The Smiley Smile Message Board

I was wondering if anybody knows why Brian quit playing bass onstage. Or rather, "regularly" on stage. He played bass as his main instrument up untill 1965-6, when he quit touring.   Then played  keyboards when he joined the group in hawaii in 1967. I'm not sure, but I think he played piano when he briefly took over for Mike in 1970.   He played the keyboards when he joined the group for the Whiskey shows. I think that when he rejoined the group in 1976, he sat at a keyboard for the first half dozen shows. But then, the bass was his "main" instrument again untill I think about 1979. Since 1979, the piano and keyboards seem to be his "main" instrument for live concerts. Well, today the keyboard that he sits at for shows is most likely unplugged, but the average fan doesn't know that. I was just curios why it seems that Brian has gradually given up the bass. I mean, he began his career primarily as a bass player. My other question is, does he ever still play bass in the studio? What was the last studio recording that Brian played a bass on?

The situation is more complicated.

On Surfin', he played the drums. Al played bass. Live until 1964, and on the Chicago shows in 1965 and one Ann Arbor show in 1966, he played bass. In Hawaii, he played mostly keyboards but did play bass on Sloop John B. In 1970 he played keys. In 1976-77 he played mostly keys, usually getting on bass for Back Home and Surfer Girl. By 1978 he played bass for most, if not all of the shows. By the end of the 1970s, he was strictly on keyboards until 1983, when he alternated again. Of course, nowadays when he's live, neither his bass nor his keyboard is plugged in. And you can tell he's not playing the correct basslines either - note the constant strumming of the root.

Not true. Both the bass and keyboard are plugged in -- Brian has soloed on piano, and his bass has been clearly audible at concerts. The bass has always been doubled, though, so he's playing a very rudimentary part, as Bob Lizik or someone else plays the more complicated bits. I saw him -- and heard that bass playing -- live, so I'm a firsthand witness to this. (I'm not saying he was any good, mind you -- he just strummed root notes, as you mentioned.)

There is a lot of misunderstanding of Brian and the keyboard at his concerts. For the first year or so of his touring, the keyboard was not plugged in -- there were audience videotapes, and he was simply miming playing the piano.

But at a certain point -- it was the Pet Sounds tour, I think, or possibly a year later -- he pretty much stopped miming, and moved over to hand gestures. But that meant that he would occasionally actually play keys, often on "In My Room," or something along those lines.

Eventually, in the Smile tour, he featured on keys on a handful of songs -- Wind Chimes, the intro to Marcella, and In My Room or Surfer Girl (IIRC). But most of the time he simply doesn't play.

Just for the sake of accuracy/analcy (tm), the live-show bass parts aren't doubled. Doubling is two instruments doing the same part. As you note, in his concerts, Brian is playing root notes and the other bassist is playing the (more complicated) true bass parts. So it isn't doubled, it's just two parts.

It would actually be interesting to compile a list of studio recordings Brian actually played bass on.  I bet it would be surprisingly short.

Ok, I'll alter my question slightly. Sometime 1983, it seems that Brian has just stuck to keyboards, MOST of the time. Why is that? Is he just more comfortable sitting behind a piano/keyboard? A few years ago, I read somewhere on the internet that Brian no longer has the ability to "actively" play the bass(i.e. something other than rudimentary strumming). I know that in the 1980's Brian would play bass on occasion, but he seems to have decided on piano or keyboards as his main instrument.

Ok, let's break it down like this: In 1963-4ish, the average fan knew that Carl was the lead guitar player, Mike was the singer, Al was the rhythm guitar player, Dennis played drums, and Brian was the bass player. That is what the credits read on the original albums(at least I think so), and this is how the band looked on the front cover of their 1964 concert album. So, to the fan that doesn't know any better, Brian "used" to be a bass player but has seemingly given it up for good.

Luther -- Quite so. Thanks.

And Jay -- I think it's mainly because Brian played bass out of necessity. The band needed a bassist. His central instrument as a composer and in studio settings has always been the piano. Once Brian stopped touring, he lost his chops on the bass. He regained some skill in the late 70s, but again it was mainly for live settings. I don't think he's ever claimed great proficiency as a bassist, and if he's not required to play it onstage, I don't think he thinks about it much.

