Today!/Summer Days [Original recording remastered, Best of]

 

 

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I remember buying the original vinyl album (Today) a week after it was released and after a first listening thinking it was the finest piece of recorded vocals ever laid down. Now, over 35 years later, I am still convinced Brian Wilson's Today album rivals Pet Sounds as his classic. This CD has it all. From the opening riffs of "Good To My Baby" to the party great "Dance,Dance,Dance" to the all-time sing along chorus of "Help Me Rhonda", pure American rock n' roll just jumps off the CD. In "Please Let Me Wonder" and "Don't Hurt My Little Sister" you hear a pleading teenage boy trying to sort out adolescent feelings about himself, his friends and his family. The background vocals, amazingly recorded on four track recording, hauntingly asks us the questions we all needed answers to, only to find the answers too late in life. "When I Grow Up" Brian tells us he is afarid of what adulthood holds in store for him (and us) and wonders "what will I be". The five Beach Boys are at their vocal bests in these songs but the reason Today stands above the rest of the Beach Boy albums is the back-to-back duo of "So Young" and "Kiss Me Baby". In "So Young", Brian doesn't try to match Frankie Lymons falsetto, instead, he reworks the vocals to give the song a sound so unique that it could never be matched again in a recording studio. He pulls out all the stops with a textured sound, three chord changes, a spellbounding pause, soft percussion layer and a haunting vocal fade out that leaves you believing the Beach Boys will always stay "So Young."
"Kiss Me, Baby" is the other vocal classic that just defines perfection. The soaring opening chorus leads to the plea "please don't let us argue anymore!" and what follows is the most sensuous explanation of how a guy feels when he loves a girl. He doesn't want conversation, just to "please baby,kiss me like you never kissed before." Here all the Beach Boys get to show off their perfectly honed vocal talents, included Dennis whispering at the end of the song "Kiss Me." The song is just perfect.
"All Summer Long" has great hits like "California Girls" and the rest but listen to the rare studio version of "Graduation Day" and the tearful "Let Him Run Wild (I Don't Care). Two terrific classics that are timeless and reverent. Also, don't forget another party great "Your So Good To Me". (Just play it about halfway through any party and see the reaction) What is most intresting here are the 45 version of "Help Me Rhonda" and a second version of "So Young" with an over powering percussion layer that was rejected for Today.
While I have enjoyed these songs for years, I have rediscovered their timeless vocals with the remastered CD. Paul McCartney gave "Pet Sounds" to his kids. I gave mine "Today/All Summer Long"

I grew up in a strict, no nonsense Italian household in rural Connecticut. You just can't get any farther from the warm California sunshine, surfing, and the quest for the California dream than that. Our family summertime treks to the beach consisted of my brother and me loaded into back seat of the family Chevy wagon on a bumpy trip to " Long Island Sound " filled with mirky, seaweed laden water and rocky( read: ouch ) beaches. But then one summer, out of the blue, a song issued from my small transistor AM radio. The song was
" Surfin' Safari " and hence my dream of sunny California became closer to reality. I was no longer trapped in rural Connecticut. I was mesmerized by the song, and with maybe two quarters to my name, pedaled my way to the local department store and bought the 45 RPM record. The flip side was " 409 " and boy was I ever in heaven, having already been a full fledged greaser by age 12.
I bought everything the boys of summer put out,the Surfin' Safari Album, Little Deuce Coupe, Surfer Girl, Concert, and Surfin U.S.A.
What struck me profoundly were the harmonies and the melodies, which in my young mind made every other record put out by others seem amateurish and rudimentary in comparison. And the themes of the songs were right up my alley. Four decades later I feel the same way. By the time the Today album and Summer Days and Summer Nights album were released, I was in high school, and these songs took on new meanings to me, ( READ: Girl Crazy ). My father was a tyrant at times, he'd scream and yell at my brother and me, and would make me " go to my room " ( to study ) whenever my report card came- I always brought home poor grades. It was from lack of interest in school, and my great interest in cars and girls that killed my grades. I prided myself in never bringing home a school book to study. I would really dread the last report card before summer- because he'd usually " ground " me to my room to study all summer long. ( no pun intended. ) I never understood this, because I had no books to study for summer. When I'd remind him of this fact, he'd scream and say, " Then you'll go to the library and find the books for next year and bring them home and study them! "
So when I heard " I'm Bugged at My Old Man. " I felt a true allegiance to BIG BROTHER Brian. I felt that he knew some of the stuff I'd been going through. And I think that is what endures with respect to the Beach Boys and their music. Our relation ships, desires, fears, and longings are reflected in their music. More than once I've gotten shivers up my spine upon first hearing a new Beach Boys song,( that's what real harmony will do to you ) that's the kind of emotion it evokes. Just think of the turmoil we felt as teenagers. Who could we talk to? Who would listen and understand our deepest fears, our longing to be loved? You guessed it. Brian and the Boys. They were beyond hip as far as I was concerned, and while others turned their attention to the Rolling Stones, Jimmie Hendrix, and the British invasion groups ( especially the Beatles. ) my loyalty never wavered from " The Boys. " While everyone was cranking up " I wanna Hold your Hand " and " She Loves You ", I was cranking up " I get Around " and " When I Grow Up to Be a Man. " I often times wonder what my adolescent years would have been like if the Beach Boys never existed. We've been through a lot together, the Boys and me. They were there when I obtained my driver's license. They stood by me when I'd get a crush on a girl, ( and the subsequent heartache of unrequited love. ) They were there when my mom died of a heart attack at age 45 ( I was 17 ). And when my BIG brother Ted lost his battle with Cancer at age 27. They were there, holding me up, allowing the tears, and the pain, and the sorrow to issue from me, and then to be replaced by joyousness, the joyousness of being alive. They never failed me, those Boys of Summer. And they will not fail you.

