I'd wager that the next big release from the vaults will/should probably be the aborted Adult/Child album.  It would be the logical follow-up to the recent two box sets and we are venturing into 15 Big Ones and Love You territory. 

There were a few pics of Brian in the studio late last year with his band recording something.  Rumor was he was recording a Glen Campbell song for a forthcoming tribute album but who knows?  At this point I don't have any high hopes we're really going to get much more from Brian considering his noticeable decline from last year but I wouldn't complain being proven wrong.  In his recent statement following the Grammy tribute concert he seemed to suggest his retirement by stating he was "busy doin' nothing" these days...

What all was featured in said copyright dump?

Everybody always cites Ray Charles, and I can't fault his performance, but frankly I would have been fine with Carl (or god forbid they called up Blondie) singing it.

That's an interesting take.  Ray Charles is just about the best thing going on with that special.  It's not every day you get one of the greatest and most iconic vocalists of all time to sing on your song, especially when said number is one of the group's lesser known and more obscure songs. 

But yeah I agree with the rest of your assessment.  The 80's were a strange decade; people were far less cynical back then so watching content from that era especially in this day and age can feel surprisingly jarring at times. 

Also on Paramount+.

And now for the $64,000 question: How does this compare to the 25th Anniversary show?

Can't compare. The 25th anniversary show had the Beach Boys - for the most part - performing with the guests. The 25th had some legends among the guests - Ray Charles, the Everly Brothers, Glen Campbell. The Grammy show had John Legend. The 25th had Belinda Carlisle. The Grammy show had Brandi Carlisle.
The Grammy show certainly had a younger, hipper group of performers; the 25th was clearly aimed at middle America,  with people like Patrick Duffy, Gloria Loring, Joe Piscopo, and yes, Stamos.

The only real downside of the 25th anniversary special was the overall cheesiness that came with specials from the 1980's.  The atrocious scripted lines that the band awkwardly delivered, and a couple of oddball song selections that weren't even Beach Boys songs.  But hey, it was a small price to pay to hear Ray Charles tackle "Sail On, Sailor".  

This Grammy special was nice but I wasn't familiar with nearly half the artists that were involved and very few of the performances really rose to the occasion.

But the 2001 tribute concert for Brian remains my favorite.   From a healthy selection of guest artists (Paul Simon, David Crosby, Elton John, Billy Joel, etc.) to some fantastic performances (Vince Gill delivering my favorite performance of "The Warmth Of The Sun"), this one had the right balance that these other tribute concerts simply lacked.

I was mostly indifferent to the special for the most part due to the fact that I was unfamiliar with at least half of these artists and mostly lukewarm towards most of the artists that I did recognize.  That said the performances were mostly good.  I think LeAnn Rimes knocked it out of the ballpark with "Caroline, No".  Mumford And Sons provided a unique take on "I Know There's An Answer".  Norah Jones' jazz-tinged reading  of "The Warmth of The Sun" wasn't bad.  I can't say I really liked Jim James' involvement in Brian's clunky song "Right Where I Belong", but he made up for it here with a lively take on "I Get Around".  It was also cool when that CEO Harvey Mason Jr. happened to mention that time Ray Charles gave a cherished and criminally forgotten performance of "Sail On, Sailor" back in the 80's.

Any exposure of the Beach Boys music as a whole is good exposure.  This tribute concert was charitable enough but it will never top the 2001 tribute concert done for Brian. 

What technology did you use to make this?  It honestly sounds more like Carl than Brian but still not bad.

That bit of over-talked “I’d Go Anywhere” from the C50 documentary is really the only extant “outtake” as such.

As others have mentioned, “Waves of Love” wasn’t worked on. Brian wanted no part of it, and it was literally in the process of being released as a solo Al track during the reunion sessions. And “Don’t Fight the Sea” had been released in 2010. Both of these would have/could have been potentially good reunion album tracks, but Al had already released them.

