Track Listing

1. Fun, Fun, Fun
2. Little Old Lady from Pasadena
3. Little Deuce Coupe
4. Long, Tall Texan
5. In My Room
6. Monster Mash
7. Let's Go Trippin'
8. Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow
9. Wanderer
10. Hawaii
11. Graduation Day
12. I Get Around
13. Johnny B. Goode
14. Darlin'
15. Wouldn't It Be Nice
16. Sloop John B
17. California Girls
18. Do It Again
19. Wake the World
20. Aren't You Glad
21. Bluebirds over the Mountain
22. Their Hearts Were Full of Spring
23. Good Vibrations
24. God Only Knows
25. Barbara Ann
26. Don't Worry Baby
27. Heroes and Villains

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #43696 in Music
• Brand: Beach
• Published on: 2001-01-01
• Released on: 2001-04-10
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Extra tracks, Live, Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .24 pounds

Amazon.com
Like virtually every band in the mid-'60s, the Beach Boys were expected to deliver their hits in person--no mean feat considering the ever more baroque concoctions that Brian Wilson was constructing in the studio. Tellingly, at the time the 1964 Concert was recorded in Beach Boys hotbed Sacramento, the band had but a few hits of their own and so they padded their set with Jan and Dean's "Little Old Lady from Pasadena" (cowritten by Brian), Dion's "The Wanderer," "Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow" by the Rivingtons, Bobby Pickett's "The Monster Mash," and, of course, Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode." The instrumental backing here is sparse and simplistic; it's the band's vocal interplay that carries the day before a throng of screaming fans. By the time the year was out, Brian suffered his first nervous breakdown and gave up touring to concentrate on his studio productions.

Live in London was culled from live shows recorded at a time (1968) when the band were virtual pop-cultural outcasts in their home country, but still enjoyed an enthusiastic following in England. These recordings document the Beach Boys' remarkable resilience in the face of Brian's deliberate distancing and their frigid American career prospects; when the going got tough, the tough got spectacularly professional. Augmented by a horn section, the band locks into a powerful groove, giving energetic, largely note-perfect versions of the expected hits along with some key album cuts. Digitally remastered, this long out-of-print twofer edition features commentary by David Leaf (The Beach Boys and the California Myth), as well as two bonus cuts: a 1964 concert rendition of "Don't Worry Baby" and a 1967 live version (from the unreleased Lei'd in Hawaii album) of the challenging "Heroes and Villains" that features a rare appearance by Brian Wilson performing with the band. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

Michael Stack is Wrong, These Are Grrrrreat and Here's Why!
What the hell does someone from Chelmsford know about surfing anyway? ;) These 2 albums give you a taste of both their Beatlemania-like phase in 1964 and their post Pet Sounds creative path. There is one song on here that makes the whole package worth buying and that is the special stereo live version of "I Get Around". It is the only way to hear that particular song in stereo and it sounds awesome- only missing Carl's solo in the middle. Don't knock them for "covering" "Little Old Lady From Pasadena" either! Brian not only wrote it he sang on it too- that's his falsetto on the original Jan and Dean recording. Same with "Surf City". And Mike Love still plays both with his touring Beach Boys and they both sounded great. It's great to hear the Beach Boys in their prime with all of the girls screaming and with Brian still on stage belting out the high notes. But it is also great to her the "Live In London" era as well... also sold as "Beach Boys'69". Carl soars on "Darlin'" and you get to hear some of that cool stuff from albums like "Friends" as well.

THIS IS A KEEPER...
Having had the Beach Boys "Live in London" recording as an LP in the nineteen seventies and loved it, I was delighted to see it available on CD and bought it to replace my now obsolete vinyl. The plus is that the CD includes the tracks from the Beach Boys first album to go number one, "Concert" (1964), in addition to the tracks from their live shows in London, circa 1968. The CD also two bonus tracks and a comprehensive liner.

This is a great CD. Listening to it makes one understand why the Beach Boys remain one of the most popular American groups of all time. It also contains my favorite song by them, "Darlin'", which I believe to be one of the best songs written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love. It is also the song that jump starts their "Live in London" segment of the CD.

Not all of the songs on this CD were written by the Beach Boys, but that does not detract from the quality. On the contrary, it is great to hear the Beach Boys with their signature sound, interpreting such classics as the Freshmen's "Graduation Day" and Dion's "The Wanderer."

If one could have only one Beach Boys CD, this would be it!

'64 Curio...and a swell late 60s concert outing
This twofer CD pairs a 1964 Sacramento, CA concert with post-Pet Sounds Beach Boys outings: "Live in London" was actually from an August 12,1968 Finsbury Park show and a December 1,1968 London Palladium show according to David Leaf's liner notes. If you've seen footage of early Beatles performances (suit era), you have a good idea what to expect on the 1964 show. Lots and lots and LOTS of hormone-fueled teen girl screaming (the notes point out that some vocals were re-recorded in studio because the singing was drowned out at times..). The sound quality on the London set is much better. I'll repeat another reviewer's critique of the sequencing...the 1964 bonus cut of "Don't Worry, Baby" would make more sense at the end of the 1964 material....instead of after the London set with the other bonus track.

HIGHLIGHTS:
"In My Room" comes out well in concert and the girls are more subdued making it one of the more listenable tracks. Surprisingly, a surf number I didn't find that interesting on the studio album COOKS here:"Let's Go Trippin'" is a tour-de-force for Carl and the band. "Fun,Fun,Fun" sounds near studio quality live, but for whatever reason (mastering error?) Mike Love sounds VERY nasal and highpitched.

On the English set, the live "Sloop John B" is reinvented with some frenetic energy into the 2nd chorus. Once you get past the annoying Mike intro, the live version of "Wake the World" is nice, keeping the harmony and melody while investing it with more energy than "Friends" studio version. If you ever doubted that the Beach Boys are great pure singers, the acappella rendition of the Four Freshmen's "Their Hearts were Full of Spring" should lay that to rest. The live "God Only Knows" succeeds thanks to an especially wonderful Carl vocal. "Barbara Ann" reminds us that the band can be a GREAT rock and roll act instead of just clever studiocraft.

LOW POINTS:
A completely over-the-top Mike Love on "Long Tall Texan". Did we NEED to hear the BB sing "Monster Mash?" (though they were clever enough to change the line about the "Crypt Kicker Five" to the "Beach Boy Five"). Their version of Jan and Dean's "Little Old Lady from Pasadena" is tepid. "Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow" is sabotaged by a bad vocal mix (WAY too much Mike) although Brian's high "papa-papa-ooooooh" nearly salvages it. "The Wanderer" won't make anyone forget Dion's version (I have to believe the girls are screaming for Dennis himself..and not his singing here...though that would improve down the line). Where on EARTH did the guitar solo go in "I Get Around"? Vocal mix on "Johnny B. Goode" REALLY sucks on my 1990 version (You can hardly HEAR the vocal, though I've heard it's cleaned up on the 2001 reissue).

The version of "Wouldn't it Be Nice" on "London" besmirches a classic.

BOTTOM LINE:
The first part of the disc is definitely diehards only...or for someone who actually saw them live at the time to recreate the experience. It's not for everyone. The London show holds up much better with the sound quality decent most of the time and some of the performances genuinely wonderful. If you find it at a good price, it's worth having, but if you're only getting ONE live show from the band, get the 1973 "In Concert" (ASIN B00004U66Q) instead.