Album Review:

'Popsicle' had previously appeared as 'Popsicle Truck' on Drag City. At Dean's insistence, it was included as the B-side to Liberty Record's ill-advised decision to release Jan's rendition of 'Norwegian Wood' as a single in 1966. The B-side charted at 21, while the A-side failed hopelessly. Originating from Ride the Wild Surf, the rough 'The Restless Surfer' sits painfully awkward in Dean's voice and highlights his thin falsetto. 'Summer Girl' dates back to 1963 and was the B-side to 'Surf City.' Another Wild Surf track, 'Malibu Beach,' is a good surf tune, though largely inconsequential. 'Summer Means Fun' was lifted from The Little Old Lady From Pasadena. One of the strangest tracks, 'Tennessee' was a low-charting single from 1962 and feels as though it was pulled from a completely different as the duo had evolved so far past their 'bomp-bomps' by 1966. 'Norweigan Wood' is a very Californian reimagining of the Beatles' hit. 'A Surfer's Dream' hailed from Wild Surf and features the voice of Berry's girlfriend at the time, Jill Gibson. Drag City's 'Surf Route 101' is a welcome inclusion, though, like the next two Wild Surf tracks, 'Surfin' Wild' and 'Wiamea Bay' are patently out of place on a 1966 record. A final Pasadena song, 'One-Piece Topless Bathing Suit' closes out the record.

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Popsicle is important basically only because it was Liberty's attempt to get a Jan & Dean album out amid the uncertain reality of Jan's crash. Whether this move was a good-faith move to keep the Jan and Dean name alive or simply a cash grab to soak up a last vestment of the duo's brand greatly depends on your outlook on life. Nevertheless, Popsicle holds some obscure, rarer moments from the team's catalog. That said, can we all admit that this is the worst LP cover of all the duo's albums?