The WORST Album EVER?!!.... How Bad is it?

[@drewgeraci8434]

Those poor girls having to pretend to like the song for video. They should get combat pay.

[@StonefieldJim4]

🤣

[@chuckschillingvideos]

Having to hang out with Mike Love, in and of itself, qualifies them for combat pay.

[@davidrobertson5996]

"This is a festering dog turd of an album" - come off the fence and tell us how you really feel :-)

[@RogueReplicant]

Along with "this excremental offering", lol 😊

[@davidrobertson5996]

@@RogueReplicant It was one of the best reviews I've seen in a while! Glad I wasn't drinking my coffee when he said that!

[@jimwalshonline9346]

Mike Love "pimped out" the band...nailed it...

[@richsackett3423]

Actually, he outright stole the band.

[@brotherWesley]

Mike Love seriously misunderstood what it was that made the Beach Boys matter. He had absolutely no shadow of a clue that Paul McCartney's respect for his cousin Brian didn't particularly extend to Brian's brothers, let alone a fortunate cousin. Mike's longevity has become tedious, his ego as embarrassing as his delusions of relevance.

[@REM1956]

Boy, you nailed it on all accounts. I couldn't agree more.

[@deselby3421]

And his political "activism"is a disgrace to the Beach Boys legacy.

[@harvey1954]

Disagree on the Wilson brothers. They moved out of Brian's shadow in the 70s and wrote some decent stuff.

[@StephenHankins]

Positively dreadful album

[@BuJammy]

@@harvey1954 "decent"

[@2ToneWalt]

Mike Love has done a fantastic job of tarnishing the name and credibility of the Beach Boys.

[@lpquagmire3621]

He sure has!

[@shamilton2556]

I met Mike Love in London earlier in the year and told him my favourite album was Summer In Paradise. He eyed me suspiciously, then offered a fistbump. I felt like I betrayed all of music as I returned the bump.

[@octurn]

And let me guess. After meeting Mike Love you turned the corner and bumped into Carl Palmer.

[@shamilton2556]

@@octurn i dont make a habit of meeting controversial band members. They were book signing and I couldn't bring myself to say what amazing work you were a part of. But I wanted the book.

[@ackerjawaka1966]

You did but at least you know what you did and will behave better in the future 😜

[@shamilton2556]

H​ey @@ackerjawaka1966! How do you know I don't love the album?! Ok, ok, I'll be better behaved when Bruce comes to town.

[@ackerjawaka1966]

@@shamilton2556 lol 😂 😂 😂 nice retort ⚡

[@TZ1000-zu7ki]

I'm a huge Beach Boys fan, so I bought this when it came out. You are too kind to it. It is truly the worst piece of garbage ever released by a major act. I've only been able to listen to it twice. The second time just to prove to myself it was as truly horrible as I thought it was on first listen. I am embarrassed for Carl Wilson and Al Jardine for being involved with it. If any more proof were needed to demonstrate conclusively Mike Love's total lack of artistic vision and creativity, this album is it.

[@JaceyMitchell]

@@TZ1000-zu7ki Honestly not wanting to tarnish Carl's memory would be a perfectly valid reason for why this has never been reissued or made available on streaming platforms like Spotify.

[@KevinOshea-wt2ps]

And I'll bet Brian Wilson wasn't on it

[@johnlorinc2081]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again......calling Summer in Paradise a dumpster fire is an insult to the fine infernos that come from large metal trash bins. Great video once again!

[@111Benzie]

Yeah--like that rates as the worst album when you got all those overrated, in with the critic's records.

[@dj71162]

The Beach Boys have a legitimate claim to having made the best and worst albums of all time. That is pretty impressive. I think it's also worth noting that Brian has almost 0 involvement in this one. As for Mike, I don't think there's a County Fair in the US he hasn't performed at.

[@jaex9617]

Hey, fifty bucks is fifty bucks.

[@jasnostj]

Not "almost 0". Just 0.

[@orbyfan]

Brian's only connection was as the writer of "Surfin'." The version on "Summer in Paradise" gets my vote as the musical low point in the Beach Boys' history. Brian wasn't listed as a member of the group in the liner notes.

[@wallypinter7883]

Best & worst, great observation 👍

[@VI-rt7sh]

This album is a reminder that some truly terrifying stuff occurs when friends and loved ones fail to say "No, please don't. That's a terrible idea."

[@RogueReplicant]

Even when they do, it's like, "No, please don't, no, no, just don't, Mike, hey, look at me, don't do it, Michael, listen..." Egomaniac: Nah, it'll be fine, the fans will love it.

[@JaceyMitchell]

Mike Love has friends? That's a bold assumption if ever I heard one.

[@H-OhmStudios]

I hear that the album was so bad that Charles Manson finally canceled the decades-long fatwa against the Beach Boys and Melchior.

[@jaex9617]

He was in prison by then and feeling pretty good about not having access to this album.

[@GoNorthDesign]

Discovering 'Summer In Paradise' is like finding a used condom washed up on the coast of California's Big Sur: At first you're appalled, and then you consider... well, someone must've had fun with this. I found a $5 used copy on CD at my local pawn shop ages ago, and I've heard they made less than 10,000 of them worldwide; maybe less than 5,000, by some accounts.

[@ndogg20]

"... well, someone must've had fun with this. " Summed up brilliantly!

[@theasphaltworld849]

Unfortunately, that "someone" happened to be Mike Love going solo.

[@orbyfan]

Its colossal commercial failure had the ironic effect of making it one of the Beach Boys' most collectible items.

[@scottrodman802]

Coney Island white fish

@@orbyfan Somehow I doubt that.

[@davidjacovelli5986]

I'll give you three reasons why I think you're wrong about this album. 1). I'm unreasonable 2). I'm absurd and 3). I have no idea what I'm talking about.

[@mercster]

You have me convinced. 😏

[@bluesrocker91]

This guy's making a lot of sense... I propose we make him our leader.

[@JWD1992]

4) I'm Mike Love.

[@shizuokaBLUES]

Donald…. Is that you !?

[@SPSteve]

Haha. I figured the Beach Boys were done in 1967. Good Vibrations was the end of The Beach Boys for me. I still liked their earlier surfing and hotrod songs, but I'd moved on to The Doors, Hendrix, Cream, etc.

[@gerrylambert5225]

Your age is showing You old rocker

[@michaeldaley5831]

From friends in 68 to Holland in 73,they made great albums,Where Carl & Dennis,showed that they had enormous talent.I saw them tour summer in paradise at Wembley,great as usual,I liked the album cover,& yes,the albums an embarrassment,but I have heard worse in the passed,including Lou reeds Metal music.

[@TranceMasterJack]

Metal Machine Music is a zen masterpiece. Side 3 is the best.

[@gerrylambert5225]

@@TranceMasterJack Each to their own I use to like the Partridge family before I heard Lou Reed

[@SPSteve]

@@gerrylambert5225 I am old, that is a fact

[@tendraftsdeep]

Surf! Summer! Album sounds like an episode of Beverly Hills 90210

[@lonestar6709]

Or Baywatch, for that matter! Oh that's right.....

[@SpaceCattttt]

How dare you insult the treasure that is Beverly Hills 90210!

[@noblesavage23]

Van Morrison's Contractual Obligation Album gets my vote.

[@robgronotte1]

No, that album is amazing! I can just never figure out if my favorite song from it is "Blow In Your Nose" or "Nose In Your Blow". 🤣

[@victorhawkins3461]

Hmmm...lessee...there's the M.I.U. album, L.A., Still Cruisin'...need we continue? Anything that begins with "Mike Love" has already started its trip downhill.

[@dj71162]

Have you heard "Big Sur" off the Holland album? He has written some good songs.

[@victorhawkins3461]

@@dj71162 Had the album since its original release. I stand by what I -- and many others -- have said. You are, of course, entitled to your own opinions.

[@TheOverlordOfProcrastination]

MIU and LA have some stunning tracks on them. A few crap ones, admittedly - but that’s the case with most albums. But although Mike Love’s voice is a great part of the classic vocal sound he has always behaved like a prat on stage.

[@rickvandijk]

@@TheOverlordOfProcrastination Agreed, it’s too easy to just discard any post Pet Sounds output. Holland, 20/20, Friends, Love You, Surf’s Up are great albums. And MIU and L.A. have their moments too. It’s a pity Mike Love’s terrible reputation put such a blemish on The Beach Boys brand. But if you put all of that crap aside, 70s Beach Boys is pretty good.

[@jasnostj]

L.A. doesn't receive the credit that it deserves. It starts of with an excellent song by Brian and Carl, contains Dennis's last ever output which is among his best, and has some great songs by Carl too. The songs by Mike and Al are not bad at all. Bruce's 11-minute disco version of Here Comes The Night is maybe not everybody's cup of tea, but it's a historical landmark, a lot of fun and really well produced. And it closes with the equally historical, only official release of Brian's quintessential 1970s oddity, Shortening Bread. Even the album sleeve has a front side that is apt and pretty, and a back side that is weird and creepy. The whole thing is a classic of their late period.

[@SpaceCattttt]

Oh, it's an atrocious album, but I'd rather listen to it on repeat for eternity than anything by Ed Sheeran, Harry Styles or Justin Bieber...

[@brotherWesley]

@@SpaceCattttt Good point, but eternity makes for several million repeats, and I'm afraid I won't be able to join you there in hell's den of ultimate torture.

[@SpaceCattttt]

@@brotherWesley Eternity has no number. A few million repeats is just enough to get the party started. Why can't you join me? I can see why you wouldn't want to, but there's nobody keeping you out...

Hmm...not much of a choice there.

[@SpaceCattttt]

Enough to make a point.

[@johnhoran9840]

Or ANYTHING in the rap/hip-hop genre.

[@bendarker25]

It's not the worst album ever. The worst album ever is, Anne Frank The Music For Today (2004). 22 young people from Lincolnshire, with the guidance of five professional music producers made an album based on the Anne Frank exhibition. Track listing 1. Dark Eyes 2. Wrong Time Wrong Place 3. What Have We Done? 4. Child Free/Tree of Hope 5. Music is My Freedom 6. In Spite of Everything 7. Two Years 8. Concentration 9. I Just Wanna Play 10. Sit and Hope TRIGGER WARNING FOR TRACK 11 😂 11. Jews Blues Yeah. Worst. Album. Ever.

[@VI-rt7sh]

I thought you were joking, but after a quick Google search... Oh good Lord.

[@NewhamMatt]

I'm up to Track 5. Track 1 is ok, Track 2 is forgivable when you realise it's made by a bunch of kids and then... The highest praise I can give this is that Frank Zappa would have liked it.

[@Jedders1968]

Sounds like it is going to be dreadful. Don't know it but will check it out! Thanks! 👍

[@zanti4132]

Well, it wasn't easy, but I made it through the whole album. The standout track has to be the last one, "Jews Blues." It's an upbeat number sung by a kid who appears to be doing a bad impression of Louie Armstrong, with catchy lyrics like "aw, aw, we're dyin'. All the Jews are dyin'." I highly recommend it.

[@theelliottline3637]

Like a lot of bad music, a lot of this is boring, really boring. But 'Jew's Blues' is like driving past a fatal car crash. You shouldn't stare but you can't help it. Mad lyrics-'Don't know why but Hitler does not like us!' Really has to heard to be believed.

[@mootbooxle]

The horrible drums courtesy of Jim Keltner on the E-Mu SP-1200 sampling drum machine…I give Keltner, a studio stalwart, major credit for changing with the times and embracing electronics in the 80s. But ugh. I have always loathed this album!

[@DragonGrafx-16]

How do you make such a legendary sampling drum machine sound so bad? lol

[@andrewwarrenmusicnz4373]

Anyone who owned the original CD will know the only redeeming feature was the fact that the case was almost impossible to open. Yep so bad it needed a child proof lid.

[@orbyfan]

I bought a cassette copy, which in Canada was released on the Attic label.

[@andrewwarrenmusicnz4373]

​@@orbyfan I still have trouble opening the CD case. Not that I do that very often. I've only kept it to keep my Beach Boys collection complete.

[@RogueReplicant]

​@@andrewwarrenmusicnz4373 It's a good omen! The music gods are protecting your hearing 😊

[@111Benzie]

You don't know what you are talking about.

[@andrewwarrenmusicnz4373]

@@111Benzie I know the CD came in a case with a complicated latching design. I own a copy. And I know by Beach Boys standards (my favoutite band) it is a very poor effort. So sorry I don't know what YOU'RE talking about.

[@jhillst]

While I won't refute most of Mike Love's well-documented faults, I don't think he was completely useless to the Beach Boys. To his credit, he did write some very good lyrics (Warmth of the Sun, Big Sur, All This is That...and his revised lyrics to Good Vibrations are much better than Tony Asher's original set), and while he had none of the vocal range of his bandmates, he did have a distinctive tone that worked perfectly on some songs, and his deep baritone was a nice addition to their vocal harmonies. But that aside, yeah, he's pretty much an asshole.

[@anthonyclarke5579]

It could have been worse...Melcher might have brought in Manson.

[@mondoenterprises6710]

Probably would have been an improvement, lol.

[@earlgrey691]

@@mondoenterprises6710 Beat me to it lol.

[@seed_drill7135]

@@mondoenterprises6710 I'll listen to Lie over this any day.

[@mikem3695]

Ironic that Melcher's connection to Manson was through one of the Beach Boys.

[@UsEr-839djsjwo68]

Actually, Manson wasn't all that bad. If he hadn't gone on to become a mass murderer, he'd have been a big music star.

[@tussk.]

The Beach Boys are one of a long line of 60's bands who captured a moment, and then spent the rest of thier lives trying to re-live it, with increasingly poor and uninspiring results. The belligerent nostalgia of thier original fanbase carried them through otherwise indifferent times, and none of them realised that nobody wanted or needed to hear Kokomocodamol apart from that one loudmouth, berating the youth about how they had real music back in his day. Mike Love is the equivalent of Yoko Ono; a hack, getting by on his out dated association with real and genuine talent.

[@jammininthepast]

Truly wretched. Bill Wyman can relax, this record outshines Wymans 'Monkey Grip' as the worst collection of vinyl excrement ever. I'd rather have a root canal then listen to Mike Love ever-forever. Thanks brother, you're appreciated.

[@mondoenterprises6710]

Yeah, I drew the line at that album. Funny how each of Brian's solo lps from this time on are not that bad.

[@loboblanco4426]

"Mike Love unashamedly pisses on the band's creative spark". Spectacular!

[@rickvandijk]

I love The Beach Boys. It’s a shame they are often derided for the -admittedly- terrible stuff they made. Post Pet Sound albums like 20/20, Friends, Holland, Surf’s Up and particularly Beach Boys Love You are really great. It’s too bad their reputation got so tarnished by the Mike Love shenanigans and Brian Wilson’s mental issues. It undermined the quality of music they were capable of and did put out. So forget all that, put on Holland and just listen without prejudice.

[@portcullis5622]

Elton John's 1980 disco album 'Victim of Love' springs to mind (especially when you consider the dozen or so albums that preceeded it).

[@Wayner71]

We all know somebody like Mike Love.. I've been trying to avoid them all my life.

[@poliziagrammaticale9430]

"A bevy of bikini beauties" I appreciate your witty alliterations.

[@davemurrell8810]

And not a bikini in sight,as far as I could tell. Only Guantanamo color one-pieces. Would a “Gaggle of Gurning Girliesl” be a better fit?

[@basswars7060]

Mike Love is to music like Kathleen Kennedy is to Star Wars.

[@toddrorick117]

Steer clear of anything that fart did as a solo outing. Stars & Stripes was a BB duets LP with country acts. It’s a vomit bucket as well.

[@guitarhole]

I'm still trying to figure out why "Pet Sounds" is held on such a high pedestal. The Beach Boys have some good tracks, but I don't consider any of their albums to be "killer".

[@snarfusmaximus]

It's a very unpopular opinion and one that I agree with. I have given Pet Sounds several listens and didn't think much of it. Yeah, it's okay but I'd rate "Revolver" light years ahead of it.

[@eaglebauer944]

Pet Sounds is overrated.

[@albanana683]

I agree, Pet Sounds has some good individual tracks, but is nothing like a concept album as many seem to portray.

[@harvey1954]

You're not listening completely.

[@harvey1954]

@@eaglebauer944 Okay, whatever you say.

[@dwaynejessome1728]

I'll have to take your word on that particular Beach Boys album = However - I nominate Ted Nugent - Shutup & Jam. The cheese factor could not be higher and the guitars couldn't be more generic. Contains classics like I Love My BBQ (I love my barbecue, it's what Americans do) brilliant lyrics...

[@Supremor-tj9dv]

Good show Barry. Never heard that album but I don’t think I’m missing anything. The Beach Boys ended for me with Surf’s Up though I did like Getcha Back and their California Dreamin’ cover as exceptions.

[@Uetti]

You didn't like Holland?

[@JaceyMitchell]

Rumor has it Mike Love originally wanted to title this album "Mike Love's Beach Boys in Mike Love's Summer In Paradise, starring Mike Love"

[@harvey1954]

Doesn't even have his sister, Darlene, singing on it either.

[@BazookaToe]

As a Beach Boys fan I’m proud to say I’ve never listened to it. I’m also very sad to have heard the snippets you played. Long live Brian Wilson.

[@DawnSuttonfabfour]

Weird Al Jardine

[@theflyintheointment]

It’s a terrible album, but my vote goes to Cut The Crap by The Clash. Tinny, out of sync and out of time drum machines that clearly nobody knew how to use, ghastly synthetic horns and totally random synth stabs, brain dead lyrics, oi! style football terrace chant choruses in EVERY SINGLE SONG….the album is completely unlistenable. ‘Summer In Paradise’ and the other albums mentioned in the comments are awful, but not to the extent they have been almost completely airbrushed from bands’ histories, like Cut The Crap has (apart from the song ‘This Is England’, which is quite good I admit). Ok Mick and Topper had been sacked by the time Cut The Crap came out, but it is still technically a Clash album, and for an album to be practically airbrushed out of a band’s history is to the extent Cut The Crap has is virtually unprecedented. I mean, the title of the album alone - they couldn’t have set themselves up any worse for the reviews if they tried.

[@TZ1000-zu7ki]

Excellent summary of a terrible album. My thoughts exactly. But it at least has one listenable song whereas Summer in Paradise has none.

[@marktait2371]

yes terrible record when came out friend dj got no way im plsying any of these crappy songs

[@bradcomer4524]

He referenced the youtuber todd in the shadows, it's a great channel and he has highly entertaining videos on both of those albums.

[@theflyintheointment]

@@bradcomer4524 yes I've seen Todd's video on Cut The Crap, it's great. His line about the song Dictator sounding like 'two radio stations trying to share the same frequency' is spot on. Seen a few of his videos and really enjoyed them and his dry, world weary sense of humour, didn't know he'd done Summer In Paradise, will give it a watch next!

[@simonpearn479]

Dr. Adamski's musical pharmacy has my vote certainly for the worst album I've ever heard!

[@jamesnash7262]

…not bloody likely, i’ve heard OK Computer, what a pretentious load of rubbish…

[@Fool3SufferingFools]

Several tracks were redone for the UK version in an effort to salvage the album, which means the US version is EVEN WORSE.

[@richardbuckley1232]

Mike Love: Always looking back; never forward.

[@ACDZ123]

Actually, if they had of listened to Mike, the guy who stayed sober and off the drugs ,then they may have been successful with the old surf ,hot rod songs,and furthered their carrer . The wilsons lost the plot and everyone blames mike? He was goofy fair enough, but I think he gets a bad rap

[@johnanthonycafe2993]

I met Mike Love in Australia in 1978. The concert was terrible but he still had a very high opinion of himself. I once had an album where the harmonica was in the wrong key & it wasn’t Jazz.

[@saxongreen78]

...Carl was the one who got hauled over the coals by the press for that one - it's a bad move for a big name US act to dud Aussies with a lousy show!

[@57hound]

Eloquent brutality!

[@criticalthinkersrule]

Saw the Beach Boys perform in Adelaide (South Australia) in the early 2000s. By the Beach Boys I mean "Mike Love and several other guys none would know". Mike spent the whole performance wiping away whatever it was constantly running out of his nose. Can't think what caused that! IThe show was a triple act of old performers: Beach Boys, Christopher Cross (who was quite good) and the original line-up of Daddy Cool who were fantastic (and the real reason I was there).

[@Pws-m8x]

Why do i always think of the old gray whistle test when i come across you. 😂

[@paulmanina7522]

Continuously shite! Brilliantly put. Mike love’s love vacation. Oh the horrors. 😂

[@Retrocanary]

When I saw the title of this video I assumed you were going to talk about Mike Rutherford’s Acting Very Strange which sounds throughout like someone singing into a bucket whilst someone else scrapes a metal rod across some tarmac in the background.

[@heimomoilanen9654]

Can't stand We Can't Dance either

[@JoeTheLion60]

Be interesting to get your take on the trend by some bands to change their lyrics "for modern times" (Duran Duran removed the word "Queer" and replaced it with "Queen" for their version of Bowie's Five Years) - and also the censorship of original album covers: e/g the Blind Faith album and also Hendrix's bevy of naked beauties :-) To me its all art and should stay as it was.....

[@henrygvidonas9573]

Hendrix absolutely hated that cover concept. That's why he didn't show up for the photo shoot for it and the models hold pictures of him and the "Axis: Bold As Love" cover. He had sketched out his own concept around a Linda Eastman photograph that he wanted to be used. The record label completely ignored it.

[@harvey1954]

Manfred Mann removed "Super Spade" from "My Name's Jack" and replaced it in later versions with "Superman".

