Brian's Fall US tour ('new' old songs)

[matt-zeus]

This might sound a little extreme, but surely on this evidence, Brian is in not much of a better situation than he was during the 'Brians Back' period or dare I say it - later periods? I'm not talking about health or happiness wise but 'forced to do a particular musical type of thing' wise.

[LostArt]

I must admit, I broke (literally) down and bought 2 tickets for the Milwaukee Wisc. show for Oct. It will have to be an overnighter for us, but he's not coming to Chicago this time. It cost me $192.00 including a 5.00 fee for parking. Mind you, these are $75 seats in the 15th row and aisle seats. For that much money, I would expect a wristband for a signature, but in my thought process, you never know if this will be his last tour.................................or mine!!!!!  My friend Pam loves his oldies so she decided to come along, which makes it more enjoyable all around. I'm hoping he does Imagination, but I'd rather hear the complete Pet Sounds again.

I think I am going to go to this one.  I'm less than two hours away, so the drive won't be bad.  I don't know if I'll buy the $75 seats, especially for a GH show.  I paid $100 each for third row center seats for the Smile show in Madison in 2004, and it was one of the greatest shows I've ever seen.  Like you said, though, Donna, this may be the last time he comes around these parts.  Maybe I'll buy the $50 seats, and use the saved dough for a nice dinner before the show.   

[The Shift]

This might sound a little extreme, but surely on this evidence, Brian is in not much of a better situation than he was during the 'Brians Back' period or dare I say it - later periods? I'm not talking about health or happiness wise but 'forced to do a particular musical type of thing' wise.

I wonder whether Brian's recovery is much better than we assume. He seems to have accepted the notion of touring, albeit with the stage fright and pre-gig nerves it involves. Touring's an aspect of the day job, a wage earner - those of us unfortunate enough to have/have had such things will all be familiar with clock watching, and the unpopular aspects that each job involves.

Touring is part of the way Brian makes a living; there're bound to be bits he's not fond of. No matter how great our own jobs are, there'll be bits of each we all hate.  Brian'll be no different.

I used to love being Hugh Heffner's body double at parties, but I'd hate it, and check my watch, when brunettes showed up.

[shelter]

I wonder if Brian really still hates touring that much. If he really doesn't want to do it, he's got his ways to sabotage everything, right? It's not like he never did that before... Could it be that he's just playing the part of grumpy, tired old man (which he to a certain extend is, of course) but that deep down he kinda enjoys the affection of his fans and being on stage with the (instrumentally) best live band he's had in his life?

[The Shift]

I wonder if Brian really still hates touring that much. If he really doesn't want to do it, he's got his ways to sabotage everything, right? It's not like he never did that before...

Trouble might be that, if he faked another nervous breakdown, they'd have him in the ground before he could change his mind. That, or announce it to the press to boost sales of next year's "hey, I'm feeling better again" album.

Or am I playing into the hands of the cynics here?

[Mooger Fooger]

Here's my take on attending concerts in the years since I have been a Beach Boys fan (1981).

No matter how many books, articles, or discussion boards you may have written/read/joined to rave on about the band, when push comes to shove, no concert promoter, no matter how far in advance you contact them, will ever see the point in granting you a pissy "Meet and Greet" / "Backstage" / or "pre gig get together" pass. Point blank forget it. Being a fan through the good times as well as the bad means nothing more than the fact that you are scum.

If you manage to weasel your way to the back door area of the stage, you'll be grouped together with people whom, though you have never seen them before (nor will ever see again in the decades following) claim to have gone to school/ridden in a bike club/worked at Brother studios/name the most obscure non-event-you-can with the Beach Boy you are there to hopefully see. That's right, you could be behind the stage in Zielona Gora, Poland - but there's always that one person who happens to be bestest buddy of the said BB, and they'll push you out of the way to get that CD of theirs autographed. (Say, if they really are that buddy buddy, why do they need to attend a concert in order to meet their best friend?)

Should you manage to get to speak to one of the band members, you'll suddenly have some freakazoid fan suddenly become your best buddy. It is a given that when they ask for a sample of one of the BB's blood, you'll be the one mistakenly assumed to have been the one asking the outrageous request.

