Show 15: Sands Bethlehem Events Center - Bethlehem, PA 5/17/12

[baseball95]

According to Wrightfans twitter band is practicing Ballad Of Ole' Betsy in rehearsal.

[Eric Aniversario]

According to Wrightfans twitter band is practicing Ballad Of Ole' Betsy in rehearsal.

Nice, I hope they let Scott Totten sing it!  Or Brian or Mike...any of the 3 would be great in their own way.

[baseball95]

Sorry but Betsy is an unexciting 50th song i agree with choice of Breakaway or airplane from Love You  Mike and Brian would sound great on that now.

ALSO BRING BACK "THIS WHOLE WORLD" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Wrightfan]

Back for a little breather. Here's what has happened so far:

-Met Surfergirl7 before the VIP expierence. She's the female version of me, energetic and passoniate about the band 

-Really like the goodie bag, especially the commerative ticket.

-Soundcheck was only a half hour but there were some cool highlights. Al sang and played Runaway for a bit and they played Kiss me Baby, Do it Again, California Girls and Little Honda. As mentioned, the backing band did Betsy right when we were lining up for the meet and greet (which sounded REALLY nice).

-Meet and Greet was short but fun. Got a picture with me, my dad and the band. I told them it was an honor to meet them but they didn't hear me (in Brian's defense, I was near his bad ear  ). David Marks did yawn in my dad's face by accident and apologized   

That's all for now. Gonna go line up soon for the concert.

[Wrightfan]

Amazing...absolutely amazing  Setlist from memory (not chronologically, memory not that great   ).

1st set
Do it Again
Catch a Wave
Hawaii (Dave sounded great)
When I Grow Up (to be a man)
Kiss me Baby (Highlight. Mike and Brian harmonizing VERY well)
Please Let me Wonder (another song Brian knocked out of the park)
You're so Good to Me
409
Be True to your School (Mike did the WHEEEEEEEEEEEN. Loved it  )
Little Deuce Coupe
Little Honda
I get Around (highlight for Mike)
Surfin' Safari
Don't Back Down
Don't Worry Baby (FANTASTIC vocal from Jeff)
Cotton Fields
Then I Kissed Me

2nd set
Wouldn't it be Nice (Fantastic. Jeff delivered a GREAT vocal and he and Al were balanced VERY well).
I Just Wasn't Made for these Times
Sloop John B
God Only Knows (Heartbreaking moment seeing Brian constantly look at the screen with this and Forever. You can tell he misses them really bad).
Heroes and Villains (Good vocal. Brian sang "Bicycle rider"  )
Good Vibrations
Add Some Music (Moment of the show. Brian was heard more clearly then the others. He flashed a HUGE smile through a good chunk of it. He was soaking this up for sure).
Marcella
All this is That (Great overall performance. From what I can tell, Brian and Darian are doing Carl's part with Darian more audiable. The end part of Carl's was done by some bald guy on guitar. I don't know his name   )
It's OK (Meh. Doesn't work in the lower key imo)
Rock and Roll Music
Surfin' USA
Forever
All Summer Long
That's Why God Made the Radio (Another great all around performace)

Encore:
Barbara Ann (A TON of fun)
Kokomo
Fun, Fun, Fun (Al, Mike, and Bruce all saw me signing my head off and pointed  )

Notes:
-Had a seat in the second row not far from SurferGirl7
-Ended up getting a ton of pictures
-Ended up shelling the money for the autograph program. Yes, I am insane lol.
-Dad and I got right up in front of the stage...and Dad was able to snag the pick Al used for the encore! Gotta find a holder for it pronto 

All and all, one of the best expierences of my life. This band still has it.

[Shady]

I have to stop dwelling on this but how was the attendance?

[EgoHanger1966]

Just got back from this - I'm exhausted and will probably post more later, but that was the best concert experience I've ever had.
Intimate setting, technically it was sold out, but there were several empty seats in some of the rows in front of me.
Met the lovely SurferGirl7 - among other Beach Boys fans I hadn't known previously.
Mainly an older crowd (one of the Rip Chords was in attendance!), but saw a couple younger people.

