Jones Beach conversation with Brian

[18thofMay]

Thankyou for stopping in and posting Ray! Great to hear Brian loves Australia, It is the best country in the world!!!

Australia is awesome, Brian loves it there, all anyone has to do is ask him. When I mentioned earlier that I had a hard time keeping up with Brian walking; a good example was in Sydney. The walk started at the Inter-Continental Sydney, went around the Opera House , then all the way on the walkway in the park that runs parallel to the water. Two laps around the Opera House and back to the Inter-Continental. 90 degrees out; I was struggling to keep up with Brian and praying I would live long enough to get a cold beer. He wanted to go again in a few hours.

I would love to head out there on this tour , but don't think I can.  Cafe Sydney right on Bligh St.  Tremendous !

That is a decent walk!! And th eviews are spectacular, as is the beer!

[dumbangel76]

Thanks Ray!!

[Bud Shaver]

Thanks for the posts Ray! 

[Amy B.]

Thanks for your insights, Ray! Visits by people who know the guys/have worked with them are always a treat, and much appreciated. So nice that you take the time, and it makes us feel better about Brian's mindset.

As an aside, I realized I never actually watched the TLOS doc! I'm going to do that soon.

[Sound of Free]

Now THIS is a thread. Thanks, Ray.

Most people enjoy their jobs a lot some days and not so much on other days. So if we happen to see Brian on a night he's not "engaged," it doesn't mean he doesn't want to be touring. Some people have seen shows where Brian talked to the audience. When I saw the Boys at Mohegan Sun, he didn't say a single word, but he still sang great.

And the part about how hard the Dennis and Carl tributes hit him is accurate, too. He sees himself on state with the Beach Boys, but the two people he would most like to have their aren't. It would be tough for anyone to put on a happy face right after the final note of "God Only Knows."

And it's great to hear that Brian's back is getting better and he's looking to start walking in the hopes of losing weight.

[Pretty Funky]

And it's great to hear that Brian's back is getting better and he's looking to start walking in the hopes of losing weight.

By my gig in Melbourne August 31 2012 I want Brian like it is 1978 again!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAiqMVTUEb8

[Eireannach]

Great thread and wonderful insights.  Thanks, Ray.

[Forshorn]

I don't know if anyone mentioned this, but you're the guy Brian dedicated a song to last night!

So glad to hear Brian is happy with the tour and the band. Many thanks!

[Doo Dah]

Let me echo the chorus and thank you for your updates Ray!

I am obviously enjoying the summer tour and album, although I am kind of in the camp that feels like this is a proper coda for the band. Having said all that, if we can get a big sounding rock album out of the boys, I would be happily on board!

To quote Canada's Mendelson Joe - "the name of the game ain't schmaltz - it's results!"

[Zach95]

Wow, great stuff Ray.  Thank you so so much for your comments and insight, it is much appreciated.

[Ray Lawlor]

I don't know if anyone mentioned this, but you're the guy Brian dedicated a song to last night!

So glad to hear Brian is happy with the tour and the band. Many thanks!

Well yes that's true but it's really not about me. I just wanted to negate a lot of the speculation that is out there about Brian's demeanor/mindset/ willingness/capability for going forward.  Some of the pontificating became ludicrous so I decided to jump in to Brian's defense because he sure as hell was not going to do it himself , nor was Melinda . I am  hopeful that everyone takes a deep breath and thanks their lucky stars for what has happened since 2000:Pet Sounds live, SMiLE completed and released, That Lucky Old Sun , Gershwin , The SMiLE Sessions;  the impossible but true Beach Boys reunion in 2012. It did not happen by accident !  

[Ray Lawlor]

Thanks for posting this info, Ray.  I too look forward to the five principals continuing to tour together as well as an additional studio album, plus, of course, the live 50th Anniversary CD.

Personally I am looking forward to that live DVD , especially want to hear Sailor, Heroes, Please Let Me Wonder and Do It Again.  They slay me !  And God help me I want to hear them do Funky Pretty ! 

[Kamandi]

Reading the perspective you have shared really made my day. Its obvious it comes from a friend's point of view and it is sincerely heart warming. You rock for doing this.

[Ray Lawlor]

Reading the perspective you have shared really made my day. Its obvious it comes from a friend's point of view and it is sincerely heart warming. You rock for doing this.

Thanks, it is exactly that, my point of view watching a friend reclaim his legacy. And at  three score and ten saying "let's keep going".  Overwhelming

[18thofMay]

Reading the perspective you have shared really made my day. Its obvious it comes from a friend's point of view and it is sincerely heart warming. You rock for doing this.

