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Ranking every Beach Boys album and song: “Surfin’ Safari” LP (by Songwriter Jim Fusco)

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By Jim Fusco:

A great man named Michael F. Becher on Brian Wilson’s message board started a project where he’s ranking every single Beach Boys album and song on a scale from 1-10. I love the idea and am participating in the project. But, I thought I would extend it to this forum with my picks posted here! So, without further ado, I give you the Beach Boys’ first album: Surfin’ Safari.

ALBUM – SURFIN’ SAFARI

Little Miss America – 4 (they sound lackluster, but Dennis singing brings it up a bit)
Surfin’ Safari – 6
409 – 3
The Shift – 3 (waaaaay before my time!)
*Land Ahoy – 5 (enjoyable)
*Lavender – 4
Chug-A-Lug – 4
Heads You Win – Tails I Lose – 4
Surfin’ – 4
Summertime Blues – 2 (not a huge fan of the covers- funny, ’cause that’s what I do!)
Moon Dawg – 4 (Not a big fan of the instrumentals- kinda boring, especially because they’re really known for vocals. This one isn’t bad because of the harmonies and the cool guitar playing.)
Cuckoo Clock – 4 (I like Brian’s cute high voice)
Ten Little Indians – 3
*Luau – 3
*Karate – 2
County Fair – 5 (funny and catchy)
*Judy – 3
*Barbie – 5 (a rare early gem)
*What is a Young Girl Made Of – 3 (yuck- foreign background singers!)
*Cindy, Oh Cindy – 4 (good vocal)

** It’s funny, I like this album much more than the ratings give it credit for. The songs on their own are too weak to stand up to the other BB classics, but I think the album is so enjoyable and I love hearing the boys when they’re so young and, quite frankly, full of life. **

Ranking every Beach Boys song/album: “Little Deuce Coupe” album (by Songwriter Jim Fusco)

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By Jim Fusco:

ALBUM – LITTLE DEUCE COUPE

A Young Man is Gone – 6 (very beautiful sounding, but I was always a bit bored by it- don’t kill me, Mike!)
Little Deuce Coupe – 8
Be True to Your School (single version) – 4 (the only Beach Boys song I consistently skip past- I just never liked school enough to be “true” to it)
Be True to Your School (album cut) – (3)
No Go Showboat – 7 (love Brian’s great high voice here and the humor in Al’s lines)
Custom Machine – 7 (love the chorus and especially Mike’s bass singing!!)
Car Crazy Cutie – 6 (enjoyable)
Cherry, Cherry Coupe – 7 (I really like those chords and I love Dennis’ harmony part)
409 – 3 (never been a big fan of this song)
Our Car Club – 7 (I love the drums and vocal breaks! Also, really cool sounding)
Shut Down – 7
Spirit of America – 3 (not a big fan)
Ballad of Ole Betsy – 7 (great harmonies- the stereo separated vocals really show off the quality here)

*I love this album. To me, this is the happiest the Boys sounded on record. They are just so youthful and this album always reminds me of summer. The songs are great and the production, as minimalist as it is, just fits for these lighthearted songs about, well, cars! Plus, I always tell everyone it was the first “concept” album! Well, not really, I guess. Now, I was born in 1984, so any visions I have of the 60s come from the music I love. So, this album has always served as a window into that early 60s cars, girls, and teenage fun lifestyle that I never really got to replicate growing up in the 90s and 2000s. This album makes me reminiscent of a time that I wasn’t even alive! That’s pretty powerful stuff.*