History brackets Jan and Dean with friends the Beach Boys as stereotypical young Californians all-American surfers with bikiniclad girls on their arm. Yet they had a history before they fell in with the Wilson brothers, beating Brian and company to the charts by a matter of four years. Their success also helped Los Angeles emerge as a musical centre of the United States. The major labels of the time were based in New York and Chicago, and the citys major leisure industries were television and cinema. This album focuses on the early years, including a couple of the rare Jan and Arnie songs, to give the fullest possible background to a classic pop partnership.