The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds (2xLP, 45rpm, Stereo, QRP, Analogue Productions)

At that time hits for the medium wave radio were produced in Mono. The partly deafened Wilson was quite pleased with the mono recordings of that time. It's a fact that Wilson originally only delivered the first thirteen Beach Boys albums to Capitol Records in Mono, ready mixed. Brian Wilson paid the greatest attention to the Mono-Mixes and this dedication was worth it! Ten of the mono classics and best sounding Beach Boys titles have been selected by Acoustic Sounds and reproduced in all their great quality!

Nevertheless, the polyphonic harmonies and unique rhythms of hits like "Surfer Girl", "In My Room", "Little Deuce Coupe" and others are almost suitable for stereo recordings. That's why Acoustic Sounds releases the tracks, which were originally only released in mono, in first-class stereo mix versions as well.

Remastered, galvanized and pressed by Kevin Gray, mostly from the original master tapes, at Quality Record Pressings, one of the best pressing plants in the world, these are overwhelming productions. And the sight of each album matches its outstanding sound! They present themselves in old-school Stoughton covers with a hand-applied cover, recognizable by the typical folding, so that these time-honoured LP classics are even more impressive than in the original!

"Pet Sounds" is famous for the multi-layered use of unorthodox instrumentation as well as for the very modern audio technology unusual at the time. It is considered the best Beach Boys album, and also one of the best of the sixties ever. The group had reached a whole new level, both in composition and production form, by superimposing layer upon layer of vocal and instrumental voices to achieve a rich symphonic sound. Conventional keyboards and guitars were combined with exotic string orchestra sounds, bicycle bells, humming organs, harpsichords, flutes, theremin, Hawaiian sounding string instruments, Coca-Cola cans, barking dogs and more.

It wouldn't have become a classic without great songs, but this record contains some of the group's greatest melodies, as well as lyrical themes that let you feel the intensity of fresh love affairs and the disappointment of failed romances (add a few general statements about the loss of innocence and the confusion of modern times). The spiritual quality of the material is further enriched by the ravishing male vocals in higher tones (especially from Brian and Carl Wilson) ever heard on a rock LP.

"Wouldn't It Be Nice", "God Only Knows", "Caroline No" and "Sloop John B" (the latter of which wasn't originally supposed to be included in this album) are the well known hits, but "You Still Believe in Me", "Don't Talk", "I Know There's an Answer" and "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" are completely equal. It is often said that this would be more of a Brian Wilson album than one of the Beach Boys (session musicians have recorded most of the songs) but it has to be said that the harmonies are pure Beach Boys music (the best there is of them).

VH-1 named "Pet Sounds" the No. 3 among the top hundred rock'n'roll albums in history, a verdict reached by a survey of musicians, music industry managers and journalists. Several music magazines even rank it number one on their respective lists of the one hundred best albums out there, including NME, The Times and Mojo Magazine. It ranks second on the list of Rolling Stones 500 biggest albums.

Recording: in Mono

AllMusic rating: