music.wikisort.org - Composition

Keepin' the Summer Alive is the 24th studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released March 24, 1980 on Brother, Caribou and CBS Records. Produced by Bruce Johnston, the album peaked at number 75 in the US, during a chart stay of 6 weeks,[3] and number 54 in the UK. It is the group's last album recorded with Dennis Wilson, who drowned in 1983, although he only appears on one song.

Keepin' the Summer Alive
Studio album by The Beach Boys
Released	March 24, 1980 (1980-03-24)
Recorded	July 1, 1979 – March 20, 1980 (except "When Girls Get Together" and "Santa Ana Winds", 1969–1978)[1]
Studio	Criteria (Miami) Brother (Santa Monica) Western (Hollywood) Rumbo (Los Angeles) Al Jardine's barn (Big Sur)[2]
Length	33:10
Label	Brother/Caribou/CBS
Producer	Bruce Johnston
The Beach Boys chronology
L.A. (Light Album) (1979) Keepin' the Summer Alive (1980) Ten Years of Harmony (1981)
Singles from Keepin' the Summer Alive
"Goin' On" / "Endless Harmony" Released: March 11, 1980 "Livin' with a Heartache" / "Santa Ana Winds" Released: May 20, 1980

The album included new material alongside several older songs that had not been released up until that point. Two of the new songs were written by Carl Wilson and Randy Bachman, the title track and "Livin' with a Heartache". The latter was released as a single alongside "Goin' On", written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love. Brian wrote or co-wrote five of the other seven tracks.

Background and recording

After the band's previous album, L.A. (Light Album) (1979), failed to live up to commercial expectations, the executives at CBS expected another album as soon as possible.[4] In July 1979, the Beach Boys convened at Western Studio in Los Angeles—the studio where most of the band's 1960s material had been produced by Brian Wilson—to begin work on a new studio album. The album was also recorded at various other studios, including former backing band member Daryl Dragon's Rumbo Recorders in San Fernando, and Al Jardine's recording studio in his Big Sur barn. Working titles included Cousins, Friends and Brothers and Can't Wait Till Summer.[3]

The group wanted Brian to return as their producer and felt that he would be more comfortable recording at the familiar studio environment of Western. They were briefly successful, as Carl Wilson said, "Brian got hot for about three days in the studio. He was singing like a bird. All the protection he usually runs just dropped; he came out of himself, he was right there in the room."[4] Dennis Wilson, at odds with the rest of the group, abandoned the initial recording sessions, taking no further part in the album. The sessions were also stalled by Brian's desire to record only cover songs of rock n' roll tracks.^{[citation needed]} One of these, Chuck Berry's "School Days", appears on the album's final track listing.[3]

In late August, Carl collaborated with Randy Bachman on the writing of four songs, two of which were included on the record, "Keepin' the Summer Alive" and "Livin' with a Heartache". Bachman declined an invitation to co-produce the album because he was struggling with personal issues.[3] He later released his own version of "Keepin' the Summer Alive" with his short-lived band Union on their eponymous 1980 album.^{[citation needed]}

In October 1979, the band reconvened with Bruce Johnston taking complete control of the album's production. The resulting album included a mixture of brand new songs alongside older songs that had not been released up until that point.[3] "When Girls Get Together" was recorded in 1969, and it is the only song on the album featuring Dennis. Johnston started writing "Endless Harmony" in 1972 as "Ten Years' Harmony". The earlier title and lyrics were used for a version by California Music in 1974. The band began recording "Santa Ana Winds" in 1978, revising and re-recording some of the song for this album. Sessions wrapped on February 14, 1980.[3] Two outtakes, the original "Goin' to the Beach" and a cover of "Da Doo Ron Ron", were later released on the 2013 compilation Made in California.[5]

In 2013, Johnston expressed dissatisfaction with the production of the title track, which he perceived as being weaker-sounding due to Carl's intervention.[5] In 2020, Johnston elaborated, believing session guest and former bandmate Ricky Fataar’s drumming was inferior to session drummer Scott Mathews’ playing.[1]

Outtakes

Still-unreleased tracks from the Keepin' the Summer Alive sessions include "Starbaby" and "Surfer Suzie", as well as renditions of "I'll Always Love You", "Jamaica Farewell", "Johnny B. Goode", "Little Girl", "Stranded in the Jungle", and "Smokey Places".[6]

