Problem Child is criminally underrated

[GhostyTMRS]

I saw them perform this live. My enduring memory of seeing "Problem Child" performed live is that I knew every word to the song and happily sang along at full volume (my belated apologies to the folks at the PNC Bank Art Center in NJ). The song had not been released as a single yet but I had taped the video off of "Friday Night Videos" on NBC and watched it repeatedly. I was upfront competing with Carl Wilson which I guess earns me a place in hell now that I'm older and wiser. This was noticed by Mike Love who said afterwards "Well, I see we have some super fans here today" or something like that.

Afterwards I had an embarrassing exchange with Al Jardine that I won't go into here but I did get an autograph.

[Ziggy Stardust]

Afterwards I had an embarrassing exchange with Al Jardine that I won't go into here

Ooowowoowowow hey there now, you can't just say that and go away! why wouldn't you say it? come on, share with us!

[GhostyTMRS]

Afterwards I had an embarrassing exchange with Al Jardine that I won't go into here

Ooowowoowowow hey there now, you can't just say that and go away! why wouldn't you say it? come on, share with us!

Ugh...after the show when the stage set-up was being broken down, Al came out to help. Looking back, that's kind of odd considering the Beach Boys obviously had a road crew. Maybe Al was the low man on the totem pole? Who knows? There was a crowd of fans around the front of the stage and Al was signing autographs and chatting. I rushed down with my tour program and joined the crowd. As Mr. Jardine got closer to me I guess all these thoughts were flashing through my head like "Hey, he sang on Pet Sounds" or "I've been listening to this guy sing on the greatest records of all time since I was a little kid" and even though I was 19 at the time, I felt this flood of emotion and started shrieking Al's name.....I mean SHRIEKING...like an 8 year old girl. "AL! "AL! AL!". I have no idea what came over me.

When Al walked over to sign my tour book I was still screaming and jumping up and down like a little bitch. Eventually Al said "Okay...okay" and then finally "OKAY!" as in "Dude, calm the hell down!". He signed my tour book and I made a comment about them having "California" in that day's setlist. I guess it was a recent addition and as I recall they hadn't played it in a long time. Al asked me "Hey, you noticed that? Did it sound okay? We just rehearsed it the other day?". For some weird reason I just smiled and maybe out of nervousness or Beach Boys-mania I blurted out "Keep it up!"....

He looked at me like I was either and idiot or hard of hearing an asked me again. "Was it okay? What did you think of it?"

..and again I smiled like a dope and said "Keep it up!"

I think I meant to say "Keep it in" like "keep it in the setlist". To be honest, I was so nervous I couldn't think of anything else to say. Either way I didn't answer his question and instead I think he interpreted "keep it up" like I was suggesting they needed to rehearse it more or it wasn't good enough.  Al gave me a weird look like maybe I was on something and then just walked away.  I have no excuse for my behavior that day other than I was 19 and wasn't nearly as cool as I thought I was.

Funnily enough, I'm not much for autographs but I still have Al's and around the same time I wrote a fan letter to Brian and received an autographed photo and a form letter 10 YEARS LATER! 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Oh man, this sounds soo funny.. thanks for the laughs! really, don't be ashamed or feel embarrassed about it, it happens to all of us, it's always a special moment when soemthing like that happens and all you know, i sometimes had some weird moments too! haha
it's the love man, the love!

Just don't think about it as something embarrassing that you should keep locked for ever man, hey at least you had the chance to met him after all! just laugh about it, who cares you know.

Thanks for the story, it's really great to have someone who had the chance to you know, see the band live when they were with Carl and all.. (i guess there's many people out there who have seen the band in their earlier days and that has some great stories! i'm just new around here), take care!

[send me a picture and i'll tell you]

Am I the only one who ever once thought that Al's line in the chorus, the "na-na-na-na-na etc. etc. ...oh yeah" part was sampled from a recording of Brian from around '76? It is a dead ringer for that rough, raspy sound, to me. I thought the Beach Boys were being "techno" in that regard...

[joe_blow]

Bruce is a music performer. Excellent skills with piano and lovely voice in his heyday (and to some extent still)
Almost all the music he wrote however is pretty horrid. Going Pubic is attrocious with its neon 70's glitz, I Write the Songs is nothing really. Problem Child is no exception.

He is, or he was?How would a soundboard of just Bruce  from a concert sound?

[adamghost]

I love the video, and yeah, nothing against Bruce, but he really takes a beating and it's kind of fun to watch. 

