Mike’s new PBS special (and an interesting new BBs compilation)

[The Cool One]

NOoooooooo IT´s THE END OF THE WORLD

STILL CRUISIN APPEARS ON A ALBUM THAT¨S NOT THE COLLECTION OF SPAIN.

Me tendre que conformar, antes o luego tenia que pasar.

[HeyJude]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

[The_Beach]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

Yes unfortunately you are right! I like to see happy Endings being put on the album though! But thats not enought to get me to pay $156. maybe it would if there was something from the vaults that we havent heard before!

[HeyJude]

Really though, "Happy Endings" isn't one of their better moments. Plus, it was on one of those 57 volumes of Dumb Angel "Rarities", there are a bunch of versions of it on YouTube, and it looks like you can buy the original 45 record for $5-$10.

Thankfully, when a similar thing came up back when they put "East Meets West" on that Four Seasons boxed set, I had so little Four Seasons stuff on CD that I went ahead and picked that set up not specifically for the BB track. Truth be told, it's not like the version of "East Meet West" on that set sounded a million times better than the (presumably) vinyl rip on one of those "Rarities" sets.

[“Big Daddy”]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

I think this is a somewhat disrespectful comment. This release was made to support a pledge drive that shares the music with a wide audience and helps fund public broadcasting (which I would argue is for the public good). It’s not like it’s some contrived, redundant compilation designed to line store shelves. I hardly think their support of this special is a waste of their time, especially considering the CD release looks more “signed off on” than meticulously planned/organized by BRI.  

[NOLA BB Fan]

Well, just saw this. It was Mike introducing a bunch of various music videos, beginning and ending with BBs videos. Highlight for me was the Dick Dale performance. Was nice and relaxing overall. Of course there were the several pledge breaks but that's just the way it is.
Not sure if I'll get the CDs. Am already a member of PBS and give monthly (less than 13 dollars per, though). But I don't have but a couple of the songs on the 4 non-Beach Boys CDs so maybe?

[HeyJude]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

I think this is a somewhat disrespectful comment. This release was made to support a pledge drive that shares the music with a wide audience and helps fund public broadcasting (which I would argue is for the public good). It’s not like it’s some contrived, redundant compilation designed to line store shelves. I hardly think their support of this special is a waste of their time, especially considering the CD release looks more “signed off on” than meticulously planned/organized by BRI.  

I suspected someone might point out that the item is for a pledge drive. I don't think there's anything "disrespectful" in my comments. Cynical perhaps, but not disrespectful.

First of all, it veers into an OT area, but I feel that PBS shouldn't have to do pledge drives and should be fully funded by the government. If politicians and citizens feel it's worth *partially* funding, then it should be worth fully funding. Additionally, they shouldn't have to offer lavish, sometimes bloated gift packages in return for pledges. They end up then, of course, not even being able to use all of the money to put towards their station and instead have to put a bunch of the money towards procuring, processing, and shipping pledge perks. People do have the option of donating *without* accepting any gifts of course. Obviously, they would receive far fewer pledges if they didn't offer the gifts.

I suppose a better way for me to put it would have been that it's unfortunate that BRI and Capitol seem to be willing to put MORE time into ramshackle, off-kilter compilations (I mean, if you *were* going to program a compilation for the "average" fan, would you put stuff like "Summer of Love" and "Wipe Out" on it?) than they do in opening up the archives which would raise the profile of the band and provide fans with some quality product, which would be a win-win for everybody.

BRI and Capitol could have easily just offered "Sounds of Summer" or some other compilation as the "Beach Boys" component of this pledge package. That they appear to have actually *SPENT TIME AND EFFORT* selecting and clearing this partially odd selection of songs is what is disappointing in light of *not* opening their archives in a more substantial fashion. I doubt they spent a ton of time selecting these songs and signing off on it, but *someone* selected these songs and made sure everything was cleared, and I'm guessing it was Mike and/or BRI at some point in the process. That they have more enthusiasm for one of these PBS clip jobs (which I often enjoy, don't get me wrong) and a tossed-off weird compilation to accompany it than they do for spearheading a "Live from the Archives" program or deluxe sets for "Sunflower" or "Surf's Up", is what is disappointing.