Interesting point, claymcc.  :)

I rememebr reading in Carlin's book that Brian wanted to play bass in the later 70s but Carl wouldn't let him.
Interestingly iirc Brian played mostly bass on the Australia-show where Carl is "loaded" that circulates on DVD....

I think in the early days he played bass out of necessity, as previously mentioned. From my point of view, once there were backing musicians on stage (and Brian was increasingly uncomfortable on stage), it became a lot easier to hide behind a piano and contribute when he felt more engaged.

On the other hand, if a bass player misses a note, the whole band is going to sound unbalanced. That's one of the troubles of playing the bass; no one notices generally if you're playing well, but they'll sure notice if you're not!  :)

Yes, Brian's "instrument of choice" has always been the piano.  When Al rejoined the group in '63, their lineup for studio sessions would be Brian on piano, Carl (and Dave until he left) on guitars, Dennis on drums, and Al on bass.  When Dave left, Carl would play rhythm guitar on the basic track & overdub the lead guitar.  Yet they would still perform live with Brian on bass, and Carl & Al on guitars.  There were a few exceptions, when Brian would play bass on records ("Dance, Dance, Dance", "Girl Don't Tell Me", "Sherri She Needs Me") and Al would play guitar ("Dance, Dance, Dance", "The Girl From NYC"), and sometimes where Brian would play piano & overdub the bass ("Then I Kissed Her"), or Al would play bass & overdub guitar ("You're So Good To Me"), and on the "Party!" album, Al played acoustic guitar with Carl throughout, while Brian and Bruce alternated on bass.  

Incidentally, Brian's keyboard wasn't "unplugged" on the '99 tour, either...just muted when he pawed at it during songs.  At the Wiltern show in L.A. that October, I saw Brian play a single note on his keyboard to get the pitch for his opening note on "Barbara Ann", and I heard his keyboard quite clearly on that one note.  

And yes, from late '77 throughout all of '78, Brian was on bass for a good 90% of the show, despite Carl's protestations.  Carl apparently got his way in '79, and Brian returned to the piano.  

I have two ideas on why Brian doesn't play much bass THESE days...(1) he's obviously more comfortable sitting down & singing, and no one seems to sit onstage at rock shows these days except the drummer and sometimes keyboard players, and (2) for the same reason he doesn't play much keyboard these days...he's concentrating on his singing.

At the first Beach Boys' concert I ever saw, in June 1978, Brian came out and OPENED THE SHOW on a brown Fender bass. I almost had a heart attack! I really wasn't a sophisticated enough listener to tell how competent he was playing.

What I do remember though was Brian, smoking a cigarette, holding it in his right hand/fingers - while still strumming/picking the bass! :o

I don't think Brian was ever much of a bassist: at least I've never seen him play anything that a moderately competent teenager in a garage band couldn't play. That said, he is a great musician and certainly played what he's playing well enough to do what the instrument had to do. I think the previous posts were spot on: he's always been a pianist (though not exactly virtuosic there, either--he was always more composer/arranger/singer/all-around musician than player) who played bass when bass had to be played. So if he didn't have to, he didn't. I doubt there's an inner Percy Heath trying to bust out, stifled these last years.

I agree. He's capable of some basic stuff and the stuff he wrote (and I guess Carl helped him). But he plays with great feel. Compare the BBs live in '64 with '66 when Bruce was playing bass. With Brian they rocked, swinged and had a great all around feel. And afterwards....  :(
No matter on whcih instruemnt he is, Brian can rock it. At least he could back then

This is a bit of a myth, as C-man alludes to in his post below. Yes when they announce the band's instruments before Little Deuce Coupe on the Concert LP and in the Lost Concert film, the lineup you state is what is put forth. But the reality is Al didn't play much guitar(if any) on those first five LPs, and Brian doesn't play much bass after the first two. Dave(not Al) played guitar along with Carl until the fifth LP... Brian played way more piano than bass, and Al played way more bass than guitar. Brian's primary instrument has been piano all along, Al's primary instrument was bass in the studio until about ASL and he still played bass after that quite a bit. I think he was a much better bass player than Brian.  And Al also played bass live in '63 when Brian stayed home, which was often, with Carl and Dave playing the two guitar role. But when Brian did play, Al sat out the concerts entirely until Dave left in late '63. I think the main reason Brian played bass live in the early days was to get his voice out in front and so he could lead the band from the front of the stage, i don't think it had anything to do with his ability or desire to play bass.

