The *official* Brian/BB picture thread

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

I'm almost certain the headphone pic is late 73. If it was 1974, it was before that infamous bathrobe pic with Keith Moon, or the pic at the party with Nilsson. 1) He was smaller, and 2) his hair was the same as it was in Holland. Also, he's still 'neat'. His eyes may be as bit goofy, but otherwise looks fine. His hair's not all nappy, his shirt looks like it's been ironed relatively recently, and most vital his nails are somewhat shorter than Lee Press-on Nails. In 1974 they were Freddy Krueger-ish.

[MBE]

It could have been taken at the fall 1973 Ding Dang sessions, but IJWMFTT has a short clip where he looks worse than he did at the Iowa sessions, but no beard yet. The only reason I hesitate is that he hardly recorded after Murry died for almost nine months. Only Ding Dang is known after Just An Imitation.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

It might be Ding Dang due to him being at the keyboard. I think it might be right before he shaved for the last time. This photo though was probably after his last haircut. Its his Holland haircut only it hasn't been touched up in a while. I've never seen a photo from the immediate post Murray period so I don't know what he looked like at that time. The photo from IWMFTT... u might be a different one from what I'm thinking of, I've seen the color photo and he did have a beard...it was a reddish color and looked like a shadow in b&w.

[EthanJames]

I do believe this photo was taken during the Caribou sessions, the way the studio looks kinda give it away, and Also most the pictures from the '75 Yearbook were mostly taken at Caribou Raunch.

[Ian]

I have seen photos of a still clean shaven Brian in Iowa in early 73 and giving a radio interview in NY in June 1973 but as far as I know there are no securely identifiable pics from July 1973 till his interview with Pewter in mid 74. Clearly he decided to grow a beard for good around that time. Anyone have any non-guess dated pics from July 73 to March 74?

[Lowbacca]

I have seen photos of a still clean shaven Brian in Iowa in early 73 and giving a radio interview in NY in June 1973 but as far as I know there are no securely identifiable pics from July 1973 till his interview with Pewter in mid 74. Clearly he decided to grow a beard for good around that time. Anyone have any non-guess dated pics from July 73 to March 74?

I got a couple of cool ones from '73/'74 but there's not a single one I'm 100% sure about date-wise.

[Sheriff John Stone]

Are any of you able to post any of the 1973-74-75 photos that you were discussing? They sound fascinating and I don't believe many of us have seen them. Thanks.

[Lowbacca]

Are any of you able to post any of the 1973-74-75 photos that you were discussing? They sound fascinating and I don't believe many of us have seen them. Thanks.

Just a couple of pics I can access at the moment, roughly chronological:

[Ian]

There are some chronology problems there.  So the clean shaven ones are Iowa circa early 73.  The next ones are Brian in late 74 with the gold record for Endless Summer.  Not sure when the one of Brian pointing is from-though I think it is later in the 70s.  But the next one with a hugely obese Brian is from 1982!!! The one of Brian and Marilyn is from the Love You Party I think-hence around April 1977. Than there are two from 74.  The one with Landy is from 1976, than there is one with DJ Jim Pewter from August 13 1974. Finally one with Mike probably from Caribou sessions in late 1974. 

[Lowbacca]

There are some chronology problems there.  So the clean shaven ones are Iowa circa early 73.  The next ones are Brian in late 74 with the gold record for Endless Summer.  Not sure when the one of Brian pointing is from-though I think it is later in the 70s.  But the next one with a hugely obese Brian is from 1982!!! The one of Brian and Marilyn is from the Love You Party I think-hence around April 1977. Than there are two from 74.  The one with Landy is from 1976, than there is one with DJ Jim Pewter from August 13 1974. Finally one with Mike probably from Caribou sessions in late 1974.  

The 1982 image somehow sneaked in there, that's obviously not early 70's. I'll erase it immediately.

A collector once told me the 'pointing' image was from 1974, that's my only source on that. I think Brian looks really similar to the pictures taken with Keith Moon there, so for the time being I'd guess it's 1974.

You're of course right about the LOVE YOU image (Brian & Marilyn), but it couldn't be from the release party since it was included on the original inner sleeve - right?

Are you 100% sure about the Landy pic being from 1976, not '75?



P.S. I said the chronology was rough.

[Rocker]

Not sure anyone knows of this but here's Brian playing a cop on SNL

It's been ages since I saw that clip. I gotta say Brian looks so utterly unconvincing and uncomfortable as a cop, it's hilarious.

I never even heard about that! What's it like?

If I'm not mistaken, it might've been the final skit of the show/evening, and it was almost like a throwaway or a time filler. Dan Ackroyd is this guy in an overcoat trying to get through the metal detector at an airport, but he keeps getting stopped and asked to empty his pockets/overcoat. Ackroyd gets more frustrated each time he's asked, and keeps emptying these large items; I think there were even tools like saws and the like in his overcoat. That's the funny part of the skit, seeing Ackroyd flipping out and the strange things he's pulling out of his coat. Then, after putting Ackroyd through the ringer, somebody dressed up like the tin woodsman from the Wizard Of Oz comes up to the metal detector and is allowed to go right through. They mention the name tin woodsman and Brian, who is playing a security guard, says something like, "The tin woodsman, that was the tin woodsman; I should've asked him for his autgraph."

