The Smiley Smile Message Board

In light of recent events such as the Brian not recording this solo and last weeks legal situation, any chance an offer has been made by a label to record this as a Beach Boy album?

Not having seen this performed, would/ could it be any good with Mike, Brian, Al, Bruce and David singing it?

Interesting theory... It's probably just wishful thinking though... But I really hope you're right.

Seems unlikely that Mike would consider that as an option. He'd want creative input and potential lyrical ones at that - and it's pretty damn near complete as it is. I'm sure Dave and Alan would support Brian 110% but the current BB 'touring' unit would almost certainly veto such an idea. They'd push for new Wilson/Love compositions in the hope it would rekindle those glory glory days ...
... and this is even supposing they DO agree to work together again !

I raised this question a few weeks ago in another thread as a joke.  :lol

Though I wouldn't "shun" the idea, I think it is highly unlikely.  :)

The reasons for the postponement of the "TLOS" sessions has ab-so-lute-ly nothing to do with the recent settlement.

Ok AGD. We are out of the loop but thanks.

I agree...unlikely.
The thing I fine interesting though is a effort seems to be being made by Brian to exercise some demons. Look back to him sitting behind his key-board reading the lyrics after years of inactivity to the shows early this year where he is standing at the mic minus the teleprompter. Music wise we now have a version of SMiLE. Who would have thought?

But one old demon remains. Working on a good BB album. TLOS could be it from the reviews from the UK....and with a VD Parks contribution to boot.

Just seems to be the opportunity to put things right.  

Start from scratch - I'll take another 'California Calling' any day of the week....

Out of interest. As TLOS was a commissioned work, who owns it?

Please, for the sake of the quality of the music, no BB reunion! Any creative input from the Lovester would sink TLOS. Plus, we really don't want to see Brian being berated and trotted out like a circus bear like in the 70s, do we? The Beach Boys as a creative entity died with Dennis and as a viable touring act died with Carl and it should stay that way. I wouldn't mind a reunion as long as Mike wasn't involved (unless he publicly apologizes for the time he confronted VDP about the lyrics to Cabin Essence, AND MEANS IT!, and admits he was wrong about SMiLE, and literally kisses Brian's feet-and ass), but that will never be the case, so I'm happy with the Brian and Al reunion from last year.

But how do you really feel about Mike.

No.


No.

While I'd love to see a reunion, let Brian do his own thing with TLOS. Let the reunion be on its own terms, don't let TLOS be the reason for a reunion.

But.....if there's a picture of a reunion with Michael kissing Brian's feet and ass, well......that's gonna be right up there with the R&RHOF speech. Hell, Mike might actually do it.

Actually I think any of the Beach Boys solo albums would have been better with the group. That is if they let whoever's in charge of the project lead. It won't happen but the vocal blend is always lost when they apart.

That's the whole problem with the Beach Boys really is the politics. If they could have just released more after 1980 there would have been no need to fight so hard over album space. Certainly something like P.O.B. stands on it's own but could you imagine how much better the Beach Boys late 70's albums would be with more of Dennis' work.

Brian's first solo album would have made an EXCELLENT Beach Boys album, I agree very much with that.

As far as the issue of Dennis or Carl or even Al having more material on the LPs after Holland, it's a case of woulda coulda shoulda.....if they woulda had more of each member's songs on the albums they coulda been more diverse and it shoulda happened. But of course.....this IS the Beach Boys we're dealing with.

Let's just be glad that they even bother to make solo music and tour.

TLOS wouldn't work as Beach Boys record IMO. It's partly based on Brian's life - "Oxygen to the Brain", "Midnight's Another Day" & "I'm Going Home" with the boys? No way, that's more egomusic than PET SOUNDS was!
If I were Brian & Co, with all the positive if not euphoric reactions, I would take my time and add some more songs to make one hell of an album.