And, if BRI and Capitol want to get behind PBS, how about this: Compile a career-spanning compilation of live concert footage of the band, sell *that* to PBS to air during pledge drives, and offer a Blu-ray and/or DVD of *that* (and perhaps other rare BB items, along with a "Sounds of Summer" CD for good measure) as the pledge gift.

[KDS]

HJ,

Funny you mention SOS.

About a month or two ago, a local PBS station here was showing the Knebworth concert from 1980, and was offering the DVD and Sounds of Summer as gifts for pledges. 

[HeyJude]

HJ,

Funny you mention SOS.

About a month or two ago, a local PBS station here was showing the Knebworth concert from 1980, and was offering the DVD and Sounds of Summer as gifts for pledges. 

I was going to mention in my previous post that my recollection was that PBS had indeed used the Brother-owned "Live at Knebworth 1980" show as a pledge item. Creating content like that which can then be sold to fans as well as used for pledge drives and whatnot would seem much more ideal.

But again, this new pledge CD is not a cause of anything, but more simply a symptom of bad management at BRI. It's pretty clear that it's *not* as if something else would have materialized had they not signed off on this PBS CD. This new CD, along with other recent releases, shows that clearly BRI has the ability to function as an entity that puts out newly-conceived BB product. So they have the time and ability, but no apparent desire to do something more substantial with their archives. Meanwhile, tons of other bands are putting out "Immersion" style boxed sets focused on albums, numerous live DVD/Blu-ray releases from the archives, archival downloads, etc.

[KDS]

HJ,

Funny you mention SOS.

About a month or two ago, a local PBS station here was showing the Knebworth concert from 1980, and was offering the DVD and Sounds of Summer as gifts for pledges. 

I was going to mention in my previous post that my recollection was that PBS had indeed used the Brother-owned "Live at Knebworth 1980" show as a pledge item. Creating content like that which can then be sold to fans as well as used for pledge drives and whatnot would seem much more ideal.

But again, this new pledge CD is not a cause of anything, but more simply a symptom of bad management at BRI. It's pretty clear that it's *not* as if something else would have materialized had they not signed off on this PBS CD. This new CD, along with other recent releases, shows that clearly BRI has the ability to function as an entity that puts out newly-conceived BB product. So they have the time and ability, but no apparent desire to do something more substantial with their archives. Meanwhile, tons of other bands are putting out "Immersion" style boxed sets focused on albums, numerous live DVD/Blu-ray releases from the archives, archival downloads, etc.

Yeah, I'll agree with that. 

On the plus side, BRI is probably working on another way to sell us Pet Sounds again. 

[“Big Daddy”]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

I think this is a somewhat disrespectful comment. This release was made to support a pledge drive that shares the music with a wide audience and helps fund public broadcasting (which I would argue is for the public good). It’s not like it’s some contrived, redundant compilation designed to line store shelves. I hardly think their support of this special is a waste of their time, especially considering the CD release looks more “signed off on” than meticulously planned/organized by BRI.  

I suspected someone might point out that the item is for a pledge drive. I don't think there's anything "disrespectful" in my comments. Cynical perhaps, but not disrespectful.

I would definitely say the comment is disrespectful to BRI. BRI’s main responsibility is not servicing hardcore fans; there are other aspects and responsibilities of sharing the Beach Boys’ legacy. Is approving the licensing of a song for a movie a “waste” of BRI’s time? I imagine there’s a lot going on in the ongoing operations of BRI. I would not say participating in this project is indicative of poor management. They are currently taking part in their second “flagship” archival release this year with the release of Becoming the Beach Boys this Friday. Participating in the pledge drive is smart; they make money on a new release without cannibalizing the sales of flagship archival releases and while sharing the music with a broader audience. Not that “Wipe Out” is going to help bring in new fans.

[grillo]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

 

I feel that PBS shouldn't have to do pledge drives and should be fully funded by the government. If politicians and citizens feel it's worth *partially* funding, then it should be worth fully funding.

