What "commemorative releases" should we expect for the 50th anniversary?

[Justin]

Yeah but jazz heads are all seriously minted and obsessive about that sort of stuff it seems -- I doubt even a lot of serious Beach Boys fans would spring for a huge 30-albums-plus box set, especially when some of those 30 albums are just terrible and space-wasters!

I would of course welcome new remasters of the albums released individually instead of putting them into one big box but I believe the BB deserve to have a nice complete box set right alongside The Beatles or Pink Floyd.  Considering the BB catalog is half the size of this Miles Davis set, I don't see how a 30 (replica mini-LP packaging) CD set going for probably around $150-$180 would be completely out of the question for many fans.

[Awesoman]

this stuff is discussed in ESQ

Do you guys have an alternative online payment method other than PayPal? 

[Lowbacca]

Does this mean anything?

http://www.lastfm.com/music/The+Beach+Boys/Surfin%27+Safari+%28Classic+Album+Digitally+Remastered%29

[Peter Reum]

Surfin' Safari

[SG7]

A mono box?

[Lowbacca]

Surfin' Safari

Yeah.. right... thanks. 

[John Manning]

It's on amazon too but the "label" means nothing. I think it might be a bit of licensed opportunism...

[Paulos]

No post from Eeyore of late? He must be fuming about the Do It Again Zinepak and the Thats Why God Made The Radio promo!

[PhilCohen]

No post from Eeyore of late? He must be fuming about the Do It Again Zinepak and the Thats Why God Made The Radio promo!

If you are referring to me(I don't know what an Eeyore is, though I've seen that term used before), having the fans buy a magazine & 10 already released tracks, to get one unreleased track(the remake of "Do It Again") is not exactly a good value. And typically, the Walmart in my area won't stock these "sold only at Walmart" CD's. At least that's what happened with John Fogerty & Jimi Hendrix items manufactured only for Walmart. A Hendrix fan in New York(who contacted me through an online music forum) bought six spare Hendrix CD singles at his local Walmart, and(out of the kindness of his heart) gave them to fans who couldn't obtain the item at their local Walmart. I returned the favor by cloning a 6-CD Hendrix bootleg("Astro Man") for him.

As for the reunion album, I'm not going to waste any more effort on it. This isn't "Smile", you know? I can only hope that (if for whatever reasons) that the group can't complete & release the reunion album, then at least the archival projects might still be released. I'll buy the reunion album(if Capitol releases it), but the unreleased /remixed stuff from the "Good Ol' Days" is what I want most.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Eeyore, as you damn well know, is the pessimistic, gloomy, depressed, anhedonic*, old grey stuffed donkey from the Winnie The Pooh stories. And Capitol, as you equally damn well know, will release the new album according to schedule: currently it's in the final stages of mixing. This is not conjecture, or my opinion, this is fact. The 'single' has been previewed, albeit not entirely legally, and the WalMart deal isn't aimed at the likes of us.

[* - anhedonia: the inability to experience pleasure from activities usually found enjoyable]

[SBonilla]

No post from Eeyore of late? He must be fuming about the Do It Again Zinepak and the Thats Why God Made The Radio promo!

...having the fans buy a magazine & 10 already released tracks, to get one unreleased track(the remake of "Do It Again") is not exactly a good value. And typically, the Walmart...

Not a good value for who? I think it is a good value for the very casual music consumer. Record companies have long known that the Walmart crowd (I have never set foot in one, just for the record) are middle America; many do not regularly buy music. If you can penetrate this segment of the market, it will pay off. This package makes perfect commercial sense.

[Runaways]

Phil can't be a real person can he? 

[Andrew G. Doe]

Phil can't be a real person can he? 

It's life Jim, but not as we know it.

[PhilCohen]

No post from Eeyore of late? He must be fuming about the Do It Again Zinepak and the Thats Why God Made The Radio promo!

...having the fans buy a magazine & 10 already released tracks, to get one unreleased track(the remake of "Do It Again") is not exactly a good value. And typically, the Walmart...

Not a good value for who? I think it is a good value for the very casual music consumer. Record companies have long known that the Walmart crowd (I have never set foot in one, just for the record) are middle America; many do not regularly buy music. If you can penetrate this segment of the market, it will pay off. This package makes perfect commercial sense.

But some of the avid fans might want to have the remake of "Do It Again" in their collections, too.