Mike impressed me the most, he REALLY does sound like he's 20.
Brian looked uninterested when he wasn't doing a lead - at one point he actually yawned - but when he sang lead, hot damn was he on fire!!!!!! Nailed every one of his tunes. NO AUTOTUNE!

[seltaeb1012002]

Just got back from this - I'm exhausted and will probably post more later, but that was the best concert experience I've ever had.
Intimate setting, technically it was sold out, but there were several empty seats in some of the rows in front of me.
Met the lovely SurferGirl7 - among other Beach Boys fans I hadn't known previously.
Mainly an older crowd (one of the Rip Chords was in attendance!), but saw a couple younger people.

Mike impressed me the most, he REALLY does sound like he's 20.
Brian looked uninterested when he wasn't doing a lead - at one point he actually yawned - but when he sang lead, hot damn was he on fire!!!!!! Nailed every one of his tunes. NO AUTOTUNE!

NICE dude! Glad you got to see it post B-Pain. 

[EgoHanger1966]

Also...(I'm trying not to fall asleep so I don't forget stuff!)

When the Carl tribute was playing, I watched Brian - he kept looking at the screen, watching his brother. It was really touching.

I hope audio and/or video pops up, I know the venue was pretty strict about that.
They sound so much better live than they do on QVC or the other TV appearances. At times, they cut the music out and it's just this block of incredible harmony - the phrase that popped into my head several times was "wall of sound". The vocals just surround you. Stunning.

[Shady]

Can anybody spot themselves

[Sheriff John Stone]

Just got home from Bethlehem. Some random thoughts....

- Met Wrightfan, met the guy who did the Purple Chick SMiLE, and sat next to SurferGirl7, in Row 2

- We were standing in line in the lobby while the sound check was going on; you could hear them rehearsing "It's OK", we missed about half of it, waiting for all the V.I.P. people to sign in so we could all filter in together.

- Brian wasn't very active during the sound check, but when he did offer a suggestion - and he did make a few - everything got quiet and his suggestion WAS listened to. He was teaching them a harmony part for "Kiss Me, Baby", which they performed during the show. It sounded tremendous. There was quite a bit of good-natured joking around during the sound check, between ALL of the band. Scott Totten would then reign them in.

- Also during the sound check they did a casual "Runaway". After the Beach Boys left the sound check, the band stayed and rehearsed "Ballad Of Ole' Betsy"

- The Meet And Greet lasted 20 seconds. Seriously. A couple of the Beach Boys were still in their pre-concert wardrobe. Bruce was in shorts! Jeff was there telling the guys when to smile.

- The concert started at 7:30 on the button. It was over at 10:30 on the button. There was an intermission of 20 minutes.

- Brian sang AND played keyboards on every song. It might've been simple playing or just background singing, but he participated on every song. He didn't look that disinterested, but he certainly wasn't reeling and rocking or clapping or snapping his fingers. But he was THERE. All of his lead vocals were good with the exception of "You're So Good To Me"; he shouted most of it and some of those notes he struggled with. He was very, very good on "Please Let Me Wonder", "California Dreamin'", "Sail On Sailor", "Heroes And Villains", "Marcella", and he nailed "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times". His lead on "Do You Wanna Dance" was also surprisingly strong. And, his lead on "Sloop John B" was also great. Oh, and Brian does sing an important part of "All This Is That". He also sang Dennis' part at the end of "It's OK".

- There were some unsold V.I.P. seats.

- I have seen several configurations of Beach Boys and their backing bands - live - since 1978. But I never saw a bunch of guys enjoying themselves as much as this group of musicians. A lot of smiling, laughing, inside jokes, they all sing, the Beach Boys interact with the backing band, Darian especially was having a great time.

- Mike gave a nice introduction to "Forever". I thought the Knebworth "God Only Knows" sounded slightly sped up; something wasn't quite right with it. Brian was fixated on the screen, watching Carl. He didn't look at the Dennis "Forever" pictures nearly as much.  

- They did "Add Some Music" around the piano to open the 2nd set. Brian was into it. It was a nice moment.