Way OT...
Yeah, cos nothing says legitimate non-biased reporting like GOVERNMENT FUNDING. AM I Right?!
If people wanted to fund it, they would. Its not virtuous to force people to support things they disagree with. If you enjoy PBS, pay for it. For me PBS is as bad as CNN or FOX, although at least those organizations don't pretend to be nonprofits who don't take advertising money. LOL

[Chocolate Shake Man]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

 

I feel that PBS shouldn't have to do pledge drives and should be fully funded by the government. If politicians and citizens feel it's worth *partially* funding, then it should be worth fully funding.

Way OT...
Yeah, cos nothing says legitimate non-biased reporting like GOVERNMENT FUNDING. AM I Right?!
If people wanted to fund it, they would. Its not virtuous to force people to support things they disagree with. If you enjoy PBS, pay for it. For me PBS is as bad as CNN or FOX, although at least those organizations don't pretend to be nonprofits who don't take advertising money. LOL

This is meant to be a democracy. If you don't feel the government should pay for PBS then you can organize people and try to get that to change. If we can't make change through democratic means because there is too much support going the other way, then we have to accept that part of being a grown-up means having to sometimes participate in things that we don't want to with the knowledge that someday other people will have to participate in something we support that that they don't want to. Learning to compromise is a crucial part of being an adult.

[HeyJude]

I would definitely say the comment is disrespectful to BRI. BRI’s main responsibility is not servicing hardcore fans; there are other aspects and responsibilities of sharing the Beach Boys’ legacy. Is approving the licensing of a song for a movie a “waste” of BRI’s time? I imagine there’s a lot going on in the ongoing operations of BRI. I would not say participating in this project is indicative of poor management. They are currently taking part in their second “flagship” archival release this year with the release of Becoming the Beach Boys this Friday. Participating in the pledge drive is smart; they make money on a new release without cannibalizing the sales of flagship archival releases and while sharing the music with a broader audience. Not that “Wipe Out” is going to help bring in new fans.

I simply largely disagree.

BRI obviously owes no fiduciary duty to fans of any sort, hardcore or otherwise.

What some fans including myself have tried to do is not simply make lists of stuff *I* want from them, but rather look with some objectivity at what they could be doing that would be better for *all* concerned.

Doing a nice archival program would be good for BRI, good for the band's legacy/reputation/cred, and of course good for fans.

BRI has continually shown generally poor management in all aspects. The cool stuff that *does* come out only happens due to either copyright extention issues and folks *outside* of BRI doing their best to champion what little they can accomplish within the confines of what BRI and Capitol are willing to issue (Alan Boyd, etc.)  The stuff they green light usually has to have some *external* factor instigating it. The "MIC" set was meant to accompany C50. The old GV set was meant to mark 30 years. The "EH" soundtrack was meant to accompany a film. The "Hallmark" CD happened because Hallmark asked for it. The "Hawthorne, CA" set began life as a freebie giveaway disc meant to accompany a "Greatest Hits" CD package. The "Copyright Extension" releases and their impetus are of course obvious.

The point is that rarely is there someone *within* BRI simply saying "Hey, this stuff is good and the band and the brand and the fans would all benefit by putting some of this stuff out", with no other prompting other than the inherent quality and value of the archive itself.

I'm not saying they shouldn't tie stuff into whatever they can from a marketing point of view. That only can help. But the impetus should, at least sometimes and as a general rule, be someone at BRI pointing out the inherent value of the stuff.

Not only has a lack of a substantive archival program shown a lack of management and/or vision, the *horrible* PR issues surrounding the *brand* perhaps most clearly show bad management. The Beatles/Apple model/comparison is apt here. McCartney and Yoko Ono have as many, if not more, reasons to not get along and be at odds as Brian and Mike (or Al and Mike) do. Yet, they've managed to unify the brand. They cross-promote solo and group stuff.

Meanwhile, Mike insults Brian in interviews, Mike casts shade on Brian's album and film, they don't particularly cross-promote their product (Al is on board for Brian stuff because he's a part of it of course, while Bruce has no real social media presence), and so on.

