The Smiley Smile Message Board

  Mike Love on WRKO's Howie Carr Show:

  http://audio.wrko.com/m/audio/20741136/mike-love-8-22-08.htm?q=the+beach+boys

Thanks for that. This is an extremely interesting interview--one of the better ones I've heard from Mike. He's very tactful as he deals with questions about Al, Brian, etc. He also is really classy as he discusses modern popular music. Someone was really baiting him to criticize modern pop, and he handled it very well.

That interview is soon gonna be a year old, and Mike mentioned that the Al Jardine "issues" are behind them. I wonder what is really keeping Al from rejoining the band?

Maybe Al  is happier doing his own shows at his own pace.  Mike's pace is brutal for anyone at any age.


I might have mentioned this before in another thread, but it bears repeating. It seems like Mike is mellowing in his old age.  This is more befitting of him.

I think RobMac may well be right: I would be very hesitant right now--as a 32 year old--to tour the way the Beach Boys band does, regardless of the pay. And Al doesn't have to do it anymore: lord knows he's financially secure, having led that life (seemingly sensibly) for 30+ years. Maybe he's interested in being a Beach Boy, but not really all the time. Or maybe since that time, they've run into other issues. Who knows?

But we've heard in that past year that Mike was added to Al's album, so they're at least willing to work together.

Anyway, whatever their current careers, I just think it's very becoming of Mike to talk that way, respectfully and confidently, but not condescendingly and disparagingly. Good for him, and I hope he keeps it up. Not every interview needs to be half plug for Kokomo, half diss of Brian, Al, Dennis or whoever.

I like this interview too.  Regarding Mike's comments about Al, it does sound like the "issues" are resolved, but I think he said that they were talking about getting together in the studio, not as a touring act. 

A low-key Beach Boys album featuring the best material of Mike's and Al's respective projects, fleshed out by four or five of Brian's contributions would be alright with me. Just don't let Bruce Johnston chose the producer, that's all I'm asking for.

Maybe he just realized that he probably has another 10-15-20 years left on this planet and that he would rather spend those years taking it easy on his beautiful ranch than playing casino's and state fairs with a band that used to play in stadiums?

Or be the producer.

The way I see it - Money.  The BB touring band does what it does and the adding of Al wouldn't increase the crowds much while having to pay Al.would take a big chunk out Mike and Bruce's share.   Plus Al gets a share of every BB show from BRI while still being able to do his own gigs.  Maybe, with all the legal stuff settled, they are happy with the status quo at this point in their lives.

Al and Brian get paid touring $ anyway as part of BRI...

SurfRiderHawaii said that: your post isn't contradicting him/her. See bold.

Interesting... None of the BBs were ever particularly good at interviewing, were they? Is that something else that made it hard for them to compete with the Beatles? I mean, Mike is perfectly nice in this interview, but he seems bored and disengaged. And we all know how bad Brian can be.

Brian wasn't bad up through the mid/late 70s, I don't think. And I do recall one really interesting early 70s interview with Carl where he gets pretty technical, musically speaking, that I really enjoyed. But no, they're not exactly the Beatles in that regard, are they?

True, good catch. Point is, though, that Al is getting his "big chunk" of cash whether he is there or not.

Thank you, thank you. I'm very detail-oriented (i.e. anal). Feel free to forward your praise, high-paying job offers, etc. my way.  ;)

Agreed...something low-key could be kind of neat.

I've always thought that, surprisingly enough, Dennis was the most articulate Beach Boy in interviews.  (Good Morning America notwithstanding)

Yeah, I know what you mean. I just got tickets to Brian Wilson's concert at the Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant, MI.

Come to think of it, I believe Al is playing at the Cannery Casino Hotel in Las Vegas - with The Endless Summer Band! 

I personally think its a bit sad that money [ And I know there are other factors but this one sticks out] has to seperate a well-loved, cherished band :(

Good interview though.

Money didn't separate it. Money is what kept it going.

I'm sure it did plenty of both over the years.

*sigh*

It's interesting, Brian can be very articulate...it just depends on his mood AND if the interviewer asks him detailed questions...most stars can give a good story to a vague question...but Brian can't. Dennis, in audio interviews especially, is very articulate yes

  Check out Mike Love on  106.9 Club Dennis,Bronx N.Y. :

  http://www.clubdennis911.com/beachboymikelove.htm
 

Yes, it's true that Brian can be very articulate, but it seems to me that the Beach Boys lacked a certain charm or wit that the Beatles had. Think of all the famous Beatles quotes. And some other stars have that charm too-- usually actors, but sometimes musicians. Of course, I can't think of any right now, but... Well, I know Tori Amos can be quite interesting in interviews. Freddie Mercury could be very funny, although he hated interviews. But anyway, the Beach Boys were never really talkers, were they?

