"STILL CRUISIN'" ????

[Autotune]

I don't get why people still get so uptight about setlist issues. We've been getting great setlists and great performances. Don't see the need to make angry demonstrations.

[Ziggy Stardust]

I don't get why people still get so uptight about setlist issues. We've been getting great setlists and great performances. Don't see the need to make angry demonstrations.

Would be disappointed tho if the concert i went to they decided to stop Our Prayer to put Still Cruisin' instead, but oh well.

[AndrewHickey]

Ugh,
why are we pretending to be ok with this piece of crap's repeated inclusion in recent sets, while "This Whole World," "Prayer" and "Marcella" become increasingly scarce?? Let's hope this is just for the heartland USA. There does seem to be a trend in the recent weeks of an increasingly conservative set list, which is disappointing and a little bit depressing.

Those would be the recent weeks in which Our Prayer and Pet Sounds have been introduced then?

Throughout the tour, songs have been added and dropped. Some have returned again, others haven't. The 'increasingly conservative set list' at last night's show still included Please Let Me Wonder, Wendy, Disney Girls, Isn't It Time, Kiss Me Baby, California Saga, Ballad of Old Betsy, Pet Sounds, Add Some Music, Heroes & Villains, Sail On Sailor, I Just Wasn't Made For These Times, All This Is That, That's Why God Made The Radio and Forever.

So I don't think anyone's 'pretending to be OK' with Still Cruisin' being in the set. Some people like the song (I do, actually -- that and Getcha Back are the only two Love/Melcher collaborations I have much time for, though I wouldn't choose it over something like This Whole World). Some don't like it but think it's good that they're swapping in different songs on principle. Others don't like it but aren't angry because there's another forty-six to forty-nine songs in a typical set at the moment and they can put up with one or two they don't like.

[Wirestone]

I don't get why people still get so uptight about setlist issues. We've been getting great setlists and great performances. Don't see the need to make angry demonstrations.

Would be disappointed tho if the concert i went to they decided to stop Our Prayer to put Still Cruisin' instead, but oh well.

But people are talking as if it's a one-for-one substitution. That is, evil Mike decides "we must replace Our Prayer with my masterpiece Still Cruisin." Or whatever. I really doubt anyone thinks about it in that way. Brian seems to have certain things he likes and wants to play, and the band does them. If BW wanted to start every second set with Our Prayer -- the way he clearly wants to play Add Some Music in every show -- they would. He just doesn't seem to care that much about the tune.

[HeyJude]

I don't mind "Still Cruisin'" being in the setlist. It's an okay song, not my favorite, probably on the same level of enjoyment for me as "Getcha Back." I think it's kind of cool to hear them do something from another era, and to see Brian integrated into a few 80's era songs where he was originally somewhat estranged from the band. I don't think they should set out to do a song from each album or anything at the expense of picking good songs, but I don't think it's wrong for the 50th anniversary tour to have a few tracks from the 80's other than "Kokomo."

I'm still hoping they'll try "Goin' On."  

[KittyKat]

Brian's not in the song I assume, but he's in the official music video at approx. :51.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RbMTDLFOjA

I do remember this being played on MTV a lot when I was a young'un, so it must have been a small hit at least.

[Doo Dah]

See now, Goin' On would be interesting. Far more to me than Cruisin'. I'm just lucky that I saw some of the increasingly rare deeper cuts earlier in the tour.

To echo what someone said, it's probably an American heartland set list thing. It'll be interesting what they play at Red Rock and real interesting how the set list evolves once they go abroad.

[Wirestone]

See now, Goin' On would be interesting. Far more to me than Cruisin'. I'm just lucky that I saw some of the increasingly rare deeper cuts earlier in the tour.

To echo what someone said, it's probably an American heartland set list thing. It'll be interesting what they play at Red Rock and real interesting how the set list evolves once they go abroad.

That's bullshit. If it was a heartland setlist thing, why would they still be playing literally more than a dozen rarities in each show? Pet Sounds. Add Some Music. Etc., etc., etc.

[Juice Brohnston]

How about a Still Cruisin'/Getcha Back/Wipe Out/Kokomo medley....cover all the 80's in one shot

[Doo Dah]

That's bullsh*t. If it was a heartland setlist thing, why would they still be playing literally more than a dozen rarities in each show? Pet Sounds. Add Some Music. Etc., etc., etc.

I don't know about more than a dozen, but they seem to maintain 6-8 that dig deeper into the songbook. It just seems as if whenever we get a surprise such as Pet Sounds, that means the deletion of This Whole World or pick your substitute. Where we disagree is that I'd be fine with dropping some of the holy relics to make space for the new - and you probably wouldn't. I would bet that in Europe they'll be more likely to experiment even further.

Again (ahem), no one is saying that the set list sucks. Everyone enjoys this balancing act of genres and generations that we've witnessed all summer. But every now and then, you're going to have some on the outside trying to get in. Much like a .500 team trying to make the NCAA March Tournament.