Bruce supposedly re-jiggered “She Believes in Love Again”, with one story indicating he actually used some of the ’85 version as a basis (including his (Bruce’s) vocals), and Foskett re-sang the Carl lead parts. I honestly don’t think this would have ever made it onto an album. It kinda sounded like Bruce just used the paid-for studio time to mess around with something.

I strongly suspect that some of the Brian-Joe songs on “No Pier Pressure” could have and perhaps would have ended up on a second reunion album. But there were supposedly a number of songs worked on and in contention in 2012 for the reunion album, and I’m not sure any of *those* were used for “No Pier Pressure”, as in taking the “Beach Boys version” and taking off the BB contributions.

“Daybreak Over the Ocean” was used from Mike’s circa 2004 solo album material, and it sounds like they did a quick dub job where the reunion group (most prominently Al, but apparently including Brian as well) just sang the “bring back…” interludes. The rest of the song has the same Christian Love/Adrian Baker (or whoever) vocals sans any other Beach Boys. I’ve always thought they should have had Al sing the lead on Mike’s 2004 version of “Too Cruel” (the only Christian Love sings; not the later 2017 rereremake) if they were going to fly something in from that album. “Cool Head” would have been good too, but that also had already been released in 2006.

I also remember reading an interview where Mike said he'd written a song with Dave Marks, but I can't remember if a title was said or not.

"Stowaway." I don't know if it was re-written with Mike or not, and I also don't know if it was either recorded or even seriously considered. If Al's stuff and Bruce's stuff weren't getting serious consideration, I find its hard to believe David Marks was getting a song on a new Beach Boys album.

Well at least Al’s stuff was unheard. Why on earth did Bruce want to dig up a song that had been on an album and keep his original vocals from 30 years prior?

Perhaps for the same reason he thought the world needed a disco-fied version of "Here Comes The Night".  🤷‍♂️  And back in the early 2000's he claimed of recording with Mike a "Britney Spears-type" cover of "Surfin'".  Which to this day has (thankfully) never been heard. 

It was a pretty insightful interview.  I was only vaguely familiar that the band was working on a proper follow-up to Holland until Endless Summer came along to forever imprison the band into the oldies circuit.  Would have loved to have heard more about this.  Based on what little we've heard from this period such as "Barnyard Blues" it sounds like we potentially could have gotten something special.

Brian was already doing a solo career since 1987. It got derailed by all the Landy/legal stuff, but 1995 certainly seemed like an attempt at restarting his solo career.

Yeah that's a fair assessment of Brian's solo career.  I think it became higher profile beginning with the IJWMFTT documentary, the Van Dyke Parks duo album, Imagination and Brian's remarkable return to touring that truly cemented things in a way his self-titled 1988 solo album just didn't.

The live version of "River Song" with Blondie providing vocals would be sweet.  I want to say at least at one point they gave a live performance of "Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)" with Carl providing the lead vocal, but I could be misremembering.  I think Billy Hinsche even performed "I'm Waiting For The Day" at one point as well.  And any of the joint concerts they did with Chicago would be welcome. 

Carl's passing really ended the Beach Boys' recording career as well, with the obvious exception of the reunion album.  It's just a shame they couldn't get things together well enough in the mid-90's to put out one more album while Carl was still with them.  I'm just glad I got to see him perform one final time in 1997 before he passed.  Will never forget watching him perform mostly sitting on a stool, only standing during his performance of "God Only Knows" where he ended the song thanking the crowd for their prayers. 

Yet somehow after his passing there seemed to be a rejuvenated interest in the band again with several high profile projects such as Endless Harmony and re-releasing their post-60's catalog which have more or less remained in print ever since.  Brian himself managed to finally get a decent solo career going and even eventually finished SMiLE.  It does make you wonder how things would have been if Carl were still with us.  Would Brian have still attempted a solo career or would his songs from Imagination have folded into an inevitable new Beach Boys album?  I wonder what some songs such as "Your Imagination" or "South American" would have sounded like with Carl and the rest of the band providing vocals.  And perhaps some of Carl's Like A Brother tracks would have found their way on such a potential album. 

