The Smiley Smile Message Board

What would have been the best year, from a financial standpoint for the group? The go-go early years, Endless Summer touring era? Kokomo days? 2012? I don't know how you adjust these numbers for inflation, but just curious what their 'best' year would have been, income wise.

If I had to guess I'd say the immediate post Endless Summer years.

Its been said that 2012 wasn't nearly as profitable as we would think. 

Financially, I would think the 1980s were a good time.  For better or worse, Kokomo/Full House/MTV got a lot of exposure for The Beach Boys and probably attracted a whole generation of fans who may have ignored them. 

While ticket prices were still reasonably priced, I'd say that the 1974-1980 time frame was probably their best. They were playing mostly sold out arenas and stadiums over that period. If adjusted for inflation, I think it most definitely would have been their best era financially. They even had the new CBS Records contract during a good portion of that time frame.

Dunno why, but I'm thinking 2012.

Huh ? The first Caribou release was in 1979. From 1974 to 1978, all their releases were on either Brother-Reprise or Capitol. Granted they got the advance when they signed in early 1977, but until they delivered the first album, nothing more.

I thought they signed that CBS contract in 1978? No signing bonus?

You quoted that before I amended it.  :)

This is way too vague of a question. Best financially for BRI as a corporation? Best financially for the touring band production? Best collectively when each individual members’ income is combined? Are we adjusting for inflation?

Keep in mind that concert tickets are *exponentially* more expensive now than they were when the BB’s were playing stadiums in the mid-late 70’s. Even adjusting for inflation, the Mike band (or Brian or C50) might make more on a 2,000 seat small venue, especially when you add in concessions and VIP packages, etc., than was made selling 30,000 stadium tickets.

Revenue from recording and songwriting royalties would be up whenever hits compilations are selling the best. Adjusting for inflation, “Endless Summer” may have yielded them more of those types of royalties than at any other time within a given year.

But, especially in the last nearly-20 years, it would be difficult to measure financial success. The touring band only pays a small percentage of profits as a licensing fee to BRI. Mike almost surely makes WAY more off of touring than what is paid into BRI (and Mike gets back 25% of that licensing fee as well as a member of BRI).

C50 may well have been overall the most lucrative touring year looking at overall grosses in quite some time, perhaps ever (especially if *not* factoring in inflation). It’s also relatively safe to guess that Al, Brian, and Dave (and probably Bruce) made more off touring within the BB’s than Brian or Al make off of their cut of the licensing fee Mike pays into BRI, and far more than Brian, Al, or Dave make touring on their own solo. Given the available information, there’s only one guy who I would guess seems to have had the potential to make *less* money off of C50 than a typical year of touring without the reunion lineup.

And who might that be ::)??