It's interesting that licensing songs for films has come up, because that's something I recall Howie Edelson mentioning was a huge missed opportunity during the 2012 reunion. They should have been doing more advertising tie-ins and pushing songs from the new album to films (I think "Spring Vacation" was the one Howie mentioned back then as a good idea). *I* don't care as a fan too much about cheesy advertising tie-ins and songs I already own appearing in some sh***y movie, but it would be good for the "brand", and as the "brand" thrives, there's more momentum and resources to do the stuff that fans would like as well.

"Becoming the Beach Boys" is a great and important set to have, but I see no evidence that it's indicative of an ongoing archival program. It looks to me more like some folks who see the importance of the tapes have done a lot of the groundwork to get BRI to put it out, and perhaps BRI also realizes it's better to get it out in an authorized fashion considering other parties have been recently trying to release more of the tapes through shady means.

If the other "flagship" product you're talking about is the PS anniversary set, then that was a pretty big disappointment as well. We all knew such a set was coming, and I have no problem with it. It's basically a repackaging/remarketing/rebranding of the 20-year-old set with some new bits thrown in. It's good to have available, but it's not to be commended as some groundbreaking opening of the vaults.

These two projects aren't really even related to each other. The "Becoming" set is all tapes owned by BRI and licensed to Omnivore. The "PS" set is a Capitol product, no doubt signed off and contributed to by BRI by way of the scant bonus material.

If you add up all of the items released over the last 20 years, there's some great and substantial material there. I'm glad to have it all, even something seemingly nobody was asking for like the well-made but headscratch-inducing "Party" 2-CD set. Again, stuff like "Becoming", or the scant bonus material that *did* make it on the PS set, or the "Party" set or other "Copyright Extension" sets are the result of those who care about this stuff like Alan Boyd doing *as much as they can* within the confines of the project at hand.

There's nothing bad about these releases.

A PBS pledge drive item is innocuous at worst. It's not a big deal. But it's not an example of good brand management or any sort of unified management behind this band. It indicates nobody is behind the scenes sort of "workshopping" lots of cool releases for a willing BRI.

[HeyJude]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

 

I feel that PBS shouldn't have to do pledge drives and should be fully funded by the government. If politicians and citizens feel it's worth *partially* funding, then it should be worth fully funding.

Way OT...
Yeah, cos nothing says legitimate non-biased reporting like GOVERNMENT FUNDING. AM I Right?!
If people wanted to fund it, they would. Its not virtuous to force people to support things they disagree with. If you enjoy PBS, pay for it. For me PBS is as bad as CNN or FOX, although at least those organizations don't pretend to be nonprofits who don't take advertising money. LOL

I suggest taking any political PBS stuff to the Sandbox. I don't really care too much and my comments were meant to pertain to the BRI point of view rather than PBS. I was simply explaining why the idea of a "pledge drive" wasn't in my opinion a mechanism with which to make people feel guilty for questioning.

As it turns out, balking at pledge drives is something that occurs with both people who love and loathe PBS.

[KDS]

I would definitely say the comment is disrespectful to BRI. BRI’s main responsibility is not servicing hardcore fans; there are other aspects and responsibilities of sharing the Beach Boys’ legacy. Is approving the licensing of a song for a movie a “waste” of BRI’s time? I imagine there’s a lot going on in the ongoing operations of BRI. I would not say participating in this project is indicative of poor management. They are currently taking part in their second “flagship” archival release this year with the release of Becoming the Beach Boys this Friday. Participating in the pledge drive is smart; they make money on a new release without cannibalizing the sales of flagship archival releases and while sharing the music with a broader audience. Not that “Wipe Out” is going to help bring in new fans.

I simply largely disagree.

BRI obviously owes no fiduciary duty to fans of any sort, hardcore or otherwise.

What some fans including myself have tried to do is not simply make lists of stuff *I* want from them, but rather look with some objectivity at what they could be doing that would be better for *all* concerned.

Doing a nice archival program would be good for BRI, good for the band's legacy/reputation/cred, and of course good for fans.

