I'm surprised by the variety of songs from Summer in Paradise that are being played.  I knew Forever would be in rotation due to John Stamos' participation, but I've heard Island Fever and Summer of Love more than once during my drive time.  Pisces Brothers came on last night on my way home from work as well.

Tonight will probably be the hardest concert ever for Brian, and all the band. Imagine having to sing some of those up beat songs. I’ll be rooting for them. Condolences to them and the family.

I always loved Nicky's lead on Pet Sounds, and his "You're under arrest" during Heroes and Villains.  I'm sure those moments will be hard for the band tonight and in the shows to come.

Speaking as someone who has had mild depression and severe anxiety for 20+ years - sometimes the anxiety will cause me to lash out at loved ones and say things I don't mean and later regret.  When I read Brian's statement, I felt like that was what was happening to him - not pain or even dementia. 

One of my Beach Boys dirty secrets:  upon first listen, I LOVED this album and especially the album cover.  However, take into consideration that at the time I was an 11 year old girl in an era where Lisa Frank was the coolest, and the album cover reminded me of her artwork.  It was also reminiscent of my beloved Kokomo which started me on a 25 year plus journey of Beach Boys obsession.  After my initial repeated listening, it went by the wayside as I gravitated more toward the greatest hits albums as well as the Smiley Smile/Wild Honey twofer that my parents gave to me that Christmas (of all the twofers available, they thought that one was the most appropriate for a preteen girl...go figure).  It wasn't until 2012 that I revisited this album and realized what an atrocity it was.  It saddens me that this is Carl Wilson's last original Beach Boys album and makes me wonder what would have happened had the Paley Sessions been completed and released....

I got a presale notification today that Brian and crew will be at the Duke Energy Center in Raleigh, NC on 8/19.  Tickets go on sale Thursday.  .

I'm very happy to see Wake The World and Busy Doin' Nothin' back in the setlist after being dropped for the last few shows. Looks like Please Let Me Wonder took place of Surf's Up.

I'll be going to the show in Raleigh and wonder if Wild Honey will be dropped without Blondie. If so, I hope they give Al Honkin' Down The Highway.

I'll be at the same show as well and would LOVE to hear Honkin' Down The Highway, since it's one of my favorite Beach Boys songs.  I had planned on driving to DC or Baltimore to catch a Brian show, so I was absolutely elated to find out that Brian and company would be less than 1.5 hours from me.  I'll be checking one thing off my bucket list that night!

I just bought tickets through a pre-sale offer for a Brian and Al show at the Carolina Theatre in Durham, NC on November 19.  Tickets go on sale to the general public Friday.  Judging by the seating chart on Ticketmaster, probably 1/3 - 1/2 of the tickets are already spoken for - but it is a very small venue (less than 1500 seats, IIRC).  It hasn't been announced on Facebook or Brian's website; I only happened across it as I subscribe to their email list for other events. 

What was your favorite part of recording "No Pier Pressure"?

Got mine at the end of last week - but I'm in NC so it usually doesn't take long.

Carnie Wilson posted on Twitter that Dennis' third grandson was born at 10:45 p.m. on 12/28.  Appropriately, the little fellow was named Dennis.  Funny how life comes around full circle, huh?

"In My Room" in Michigan with Wilson Phillips (posted on Carnie Wilson's Twitter feed)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcvxR6gtAWA

Very cool to find out there are some new people checking out the site as well as the Adieu Or Die project! The site was just updated today and yesterday, mainly with a slew of photos I have recently come across or have always liked.  As usual, some rare footage, quotes and audio are included too.

kwan_dk, you certainly deserve a shout out for scanning those MM articles awhile back.  Thanks so much for doing that!

I love how all the other guys are with chicks, and Bruce is reading a magazine.
 

Not just any magazine, but a Playboy magazine.

I'm watching this now, on TV. Oh my God. I agree that Brian is portrayed as an idiot. I wonder if the actor based his portrayal on the modern-day Brian. Not that he's an idiot either, but he's obviously a bit less sharp a lot of the time.

I turned to it as well out of morbid curiosity...I had never seen it, and my TV choices tonight are slim.  Wow, what a trainwreck!

OK, I'm going for it:

I absolutely love Still Cruisin' and Kokomo.  Before they came out, I had a slight knowledge of The Beach Boys and their music (my mom was, and still is a huge fan and had introduced me to some of the early hits), but once Kokomo came out, I fell in love with them.  Still Crusin' was the first Beach Boys album I owned, therefore I still have a soft spot for it, 25+ years later.  I know it's dated, and not the best music in the world...but I was a 9 year old girl when it first came out, and 9 year old girls have never been the best judge of good music.

Well, either you're mistaken about what you heard or Al was mistaken about his poets.

"To waves and I both travel by......and that makes all the difference to me" has "Robert Frost written all over it. From the Carl & The Passions liners: "All This Is That - Mike Love sounds like he’s singing an inch from your ear in this stunning and ethereal production, which started with a song Alan had based on Robert Frost’s poem The Road Not Taken."  I also remember reading an interview with Al, who stated the lyrics to "All This Is That" were inspired by Robert Frost.