The person who does manage to go backstage instead of you, will always - as sure as the earth turns - hammer the final insult to injury by turning to you just before they get through the security control and yell out to you "My favourite album is 20 Golden Greats!"

[Outie 315]

Brian Wilson @ Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel 11/4/09
Tix went on sale @ 12:00 EST get yours before
it sells out. This venue's cap is under 1000!!!

Lupo's Link:  http://www.lupos.com/Splash.html

[Outie 315]

  I'm going to the Providence show!
  Info:
  http://www.lupos.com/Splash.html

[Andrew G. Doe]

Touring is part of the way Brian makes a living

Er... not in general - the tours themselves generally loose money and, with one plausible exception, none of his tours have resulted in significant chart action.

Brian makes the huge bulk of his money from his work back in the 60s.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Here's my take on attending concerts in the years since I have been a Beach Boys fan (1981).

No matter how many books, articles, or discussion boards you may have written/read/joined to rave on about the band, when push comes to shove, no concert promoter, no matter how far in advance you contact them, will ever see the point in granting you a pissy "Meet and Greet" / "Backstage" / or "pre gig get together" pass. Point blank forget it. Being a fan through the good times as well as the bad means nothing more than the fact that you are scum.

Oddly enough, this is one area in which BW tours - of the UK, at any rate - are outstanding: maybe not so much now, but in the past (2002-2007), getting an M&G pass was simply a matter of asking the management. Personal anecdote - back in 2002 and the first UK tour, Beach Boys Britain approached the management asking for a few BSPs, and at Nottingham we were told to pick something up at the box office. 10 BSPs, to meet Brian, and also 10 tickets, way more than we asked for and ever expected (this, btw, was the first time Sue & Stu got backstage to meet Brian... so in one sense, it's our fault. Sorry), and from thereon in, BSPs weren't a problem as long as we behaved ourselves. Getting to know the band helped too, of course (and in fairness, this is also true of Mike & Bruce - Bruce in particular has been most helpful) and frankly, with one exception, the times spent backstage with the band have been much more enjoyable that meeting Brian doing something he patently doesn't like doing.

[Sciencefriction]

I've always assumed it was impossible to meet Brian, especially now.  I'm only 21, what are my chances, do I really need to me him, etc.

[Wilson Love]

Brian does do Breakaway sometimes. Changed the ending, though.

The one time I heard it - Hampton Court, 2005 - it was a complete and utter train wreck. Just... painful.

Must have been an off-night. I've heard them do it beautifully on 2 different occasions. Once with Al singing.

[the captain]

Here's my take on attending concerts in the years since I have been a Beach Boys fan (1981).

No matter how many books, articles, or discussion boards you may have written/read/joined to rave on about the band, when push comes to shove, no concert promoter, no matter how far in advance you contact them, will ever see the point in granting you a pissy "Meet and Greet" / "Backstage" / or "pre gig get together" pass. Point blank forget it. Being a fan through the good times as well as the bad means nothing more than the fact that you are scum.

If you manage to weasel your way to the back door area of the stage, you'll be grouped together with people whom, though you have never seen them before (nor will ever see again in the decades following) claim to have gone to school/ridden in a bike club/worked at Brother studios/name the most obscure non-event-you-can with the Beach Boy you are there to hopefully see. That's right, you could be behind the stage in Zielona Gora, Poland - but there's always that one person who happens to be bestest buddy of the said BB, and they'll push you out of the way to get that CD of theirs autographed. (Say, if they really are that buddy buddy, why do they need to attend a concert in order to meet their best friend?)

Should you manage to get to speak to one of the band members, you'll suddenly have some freakazoid fan suddenly become your best buddy. It is a given that when they ask for a sample of one of the BB's blood, you'll be the one mistakenly assumed to have been the one asking the outrageous request.

The person who does manage to go backstage instead of you, will always - as sure as the earth turns - hammer the final insult to injury by turning to you just before they get through the security control and yell out to you "My favourite album is 20 Golden Greats!"

Wow. Could you use a hug?   

[STE]

Here's my take on attending concerts in the years since I have been a Beach Boys fan (1981).

