Other artists who would dominate the mid and late 60s were just finding their way: the Beatles released their first two LP's, though neither was available in the States yet: Please Please Me was enjoyable if trivial, while With The Beatles started to reveal their formidable songwriting talent. The Beach Boys were a huge commercial success, but their album releases were inconsistent: Surfer Girl was the best of three albums charting during the year. The Motown machine was also far from its peak: the best effort coming from Detroit was Mary Wells' Two Lovers. James Brown had his first major crossover success with his thrilling Live At The Apollo, while fellow Georgian Otis Redding struggled with his debut, Pain In My Heart.
The jazz album of the year was John Coltrane's Impressions. (DBW