The song...well, as someone else said, the drums are pretty extreme.  It's hard to really appreciate it  around all that white noise on the 2 and 4.

[Aegir]

I really like the edited version without the children's laugh. Some live versions were great as well though Mike seemed really embarrassed doing the intro part which made me giggle. At one point I gave a friend of mine some Beach Boys files to rehearse, he was our drummer, and the only two songs that he  liked were "Fun, Fun, Fun" and "Problem Child".

Didn't Bruce once said he regretted doing that song and "Make It Big"? Well, I'd take both over "Kokomo" any day.

Bruce has said that he thought Problem Child was the worst thing the band ever did. Note that Problem Child is a Johnston/Melcher composition.

I thought Melcher just wrote it on his own.

[Jeff]

... nothing against Bruce, but he really takes a beating and it's kind of fun to watch. 

Wow, you're kind of a sadist, eh?  I bet you enjoyed ol' Betsy getting knocked around too.

Bruce and Betsy are probably quietly crying together in a dark corner somewhere ...  Hope you feel good about yourself.

[Lookit]

I can't help but be reminded of Landy when I see Gilbert Gottfried behind the mixing desk.

As for the song...it's really not the worst in the world, or even in the BB catalog. Carl's vocal is great, the production is very much of it's time, and Al's ponytail is something to treasure.

[Autotune]

Amazing. It took a thread to make a classic out of Problem Child!

[Andrew G. Doe]

Clean forgot that that video is about as funny as leprosy.

[mjforever]

Amazing. It took a thread to make a classic out of Problem Child!

[Beach Boy]

Al looks good, yeah but Carl looks awesome with the shades. The cover is pretty neat too.



Does anybody know if the song charted anywhere? With more promotion it could have been a minor hit. Another thing that comes to my mind: I read on the german message board somewhere that "Crocodile Rock" was a top 3 hit, of all places, in Uruguay. Can anyone confirm that? I never mind "Crocodile Rock" but the falsetto (Matt?) sounds horrible, making too much fun of the Beach Boys and the video is awful as well.

[Ziggy Stardust]

Am I the only one who ever once thought that Al's line in the chorus, the "na-na-na-na-na etc. etc. ...oh yeah" part was sampled from a recording of Brian from around '76? It is a dead ringer for that rough, raspy sound, to me. I thought the Beach Boys were being "techno" in that regard...

No, just trying to sound modern, as they always tried to be.

[Forshorn]

Of course I like it. Terry Melcher wrote or co-wrote a lot of those cheesy '80s songs. They're all fun and catchy. They were obviously toss-offs.

I just have a problem with the Stamos factor in "Problem Child."

[Music Machine]

I actually think it's a fun little Pop song and prefer it to anything off SIP.

[Paulos]

It's weird, as bad as the song is I don't dislike it and sometimes even find the song going around in my head! Has anyone seen the film itself? I find that far more horrible than the song.

[hypehat]

.....Problem Child may easily be their best song released in 1990, ahead of Somewhere Near Japan.

Now that's what I call 'damning with faint praise'.

[ontor pertawst]

Has anyone seen the film itself? I find that far more horrible than the song.

I haven't thought about that flick in ages but weirdly enough, I was just recently chattering with one of the writers of it who I've been friendly with. If you look it up, they went on to some amazing stuff (including one movie about a certain angora fetishist that changed my life) after that goofy start! I should ask him if he knows anything about the track, but writers are always the last to know anything on a film, really. I'm sure it was a kick for a rookie writer, tho!

[Tony S]

Thought Adrian Baker did the Falsetto on Crocodile Rock, but I could be mistaken.

[southbay]

I never mind "Crocodile Rock" but the falsetto (Matt?) sounds horrible, making too much fun of the Beach Boys and the video is awful as well.

Don't blame M. Jardine for that. That was Adrian Baker

[Gertie J.]

I'm addicted to PC! That one always lifts my spirits! I mean every bit of it is a top sound! No, wait, minus children's intro!

[MBE]

Nope it isn't!

[musicismylife101]

... nothing against Bruce, but he really takes a beating and it's kind of fun to watch. 

OK fine I admit it! Other than Carl's voice I thought watching Bruce play the victim was funny.

Speaking of Bruce being the victim I'm surprised that there's no comment about him falling off the surfboard in Rock and Roll to the Rescue
around 1:37 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKqd_9Xx9IQ

I guess there's always that one person who has to take the beating...