First up, this album isn't really a "greatest hits" album. Instead of including of being handpicked by money - hungry Capitol exceutives, they asked the man who made the music to pick his 19 favorite Beach Boys tracks and put them on a single disc. This is Brian Wilson's personal collection.

This album doesn't feature as much as hits as you'd expect. Brian heavily relies on the reflective ballads like the sublime "In My Room", the morbid "Til I Die", and the eloquent "God Only Knows". Granted, Brian does show his respect for the big hits, as he includes "Good Vibrations", "California Girls" and "I Get Around". I'm sure some selections will surprise you - "Time To Get Alone", "Don't Worry Baby" (these are my two favorites) and "Wonderful" make this an obscure collection that will no doubt appeal to hard - core fans.

As an added bonus, Brian also includes a brand - new recording. "California Feelin'" was written by Brian for The Beach Boys in the early 1970s', but was never officially released. (It has been floating on various bootlegs over the years). it is a very good song and features harmonies very reminiscent of The Beach Boys themselves.

Overall, this really an excellent album. It really shows what fondness Brian jas for his material, and his notes on the songs in the booklet are really well thought out. Brian, welcome back.

This is undoubtedly the best compilation of Elton John's biggest hits since the "To Be Continued" boxed set. It has 2 discs of the bigget hits he ever had, plus a 42 - page booklet featuring lovely pictures and a nice mini - biagraphy of his life.

Disc 1 is a powerhouse lineup of classic songs. Songs like "Your Song", "Honky Cat", "Bennie And The Jets" and "Crocodile Rock" were the songs that defined an era. Elton staus as the biggest star of the first half of the '70s' is made known once more with this album. Disc 2 begins with what is truly the last great Elton John song of '70s', "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" with Kiki Dee, before drifting into the '80s' with the eloquent "Little Jeannie". Then we get the ones that really stand out from the mid to late 1980s'. "I'm Still Standing", "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues", "Sad Songs", "Nikita", and "I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That" feature Elton's unique style of singing in differnt musical genres. The '90s' material is good. There's the heavenly title track from 1992's "The One", two tracks each from "Made In England" and "Songs From The West Coast", the two smashes from "The Lion King", "Something About The Way You Look Tonight", and the schmaltzy Leanne Rhimes duet "Written In The Stars".

Also included is a bonus disc that features two duets plus two live recordings that were major hits: his 1986 "Live From Australia" version of "Candle In The Wind" and his 1991 # 1 duet with George Michael on "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me". Also included are two duets. "Live Like Horses" is a gorgeous duet with Luciano Pavarotti, and there is also a new recording of "Your Song" featuring Alesandro Safina.

Sure, some fans can nitpick about the exclusion of key hits such as "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds", "Blue Eyes", "Empty Garden" and "Candle In The Wind 1997" (the latter was most likely excluded because of Elton's personal feelings about the song). But this is still an essnetial collection of some of the greatest songs by one of the greatest artists in music history.

"Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy" has always been my favorite Elton John album, simply because it's one of the few albums that could be described as perfect. There is not a single clunker on this whole album, and the production is flawless.

Kicking off with the comforting and sophistsicated acoustic pickings of the title track, which depicts Elton and lyricist Bernie Taupin as cowboys and the record company executives who rejected their early material as bandits who they must defeat before riding off into the sunset. "Tower Of Babel" and "Bitter Fingers" are two more denouncing diatribes against the music industry that are very good tracks, and "Tell Me When The Whistle Blows" features an eloquent orchestral arrangement by Gene Wood, who arranged some of Barry White's biggest hits in the early to mid '70s'. Next comes one of Elton's best - known and most - loved compositions. "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" is a true classic with its simple, haunting piano intro, strong percussion, and Beach Boys - like harmonies on the tag. "Gotta Get A Meal Ticket" is a strong rocker featuring a screaming guitar intro. This is followed by the simple, almost funny "Better Off Dead", which preceeds my favorite track, "Writing". This perfectly sums up the way Bernie and Elton write a song. Following this is the luscious "We All Fall In Love Sometimes", which perfectly sums up the relationship between Elton and his faithful companion Bernie. Lastly, there's the haunting "Curtains", which denounces the early songs that they wrote together.