[PhilCohen]

Eeyore, as you damn well know, is the pessimistic, gloomy, depressed, anhedonic*, old grey stuffed donkey from the Winnie The Pooh stories. And Capitol, as you equally damn well know, will release the new album according to schedule: currently it's in the final stages of mixing. This is not conjecture, or my opinion, this is fact. The 'single' has been previewed, albeit not entirely legally, and the WalMart deal isn't aimed at the likes of us.

[* - anhedonia: the inability to experience pleasure from activities usually found enjoyable]

Anhedonia? There might be an element of truth in that. I haven't become totally incapable of experiencing pleasure, but, after 46 years of seriously collecting recorded music(though I had a few records before that), it is definitely a case of diminishing pleasure, as the quest to obtain more sometimes gets in the way of enjoying what I've already got. There's no doubt that I find it very unfunny when performers or record companies play games with the fans over the release of CD product. And as the years go by, and fewer classic rock artists have any vault material remaining, the remaining artists who hold vault materials are, increasingly, being temperamental prima donnas about it(the worst of these artists are undoubtedly Crosby,Stills, Nash & Young). My critics will probably call me impatient, but it's not exactly that. It's a feeling that these companies & artists aren't treating the fans/consumers with the respect that they deserve. To any of these artists who float the idea of box sets or archival releases in front of their fans, then don't deliver the goods, I say this: your fans aren't getting any younger. How 'bout releasing these materials while the original fans are still on this planet? If these artists wait too long, one of these days, the fans(and the music industry) will be dead and buried.

[hypehat]

How dare they not give a release date for the new album and not send out promotional materials containing the new single and the group talking about how great it is  for us!

Oh, hang on....

[Andrew G. Doe]

It's a feeling that these companies & artists aren't treating the fans/consumers with the respect that they deserve. To any of these artists who float the idea of box sets or archival releases in front of their fans, then don't deliver the goods, I say this: your fans aren't getting any younger.

Shall I tell you the degree of respect the average record company - and artist - extend to the fans & consumers ? They follow the Barnum dictum to the letter: "there's one born every minute". Not just the archival stuff either - you taken a look at the career of Katy Perry or Lady Gaga recently ?

And... if something isn't giving you the pleasure it used to - move on and find something new that does. I'm not saying this out of any real concern for your well-being, more because it would result in you stopping being such a complete f*ckwit and boring the nuts off all of us here into the bargain.

[Aegir]

Eeyore, as you damn well know, is the pessimistic, gloomy, depressed, anhedonic*, old grey stuffed donkey from the Winnie The Pooh stories.

oh, come on, Andrew. you always get mad when people don't properly cite your website as a source, and here you are barely paraphrasing wikipedia.

from the Wikipedia Eeyore article: "He is generally characterized as a pessimistic, gloomy, depressed, anhedonic, old grey stuffed donkey who is a friend of the title character, Winnie-the-Pooh."

This was easy to spot because I learned the word anhedonic from the Eeyore article.

[Andrew G. Doe]

I'm not 'barely paraphrasing', I'll have you know - it's a straight cut & paste. 

And you gotta admit, it's a scarily accurate summary of Cohen.

[PhilCohen]

For better(or I would say worse), it is obvious that the "strategy"(if you could call it that) of Capitol Records & The Beach Boys is totally opposite of most record companies & classic rock back catalogue artists, with respect to promoting an upcoming archival release. Most other artists/labels reveal track listings & release dates months in advance and build consumer "buzz" through publicity(such as that for upcoming archival releases such as the expanded editions of Paul McCartney's "Ram" or the expanded multi disc reissues by Small Faces). As for The Beach Boys & Capitol, their strategy is make an initial vague announcement, then tell the public absolutely nothing until 6 months later, while keeping all individuals involved in these projects gagged with strict secrecy/confidentiality contracts.

[Andrew G. Doe]

For better(or I would say worse), it is obvious that the "strategy"(if you could call it that) of Capitol Records & The Beach Boys is totally opposite of most record companies & classic rock back catalogue artists, with respect to promoting an upcoming archival release. Most other artists/labels reveal track listings & release dates months in advance and build consumer "buzz" through publicity(such as that for upcoming archival releases such as the expanded editions of Paul McCartney's "Ram" or the expanded multi disc reissues by Small Faces). As for The Beach Boys & Capitol, their strategy is make an initial vague announcement, then tell the public absolutely nothing until 6 months later, while keeping all individuals involved in these projects gagged with strict secrecy/confidentiality contracts.

Actually, no - it's just you they tell nothing: everyone else here has been aware of what's been happening in real time. 