I wouldn not want to see a Beach Boys reunion of any kind. That Lucky Old Sun - that's what BW is capable of on his own. Santa Goes To Kokomo - that's what Mike Love is capable of. I might be exaggerating (as I probably liked Cool Head Warm Heart a tad bit more than the new recording of The Spirit of Rock'n'Roll) but for whatever reason the very idea of these guys reuniting as "The Beach Boys" strikes me as weird and even obscene. Sure I'd love to hear them harmonize any time, but the group vocals of BW's band aren't too shabby either and they suit the Lucky Old Sun material quite well. Not to mention that the last time ML and his rhyming dictionary did an even half-decent lyric was most likely over 30 years ago.

 
So are the best BB albums - (Friends, Pet Sounds, Today, Surf's Up, etc.) and more specifically many of the BB's best songs. 


I would! Absolutely.  I would think of it for what it was - Brian with hopefully David, Al, Mike, and Bruce.  Having them involved would likely enhance the result.  It would certainly get more attention (and of course sales) that way.  Anyway there was one reunion (of some kind) on the Capital rooftop, and that didn't hurt - did it?  So I would think there is a chance of some artistic colaboration like this.

- As Time Goes By   

Maybe I'm just afraid they'd be doing something along the lines of Summer in Paradise. I think they were on a good way when they recorded some of that Wilson/Paley material in the mid-nineties, though not all of it was great. That could have been quite a great reunion, but of course it didn't happen that way.

After 1970, by far the most touching Brian moments were as far removed from the Love formula as one could get, be it 'Til I Die, Still I Dream of It, or Midnight's Another Day. As much as I love the Beach Boys (after all, I totally prefer their 60s output over any solo recording, POB and Smile included), I just don't think a reunion could deliver something comparable to those precious moments of genius.

Don't fight, boys. Outside our little world, the demand for new music by Brian or even the Beach Boys is very, very small. If finished and released, TLOS will basically have the same reviews as GIOMH, same sales....

Again I do realise that they have not proven themselves able to be a fully working unit since the early 70's. Still I can't deny that I miss the sound of Brian, Mike, and Al singing together. I got a chance to see Mike and Bruce at their best when the played Chicago with an orchestra last year and did a mixed set, and I also got a chance to one of Brian's excellent Smile shows. Yet both times I missed the other guys to some extent. Since I got to see them on the 1993 box set tour I know what they could still do together when working on something worthy. It's again sad that they cannot sdrop their ego's and entorouges for a while and just sing together one last time on something worthwhile.

SMiLE went to #13 in the US and #7 in the UK, Sounds of Summer went double platinum and the rooftop reunion made the TV news around the world... So with a clever promotional campaign, I think a 'reunion album' could be a hit...

At least there are more people looking for new "Beach Boys"-material than waiting for a BW-solorelease outside of the fanworld. Although their name was put in mud more than once, they still are a legend and as Shelter said, there is some kind of interest in the media.
I think that a reunion would have it's best chances now. On the capitol-tower Mike and Brian mentioned that they got some tough management but that there is a chance that they would tour together again. I also think it's interesting that Brian was there when the court was settled. I don't think he cared that much at other times.
I don't know if it happens, I would love to see and hear them one last time, but I think chances are better now with all the lawsuits being over, than even in June '06 when the Rooftop-Reunion happened.

I think even as a Brian solo album TLOS would do better than GIOMH because:

-The music is better.
-The live shows got good reviews. How many of the people who attended the RFH would buy the CD?
-GIOMH was released in the shadow of BWPS (?)
-Maybe after the success of SMiLE, Brian has more fans now...including me and some friends that I managed to convert.

Maybe it could even go top 20, at least in the UK.

Cheers

I have no desire to see or hear a Beach Boys reunion - Brian has not been a "touring" Beach Boy for 30 years.

The Beach Boys (especially Mike) should be kept as far away from TLOS as possible - other side of the planet - or even better shove the Boys in the space shuttle and send them to the other side of Pluto where they can sing Duke Of Earl 'til their heart's are content (and I don't have to hear it)!

TLOS is by far Brian's most consistent work of his solo career, in fact his most consistent work since the late 60s early 70s. Unlike every Brian and Beach Boy album since Pet Sounds and SMiLE which might have zero, one, or at best two, classic and eternal Brian songs TLOS is a consistent body of work in which for the most part, the quality and depth of material is high and does not scrape the bottom of the barrel. I have learnt over 30 years to be happy with one classic Brian song per album - TLOS makes me joyous.

