which is how it was originally released, as an EP addition to the original vinyl release in 1973. Don’t think of it along with the Holland album, it’s its own thing.

And I’m 100% with that Love You’s cover would make a great pillow.
« Last Edit: April 11, 2020, 07:49:19 PM by Summer_Days » Logged

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godette502
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« Reply #2 on: April 11, 2020, 08:47:06 PM »

Good to know about Holland, someone else on reddit said the same thing to me. I think if they had originally left it out of the Holland album it would be good enough to bump it up to an A for me, although I still prefer Carl and the Passions over it. I do agree with some of the filler songs on the earlier albums but the songs that I like on there are so good that it kind of makes it up for me. And regardless I definitely prefer surfer girl and shut down volume 2 against any of the other earlier albums up until the Christmas album. I've always loved the Christmas album but I've noticed that the more I listen to it the more I like it. I listened to it a ton last Christmas and musically there's a lot of crazy stuff going on with the orchestrations that I really love and appreciate. And I also love the originals on the first side. Anyways, thanks for watching the video and thanks for the great feedback!
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godette502
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« Reply #3 on: April 11, 2020, 08:52:12 PM »

And one more thing, Sunflower almost went up to the top, I love almost every song on the album but the 3 songs I could never get into for whatever reason are Got to Know the Woman, It's About Time and Tears in the Morning. Other then those 3 I love every song but those 3 are probably the reason it got moved down to an A. Same with Summer Days and Summer Nights, I love pretty much every song except for Then I Kissed Her, Salt Lake City and I'm Bugged At My Old Man. Obviously I'm being very nit picky but when I had to decide where to place these albums it made me think about each album and each song a lot deeper to see how I really felt. I realized that I love every single song on Friends which I hadn't realized before. Obviously there's no right or wrong answer and it's all subjective but I love seeing what everyone else thinks and seeing where we agree and differ
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« Reply #4 on: May 10, 2020, 09:41:26 AM »

Inspired by this video and by my fiancee asking if I agree throughout the whole thing (Haha).

I finally put together a ranking of my own:

33. Stars and Stripes, Vol. 1
32. Surfin' Safari
31. Beach Boys' Concert
30. Live In London
29. 15 Big Ones
28. L.A. (Light Album)
27. Keepin' The Summer Alive
26. M.I.U. Album
25. The Beach Boys In Concert
24. Holland
23. Summer In Paradise
22. Surfin' U.S.A
21. The Beach Boys' Christmas Album
20. Little Deuce Coupe
19. Beach Boys' Party!
18. Still Cruisin'
17. Smiley Smile
16. Surf's Up
15. Carl and The Passions - So Tough
14. Shut Down, Vol. 2
13. Friends
12. 20/20
11. Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)
10. Surfer Girl
9. That's Why God Made The Radio
8. All Summer Long
7. The Beach Boys (1985)
6. Wild Honey
5. Sunflower
4. The Beach Boys Love You
3. The Beach Boys Today!
2. The Smile Sessions (Stand Alone Version)
1. Pet Sounds
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The Nearest Faraway Place
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« Reply #5 on: May 10, 2020, 01:15:54 PM »

Inspired by this video and by my fiancee asking if I agree throughout the whole thing (Haha).

I finally put together a ranking of my own:

33. Stars and Stripes, Vol. 1
32. Surfin' Safari
31. Beach Boys' Concert
30. Live In London
29. 15 Big Ones
28. L.A. (Light Album)
27. Keepin' The Summer Alive
26. M.I.U. Album
25. The Beach Boys In Concert
24. Holland
23. Summer In Paradise
22. Surfin' U.S.A
21. The Beach Boys' Christmas Album
20. Little Deuce Coupe
19. Beach Boys' Party!
18. Still Cruisin'
17. Smiley Smile
16. Surf's Up
15. Carl and The Passions - So Tough
14. Shut Down, Vol. 2
13. Friends
12. 20/20
11. Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)
10. Surfer Girl
9. That's Why God Made The Radio
8. All Summer Long
7. The Beach Boys (1985)
6. Wild Honey
5. Sunflower
4. The Beach Boys Love You
3. The Beach Boys Today!
2. The Smile Sessions (Stand Alone Version)
1. Pet Sounds
Wow, SIP above 15BO, MIU Holland, and SS? Interesting
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The Nearest Faraway Place
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« Reply #6 on: May 10, 2020, 01:28:03 PM »