But in any case Carl is definitely missed and I hope he would be ultimately happy with how the band's legacy has remained strong.

"Heroes & Villains" was a moderate hit for the group that was completely overshadowed by "Good Vibrations" despite both songs appearing on the same album.

The H&V 45 was a hell of a record, IMO, but it didn't top its predecessor sonically or production-wise.  The mix is a bit muddy compared to GV, and I imagine that it didn't particularly "pop" on AM radio.  It's a shame.  Chuck Britz, who certainly knew what he was talking about, spoke years later of early '67 H&V mixes that he considered better than GV, but that's not what the public got.  Ultimately, though, I don't think it's fair to blame H&V's failure on being overshadowed by GV.    Smiley Smile was such a dud commercially,  and GV's inclusion therein was approx. 10-11 months after the 45 had shocked the world.   Even the H&V 45 was, what? 8 months after GV?  If the public weren't ready for a new hit from the BBs then, they never would be.   I think there's something to the hypothesis that the long delay between GV and H&V caused the record-buying public to lose interest in the group.  Out of sight, out of mind.   It seems crazy to even say it now, but it's useful to remember that the Beatles released Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever because EMI and the Beatles themselves perceived that they were "fading a bit" in the public mind.

Agreed.  There were a number of factors that contributed to why "H&V" did not become a bigger hit than it could have been, none of them having to do with the quality of the song itself.  The point I was making is that because of its borderline lukewarm commercial response, it's not as well known as some of the group's bigger hits, even if it does sometimes pop up on greatest hits compilations. 

"Heroes and Villains" is on "Sounds of Summer", so I'd say it hews closer to "well known" than deep cut. "Caroline, No" is off of "Pet Sounds", which is by leaps and bounds their most well-known studio album. "Sail on Sailor" is the only track that at some point got the band any FM/Classic Rock radio airplay.

I honestly had forgotten that "Sail on Sailor" wasn't on the original single-disc "Sounds of Summer", which seems insane, but I know that single disc was jam packed about as much as it could have been.

Frankly, the three tracks above I'd wager are at least slightly *more well known* than a few of the songs that ended up on "Sounds of Summer." I'd wager more people know those songs than like "Getcha Back" or  the BB cover of "Come Go With Me."

Of course, the super-uninitiated that just know like "Kokomo" and "Surfin' USA" aren't going to know most ANY of these songs.

As I've said, I think the track selections make sense for this show; I'm not surprised. But I do think it was almost as conservative as a song selection could possible be, however it happened.

I would argue that all three songs I listed are probably second-tier songs in terms of overall familiarity and popularity among the casual fans despite the points you made about them.  These are songs the general public *might* become familiar with if they dig a little deeper into the band's catalog.  But the casual fan will still easily identify songs like "Don't Worry Baby", "Fun, Fun, Fun" , "I Get Around" and "Kokomo" before they will the said material in question.  "Caroline, No" was always a choice album cut despite them releasing it as a single under Brian's name.
"Heroes & Villains" was a moderate hit for the group that was completely overshadowed by "Good Vibrations" despite both songs appearing on the same album.   Hell, "Sail On, Sailor" doesn't even initially sound like a traditional Beach Boys track upon first listen and it was a complete rarity to hear on the radio anytime after the 70's and especially after the 80's.  And with Blondie tackling the lead vocal I couldn't fault anyone for not immediately identifying this song as coming from the Beach Boys.  If the Grammy team behind this concert were truly playing it completely safe we definitely would not have heard these songs performed at all. 

