Very excited to be seeing The Beach Boys with the National Symphony Orchestra this evening at The Kennedy Center. There's also supposed to be "Surprise Special Guests"...worst case scenario...Stamos? Dream come true.....well...Brian & Alan are free tonight? 

I'll give a report later tonight or tomorrow morning!

Tribute songs are fine (especially when it isn't a dreadful cover of that person's song like "Imagine" in 1983)

...made so much worse by the irony (and total lack of awareness) of Mike wearing a tacky corporation hat (Radio Shack) while singing a song about the evils of possessions and money   Regardless of what one thinks of whether Mike chose a song that he sounds good singing (or not), that irony is pretty striking.

We all know that Lennon didn't exactly abandon his bank accounts and put his money where his mouth was regarding the sentiment of that song... but for a major act's lead singer to wear a tacky corporate Radio Shack hat - while singing a cover version of that particular song - that is just next level unintentional hilarity...

I think it's safe to say that from now till the end of time The Beach Boys will forever be the most unintentional blend of popularity and hilarity.

I'll be curious to see how they replace Al's songs for that lone date. It'll probably only free up about 2-3 song slots but that could make a huge difference if used towards Blondie's mini-set.

According to the setlist website, they played Pisces Brothers AND Cool Head, Warm Heart back to back last night...God help them 

Interesting note about the age and the setlist...I find that when the crowd is older, they play less in general. Both shows I've seen in Lancaster they played to almost only over 65 crowds and they cut a ton of the uptempo things from the set, and have never really dug DEEP.

I think the time to dig deep, is when younger fans come out on their own since they seem to be the ones taking the time to discover the deep cuts and actually know what band members they're seeing...but maybe I'm a bit biased...

Well I'm quite pleased to see Mike & Bruce debuting a new "Pet Sounds" set this summer they started playing varying assortments of the following this week:

-I'm Waiting For The Day
-Here Today
-You Still Believe in Me
-Sloop John B
-Wouldn't it Be Nice
-Caroline, No
-God Only Knows

I won't listen to any clips until I see them on 7/19 with the NSO...but I really hope that someone can convince Mike to sing "That's Not Me" by then. It's really the only other song on the album I'd like to hear this album tackle...plus, how many lead vocal tracks does Mike have remaining that he hasn't EVER sang live? And this is one of the good ones! 

This is a very general observation that may only sometimes pertain to Mike, but I think sometimes doing “deep cuts” or other lesser-known songs is hindered by excessive pre-song explanations/stories, etc. Over the years, the Beach Boys didn’t tend to tell long stories or explanations before the big hits. They would typically knock them out one after the other. So sometimes it’s almost a semi-subconscious “tell” to the audience when a song is preceded by a long monologue. If a band just goes straight into starting the song, then the audience hasn’t already been sort of tipped off that this might be one of the “beer break” songs.

Looking at past BB shows over the years, it’s often deep cuts (“All This is That”, huge sections of the "GV Boxed Set" set in 1993), new album tracks (“this one is off of our new album….”), or unreleased (or released in a very low key fashion) songs (“Country Pie”, “Cool Head”, “Pisces Brothers”) that get the big long preamble.

Many bands, especially old fogey bands/artists that want to do new stuff but know the audience wants “the hits”, will overcompensate and “pre-apologize” for doing new stuff or deep cuts. Just shut up and play the song! That won’t make more people “know” the song, but it might not predispose them to not be interested.

Spot on. Mike is incredibly guilty of this.

Yeah, just saw that on Mike's page...thought it was a bit misleading as well that they showed the full clip from the GMA appearance (same day as my C50 show) from 2012 with that lineup.

Anyway...saw the Coney Island setlist...am I the only one that's in a state of bewilderment that "Pisces Brothers" has stayed in the set all this time, yet "Wild Honey" lived in the set for about a year? And even worse...they've added "Summer in Paradise" to the opening set for the best several gigs? 

In all honesty, I'd rather see Summer in Paradise than Goin to the Beach. 

And I'm with you about retiring Pisces Brothers.   The two times I've seen Mike and Bruce in the last year, that song grinded the concert to a halt. 

Looking at the Coney Island set, the could have done two classics to fill those spots that I'm sure would've kept the pace going that more people would be familiar with. "Don't Back Down" could easily replace "Summer in Paradise". "Pisces Brothers" being more of a ballad (I use that loosely) could be replaced by "Kiss Me Baby", "Please Let Me Wonder" etc. songs more people know, albeit not everybody.