Regards,

Tony

This Capitol "two-fer" CD combines two remarkable, five-star Beach Boys albums released in 1965 at the height of Brian Wilson's youthful genius and creativity. Both "Today" and "Summer Days" rank among the ten greatest albums ever recorded, and when they are combined on a single CD with the great 45 track "The Little Girl I Once Knew" and several other unreleased tracks, well, then you have the best CD ever put out by a record label.

Many Beach Boys/Brian Wilson fanatics rank "Today" as their second favorite album after "Pet Sounds," and who could argue with such an assessment? Side one features great BB rock and roll, including "Good to My Baby," "Don't Hurt My Little Sister," and the classic "When I Grow Up." The original version of "Help Me, Ronda," is interesting and I think unfavorably maligned. Side two of "Today" is truly mindblowing: "Please Let Me Wonder" is one of BW's greatest songs ever, and "Kiss Me Baby" and "She Knows Me Too Well" are not far behind. "I'm So Young" is incredible as well; though a cover, Brian truly made it his own with the brilliant harmonies (such as the fade-out tag) and the awesome echoing guitar. Finally, the cool, jazzy "In the Back of My Mind," sung with great feeling by Dennis, should be appreciated more than it is.

Side two of "Today" holds up, listening after listening, decade after decade. "Summer Days" is sometimes maligned as a step back for the group, mostly because it features less of the introspection of "Today" side two. But what "Summer Days" does better than ANY Beach Boys album is flat-out rock. From the opening sax-and-drums of "The Girl from New York City," this album has always brought a smile to my face and had me tapping my toes. The aforementioned "Girl," "Amusement Parks, USA," and "Salt Lake City," (with its killer guitar intro) while not introspective, have great lyrics, classic harmonies, and phenomenal instrumental grooves (arranged by BW of course). "Girl Don't Tell Me" features the Beach Boys on instruments and Carl Wilson on vocals -- another great rocker. "Help Me, Rhonda" is a classic, and "California Girls" is probably one of the ten most famous rock songs ever recorded (deservedly so). "Let Him Run Wild" is almost the greatest thing Brian has ever done (he was reportedly never happy with his vocal, and I have to agree -- a touch too much falsetto over the chorus). "You're So Good to Me" is as catchy and infectious as can be, "Summer Means New Love" a worthy companion to the Pet Sounds instrumentals, and "I'm Bugged At My Ol' Man" is hilarious and yet touchingly autobiographical at the same time. And the album ends on the perfect note -- "And Your Dream Comes True," a breathtaking a cappella song, just over a minute, that presages the simlarly breathtaking "Our Prayer" from SMiLE (the single greatest album ever recorded, released or not).

Bottom line -- if I'm condemned to a desert island and I only get one disk to bring with me, this is the one.

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5.0 out of 5 stars The best of the double album reissues
Today and Summer days are by far the best of the two album reissues. I enjoy Today as much as Pet Sounds and Summer days is almost as good.

Published on Dec 5 2004

5.0 out of 5 stars Today!/Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!)
The greatest two-fer CD in the whole Beach Boys catalog.
The Beach Boys Today! is a fantastic album, as we get to hear the wonderful results of Brian Wilson tossing off the... Read more

Published on Mar 18 2004 by Z. Hilgefort

5.0 out of 5 stars A required Purchase alongside "Pet Sounds"....
Although it not easy to categorise what make the Beach Boys such a highly regarded band, when there are so many elements to shouldn't appeal to a British audience... Read more

Published on Nov 11 2003 by fetish_2000

5.0 out of 5 stars Awww - Heavenly Combination of Soulful & Fun Tunes
The Beach Boys broke the mold during a time when teens were trying to find their own music, and they were fresh and FUN-FUN-FUN. Read more

Published on Sep 27 2003 by C. Chriscoe

5.0 out of 5 stars The Gateway to Pet Sounds and other genius
Summer Days (and Summer Nights!!) is an incredible album, and it's where we really start to see the genius of Brian Wilson. Today! Read more

Published on July 3 2003 by R. Sobkoviak

5.0 out of 5 stars This Is It: The Boys In Their Prime
This two-album package represents the finest compilation of Beach Boys music, during the period when the band was actively competing with the Beatles for the top slots on the pop... Read more

Published on July 1 2003 by ViceroyCM

5.0 out of 5 stars Setting the stage for Pet Sounds
I bought "Today" at a garage sale back in the 70's when my fasincation with the Beach Boys was beginning because of the successful 2-Fers "Endless Summer" and... Read more

Published on May 30 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars Two great mid sixties albums
This twofer covers the period leading up to Pet sounds. Some of the tracks were cut in 1964 but most date from 1965. Do you wanna dance was the first big hit of the period. Read more

Published on Mar 9 2003 by Peter Durward Harris

5.0 out of 5 stars The Beach Boys Biggest Fan
Although I am one of Brian Wilson's/The Beach Boys biggest fans I think I can be objective. This two cd set is the best you can find in pop music. Read more

Published on Dec 27 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful CD
If my apartment was on fire, this and Pet Sounds would be two of the CDs I would grab if I could.

Today is fantastic. Read more

Published on Nov 6 2002 by Bruce Parsons

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