Customer Reviews

Today! [Vinyl]

5 star:		(5)
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I looked for TODAY! in almost every record store I went into, and wound up buying a used cassette copy. There is no reason why TODAY should be out of print in Capitol's domestic catalog. The company spends way to much time re-hashing the early surf material on waste-basket compliations, than allowing listeners the enjoyment of hearing the innovative creations Brian Wilson made. TODAY! is almost as good as PET SOUNDS. Its a consistent and enjoyable album, and its essential for any Beach Boys fan or a collector of great music. Not a single track on this album is anything less than excellent. Gems like "Please Let Me Wonder", "When I Grow Up", "Kiss Me Baby", "Help Me Rhonda", and "Do You Wanna Dance" are some of the album's best and most notable tracks. "Kiss Me Baby" comes complete with the classic harmonies, and is one of my favorite Beach Boys songs. The song was on the original BEST OF album, but Capitol has ignored it on the two GREATEST HITS: 20 (MORE) GOOD VIBRATIONS albums. "Please Let Me Wonder" is every bit as advanced as the songs from PET SOUNDS. "When I Grow Up" is a classic, with the perfection only Brian Wilson could manage. The version of "Do You Wanna Dance" is better than the original. "Dance Dance Dance" is a great uptempo tune. "Good To My Baby", "I'm So Young", "Don't Hurt My Little Sister", and "She Knows Me Too Well" all display Brian Wilson's musical genius, with the exceptional harmonies and outstanding melodies. TODAY also is the beginning of The Beach Boys evolution out of surfing and teen music to the best of pop and rock music. TODAY! is a milestone in the pop-rock world, a classic with ten magnificent songs, all majestically performed. The CD definately must be re-issued in domestic print for music buyers! THIS ALBUM SHOULD BE FOUND IN THE DOMESTIC CATALOG, AND NOT BE AN IMPORT. INSTEAD OF RE-ISSUING "Surfin' USA" ANOTHER 20 MILLION TIMES, BRING ALBUMS LIKE TODAY!, SMILEY SMILE, SUMMER DAYS-SUMMER NIGHTS, ETC. BACK IN PRINT!

This is one of several recent Beach Boys vinyl reissues from Capitol. Some of the albums (Sunflower, Surf's Up) have the "newly remastered for vinyl" sticker, while others (Today!, Summer Days, Pet Sounds) boast a sticker that simply says "faithfully restored." The sound on this one is clean and clear, all the original artwork has been preserved (including a 1960's Capitol catalog inner sleeve), and the 180 gram vinyl has a nice, substantial feel.

I've always loved the classy front cover design on this album. This is the original mono release, catalog number T 2269. The bottom of the back cover has the classic disclaimer, "This monophonic microgroove recording is playable on monophonic and stereo phonographs. It cannot become obsolete. It will continue to be a source of outstanding sound reproduction, providing the finest monophonic performance from any phonograph."

These Capitol reissues are a must-have - perfect for vinyl enthusiasts, collectors, and anyone who wants the album artwork in something larger than the tiny CD liner note size. The sound is beautiful - every bit as good as on the Beach Boys double-album CDs, if not better. Plus the packaging and original artwork. I own them all. There's nothing like opening a brand new LP and enjoying the sound of virgin vinyl. You can't go wrong with the albums in this series.

This album showcases Brian Wilson's rapidly expanding talents in the heady days just before the release of the landmark LP, Pet Sounds. The arrangements are lush and brilliant and many of the themes that were to find full expression in Pet Sounds were already forming here.

This is an extremely mature album from one of the greatest bands in the history of rock music. It's astonishing that it's out of print.

In my opinion the best Beach Boys record. If you are a fan at all, you should own this, especially on LP (I own three different pressings myself).

A precursor to the landmark Pet Sounds album, this CD is criminally out of print. Used to be packaged in a twofer series with bonus tracks, expanded liner notes, etc, then reduced to a basic CD with no bonuses whatsoever, then deleted entirely. This music shows Brian Wilson's growing talent and mastery in the studio as his songs became less focused on the Southern California lifestyle and more introspective. This and many the rest of the Beach Boys' catalog deserve to be restored.