But yeah, it would have been nice if they had dug a little deeper and highlighted a song or two written by the other guys such as Dennis's "Forever", Carl's "Feel Flows" and even Al's "Susie Cincinnati".  But I believe what we got was a pretty fair selection all things considered.

I imagine the lack of deep cuts, or even anything remotely approaching deep cuts, that were performed on the show probably speaks to the desperation of television ratings these days… The fear of audience tuning out is most likely the culprit in my humble opinion.

They probably could have dug deeper but I wouldn't exactly call songs like "Caroline, No", "Heroes & Villains" and especially "Sail On, Sailor" to be among the band's most well-known of repertoire.  "This Whole World" as well as some choice Dennis, Al and Carl songs would have been nice to hear performed though.

Looking forward to seeing this concert and hope it's entertaining.  To see perhaps my all-time favorite band (besides the Beatles) receive such a high-profile concert is a delight even if I'm at best indifferent to most of the performers.

As to the discussion of having Paul McCartney potentially attend a tribute show like this, while it would have been cool for him to participate (especially if this concert had been held 15-20 years ago when his voice was in great form), it's perfectly fine that he wasn't involved.  He doesn't need to be.  He's demonstrated over the years of his love and respect towards the band and doesn't have to keep proving it at this point. 

I also wanted to add my appreciation that this concert celebrates the band itself, and is not just yet another singular focus of Brian's accomplishments alone...as significant as they may be.  The whole band deserves credit for their overall contributions as spotty as some of them have been here and there.

Why would Carnie need to miss her own dad.. could she not.. visit him?

Who the hell knows.  As Wirestone accurately suggested, it wouldn't be the Beach Boys without family drama. 

Then we are two, Bedroom Tapes. Still better than zero... 🧐

Disclaimer to try to avoid the usual answer: of course, unless Brian wants to keep on touring.

Three and I agree with the disclaimer

If his health continues to decline and he continues to be barely functional on stage then he probably doesn't need to keep going, even if his band does a good job with the heavy lifting.  It just looked really sad seeing him up stage in that condition.

My daughter is 16 and has recently become a Beach Boys obsessive. This is one of her very favorite tracks. She's listening with fresh ears. Maybe the contributions of Ricky and Blondie need to be reevaluated. The song certainly has strong hooks.

Ricky and Blondie deserve a lot of credit for keeping the band afloat during that period, especially in the touring circuit.  They provided the group with a much-needed edge that definitely added some grit to their music.  I think had they stuck around a bit longer for at least one more album, they would have probably successfully had completely fused and blended their sound in with the band.  We could have potentially had a killer album comparable to the "earthy" sound that the Rolling Stones were demonstrating on their albums at the time (Let It Bleed, Beggar's Banquet,  etc.). 

[I Was Made To Love Her:]

Well, I thought it would be time to have a thread for just gushing over Carl's singing. I will start with a couple of sometimes overlooked gems, you're free to add your choices.


I Was Made To Love Her: The Beach Boys cover Stevie Wonder. Carl takes this song away from the soul singing more into a straight forward Rock'n'Roll style, obviously influenced by Little Richard although with more restraint. The same could be said of his "Wild Honey" performance. And the guy was just 21 years old!

Friends: Interesting dynamics here as Carl sings the challenging melody at times in a soft voice and then again with a hardening voice. To sing those lyrics so that you can actually understand them yet keeping it swinging is not easy, I imagine.

Only With You (Live At Carnegie Hall): I use this "new" live version instead of the studio recording. Obviously Carl sings very soft. Listen to how he fades his voice in instead of attacking the notes directly. That way there are no spikes that hamper the mood. A short highlight is the moment his voce and the music track melt together at 1:52 ("yeah-e-yah it's true") underscored by the adding of reverb. Reminds me personall of some George Jones tracks.