- Mike was having a ball. He was in his element. You can just tell he loves this. Mike didn't make much contact with Brian. It must be the sound system and microphones because Mike sounded exceptionally strong, after sounding not quite as strong the previous night on QVC. Mike was simply great with his lead vocals - all of them. And he was funny as usual; a few new one-liners. And he found a babe to dance with during "Surfer Girl". Mike looks great for 71. Mike and Al seemed to be getting along well, they were communicating a lot with each other.

- "Why Do Fools Fall In Love" was impressive, as was "Don't Back Down". "Cottonfields" was tremendous. I think they should drop "You're So Good To Me". Something wasn't quite right with "Good Vibrations". "Rock And Roll Music" rocked. Really rocked.

- Of the 3 or 4 times I've heard TWGMTR live now, this was the best version. They've got it down now.

- Do you know who was the dark horse star of the show? Scott Totten. That son of a gun played some stunning guitar - acoustic, a Fender like David's, and a twelve string. His singing was as good anybody's. Some times I heard this great singing and I'd look around, and it was Scott. Sometimes I heard this great guitar, and it was Scott. He also did that cool, Dick Dale sliding riff on "Little Honda" and Jeff gave him a little nod and smile. Basically, Scott reminded me a lot of Carl Wilson.

- By the end of the show, I had a stiff neck. There was so much to watch, and I was trying to grasp it all. Who is singing that part? Who is playing that? Who is harmonizing on that? I was fixated on Brian, then I'd have to shift to the other side of the stage because Bruce was doing something. Then back to David, and then back to Cowsill or Darian. There was so much going on. Mertens was all over the stage with his sax.

- Bruce did an OK version of "Disney Girls", but he did nail that final high note. The other Beach Boys had left the stage, but Brian stayed at the piano; it almost looked like he fell asleep. At the end of "Disney Girls", Bruce said, "Brian likes that song."

- Brian strapped on the bass for the last two songs, "Barbara Ann" and "Fun, Fun, Fun". Honestly, he looked very uncomfortable, and it made me uncomfortable. He was not "with it" for those two numbers. He was wearing these black Adidas sweat pants, like 30 years ago, and they were falling down, and...oh well.

- This was approximately the 30th time I've seen the Beach Boys - in various configurations. I know I say after every concert, "That was the best one." But, I believe that THIS SHOW was the best Beach Boys' concert I have ever attended. OK, this might be the last Beach Boys tour with Brian. I can kind of see that, I just have that feeling. But, with Dave and Al back in the fold, and with this band - these guys are really tight and seem to be having a ball - it would be a darn shame if they shut this down and called it quits after this tour. They really have something special to offer. Yes, you could feel the loss of Carl; it was strange not seeing him there; he belonged there. But I couldn't ask for anything more than what they gave tonight.

[Mendota Heights]

Everyone's in love with you, SurferGirl7. Though you can't fall in love only one... 

That is at least what it seems like after reading this thread. 

[Jay]

What an awesome review, Sheriff.  Glad to see you're back, by the way. 

[GuyO]

Wonderful review Sherrif! I still have to wait for more than two months, but reading about the shows nearly every morning surely builds up my anticpations.

IMO 'Ballad of ole Betsy' would be a great addition to the live repertoire. Scott sings it great and if Jeff gets a lead, well, Scott deserves one too. :-). I hope they'll keep up with rotating songs every night to keep things fresh. Hopefully other early tunes to add will be Custom Machine and Drive-In. As for more recent material I'm hoping for You Still Believe in Me, Break Away or California Saga (Hey, Al deserves more leads too). In Europe Tears in the Morning is very popular so it might get in there instead of RnRM or California Dreaming. Til I Die or Surf's up are probably the stuff of dreams I'd say.

This whole tour has been a dream come through already!

[Vega-Table Man]

The show was amazing. I agree with many of the observations above ... Brian did a terrific job on most of his lead vocals though it's true that he seemed incredibly uncomfortable during the last two numbers holding the bass. Mike. Al and Dave were particularly impressive. And I did not expect to hear "Kiss Me Baby." That blew me away.

And TWGMTR indeed sounded tight. And it was incredibly touching to see Brian gazing at Carl on the screen during "God Only Knows."

I'm so glad I got to see this. I'll never forget this one.