Speaking of this topic..when is the last time anyone has seen Bruce play bass? Or even Al for that matter?

I love threads like this.

I posted this somewhere before, but I once saw (not in my possession, just saw at someone else's house) a video of the band in '78 and not only is Brian playing bass for the whole show, but he's running around playing rockstar the whole time, much more a part of the backing band than the frontline.  I was impressed that he played all the bass parts right, including the complicated runs on WIBN.  They were dumbed down a little, but he played the right parts. I think Carlin's statement that Brian wanted to play bass but Carl wouldn't let him -- which surprised me when I read it -- may well be true.  It looked like Brian was enjoying himself on the bass and it may be that he enjoyed the challenge and it kept him interested.  But in Carl's defense, as someone else posted, the bass is the one instrument where you have to be absolutely on all the time or the band will sound really bad.  If Brian's performance was spotty, and I'd bet it was, I can understand why Carl would want him off that key position.  For that matter I'm surprised Dennis hung in on the drums as long as he did, but his technique -- simple beats, heavy on the 2 and 4 -- mask a world of technical sins because if you have a solid backbeat, a lot of the other stuff doesn't matter, one reason why Dennis Wilson is truly one of my drumming idols.

Bruce's diminished role in the touring band is something that has long mystified me, because he was an integral part of the band in the late '60s and the guy is a monster musician by all accounts.  I can understand him not wanting to play bass much because again, he's not much of a bass player per se, but I notice that when he's mimed bass parts in videos  and lip sync appearances in later days (e.g. "Sumahama" in '79, "Getcha Back" in '85, "Kokomo" in '88 "Problem Child" in 90), he's always playing the right bass lines even though he didn't play on the records or even play them live.  That always impressed me.

I think it's true that Brian CAN play whatever instrument he wants to if he has the time and interest, but as someone else posted, he has other fish to fry.  Certainly when he was pulling together those tracks in the '70s it was much easier to go over to a moog and play the left hand bass line than it was to transpose those complicated lines to a bass guitar (or teach them to someone else, for that matter).

One of the most interesting Brian-bass moments for me is the big sing-a-long at the tribute show from 2001. He's up with the bass, and the band launches into Fun, Fun, Fun -- which is not a song he ever plays bass on onstage (he has practically always limited himself to Surfer Girl and Barbara Ann). And you can see that he spaces out from the crowd and is just focusing on the bass, and actually plays the Fun, Fun, Fun part (well, part of it, at least). You can see that the bass actually interests him most at that point, because it's this somewhat unexpected challenge, but he also remembers what to play.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ND6hjCsbpXQ

Make sure to watch through till the end -- everyone is dancing around, and he's watching his fingers.

I always enjoyed the 1979 Midnight Special, where Brian plays bass on "Rock And Roll Music" (a great version). Brian always LOOKED good with a bass strapped on.

errr... "Surfin' USA", maybe ?

Good call, Andrew. I believe you're right. It was originally SG and BA, but it looks like the bass encores have switched to BA and SUSA.

I think I read somewhere that he played bass on a couple tracks of Brian Wilson Presents Smile.

Is this correct?

I'd heard he played keyboards on a couple of tracks.

Hmmm...not that I know of, and I'd remember something like that.  :)
Someone, I think it was Sean Lennon, asked Brian awhile back (maybe around the "Imagination" album days?) why he doesn't play bass anymore (or hadn't in awhile, at that time), and he said the last time he tried, he got a blister on his thumb, so he gave up!

I read in David Leaf's book a quote from someone who said Brian's practice for going back on the road with the Boys in '77 was to plug in the bass and play along with a Ronettes album!

I asked Bruce earlier this year why he doesn't play bass anymore, and he basically said 'cause he's not that good at it.  He also said he concentrates most of all on singing, therefore he doesn't pay as much attention to his keyboard live...except (I noticed at this year's Omaha symphony shows) on the "Pet Sounds" songs ("You Still Believe In Me", "Here Today", "Sloop", "GOK", "WIBN"), on which he played pretty solidly...also noticed he played the sole piano part on "Be True To Your School", while Tim Bonhomme played only organ & synth parts.  Anyways, in case no one else has noticed, Bruce still NAILS the falsetto parts on "Surf City" and "Fun Fun Fun".  He absolutely WAILS on those.  

