Rating: 8
In my efforts to undo my good work in consigning so many of my records to the blue bin, I keep buying more. Somehow I found myself returning from what was supposed to only be a trip to the bridal expo with seven records on Sunday afternoon. But how can I resist when I can buy classic Beach Boys records for $3?!
At any rate, in 1964, the Beach Boys had not yet become the Beach Boys of Pet Sounds or Smile. Yet I still find it a damn shame that I grew up thinking of this band as lightweight, for even though the lyrical subject matter indeed fails to extend beyond the topics of cars and girls, Brian Wilson was first and foremost a musical genius. For one side of this record, it's practically perfect, as the gorgeous harmonies are all here as is Wilson's immeasurable gift of melody. The songs are simple on the surface, of course, yet songs like "I Get Around" sound better and better every time I hear them. More detrimental than the lyrical deficits is the fact that the second side consists mostly of boring instrumentals and re-writes of every song on the first side, which is somewhat hard to fathom since the album is only 25 minutes long. Still, All Summer Long is an obvious keeper, and a great record in its own right. But of course, they would only get better!
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