Милленниум: Көмілген Классика 1968 жылғы

Begin is the sole studio album released by the American music group the Millennium released in July 1968 on Columbia Records. The group first appeared after members from various Los Angeles pop groups such as the Ballroom, Sagittarius and the Music Machine decided to collaborate on an album. Along with adapting previously recorded material, the band began recording and writing the music of Begin in early 1968 at Columbia Studios. Begin was the second album to use sixteen track recording technology following Simon & Garfunkel's album Bookends. The group wrote songs in a style later described as sunshine pop, a style noted for its influence of psychedelia with rich harmony vocals and lush orchestrations. Due to the album's complex recordings and long studio time, it became the most expensive studio album recorded by 1968. The album received critical acclaim on its release, but did not sell well, failing to chart in the United States and the United Kingdom. The group abandoned a follow up album for which they had already recorded songs. As pop music of the 1960s was re evaluated by newer generation of critics, Begin continued to receive positive reviews after the album was re issued in the 1990s, with AllMusic finding it to be a "bona fide lost classic" and that it was on the same level as "more widely popular albums from the era", and Pitchfork declaring it "probably the single greatest 60s pop record produced in L. A. outside of The Beach Boys."

Following the release of Eternity's Children's debut album, Curt Boettcher and Keith Olsen began a new project that included members of The Ballroom and Sagittarius called The Millennium. Sandy Salisbury would later explain that "After the Ballroom disbanded, I got discouraged. I left music for a spell. But not writing. I got myself a sound on sound recorder and made my own demos. I recorded these late into the night in my rented North Hollywood house." before he was invited to record as part of the group with Boettcher. Unlike Sagittarius, The Millennium was described as "the original vision" of Boettcher. Mike Fennelly of the group stated that a "We were very enthusiastic about the creativity that was indeed at a high level for the initial writing, demo and master recording." The recording was completed in July 1968. Certain songs on the album, including "5 AM", "I Just Want to Be Your Friend", "The Island", "Some Sunny Day" and "Karmic Dream Sequence no. 1" were actually recorded by Boettcher's previous group The Ballroom. Columbia acquired the rights to these songs from Steve Clark as part of its buy out of Curt's Our Productions contract. AllMusic described the genre as a form mid 1960s mainstream pop music that was mildly influenced by psychedelia and combined "rich harmony vocals, lush orchestrations, and relentless good cheer." Some of the lyrics and themes on Begin reflect the current world events and personal experiences happening to the members of the group. "To Claudia on Thursday" was written about Boettcher's wife Claudia who was pregnant at the time. Joey Stec described "It's You" as being about the establishment covering up information ranging from the Vietnam War to the Assassination of John F. Kennedy and Assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, specifically noting the lyrics "You only let me see what you have planned for me / I guess they'll never be anything more". Begin was released in July 1968 on Columbia Records where it received favourable reviews from music critics but described as a "commercial disaster" and failed to chart in the United Kingdom or United States. This led to the group not recording any follow up records. Following the release, Boettcher created Together Records in order to secure greater artistic freedom. In 1990, Begin was re issued on compact disc.

Throughout the 1990s, as pop oriented music groups like Saint Etienne, the High Llamas and the Olivia Tremor Control started out, record collectors and music critics started to re assess 1960s pop music, which led to the growth in popularity of Begin. From retrospective reviews, AllMusic described the album as a "bona fide lost classic" and that it was on the same level as "more widely popular albums from the era" such as The Notorious Byrd Brothers. Uncut noted that "Boettcher's ability to dismantle and reassemble structures gives the listener infinite possibilities for aural delight," and that "You could write a manual about 'To Claudia On A Thursday' alone, or you could simply lie back and let the cut up sounds wash over your brain."

Following the album's release, artists began covering songs from the album. This included CB Victoria who covered "To Claudia on Thursday".

Credits adapted from Begin reissue back cover and vinyl sticker from Sundazed.