There are two songs that have never worked in concert of all the times I've seen any configuration of the band: Pisces Brothers & All This is That.

I've seen All This is That done twice. 

The first time was at the C50 show at Merriweather Post.  I was in the lawn, and most of the crowd spent that song talking among themselves.

The next time was in February of this year in Baltimore, and the crowd was either attentively listening, or not paying attention. 

I was in the second row for both those shows and the reactions were exactly as you describe. I've also heard it once at the American Music Theatre, whose majority age is well over 75 and probably don't own any post Pet Sounds material.

HeyJude- forgot about that ML story with the batteries...absolutely hilarious 

Yeah, just saw that on Mike's page...thought it was a bit misleading as well that they showed the full clip from the GMA appearance (same day as my C50 show) from 2012 with that lineup.

Anyway...saw the Coney Island setlist...am I the only one that's in a state of bewilderment that "Pisces Brothers" has stayed in the set all this time, yet "Wild Honey" lived in the set for about a year? And even worse...they've added "Summer in Paradise" to the opening set for the best several gigs? 

In all honesty, I'd rather see Summer in Paradise than Goin to the Beach. 

And I'm with you about retiring Pisces Brothers.   The two times I've seen Mike and Bruce in the last year, that song grinded the concert to a halt. 

Looking at the Coney Island set, the could have done two classics to fill those spots that I'm sure would've kept the pace going that more people would be familiar with. "Don't Back Down" could easily replace "Summer in Paradise". "Pisces Brothers" being more of a ballad (I use that loosely) could be replaced by "Kiss Me Baby", "Please Let Me Wonder" etc. songs more people know, albeit not everybody.

There are two songs that have never worked in concert of all the times I've seen any configuration of the band: Pisces Brothers & All This is That.

Yeah, just saw that on Mike's page...thought it was a bit misleading as well that they showed the full clip from the GMA appearance (same day as my C50 show) from 2012 with that lineup.

Anyway...saw the Coney Island setlist...am I the only one that's in a state of bewilderment that "Pisces Brothers" has stayed in the set all this time, yet "Wild Honey" lived in the set for about a year? And even worse...they've added "Summer in Paradise" to the opening set for the best several gigs? 

Some recent clips recorded directly from the stage:

Catch A Wave: https://youtu.be/m6zpnf0WfAE
You Still Believe In Me:  https://youtu.be/dPRQ_7-HC30

Very wobbly vocals from Mike...very shrill vocals ruining it from Jeff...and a VERY dead crowd......

Wow- very cool...wish they did more like this.

The new ESQ says Mike’s project is slated for a fall 2016 release and features members of the Beach Boys band, John Stamos and Mark McGrath.

Well...that sounds far from promising. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1AxIElzRUg

Crazy that I ran into this 5 mins ago by accident! Carl seemed peeved...

Was that the infamous Carl stink-eye?

I, for one, very much enjoy most of Bruce's songs that he wrote for The BBs.  I wonder if that video was reflective of some behind-the-scenes creative conflict at the time; maybe Bruce had some songs rejected by The BBs, circa '80? I think Endless Harmony is a standout track on KTSA (granted, not a lot of solid competition on that record!)

Dick Clark sure seemed taken aback by that statement. Maybe that was because Dick knew that Bruce was a recent Grammy winner, and it was unthinkable that the band wouldn't therefore be utilizing his songwriting? I suppose that considering the fact that Bruce won a Grammy, he's kept his own ego relatively in check.

Yeah definitely some weird modesty there from Bruce... I agree about Endless Harmony but the production is probably one of the most dated on that album.

I guess he's being modest...but he almost says it in a way that sounds like it's "too good" for the band..."too smooth", as he says.

I have nothing against Bruce. My grandmother and I had a great interaction with him on C50. As we were leaving the "photo shoot" I yelled thank you to everyone and he pulled me back, shook my hand, and said "No...thank YOU." then he yelled "and thanks mom!" to my grandmother, which we still quote to this day. 

I've interacted with him from the audience as well at post-C50 M&B shows. In Lancaster last summer, my girlfriend and I were at the edge of the stage for the encore and Bruce saw my C50 photograph in hand, pointed at me and gestured if I had a pen, he came over to get it and I specifically asked for David's autograph (as I already had M&B thanks to Scott Totten) he went right over to David and brought it back for me.