Finally, back to Brian playing the bass...Gary Usher (in one of the two Stephen McParland books on the "Wilson Project") is quoted as saying Brian brought his bass over to the studio one time and played bass on a track, and Domenic Priore printed a photo of Brian playing the Fender bass in the studio during the '87-'88 solo album sessions in one of the Dumb Angel Gazettes.  Maybe those are the last times he played bass in the studio.

Leaf mentions that in his notes to the 88 reissue -- he says it in reference to "Melt Away," I think, that the basslines were inspired by Brian picking up the instrument again.

Which is weird, because Carl would actually call on Brian(through the microphone) to play bass. He did it at the Maryland 1977 show, for one example. I believe he also did it a year later in Lakeland, Florida.

Thanks for the info! Highly detailed, as always. I often wonder if your posts on topic such as these are directly from memory, or if you have to reference a book or two.  ;D

I know it doesn't answer the question, but just to add to the voice who mentioned that Brian's keyboard is plugged in these days.

I saw him on the SMiLE tour in '04 and he played it a couple of times (Wind Chimes as noted, and another song but I forget which). The bass was clearly plugged in too when he got up for the encores. He played a basic bass line, but clearly enjoyed it.

I have a theory that the keyboard is like a security blanket. It separates Brian from the audience and makes him feel more comfortable on stage, less exposed.

The keyboard holds the teleprompter, for one. Brian doesn't always use a keyboard (during "acoustic" shows for instance) and when the keyboard isn't there, neither is the teleprompter.

Incidentally, I remember reading from someone on here that Brian's teleprompter sometimes says "BRIAN PLAY KEYBOARD" on it, and he usually doesn't listen.

Who really played bass on "That's Not Me"?

I mean, the liner notes say that Brian overdubbed the track with studio musicians, but did that really happen, and would it have been necessary?

That clip is a good example of why I think he should be the bass player in his backing band. He looks a lot better standing up and being at center stage, he seems a lot more comfortable, and just looks really cool with a bass.  ;D

Post that on the Bloo Board...it just might happen...or you just might get banned for daring to make a suggestion to management!  :)

I have my doubts about that...I mean, I really REALLY have my doubts about that...for one thing, there's no documentation to support that (when AFM sheets are in existence for every single OTHER "Pet Sounds" session, but not for this supposed "That's Not Me" overdub)...it comes from a comment made by Carol Kaye in the box set booklet 30 years after the fact, and she's been wrong about so many other things when it comes to credits.  Like you said, it wouldnt've have been necessary...my personal belief is that after the basic track was laid down (by the Wilsons, Al, and reportedly Terry Melcher, with Bruce in the control booth), they did another o/d with Carl on 12-string and Brian on bass (plus, I think, Dennis on some extra percussion).  There might be two basses on there (a normal Fender and a Dano 6-string), but the Beach Boys themselves could've easily handled that.

Someone posted a comment that Brian's bass is not plugged in,  on the youtube page for that clip.

And of course Brian looks better playing bass. Anything would be better than just sitting in front of a keyboard that he doesn't play and staring at a teleprompter.

And goodness knows, YouTube commenters really are the authorities on Brian's instrumental contributions.

Bob Lizik is also playing bass onstage in that clip, and I assume that his part is what you mostly hear. But Brian is clearly playing something and concentrating on his part, even if not much of it made it through the final mix.

I love how at the end you can see Carnie watching him with a big smile on her face.

I follow Taylor Mills on Twitter, perhaps I'll tell her. She's already responded to one of my messages.

In response to AdamGhost remarking that Dennis is one of his true drummer idols:



Yeah, Dennis ruled as a drummer! People say he couldn't play, whatever, had limited chops! Watch him on "Lost Concert" for instance, the guy is rolling all over his kit and kicking ass! That was cool enough, but how he simplified his technique later on was a great decision for the sake of the sound of the band as a whole. Those simple straight ahead ,heavy on the 2 (snare and floor tom) beats were awesome. Dennis is also one of the only guys I've seen blow complicated fills and save himself in a kick ass way! He does it a few times on the Knebworth DVD, he starts some kick-ass fill, loses it and comes slamming back on the 2 without missing a beat!!!!
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When I saw the SMiLE tour in 2005, Brian played keyboards on the intro to Marcella and Walking Down The Path of Life.