No matter how many books, articles, or discussion boards you may have written/read/joined to rave on about the band, when push comes to shove, no concert promoter, no matter how far in advance you contact them, will ever see the point in granting you a pissy "Meet and Greet" / "Backstage" / or "pre gig get together" pass. Point blank forget it. Being a fan through the good times as well as the bad means nothing more than the fact that you are scum.

If you manage to weasel your way to the back door area of the stage, you'll be grouped together with people whom, though you have never seen them before (nor will ever see again in the decades following) claim to have gone to school/ridden in a bike club/worked at Brother studios/name the most obscure non-event-you-can with the Beach Boy you are there to hopefully see. That's right, you could be behind the stage in Zielona Gora, Poland - but there's always that one person who happens to be bestest buddy of the said BB, and they'll push you out of the way to get that CD of theirs autographed. (Say, if they really are that buddy buddy, why do they need to attend a concert in order to meet their best friend?)

Should you manage to get to speak to one of the band members, you'll suddenly have some freakazoid fan suddenly become your best buddy. It is a given that when they ask for a sample of one of the BB's blood, you'll be the one mistakenly assumed to have been the one asking the outrageous request.

The person who does manage to go backstage instead of you, will always - as sure as the earth turns - hammer the final insult to injury by turning to you just before they get through the security control and yell out to you "My favourite album is 20 Golden Greats!"

Ain't that the truth!!
Amen!

[Mooger Fooger]

[/quote]Wow. Could you use a hug?   
[/quote]

Thanks, but I'm actually not embittered. It's just an observation I happened to make a few times, and at Thurday's Bonn gig the stock-standard procedure as I detailed above presented itself once again!

I am currently very closely involved with NASA, and it is interesting to compare the differences between the Space Agency and Rock Promoters. I call up the NASA archives and ask for an obscure photograph of some training facility from 1962. Not only do I get the photo, I get a list of names and numbers of every single engineer who worked at the facility in question.

I call up a rock promoter and require a battering ram just to get past the secretary sitting at the main entrance.

I cant help but recall the 25th anniversary BB thing in Hawaii. A whole bunch of fans had flown out to Hawaii to have a special meet with the band. Guess what happens when they get there? They are bunch in a makeshift holding room as there is no record of their backstage permission despite the get-together having been flaunted and described for the last 6 months on the official fan club website - which itself is supposed to have first hand contact with the band. (No I wasn't there but I know several people who were)

Bizzare, but true.

[Outie 315]

Interesting,  as my local radio station WPRO had a contest and sent two winners to Hawaii .

When the lucky folks returned, they told  friends that they had enjoyed some red meat and booze
with the band?

PS
Don't mess with explosives:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPIwVFEMUCk



 

[Aegir]

I cant help but recall the 25th anniversary BB thing in Hawaii. A whole bunch of fans had flown out to Hawaii to have a special meet with the band. Guess what happens when they get there? They are bunch in a makeshift holding room as there is no record of their backstage permission despite the get-together having been flaunted and described for the last 6 months on the official fan club website - which itself is supposed to have first hand contact with the band. (No I wasn't there but I know several people who were)

Bizzare, but true.

Wasn't the 25th anniversary thing in 1986 or somewhere around there? There were websites in the 1980s?

[Mooger Fooger]

You're right Aegir. I meant the BBFUN newsletter. IIRC BBFUN organised the get together which was announced in their newsletters and fliers to those who were interested.

[DonnaK]

I must admit, I broke (literally) down and bought 2 tickets for the Milwaukee Wisc. show for Oct. It will have to be an overnighter for us, but he's not coming to Chicago this time. It cost me $192.00 including a 5.00 fee for parking. Mind you, these are $75 seats in the 15th row and aisle seats. For that much money, I would expect a wristband for a signature, but in my thought process, you never know if this will be his last tour.................................or mine!!!!!  My friend Pam loves his oldies so she decided to come along, which makes it more enjoyable all around. I'm hoping he does Imagination, but I'd rather hear the complete Pet Sounds again.

I think I am going to go to this one.  I'm less than two hours away, so the drive won't be bad.  I don't know if I'll buy the $75 seats, especially for a GH show.  I paid $100 each for third row center seats for the Smile show in Madison in 2004, and it was one of the greatest shows I've ever seen.  Like you said, though, Donna, this may be the last time he comes around these parts.  Maybe I'll buy the $50 seats, and use the saved dough for a nice dinner before the show.   