[@babylemonade2868]

Anything by Kiss is the worst album ever😆

[@dougmacwilliam7391]

You got that right

[@heimomoilanen9654]

Live album beats 'em all

[@babylemonade2868]

@@Midnightmidway but I am old enough. They are boring and simple and any guitarist that’s played for 6 months could play an Ace solo. Strange assumption considering you don’t know me😄

[@dougmacwilliam7391]

I guess some of us define "magic" differently ​@Midnightmidway

[@ThinWhiteLuke]

Total Xanarchy is the worst album ever.

[@krissymarklewis1793]

As soon as I clicked on this I knew what it was gonna be!

[@krissymarklewis1793]

I don't mind the fit babes in the video but that Casio drum sound undoes it all.

[@earlgrey691]

@@krissymarklewis1793 The auto-tune equivalent of the day ushered in by the absurd Cher and weaponised against us to this day.

[@PaulFormentos]

Maybe this record is better in reverse?

[@musedroid]

I only know this album from the Todd in the Shadows Video (and now this one I guess), but I think what sets it apart from merely bad is that it is bad anyway, and then has Mike Love's oozing, leering, dirty old man creepiness all over it. A basic problem with late Beach Boys is their songs are thematically stuck in youth, but the other Beach Boys are able to perform such material in a nostalgic vein, whereas Mike Love clearly just wants to go cruise for chicks. Off-putting.

[@henrygvidonas9573]

Not to interrupt the well-deserved Mike Love bashing, but that oh-so-beloved mad genius Brian Wilson went full paedo on "The Beach Boys Love You" album in 1977. He was a total creep in his lyrics long before his cousin. At least Love wasn't perving on little girls on roller skates and fantasising about whatever the hell kind of deranged sickness is going on in "I Wanna Pick You Up". Then again, Mike had no problem singing Brian's weird creepy brain farts, like the "Loves You" stuff or "Hey Little Tomboy". And that thing was basically Brian's solo LP that was just marketed as a Beach Boys album. It was even supposed to be called "Brian Loves You", initially.

[@musedroid]

@@henrygvidonas9573 Oh I know, and agree. He even married a minor in his actual life. I'm just talking about who gives me creepy vibes strictly as a performer when singing old Beach Boys 60s classics, and it's Mike Love. And it's not really so much a "oh the poor tortured genuis" thing (though that no doubt helps). Brian Wilson is just too strange and fragile a presence for me to find knee-jerk repulsive in the same way even if intellectually I know the case against him, whereas Mike Love is a very ordinary kind of creepy, and the knee knows exactly how to jerk. I doubt it's just me.

[@brummieinbristol522]

To say this is "a festering dog turd..." Is being very unfair to dog turds.

[@JDCUSA]

You haven’t heard of “The Shaggs.”

[@loboblanco4426]

When Love sings love vacation it sounds like a creepy uncle eyeing his neice... Yuck.

[@stecumo6459]

the beach boys were always overhyped for me,no balls in their songs to speak of at all.just audible candy floss

[@mammothenterprises2921]

They did a great job on California Dreaming, IDK what album it was on.

[@NewhamMatt]

It wasn't on one of their recognised studio albums (possibly a single release), but it is on Greatest Hits Vol. 3: The Best of the Brother Years. (I think that's what it's called.)

[@TZ1000-zu7ki]

It was a single and then included on the collection Made in the USA.

[@zipzip8239]

bobby womack did the best version

[@MultiStats]

I was not aware this album existed. From the way it sounds, I wish I still did not.

[@gwts1171]

I worked at a corporate record store when this came out and we were supposed to play it in the store to promote it. I think hearing it first actually hindered sales. Surf's Up will always be my go-to Beach Boys album. By the way, I love that painting to your right. Beautiful. Thanks for the video!

[@cheshirecat5571]

"You know me. I'm not one to be contentious or snippy," ...long pause. Come on Barry, we love it when you are.

[@toxicmartoc]

I have a real soft spot for the beach boys, they wrote some amazing songs but they really did some awful stuff too. But why does it keep showing Bruce Johnson while naming Al Jardine 😂

[@crosslink1493]

I'll have to dig this album up somewhere, I've never heard of it or listened to it. My #1 for worst album is the self-titled "Its A Beautiful Day" with the big hit 'White Bird'. Besides that standout track, its just 35 minute of droning violin and cello. Having to spend an hour listening to a grade school orchestra recital would be preferrable to this album. Its so loathsome it could be played to ward off zombies. And to think about 20 years ago a clean copy of it would sell for $1500.