Brian's line wasn't very funny, and he delivered in typical 15 Big Ones-like "Had To Phone Ya" fashion. However, the disturbing part was watching Brian throughout the skit, which of course every BB/BW nut like me was doing. First, his shirt was too tight which emphasized his gut. And, he stood there with his arms folded the entire time like he was frozen. Except for one thing - his leg(s) were shaking throughout the whole skit. Even if you weren't focusing on Brian, it was pretty noticeable. It made you feel uncomfortable and, for somebody like me (a newbie at the time), or longtime fans of Brian who hadn't seen him for awhile, it was a major WTF moment, including his performances earlier in the show. Those performances and the skit were on YouTube for a long time. Don't know if they're still on there...

Thanks for your report. I think he looks great in this picture. But then that's probably just because it is apicture and not the video...

[Sheriff John Stone]

There are some chronology problems there.  So the clean shaven ones are Iowa circa early 73.  The next ones are Brian in late 74 with the gold record for Endless Summer.  Not sure when the one of Brian pointing is from-though I think it is later in the 70s.  But the next one with a hugely obese Brian is from 1982!!! The one of Brian and Marilyn is from the Love You Party I think-hence around April 1977. Than there are two from 74.  The one with Landy is from 1976, than there is one with DJ Jim Pewter from August 13 1974. Finally one with Mike probably from Caribou sessions in late 1974. 

Lowbacca, thank you very much for posting the photos; I appreciate it!

The photo of Brian and Marilyn is obviously from the inside jacket of The Beach Boys Love You. But, I thought the photo was taken from the 1976 New Year's Eve post-concert party.

For the 1982(?) photo, Ian, are you referring to the head shot of Brian with the long greasy hair? I though that was circa-1974 from the series where he was driving around in a golf cart (at a concert?); Carnie and Wendy as younger kids were in that series with Brian I believe? One of them had their hand on Brian's head in the golf cart?

[Ian]

I was referring to a pic that he has now removed of a very heavy Brian right before he entered his second Landy period.  And you are correct-my mistake-the Brian and Marilyn one is from that post concert party-hence Dec 31 1976.  The pics of Brian in the golf cart are not from 74.  They were taken backstage at the Anaheim show on May 23 1975-which Brian attended. I have a few 75 articles with the pics.  That was the gig Carl referred to in an interview where Brian was stunned that teenagers knew the words to all the oldies.

[MBE]

Are any of you able to post any of the 1973-74-75 photos that you were discussing? They sound fascinating and I don't believe many of us have seen them. Thanks.

Just a couple of pics I can access at the moment, roughly chronological:

Big request but can people stop printing the Jim Pewter picture backwards. 99 percent of the time it is as that's how it appeared in a magazine.

[MBE]

Also yes, I am pretty sure the black shirt photos of a heavy Brian are in fact Caribou. Could be late 1974 Brother though.

[Lowbacca]

Big request but can people stop printing the Jim Pewter picture backwards. 99 percent of the time it is as that's how it appeared in a magazine.

[MBE]

Thanks Lowbacca, my pet peeve is backwards photos for whatever reason.

[The Real Barnyard]

Are any of you able to post any of the 1973-74-75 photos that you were discussing? They sound fascinating and I don't believe many of us have seen them. Thanks.

Just a couple of pics I can access at the moment, roughly chronological:

Aren't this from the Wilson-Sandler sessions February 28, 1972?

[Ian]

I think they are from early 73 in Iowa.  Brian looks slimmer in 72 pics that I've seen.

[SonicVolcano]

Was that Odyssey used on the Love You album (the farting bass)?

[MBE]

They are Iowa and Brian had put on a bit of weight. Still a dramatic difference from then to the Pewter pic.

[Ian]

But there are photos of Brian in June 1973 doing a radio interview in NY.  I think there might be a pic from that day in the Leaf book-but can't recall.  After that-there is no 100% securely datable pic till the August 74 Pewter pic. 

[Lowbacca]

But there are photos of Brian in June 1973 doing a radio interview in NY.  I think there might be a pic from that day in the Leaf book-but can't recall.  After that-there is no 100% securely datable pic till the August 74 Pewter pic. 

The '73/'74/'75 era is fascinating in that regard. Maybe we should have outsourced the posts regarding BW photos from that era into a separate thread - for future reference etc. (easier to find later on).

I still have a bunch of pictures from around that time which I couldn't positively file to a specific year. I'll post them later.

[Ian]

Yeah. When jon and I wrote our book I was determined to use only precisely datable photos but it is hard with the bbs. It seems like every photo session, recording session and concert by the Beatles is documented precisely but not the bbs

[Lowbacca]

The boys in Essen (West Germany) in 1966:





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