Like all of Elton's '70s' reissues, this one has several bonus tracks added. Included are two of the three number one hits he scored in 1975, the soulful "Philadelphia Freedom" and his superb cover of "Lucy Sky In The Diamonds" featuring John Lennon singing and playing guitar. Also included is "One Day At A Time", a beautiful song that Elton recorded with Lennon that was included on Lennon's "Mind Games" album.

Overall, this is an excellent album that captures Elton in his prime. It also marked the end of his creative energy. Although he scored one more number one album ("Rock Of The Westies"), things were never the same after this album was released. As a matter of fact, it would be 20 years before Elton would release an album of this merit again.

There are two words that describe this dvd: bittersweet. While it's a joyous occasion to see the band onstage again, it's sad knowing this would be one of the last times the group would be performing onstage in the UK.

There's an extremely high level of emotion on this dvd, as well as some tension. Mike Love takes over most of the show, making the rest of the group seem like a backing band. Dennis Wilson is good here but his use of drugs becomes increasingly evident with each performance. Al and Carl give the best performances. Al dlievers strong renditions of "Cottonfields", "Heroes And Villains" and "Help Me Rhonda, and Carl's heavenly voice shines above the rest on "God Only Knows". Bruce Johnston remains hidden for the most of the show, but this would change later in the tour when he got his own solo spot. Brian Wilson, overweight to the nines at this point, sits perched behind a piano for most of the show, contributing a few lines on "Sloop John B" and "Surfer Girl". The main complaint I have is the sound. The band's backing vocals on "God Only Knows" seem to be buried in the mix. These differences aside, this makes for a very good dvd.

"Sunflower" is really one of The Beach Boys' greatest albums ever, ranking up there with "Today", "Pet Sounds" and "Friends". This version of the band is quite different. This is really their first album that does not have anything to do with anything even remotely about surfing. Here, they focus on romance and social issues.

"Sunflower" comes roaring out of the starting gates with the funky groove of Dennis Wilson's "Slide On Through". Next is the excellent "This Whole World", featuring a passionate Carl Wilson vocal and doo - wop style harmonies. "Add Some Music To Your Day" is quite different from the first two tracks. It is slower, with the soft picking of the acoustic guitar the most prominent of the backing instruments. However, the song is a standout thanks to beautiful, full - throated harmonies. The album suddenly jumps back into your face with Dennis Wilson's "Gotta Know The Woman". This is the best song yet. Dennis's voice is very strong here, and the rhythm section (featuring a nice, chugging piano) is very tight on this one, as are the harmonies. Following this the splendid Bruce Johnston composition "Diedre", featuring Johnston singing a narrative of a fiery redhead who is returning to town. After this, the album gets back on the rockier course with yet another Dennis Wilson composition, the rocking "It's About Time". Kicking off with a great guitar/drum intro punctuated by Dennis's voice, this song is a true standout.
Next comes Bruce Johnston's odd but catchy "Tears In The Morning", which features nice drumming and a prominent accordian. Following is the truly amazing "All I Wanna Do". Kicking off with an eerie guitar introduction then drifting into Mike Love's soothing lead vocal. Truly a classic. Next comes the best song on the album. "Forever" is without a doubt the greatest song Dennis Wilson ever wrote, and his amazing vocal skills are also demonstrated on this track as well. "Our Sweet Love" features a gorgeous Carl vocal. "At My Window" is a bit of a downer, but not that bad. "Cool Cool Water" is another amazing song. Featuring some dynamic vocal experimentations and part of the lost "Smile" track "I Love To Say Da - Da", this ends the album on all - time high.