[@heimomoilanen9654]

Yeah, that is amazing amouth of money for an album having one good song

[@johnbell1578]

That pause at 1:35 was comic timing at its best

[@abbalite]

Summer in Paradise is my guilty pleasure. Beach Boys 85 is their worst album.

[@jasnostj]

You're mistaking "worst" with "not my taste". BB85 is a 1980s classic and objectively a good album, though maybe not what fans wanted to hear. SiP comes with a health warning. Be careful with that stuff.

[@abbalite]

@@jasnostj Nope. I chose my words very carefully. I meant “worst”.

[@JWD1992]

I picture Mick Jagger cites the imagery Mike Love conjured up for this album as a major influence on his later career; surrounding himself with girls a fraction of his age whom we are supposed to believe are REALLY into him. And I love the Stones, but every time I see Jagger insisting on doing a duet with some hot, young, it-girl pop star, it comes off like Al Bundy at The Jiggly Room. Mike Love did that here, and we must recognize him for the visionary he is.

[@jdraven0890]

At least it didn't have "Kokomo" on it!

[@y0us3rn4m3]

I played it once through. Listening to it was akin to being water-boarded, covered with honey and red ants while sitting in a Judas chair.

[@wendiwonderly1419]

The creativity of this album is on par with bro country minus the beer and the pick up trucks

[@andrewdale3695]

Blimey, If it's worse than Pet Sounds it must be bad

[@michaelwilson2340]

Mike Love revolts me as much as modern country does. I'm surprised he hasn't tried to put out a country album.

[@rickvandijk]

Country Love. He did it.

[@brotherWesley]

@@rickvandijk Zero taste for quality, even less talent. I hope he runs into Blackberry Smoke someday. But not as much as I hope Blackberry Smoke runs into him, then backs up and runs into him again.

[@anthonykimball7463]

This isn't the first place I've dropped this comment, but I still stand by it: If the songs on Summer In Paradise were as awesome and magnificent as the sleeve art, this would have been one of the BBs absolute greatest albums. Alas, of course, this wasn't the case, though I do think "Lahaina Aloha" is a pretty decent piece of work and keeps this album from being a complete dumpster fire.

[@RogueReplicant]

"... this excremental offering..." Wow, that escalated quickly, lol 😊 👊 😭

[@wardka]

I'm still enjoying the tantalizing artwork in the background.

[@ZOOTSUITBEATNICK1]

So much competition, but-as someone who likes only one Beach Boy song-I'll support this pick. Love the Hasselhoff mention...

[@NicholasSadlier]

Those snippets are terrible. Sounds like what The Battle of Marston Moor was to ELO back in the early days (different sounds - same redeeming features). Actually I take that back - this sounds much worse (and the former was simply a terrible track).

[@mattw8332]

I have a Beach Boys "Greatest Hits" CD album. The last track on it is a cover of The Mamas and Papas' California Dream from around 1986. Was that from this album?

[@josephwest124]

No. That cover is not on this steaming pile of an album. It first appeared as the final track on the 1986 "Made in USA" album which was a "greatest hits" album (since it doesn't use that phrase, the better term would be "compilation" album) and it was the last track. But, it also appeared on some other compilations (per Allmusic, it's the last track on "The Absolute Best, Vol 2" and the "Greatest Hits Vol 3: Best of the Brother Years").

[@brianjames5685]

The horror!

[@tgh2048]

People forgot about the collaboration with The Fat Boys back in the 80s called Wipeout. Funny how Mike Love started trashing rap music after these fiascos.

[@MmeSmite]

I will always be deeply annoyed that the one time I saw a celebrity in the wild at Disneyland, it was Mike Love (accompanied by an all-douchebag entourage).

[@gammaanteria]

Let me preface that I really like the Beach Boys, from the period of Pet Sounds to Holland or thereabouts they released some fantastic albums. That being said, I saw them (the only time I have, actually) in June 1991, a year before Summer in Paradise was released, and it remains the worst concert I have yet seen. It was at Lake Compounce in CT. As the tickets were only $3, I guess I can't rightly complain too much. I didn't know much about the band back then, aside from knowing their hits. Mike Love would go on lengthy rambles about long-past glories in the band's history, and they had women in cheerleader outfits run around for "Be True to Your School." Just extremely cheesy. When they broke into "Kokomo" (a godawful song, in my opinion) the group of friends I was with got up and left, and it seems a lot of others in the audience took that opportunity to exit as well. I guess that time frame, the late 80s-early 90s, was their artistic nadir.