Speaking of miming, in this clip Carl sems to be doing a good job on the bass, but Bruce on the keys and Dennis on the drums, come on! Did they even listen to the track while they were playing?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-18VDbCapNI

They're probably playing their own dumbed-down live arrangement of the song.

And Dennis was either terrible and drumsynching or never actually tried. I've never seen a good video. Even in the I Get Around video, all he has to do is clap, and he screws that up, too!

I think a lot of musicians of that era were either embarassed/humiliated at having to mime/lipsynch on TV and such. The worst mimer ever is Keith Moon, btw, who usually made a complete mockery about it.

Also, yeah, for Dennis, it wouldn't be fun to have to mime the drum parts that someone else most likely played, when you're more than capable of doing it yourself. If you don't think Dennis can play, just look at Wouldn't It Be Nice on David Frost (the clip where Al messes up the words) .... or just about any other real-live clip.

I agree in part. Many didn't like it. But I don't think they were embarassed. It was (and still is) the norm to mime on TV-shows.



Didn't they change the lyrics to appear more grown up? I think I've read that somewhere.....

I think it'd be a little hard to mime a part on a track that you didn't even play on.

Didn't they change the lyrics to appear more grown up? I think I've read that somewhere.....
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Yeah, I think it was changed to "Wouldn't it be nice if we were "closer"!!!!

Thankfully this was short-lived. To be exact, Al messed up the second verse which was kept the same in that era.

Mike also messed up a line from Cool Cool Water on that same broadcast!

Who knows what tensions might have been in the air that day.

Dennis was on top form, at least!

Thanks for the search-function !!
I was looking at that clip because I was thinking about putting the appearance on "Midnight special" on the list for the pro shot Beach Boys concerts (I think this kind of show would qualify) and saw "Rock'n'Roll music". I thought the bass was played very well but then realied that there was nobody else to be seen playing bass. Is it really Brian doing that ??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgFKN1sOuas

It could be him playing but it's hard to confirm since the video is slightly out of sync with the sound.  What key do they play this song in....E?  If so, that could account for Brian being able to play this way---while taking advantage of the open strings which is why it sounds as vibrant as it does. 

Yeah, it's in E. I'm just so surprised because to tell you the truth I wouldn't have thought that the post '74-Brian could do it/concentrate on it. Now the question: did he play the only bass on stage during concerts? I alwas imagined that someone else was doing the job (like it seems to be the case today when he's on stage playing bass)

Yeah I know.  It is pleasantly surprising to watch it but you do see that he is actually quite focused.  The cherry on top is the settings on his amp---nice think, chunky sound.  Great tone.

Well, why should Bruce have to contribute anything to the band live when he can just sit there and clap and get paid all the same? Wouldn't it be socialist to demand that he actually do something unless he's to be paid on a per-note basis?

How did I miss this back three years ago?

I think it's pretty obviously an all Beach Boys track, in the Summer Days mold, of things like You're So Good To Me.  There are definitely two basses, no question about it.  I think Brian and Carl just did two passes of the exact same thing.

Anyway, carry on in this very old thread...

When Brian was playing Bass on stage in like '78, or 77 when we've got that really cool (horrible) Honkin' Down the Highway video...  was he actually playing the bass, solo?  Or did he have somebody doubling him like he does now?

I'm still a youngun, but in my naieve, young, idealistic mind... a concert, circa 1977 of the Beach Boys, with Brian Wilson, the mad genius standing on stage, playing HONKIN DOWN THE HIGHWAY on BASS... and dancing like that.  That had to be the greatest concert experience of all time.  If you can have more fun at a concert, I don't know how. 

That video was Hawaii 1978. Yes it would have been awsome to see Brian play bass most of a show. Still I could hear his playing clear on this tour and that's something I never thought would happen!

He was THE bass player in the video I saw.  More a part of the backing band than the front line, and running all over the place.  It was kind of stunning to behold.

Honkin' down the highway video ?!?!?! Please help me out. What's that about?