[Disney Boy (1985)]

It's ridiculous that they're playing this song. Ridiculous! It's hard to think of any other band in music history with such impressive, artistic, inventive, exciting songs in their back catalogue, who then treat them with such distain. What's just sold a sh*tload of copies to raptuous acclaim? SMiLE or Still Cruisin'? Where are the Smile tracks? After all these years, after everything, group politics are still getting in the way....

It is about what works in a concert setting. I don't think for the average fan that Our Prayer works that well. Btw, the album Still Cruisin' sold very, very well. In number of copies, I am sure it sold more than Smile & TWGMTR combined. I think it went gold pretty fast.

What a silly answer. Ok. so because the album Still Crusin' sold well in the 80s, and despite the fact it's universally seen as an artistic low point in their career, they should play songs from it, just because it sold a lot two decades ago? Friends and Sunflower were commercial failures - so... should they not play any tracks from those albums? And if you agree they should regardless, then surely your argument is redundant?
Transformers 3 made a sh*tload at the box office, but it was appalling. The same applies to Still Crusin'. So it sold well? Great. It's crap. Hence why the awful title track never, ever appears on any best-ofs, ever. Why on earth are they playing it, of all the songs they could pick, why this? I completely agree with the original poster. Problem Child was a success at the cinema you know, even though it's a terrible film, so hey, maybe they should play Problem Child? Yeah, they could play it in place of All This Is That or Forever... That'd be good. I'd be happy whatever they played, i'm just happy they're playing. Can't wait for Here Comes The Night '79....

[Danimalist]

I'm surprised Mike, the master of the set list, doesn't put "Our Prayer" as the intro to the second set. Seems like one of the few places it would fit, and it would be stunning to those who've never heard it, rather than killing set momentum.

I was actually pleased to hear "Betsy" at the Berkeley show. LDC is my fave of the early LPs. Scott did a fantastic job with it. Mike's praise for Brian having written it was a bit awkward, given his many mini-masterpieces, of which this is not one, although it's a likeable enough song.

Having said that, as time goes on I have several times thought to myself, "What the hell were they doing having Scott sing  'Betsy' at their 50th anniversary show?"

Hmmm...."Ballad of Old Betsy" or 'Til I Die?

Had they played "Still Cruisin'," I may have puked on the bald head in front of me.

[Wirestone]

Pet Sounds and ASM are great openers to the second set. Problem with slapping Our Prayer in there is that the set then starts three times. And I wouldn't want to lose the other two.

I would say that each show contains about a dozen deep cuts -- PS, ASM, IJWMFTT, Sail on Sailor, the two new songs, Betsy, Heroes, Kiss Me Baby, PLMW, California Saga. Sometimes they're shuffled around, sometimes the setlist goes longer or shorter.

[AndrewHickey]

Pet Sounds and ASM are great openers to the second set. Problem with slapping Our Prayer in there is that the set then starts three times. And I wouldn't want to lose the other two.

Personally, I'd rather Our Prayer than Add Some Music, by far.

Possibly one way to satisfy that would be to swap the encore songs around and have the encore start with Our Prayer into Good Vibrations, with a transition similar to that on Brian's 2004 Smile?

[Austin]

...start with Our Prayer into Good Vibrations, with a transition similar to that on Brian's 2004 Smile?

Seconded. As if it means anything: excepting Smile or 20/20 in full, that's exactly my favorite way to program those two songs.

[drbeachboy]

It's ridiculous that they're playing this song. Ridiculous! It's hard to think of any other band in music history with such impressive, artistic, inventive, exciting songs in their back catalogue, who then treat them with such distain. What's just sold a sh*tload of copies to raptuous acclaim? SMiLE or Still Cruisin'? Where are the Smile tracks? After all these years, after everything, group politics are still getting in the way....

It is about what works in a concert setting. I don't think for the average fan that Our Prayer works that well. Btw, the album Still Cruisin' sold very, very well. In number of copies, I am sure it sold more than Smile & TWGMTR combined. I think it went gold pretty fast.

What a silly answer. Ok. so because the album Still Crusin' sold well in the 80s, and despite the fact it's universally seen as an artistic low point in their career, they should play songs from it, just because it sold a lot two decades ago? Friends and Sunflower were commercial failures - so... should they not play any tracks from those albums? And if you agree they should regardless, then surely your argument is redundant?
Transformers 3 made a sh*tload at the box office, but it was appalling. The same applies to Still Crusin'. So it sold well? Great. It's crap. Hence why the awful title track never, ever appears on any best-ofs, ever. Why on earth are they playing it, of all the songs they could pick, why this? I completely agree with the original poster. Problem Child was a success at the cinema you know, even though it's a terrible film, so hey, maybe they should play Problem Child? Yeah, they could play it in place of All This Is That or Forever... That'd be good. I'd be happy whatever they played, i'm just happy they're playing. Can't wait for Here Comes The Night '79....

You brought up "what sold well..."' I just answered about just how well it sold. I take my Beach Boys talk seriously, so I don't talk silly. I tried to give reasonable explanations to the silly thread. As I said, they play what they want to play and they change it up as they see fit. You guys are like cry babies. Boo hoo, they didn't play my favorite cut, boo hoo. If you think Still Cruisin' wasn't popular, then guess what? That makes it a deep cut, then.