BRI has continually shown generally poor management in all aspects. The cool stuff that *does* come out only happens due to either copyright extention issues and folks *outside* of BRI doing their best to champion what little they can accomplish within the confines of what BRI and Capitol are willing to issue (Alan Boyd, etc.)

Not only has a lack of a substantive archival program shown a lack of management and/or vision, the *horrible* PR issues surrounding the *brand* perhaps most clearly show bad management. The Beatles/Apple model/comparison is apt here. McCartney and Yoko Ono have as many, if not more, reasons to not get along and be at odds as Brian and Mike (or Al and Mike) do. Yet, they've managed to unify the brand. They cross-promote solo and group stuff.

Meanwhile, Mike insults Brian in interviews, Mike casts shade on Brian's album and film, they don't particularly cross-promote their product (Al is on board for Brian stuff because he's a part of it of course, while Bruce has no real social media presence), and so on.

It's interesting that licensing songs for films has come up, because that's something I recall Howie Edelson mentioning was a huge missed opportunity during the 2012 reunion. They should have been doing more advertising tie-ins and pushing songs from the new album to films (I think "Spring Vacation" was the one Howie mentioned back then as a good idea). *I* don't care as a fan too much about cheesy advertising tie-ins and songs I already own appearing in some sh***y movie, but it would be good for the "brand", and as the "brand" thrives, there's more momentum and resources to do the stuff that fans would like as well.

"Becoming the Beach Boys" is a great and important set to have, but I see no evidence that it's indicative of an ongoing archival program. It looks to me more like some folks who see the importance of the tapes have done a lot of the groundwork to get BRI to put it out, and perhaps BRI also realizes it's better to get it out in an authorized fashion considering other parties have been recently trying to release more of the tapes through shady means.

If the other "flagship" product you're talking about is the PS anniversary set, then that was a pretty big disappointment as well. We all knew such a set was coming, and I have no problem with it. It's basically a repackaging/remarketing/rebranding of the 20-year-old set with some new bits thrown in. It's good to have available, but it's not to be commended as some groundbreaking opening of the vaults.

These two projects aren't really even related to each other. The "Becoming" set is all tapes owned by BRI and licensed to Omnivore. The "PS" set is a Capitol product, no doubt signed off and contributed to by BRI by way of the scant bonus material.

If you add up all of the items released over the last 20 years, there's some great and substantial material there. I'm glad to have it all, even something seemingly nobody was asking for like the well-made but headscratch-inducing "Party" 2-CD set. Again, stuff like "Becoming", or the scant bonus material that *did* make it on the PS set, or the "Party" set or other "Copyright Extension" sets are the result of those who care about this stuff like Alan Boyd doing *as much as they can* within the confines of the project at hand.

There's nothing bad about these releases.

A PBS pledge drive item is innocuous at worst. It's not a big deal. But it's not an example of good brand management or any sort of unified management behind this band. It indicates nobody is behind the scenes sort of "workshopping" lots of cool releases for a willing BRI.

Not to mention the sorry excuses for live product after the 2012 reunion.  A big reunion like The Beach Boys, and we got a documentary teaser with some live tracks.  A slap dash DVD with about 40% of a concert.  And a very poorly produced 2 CD set that only included a small handful of B&W photos in the booklet. 

So many other legacy artists put out live product after almost every major tour these days. 

I'm hoping we get a good document of Brian's Pet Sounds Tour, but seeing that Brian Wilson and Friends was recently widely released, I'm not really counting on it. 

[“Big Daddy”]

Some good points, HeyJude. I really enjoy your posts.

[CenturyDeprived]

Not to mention the sorry excuses for live product after the 2012 reunion.  A big reunion like The Beach Boys, and we got a documentary teaser with some live tracks.  A slap dash DVD with about 40% of a concert.  And a very poorly produced 2 CD set that only included a small handful of B&W photos in the booklet.  

You have to know that this must have at least in part been because of the majorly sour feelings after the tour ended. There would have been no band member giving many actual f*cks to make a nicer release happen. No, I have no actual evidence of this, but it seems pretty obvious that this was *a* factor.

[grillo]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

 

I feel that PBS shouldn't have to do pledge drives and should be fully funded by the government. If politicians and citizens feel it's worth *partially* funding, then it should be worth fully funding.