I messed up.  It was Roller Skating Child.  Prepare to be amazed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1EPXBQV3yM

I can't tell what the hell's going on.  I can tell Brian's dancing.  I like that part.  I can't pick out the bass, and he appears to stop playing half way through, and then somehow sings the last line with no microphone. 

delete

Yeah, that video is hilarious. But I believe Ed Roach (or someone else who shot that movie) pointed out that they played "I get around" iirc and not "Roller skating child" on that footage.
I believe the audio is from May 14th 1979

That would make sense, it would match the video better. 

Ray Price to Willie Nelson: "Can you play bass?"

Willie Nelson to Ray Price:  "Cain't everbody?"

I always wondered how much time Carl took to teach Brian the Bass. After all, Brian was a piano player, not a guitar player. Usually it's easier to learn the Bass if you're already a guitar player, right? Brian had the bass notes on the piano and in his head but I just wondered how much Brian actually practiced playing the Fender Precision before playing on the first few albums and going out on the road in late '63 and most of '64. I guess he knew how to read the bass notes while playing bass back then.

Dunno if this was covered either, but Brian played in a rudimentary fashion, only using his right thumb to pluck the strings as opposed to using his other fingers. Not sure if he used a pick on the road; I think probably just his thumb. Looking at the Lost video though (and other TV shows) it looks like he held his own on bass - he moved his fingers around the neck pretty good. Kinda held it 3/4 vertical most of the time.

It's a good question.  The thing is Brian already MENTALLY was a bass player...if you break down his piano playing style, all the action is in the left hand.  He's generally comping  chords in the right and the left is moving all over the place.  I just learned "Surf's Up," for example, and the left hand at the end is devilish hard to play.  "Wild Honey" too...all those crazy bass patterns on that song and on that album are derived from piano patterns.  Not for nothing did McCartney credit him for completely changing his own mindset about the bass guitar.

It's not going to be all that hard for a musician of Brian's caliber to pick up a bass and follow the notes around.  You've got to have the physical dexterity and the ability to think of two things at once (no problem for Brian), then after that, it's all about how the intervals on the strings relate to one another.  Likewise it doesn't surprise me that Bruce was able to pick it up.  If you're a good piano player the fundamentals of bass are not that hard to grasp, and if you know theory, it's not hard to understand the functionality of the instrument.

A friend of the Wilsons once told me that all three brothers, Brian and Carl in particular, had the ability to pick up about any instrument and get it to make whatever sound they wanted it to make.  This makes sense to me.  They may not have been master technicians but all three of them had as firm a grasp on the fundamentals and functionality of playing than any players i have ever listened to.

I believe Karen Lamm or Christine McVie (iirc) is quoted as saying the same thing about Dennis in the P.O.B. booklet

If Dennis was playing a 2 4 drum beat, doesn't that mean he was syncopating?  I'm not a drummer so I'm not an expert but most Beach Boys' songs are normal 4/4 meaning that the 1 and 3 would carry the accent. Any clarification would would be nice!

No, they heavy "backbeat" (= Snaredrum) is always on 2 and 4. 1 and 3 is more for the bassdrum. Gosh, how I hate it when people clap on 1 and 3 :D

 :lol

Dennis understood the four things any drummer should know:

start.  2.  4.  stop.

You'd be amazed how many "technically superior" drummers cannot master all, or even any, of these four simple rules.

Amen. I'd take Denny or Ringo over any of today's super drummers. For all his skills, Mike Portnoy just can't get straigh 4/4 go the way it should.

By the way, I am still blown away after seeing John Cowsill in action at the Berlin gig! What a magnificent clubber! Denny reincarnated. He could do the more progressive stuff perfectly, but it was the early stuff where he really shone. I haven't heard anyone make those old surf and car songs roll like that since Denny's glory days. Hats off, boys and girls.

I thought he was incredibly great during the surf songs at the beginning but not as good during the car songs at the end of the first set. But in the beginning, I agree with you.

Agree Agree!!!  I've said JC is channeling DW since I first saw him perform with Mike's band, and especially with the current tour.
Yes, reminds me of DW but , in ways, more proficient and versatile.

A question aside from the topic;  Who was playing Bass on the live recording that is floating around, Nassau, I think, of We Got Love?  Listening to that the other day and was struck by the very good rock bass that I was hearing.

