The Smiley Smile Message Board

Discuss, review and rate Good Timin': Live At Knebworth 1980, released March 2003.

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A high-energy performance marred by the promiscuity of older material in lieu of better new songs. The live versions of the KTSA tracks walk all over the album versions and make them slightly more bearable.

Yep, nice energy--almost makes you think the band still mattered in some way. I'd rather watch the DVD, though...and it's still just a 2 or 3.

reminds me a lot of the band I saw so many times through the 80's only with all 6 there at once.

Denny's smoke-choked "WE LOVE YOU" during a H&V music break... makes me laugh- at the same time, it's a bit sad.

Not bad, but has the WORST version of H&V that I have yet heard.

Dig when Al's voice cracks at the beginning of H&V.

Lame in-between chatter. "Put your hands together, as they say", the whole "blame Al for Cottonfields" thing, et cetera. So annoying. Is that Mike? It doesn't sound nasal enough.

What they did with Good Vibrations was pretty cool, though.

yeah I liked Carl's little scat sort of thing he had goin' on twoards the end of Good Vibrations.

Does anyone own a raw bootleg of this show?  If so, how much overdubbing was done in studio for this official version?

Yes. It's more "fixing" than overdubbing. Tons of pitch correction.
Some background vocals are added.

OK so it doesn't sound like it's too bad then.  Very cool.

AHA! I *knew* there was pitch correction used. It's real noticeable on Mike's vocals,because they have kind of a , I dunno, plastic sort of sound to them.

On 5.1 it's unbearable.

I just went back and listened to this CD.  The version of Lady Lynda on here absolutely owns.  Especially the end coda where they break out a-capella and you can very clearly hear Brian in the vocals.  Outstanding.

I seriously doubt that Brian was singing on "Lady Linda"...

I don't think he was still on stage at that point.

I don't think so, either. He was barely involved in that show, from what I can tell. The occasional keyboard/piano bit and some vox, but not too F'in interested.

...except during KTSA. I always found that odd, because to my knowledge, he wasn't involved at all with the recording of that song.

Huh...I wonder what a re-recording of that song with Brian and the 'mints would sound like...

He seemed to DIG that song! In the video, he is really into playing it.

Musicians usually prefer playing new songs over songs they've already done a thousand times, so that could explain why Brian seems to be having so much fun during KTSA.

And I'm pretty sure Brian's piano is absolutely inaudible throughout the entire concert.

Denny's intro to Help Me Rhonda rocks!!!!!!!!!

Elton John? Eat Your Heart Out!   Brilliant, and even better on the DVD.

Brian adds more piano than some might think...he's just mixed very low.

I like this show but they cut out some interesting tracks. Too bad as it is probably one of their last really good tours.

How off are the original vocals, pitch-wise? Doesn't sound like anyone was pitch perfect in the release mix, so I'm curious how bad the original vocals were in the actual performance?

got it today, great show, and carl and Al really shine

I feel like this is the last show where Brian looks like...Brian.

Regardless, its still some great music played by some great people. Loved every minute of it.

Then they must've turned it up when Mike Meros played it on "Lady Lynda" and "You Are So Beautiful". And I can distinctly hear Dennis's fast piano playing during "Help Me Rhonda".

This is really not a period of the BBs I'm a big fan on. But the fact that it is one of the last shows with all 6 members makes it above average. I gave it a 3.

Very enjoyable - the DVD in particular. Great to see everyone together again, even if the setlist is predictable.

I'd like to see a DVD release of the 11/72 Carnegie Hall show...the one that had small clips from it featured in Endless Harmony.

If thats the one I'm thinking of - I think it's actually from An American Band isn't it? - then I'm pretty sure they only played like 5 songs. From what I have heard they only played Okie From Muskogee, Heroes And Villains, Forever, It's About Time and I Get Around.

The film in American Band is not from that show. In American Band the footage I believe you are referring to comes from a filmed May Day Rally show (May 1 1971-with Bruce, pre Blondie and Rickie) and the Central Park show from 71 that was broadcast as Good Vibrations from Central Park.  This is also where the live version of Forever comes from in that video. There is no footage of Blondie and Rickie in American Band, as far as I can recall they gloss over the whole period as if they never existed.

Ahyes, that's the one. Thanks for the correction+info Ian!! :)

I was talking about the one with snippets on Endless Harmony where Carl sings God Only Knows and Long Promised Road. The songs sure sound like the same ones on the boot of the show.

Either way, some archival video on DVD would be a dream.

I think only fragments Dennis had filmed exist. It's kind of like the Hawaii 67 show where you have to edit a lot of things together to get one song. It wasn't a pro shot show that had complete songs.

Surely they professionally filmed at least one show with the Blondie/Ricky lineup?

Yes they did but it's a mini set. It's from London 1972 and parts of it should be on youtube

Those snippets from Endless Harmony weren't professionally filmed?
Did they sync up the audio of the show with the shots from Dennis' camera or something?

Good but not great. The band is really functioning, but the choice of material is not that adventurous. Two remarks:
- Mike totally ruins a great Lady Lynda when he belts out 'A-A-A-L J-A-A-A-R-D-I-I-I-N-E!!!' at the end. It betrays a total lack of taste.
- Dennis just is too far gone already, as 'You Are So Beautiful' painfully shows.

