Well, but saying "I love that song" to a devoted fan is just the same as playing "meat and potatoes" sets to casual fans. You're giving them what they want to hear in either case.
What we don't know is what Carl actually felt. And people want to give him the benefit of the doubt, which I understand. But the fact is, he had the opportunity to play deep cuts -- it's not like Mike would have seriously begrudged him a couple of obscure tunes -- and didn't do it. He had the opportunity to push for cool new music on record, but he didn't do that either.
At a certain point, it's not what's in our hearts that matters. It's what we do. And Carl didn't follow through. Simple as that.
Agreed. I think the 1985 album was Carl's last attempt at taking artistic chances with the BB in the studio. Whatever our thoughts on the album, it'd be a stretch to call it an artistic or comercial success. Perhaps he decided to withdraw from that role after said album.
I agree with both of you.
Oddly enough, the one person who didn't come through "artistically" on the 1985 album was Brian. I remember the hype surrounding that album, and much of it was centered around Brian working with Steve Levine, learning the new technology, writing a lot of new songs, etc. Brian's contributions - "I'm So Lonely", "Male Ego", "It's Just A Matter Of Time", "Crack At Your Love" and "California Calling" - were throwbacks if anything.