Critical reception

Retrospective professional reviews

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[7]
Blender	[8]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[9]
MusicHound	2/5[10]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[11]

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Rob Theakston referred to Keepin' the Summer Alive as "the low point" in the band's discography: "Ripe with mindless throwaways and lifeless filler ... The two exceptions to the rule reside in the title track and the closing 'Endless Harmony.'"[7] In The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), the album is cited as an "abysmal" entry in "a string of inconsequential records" that had not abated since 1978's M.I.U. Album.[11]

Track listing

Personnel

Adapted from 2000 liner notes[3] and Craig Slowinski.[1]

The Beach Boys

• Brian Wilson – vocals, tack piano on “Oh Darlin’” and “Goin’ On”, keyboards on “Sunshine”, piano and Rocksichord on “When Girls Get Together”
• Carl Wilson – vocals, lead guitar on “Keepin’ the Summer Alive”, guitar on “Oh Darlin’” and “Livin’ With a Heartache”, tack piano on “Keepin’ the Summer Alive”, Yamaha electric piano on “Livin’ With a Heartache”, keyboards on “Sunshine”
• Al Jardine – vocals, acoustic guitars and spoken word introduction on “Santa Ana Winds”; rhythm guitar on “School Day” (uncertain)
• Mike Love – vocals
• Bruce Johnston – vocals, Fender Rhodes electric piano, clavichord on “School Day”, keyboards on “Sunshine”
• Dennis Wilson – bass drum on “When Girls Get Together”

Additional musicians

Arrangements

• Bob Alcivar – horn arrangements
• Harry Betts – string arrangements

Technical personnel

• Bruce Johnston – producer (except “When Girls Get Together”)
• Brian Wilson – producer (“School Day”, “When Girls Get Together”, “Santa Ana Winds”)
• Al Jardine – producer (“School Day” and “Santa Ana Winds”)
• Carl Wilson – producer (“Keepin’ the Summer Alive” and “Livin’ with a Heartache”)
• Steve Desper – chief engineer, mixing
• Chuck Leary – engineer (“Santa Ana Winds”)
• Chuck Britz – engineer (“Oh Darlin’”, “School Day”, “Santa Ana Winds”)
• Rodney Pearson – engineer
• Brian Behrns – second engineer

Artwork

• John Alvin – illustration
• Tony Lane – art direction
• Gary Nichamin – photography

Charts

Chart (1980)	Peak position
UK Top 40 Album Chart[12]	54
US Billboard 200 Albums[3]	75

References

Further reading

• People staff (May 12, 1980). "Picks and Pans Review: Keepin' the Summer Alive". People. Retrieved November 28, 2017.

External links

• Keepin' the Summer Alive at Discogs (list of releases)

На других языках

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[de] Keepin’ the Summer Alive

Keepin’ the Summer Alive ist ein Musikalbum der US-Band The Beach Boys. Es wurde am 5. April 1980 veröffentlicht. Es erschien beim Label Caribou Records und wurde von Bruce Johnston produziert.

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- [en] Keepin' the Summer Alive

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[es] Keepin' the Summer Alive

Keepin' the Summer Alive es el vigésimo cuarto álbum de estudio de la banda de rock estadounidense The Beach Boys, publicado el 24 de marzo de 1980, fue distribuido por Brother, Caribou y CBS. Fue producido por Bruce Johnston, tras los abortados intentos por tener a Brian Wilson como productor del álbum. Es el último el álbum con los seis componentes del grupo juntos, ya que Dennis Wilson moriría ahogado en diciembre de 1983. El álbum también cuenta con el guitarrista Joe Walsh de Eagles en la canción "Keepin' the Summer Alive". Keepin' the Summer Alive alcanzó el puesto n.º 75 en los Estados Unidos y el n.º 54 en el Reino Unido.

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[ru] Keepin’ the Summer Alive

Keepin’ the Summer Alive — двадцать четвёртый студийный альбом американской рок-группы The Beach Boys. Пластинка вышла в марте 1980 года на Brother Records/Caribou Records и заняла 75-е место в американском хит-параде журнала Billboard.

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