Audio CD review:
The Beach Boys - Surfer Girl/Shut Down, Vol. 2

The Beach Boys - Surfer Girl/Shut Down, Vol. 2

Band: The Beach Boys Title: Surfer Girl/Shut Down, Vol. 2 Rating: Release Date: 13 March, 2001 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Surfer Girl 2: Catch A Wave 3: Surfer Moon, The 4: South Bay Surfer 5: Rocking Surfer, The 6: Little Deuce Coupe 7: In My Room 8: Hawaii 9: Surfers Rule 10: Our Car Club 11: Your Summer Dream 12: Boogie Woodie 13: Fun Fun Fun 14: Don't Worry Baby 15: In the Parking Lot 16: "Cassius" Love Vs. "Sonny" Wilson 17: Warmth Of The Sun, The 18: This Car Of Mine 19: Why Do Fools Fall In Love 20: Pom Pom Play Girl 21: Keep An Eye On Summer 22: Shut Down Part 2 23: Louie Louie 24: Denny's Drums - (mono) 25: Fun, Fun, Fun - (mono, bonus track, single version) 26: In My Room - (bonus track, German version) 27: I Do - (bonus track)

Editoral Review That one-two combo, "Surfer Girl" and "Catch a Wave," also effectively serves as the blueprint for much of the Beach Boys' subsequent sound. Surfer Girl may have been the band's third album release, but it was the first to bear the imprimatur of founder and creative mainstay Brian Wilson as producer, and the difference is palpable from the confident opening tracks onward. On the former, Wilson's falsetto soars over a tender, yet musically sophisticated, ballad, while the latter features Mike Love's trademark twang urgently proselytizing SoCal surf, both over band harmonies that seemed to grow tighter and more adventurous with every cut. That artistic axis is revisited yet again on "Little Deuce Coupe" and "In My Room," the latter ballad showcasing Wilson's full artistic arsenal and giving an early glimpse into his introspective soul. The curiously titled "Shut Down, Part II" (a de facto sequel to an earlier hit EP) sought to further the band beyond its ironic sea-and-sun fetish (none but Dennis Wilson ever surfed) into the burgeoning hot-rod subculture as well. The results were understandably uneven, but the high points remain nothing short of spectacular, including the Love-propelled "Fun, Fun, Fun," Wilson's knowing nod to Phil Spector, "Don't Worry Baby," and the underrated "The Warmth of the Sun. " Bonus cuts include the single mix of "Fun, Fun, Fun," a German-language version of "In My Room," and the previously unreleased, largely experimental "I Do" by Wilson and Love. Brian offers up a brief commentary on both albums in the notes, while David Leaf (author of the pioneering bio The Beach Boys and the California Myth) documents the music track-by-track. --Jerry McCulley .. You can see a complete list of all The Beach Boys discography, or go back to the The Beach Boys tabs