Making the Top 40 or whatever is irrelevant and if it should happen it is simply a bonus. Now is about Brian's body of work and ultimately his legacy.

I think it would be a good thing if Mike and Al wouldn't get any creative input, but I'd love to hear the voices of all surviving Beach Boys on one record again. So if someone would offer Mike and Al (and Bruce) a 'take it or leave it' deal to be on Brian's album and they'd accept it - I don't see what could be so bad about that.

Still no response on just who owns the rights to TLOS!
As it was commissioned by The Festival Hall last year perhaps they do and that could be the reason behind the non-recording.
Out of interest I wouldn't mind hearing something new from Brian, Mike, Al, Bruce and David. Non Surf-Car. But count me out if a reunion tour was proposed.

I agree.  I think it would be cool if they were brought in basically as studio singers (with no creative input).  On the other hand, that might be a small slap in the face to Brian's band, who put in the work learning and developing their parts.  So really I think if the BB studio reunion is going to happen, it should not be on TLOS but maybe on a future Brian project.

I'm sure they'd understand. The BB are the reason why Brian's band excists and they've basically made a carreer of paying tribute to the BB's music. So I'm sure they wouldn't mind stepping aside for 'the real thing'.

From 95%+ of reports I have heard from the BB tour of Australia late last year (which I didn't attend) the auto tune would be as busy on Mike and Bruce's vocals as they would be on Brian's. For many reasons I can accept "fine tuning" of Brian's vocals but I cannot accept the same being done for Mike and Bruces vocals on an album they are only appearing on for nostalgia purposes - not to enhance the performance. I would much prefer to hear the naturally sweet vocals of Brian's band.

There are other Aussies who post on this board who can attest to the poor quality of the Beach Boys (Mike and Bruce) vocals on the last Aussie tour.

Perhaps but Mike did a letter perfect Here Today when I saw him last year.

As was mentioned above, some of Brian's best albums have been written and recorded by Brian and a collaborator, and then the guys were brought in to lay down their vocals. Little Deuce Coupe, Pet Sounds, SMiLE, and to a lesser extent, Love You, would fall into this category. So TLOS would be nothing new. Scott would be filling the role of Roger Christian, Tony Asher, Van Dyke Parks, and maybe Carl Wilson on a lot of the later stuff.

I know this is a matter of opinion and a matter of taste, but I don't understand why any fan of the Beach Boys would prefer an entire album of Brian Wilson lead vocals with harmonies provided by others - when you could split the lead vocal duties among Brian, Mike, Al, and Bruce, including the harmonies. Again, I know it's a matter of opinion, but I just don't get it.

There isn't much of a chance that TLOS will become a Beach Boys album. It should but it won't. And it pains me to say why. When and if the Beach Boys ever re-unite to record another album, Mike Love will INSIST on being the Executive Producer, and he will INSIST on contributing lyrics. I'm not sure that would fly with the rest of the guys. And I'm not sure Mike would be the best person for those roles.

Mike will never trust Brian again, so Mike has to be the Executive Producer. Mike will not allow another Smiley Smile or  Love You to happen again. And the way Brian prematurely wrapped up his "work" on 15 Big Ones, Love You, and L.A., well, Mike didn't forget that.

Also, Mike firmly believes that he can sit down with Brian and rekindle the old magic. This opportunity was taken away from Mike a long time ago and I don't think he's ever gotten over it. I think Mike is longing for the day that he gets another shot.   

I know that by this time, I don't even have to post my response. But what the hell, I will anyway:

You're forgetting the true best option. The far better singers at this point in time are in Brian's band right now. Darian, Scott, Nick, Jeff, Probyn and Taylor are better singers than Mike, Al and Bruce (and sorry, but than Brian too). Let them work out the leads in true Beach Boys fashion ... but minus the remaining Beach Boys (except for Brian, who has to do MAD, for example, as well as those other parts most appropriate to his voice).

Brian's band sure does have better voices on purely a technical leval, but I am a Beach Boys fan. I want to hear their voices even if they aren't near their prime. There is something about hearing them together that cannot be replaced.