But I’m also a part of the camp that thinks that SIP is kind of overrated for how bad it is. I’ve seen threads on this very bored that go on and on and on about how it’s the bane of their existence, when really it’s just average at best.
I mean, obviously it has some terrible moments, like Summer of Love and The Forever remake.
But the majority of it is just bland, and really just a product of its time. It kind of reminds me of the Kenny & The Cadets single, it’s artificial and clearly trend hopping badly.
But this one I can’t really be too mad at, mainly because it’s barely a Beach Boys album. It’s a Mike Love album, with some guest vocals from other BB members. He’s even admitted in an interview that he chose all the songs, he wrote the majority of the lyrics, and he was basically completely in charge, with very little input from any other members.
So really, it’s just some average early 90s radio filler, and that’s all it was ever meant to be. obviously it’s not good at all, but it’s really not that bad either.
Also, I kind of have to respect it, because it is one of the first albums to be completely recorded onto a hard drive using a DAW. So basically, it’s because of this album that we have several new genres and types of music nowadays like Vaporwave. Also, this is another early example of an artist not releasing a huge album on a major label. Now obviously, this album sold terribly, but even in 1992, a huge band like the BBs not putting out an album through a major label, and not having a giant marketing push was pretty big at the time.
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« Reply #7 on: May 10, 2020, 01:32:14 PM »

Keep in mind, that when SIP came out, terribly produced radio filler like this was all over the charts.
https://youtu.be/hcEaUJoo0NE
https://youtu.be/Xc1uQI2XmZs
Both of these songs hit number one in the early 90s, and to me they sound just as terrible as SIP. In someways they sound worse, because at least SIP had the BBs voices, no matter how compressed they were
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« Reply #8 on: May 10, 2020, 07:53:44 PM »

Speaking of Timmy T. I once met him twenty years ago at a Best Buy  (the day I bought the Hawthorne 2 cd set).  Nice enough guy. Didn’t know he was actually mainly a rapper as opposed to singer, and more of a hobby than anything else.

Apparently he has a new “gig”

www.yourcentralvalley.com/news/timmy-t-torres-catching-criminals-in-the-act-on-segway-dash-cam/amp/
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positivemusic
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« Reply #9 on: May 10, 2020, 09:13:53 PM »

Inspired by this video and by my fiancee asking if I agree throughout the whole thing (Haha).

I finally put together a ranking of my own:

33. Stars and Stripes, Vol. 1
32. Surfin' Safari
31. Beach Boys' Concert
30. Live In London
29. 15 Big Ones
28. L.A. (Light Album)
27. Keepin' The Summer Alive
26. M.I.U. Album
25. The Beach Boys In Concert
24. Holland
23. Summer In Paradise
22. Surfin' U.S.A
21. The Beach Boys' Christmas Album
20. Little Deuce Coupe
19. Beach Boys' Party!
18. Still Cruisin'
17. Smiley Smile
16. Surf's Up
15. Carl and The Passions - So Tough
14. Shut Down, Vol. 2
13. Friends
12. 20/20
11. Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)
10. Surfer Girl
9. That's Why God Made The Radio
8. All Summer Long
7. The Beach Boys (1985)
6. Wild Honey
5. Sunflower
4. The Beach Boys Love You
3. The Beach Boys Today!
2. The Smile Sessions (Stand Alone Version)
1. Pet Sounds
Wow, SIP above 15BO, MIU Holland, and SS? Interesting

I know, I know. Haha. But, honestly, 15 Big Ones has never done a lot for me. I vastly like the single mix, and even more than that, the 2012 mix of "Rock and Roll Music." I do like the other originals, but the covers just drag completely for me, other than "In The Still Of The Night" and "Just Once In My Life."

M.I.U. Album has some interesting cuts, but I can really only say that I out and out enjoy "Match Point of Our Love" and "My Diane." I don't hate this album like some do, but it just doesn't do it for me.

Unlike most fans, Holland has never hit me as an artistic statement outside of "The Trader," and "Funky Pretty." Although, I LOVE "Marcella," and "Only With You" will be my first dance song in just over two months.

And, Surfin' Safari is a great start and Brian obviously progressed at an amazing, mind blowing pace, but this album sounds very dated. But, I will say that most of the early Beatles' album sound far more dated than any of the early Beach boys' albums.

The thing for me with Summer In Paradise is that it doesn't take itself seriously, even if it was Mike's intention. Obviously, I prefer the more emotional stuff, overall. But, this album is one that I can throw on and not think too much of it and just have fun with it. I LOVE "Lahaina Aloha," and the European version of "Summer In Paradise" but you could definitely do away with "Forever," "Surfin'," and "Slow Summer Dancin' (One Summer Night)."
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phirnis
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« Reply #10 on: May 11, 2020, 04:26:19 AM »

Impossible to rank for me. The records they put out between Surfin' USA and Friends are all brilliant imho. After that, Holland and Love You stick out, with their other late-60s/early-70s records up close. Light Album is remarkably good considering the circumstances of its recording and TWGMTR has some amazing songs on it and it was a pleasant farewell from the BB as a recording band. I even find myself playing stuff like Still Cruisin' from time to time. Even the 2nd or 3rd class stuff has its moments.
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positivemusic
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« Reply #11 on: May 11, 2020, 11:30:00 AM »

Impossible to rank for me. The records they put out between Surfin' USA and Friends are all brilliant imho. After that, Holland and Love You stick out, with their other late-60s/early-70s records up close. Light Album is remarkably good considering the circumstances of its recording and TWGMTR has some amazing songs on it and it was a pleasant farewell from the BB as a recording band. I even find myself playing stuff like Still Cruisin' from time to time. Even the 2nd or 3rd class stuff has its moments.