Way OT...
Yeah, cos nothing says legitimate non-biased reporting like GOVERNMENT FUNDING. AM I Right?!
If people wanted to fund it, they would. Its not virtuous to force people to support things they disagree with. If you enjoy PBS, pay for it. For me PBS is as bad as CNN or FOX, although at least those organizations don't pretend to be nonprofits who don't take advertising money. LOL

This is meant to be a democracy. If you don't feel the government should pay for PBS then you can organize people and try to get that to change. If we can't make change through democratic means because there is too much support going the other way, then we have to accept that part of being a grown-up means having to sometimes participate in things that we don't want to with the knowledge that someday other people will have to participate in something we support that that they don't want to. Learning to compromise is a crucial part of being an adult.

(YOU CAN SEND THIS TO THE SANDBOX, but its my last comment on this) Yeah, so according to you, following and agreeing to the whims of the masses is being an adult. Having principles...not so much. Ehh....Also this is meant to be a republic, not a democracy. Rule of Law, not rule by mob.
You want to compromise your principles to just get along? Great. You do that. And you can even call that being an adult.
Don't expect others do the same.

[Chocolate Shake Man]

Unfortunate that this is the stuff that BRI (and Capitol) are wasting their time on instead of opening up the archives.

 

I feel that PBS shouldn't have to do pledge drives and should be fully funded by the government. If politicians and citizens feel it's worth *partially* funding, then it should be worth fully funding.

Way OT...
Yeah, cos nothing says legitimate non-biased reporting like GOVERNMENT FUNDING. AM I Right?!
If people wanted to fund it, they would. Its not virtuous to force people to support things they disagree with. If you enjoy PBS, pay for it. For me PBS is as bad as CNN or FOX, although at least those organizations don't pretend to be nonprofits who don't take advertising money. LOL

This is meant to be a democracy. If you don't feel the government should pay for PBS then you can organize people and try to get that to change. If we can't make change through democratic means because there is too much support going the other way, then we have to accept that part of being a grown-up means having to sometimes participate in things that we don't want to with the knowledge that someday other people will have to participate in something we support that that they don't want to. Learning to compromise is a crucial part of being an adult.

(YOU CAN SEND THIS TO THE SANDBOX, but its my last comment on this) Yeah, so according to you, following and agreeing to the whims of the masses is being an adult. Having principles...not so much. Ehh....Also this is meant to be a republic, not a democracy. Rule of Law, not rule by mob.
You want to compromise your principles to just get along? Great. You do that. And you can even call that being an adult.
Don't expect others do the same.

I'm glad that your last word was making up my argument and arguing against that. For those interested in what I actually said, you can read the quote. At that point if you want to engage in Sandbox I'll be happy to.

[KDS]

Not to mention the sorry excuses for live product after the 2012 reunion.  A big reunion like The Beach Boys, and we got a documentary teaser with some live tracks.  A slap dash DVD with about 40% of a concert.  And a very poorly produced 2 CD set that only included a small handful of B&W photos in the booklet.  

You have to know that this must have at least in part been because of the majorly sour feelings after the tour ended. There would have been no band member giving many actual f*cks to make a nicer release happen. No, I have no actual evidence of this, but it seems pretty obvious that this was *a* factor.

I'm sure that was a factor.  And I think to a certain extent that having a really well done live Beach Boys product with Brian, Al, and David on it couldn't caused some confusion about the 2013 touring band. 

But, one would've thought, knowing that going into 2012 it was a one album, one tour deal, some foresight would've went into planning for a nice live package.  Maybe even pairing with a big box store for exclusive distribution like The Police did with their live reunion CD/DVD set. 

[CenturyDeprived]

Not to mention the sorry excuses for live product after the 2012 reunion.  A big reunion like The Beach Boys, and we got a documentary teaser with some live tracks.  A slap dash DVD with about 40% of a concert.  And a very poorly produced 2 CD set that only included a small handful of B&W photos in the booklet.  