[@andybyron1]

Thanks. I’ve never heard this album and your review has made it quite clear to NEVER listen to it.

Likewise.

[@orbyfan]

As a huge Beach Boys fan, I bought it when it came out, and I rank it as their worst album. I dare to listen to it once every few years, and it hasn't improved with age. The drum machine, which didn't sound good in the '80s and '90s, sounds very dated indeed today. You're right about all the life being sucked out of the cover versions. Mike Love is at his preachiest on this album, and the constant self-referencing in the lyrics is something I don't like generally, and is very tiresome here.

[@foxbor0]

An album doesn't have anyone cavorting about with a bevy of beauties. That's the videos 😉

[@kevinogracia1615]

Excuse me while I puke.

[@rickszabo4312]

It's to bad Love's cover of the Oakridge Boys "Elvira" didn't make it onto this album

[@brotherWesley]

@@rickszabo4312 The most talented of the Oak Ridge Boys was their tenor, Willie Wynn. Willie stepped aside when the other three outvoted him and left gospel music behind them. I spent a good portion of an afternoon with Willie a few years after the abomination that was Elvira, and his opinion was, roughly: "Money is not why I sing. I sing for the joy harmony brings, and that's not pride but gratitude. I never did enjoy singing catchy but shallow songs, and I am a little proud that I never had to sing that piece of garbage once. "

[@stevelayman8934]

For me The Beach Boys peaked in 1966 with Good Vibrations. I love the early fun in the sun stuff and Pet Sounds is achingly beautiful. As Brian’s mental health declined the band lost its beautiful visionary soul.

[@harvey1954]

Nope, because the Boys went on to produce some great material without him.

[@Nazz1967]

I was 20 in 92 and really getting into the Beach Boys stuff , then i bought this ......YUK!

[@neurophile]

There are thousands albums worst than this one.

[@SeptemberChild1835]

No.

I doubt it's that many.

[@sstaners1234]

“I’m not a happy bunny.”

[@ashleygeisler1003]

If you think the albums band just imagine seeing them on this tour, because that's what I did. It was the worst concert I have ever been to, it was the beach boys in a cabaret act

[@dkimuk]

The reason Mike Love clings onto the Beach Boys name is that he has nothing else to offer. All the others had respect and careers away from the BB brand, but he was a coattail holder. His speech when being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame said it all. He has the grace of a tapeworm and an ego the size of his much loved State of California.

[@myyootube2]

I worked for an independent distributor in '92 when we flew out to Minneapolis to get the big news that we would have the EXCLUSIVE on a new Beach Boys record! Well I got to pick Bruce up from the airport and to meet Mike, but this album hitting the streets or anyone's CD player was the biggest non event of anybody's lifetime. Some were expecting the Beach Boys sound. Some were expecting Kokomo redux. It didn't live up to anybody's expectations, and I don't think it even lives up to your headline, but the saddest thing is that Carl put his name to it. Cest La Vie

[@FionaOfMountLawley]

The clips at 3:49 and 4:10 make me wonder. Here are the things I wonder. Did I inadvertently leave the playback speed at 75% somehow? Did they run the studio tape at the wrong speed while pressing the master disk? What keys are those songs in, do they in fact correspond with any mode or key in even tempered tuning? Was Mike Love so unfashionable in 1992 that he was still taking barbiturates? I alway assumed that he was a cocaine guy which doesn't explain the sounds he's making. So many questions.

[@davidcarrol110]

In the early 1990s Baywatch was considered so bad it was good-New Order performed their single "Regret" on Set with David Hasselhoff for TOTP.

[@floatingincornishskies]

love your content, your descriptives make me laugh (in a good way) keep it going amigo

[@douglasennis7291]

The last Beach Boys album worth listening to was their last album with Brian "That's Why God Made the Radio" The final trilogy by Brian ending with "Summer's Gone"is classic Beach Boys

[@bennyscomin]

Was waiting for someone to mention this one as I read through the comments.......couldn't agree more, and that final trilogy of songs are vital to their legacy

[@pauldowney3347]

I rather like it. Its up there with the likes of the Birdie Song and Itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow, polka dot bikini - The Jonathon King version of course!!

[@stevem6963]

If you want to hear the best Beach Boys music listen to a greatest hits album . Most of their albums are really bad . After Pet Sounds it all went down hill

Can't say I agree with that. Sunflower and Surf's Up were good. After that, yes.