All Summer Long - The Beach Boys (Memorable Music

Oh, this is a great album. When casual fans think of the Beach Boys, these are the songs they hear in their minds. "All Summer Long" is a timeless soundtrack for summer. Count the hits: a punchy "I Get Around" (the band's first #1 single), the bouncing-xylophone introduction of "All Summer Long," (featured in the closing credits of "American Grafitti" years down the road), a superlative cover of "Hushabye," the insistant "faster, faster" thrum of "Little Honda," an aching lyric on "Wendy," also "Girls on the Beach" (with another inspired, soaring melody), the juvenile delinquent mentality of "Drive In," and the super-cool peer pressure of "Don't Back Down." What sparked such fine songcraft is the sudden wake-up call of The Beatles, who were taking America by storm. Brian Wilson felt an immediate and lasting rivalry between the Beach Boys and the lads from Liverpool, and in typical 'Brian' fashion, he rose to the challenge, with stunning results. Even the filler was good, with a wistful "We'll Run Away" and the nostalgic (?) rock and roll homage "Do You Remember?" easy on the ear.