I do like a lot of the stuff from Still Cruisin'. Especially, "Somewhere Near Japan" and "Make It Big." I grew up with Troop Beverly Hills. Haha.
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« Reply #12 on: May 11, 2020, 02:20:50 PM »

Somewhere Near Japan is a great song  IMHO
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« Reply #13 on: May 12, 2020, 12:39:53 AM »

Somewhere Near Japan is a great song  IMHO

Easily the best thing they did at the time. I have a soft spot for Terry Melcher's 80s production style with the BB. It's somewhat cheesy but in an enjoyable way.
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« Reply #14 on: May 12, 2020, 02:49:37 AM »


I do like a lot of the stuff from Still Cruisin'. Especially, "Somewhere Near Japan" and "Make It Big." I grew up with Troop Beverly Hills. Haha.

Sort of of topic but do you like Jenny Lewis? Her new album is really good
For those that don’t know she was child star of troop Beverly Hills.
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« Reply #15 on: May 12, 2020, 09:05:58 AM »

Somewhere Near Japan is a great song  IMHO

Easily the best thing they did at the time. I have a soft spot for Terry Melcher's 80s production style with the BB. It's somewhat cheesy but in an enjoyable way.

It definitely works with some things. R&RTTR and California Dreamin’ sound fine, and so does some of the Still Cruisin’ stuff. Haven’t listened to most of SIP yet, and I definitely don’t like the production on Problem Child.

On the Still Cruisin’ topic, I think In My Car is underrated, probably because Brian and Landy (or should I say Landy) overproduced it. The chord changes in that are crazy and classic Brian.

I’ll try to rank these once I listen to the few albums I haven’t gotten around to yet. Unless I should do a WIP list? Not sure yet.
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« Reply #16 on: May 12, 2020, 09:18:23 AM »


I do like a lot of the stuff from Still Cruisin'. Especially, "Somewhere Near Japan" and "Make It Big." I grew up with Troop Beverly Hills. Haha.

Sort of of topic but do you like Jenny Lewis? Her new album is really good
For those that don’t know she was child star of troop Beverly Hills.


Holy sh*t I did not know that...and I’m a fan of her music!
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« Reply #17 on: May 12, 2020, 12:32:52 PM »

Somewhere Near Japan is a great song  IMHO

Easily the best thing they did at the time. I have a soft spot for Terry Melcher's 80s production style with the BB. It's somewhat cheesy but in an enjoyable way.

It definitely works with some things. R&RTTR and California Dreamin’ sound fine, and so does some of the Still Cruisin’ stuff. Haven’t listened to most of SIP yet, and I definitely don’t like the production on Problem Child.

On the Still Cruisin’ topic, I think In My Car is underrated, probably because Brian and Landy (or should I say Landy) overproduced it. The chord changes in that are crazy and classic Brian.

I’ll try to rank these once I listen to the few albums I haven’t gotten around to yet. Unless I should do a WIP list? Not sure yet.
i was really disappointed in the album version of In My Car, because I had already heard it on the Endless Summer tv show; that version would have fit in with the stuff on Brian's solo album. It wasn't a bad idea to have Carl and Al share the lead with Brian on the album version, except BB's records of that era had so few Brian leads; but the main problem is those LOUD DRUMS! The vocals are almost hidden under those drums. I realize all 80's records wanted loud drums, even Kokomo, but this one should be exhibit A in how NOT to mix the drums.
I would have a really hard time to rank the complete BB's catalog; I give a generous rating to Surfin' Safari because, hey, it was their first time recording an album, they were just getting started, so i'm not expecting those kids to create a masterpiece. Surfin' USA is already a big leap forward - love those instrumentals. Carl and David were amazingly good for guys that were just, what, 15 years old at the time?
Those early BB's albums are fully of catchy songs that just grab you; where an album like Holland kind of requires that you lean forward a little.
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« Reply #18 on: May 12, 2020, 08:55:30 PM »

Surfin' USA is kind of underrated among some of the hardcore fans who seem to focus much more on the later stuff. Look at how young they were and it has the title track, Lonely Sea (!), Farmer's Daughter, and Shut Down, all top notch material - and the instrumentals are fun. Also, there's that amazing instrumental interlude in Noble Surfer. I play this one a lot!
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« Reply #19 on: May 13, 2020, 02:15:57 PM »

Surfin' USA is kind of underrated among some of the hardcore fans who seem to focus much more on the later stuff. Look at how young they were and it has the title track, Lonely Sea (!), Farmer's Daughter, and Shut Down, all top notch material - and the instrumentals are fun. Also, there's that amazing instrumental interlude in Noble Surfer. I play this one a lot!
I appreciate it more now than I did when I first got it in the early 80's. Back then, I thought there were too many instrumentals on the album. Now I love hearing Carl and David flex their guitar playing chops!
Lonely Sea is Brian's first great ballad.
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