BW @ Chastain Park 8/3

[Awesoman]

I'm a little worn out and in much need of a shower, but just wanted to report that I saw Brian Wilson this evening in Atlanta and I can safely say that he put on a pretty good show.  The band was spot-on and Brian at least seemed to be into it (by Brian's standards, of course).  I'll supply more details later on; also managed to sneak some video of the show.

[GroovinGarrett]

Awesoman, you and I were two of the (maybe) 500 in attendance last night. I was a bit disappointed that more people didn't show up. Maybe the heat kept them away?

Good show from BW and band. Heavy on the pre-PS hits, but I went in knowing that. Nice to hear "Add Some Music".

It was 95°F at showtime last night...not one word of complaint from Brian or band. Brian did have a nice big fan blowing on him.

[Kirk]

I was there as well and despite losing 40 percent of my water weight I thought it was a great show. The band was indeed spot on and I was hella impressed with how Brian sounded---a few minor flubs, but I didn't hear him skitter offkey as I have in the past. The harmonies were stunning. My wife came with me not expecting much except a case of heatstroke---it's a 2 hour haul for us from Montgomery---but she was blown away by the quality of the vocals. I really found so much to recommend: I loved the emphasis on All Summer Long/Summer Days ... giddy to hear "You're So Good to Me" ... loved watching couples jump up to "Do You Wanna Dance" ... the Gershwin set was killer ... sure, I coulda gone for "I Loves You, Porgy" but I'll settle for "Summertime," which seemed appropriately humid. My wife loved "Sail On Sailor" so as soon as we got to the hotel i had to bring up the BBs version for her. I guess my fave was probably "Add Some Music." I thought Brian sounded fantastic on that.

I was disappointed by the size of the crowd. As I tried to revive myself during the intermission I asked a ticket lady how much they sold. She said 1500. She told me Chastain was packed out the night before with Selena Gomez fans. So I was glad for the short concession and T-shirt lines.

Anyway, I had a wonderful time and enjoyed it thoroughly. And of course, Brian's goodbye of the night: "Maybe I'll see you next year ... I don't know."

Fair enough!

[37!ws]

love it! IINM, in both Toronto and St. Charles, he ended with a McCartney-esque "See you next time!"

[Awesoman]

So last night my friend and I attended Brian Wilson's concert at Chastain Park here in Atlanta.  As already mentioned, it was really hot and the crowd turnout was rather slight.  I bought my ticket about a week after they went on sale I and I ended up near the front.  My friend purchased his ticket a few days ago which was a lawn seat way in the back, but ended up sitting next to me in the front as no one claimed the seats.  This was the third time I'd seen Brian perform live; the previous times was for the Pet Sounds and SMiLE tours.  Having read some of the reviews from this tour my expectations were low.  However my friend and I turned out having a pretty good time.  My buddy had never seen Brian Wilson perform live before but walked away impressed.  He had seen Mike Love perform a year or so ago and did not enjoy the show.  

The sound mix overall was pretty good.  I've probably been to nearly 100 shows at Chastain (both from having worked there and of my own accord) and the sound mix is good 95% of the time.  The band was really solid; the harmonies were spot-on and the enthusiasm was there.  Brian himself has never been a good performer, and the novelty of him up on stage has worn off.  But we managed to catch him on a good day as he seemed to be enjoying himself (at least as well as can be expected for Brian).  There were only a few small instances were he missed his cue with the lyrics or got slightly lost.  But for the most part he sang all his songs pretty well and didn't seem to be "phoning it in" too much.  And he did appear to be making use of his keyboard this time around.  This was mostly a greatest hits show, but a few of the Gershwin songs made an appearance.  

Just a side note: for those of you familiar with SoundHound (a smartphone app that will tell you the name of the song you are hearing as well as the artist), I used this app while they were playing "When I Grow Up To Be A Man" and it correctly recognized this is the Beach Boys song.  Also during a Gershwin song we used it again and it corrected recognized it as the "Brian Wilson" version of that song.  Just goes to show how tight Brian's band is.  

The Chastain Park people were extremely anal about anyone taking pictures or recording video with cellphones (more so than usual).  They made it clear that this was specifically at the request of the artist.  Ignoring Brian's wishes to be filmed, I managed to sneak some video and a few pictures of the show; the link is below.  Camera work is not great as I had to hide what I was doing, but you can at least get an idea of how the show was.  

http://youtu.be/VtK0JksI454

[Lowbacca]

http://youtu.be/VtK0JksI454

Nice job!!  Brian's sounding good, Gershwin stuff sounds awesome.

[ghost]

Wow, Brian sounds better than the record on Summertime! Less whiny, more restrained. Cooler. Band sounds cool too. I'm not a fan of shows in general but Brian is someone I want to see before he quits touring. I feel that I have to - to complete something. I'm afraid of crying though in public. I could see it being so emotionally overwhelming being in the same space as Brian and his music...

