Product Description

LITTLE DEUCE COUPE is arguably the first rock & roll concept album. Combining car songs from the Beach Boys' previous three albums with several new car-related numbers, it celebrates the simple joys of being a teenage automobile owner. Hitsingles "Little Deuce Coupe" and "Be True To Your School" showed that Brian Wilson was becoming a remarkably sophisticated producer, songwriter, and arranger. He had mastered the art of vocal arrangements, as shown by the spectacular five-part harmonies on "Spirit of America" and "A Young Man Is Gone", their touching tribute to James Dean. This is a fun, unpretentious evocation of a California summer.
On this disc, DEUCE COUPE is coupled with ALL SUMMER LONG. The sustained Number One success of the latter's "I Get Around" established the group as America's best hope against the Beatles' continued dominance of the airwaves. The already-elaborate vocal harmonies grow more lush, the melodies more far-ranging, as Brian's rich falsetto dominates the vocal mix on beautieslike "Girls On The Beach" and a hymn-like cover of the doo-wop classic "Hushabye". Wilson also masterfully streamlined his Phil Spector/Wall Of Sound influence so that a large multi-track L.A. studio production still sounds as if it's being produced by a small combo.

Track Listing

1. Little Deuce Coupe
2. Ballad Of Ole' Betsy
3. Be True To Your School
4. Car Crazy Cutie
5. Cherry Cherry Coupe
6. 409
7. Shut Down
8. Spirit Of America
9. Our Car Club
10. No Go Showboat
11. Young Man Is Gone
12. Custom Machine
13. I Get Around
14. All Summer Long
15. Hush A Bye
16. Little Honda
17. We'll Run Away
18. Carl's Big Chance
19. Wendy
20. Do You Remember
21. Girls On The Beach
22. Drive In
23. Our Favourite Recording Sessions
24. Don't Back Down
25. Be True To Your School (1)
26. All Dressed Up For School
27. Little Honda
28. Don't Back Down (1)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13967 in Music
• Released on: 2001-03-12
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Extra tracks, Original recording remastered

Customer Reviews

Cars and beaches are the main topics here
The first album of the two that make up this twofer, Little deuce coupe, is mostly about cars, while the second, All summer long, is mostly about the beach although cars also feature on that album. On both albums, I generally like the upbeat songs best.

Four of the songs on Little deuce coupe had appeared before - the title track, 409, Our car club and Shut down – but they fitted the theme of this album. The title track had originally been a B-side to another single (Surfer girl) and had also been released on the album album of the same title, yet it still became an American top twenty hit. 409, originally the B-side of Surfing safari, and Shut down, originally the B-side of Surfing USA, became lesser hits.

Of the other tracks on Little deuce coupe, Be true to your school is the original album version. Another, very different, version was recorded and released as a single. That version is included here as a bonus track. No-go showboat is an interesting album track – it was even covered by Petula Clark in French.

The second album, All summer long, opens with the American chart-topper I get around, which also gave the Beach boys their first British top ten hit. Surprisingly, the title track was never released as a single – the only other single from the album was the minor hit Little Honda. Wendy, another excellent song, was featured on a four-track EP. Don’t back down is another under-rated cut on this album.

The bonus tracks feature alternate versions of three songs plus All dressed up for school, a track that was not released at the time.

This twofer is an excellent example of the Beach boys’ early years, essential for all fans of their music.

Surf-rock at its finest.
Little Deuce Coupe is a car-themed concept album that has some good rock moments, such as "Car Crazy Cutie," "Cherry, Cherry Coupe," "No-Go Showboat," "A Young Man is Gone," and the album version of "Be True to Your School" (the single version is superior). The rest are mostly car classics from the previous three albums. This was a rushed record, but it stands pretty strong, if a bit corny.

All Summer Long is the pinnacle of surf-rock, with legendary cuts like the title track, "I Get Around," "Little Honda," "Don't Back Down," and astoundingly beautiful ballads, such as "We'll Run Away," "Girls on the Beach," "Wendy," and the cover of "Hushabye." "Drive-In" is also wonderful fun. "Do You Remember?" has fine music but suffers from poor lyrics, and "Our Favorite Recording Sessions" is simply a reel of outtakes, but these two cuts aren't nearly enough to damage such an impressive album.

Surpasses Beatles' Abbey Road
To discover an album that surpasses Abbey Road both musically and technically and then to realise that the album was made mere months after the release of 'Love Me Do' is a revelation. Little Deuce Coupe has ideas and performance that astonish almost four deacdes on. The songs, harmonies and musicianship equal anything the Beatles did later. I can hardly believe that I have lived so long without this album in my life. There are the Yesterdays, the Eleanor Rigbys and even the Strawberry Fields on this album. 1963? I still don't believe it. Mono too!!!