[EgoHanger1966]

It's amazing how they sounded SO much better than I'd seen them on any TV appearance. I guess it's a "you have to be there" thing, or maybe they were just really on last night, but if they could convey that sound on their appearances, they'd sell A LOT more records! Last night was like a religious experience - it almost doesn't seem real. Like, there's the guys you fanboard about every day - they're actually right in front of you!

I disagree with a poster above - I dug "You're So Good To Me". Even the songs I didn't think I cared so much about (Why Do Fools Fall in Love, Don't Back Down) sounded tremendous live.

[STE]

Can anybody spot themselves

Why is Nick Walusko sitting on the first row instead of being on stage playing guitar??


 

[Wrightfan]

Can anybody spot themselves

That's my father and I at the end of the 2nd row.

[Lowbacca]

Can anybody spot themselves

That's my father and I at the end of the 2nd row.

Your father's having a blast. 

[D409]

- Do you know who was the dark horse star of the show? Scott Totten. That son of a gun played some stunning guitar - acoustic, a Fender like David's, and a twelve string. His singing was as good anybody's. Some times I heard this great singing and I'd look around, and it was Scott. Sometimes I heard this great guitar, and it was Scott. He also did that cool, Dick Dale sliding riff on "Little Honda" and Jeff gave him a little nod and smile. Basically, Scott reminded me a lot of Carl Wilson.

Scott Totten is excellent, seems to be an unsung hero of this tour - he's certainly been very good when I've seen the Mike & Bruce BB's. And the contribution of David Marks cannot be measured !

[Autotune]

Can anybody spot themselves

That's my father and I at the end of the 2nd row.

Your father's having a blast. 

Great to see Jimmy Fallon 2nd row left.

[Sheriff John Stone]

...

[southbay]

Amazing...absolutely amazing   Setlist from memory (not chronologically, memory not that great   ).

1st set
Do it Again
Catch a Wave
Hawaii (Dave sounded great)
When I Grow Up (to be a man)
Kiss me Baby (Highlight. Mike and Brian harmonizing VERY well)
Please Let me Wonder (another song Brian knocked out of the park)
You're so Good to Me
409
Be True to your School (Mike did the WHEEEEEEEEEEEN. Loved it  )
Little Deuce Coupe
Little Honda
I get Around (highlight for Mike)
Surfin' Safari
Don't Back Down
Don't Worry Baby (FANTASTIC vocal from Jeff)
Cotton Fields
Then I Kissed Me

2nd set
Wouldn't it be Nice (Fantastic. Jeff delivered a GREAT vocal and he and Al were balanced VERY well).
I Just Wasn't Made for these Times
Sloop John B
God Only Knows (Heartbreaking moment seeing Brian constantly look at the screen with this and Forever. You can tell he misses them really bad).
Heroes and Villains (Good vocal. Brian sang "Bicycle rider"  )
Good Vibrations
Add Some Music (Moment of the show. Brian was heard more clearly then the others. He flashed a HUGE smile through a good chunk of it. He was soaking this up for sure).
Marcella
All this is That (Great overall performance. From what I can tell, Brian and Darian are doing Carl's part with Darian more audiable. The end part of Carl's was done by some bald guy on guitar. I don't know his name   )
It's OK (Meh. Doesn't work in the lower key imo)
Rock and Roll Music
Surfin' USA
Forever
All Summer Long
That's Why God Made the Radio (Another great all around performace)

Encore:
Barbara Ann (A TON of fun)
Kokomo
Fun, Fun, Fun (Al, Mike, and Bruce all saw me signing my head off and pointed  )

Notes:
-Had a seat in the second row not far from SurferGirl7
-Ended up getting a ton of pictures
-Ended up shelling the money for the autograph program. Yes, I am insane lol.
-Dad and I got right up in front of the stage...and Dad was able to snag the pick Al used for the encore! Gotta find a holder for it pronto  

All and all, one of the best expierences of my life. This band still has it.

They sell an autographed tour program?  How much $?

[LostArt]

I think someone said that the autographed programs were $100.00.

[Sheriff John Stone]

They were selling A Postcard From California CD's - autographed by Al Jardine with all the bonus tracks - for $15.00. I got one. Oh, and also a David Marks & The Marksmen CD, also for $15.00