[Kirk]

You ought to see him at least once. This is my 10th time, I think---not including BB shows. I wish I could make one of the entire Gershwin shows bc I really thought the mini-set lit a fire. Not that a fire needed lighting. It was hot enough. And it is an emotional experience, to me anyway. This was one of the few shows I've been too, weirdly enough, where the fanboy element didn't seem real prominent. Usually there are very intense looking men looking like something from a Rick Perry prayer festival (including me). But this was mostly couples.

Some other highlights for me: "Wendy," Brian dedicating "Surfer Girl" to a woman in the audience and then saying "Is that her name?" after saying her name, him mispronouncing Darian's first name and then correcting himself---all very endearing, "Please Let Me Wonder," the "Row Row Row" singalong (my wife was "WTF? Now that's punk!"), how he turned his back to the crowd during the Gershwin instrumental and "Pet Sounds."

I also saw David Beard at the show. I was tempted to walk over and introduce myself as a subscriber, but I looked like I just stumbled out of a car wash, so I figured I'd spare him my sweatiness.

[Magic City Surfer]

So last night my friend and I attended Brian Wilson's concert at Chastain Park here in Atlanta....This was the third time I'd seen Brian perform live; the previous times was for the Pet Sounds and SMiLE tours.  

I haven't been on SS.net much since February, but I had to mention that I was at this same show in Atlanta. And like Awesomeman, this is my third time seeing Brian, counting the Pet Sounds and SMiLE tours.

I can verify the heat and humidity were ridiculous and the crowd turnout was low.

I was very, very close to the stage, in the first row of folding chairs to house left. We were probably just 40 feet from Darian and Scott. We were so close and at such an angle that we had trouble seeing Brett and Nicky because Brian and Paul were blocking our view.

The band was awesome and I loved the show. I was glad we only got a portion of the Gershwin stuff, but I wanted more from 1966 and later.  The setlist occasionally got a little too close to a Mike and Bruce show for me.

Nonetheless, I was thrilled to hear "Please Let Me Wonder" and "You're So Good to Me".  Also, "In My Room" and "Don't Worry Baby" didn't disappoint.

I thought Brian and the band really knocked it out of the park with "The Little Girl I Once Knew", "Add Some Music" and "Sail On, Sailor".  Also, the instrumental "Pet Sounds" was a treat, especially since they turned it into a band showcase. Nelson fired the crowd up with an impressive percussion solo on it.

For me the show's highlight was  "Heroes and Villains".

Some tidbits: when Brian turned his back to the crowd for "Pet Sounds" and "Rhapsody In Blue", we could tell from our vantage point that he had his eyes closed and seemed to really drift off for a few moments. I was afraid Jeff was going to have to shake him awake.

I also liked how he introduced "God Only Knows".  Something along the lines of: "I wrote this next song and Paul McCartney has called it his favorite. I think it's really good. But you might not like it. Let's find out."

IMO, we could have done without "Salt Lake City" or "At The Drive-In". That's time that could have been spent on "Kiss Me, Baby", "Let Him Run Wild", "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times", "Warmth of the Sun" or any other dozen songs that we'd never from Mike and Bruce.

All in all, we had a blast. But it wasn't nearly as awesome as the 2004 SMiLE show I saw at the same venue.

The setlist for this show can be found at brianwilson.com, but here's my breakdown:

Only one song from the first two albums (Surfin USA)
4 from Surfer Girl (you can probably guess: Surfer Girl, LDC, In My Room, Catch A Wave)
4 from ASL (I Get Around, Wendy, Drive In, ASL)
4 from Today (PLMW, Dance Dance Dance, Do You Wanna Dance, When I Grow Up)

A surprising FIVE from Summer Days (Cali Girls, Rhonda, Salt Lake City, Then I Kissed Her, You're So Good To Me)
Plus "Little Girl" which was from the same time period but didn't appear on an album.

4 from Pet Sounds (WITBN, GOK, John B, Pet Sounds)
SMILE was only represented by the 2004 version of H&V, unless you count GV, but I wouldn't because it was the 1966 lyrics

I kept telling my friends all week that the show wasn't over until he sang Love and Mercy. And, of course, he makes a liar out of me by ending with All Summer Long. But I preferred that anyway.

We had a great time and I'm so glad I went. But I gotta be honest:  I had a real good look at Brian and he looked rough. He has visibly declined since 2004.  It was a thrill to see him again. MAN, I love his music.

[Awesoman]

I was very, very close to the stage, in the first row of folding chairs to house left. We were probably just 40 feet from Darian and Scott. We were so close and at such an angle that we had trouble seeing Brett and Nicky because Brian and Paul were blocking our view.

You were very close to where we were sitting.  Did you notice how during the intermission, Brian Wilson spent over half of it just chillin' on the side of the stage all by himself?  Just him and an electric fan.  For some reason this amused me. 

[18thofMay]

So last night my friend and I attended Brian Wilson's concert at Chastain Park here in Atlanta....This was the third time I'd seen Brian perform live; the previous times was for the Pet Sounds and SMiLE tours.  

We had a great time and I'm so glad I went. But I gotta be honest:  I had a real good look at Brian and he looked rough. He has visibly declined since 2004.  It was a thrill to see him again. MAN, I love his music.

So in 7 years he has visibly declined. Is that because it has been 7 years since you last saw him? Just asking is all?