Don't think I've heard that one yet. I'd say probably Ed Carter (as Blondie wasn't in the band at that point) but according to the list on Eric's site he wan't tehre (is this true?)

http://members.tripod.com/~fun_fun_fun/1974.html


EDIT:

Found another list that names the following band:

Mike Love - Vocals
Carl Wilson - Guitar, Piano, Vocals
Dennis Wilson - Piano, Vocals
Al Jardine - Guitar, Vocals
Ricky Fataar - Drums
Billy Hinsche - Guitar, Keyboards
Ed Carter - Bass
Bobby Figueroa - Drums, Percussion
Carly Munoz - Keyboards

I've said it many times and will keep saying it until its prevalence drops:  Blondie was not the bass player.  He played bass on some tracks but was no more the "bass player" than Carl was and certainly much less the "bass player" than Al was.  As far as I can tell, the notion of him being the band's bassist comes from his role in the videos for YNAMOHTSA, DGNTW, etc. but those videos are as much evidence as his being the band's bassist during that time as the videos for "Kokomo" and "Problem Child" prove that Bruce was the band's bassist during the time of those videos.

No hate.  Just doing my (continued) part to try and dispel yet another Beach Boys myth.  8)

I never said that he was the band's bass player. But he did occasionally play the bass on stage too. There are pictures floating around.
BTW I never heard that anyone ever said that Blondie was the bass player. This comes as a surprise to me

Here's a more pedestrian question: what about blisters in your right thumb? You're supposed to get them no matter what from playing the bass. Brian toured quite a bit as a bass player... how come he kept using his thumb to perform? Does any bass player here not get blisters from playing bass with their thumb? I tried to do so as a teenager, just because I wanted to be Brian, but had to switch to pick using shortly because of -painful- blisters.

No problem.  As I read your post, you seemed to infer Ed was playing bass because Blondie wasn't there, while Ed played almost all of the bass in the live shows during their time together, then I realized your wording was because the source it listed Ed as not being there.  But again, Blondie's not being there wouldn't have impacted who played bass in his absence because it more than likely wouldn't have been him anyway. 

And although I could be wrong, I don't think I've ever seen a one of Blondie playing bass in a actual live setting (with an audience and the band not miming).

You get a callus.

Yep, playing bass with your fingers is painful at first, but the calluses form pretty soon. Think of all the guys who play bass with their middle and index finger.

By the way, I've read that Flea (of Red Hot Chili Peppers fame) puts superglue to his thumb and allows it to harden before gig, to make it stand all that ferocious slapping without bleeding.

There's a noticeable bump on my thumb and I've had pains in it before but never quite had blisters, but then I've only been playing for just over 4 years and I've been playing mostly for writing/recording instead of performing so I don't pay too regularly/intensively these days. At the rate Brian was playing on the road you'd think it would get quite painful or tiring but I guess he must have just powered through it?

Oh ok. I hope my post didn't sound harsh. Sometimes it's hard to exactly say what you mean in english when that's not yur first language.
But I have to say that I really never heard about anyone saying/claiming that Blondie was the bass player. Do you hear that often?

BTW I seem to remember seeing at least one picture of Blondie playing bass as a Beach Boy on stage. I couldn't find any though while looking on Google

It's OK.  The only reason I went back into detail is yes, I do hear people say it quite often (sometimes even around here).  As I said, the Beach Boys have more than their fair share of myths and while I can't do anything to rectify them in the way Mr Stebbins has, I've taken it upon myself to try and debunk this particular one whenever I think it may apply.  No hard feels at all.   8)

Didn't McCartney play with his thumb?

John Entwisle was amazing as he'd pretty much play the bass with his entire right hand.

McCartney?  Possibly on rare occasion but he almost always used a pick, aside from some select ballads and even then, usually used his fingers.

Amen on the Entwistle comment.  ;D

 :lol :thumbsup

These were just posted in the picture-thread in the media section on this board. There are a couple of pictures with londie playing bass on stage

http://www.chrisenglishphotography.com/galleries/the-beach-boys/ui/2114814065095abe6d6572

I always thought Brian stopped playing bass on stage due to stage fright. It's hard for him to stand up and look at the audience for an extended period of time. He looked really uncomfortable standing in front of a mike and singing even when he was young and supposedly healthy. Now that he's older, he had back problems that make it hard to stand and carry an instrument around his neck. The medications he's on may also make it hard for him to stand for a long time (some medications make people feel unsteady on their feet if they stand for awhile, and he takes a few different ones).

