ALBUM REVIEW: The Beach Boys - Surfer Girl

    Third times is truly the charm. At this point in the group's history, The Beach Boys had cut their teeth in the studio with two perfectly fine surf rock albums from the time. Their debut album, Surfin' Safari, while lacking much of a bite and having underwhelming production by the group's standards, still managed to showcase the Boys' knack for vocal harmonies, as well as the natural song-crafting talent of composer Brian Wilson and lyricist Mike Love. Their sophomore album Surfin' U.S.A continued this momentum with a more thorough production job, finer songwriting, and a sharper sense of vocal arrangements. Finally, on the group's third album, these elements all come together to form what is arguably the group's first great album. Brian gets full production credit here in addition to showcasing some lyrical talent on the title track, meanwhile the rest of the album carries a clean sound and even more expertly produced vocal arrangements than both preceding albums. Stacked to the brim with lovely ballads and fun rockers, this is a definitive look at the group's early albums.

    From the start of this album, the Boys sound far more assured and confident than they did for all of their debut, as well as most of U.S.A. This could be in part due to the clean production of one Brian Wilson, who's lush instrumentation and layering of sounds creates a rich sound that puts the other two albums to shame - a song like "The Surfer Moon" with its pristine orchestration couldn't have existed on Safari or U.S.A. Even the fast-paced numbers carry a fresh energy to them that felt lacking on moments like "Shut Down." Look no further than the fast-paced energy of "Hawaii," containing an excellent falsetto line from Brian and a fresh breath of life that only feels right for an ode to America's Aloha state. The surfer's ethos of "Catch a Wave" and the hot-rod pride of "Little Deuce Coupe" carry a similar energy and style, even if the lyrics aren't always ship-shape (I seem to recall Mike Love particularly disliking the lyrics "they'll eat their words with a fork and spoon." Rough indeed, Mike). Not everything is perfect, still, as the group-sung "South Bay Surfer" is pretty infuriating, and the decision to end on the lackluster instrumental that is "Boogie Woodie" is one that will leave you scratching your head, especially after it follows the low-key and subtle "Your Summer Dream," which would've made a much better closing moment.

    The songwriting craft of Mike Love and Brian Wilson has improved by leagues on this album - hints of the duo's talent really began peaking through on some moments from U.S.A, but this album takes the subtle beauty of moments like "The Lonely Sea" and cranks it up to 100. "In My Room" is a key example of this, showcasing an emotional genuineness that feels decisively more heartfelt and mature than anything that the group had written prior. When Brian sings "In this world I lock out all my worries and my fears," it feels so sincere and raw, as if Brian is pouring everything he has into the song - keep in mind, this was barely a year after "She's real fine my 409." The same can be said for the tranquil ballad of "Surfer Girl," which is regularly attested as Brian Wilson's first song - if that's the case, it's a damn good one, already filled with matured jazz harmonies and a sublime beauty that some can only hope to match when writing tunes.

    Consider this album the group's Hard Day's Night, in the sense that it has about as perfect an encapsulation you can get of the group's early days. While we still have a bit of ways to go before the revolution, Surfer Girl showcases everything that made the group unique, perfectly refined down to its best elements and tunes. It's lighthearted, personal, emotional, and celebratory all at once, and it manages to keep things tight and flowing throughout its scant 25-minute runtime. For a group to have such a matured sound and style just one year should be commended. It's heartfelt, earnest, beautiful, and emotional all at once. Truly a great album - seek this one out for an excellent dose of early surf rock.

RATING: ✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯

Listen to Surfer Girl.