Classic Line Up

Mike Love – lead vocals, Carl Wilson – lead guitar & vocals, Al Jardine – guitar & vocals, Dennis Wilson – drums, Bruce Johnston – bass, keyboards & vocals, Brian Wilson – keyboards, bass & vocals

Quick Quote

Dennis Wilson: I can tell you the day the Beach Boys will no longer exist - never. We'll be on stage in wheelchairs.

Discography

Surfin' Safari (1962) - Early, amateur and raw.
Surfin' U.S.A. (1963) - The Surf album.
Surfer Girl (1963) - The songs album.
Little Deuce Coupe (1963) - The hot-rod cash-in album that only contains about 4 new songs.
Shut Down, Vol. 2 (1964) - A follow-up to a prequel that only contained a couple of Beach Boys tunes.
All Summer Long (1964) - The best of the surfing albums.
Christmas (1964) - The Christmas album, home of 'Little Saint Nick'
Beach Boys Concert (1964) - Surprisingly fun.
Today (1965) - The sophisticated album.
Summer Days And Summer Nights!! (1965) - The slightly less sophisticated album.
Beach Boys' Party! (1965) - The rubbish one.
Pet Sounds (1966) - The artistic, mature and best one.
Smiley Smile (1967) - The 'wasn't smile' album.
Wild Honey (1967) - The Stevie Wonder album.
Friends (1968) - The far more influential that it looks album.
Stack-O-Tracks (1968) - Inventing Karaoke
20/20 (1969) - The last Capitol records album.
Sunflower (1970) - The one almost as good as 'Pet Sounds'
Surf's Up (1971) - The one with that song from 'Smile'.
Carl and the Passions-So Tough (1972) - The slightly disappointing album.
Holland (1973) - The slightly good album.
In Concert (1973) - The overly slick live album.
15 Big Ones (1976) - The comeback one.
Love You (1977) - The 'Brian Solo' in all but name album.
M.I.U. (1978) - The Al Jardine album.
L.A. Light Album (1979) - The Bruce Johnston album.
Keepin' the Summer Alive (1980) - The forgettable one.
The Beach Boys (1985) - The Eighties one.
Still Cruisin' (1989) - The movie soundtrack one.
Summer in Paradise (1992) - The really don't even consider buying record.
Stars & Stripes, Vol. 1 (1996) - Same as above.
That's Why God Made The Radio (2012) - The actually good comeback one.

Biggest Album Commercially

Endless Summer released in 1974 has sold in excess of 3 million copies in the US, in the UK 'Pet Sounds' was actually their biggest selling album where it relatively flopped in the US, only spending a couple of weeks on the Billboard Top Ten.

Best Album Critically

Two words, 'Pet Sounds'.

Biggest Selling Single

'Kokomo' has sold over 1 million copies in the US, although only reached number 25 in the UK.

Delve In The Deep End

Swim In Shallow Waters

Further Reading

Beach Boys Album ReviewsBack To Beginners Guides Index

Watch And Listen