You have to know that this must have at least in part been because of the majorly sour feelings after the tour ended. There would have been no band member giving many actual f*cks to make a nicer release happen. No, I have no actual evidence of this, but it seems pretty obvious that this was *a* factor.

I'm sure that was a factor.  And I think to a certain extent that having a really well done live Beach Boys product with Brian, Al, and David on it couldn't caused some confusion about the 2013 touring band.  

But, one would've thought, knowing that going into 2012 it was a one album, one tour deal, some foresight would've went into planning for a nice live package.  Maybe even pairing with a big box store for exclusive distribution like The Police did with their live reunion CD/DVD set.  
 

Would have been nice. But I think part of why that didn't happen (with foresight) is that many people were wondering just how the tour was even going to go. Remember back at the start of the tour some people thought that Brian wouldn't make it through the tour, some hypothesized that he'd have some emotional breakdown and quit a few dates in.  Maybe some folks within the band were also not sure how things were going to turn out, and wanted to wait and see how things played out before putting the cart before the horse with planning a big live package. And when the reunion was apparently doomed from the start, being that Mike seemingly felt hugely slighted going back to the earliest parts of the reunion (writing of the album), foresight just wasn't gonna happen.

Getting back on topic, while this a VERY weird and truly baffling compilation, I'm glad these oddball tracks are being re-released (and newly digitally released). I wonder if the mastering will be new and improved, and if the '80s Still Cruisin' track will sound better than ever before. I just wish they would give that treatment to "Make it Big"! Such an underrated '80s BB track.

[HeyJude]

Regarding C50 products (live audio and video), I get the sense that the lack of anything better subsequently appearing has been due to a mixture of the obvious fallout when C50 ended (does anyone think Mike wants to put a high profile reunion product from 2012 on the market right now?) as well as potentially the sketchy nature of some of the companies that were putting together some of the video releases.

Remember this?:

http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,16156.msg391431.html#msg391431

I believe the folks who were trying to put together the eventually-canceled "crowd funded" C50 project were also involved in the previous C50 video releases.

For all we know, even with a perfectly legit company trying to put something together, any C50 project after 2012 would have been nixed by one or more BRI members.

I can also only guess, and let me stress this is just a guess, that any C50 product that might still benefit Joe Thomas is something that Mike wouldn't have a lot of interest in backing.

It's ironic that it's potentially *easier* for the band to agree to release ancient live recordings from decades ago while their huge tour from only four years ago might encounter huge roadblocks in terms of future releases.

One of the reasons I've hoped for an online "Live from the Archives" series is that we could potentially get some C50 material that way, where it would be more low key.

[KDS]

Regarding C50 products (live audio and video), I get the sense that the lack of anything better subsequently appearing has been due to a mixture of the obvious fallout when C50 ended (does anyone think Mike wants to put a high profile reunion product from 2012 on the market right now?) as well as potentially the sketchy nature of some of the companies that were putting together some of the video releases.

Remember this?:

http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,16156.msg391431.html#msg391431

I believe the folks who were trying to put together the eventually-canceled "crowd funded" C50 project were also involved in the previous C50 video releases.

For all we know, even with a perfectly legit company trying to put something together, any C50 project after 2012 would have been nixed by one or more BRI members.

I can also only guess, and let me stress this is just a guess, that any C50 product that might still benefit Joe Thomas is something that Mike wouldn't have a lot of interest in backing.

It's ironic that it's potentially *easier* for the band to agree to release ancient live recordings from decades ago while their huge tour from only four years ago might encounter huge roadblocks in terms of future releases.

One of the reasons I've hoped for an online "Live from the Archives" series is that we could potentially get some C50 material that way, where it would be more low key.

I think a live anthology is the best bet for a full C50 show also.  Either that, or maybe a release once Mike and Bruce's Beach Boys are no longer touring.  I don't see any chance of a Beach Boys C50 live product hitting shelves now.  It could create some confusion with the current group.  Heck, four years later, some venues still use the C50 publicity photos to promote Mike and Bruce shows. 

[Rocky Raccoon]

There is still a Live at the Hollywood Bowl video that may already be completely mixed, edited, and ready for release that has mysteriously never come out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7Mg8_HOIiw