1971's "Surf's Up" is a noticably weaker album for several reasons. Firts up, several songs here are just plain filler. "Don't Go Near The Water", "Take A Load Off Your Feet", "Student Demonstration Time" and "A Day In The Life Of A Tree" are as bad as can get. And the great Dennis Wilson is completely shut out of this album. But the remainder of the album reaches the same level of excellence as "Sunflower" did. "Long Promised Road" is an ingenious Carl Wilson composition that does not get too preachy, but adresses the problems of life and the search gfor a sollution. Bruce Johnston's "Disney Girls" is a real classic, warm amd tender, featuring beautiful harmonies and sweet lyrics that recall a much simpler time. "Feel Flows" is another really strong Carl compsoition, and "Looking At Tomorrow (A Welfare Song)" is Al Jardine's chance to shine. "Til I Die" is the last great Brian Wilson composition. Featuring haunting lyrics and bonechilling harmonies, it is truly a masterpiece. Closing the album is the breathtaking title track, a salvaged "Smile" recording that kicks off with a newly recorded Carl Wilson vocal section before sinking into Brian's 1967 demo. The result is unbelievably brilliant.

These albums really are worth full price. It is mainly important because these are the last albums with the band working as a full unit. After "Surf's Up", Bruce Johnston quit (he eventaully returned in 1979), Brian began his long stay in bed (he rejoined in 1976), and Dennis sank further and further into drug addiction and his creative fire died with it.

I had extremely high hopes when I heard about this dvd. I was expecting to be sitting at home on the couch watching Brian Wilson perform almost 30 of his greatest songs live in concert. When I did finish watching it, however, I was kind of dissapointed.

My major gripe is that it's not what it what I thought it was. There are only a handful of complete live performances. The rest of the songs are either from rehearsals (and those are just more snippets) or a capella performances by Brian with his friends and with Ronnie Spector that are so pointless, they don't even merit credit on the box. The interviews are tame and never really catch fire (who'd want to see Brian teaching Neil Young the organ part on "Good Vibrations" ?). However, it's not all bad. The live performances that are here - "Fun, Fun, Fun", "California Girls", "Do It Again", "God Only Knows", "Darlin", "Add Some Music To Your Day", etc - are electrifying. But if you want to see Brian work his magic with a live crowd, get "Brian Wilson Live At The Roxy Theater", with 2 discs of Brian dong what he does best.

I really think that this dvd could've been better. Hopefully Brian will release a complete live concert on dvd in the near future featuring hits, rare tunes and solo numbers interspliced with some chatter here and there. "Brian Wilson On Tour" is not that.

Readers, when you purchase this dvd, put on the pilot episode (entitled "Man About The House"), and fast - foward to the scene were Chrissy Snow (Suzanne Somers) finds Jack Tripper (John Ritter) asleep in the bathtub, drenched in water. It is not only one of the funniest moments in tv history, but the scene that shows what a genius Ritter really was.

The release of "Three's Company" on dvd is a bittersweet event for the show's fan. While it's great to have this piece of television history to watch anytime you'd like, it's also sad because comes just months after John Ritter's shocking and untimely death. But as a tribute to his life and career, it's great to have.

And I'm not saying that Ritter was the only actor who made the people laugh. Somers and Joyce DeWitt (Janet Wood) set up most of the gags that happened on the show, and sometimes outdid Ritter. And who can forget the late Norman Fell and Audra Lindley as Mr. Roper and his sex - hungry wife Helen. Their one -liners against each other were every bit as funny as Ritter getting smashed by a door or Somers delivering one of her stupid comments. Making an early appearance is Larry, played flawlessly by the highly underrated Richard Kline. He appears briefly in "No Children, No Dogs".

As for the episodes, the pilot is an absolute classic. "No Children, No Dogs" and "It's Only Money" are excellent as well (the former features some of the best insluts between Helen and Stanley). As for the other three, they are good too, but not worth mentioning.