Wow!  Sho 'nuff!  Thanks!  I've since learned that there were a few tunes Blondie always played bass on (tho he was still, by no means "the bass player"); one being "Surf's Up" which I thought was kinda cool.  Can anyone remember the others?  That also raises another question:  How/why would they decide on a song's arrangement/configuration?  I mean, it makes sense if Carl or Dennis were moving to piano for a song (usually one of they're own), or if Carter was moving to lead guitar when they wanted a "shredding" solo, or if Ricky moved to guitar or flute or something, or Bruce moved to bass for the kick line in "Help Me Rhonda", etc.  But why on earth would they go, "OK, 'Surf's Up'.  Blondie, why don't you play bass on this one."  I mean the arrangement is pretty sparse on that one and I can't see why Ed wouldn't just play that one too. 

For that matter, why did the band keep playing with two drummers after Dennis died?  Before that it made sense.  If Dennis was the primary drummer, they needed the designated percussionist to cover if he wanted to move out front, play piano, or (towards the end of his tenure) leave the stage or just not show up.  The same goes for when Ricky was the main drummer and he moved to guitar or whatever.  But as I pointed out in a discussion about the (awful) 25th Anniversary Special, Bobby and Mike K. just switch back and forth between drums and percussion for what appears to be no logical reason.  If they felt they really needed an extra guy on percussion (which I don't think they did) why not just have one guy play it all night and keep the other guy behind the kit?  Like Blondie playing bass on "Surf's Up" or whatever, it seems like an unnecessary change in the middle of the show. 

It might sound like I'm putting too much thought into this but from a musician's stand point, it's just not very practical in terms of staging a show.

Oh and another question about those pics:  Who's that on the downstage electric piano in some of the shots?

Thanks!

Different drummers have different strengths. Even on the most recent tour, John Cowsill played some songs and Mike D'amico played on others.

Yeah but on the C50, Mike D. only played the "Brian rarities" that Cowsill didn't know (or hadn't played regularly) and that was only because he'd played them more recently and/or was just more familiar to him.  Any song that was part of Mike & Bruce's setlist or "new" to either guy was played by Cowsill.  In the case of Bobby and Mike K. you're talking about two guys that had both been the "second" drummer (and probably first whenever Dennis was MIA), meaning they both knew all, or at least all the same songs.  It makes me wonder how they picked who played what.  If one of them was a better drummer (as we know Bobby was in the much later years), why not just keep the other guy on percussion all night?  Also at the 25th show (and probably accompanying tour at least) the percussion set up included a full electric kit that even included a bass drum which makes it even more pointless to have the two guys switching back and forth.  Like I said, it just isn't very practical, or at least wasn't for a very long time.

To keep the other guy motivated.

[/quote]
Anyone that says Dennis wasn't a good drummer or that he hardly played on their albums is the biggest idiot and a disgrace to Beach Boys aficionados!
Everyone knows that Hal Blaine was THE MAN but Dennis held his own on stage and was just as good if not BETTER than mr. ladybug mop top Ringo.
First of all Dennis always had a strong rhythm and he played in a very very unorthodox fashion known as "open-handed" meaning that he was left handed, kept his timing with his left hand but played with the drums set up as if a right handed dude was playing WITHOUT crossing his arms!!!
So what if Dennis wasn't technical, he held down the beat and had more charisma than ANY legendary drummer in a supergroup.
I'm a drummer and he was the reason I wanted to be one.
 

I continue to wonder whatever happened to Brian's bass's over the years.....

I posted this on the blueboard some time back and never got a response for it..

especially the first couple, the sunburst one in the first early shows, and the classic white precision used

as seen in the 64' clips.........   what happened to them?........ I mean we are talking about Brian Wilson's bass guitars!!!

I still also admire and love his playing technique...... who else can rock out on surfin usa and dance dance dance on a bass without using a pick?!!!!

watching his 'thumb' technique is awesome......... I wonder how and why he went with that when he could have used a pick?

Great thead by the way!

RickB

It was great to see how lively he was on the bass back in the day.  Wish he could play at least one sng live nowadays on it rather than just single notes to Barbara Ann, even if it is still cool to see him standing there with it on and imagine how he used to be. I'm sure he could still play it (once a genius always a genius) and maybe one day he'll whip out the Olympic white Fender Precision!