Al Jardine Appreciation Thread

[Jason]

Dentists have all the fun!

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

I think Al is my favourite Beach Boy in the long run.  He strikes me as being one of the Beach Boys I could have been, Carl the other.

Al's contributions to the Beach Boys have probably gone more unnoticed than any of the other members.  The way he was able to mesh with Carl on the inner voices of complex vocal arrangments is mind-boggling to me.  He was the most important ingredient.  Without him, I think the vocal mix would have been less cohesive.

As a guitar player, his contributions seem minimal...yet he could hold his own with Campbell and the rest.  And after Brian sort of gave up on bass, Al filled in for a lot of sessions on Bass and Dano bass, and for mine, his tone on Fender bass is magnificent.

His lead singing voice matured so much over the course of his career.  I can't believe how confident he grew, from the tense "Christmas Day" to the tight "Help Me, Rhonda" to the nuanced, empathic driven sound of his Cotton Fields 45 lead.  And what a production on that, too.

Love ya Al.

[Jason]

Along with Bruce, the nicest man in show business.

[Mitchell]

Props to the man who cowrote Good Time and came up with California. He's got a great voice and a killer smile. He's the Beach Boy that lived up to the clean-cut image of The Beach Boys. He also looked good in those striped shirts, with his t-shirts underneath.

[Surfer Joe]

aeijtzsche, do you have the Goldmine (I think) interview Al did seven or eight years ago?  One of the better jobs of interviewing someone other than Brian. 

It amazes me how little there is in terms of quality interviews with Carl, Al, Dennis, Mike, or Bruce...

[Surfer Joe]

One of the reasons that Al has been so underappreciated is the widespread perception that all those girls were yelling "Dennis! Dennis!"  In fact, most of them were yelling "Dentist! Dentist!"

[Jason]

 

[Ron]

I widely agree with Aijiji's post... I don't know that Al's my favorite, but I think he's been largely overlooked over the years. 

Here, let me commit heresy...

Al's lead vocal of "You Still Believe In Me" from the "In Concert" album rivals Brian's legendary original.

Discuss.

[Jason]

Dude, it's better!

[Ron]

Right now, yeah, I'm thinking I agree with that. 

[Jason]

I love that live version. Al positively shines. It might be my favorite vocal of his. Dig when Al sings Sloop John B.

[Swamp Pirate]

His voice has aged the best of the surviving members of the group.   A competent songwriter but not exceptional.  But his voice along with Carl's and Mike and Brian in their prime- unbelievable.  Brian's band does a good job of recreating the parts but nothing will ever match that original blend. 

[Smilin Ed H]

There are tales of unrecorded and unreleased Jardine stuff that, along with Dennis' stuff, would have taken the BB on a more artistically pleasing  tangent in the mid-late 70s - of course, on the other hand, he was one of the prime movers behind the watered down 'fun'  and oldies stuff with his production of MIU... Go figure...   

[Howdy Doody]

 NEWS FLASH: Alan Jardine has been abducted by sixteen alien dwarfs demanding he give some free dentistry to the other abductees sleeping peacefully in their captive pods.  I love Al very much and always shall.  He has a beautiful voice.  Lady Linda has a joyful tone however candy disney-esque pop feel ala 1970's album filler it may be.  He coerced Brian and the others into creating new half-finished gems.  His comment how BW undersold the ending of Breakaway is hillarious and to be sure classic.

[Jeff Mason]

Al Jardine at home on his Big Sur ranch on a brisk December day.....








(still wanting to be a dentist)

[JScott]

Anybody know for sure that the little wanna-be-dentist-side-hair-part-elf character wasn't inspired by our very own Al Jardine? That cartoon is from 1964 when the BB's were big in pop culture.

[SurferGirl7]

I met him. I thought he was cool in concert. Never really made a bad song while being with the BB's. 

[Don't Back Down]

did he do anything musically during his dental schooling? I've always wondered that about Mr. Jardine

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

did he do anything musically during his dental schooling?

I think the final word was that he never really did any dental training.  Just a few weeks at Ferris State (just down the road a piece from me) before he yearned for the LA sun again.

[Jardine Power!]

Four words to describe why Al is so great:

Crack.

At.

Your.

Love.

[Evenreven]

Big forehead, even bigger voice. His lead on Be Here In The Morning may be my favourite Beach Boy vocal, it's completely mind-boggling.

[theeponymuseudonym]

one personal ex. of bb cheese becoming cool;. the final part of ladylynda. ooh lady wontcha laylinda lye with me.

totally hits me like the outro of im so young, cant marry no one ahhhoohhh

[theeponymuseudonym]

I ALSO LIKE SUSIE CREAMCHEESE, SHES GOT A GROOVYLITTLE MOTORCAR

i get a vision of the beachboys in this hot buxom black cab driver lady's vehicle who does un
imaginable things to them as they cruise  off to a gig circa 1969!!!
right on Al jarrrddddddddiiinnnneeeee.

[I. Spaceman]

If this continues, I'm leaving this fodain' message board.
QUALITY CONTROL??!!

[Surfer Joe]

Somebody call Bruce.