My only gripe about this dvd is that there are no extras. No advertisements or a making - of documentary. I do not know if Anchor Bay meant to do this right from the start or they did out of respect for John Ritter. But it doesn't matter, since the complete second season is coming out on dvd in March and is supposed to be loaded with extra. Until then, this will keep you satisfid for a long time and you'll remember that three's company, too.

These two cds are my favorite Beach Boys albums. They both capture the band in high spirits and the harmonies are out of sight. They also prove that Brian Wilson is not the only creative force in the band, as each member starts to branch out and create their own type of musical sounds.

"Friends" is a very short album. Kicking off with the short but lovely "Meant For You" (featuring a gorgeous Mike Love vocal). Next comes the title track, an uplifting waltz featuring Carl Wilson and Brian sharing lead vocal duties. Next comes the cheery "Wake The World", which features an intriguing tuba line. Next comes the charming "Be Here In The Morning". That is followed by "When A Man Needs A Woman", a nice ditty featuring Brian in the role of a father talking to his son about love, marriage and birth (it's also a very ironic track because Brian does not have a male offspring). "Passing By" is an alluring instrumental, and "Anna Lee, The Healer" tells the story of a female massage therapist and has good harmonies. "Little Bird" and "Be Still" are two excellent songs composed by Dennis Wilson and feature his gruf, soulful voice handling the lead vocal duties. "Busy Doin' Nothin'" is a Brian's life presented in a 3 -minute samba, "Diamond Head" is a good instrumental, and "Transcendental Meditation" is very odd.

1969's "20/20" is a more rockier album that has music more in line with what The Beach Boys are known for. Kicking off with the nostalgic classic "Do It Again", the band lets it all hang loose here. Following that is Carl Wilson's heavenly "I Can Hear Music" that is just as masterful as anything his brother ever did. "Bluebirds Over The Mountain" is a cover version that has great vocals and a scorching electric guiatr solo. "Be With Me" may well be Dennis's best song after "Forever". Dark yet beautiful, it has a brooding orchestral arrangement punctauted by an eerie Dennis vocal. Next comes the cheeful barroom rocker "All I Wanna Do", a Dennis composition featuring a sweltering Mike Love vocal. Next comes Bruce Johnston's beatiful instrumental "The Nearest Faraway Place". This is followed by Alan Jardine's "Cottonfields", a version which pales in comparison with the single version. "I Went To Sleep" features angelic harmonies, and "Time To Get Alone" is too beautiful to be described in words. "Never Learn Not To Love" is a Dennis composition that was supposedly written originally by Charles Manson under the title "Cease To Exist". Closing the album are two numbers originally recorded for "Smile". "Our Prayer" is a wordless rhapsosdy with a lush harmonies, and "Cabinessence" is a nice, odd little number that comes off nicely.

The bonus tracks are really special. There's the great single "Breakaway", its masterful B - side "Celebrate The News" (another great Dennis composition), the pretty "We're Together Again", a fragment of their cover of "Walk On By", and a medley of "Old Folks At Home/Ol' Man River" that sways effortlessly.

This is an excellent albums that sets the course for 1970's excellent "Sunflower" (though I prefer these two albums to that one) and for many other great albums to come. I highly recommend it.

After succumbing to the pressure of completing "Smile", Brian Wilson shelved his unreleased masterpiece and released a hastily assembled mishmash entitled "Smiley Smile", and results for it were mixed at best.

"Smiley Smile" starts out strong with "Heroes And Villians", the last great Brian Wilson - produced single. Next comes my first sticking point. "Vegetables", though catchy, features workman - like production and rediculous lyrics that Al Jardine spouts out flawlessly among Paul McCartney's carrot - chomping. Next comes the odd but good "Fall Breaks And Back To Winter (W. Woodpecker Symphony)", followed by the laughably bad "She's Goin' Bald" features terrible vocals and is so awful that by the time you get to the really high "sha -na - na" part, you're hoping the album's already over. As for the rest of the album, "Little Pad" is a musical pot party, "Good Vibrations" really doesn't need any explanation (c'mon you know it's great), "With Me Tonight" features lovely harmonies, "Gettin' Hungry" is a nice rocker, "Wonderful" and "Wind Chimes" are pale imitations of the "Smile" version, and there isn't much to say about "Whistle In".

