[Repo]

[CharlieBarley]

Lovin this thread, Repo!

It's got two of my favourite artists in it: Beach Boys and Donovan.

And some interesting comments.

When I get some time I am listening to early Beach Boys albums. I heard half of Surfin Safari last night but I fell asleep. Great album.

Man! I miss Brian Wilson.

Also I wanna rewatch Double Indemnity. Great movie.
Barbara Stanwycks a scary woman in that. I wouldn't mess with her. Or her bangs!

[Repo]

[Johnnyo]

[Repo]

[CA Dreamin]

Little Deuce Coupe

I'll echo the criticisms upthread. This album simply whizzed by. 4 tracks are recycled from previous albums, and nothing stands out among the 8 originals. I suppose it's somewhat expected given it was their third album of the year 1963. It feels more like a B-side album, with three tried-and-true singles to boost sales. 409 was one of those singles, which was released over a year earlier, and featured on Surfin' Safari which was three albums earlier. It seemed odd at first, but when I thought about the timeline, it made more sense. 1962-63 saw the band rise to fame very quickly, and Little Deuce Coupe was the album designed to capitalize. 409, the title track, and Shut Down had been high-charting singles but they were on each of their first three albums. I feel like putting them all on one LP was a marketing decision, and it paid off. Apparently Little Deuce Coupe was their best-selling album. Good for the record label, I guess. On the other hand, it's a little flat and uneven as an album. The 8 original tracks feel less inspired and feel as though they were tossed in to fill vinyl space. Some of them are ok though. I still like Be True to Your School and Spirit of America, but they're far from the band's best.

[Johnnyo]

On the question of the expanded beach boys universe, the two albums which stand out for me are;


Pacific Ocean Blue by Dennis Wilson

Which is phenomenal, and


Bambu (The Caribou Sessions) by Dennis Wilson

Which, although an unfinished album, stands as a great album even in its unfinished state.

Dennis was rather overshadowed by Brian, most people would have been, but was a great artist in his own right

[CA Dreamin]

Shut Down, Volume 2

Was there an called Shut Down, Volume 1? Cause I've never heard of it before. There actually was, a surf rock compilation of various artists The Beach Boys contributed two songs to. I don't know how Volume 2 became an exclusively Beach Boys project, but it doesn't matter. It maintains the summer vibes in a more conventional fashion than their earlier albums. It starts off sounding like a hybrid of their song Surfin' USA and Johnny Be Goode by Chuck Berry. But no, it's just Fun, Fun, Fun, a fun, fun, fun easily recognizable Beach Boys tune. Track 2, Don't Worry Baby, easily the best song on this album and perhaps the best song they had recorded to date. It could arguably mark Brian Wilson's first serious venture into deeper cut songs he would be writing more of 1965-67. It doesn't sound like your typical Beach Boys song of this phase. It's slower tempo, more melancholic in mood, much more layered in vocals and instrumentals than anything else on this album. It's a wonderful tune. But eek, the album falls off after that. Track 4 was an unfunny joke, a 4th-wall breaking back-and-forth between bandmates, the title of the track referencing the famous 1964 heavyweight title fight. That's only interesting part in my opinion, no need to actually listen to it. The other tracks are pretty much all underwhelming except Warmth of the Sun.

Shut Down, Volume 2 might be the weakest album from the band up until this point. But Don't Worry was a sign of much greater things to come.
_________________
on such a winter's day

[CharlieBarley]

[quote="Repo"]

[Repo]