I always have to go for the closer seats when I see Brian....don't know why, but I do. As I said before, he's not coming to Chicago this time around, so Milwaukee is a given. Maybe we'll all luck out and there will be emply seats closer and we can all "sneak" down and sit in them. I'm game!! Let me know if you are!!!  Thanks for the infor Jeff...I'm sure we'll have a great time...wish you were coming too! I got 15th row center aisle seats, which is pretty good.

[Mahalo]

I like how he sold out the paradiso though, that's over a thousand in there I've been told

Nice little venue. Used to be a church until 1968. Nowadays it's a music venue, also nick-named the Dutch (or national) pop temple. No seats except from the balconies. Room for ca. 1500 visitors.
And the house was packed last Monday. A good choice (even it wasn't intended to be). If BW ever visits the Netherlands again, I hope they'll choose this venue again.

For it's history and a few pictures of Paradiso visit:
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradiso_(Amsterdam)
   http://www.paradiso.nl/web/English-Agenda/About-paradiso.htm
   http://www.paradiso.nl/web/English-Agenda/About-paradiso/History.htm

view from the stage
   http://www.paradiso.nl/web/English-Agenda/About-paradiso/Paradiso-today-concert-hall-club-and-cultural-center.htm

view on the stage
   http://www.paradiso.nl/web/Over-paradiso/Poppodium-club-tempel-van-nieuwe-cultuur.htm

Didn't Joy Division play there?

[Outie 315]

 Moogy,
 BBFUN as in Beach Boys Freaks United?
 I was a card carrying member back in the day.

 Check out the trees on the side of the stage:
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twkRbmOUXxI

 

[Mooger Fooger]

Yep I was a card carrying member as well. I didn't go to the Hawaii bash, buit I friend of mine did. He made audio recordings throughout the whole get together and you can hear the frustrations while they are trying to get to meet the band. Totally in keeping with BB managements way of dealing with things.

Why give hard core fans the benefit of the doubt when a pack of teen-aged blondes are so much more desirable back stage at a BB concert?

I know I may sound like a bitter old kook, but the fact is similar shafting of fans has been a standard occurance for as long as I can remember. Even during the 2004 BWPS promises were regularly broken, and so it is hard for someone to sing praises of things handled so badly. I can't for the life of me work out why a simple "No" is never given. I don't expect fans to be given a golden handshake and fireworks show, but I also don't expect them to be thrown into a pit of proverbial excrement just because they are fans.  If anything typifies the Beach Boys universe it is the consistent lost opportunities and muddled handling of things. It's almost as if they have a self-fulfilling prophecy about themselves.

And now, I'm off to perform at a gig where every 5 minutes I'll desperately look at my watch hoping that in actuality 10 minutes have passed, and I'll forget half the words to the songs I'll play even with a teleprompter. I'll also be sure to cough loudly into the microphone during several tunes. For dramatic effect, you know.
 

[Roger Ryan]

Didn't Joy Division play there?

Yep - January 11th, 1980. Notable for being that short-lived band's best recorded live gig (official or unofficial - and there was really only one officially recorded one). Here's a link with more info:

http://www.joydiv.org/c110180.htm

[Menace Wilson]

My wife and I are big fans of B.W., but we've never seen him live.  We're seriously considering flying out to one of the shows this fall, but everything I've read and the clips I've seen on youtube make me worry that the whole experience could be a downer.   



 

[Sheriff John Stone]

My wife and I are big fans of B.W., but we've never seen him live.  We're seriously considering flying out to one of the shows this fall, but everything I've read and the clips I've seen on youtube make me worry that the whole experience could be a downer.

The thrill of seeing Brian live for the first time, combined with the power of the music that is generated by the band, along with community feeling of being with others like you - IMO, would make for a very enjoyable concert.

Don't make your entire decision based on YouTube; most artists sound worse on YouTube. At a Brian Wilson concert, especially your first or second one, you will be so engrossed watching Brian, digging the music, and trying to capture every detail, that time will fly by!