And one more for laughs...when we saw M&B here in Baltimore in February, we were in the 2nd row behind a delightful pair of tipsy middle aged women...on "Do You Wanna Dance" we were all on our feet and they were clapping their hearts out on beats 1 + 3. We were behind clapping VERY loudly on 2 + 4 at them...Bruce, as we all know is the king of clapping, noticed this and was cracking up! 

What a rip...

I still say Blondie would do a killer "Here Today".

Brian's team seems to be just as guilty of re-writing history lately as Mike's team is...would be nice if these guys ever grew up.

That clip was pretty darn good...but he needs to stop using IV during the key change...it makes it feel like the melody is going to the wrong place instead of modulating again. That's an incredibly daunting task he has at hand!

YES!!!

The problem with "It's OK" is that they do it WAY too slow to put it in with those early surf songs that they burn through in ninety seconds. It kills the mood. It sounds great, but it doesn't fit with the sequencing, even if the lyrical content does.

They play it a little slower probably, but they also change the drum pattern. Instead of the standard snare on the 2 and 4 beat on the verses, as it is on the original recording, they do that "Be My Baby" sort of pattern with the snare on the 4. That's what really makes it plod. I've even heard some C50 recordings where Cowsill starts to the play the original pattern, and then quickly corrects it to the other pattern.

The different drum pattern, the slower tempo, as well as dropping the key, all do kind of suck the energy out of the original recording. I've never been a big fan of the song, but the original recording at least has some pep to it.

I've always wondered if it's a coincidence or not that the "new" opening to the song added to the live arrangement sounds very similar to the intro to the unreleased "Skatetown USA."

I agree with your earlier assessment that It's OK should've been a bigger hit than Rock and Roll Music. 

I wasn't too sad when Rock and Roll Music didn't make the setlists the last two times I saw M&B in concert. 

I think I'm one of a few that really really likes Rock And Roll Music in a live setting. It's almost always one of the highlights for me.

If the crowd is into Rock and Roll Music, it serves its purpose...but it's still an awful arrangement of the song. 

The problem with "It's OK" is that they do it WAY too slow to put it in with those early surf songs that they burn through in ninety seconds. It kills the mood. It sounds great, but it doesn't fit with the sequencing, even if the lyrical content does.

Scott Totten taking over the reins of the Mike and Bruce show in 2008 was to the band's benefit; he was able to build upon the progression that Chris Farmer oversaw as band leader and the band ended up being better for it. Getting rid of Mike Kowalski was a WELCOME change from where I sit. They went from being dire (1998-2003) to serious competition (2004-08) to very close to Brian's group (2009-now). (I think) Scott said himself that Mike picks the songs for the gigs.

I don't doubt for one minute that Brian inspired Mike and Bruce (and by proxy, Scott as band leader) to greater heights as a touring band. They should keep racing up that ladder. Both bands put on excellent shows for their respective markets.

Great post...although the videos I've seen from 2004-2008 are still pretty rough...but I can vouch that Mike & Scott prepare the set together before each show...like, RIGHT before the show...and that doesn't mean it sticks either. Scott added "Good To My Baby" when I saw them in '13 on the fly and Mike had them remove "All I Wanna Do" right before its spot in the show when I just saw them in February. I've also seen shows where they've had the "Rock and Roll Music" and "Do You Wanna Dance" duo on the set, but cut them...presumably because the crowds sucked.

Mike also said in his post they'd be adding more Pet Sounds songs soon too.

From Randy's page..


IN 2016, SEE RANDY ON TOUR WITH ROCK MUSIC LEGENDS THE BEACH BOYS,
PERFORMING ON A VARIETY OF SAXES, WOODWINDS AND HARMONICAS!

...which does fit

Well there you have it! I wonder how much of a difference this will make when I see them in July since they'll have the entire National Symphony Orchestra with them anyway! 

Actually, it hasn't been too uncommon for the touring band to bring along a wind player for sporadic dates. The reviewer didn't seem to be very clear on their band member history, so I'm going to assume this isn't a permanent fixture for the band.

Very cool indeed...no way in hell I'd try to go...driving in the heart of DC memorial day weekend, fighting the crowds on the lawn...to probably hear California Girls, Barbara Ann, Surfin USA...and maybe even Kokomo!      I'll watch from home