I was also at the Hollywood show and it was fantastic! Was a thrill to hear Winter Symphony- Al sang it exactly as Brian did and Brian joined in nicely. Brian sang best on his solo Christmas songs. Blondie's voice is phenomenal and his eccentric humor is great. Unfortunately somebody in the audience kept yelling "Beach Boys!"

Unfortunately I was sitting directly in front of the guy who kept yelling "Beach Boys!"  (The irony that he was screaming for BEACH BOYS songs during performances from the BEACH BOYS Christmas Album was not lost on me).  He was not a Brian fan, and he and his entourage had received comp tickets to the show.  Clearly whoever gave them the tickets had not briefed them on the content of the show.

They were trying hard to fill the house for this show.  I received several "Buy One Get One Free" offers via email in the week leading up to the concert - however, I was so excited to see this show, I had already gotten my tickets the day they went on sale.  Even with the BOGO offer, they sadly still had to drape off several rows in the upper far corners of the theater.

This was my third time seeing Brian live after NPP in 2015, and PS in 2016.  I have to say that despite my excitement when the show was announced, I almost didn't go based on a lot of the feedback I saw on this board.  I didn't want to be disappointed.  In the end, I did go.  To see Al, to see Blondie, to hear the band, and ultimately - to support Brian.  I am glad I went.  I figured maybe he had been having some "off" nights, and perhaps I'd catch him on an "on" night.

Well, it was an "off" night in my opinion.  As has already been metioned, he was struggling with vocals (as compared to when I saw him in 2015/2016) , and sat totally still at the piano when not singing his lead lines.  He did not sing backgrounds, and he did not play the piano*.  I'm not sure if this has already been mentioned, but in Hollywood, they actually attached a drape to the bottom of Brian's piano.  Presumably this was to keep the audience from seeing his largley motionless hands by his side throughout the performance.

As I said - I am glad I went.  The chance to see this rarely-performed music live is something not to be missed.  Al and Blondie are phenomenal, and it goes without saying - the band is sensational.  But something happened during the non-Christmas set that I had been waiting for all night.  Just like flipping a switch, Brian seemed to come to life.  *It was actually during "Help Me Rhonda" that Brian starting playing piano, and he played on every song for the rest of the show (minus the final two Christmas songs).  This was after literally not touching the piano for the entirety of the performance until that point.  All of a sudden, he seemed engaged, was looking around the audience, moving his head to the music, and I even saw the faint hint of a smile!  He still didn't sing any backgrounds but there were moments in "Surfin' USA" and "Fun, Fun, Fun" that he opened his mouth to sing lines that Al has since taken over from him at recent shows.  (Al sang over him, so Brian didn't quite re-take those vocals).

For all the ire that the traditional "encore songs" sometimes generate on this board, I was thankful to see Rhonda / Barbara Ann / Surfin' USA / Fun, Fun, Fun performed in Hollywood last week, because those were the songs that gave me hope that Brian was indeed present and quite possibly still enjoying these live performances.

I got great seats for the 12/12 Hollywood, FL Christmas show.

The listing for that show has now been removed from Brian's website (though it is still on sale through Ticketmaster).

Should I be worried?

Thanks to all for the responses!  I ended up going with the 2001 two-fers.  It has been great discovering so many new (to me) songs, and the extensive track-by-track liner notes with each release have become my reading material for the weekend.  Thanks again!

I'm somewhat late in realizing my appreciation for Beach Boys music.  I started with Sounds of Summer compilation, then moved on to The Warmth of the Sun, from there Pet Sounds, and most recently The Smile Sessions.  I want to fill in my CD collection with the pre-Pet Sounds albums, but I am looking for some recommendations as to which versions to get.  Most seem to be available in either a two-fer version paired with another album, or as single-album mono / stereo combo releases.

Based solely on sound quality, is there any discernible difference between the two-fer releases and the mono / stereo CD versions of these albums?  I'm not necessarily enough of a completest to feel the need to have both the mono and stereo mixes of these, though I would certainly buy the mono / stereo releases over the two-fers if the sound quality was significantly better.

Any advice is welcomed!