I know, I know. Everyone says that. Too bad that "something" is more in their heads than in the surviving guys' voices. Nostalgia...

Them's fightin' words!

How about the true best option being Pro Tooling Brian, Mike, and Bruce to death or whatever the hell it's called. I wanna hear the Beach Boys. I really have no emotional attachment to those "other guys".

You got off to a rocky start but you nailed it in the end. :)

Why not just cut and paste individual words from their 60s vocal sessions, then put them together into the words of the new songs, pitch-corrected to the appropriate new parts. Then stack 'em in whatever harmonies float your boat so it all works. There's that magic everyone loves so much.

(Yes, sarcasm)

Seriously, the original cast of characters is a) in large part dead, and b) incapable of doing anything of the kind of quality that they did 40 years ago, or even 30 years ago. When you get that hankering for the good ol' days, listen to the real music from then. But why not let the new stuff be done by people who are still good?

Hey, if not for that 'something', Foskett would be singing lead, not Brian.

Music is mythos, what's wrong with that? I'd like to know, 'cause here I go again.....

Could they do that? ;)

There's more to Brian's ability to do leads than just nostalgia. I can't have nostalgia--I wasn't there for any of the old days--and I still love some of Brian's modern singing. Sometimes creaks and near misses can be endearing, emotive, expressive, etc. Other times they just f*** up an otherwise perfect harmony, so Midnight's Another Day sounds good and Forever She'll Be My Surfer Girl sucks. So Tom Waits and Bob Dylan are great. And so on.

Nothing wrong with the many aspects of music that make it what it is. Just don't pretend everyone gets or wants the same thing out of it that you do. We've all got our own alchemic brew. But if you add Bruce and Mike and Al to Brian, you may as well add the cheerleaders and do Kokomo, 'cause you're fucking it up for me.

I know you're kidding, but actually, yes. It would sound stupid, though. Too many different inflections on words and so on. Think of those recordings on telephone systems that say back to you "You entered 1 - 2 -3 - 4 ..." and how awkward it all sounds.

Hey man, when you gave your opinion that Mike, Al and Bruce's vocals are worthless these days, I read it as just that, not that you were imposing anything or screwing up anyone's enjoyment of anything.

Now, I'd apreciate if you returned the courtesy, concerning my opinion about Brian's vocals.

Hahaha. Are you being (and taking this) serious? I understand the implications of what I say. I'm just fucking around. But obviously, there's no real courtesy for me to return, since neither you or I have the ability to produce the thing we're saying we wish would happen. We're helpless message board posters, totally irrelevant other than to argue stupid minutiae. You're more than welcome to your opinion, obviously. But life (and boards) would be pretty boring if we started every post with a disclaimer saying "while I respect the opinions of everyone else here, even recognizing the fact that they may differ from mine, and while..." (you get the idea.)

Luther, you're totally ok in my book, I just thought your last post was a bit harsh, basically the 'pretend' bit.

My bad, I should have just let it go. Peace.

bit of an understatement, I think.

Scott did a lot more than "develop their parts" - its been amazing how little credit he seems to be getting - not just lyrics.

TLOS was a group effort and should be kept as far away from Mike as possible!

Couldn't agree more.

I don't care if their voices suck, I just want to see them together again! I didn't become a Beach Boys fan until this decade, but I've seen countless youtube and that's enough to make me "nostalgic". Oh, how I wish Carl were still alive.

What he said. Exactly.

I do.

Those guys are more than just Brian's backing musicians.  To me they are heroes in the part they played in Brian's triumph of overcoming his demons with touring again and then releasing SMiLE...to great acclaim.  Watch Darian's after-show interview on the DVD from the SMiLE premiere and you can see how much emotion he has invested in the music and I think that counts for something.

I love the Beach Boys...but without Denny and Carl I am a fan of Brian first.  However, a re-union of somekind, with genuine good feeling and peace between all involved would be nice to see.

Cheers

Brian's band are excellent musicians. Great, talented professionals. But, and I don't mean to sound harsh, they are all replaceable. The original Beach Boys aren't.

Hmmm... I don't think so. Maybe before Smile and TLOS, etc, but not anymore.