Thanks for the link, Outie 315. Another good interview with Mike Love. Mike was always articulate and liked to display a sense of humor. What I also appreciate(d) about Mike was that he could take "the same old questions" and show respect to the interviewer by giving a good answer.

Granted, usually a "good answer" that ties in meditation (and how it links him to the Beatles), Kokomo and his cousins' bad decisions/weaknesses in life...

 Mike Love on The Moose:

 http://www.energeticcity.ca/news/09/09/08/interview-with-mike-love

Nah, Luther. I was referring to the questions about how did you develop your sound, why are The Beach Boys still so popular, don't the audiences seem young, what is something new that can we expect from the group, and the low/bad stages, of course.

Mike's answers don't sound robotic or canned. He chuckles, is polite, and doesn't sound like he can't wait to get the hell out of there! :police:

I'm goin' guess Al, and maybe Brian, have made more money from Mike's touring than they have from their own tours in the past several years.

I seriously doubt Brian

More like he's lost a LOT of money.

 I am going to see Mike Love belt
out the hits for Free in
Boston!!!!!!!!
Free is for me!!!!!!
No Rain.........

I agree 1000%.  Since all of them are still active -- and still operating in the "Beach Boy" mode -- the fact that they're not releasing new material together as the Beach Boys will be a question generations in the future will angrily ask.

I don't care if it's over-produced, in fact, it probably should be all auto-tuned and slick.  I honestly think "slick" and "produced" didn't work the last time they did it because "slick" and "produced" in the 1980s -- a la 1980s technology -- was a dreadful direction that yielded dreadful results.

Today..."slick" and "produced" can be very tastefully done, no question.  Other may disagree -- but I think Brian sounds great on Imagination.  Had the Beach Boys been the name on the album -- that album would have been a million and two seller.

(http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200803/r234487_941287.jpg)

Either way...Sinatra worked until he physically couldn't anymore.  And those years -- where he's in his 60s and beyond -- are some of his greatest.  It just needs to happen.

What he said^. The only thing I would add would be one song from Bruce, one song from David Marks, and oldie/cover.

I would like them to either cover "Seasons In The Sun" (with each member taking a verse), or "Wishing You Were Here" (with a guest vocal/appearance from Peter Cetera), or "Summertime Summertime" (using the Jan & Dean arrangement; with Brian on falsetto and Mike singing "It's summertime summertime sum-sum summertime").

Or maybe add today's voices to something/anything [or a comp of fragments even] from the vault with Carl and Dennis on them?

The whole thing sounds nightmarish. Please don't let it happen.

Mike sounds way more comfortable in his skin than Brian ever does in interview.   Mike sounded relaxed and very patient and accomodating to callers.

As for Beatles interview vs Beachboys interviews there is/was  a world of difference.    When the Beatles landed they were zany moptops with British accents.  Kids were as interested in the characters as they were the  music.

I don't recall many interview with the Beachboys.  The Dick Clark bandstand appearance had Brian firmly as the spokesman and leader but I only recall Dick Clark commenting that the tallest one was the leader.

I recall an appearance by the band on The Tonight Show with Carson.  They were all on the couch after doing THWFOS and took turns answering questions.  Brian started going on about Landy and his personal ups and downs......Carson looked uncomfortable...and Carl visibly winced.

And some of you may remember the Tom Snyder interview with Carl Wilson after he performed solo on the show.  Carl tried patiently to answer the inane questions when Snyder paused from his projectile guffaws.

Brian on Terry Gross' show.

I think this recent Mike interview ranks among the bands finest.

Al has done a couple of coherent and interesting interviews over the years.

Dennis generally got through interviews because he was attractive and presented well ....especially in the early to mid seventies and around the time of POB.

But these guys were never the Monkees.  Prior to the Monkees  the Beatles were the Monkees.

The Beachboys did make some nice picture sleeves.

I'm not familiar with this. About what year was it? Are you referring to the appearance with Joan Rivers?

Sounds like the JR episode. Was in 2 parts on youtube last time I looked. Under 'Hearts Were Full Of Spring' from memory.

I think they sang Graduation Day on that show..

I'm reporting completely from memory....and recall is not perfect...maybe I have just stored that memory as Carson.  Could have been Joan Rivers.  They did an acapella song...and I do remember it was like watching an accident in slowmo.

Mike seemed pretty cool when I met him while working backstage at Chastain Park here in Atlanta.  My profile picture is from that evening.  He dug my Beach Boys Hawaiian shirt.  Bruce called him "Love" as a nickname...I got a big kick out of that....

 Man,  I think you own a Lovester shirt?

 ,,,,,,,, Yowsa!!!!!!!
 
  Mike Love can be found on the Live 95 Archive:
 
  http://www.live95.com/AudioArchive.asp

Joan Rivers was the host when the Beach Boys appeared on the Tonight show.