The Beach Boys Album: “Keepin' the Summer Alive/The Beach Boys '85”

Looks like I'll be the minority on this one. While I agree that KEEPIN' THE SUMMER ALIVE is one of the band's most lackluster (it's probably my 3rd least favorite in their catalogue),the self-titled 1985 BEACH BOYS reminded me that I enjoyed the group and renewed my interest in their older material when it came out back in the 80s, courtesy of "Getcha Back" (the single that returned the band to the Top 40).

The common thread between the 2 albums is that "big guns" were brought in on each one to try and push the band back onto the radio. In KEEPIN' THE SUMMER ALIVE's case, it was Bachman-Turner-Overdrive's Randy Bachman (he co-wrote on several songs and adds some guitar). Joe Walsh also guest appears. For BEACH BOYS it was pop hitmaker Steve Levine who tried to put an 80s production veneer on the band and brought along some high profile guests (Culture Club's Roy Hay, Stevie Wonder, Ringo Starr).

HIGHLIGHTS:

The title track for "Keepin' the Summer Alive" was a nicely rocking number with a catchy hook. "Goin' On" was a divorce survivor anthem from Brian with some nice group vocals. (It stalled at #83 as a single). "School Days", a Chuck Berry cover, was the rare GOOD cover from the band in their later years. They tack on a "dear old golden rule days" intro, sound excited vocally throughout, and have a genuinely good arrangement on this. "Some of your Love" is pretty infectious with a honkin' sax intro.

With the 1985 "Beach Boys", the band wanted to be seen as 80s hitmakers and with "Getcha Back" they managed to get back on the radio. The song combined some "Beach Boys sounding" vocal backings with a decent lyric courtesy of Mike Love and Terry Melcher and solid 80s production (yes it has digital drums..what DIDN'T in 1985??) and came up with a hit. The song still holds up well. The other one that made me buy this barely got any airplay but for the life of me I don't know why. "She Believes in Love Again" has a great lyric and SOUNDS even more "Beach Boys" than "Getcha Back". For my money, it's the best track on the disc. Carl's "Where I Belong" also stands out with its declaration that he doesn't need exotic climes as long as his true love's there beside him. It's an understated gem.

PITFALLS:

The affected Italian instrumentation on "When Girls Get Together" take a merely bad song over into awful. "Sunshine" and "Oh, Darlin'" are boring, and "Livin' with a Heartache"'s country twang feels out of place. As far as "Beach Boys" goes, there's plenty of misfires on the comeback. "Passing Friend" is a bland warning about backstabbers set aside by Boy George (who realized it wasn't worth recording). Brian should be ashamed of the lyric for "I'm So Lonely"..I can only hope that his guru Dr. Landy is responsible for some of that dreck. His voice sounds awful here, too. "Male Ego" is included as a 'bonus track' (but didn't appear on the original LP release)..the music is alright but the lyric is terrible. (Sample: "You look nice/What's your name?/You smell nice/What's your name?/I like you/What's your name?")

BOTTOM LINE:

If you just want the sole Top 40 hit ("Getcha Back") that's available on the SOUNDS OF SUMMER compilation. (ASIN B000093BDX) But before you do that, make sure you listen to the samples for "Where I Belong" and "She Believes in Love Again". If you like them, you need to buy this disc instead.

These are the last Beach Boys albums to feature Brian & Dennis Wilson, although Dennis is virtually non-existant on KTSA and sadly died before BB '85 came out. The undoubted highlight of both albums is Carl Wilson, and Where I Belong is his best song in years. Keepin' The Summer Alive, and It's Gettin' Late are both excellent tracks too. Brian's songs can best be described as not his best, but Goin' On and Male Ego are quite catchy. The production on both albums is not exactly great, and is very much of its time. The 1985 album especially has not aged well as a result. Overall I'd say that this CD is a worthwhile purchase, if only for Carl's songs.

The Carl Wilson cuts on THE BEACH BOYS are the real event here: "It's Gettin' Late," "Maybe I Don't Know," his exquisite vocal on Stevie Wonder's "I Do Love You," and his heart-breaking "Where I Belong." Listen without prejudice.

While neither of these albums are even close to being the group's finest, they aren't as terribly dismal as some make them out to be. Even though KEEPIN' THE SUMMER ALIVE is perhaps one of the group's most half-hearted efforts they've ever done, there are still some decent songs on there, including the title track and "Goin' On", which sounds suspiciously like a Queen song with it's rising harmonies. The 1985 album is much better, and perhaps the group's last strong effort before completely sinking into their stereotypical image with STILL CRUISIN' and "Kokomo". Despite the extremely 80's production (filled with synthesizers and one awful track written by Boy George), there are still some nice moments. "Getcha Back" is the best Love/Melcher collaboration (although that isn't saying much). Carl shines brightly with both "It's Gettin' Late" and the moving "Where I Belong". Ringo Starr plays drums on the fairly-catchy tribute to California, "California Calling".

It might be wise to save these albums for later and go with IN CONCERT, SUNFLOWER/SURF'S UP and CARL AND THE PASSIONS/HOLLAND first. Still, if you are a diehard Beach Boys fan, you will still manage to find some decent stuff on this twofer.

KEEPIN' THE SUMMER ALIVE was supposed to be a Brian led album, but he quit working after 2 days (which the excellent liner notes go into detail about). The others were so short of material they had to drop in the SUNFLOWER-reject "When Girls Get Together," which would be the lowpoint of the record if not for the sheer awfulness of "School Days." The rest of the album ranges from so-so to pretty good, but the whole thing pales next to the following, self-titled album, which is actually very entertaining and well worth the casual Beach Boys fan's attention. It starts with 2 excellent singles, and turns into a Carl Wilson showcase, and there's not a bad song among them! "Passing Friend" is a neat Culture Club-style tune (for the obvious reasons), and all the raves for "Where I Belong" are well founded. Its good that the group did an album in the 80's style. If they hadn't, we'd all be wondering how one would sound! Satisfy your curiosity and enjoy, after suffering thru KTSA.