The follow - up to "Smiley Smile", "Wild Honey" is an excellent album featuring The Beach Boys doing R & B - style music. It kicks off full - throttle with the title track, a sweltering rocker featuring a raucous Carl Wilson lead vocal. Following that is the R & B thump of "Aren't You Glad" followed by a superb cover of Stevie Wonder's "I Was Made To Love Her" with a flawless Carl handling the lead. "Country Air" has beautiful harmonies, and "A Thing Or Two" is a nice ditty. The band then tears into the classic "Darlin'". Featuring a hot Carl vocal and soulful horns, this song is truly a classic. Next comes "I'd Love Just Once To See You" (featuring a hilarious lyrical surprise on the tag, courtesy of Brian). After that comes the sensual groove of "Here Comes The Night". Next is the eerie "Let The Wind Blow". "How She Boogalooed It" follows and is very energetic with its speedy tempo. Next comes "Mama Says", an outtake from the "Smile" version of "Vegetables" that has sweet harmonies.

There are a couple of bonus tracks added. First, there's an excellent alternate version of "Heroes And Villians" that features entirely different from the version that was released. Next coms some session highlights from the "Good Vibrations" sessions, followed by an alternate take of the song featuring Brian singing entirely different lyrics from ther version that was released. "You're Welcome" is nothing more than a chant. Next is the rel keeper. "Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring" is an old Four Freshmen song. This version is from rehearsals for a show in Hawaii, and the harmonies are so beautiful you'd think angels are singing it. Next comes the unreleased masterwork "Can't Wait Too Long"/Been Way Too Long". It is an absolutely brilliant piece of music that should be heard by every Beach Boys fan.

I suggest you go out and purchase this cd. It not among their best, but the music on here is ll very interesting and at some points, excellent. So make this the next Beach Boys album you purchase.

They say that there are two things you can always be sure of - death and taxes. Add a third, a new Beach Boys greatest hits album every year or so, and the list will be complete. The latest output, "Sounds Of Summer", is probably the best greatest hits collection that Capitol has released. It has mostly all of the classic singles.

For a collection of songs that can be played over and over again all summer long, "Sounds Of Summer". Whether its the sonic whirl of "I Get Around" or the romanticism of "Don't Worry Baby" or the conga beats of "Kokomo", "Sounds Of Summer" is as complete as you can get. On second thought, it may not be. For all the classic hits here, there are some really great songs that have been excluded from the collection. The following top 40 hits are missing:

"Little Saint Nick" (# 6)
"The Warmth Of The Sun" (# 13)
"The Man With All The Toys" (# 3)
"The Little Girl I Once Knew" (# 20)
"Caroline No" (# 32)
"It's OK" (# 29)

And although they didn't crack the top 40, I would've like to have seen the following singles and b - sides included on the album:

"Surfin'"
"Wendy"
"Little Honda"
"Please Let Me Wonder"
"Kiss Me Baby"
"You're So Good To Me"
"Friends"
"Little Bird"
"Bluebirds Over The Mountain"
"Breakaway"
"Cottonfields"
"Add Some Music To Your Day"
"Forever"
"Cool Cool Water"
"Marcella"
"Sail On Sailor" "California"
"Honkin' Down The Highway"
"Peggy Sue"
"Baby Blue"
"Goin' On"
"California Dreamin'"

Or even album tracks like:

"All Summer Long"
"Here Today"
"Vegetables"
"I Went To Sleep"
"Time To Get Alone"
"The Trader"
"The Night Was So Young"

Hopefully, Capitol will get their act together and release a compilation with about 3 discs of Beach Boys classics, including singles and popular album tracks. I am in the process of making one of my own, and have even typed an essay that I am thining of being formatted into a booklet. But until then, "Sounds Of Summer" will hold you over.