[Autotune]

The audience shots in the recent Australian TV program on the boys, makes these setlists seem much more daring than they are. Setlist discussions are put into a different light once you realize who these guys have to perform for every night.  The fact that they're spoiling us hardcore fans (a small number of people if there ever was one) in spite of these twist-dancing baby boomers is to be cherished as an act of love and respect from the band to their fans.

[Wirestone]

The fact that they're spoiling us hardcore fans (a small number of people if there ever was one) in spite of these twist-dancing baby boomers is to be cherished as an act of love and respect from the band to their fans.

Thank you, Lenny. Absolutely.

[Danimalist]

Agree with Lenny. I was kind of shocked by being young at the show and being the only guy without a flower print shirt on. Considering who they were playing to, I was impressed by the set list. For the first time in my life, I wanted to shake Mike's hand and thank him.

[Doo Dah]

The audience shots in the recent Australian TV program on the boys, makes these setlists seem much more daring than they are. Setlist discussions are put into a different light once you realize who these guys have to perform for every night.  The fact that they're spoiling us hardcore fans (a small number of people if there ever was one) in spite of these twist-dancing baby boomers is to be cherished as an act of love and respect from the band to their fans.

Superficially, I would agree with you. For instance, I would say that the demographic in Pittsburgh skewed older, and a fair amount did not fully embrace IJWMFTT, although they politely applauded. However, you do see a bit more of a sophistication trend in other markets (such as NYC, Boston, etc.). It is what it is - and at this stage of the game, it's quite difficult to reeducate a festival crowd who has been weened a certain way in the past three decades. (perhaps the same huh moments occurred amongst some attendees during the 1993 unplugged sets).

All that being said, continual (set list) tweaks and improvements - that's the name of the game. To accept any status quo does not speak well to the storied legacy of this band imo.

[Danimalist]

Good Lord, I had no idea SC went gold. Wow, that's...uh...well, it says a lot.

[Jonathan Blum]

The same applies to Still Crusin'. So it sold well? Great. It's crap. Hence why the awful title track never, ever appears on any best-ofs, ever.

Dunno about you, but a Best Of is the first place I heard it.  Same disc that introduced me to "Heroes And Villains", all those years ago.  Wish I could remember which one it was, and whether it was American or Australian.

And the biggest reason I can think of why they introduced "Still Cruisin"'?  Someone probably noticed that, in a tour that's supposed to be a celebration of a 50-year career, there was basically a 25-year hole in the middle filled only with "California Dreamin'" and "Kokomo".

Hence, "Come Go With Me", "Good Timin'", "Getcha Back", and "Still Cruisin'".

Not that I wouldn't prefer "Our Prayer" myself, or even "Rock And Roll To The Rescue", but I'm not getting hot under the collar about it...

Cheers,
Jon Blum

[Paul J B]

Stop bitching! Anyone that has actually seen one of these fantastic shows would not make such an issue over SC. Most of these venue's are for large crowds and festival atmosphere's. People sit dead on their butts for California Saga (California) and jump to their feet when the car songs start. Get over it. This is not a Brian solo gig and even he was doing tons of greatest hits stuff his last few years. Yes, Marcella is a much better song than SC, but only a couple of dozen per thousand at most of these shows knows Marcella even exists. People are walking away having seen IMO the greatest band ever perform a wide gamut of great music at the age of 70 and sound fantastic. Keep it in perspective.

[drbeachboy]

Stop bitching! Anyone that has actually seen one of these fantastic shows would not make such an issue over SC. Most of these venue's are for large crowds and festival atmosphere's. People sit dead on their butts for California Saga (California) and jump to their feet when the car songs start. Get over it. This is not a Brian solo gig and even he was doing tons of greatest hits stuff his last few years. Yes, Marcella is a much better song than SC, but only a couple of dozen per thousand at most of these shows knows Marcella even exists. People are walking away having seen IMO the greatest band ever perform a wide gamut of great music at the age of 70 and sound fantastic. Keep it in perspective.

Ah, he'll just tell you that you're being silly.

[Jim V.]

Figure I'll wade into this discussion. While I don't think "Still Cruisin'" is in anyone one of the group's better songs, it's relatively inoffensive and chances are that Mike Love's wants to band to play it. And since he is one of the guys in charge, he gets what he wants.

But regardless, we've gotten "This Whole World", "Please Let Me Wonder", "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times", "Good Timin'", "Heroes And Villains", "Marcella",  and "Sail On, Sailor", among others, on this tour. Show me a Beach Boys tour from within the past 35 years that was even close to having that many classic, but possibly overlooked, songs in the setlist.

And lastly, is a 2012 performance of "Still Cruisin'" anywhere on the interwebs? I couldn't find it on YouTube despite the fact I thought I'd find it there. Anyways, who sings what on this one? Do Al and Bruce still do their parts? And who does Carl's part? Brian?