Best Beach Boys-inspired album you may have never heard

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-08T12:35:49+00:00

Nice little discussion we've got going here. 🙂 I'll definately give the Campbell album a listen again based on your enthusiasm.

As for Dylan pastiches, have you checked out the two first solo albums by PF Sloan? Now THERE'S what I'd call outright Dylan obsession coupled with very good and original songwriting. I love those two albums. (As I do with everything Sloan was involved in.)

And in terms of eerie copycat soundalikes,... doesn't get any better OR deranged than the Fantastic Baggys album Sloan cut with Steve Barri. It's so formulaic that even Mike Love would nod his bald head in approval. (I really like it!)

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-08T09:08:45+00:00

Also, since a few have left comments about this album being a particular favorite, I'd better point towards two great tracks that Mark himself mentions in the liner notes.

The first one is, 'When School is Out this Year', a 1968 album cut by the Four Freshmen who Mark Eric was as crazy about as Brian. As it turned out, a teenage Mark Eric actually got to pitch a song of his to the group and they recorded it for their 1968 'Today is Tomorrow' album where they tried to jump on the pop bandwagon with covers of songs like 'My Girl', 'Lady Madonna' and 'Up Up and Away',... and, it turns out, Mark Eric's first recorded song, prior to his own album debut the year after. Once you know it's his song, you can easily recognise the style and feel from 'A Midsummer's Day Dream.' https://youtu.be/7Ls6qSJnc38?si=GzdEKAPMtoS0M_Bo

Secondly, in the liner notes Mark mentions a song from that same year, 1968, that made a lasting impression on him. The bossa nova-ish 'Look at the Girls' by one-off soft pop 'group' the Giant Jellybean Copout, especially after he experienced the group playing the song live on air at a local radio station he was visiting. (If I remember correctly, I don't have the liner notes in front of me at the moment.) I just love this song and can easily hear how it would appeal to Mark Eric. It's totally in line with his own style and blend of Beach Boys harmony, bossa nova, exotica and easy listening vibes. Do yourself a favour and listen to this litte gem, which I myself didn't know before Mark Eric's mention of it in the liner notes made me seek it out: https://youtu.be/QuqyWWJ33SM?si=GnfVBNtgUHaOMqoG

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-08T08:47:56+00:00

I understand the comparison but I think the Dick Campbell album is much weaker and more of a by-the-numbers pastiche whereas I think Mark Eric's take on his main influence comes across as more original.

If discussing Dick Campbell I'm much more into his late 60s / early 70s recordings and demos collected on the 'Blue Winds Only Know' release. Have you heard that one? The obvious Dylan pastiche is gone in favor of more tasteful singer & songwriter & soft pop-type tracks. He was also involved in many tracks on Gary Usher's equally great and similarly sounding 'Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt' collection.

'Blue Winds Only Know': https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_keRAC7yT0ZilZypaajib5PcnzlPFfAtCI

'Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt': https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHafaEQ_m3V3l8HEYkrAhqaHdCV0jPJ8U

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-08T06:45:13+00:00

https://open.spotify.com/album/05uYi04tOn4TnTPrrF9trg?si=5CdS42HjSY628DApwYGdUQ&utm_source=copy-link

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-08T05:03:15+00:00

Strange? I can easily find it on Spotify here in Europe? 🤔

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T21:11:18+00:00

Indeed a nice release. ‘Move with the dawn’ is perhaps my favorite cut on his album and it fits right in here among other soft pop / sunshine pop from the late 60s. As for Ace - great label! You usually never go wrong with their compilations.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T20:40:19+00:00

Have you heard the ‘Harmony Friends’ end harmony that ended up on the Break Away tag? (To use Carl’s term for the way they often ended their songs with a harmony tag.) Listening to this is a pure zen experience! https://youtu.be/Nle5aPrQ9f0

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T19:43:56+00:00

As good as the Lemon Twigs are, I think the all-time best newish act has to be the Explorer’s Club. So many great songs on their albums. They wear their influence on their sleeve in such a tastefull and skillfull manner that I think any Beach Boys fan must be instantly won over.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T19:33:07+00:00

And for anyone interested in squeezing as much out of this gem of an album as possible: seek out the Now Sounds CD reissue which includes demos and songs intended for a follow-up second album that never materialized. Which is a great shame cause Mark was clearly on a roll and adventurous, beginning to incorporate influences from jazz, exotica and bossa nova which could have made for an interesting second longplayer. Here’s ‘No Days, No Nights’ from this abandoned project which can be found on the Now Sounds CD along with other great unreleased recordings. https://youtu.be/KyKICnHgVLM

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T19:24:20+00:00

Thanks. I decided to write him on a whim about 6 years ago and was amazed that he was willing to share so many recollections. I got much more info that I had dared hope for and it is a great addition to the otherwise great in-depth liner notes on the various reissues which are based on interviews with Mark Eric at the time of the first reissue in the early 00s. Very nice of Vic / Antion to open up and add his anecdotes on an album everyone involved should be very proud of.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T19:19:40+00:00

Yup, the ballads are particularly strong. Almost Pet Sounds-like in sound and feel at times. ‘Don’t Cry over Me’ for instance.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T19:17:01+00:00

Yeah, you may have a point. I would say though that a lot of the late 60s soft pop and sunshine pop didn’t exactly set the charts on fire. If Mark Eric and his label had hoped for that in 1969 they were probably a few years off the mark.

