Summer Days (And Summer Nights) [Mono & Stereo Remaster]

Brian Wilson was caught between his creative ambitions and his record label's narrow idea of what The Beach Boys were about. Culture was changing at such a rapid pace that it was nearly impossible for anyone not completely tuned into the era to comprehend what was happening. In an effort to placate the label with a fun-fun-fun album, Wilson wrote a good-natured response to The Ad Libs' hit "The Boy from New York City" with "The Girl…," and he tried his hand at being Phil Spector with "Then I Kissed Her." "Girl Don't Tell Me," with a Carl Wilson vocal, is a classic pop track that received a fantastic cover from The Smithereens two decades later. Al Jardine gave an extra boost to a re-recorded and improved version of "Help Me, Rhonda" that had previously appeared on Today!. The key track here, however, was "California Girls," with Brian Wilson's orchestrated introduction giving listeners a taste of what The Beach Boys would do with the following year's groundbreaking Pet Sounds.