3 out of 5 then.

Funny thing happens when you listen to the live version of something more than the studio... you get used to the differences in the live version. Whenever I listen to LA, without that "A-A-A-L J-A-A-A-R-D-I-I-I-N-E!!!" and the repeated chorus, it seems empty. Same thing with I Get Around. I have maybe 30 or 40 live versions of I Get Around on my computer, and listening to the studio version, with the fadeout instead of the "I get a-ROUND!" cold ending is like someone turned the song off before it was over.

I gave this a 4 even though I don't own it. That is to say I bought the dvd and have an mp3 copy of the album. Very cool show and yes Brian is actually playing on "God Only Knows" (I know because I am a pianist myself and play the song too). Dennis is solid in his "first" set but noticeably sloppy drunk for the ending set. I do prefer the 1971-1973 shows better myself but still prefer this concert to basically anything after.

For me, the highlights of this set are:

• Lady Lynda
• Brian's "cameo" vocals on "Sloop John B." and "Surfer Girl"
• Dennis Wilson in general.

Other than that, it's not their greatest performance. Mike was not in very good voice and some of the songs come off under-rehearsed. Granted, it is a rather nice to have ALL the original guys performing together and it is a high energy show despite the rain.

Gave it a 4. The guys are really rocking and it just boosts out of your stereo. "Fun fun fun" for example is unbelievable. Dennis and Carl just letting it go before the intro. I really dig it and a big part is Dennis' drumming which is incredible powerful. Must've been a thrill to hear him live.
Bootlegs show that Brian did sing, for example on the ending of "California girls" but I don't know how often during the whole oncert he is singing. His mic also seems to be mixed very low.

I honestly think the "outtakes" of this concert should be mixed and released...basically Some of Your Love, I Write the Songs, Santa Ana Winds, and In My Room

How about the title song? Why do you even name an album with a song title that is not on the album?

Oh yeah, good call! I forgot.
I think it's because a line got flubbed up. Was it Brian?
I think he was singing a part that's not on the studio cut; it's an echo of Carl's vocal on the chorus...I think he sang "he needs good timin'" instead of "You need good timin'"....but I think it sounds fine.

Here it is on You Tube (poor picture quality but very decent audio) and it's fantastic.  Carl and Brian are really putting their all into their vocals.  It is very strange that it wasn't on the album or the DVD.  It might be the best version I've heard.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rf59cqgPGE

Had this one uploaded on my channel many years ago... until it got blocked. Nice to see someone else grabbed it and uploaded it again (as it's obviously exactly the edit I made from my old vhs video).

I like this live album. Not one of my favourites but still.
ATM, the last time we'll ever hear Dennis's singing.
Also has the only officially released version of Dennis's "You Are So Beautiful".
I'll give this album a solid 3.5 out of 5.

4/5 A rockin good time. ! When you saw the BB live on a good nite it was bliss..

Decent live album. 

I like having Brian, Mike, and Carl all sing a verse of Sloop John B.  That was a nice touch. 

I like hearing Dennis try to murder his drums during the California Girls intro. 

A nice live album, as it does capture a particular era of BB history. 

The only reason I gave it a 4 instead of 5 are these dreadful KTSA songs. 

Well said.

It's a shame the complete show (warts and all), hasn't been released.

I've never been wild about their version of School Days, but Keep the Summer Alive rocks, especially on this disc.

I will admit it's a lot better live.  But I think the studio version is pretty bad. 

Check out the live version of "Keepin' the Summer Alive" from the Washington DC July 4, 1980 show (just a couple weeks after Knebworth). It's the best live version I've heard. Knebworth is okay, and any live version sounds better than the rather limp studio version).

I think the DC 1980 show is on YouTube. The versions taken from the Japanese DVD should look and sound pretty good.

By the way-this July 4 1980 performance was "fixed" prior to airing on TV. (as was Knebworth).  I have heard the unsweetened actual live version and the performances are a lot rougher!!

Very true; the radio broadcast of that DC show is more raw and rough. I've probably, partly out of sentimentality/nostalgia, watched and listened to that show (both the original radio broadcast and the completed TV special) more than most any other, and I can say that, to my ear, the actual overdubs for the TV special were not that excessive.

The main overdubs I hear is an extra electric piano/keyboard, and some sweetened backing vocals in spots (the intro to "School Days" most obviously). But all of the lead vocals and main instrumentation are untouched. I think the main thing they did in post-production was to mix in to excise bad bits, and I would imagine the unsalvageable nature of certain performances (Brian's batteries running out mid-vocal on "Wouldn't It Be Nice", Al's momentary frog in his throat during "Lady Lynda", etc.) were what dictated which songs made the hour-long cut.

I wore out my original 1980 videotape of the HBO broadcast for eons, and then got a French Beach Boys fan to buy a Japanese DVD import at the Virgin Megastore (in Paris I believe), and it still blows my mind how good it looks, being that the show was shot on just normal SD videotape that is now 36 years old.

More trivia: I recall Alan Boyd telling me years and years ago that the raw footage from the concert was missing/lost, but I'm thinking in recent years they did find the raw footage, as a quick video-only clip of "California Girls" (not aired on TV) was used in a C50 TV ad.