Or......if Al was talking about Carl Sandburg, maybe he was talking about one of the very early influences of the song "Sloop John B". The first three verses and chorus of "The John B. Sails" are in his collection of folksongs, The American Songbag.

Sorry for the confusion - during the concert, Al misattributed The Road Not Taken to Carl Sandburg. 

I've heard it said on here that Carry Me Home was dropped from the final track-list because Brian found it too upsetting...

Is this just rumours or is it based in fact or what? It seems likely really, considering how Brian is on record as having been so affected by Dennis' death and what with the song containing lyrics such as 'I'm afraid to die'.

But it's a pity because it's a stunning song.

 It's a shame, but at least "Carry Me Home" is fairly common in the hands of "collectors".  

Yeah, but the sound quality is garbage.

I heard they couldn't find a proper master for "Carry Me Home." Shame too, because I second (or third) everyone here who says it's a powerful piece of music. I first heard it on the "California Feeling" LP in the '80s and more than anything it convinced me Dennis was a first-rate talent. Who leaves something like that unreleased? I've read the quote where he talks about it (in the Byron Preiss book? Can't remember), saying it didn't fit with the Beach Boys. But it should have come out somewhere.

I agree with everyone else who wants "Big Sur" in 4/4 time,"Santa Ana Winds" (early version), "I'm Begging You Please."

But I have one request:

"All This is That" -- the early version. This version is spoken about at length in the Preiss book. It was Al's original draft of the song before Carl and Mike modified it by going in and recording a new melody on different tracks. You can hear Al's original vocal in spots "underneath" the first verse of the released version -- it's that vocal line that pops up now and again (I'm pretty sure that's not a backing vocal, that's an unused vocal line faded in and out). This might be worthy of a post itself. Has anyone ever noticed this but me? It goes like this:

"...into the pool of peace inside..."
Right channel original vocal line: "...travel..."
"two waves and I..."
Right channel original vocal line: "....make a difference to me..."

There's more to it than that, but if you know what to look for, it's easy to spot. I've been curious about this for a long time, so if anyone had noticed it I'd like to know...

The original  version had lyrics based on The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, if not an exact reading of the poem.  That's where those ghost lines are coming from.

When "All This Is That" was introduced by Mike at the C50 concert in Raleigh, NC, Al added that he was inspired by The Road Not Taken - although he attributed it to Carl Sandburg, not Robert Frost.

Sail On Sailor has been part of the Muzak in my office for the past 6 - 8 month.  They don't have a large selection of songs, so I usually hear it at least once per day.  Before that, Imagination was part of the Muzak loop for many years.

I have to admit that I have a serious soft spot for Still Crusin' and SIP, which were my first and second Beach Boys albums.  I remember playing SIP over and over after I first purchased it - of course, I was a 10 year old girl when it was released, so that might have something to do with it. 

Another vote for "Summer's Gone."  I'm a summertime person, always have, always will be.  I'm 30+ years old, and still cry when my family leaves the beach when our summer vacation is over.  The first time I heard the song, I cried - when I listened to it on my iPod on the last day of my family's summer vacation, I cried like a baby.  It's one of the saddest songs I've ever heard, yet I'm still in love with it and consider it one of my favorite Beach Boys songs. 

All Alone, especially the opening lyrics, where Dennis almost slurs his words - "If I could life my life again."

Also from the CNN story. Mike joking but ohhh so true.

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/09/14/world/asia/hong-kong-beach-boys-stout/index.html

Love and Jardine then take to a small nearby stage and strike up an impromptu version of "California Girls" (with Al on bass and Mike doing vocals). Johnston then appears out of nowhere to play the piano.

But where was Wilson?

"Off to a buffet somewhere," quips Love with a smile.

OMG did you see the video when brian asks Mike if he took drugs? 

And just after that - "We smoked marijuana to the point we got lost in the music and we didn't know where the f*** we were at."  Got to love Brian dropping the f-bomb on CNN!

During the recent concerts, Al's tweaking of the lyrics to IJWMFTT to say "I guess he just wasn't made for these times."  I get chills every time I hear it.

Prior to this tour, I would have said "Heck no."  However, seeing how much fun my husband had at the 50th anniversary concert we attended (his first concert in his 37 years of living, in fact), and his request to "Do that again", I would have to say that we will probably catch the Mike and Bruce show should they swing through the area again in the near future.  In all actuality, I would be even more excited to see Al's Endless Summer Band, especially if David and/or Dean Torrance were to join him.  And a Brian solo show is still on my bucket list, so I would be knocking down little old ladies to get tickets to a semi-local show.

In short, I know that our time seeing any of the Boys in concert is limited, and I will take what I can get.

And if also could someone explain the origine of the lyrics, its meaning ..
i remember watching a video of this song live from the current tour where Mike Love introduced the song by saying it was inspired by some india spiritual stuff?

It was also inspired by a poem by Robert Frost called "The Road Not Taken". In a nutshell, the song is about using Transcendental Meditation to find inner peace and spiritual guidance.

At the Raleigh, NC show in April, Al added that "All This is That" was also inspired by "The Road Not Taken", although he accidentally attributed the poem to Carl Sandburg, not Robert Frost.