Becoming the Beach Boys, 1961–1963
2015 book by James B. Murphy
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Becoming the Beach Boys, 1961–1963 is a 2015 book covering the early years of the American rock band the Beach Boys, authored by American writer James B. Murphy.[1] Dissatisfied with the inconsistent and sparse accounts of this period found in prior literature, Murphy spent eight years writing and researching the 436-page book, which includes 12 appendices, 1,100 end notes, a bibliography, and an index.[2]
| |
| Author | James B. Murphy |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | The Beach Boys |
| Publisher | McFarland & Company |
| Publication date | 2015 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Pages | 436 |
| ISBN | 9780786473656 |
Companion album
In August 2016, Omnivore Recordings issued an audio companion piece to the book in the form of the compilation Becoming the Beach Boys: The Complete Hite & Dorinda Morgan Sessions.[3]
Reception
In his review for the Association for Recorded Sound Collections, Robert Iannapollo deemed Becoming the Beach Boys to be the second-best book about the Beach Boys ever written, behind only Philip Lambert's Inside the Music of Brian Wilson. Iannapollo wrote, "There’s a lot to recommend this book. Murphy’s writing style is engaging and entertaining, not an easy thing to do when delving into the minutiae of music."[4]