Endless Summer

The Beach Boys

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: June 24, 1974
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Capitol
• ASIN: B000002UB9
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,749 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

Brian Wilson's brilliance manifested itself in the euphoric, cheerfully square, sun-and-fun stuff heard here early on, before it got darker and more complicated. Endless Summer runs from the beginning of the Boys' pinstriped career to 1965, right before the melancholy of Pet Sounds, but also includes the inescapable "Good Vibrations." You can hear a few hints of adolescent sadness and fear--"Help Me, Rhonda" is essentially a kids' sing-along about a wrenching emotional rebound, and the shadow of death is hiding somewhere in "Don't Worry, Baby"--but Wilson is mostly concerned with the cars, waves, and girls that made up the Boys' public image, and his ingenious arrangements (coupled with the group's inimitable harmonies) make everything go down as smoothly as lemonade. --Douglas Wolk

Amazon.com

Brian Wilson's brilliance manifested itself in the euphoric, cheerfully square, sun-and-fun stuff heard here early on, before it got darker and more complicated. Endless Summer runs from the beginning of the Boys' pinstriped career to 1965, right before the melancholy of Pet Sounds, but also includes the inescapable "Good Vibrations." You can hear a few hints of adolescent sadness and fear--"Help Me, Rhonda" is essentially a kids' sing-along about a wrenching emotional rebound, and the shadow of death is hiding somewhere in "Don't Worry, Baby"--but Wilson is mostly concerned with the cars, waves, and girls that made up the Boys' public image, and his ingenious arrangements (coupled with the group's inimitable harmonies) make everything go down as smoothly as lemonade. --Douglas Wolk

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Soundtrack Of A Sub-Culture, May 27, 2001

By	David Wayne (Santee, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Endless Summer (Audio CD)

This is the perfect title for a Beach Boys retrospective. These songs are constants of the oldies-radio format, especially during the summer. All of those sixties-sounding songs (classic, to the point of being nearly cliche) are here: "Surfin' Safari" "Catch A Wave" "Surfer Girl" "Surfin' U.S.A." "Shut Down" "Little Deuce Coupe" "California Girls" "I Get Around" and so on. If it was about Waves, Women, or Wheels and it had perfect harmony, it's probably on this album. And there are just enough songs dealing with semi-adult themes ("In My Room" "Don't Worry Baby" "Girl Don't Tell Me" "When I Grow Up To Be A Man"), that the whole package doesn't get stale. A couple of omissions are "Surfin'" (recorded before the Beach Boys signed with Capitol) and "Surf City," which Brian Wilson gave to Jan and Dean. "Barbara Ann" seems like is should have been here, and the version of "Help Me, Rhonda" that's included here is not the hit single we heard on the airwaves. But considering "Good Vibrations" was added to the CD release, all is forgiven. True-to-the-core fans of The Beach Boys and Surf music will want to go deeper ("Spirit Of America" is another great compilation for this purpose). But if you want just the cream of their output, all you really need to buy are "Pet Sounds" and this album. No matter what you're doing or where you might be, with "Endless Summer," you have the sun, the sand, and the surf (and maybe even a babe)! Who could ask for more?

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An all-time classic, not just a greatest hits package, June 2, 2002

By	Timothy R. Sullivan - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Yes, this is all it's cracked up to be. The Beach Boys were producing tremendous music in the 1970's, much different stuff than what is on Endless Summer. The problem was it wasn't selling!

Along came perhaps the best greatest hits album of all-time in this masterpiece and the group was back in the mainstream. Many people not old enough in the 1960's to become fans were introduced to the band through "Endless Summer". I was one of them.

This album and it had a tremendous impact on me. Prior to purchasing "Endless Summer", I had heard bits and pieces of the Beach Boys' tunes, mostly their hits. The other songs on "Endless Summer" I hadn't heard, like "Wendy", "Don't Worry Baby", and "Girls on the Beach" simply blew me away.

Don't pass this over as simple surf music. The Wilsons, Mike Love, Al Jardine, and Bruce Johnston, wrote some sophisticated harmonies. The singing on this album is tremendous, and if you have any ounce of nostalgia and romance in your life, this album will grab you.

It's not just a greatest hits package, it's a music compilation for the ages. It hooked me on the group forever.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's like the Beach Boys arranged this collection!, May 2, 1999

By	Jim Traweek [e-mail] (Texas) - See all my reviews

I was there and I can tell you: THIS is a GREAT Beach Boys CD! The mid-sixties belonged to the unusual magic of the Twist, Elvis Presley and Surf Music! Jan and Dean, The Ventures, and the greatest of them all, The Beach Boys. There were good folk music songs back then which also had great harmonies but none better than the Beach Boys! This excellent compilation has just about all of the great sounds of those wonderful years. Thanks, studio guys, for the excellent recording transfer to CD. These songs are correct for a sample of the Beach Boys' dynasty years. I Get Around! Surfin U.S.A! In My Room! Fun Fun Fun! Surfer Girl! Don't Worry Baby! California Girls! Good Vibrations! All originals, all high fidelity! (I would have liked to ride my Honda tonight) If it's been a while, buy this priceless CD and catch a wave!