The Smiley Smile Message Board

Well I found this very funny...

Guardian Pass Notes: The Beach Boys

Age: 51.

Appearance: Changeable.

"The California pop group behind Surfin' USA, I Get Around, Good Vibrations and Help Me, Rhonda?"

That's the one.

"What has happened? Have they split up? Got back together? Announced a world tour? Cancelled a world tour? Been sliced apart by the Grim Reaper's scythe? It's usually one of those things with superannuated popsters."

They've split up, sort of.

"Sort of?"

There's still a band called the Beach Boys, but after Friday, Brian Wilson, who wrote and produced most of the early hits, and fellow old-timers Al Jardine and David Marks won't be part of it. Frontman Mike Love, who has been with the band since they began life as the Pendletones in 1961, and who owns the Beach Boys name, has sacked them.

"Ouch!"

What makes it more painful is that it was Love who reunited the foursome for their 50th anniversary tour. Now he has announced that the others will not be part of the band's "post-50th anniversary configuration".

"That's a particularly cold way of putting it."

The others are certainly smarting. "I'm disappointed and can't understand why Love doesn't want to tour with Al, David and me," says Wilson. "We are out here having so much fun."

"It's not the first spot of trouble for the boys, is it?"

You could say that. It's been a bumpy ride since the mid-60s, when Wilson's drug habit and mental illness cost him control of the band.

"What's the problem this time?"

Filthy lucre. Love says he doesn't want the band to be "over-exposed", but rather than stop touring, he intends to carry on with a no-doubt cheaper backing band, which includes his son Christian.

"Christian Love"? Poor kid. But what next for Wilson and Co?"

Two final concerts: at the Royal Albert Hall on Thursday, and Wembley Arena on Friday. Then Love escorts the trio to Dignitas, to make sure they're not a burden on him as they get older.

"You are joking?"

Of course. Though now we've put the idea in his head…

Do say: "And we'll have fun, fun, fun …"

Don't say: "'til Mike Love takes our tour fees away."

(Al, it mentioned in a sidebar, has now started a petition to keep the full band line-up together. Personally i think it's been the usual story of Mike doing something reasonable but in a cold, needlessly unpleasant manner that makes him seem a total sh*t.)