[Paulos]

No post from Eeyore of late? He must be fuming about the Do It Again Zinepak and the Thats Why God Made The Radio promo!

If you are referring to me(I don't know what an Eeyore is, though I've seen that term used before), having the fans buy a magazine & 10 already released tracks, to get one unreleased track(the remake of "Do It Again") is not exactly a good value. And typically, the Walmart in my area won't stock these "sold only at Walmart" CD's. At least that's what happened with John Fogerty & Jimi Hendrix items manufactured only for Walmart. A Hendrix fan in New York(who contacted me through an online music forum) bought six spare Hendrix CD singles at his local Walmart, and(out of the kindness of his heart) gave them to fans who couldn't obtain the item at their local Walmart. I returned the favor by cloning a 6-CD Hendrix bootleg("Astro Man") for him.

As for the reunion album, I'm not going to waste any more effort on it. This isn't "Smile", you know? I can only hope that (if for whatever reasons) that the group can't complete & release the reunion album, then at least the archival projects might still be released. I'll buy the reunion album(if Capitol releases it), but the unreleased /remixed stuff from the "Good Ol' Days" is what I want most.

For fecks sake, the new album will be released on June 05th 2012 as confirmed by the band, the record label, ESQ and others whether you like it or not. The album is available for pre-order on amazon.com. Just what the hell is wrong with you? The above statement higlighted in bold beggars belief.



Oh and the below is the well known and beloved character Eeyore, which apparently you have never heard of. 

[John Manning]

For better(or I would say worse), it is obvious that the "strategy"(if you could call it that) of Capitol Records & The Beach Boys is totally opposite of most record companies & classic rock back catalogue artists, with respect to promoting an upcoming archival release. Most other artists/labels reveal track listings & release dates months in advance and build consumer "buzz" through publicity(such as that for upcoming archival releases such as the expanded editions of Paul McCartney's "Ram" or the expanded multi disc reissues by Small Faces). As for The Beach Boys & Capitol, their strategy is make an initial vague announcement, then tell the public absolutely nothing until 6 months later, while keeping all individuals involved in these projects gagged with strict secrecy/confidentiality contracts.

Chump.

[seanmurd]

For better(or I would say worse), it is obvious that the "strategy"(if you could call it that) of Capitol Records & The Beach Boys is totally opposite of most record companies & classic rock back catalogue artists, with respect to promoting an upcoming archival release. Most other artists/labels reveal track listings & release dates months in advance and build consumer "buzz" through publicity(such as that for upcoming archival releases such as the expanded editions of Paul McCartney's "Ram" or the expanded multi disc reissues by Small Faces). As for The Beach Boys & Capitol, their strategy is make an initial vague announcement, then tell the public absolutely nothing until 6 months later, while keeping all individuals involved in these projects gagged with strict secrecy/confidentiality contracts.

I generally try to stay out of the Neverending Phil And Andrew Battle Royale And Periodic Dick-Waving Contest -- both sides inevitably end up looking less than classy -- but Phil, you chose the wrong example in this instance when you cited McCartney's RAM reissue. If you look at the details of that one, it was arguably WORSE than how the BBs handled the SMiLE box set. First off, Paul started off a YEAR-AND-A-HALF of speculation by simply IMPLYING that Ram would be an upcoming reissue, with a little slip of paper inserted into the BOTR reissue. It was only confirmed in March 2012 that Ram would indeed be the next album reissued, and it the full contents and configurations were only finally announced on Macca's website last week, a mere month before the release date. In contrast, the BBs announced that SMiLE would be released "later this year" in February 2011, followed that up with a Record Store Day release in April, followed THAT up with a special 45 in MOJO in June, and then announced all the configurations and track lists on September 1st, a full 2+ months before the release date. You were wrong about SMiLE last year, and I pretty much expect that you're wrong about everything this year too. In fact, if you wouldn't mind giving us all a heads-up on what the next Mega Millions numbers WON'T be, we can all go in on the tickets, and we'll be able to afford all this stuff you think won't be released this year.

Cheers, and please stop.
Your pal and occasional defender,

[drbeachboy]

Sean, while you correct on every respect, I take exception with you calling out Andrew. Anyone here has a right to call out Phil every time he posts his malarky. Like you say, he is always off the mark with all his naysaying  posts regarding The Boys, and especially Capitol and it's marketing strategies. You would think that after all that has happened to him here, that he would rethink his own thoughts and strategies. He never has, and I suspect that he never will. Our reactions are the express reason why he posts here. For Phil, he reaps what he sows.