The original Beach Boys have BEEN replaced - many times over and for many years.

BTW, like the earlier post by Sam_BFC mentioned - I too find myself "attached" to Brian's current band. Those guys (and girl) are as responsible as anyone for Brian's re-birth. They've set their own egos aside to work with Brian, under what must sometimes be very difficult circumstances. And they provide the kind of genuine affection and emotional support that BW needs. They're amazing IMHO!

To be replaceable is totally subjective. For some, Carl is irreplaceable in God Only Knows, for others, BWPS's I'm in Great Shape will sound just awkward sung by other voices.

At the end of the day, Brian's band is doing their job. They're pros, and are paid to deal with Brian's idiosyncrasies. Didn't Darian leave the band for a better-paying gig in Disney Productions for a while? Now, it doesn't take away from what they contribute in the studio. Hal Blaine could be Brian's friend but he wouldn't spend hours recording Pet Sounds if he didn't get paid at the end of the session.

Important disclaimer: In the same line of thought, "the Beach Boys" has been a job for everyone involved since at least 1977, but YMMV.

Agreed.



I must confess - I find it incredibly difficult to understand how anyone can feel that way. The body of evidence is (at least to me) so compelling that I just don't understand how that could possibly be the case.

They are pros, but it's clear that not only do they love their work, they really care about their leader (BW). Not all "pros" have that level of caring and commitment and emotional involvement. One of my favorite quotes is from Jeffrey Foskett speaking about Brian - "I'll never let him fail".  That seems to go way beyond a "professional" relationship.


Read the Crutchfield interview with Darian about working with Brian on Smile - how Brian just freaked out - here's an excerpt (Lindsay is the interviewer):

"Then we stopped for the holiday break and the next time I saw Brian, he was a mess. I came over with a stack of lyrics so he and I could sit down and start actually going through the lead vocal parts that he would have to perform and he was not happening. I remember him shaking and he sat down and he started crying and yelling "I'm f@#$%! I'm f@#$%!"

I had seen this through cracked doors, but this was the first time it was just him and me. Melinda was off at a meeting and he was really freaking out. So, I said "OK Brian, let's just try and listen to some of this," and he said "OK. OK. OK."

We made it through maybe three songs and in the middle of the song he hurled the lyric sheet all the way across the room and screamed, "AHHHHHHH!!!" Lindsay, it was scary. I mean really scary. I ran down to the housekeeper who was familiar with this stuff happening. She knew it was for real and he was begging her to take him to the hospital and we are still trying to call Melinda. I didn't know what to do and tried to be a calming force. At one point I heard him yelling to me from the other room "Darian! Darian! They are trying to kill me! They are trying to kill me!"

I thought, "maybe until Melinda gets home, I can just sit with him and talk." He was asking me all sorts of questions and he was just scared. He'd say, "Have you ever dropped acid? Do you take drugs? How do you deal with that?" He'd describe this feeling in his chest that he can't get rid of. Man, that was really scary. And then we had to start rehearsing within the next week with the band, mainly the vocalists. That is some of what you see in the film.

I found out later that that incident was part of his seasonal depression, especially now that he is the last Wilson [of his generation] standing. His mom, dad, brothers are all gone. There was that and then there was the reality that we had to do SMiLE for real. There was a concert date set and we have to do this. All that stuff that happened with Van Dyke in the fall when he was in the moment and it was cool and he was happy, well that was gone. It was now time to do this and it was rough. He'd just sit there and it was like we were working without a head. The head was not attached to the body..."

Continuing later in the article:

"I gotta tell you that just before the London shows, we were all really nervous. Because, you know how SMiLE is broken into three sections running 18 minutes or so each, and we've never done anything like that. What made me even more nervous was knowing that one of the things Brian gets out of a show is getting that feedback, that love and feel from the audience. Prior to SMiLE, it came to him every three minutes or so. But all of a sudden we had to perform these long lengths before any applause. That's what I was most nervous about, whether he could make it through. As a band we didn't know what was going to happen and we had not felt that nervous since our very first show in 1999. It was that heavy."

I think that's a bit more than just "idiosyncrasies", and it takes a special person to do what Darian (and the band) did - not just a hired gun.

