Who is the 'real' Al Jardine?

[Carrie Marks]

There's no issues with Brian and David either.  You should go to Jon Stebbin's website (realbeachboy.com) and read his essay on the Landmark weekend's events last May...it's a great story and he covers David and Brian's reunion of sorts. 

This shot was taken last August (photo credit goes to Dennis Diken).  Brian was actually really sweet,  he kept telling David he was his buddy.

I think that just leaves Mike & Bruce making nice with Al & Brian.

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[Compost]

That's a very warm, genuine picture.  Thanks for sharing.

[Jon Stebbins]

I'll continue this up on the thread you started above. 

Getting this one back on topic regarding Al Jardine...David and Al played together a few weeks ago as well as back in December.  They are great duo...and probably the most authentic sounding of the configurations out there.  To hear Jardine's amazing vocals and David's guitar brings the best of both worlds together, IMO.  I've never tried adding a photo...hope this works.

BTW, Al, David and Dean Torrence will be doing a show together in October aboard a Carnival cruise out of Long Beach...it should be a great trip if anyone can make it. 

Carrie...thank you soooooommmmmuuuuccchhhh for posting this photo . It is historic!!!!!! It's like a pic of Gram Parsons and David Crosby or Ringo and Pete Best together...but this is the real deal!!! thank you...I really love it ...it has true love vibes all over it....

[Jon Stebbins]

Carrie...thank you soooooommmmmuuuuccchhhh for posting this photo . It is historic!!!!!! It's like a pic of Gram Parsons and David Crosby or Ringo and Pete Best together...but this is the real deal!!! thank you...I really love it ...it has true love vibes all over it....

Wind Chime... I'm glad you dig the Al and Dave photo but your comparison to Pete Best and Ringo, or Gram Parsons and David Crosby is fundementally off base. David and Al played a ton of shows together as Beach Boys in 1963, and more in 1997...and they recorded together on two BB's LP's "Surfer Girl" and "Little Deuce Coupe"...both guys are on many classics like "In MY Room" and "Catch A Wave"...and we have at least five or six photos in the DM book of the BB's performing in 1963 with both David and Al on stage...Al is on bass replacing Brian...Dave on guitar...they even shared a microphone for a lot of that year. Remember Pete Best isn't on a single Beatles hit or LP...and David is on the first four BB's LP's...and a bunch of the BB's early hits. Dave's the kind of guy you can say practically anything to...but the Pete Best comparisons bug him because they make no sense. Best was thrown out just before the Beatles hit the big time, and never spoke to any of them again...David quit the BB's after they had four hit LP's, and a string of hit singles, but still remained friendly with all the BB's...big difference. 

[wind chime]

Carrie...thank you soooooommmmmuuuuccchhhh for posting this photo . It is historic!!!!!! It's like a pic of Gram Parsons and David Crosby or Ringo and Pete Best together...but this is the real deal!!! thank you...I really love it ...it has true love vibes all over it....

Wind Chime... I'm glad you dig the Al and Dave photo but your comparison to Pete Best and Ringo, or Gram Parsons and David Crosby is fundementally off base. David and Al played a ton of shows together as Beach Boys in 1963, and more in 1997...and they recorded together on two BB's LP's "Surfer Girl" and "Little Deuce Coupe"...both guys are on many classics like "In MY Room" and "Catch A Wave"...and we have at least five or six photos in the DM book of the BB's performing in 1963 with both David and Al on stage...Al is on bass replacing Brian...Dave on guitar...they even shared a microphone for a lot of that year. Remember Pete Best isn't on a single Beatles hit or LP...and David is on the first four BB's LP's...and a bunch of the BB's early hits. Dave's the kind of guy you can say practically anything to...but the Pete Best comparisons bug him because they make no sense. Best was thrown out just before the Beatles hit the big time, and never spoke to any of them again...David quit the BB's after they had four hit LP's, and a string of hit singles, but still remained friendly with all the BB's...big difference. 

Ok well I'm not an expert in early BB's history as it is not my favourite period and I can accept your explanation...I had no idea they ever played together before...