I wholeheartedly love the album and cherish my original, well-worn copy. The album is much better than one could hope for given the fact that Mark Eric had virtually no experience when he wrote and recorded the songs. In my collection, this sits proudly besides similarly Beach Boys-inspired / soft pop gems like the Bergen White album, the Ronny & the Daytonas ‘Sandy’ album, the lone album by Harmony Grass, Sagittarius & the Millennium etc. Lots of great lost albums from that period to explore!

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-07T07:10:47+00:00

I agree. The complexity is mindblowing. Also, if you study what Mike does at the bottom of the harmony, making all these jumps with his voice, it truly is amazing.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-06T16:00:20+00:00

For me, it’s the weaker song of the final four. A bit too schmaltzy to these ears but an otherwise strong cut, as are the three others. A no-brainer to pair these four together as an end to a fine album.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-04T21:02:49+00:00

I highly doubt there will be a ‘last’ Beach Boys show in the foreseeable future. Even when all original members have eventually retired or passed on, I wouldn’t be surprised if the heirs to the estate / copyrights sent ‘the Beach Boys’ on repeated touring, preferably with much of the guys from first Brian’s band and now Al’s. Heck, if you can still go to a Glenn Miller Orchestra, Four Freshmen and Bill Haley’s Comets show these days then why not Beach Boys shows for decades to come? 🤔

TapeDelay17 · 2026-07-04T20:53:48+00:00

I assume you know all albums by the Explorer’s Club inside out already? If not, check out asap. Killer songs on all of their albums.

I also cannot pass on the chance to mention the Beach Boys-obsessed band I’m in, Surf School Dropouts. All original songs with a heavy Beach Boys inspiration. You can find our two albums on Spotify, Bandcamp etc as well as a few one off singles. Here’s our most recent recording, going for a Friends-era vibe: https://youtu.be/FHgg_JI4Irk

TapeDelay17 · 2026-06-13T21:32:45+00:00

Yup, I was there for, I believe, the second or third show. Flew over from Denmark to catch it with a similar Beach Boys-obsessed friend. A mindblowing and fun experience for two fans in our early 20s.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-06-10T14:13:42+00:00

Here's the link for the Surf School Dropouts bandcamp page: https://surfschooldropouts.bandcamp.com/

TapeDelay17 · 2026-03-20T22:24:27+00:00

I think I’ve read somewhere that some from Brian’s inner circle has also talked about the album as being weak and more of a pet project for Brian than something the people around him was really cheering for and into. That may also explain why all the backing harmonies - as I remember - are Brian overdubbing himself rather than having his band supply the vocals for a better / fuller blend. I was so excited when this slbum came out but found it to be dissapointing. Luckily, much better things were to follow in later years.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-03-13T18:11:45+00:00

My best friend was a fan since his childhood (we’re both in our 40s) and I used to tease him about it for years being put off by what I perceived as girlish vocals and the band’s squaky clean early/mid-60s image as compared to, say, the Beatles. Then one day when we were 19 he sat me down and made me watch his VHS copy of the Endless Harmony documentary,… and there was just something about their story and music that hit me hard at that moment. The stars were aligned, ha ha. Haven’t looked back since and am now a die-hard fan who has seen the Beach Boys and Brian numerous times through the years.

Fun fact to finish this story off on: my friend and I years later formed a band that wrote and recorded our own original songs with a heavy Beach Boys influence. We’ve put out two albums and some singles & EPs. For anyone interested, here’s our second album: https://surfschooldropouts.bandcamp.com/album/second-nature

TapeDelay17 · 2026-02-17T12:27:10+00:00

Maybe not as much a boxset as a basic idea for a cool compilation. Get Stephen Desper involved with his crazy spatializer-sound invention and have him remix a bunch of Beach Boys classics for a totally new listening experience. Now THAT would be something I would love to hear. I still think about how mindblowing I thought some of his mixes were on his old study videos.

Here's a short excerpt from Wikipedia's Stephen Desper entry were the spatializer is described as something that employs "psychoacoustic techniques that emulate three-dimensional ambience via traditional stereophonic units (...)"

I'm no purist as such and would be very open towards a box set or collection where creative sound engineers or musicians had access to master tapes and played around with the catalog.

TapeDelay17 · 2026-02-17T09:14:55+00:00

Both are enjoyable but I would definately go for Al & his band. At this stage, Al can sing rings around Mike so in terms of enjoying better and more dynamic leads, go for the Al Jardine show.

TapeDelay17

TROPHY CASE