As well, other than Mike D'Amico's family situation pulling him out, no one has left the band; and they've been together over 8 years. 



He never "left", he missed a tour is all. And since the touring had wound down after Smile, how was he gonna pay his bills without working? I've never seen any information about what he earned at Disney vs. working with BW, so to say he left for a better paying job is a bit of a mischaracterization IMHO. He needed more work. They all play in more than one band or are solo acts.

Heck, AFAIK Probyn Gregory still has a day job as an editor of some sort!


Or on stage - or Paul's arrangements, Darian's "secretarial" work, Scott's compositions, etc.

Or the way they clearly support and encourage Brian both publicly and privately.


Well, Hal had to eat too. But while I think Hal and a few others from the early days had closer than typical relationships with Brian, I don't think any group of musicians has ever gotten as close to Brian as his current band.

TLOS is certainly a BW & band combo - who'd have thought that would happen??

Sorry to be so long winded.

The "original" Beach Boys aren't - unfortunately the heart and soul (along with probably the most important voice in the mix) are both no longer with us.

 Without Brians current band, we wouldn't have seen BWPS anywhere near what it was, if at all (Darian, in particular) or TLOS wouldn't have been what it was (Scott).

I'm not sure just how replaceable some of them are - not a lot of people around with the Beach Boys / Brian Wilson background of Foskett and the Wondermints, and I agree with Jim - they are doing this more for a genuine love of Brian and the music than for money (because they don't get much of that!!)

Look, I do believe Brian's band are good people.

Anyway, I thought a bit about it and I feel we won't get anywhere debating Darian & Co motivations. We have enough mud slinging with the Beach Boys.

Having seen Alan perform a couple of times in the past  year or so I think Alan is probably a better, now, than he has ever been.   I'd also say that he is probably a better all around  lead singer than any of those people, and the equal of any of them singing his harmony parts.

It just irks me that the last 'Beach Boys' (cough) new album was Stars and Stripes?

A good last album befitting such a group has got to be better than remakes and greatest hits IMO.

And the one before that was Bummer...

And the one before that had only 5 new songs...

Within his range. Think of the range needed to sing the top harmony on "Columnated ruins domino" or "Fresh clean air...".  That's Jeff and Taylor (and possibly Probyn or Darian) country. Al himself has said he doesn't have the range he used to.

Al is a good lead singer, no question - but I wouldn't say he's any better than the people you mentioned other than Probyn - who says himself he doesn't have a lead singer's voice.  As a background vocalist Al's excellent - just like the rest of the band.

That's no insult to Al. He's in VERY good company!

I have nothing against Brian's current bandmates. Nothing at all. They've done a tremendous job, better than anybody could've ever wished for. They're obviously very talented, and, yes, appear to be good people. But my preference for an album with Beach Boys' voices has nothing to do with any of the above.

I have a relationship with the Beach Boys. A history. Their music has been a big part of my life. To quote their song, "Friends" - we've been together through the good times and the tears. High school, college, births, deaths, different jobs, different relationships, good health/bad health, poverty/prosperity, changing music tastes, etc. You get the point.

The cool thing about the Beach Boys is that they give us a snapshot of who they are/were when they recorded their music. The young garage-band punks in the Pendleton shirts. The bird watching, TM lovin', "music is swell", hippie-men. The wasted, bloated, bearded, burned-out legends. And the recovering, Hawaiian shirted, aging but forever young, California callin' but irrelevant institution. I'm starting to sound like one of Mike Love's songs or Bono's Hall Of Fame speeches!

But THAT'S what I love about The Beach Boys. I dig those snapshots. They'e fascinating. Maybe because 5 completely different characters comprised those snapshots. Even when the music was lacking, there was still something there that was redeemable, or worth getting into. Yeah, I'll sit through "Love Is A Woman" because Brian Wilson wrote it, and Mike and Al sang on it. And Carl was the mixdown producer. And it's The Beach Boys! It's that snapshot of where they were in late 1976. Fascinating.