Pete Best is on Cry for a Shadow which is on Beatles Anthology 1 (yes I know way after the fact )

[Wilsonista]

Cry For A Shadow was from the Tony Sheridan sessions released long before the Anthology.

And everyone remotely interested in the BB should know more about their early history.

[Reverend Joshua Sloane]

Al looks great for his age. He always looked like a little old man in a way, so that suited him well now for his old age.

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

and they recorded together on two BB's LP's "Surfer Girl" and "Little Deuce Coupe"...both guys are on many classics like "In MY Room" and "Catch A Wave".

Jon, is it true that Al ended up playing a lot of bass on those two LPs?  Maybe where we'd think Brian was playing bass, Al actually would be?

[Rocker]

I think it's interesting that Al gets a co-writer credit (along with Dennis and Brian) for "South bay surfers", though he wasn't in the band officially I believe. I listened to the "Surfer girl" album and I think you can hear him in the harmonies quite often. SO were there six guys singing or did Dave take a step back ?

[Third Coast]

And everyone remotely interested in the BB should know more about their early history.

Well, sure, but the fact that Al and Dave shared stages and studios is not widely known.  I've been following the group for 40-plus years and didn't know it myself until a few years back.

[Jon Stebbins]

and they recorded together on two BB's LP's "Surfer Girl" and "Little Deuce Coupe"...both guys are on many classics like "In MY Room" and "Catch A Wave".

Jon, is it true that Al ended up playing a lot of bass on those two LPs?  Maybe where we'd think Brian was playing bass, Al actually would be?

Yeah Al played bass on quite a few Surfer Girl LP tracks including Catch A Wave, Surfers Rule, and Boogie Woodie...he usually played direct with Murry sitting right next to him...poor guy. Brian was playing keyboards on many of the SG tracks.

[Jon Stebbins]

I think it's interesting that Al gets a co-writer credit (along with Dennis and Brian) for "South bay surfers", though he wasn't in the band officially I believe. I listened to the "Surfer girl" album and I think you can hear him in the harmonies quite often. SO were there six guys singing or did Dave take a step back ?

Al sang some on the Surfer Girl LP...things like In My Room and Catch a Wave...Dave may have doubled Dennis a bit on the third or fourth harmony...but very minimal. His job was to play the guitar which he did on all the tracks...including the acoustic on Your Summer Dream.

[Howdy Doody]

Al is ultra talented but quite an odd bird as well.

[Third Coast]

Jon, in a long-ago interview in Add Some Music, one of the Survivors (Dave Nowlen, I guess) claimed he did considerable background vocals on the Surfer Girl album.  Did Dave say anything about that?  Thanks.

[Third Coast]

That question of mine might not have made sense. I meant...did David Marks say anything about Dave Nowlen or any of the Survivors' presence?

[Third Coast]

Al is ultra talented but quite an odd bird as well.

Compared to what? 

[wind chime]

And everyone remotely interested in the BB should know more about their early history.

It's just not "common" info to me...but thanks for clearing up the history...

[Jon Stebbins]

Jon, in a long-ago interview in Add Some Music, one of the Survivors (Dave Nowlen, I guess) claimed he did considerable background vocals on the Surfer Girl album.  Did Dave say anything about that?  Thanks.

The Survivors claim has been disproved in the sense that only Beach Boys are on the released version  of Surfer Girl...except Hal Blaine plays drums on Our Car Club and timbales on Surfers Rule...and Maureen Love plays the harp on In My Room. Brian may have had Nowlen or others help out on some demo versions...but the hit BB's track only has five BB's on it...Brian, Mike, Dennis, Carl and David. And then Al is added to the mix for a good number of the LP tracks.

[Mitchell]

I assume Maureen is also on Catch A Wave...

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

except Hal Blaine plays drums on Our Car Club

Jon, what's the story about Our Car Club?  I mean, at some point it was a Honeys track, "Rabbits Foot."  But if it was originally a Honeys track, one would assume it would be an all Session Musician affair, at least based on the precedent of other BW non-BB productions at the time.  But if it was the Beach Boys plus Hal and presumably Steve Douglas and at least one other sax player, it would suggest it was originally a Beach Boys production, then went to the Honeys, then back to the Beach Boys.