Let The Wind Blow: Again a live version. I guess enough can't be said about how drastically the song was revamped from it's studio version. Carl shines, emphasizing moments like "but don't let her go", making them sound like a plea (which goes well together with Mike's introduction of the song starting out as a praer on the new Sail On sailor set). The song's tension finally gets resolved with the "let the wind blow, let the grass grow, let the moon glow on the falling snow" reprise at 3:11 with Carl's voice letting go all the restraint of before and just unleash all the desparation.

Darlin': I take the Knebworth version of this song. On the studio recording Carl sounded like he was ear his limits. In 1980 his voice had matured and evolved so much that he was able to get more out of the song. On the Knebworth version he just nailed it. There are other recordings from this year (maybe even from the same tour) that had him struggling with a couple of moments. But not here. He uses his gruff voice to great effect. My favorite moment is the  "You pick me up when I'm feelin' sad" part. That moment feels like it is beaming at you.

Young Blood: Just listen to those pronunciations and phrasings and how easily he lets his voice slide from one point to the other. Incredible. Don't think he ever did anything similar as a Beach Boy.

Island Girl: A great example of Carl's feeling for syncopatiom. He sings more nasally than usual and follows the song's carribean and Reggae feel. His phrasings are incredile. Listen to that little sob during "When I'm there" in the last verse and how he leans into the "lazy".

Remember "Walking in the Sand": The latter Beach Boys years are overlooked and unfortunately in many cases with good reasons. But it's still the Beach Boys so you can find a lot of good things, too. Naturally Carl's singing is one of them. Though affected by his decades long smoking habit Carl's voice lacks none of it's impressiveness. In fact the rougher regions add a lot. This song from "Summer in Paradise" is a great example. Carl's singing gives the song a dramatic edge that makes you feel the despair the protagonist finds himself in. Al and Carl's interplay makes you wonder what else would've been possible for the Boys in the 90s. This recording is a absolute highlight for me.




Well, I'll stop for now. I look forward to your opinions.

All of these are great examples.  I also loved hearing him perform "Caroline, No" live and always preferred his lead vocal of "Wouldn't It Be Nice" over Al's when he took over performing the song during the 80's/90's.  Also at one point he was dueting with Foskett on "Don't Worry Baby".  https://youtu.be/ARp7OMsFY2Y

They should have done this about 10-15 years ago; it probably would have had a more impressive lineup.  But this ain't bad.  Hopefully we'll get some remarkable performances out of it.  But I doubt it will top the fantastic 2001 tribute to Brian Wilson.  Vince Gill's performance of "The Warmth of The Sun" just about blows away any tribute performance of a Beach Boys song to date.

I honestly don't care about Beck's comments over Brian as I've stated before that Beck was Beck and Brian is Brian; perhaps they simply weren't the right match as collaborators.

From what I’ve learned over the past few years, I think they were both too similar and too different in the wrong areas for many reasons. Sometimes, it’s that simple.

Yeah that would make sense.  I still really enjoyed the tour they did together as it was the only time I ever saw Beck perform.  And it was well worth it. 

In any event, as I said back when Beck had some non-empathetic things to say about Brian (to put it politely), that even though it seemed they probably shouldn't be working together anymore (something other collaborators with Beck have seemed to find), I can't deny that it would be pretty interesting to hear what was laid down in the studio. It's gotta be better than "Our Special Love".

It sounds like "Danny Boy" was pretty much in the can as they were already performing it live during that time.  It's a shame nothing from those sessions with Beck ever saw the light of day; perhaps with his passing that may change and we can have a better glimpse at what could have been.  I honestly don't care about Beck's comments over Brian as I've stated before that Beck was Beck and Brian is Brian; perhaps they simply weren't the right match as collaborators.  But if anything cool came from their recording sessions I would love to hear it.

His rip-roarin' take on the fast-tempo reading of "Darlin'" at the 1980 Knebworth concert is a highlight.  And of course his lead vocal on the first half of "Surf's Up" is operatic.  I liked his performance on "I Was Made To Love Her" even if it sounds like he's struggling a bit.