The Beach Boys Albums Ranked

The Beach Boys are an American rock band formed in Hawthorne, California in 1961. The group’s original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by their vocal harmonies and early surf songs, they are one of the most influential acts of the rock era. The band drew on the music of jazz-based vocal groups, 1950s rock and roll, and black R&B to create their unique sound, and with Brian as composer, arranger, producer, and de facto leader, they often incorporated classical elements and unconventional recording techniques in innovative ways. They have sold over 100 million records worldwide, making them one of the world’s best-selling bands of all time, and are ranked number 12 on Rolling Stone magazine’s 2004 list of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”. Their influence spans musical genres and movements such as psychedelia, power pop, progressive rock, punk, alternative, and lo-fi. The core quintet of the three Wilsons, Love, and Jardine was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. Here are all of The Beach Boys albums ranked.

Don’t miss out the music of this American rock band. Click below and enjoy their timeless songs.

10. Smiley Smile (1967)

“The harmonies come sailing through like voices from heaven. Listen to the harmonies on “Vegetables,” “Little Pad,” “With Me Tonight,” and “Whistle In” and you’ll see what I mean. There are subtle touches in the vocals I never detected before, something I did not expect for an album I’ve been listening to since 1967! Brian’s genius at not only composing but for devising harmonies is beautifully shown on this album. Best of all, of course, is “Heroes and Villains,” Brian and Van Dyke Parks’ masterpiece of SMILE and this album, too.”

9. Summer Days and Summer Nights (1965)

“While the songs themselves deal with themes explored on their earlier albums, Summer Days has the production values of Today and Pet Sounds. The songs themselves sound simple but if you are a musician sit down & try to play them without sheet music. That’s part of the genius of this album. As far as this version goes. The stereo version is not any real improvement over the two-fer version from years back. The mono version is very good for people who don’t listen vinyl but doesn’t come close to the recent Analogue Productions l.p. version.”

8. All Summer Long (1964)

See more: George Harrison Albums Ranked

“This has 3 eternal classics on it. “I get around” “wendy’ And ” all summer long’ plus many other good melodic songs from 1964 that still sound fresh today! The beach boys were always a fun band and this stuff will put a smile on your face. You get the mono and stereo mixes here, I have the other version that is only mono , And I must say I like this music much better in stereo.

7. Friends (1968)

“Like other recent, historical Beach Boy releases, this collection from the “Friends” sessions has alternate takes, vocals-only tracks. instrumental backing tracks, demos and a few other pieces previously unknown to me. Everything here is brief, pretty much in the same vein as the original album. Most enjoyable for me are the vocals-only tracks – showing off just how spectacularly the group sang.”

6. The Smile Sessions (2011)

“Ever since the new Beach Boy’s Smile Sessions came out in 2011. I’ve stayed loyal to the BW ’04 Smile for it’s clean production & finished lyrics… UNTIL NOW! A friend had this on vinyl, Mono vinyl, & it blew me away! Just made me question everything! Though it’s not as “Finished” as the ’04 Smile, the open spaces with just background vocals & the Wrecking Crew’s stellar accompaniment sound perfect and gives the whole album space to breathe. And THOSE VOICES! This album is a pure masterpiece. I still love Brian’s 2004 Smile but the Smile Sessions on vinyl is one of my favorite albums of all time.”

5. Wild Honey (1967)

“Carl Wilson’s passionate lead vocals is one of the driving forces behind this record. The two R&B-inflected singles, the title track and the more popular “Darlin”, are the most obvious examples. But it’s also the indelible melodies and stripped-down arrangements on every track that bring this together like no other Beach Boys record has ever done. It doesn’t try to be other than what it is, a great record of fun, humor and warmth. Keyboards dominate the instrumentation and this spare approach provides an ideal setting for the vocals.”

See more: John Lennon Albums Ranked

4.Sunflower (1970)

“Sunflower is unquestionably the beach boys last truly Great album (surf ups is good but patchy). This is Great all the way through, the favourite has to be Dennis Wilson glorious Forever. a song as good as anything Brian Wilson wrote. The best song is Forever although I think Deidre and Add Some Music To Your Day are also great.”

3. The Beach Boys Today! (1965)

“The Beach Boys Today! is absolutely among Brian Wilson’s strongest productions and clearly, production-wise, points the way to the masterpiece Pet Sounds. The album is full of great tunes, with a lead vocal from every Beach Boy except Carl Wilson. In terms of Beach Boys canon – or rock canon in general – The Beach Boys Today! is a MUST.”

2. Surf’s Up (1971)

“My dad had this album back in 1971, when it first came out, and it’s nice to finally find it on a remastered CD after having it on vinyl. This is one of their best albums to date, They were staying away from the Surf-style of music they were known for and it’s got nice songs on it including “Disney Girls (1957)” & my favorite “Take A Load Off Your Feet”. Plus “Feel Flows”which was featured in the ending credits of the movie “Almost Famous”. Can’t get no better than this.”

1. Pet Sounds (1966)

“This may just be the greatest LP ever recorded ! The multi layers of music and vocals is astounding . I have listened to Pet Sounds countless times and I never tire of the beautiful music. And it has the song “God Only Knows ” , which in my opinion, is a masterpiece . Good listening !!”