Up until your comments about the boys playing on it, I had thought it was likely that Our Car Club was the first released Beach Boys song with no Beach Boys playing on it, due to my assumed Honeys origin.

[Jon Stebbins]

Yeah that's an interesting point. Are you sure there is only the one version or one backing track? Dave Marks has a very clear recollection of playing on the track...the only time he played with Hal Blaine on a BB's session. Brian had been telling him what a great drummer Hal was...and on Car Club he finally got to play alongside him. Craig Slowinski would be a good person to pursue an answer to this. I'll mention it to Dave too.

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

Are you sure there is only the one version or one backing track?

Yes.  After the boys stop singing "Car Club, Car Club" on the multi, Chuck stopped the tape, but the girls take went a few bars later, so there's the end of the Honey's doubled group vocals, "rabbits foot, rabbit's foot."

[Carrie Marks]

David has a very clear recollection of making a mistake on Our Car Club...take a close listen to the guitar flub at 1:41 - 1:42.

If you know David, you'd believe without question that he never bothered to listen to any of these tracks close enough to pick up a detail  like this...if he's able to make reference to an error on the  rhythm guitar 45 years after the fact, it's because he played those bad notes. 

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

I'm definitely not disputing David's contribution, rather I'm hoping to clear up the origins of the song, if it was always a Beach Boys cut, always a Honeys cut, alternating, etc, etc.  Depending on exactly what was going on, it's still an intriguing first for Brian, as the first time the crew and the boys mixed.  Perhaps it was all wrecking crew, plus Dave?

Jon, as an addendum, do you have any idea who played the rhythm instruments on Surfer Moon, the Surfer girl LP cut?  I guess bass and drums?  The bass sounds terribly Pohlmany.

[Jon Stebbins]

I'm definitely not disputing David's contribution, rather I'm hoping to clear up the origins of the song, if it was always a Beach Boys cut, always a Honeys cut, alternating, etc, etc.  Depending on exactly what was going on, it's still an intriguing first for Brian, as the first time the crew and the boys mixed.  Perhaps it was all wrecking crew, plus Dave?

Jon, as an addendum, do you have any idea who played the rhythm instruments on Surfer Moon, the Surfer girl LP cut?  I guess bass and drums?  The bass sounds terribly Pohlmany.

Sorry can't help you with Surfer Moon...calling Craig Slowinski...again. I've gotta correct my post above...Hal played timabales on Hawaii...not Surfers Rule as I erroneously stated. I do think the Surfer Girl LP is clearly the dividing line between the totally self contained Beach Boys, and when brian began bringing in outside people...although not to the degree many journalists have stated in the past. The SIX BB's are still doing most  of what's in the grooves.

As Carrie said Dave has an uncanny ability to have ignored this stuff since he was 15 and still pick out minute details in the tracks, and in the fingering of what was played by both he and Carl. One night I was sitting with Dave at his home in NY and I mentioned that I liked John Maus' arrangement of Unchain My Heart, the great Ray Charles cover that John played at the concert in which he sat in with Dave in May 2005. Dave then says, yeah he taught me and Carl how to play some other Ray Charles songs back in '59...like "What'd I Say"...then he picks up his strat and starts playing that really distinct riff that opens the BB's obscure live in Australia version from '64...like its right off the boot I first heard it on...some wierd little two finger hammer that Maus taught them, which obviously became the basis for the Beach Boys arrangement for What'd I Say...a live staple in '63 and early '64. Same goes for "Surfin'"...that's Carl playing Maus' Hideaway riff...and Surfer Girl is Dave and Carl strumming Richie Valen's Donna(which they learned from Maus, who was learning from Valens)with Brian's great changes added to that style. I was also blown when dave showed me the fingering they played on In My Room which was so different to how I'd been playing it for all those years. Anyway, my point is...he may not remember the when or where so well...but he really remembers the mechanics of how they did it.