I can't get that from Brian's band - yet. There's a lot more of them for one thing. I don't know their personalities well. And I don't have much of a history with them. But I could get it from a 2008 Beach Boys' line-up. To see/hear the white-haired, still nasal voice of Mike Love. To see/hear if Bruce has any more "Disney Girls" in him. To see/hear if Al can carry the band on record the way Carl Wilson did in his later years. And what might be the most interesting and touching story of all, the return of David Marks as an official Beach Boy after being unfairly ousted some 45 years ago.

And then there's Brian. I'm not going to get into the merits of TLOS in this post. It may or may not turn into a high quality finished recording. But what I do know, is that Brian's two solo albums (of new material) since he hooked up with this current band were Getting In Over My Head and What I Really Want For Christmas. BWPS was a re-recording of 40 year old Beach Boys' songs. Don't misunderstand me, I AM IN NO WAY BLAMING THE CURRENT BAND FOR THIS. My point is that I had hoped that the spark, energy, youth, creativity, and support of these brilliant musicians might rub off on Brian, and inspire him to create something great. And, again, TLOS might be that piece.

Maybe Brian could find a certain chemistry with some old musicians, friends, and cousins, and give us fans another snapshot. I think it would be an interesting mix and configuration. I'd like to see them give it a try.

 
 

Sheriff while I don't necessarily want a reunion as much as you, I totally agree with a lot of what you say. I have heard some people say that they prefer the vocal blend of the Wondermints+Co. over The Beach Boys at their peak!! While everyone is entitled to their opinion, I couldn't disagree more. I mean as you basically say, we (meaning most people on this board) have a 'relationship' with the band. You feel you know each member and the whole reason you feel in love with this music was because of these 5 core (and sometimes more) people and what they brought to the band both vocally, instrumentally and creatively. I don't want to start an argument on 'who's better vocally between The BB and Brian's band' but I'll just say that one of the main reasons I love this music is because of that vocal blend!! And I have rarely heard a version that I enjoy more than the original records (whether that's The Beach Boys live, Brian live, Mike+Bruce live, Al live, re-recordings by Brian or whoever, cover versions etc..)

My first thought was "you forgot brothers". Then I became very sad.

Well, some of us feel a strong relationship to the current band. They've been together since 1999, and as a result of seeing BW with them in Rosemont IL in 1999 I pursued some of their "own" music - I own all the 'Mints CDs and some other tracks, I have most of Jeffrey Foskett's stuff, I have the Dotted Line (Scott Bennett), I have Taylor's CD "Lullagoodbye" - and I'll get Nelson Bragg's CD next time I order. I found out as much as I could about them because I really liked their music so much.

I beleive 100% that without the band Brian wouldn't be where he is today. The completion of Smile was an amazing accomplishment. And they and BW have put out a bunch of excellent new music together too:

GIOMH - while I'm not fond of it, the main reason is the vocals (except Desert Drive). If the band did the vocals that would have been a far better CD.

Walking Down The Path of Life
What Love Can Do
On Christmas Day
Christmasey
What I Really Want For Christmas (wow, amazing song - and the first song written specifically for this band to sing. They were magnificent)
TLOS live
No Wrong Notes In Heaven (with Scott Bennett)

As well, Brian has appeared on the some of the band member's own CDs.

That's a pretty decent body of work for a guy who couldn't write anymore, was terrified to be on stage, and was held hostage mentally by the uncompleted Smile. And the live shows have tackled so many really challenging works too. I still can't believe what I've seen live - stuff I NEVER thought I'd see - Pet Sounds (not stripped down either, played properly), Smile, songs off "Love You", Til I Die(!), and on an on... Without the current band those would have never seen the light of day again IMHO.

They've made Brian's loss of vocal range and sometimes loss of pitch much less of an issue. If Brain could sing today the way he could back in the day I suspect that even the hardcore BBs fan would have a hard time saying the vocal blend wasn't just what they remember. As it is - the vocal blend is spectacular, especially considering how Brian's role in that blend has diminished.

Any group of musicians who can do that - as well as play and sing impeccably both live and in studio - and clearly be genuinely good souls is easy for me to relate to. I love those guys (and girl) and what they've done.

Sure, I miss Carl and Dennis, of course! But this current band occupies just as important a role in my mind.