Thanks, it is exactly that, my point of view watching a friend reclaim his legacy. And at  three score and ten saying "let's keep going".  Overwhelming

Get back down to Australia and I will be the first in line to buy you a beer!!

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Reading the perspective you have shared really made my day. Its obvious it comes from a friend's point of view and it is sincerely heart warming. You rock for doing this.

Thanks, it is exactly that, my point of view watching a friend reclaim his legacy. And at  three score and ten saying "let's keep going".  Overwhelming

It is crazy, ain't it? It's almost as if the Beach Boys we're seeing and hearing now are picking up right after Holland and continuing on an artistic sonic boom. Just completely soul-warming all around.

[ArchStanton]

Reading the perspective you have shared really made my day. Its obvious it comes from a friend's point of view and it is sincerely heart warming. You rock for doing this.

Thanks, it is exactly that, my point of view watching a friend reclaim his legacy. And at  three score and ten saying "let's keep going".  Overwhelming

It is crazy, ain't it? It's almost as if the Beach Boys we're seeing and hearing now are picking up right after Holland and continuing on an artistic sonic boom. Just completely soul-warming all around.

Well said.  It really has been amazing.  What a life.

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

Thanks so much for the posts, Ray.  It's great to hear that things are as amazing as they appear to be. That's what finishing SMiLE will do to ya... 

[Mikie]

"4/- I had dinner with him in Beverly Hills in February; his back was so bad he was shuffling , and it scared the hell out of me,  as this is a guy who was walking 5 miles a day at a pretty steady clip.....he and I are the same height, 6 ft 2 , and I always had trouble keeping up with him. He is walking with much more ease now as the back is healing and the pain has subsided; he is almost ready to start his walking agenda again as he is "rebuilding  the strength in my legs, getting my legs under me". He says he feels great , and has a weight loss target in mind once he starts seriously walking again".

I would really like to believe this. I really would. I don't mean to be a pessimist here. BUT.  When I saw Brian earlier this month in Berkeley, he was obviously in pain. He was shifting back and forth on the stool, needed help getting off the piano bench, and at the end of the second set, I saw him get up (with assistance) and gingerly walk off the stage and sit down quickly in a chair positioned just behind the curtain. I was really concerned for him. He looks very overweight and is hurting. You just talked to Brian in the last couple of days. I understand that he's been having this back issue for quite awhile and is seeing a doctor for it and who knows if he's taking some meds to relieve the pain. The other day, he didn't bother to strap on the bass, which he routinely does near the end of shows. So you're saying the back is healing and the pain is subsided? Just within this past month? Based on what I personally saw and on recent video clips, I'm a little pessimistic, Ray. Again, I'd love to be dead wrong!

Also, Ray, you indicated that Brian loves this touring and being on stage. I'm not saying you're wrong or that Brian is wrong or leading you in the wrong direction, and by the way he looks on stage, he does look engaged and focused at times, but very bored. I may be wrong. Many times viewing these YouTube videos, it seems like he can't wait to get off the stage at the end of many of the shows. Most of the time, he's the first one off the stage, almost running. Information on a recent thread indicated that he won't make it to South America this year for a concert(s). It still makes me wonder if he really does want to continue the 50th Tour after they've completed the 50 + gigs already scheduled for this year.

Thanks for your post, Ray!  

[Wirestone]

There have been many reports from the road from the past couple of weeks about BW's increased mobility. I saw it myself; he is getting around much more quickly and on his own.

The South American shows are not part of the 50th anniversary tour; they appear to have been booked before the reunion.

[KittyKat]

Brian looks like he's lost at least a tiny amount of weight in the last couple of shows' videos.  It shows in his face mostly.  A man his size can drop weight fast and even losing five or ten pounds can help a lot of things feel better. 

[Pretty Funky]

I mentioned awhile back that with a tour party as large as this one, the duration and of course the Beach Boys ages, I would expect a Doctor to be on the road with them. Great for his back and if asked, his diet advise,

Take a look at the RS story again with Brian in the diner. He has got thinner in the face the last month IMO.

[pixletwin]

Well yes that's true but it's really not about me. I just wanted to negate a lot of the speculation that is out there about Brian's demeanor/mindset/ willingness/capability for going forward.  Some of the pontificating became ludicrous so I decided to jump in to Brian's defense because he sure as hell was not going to do it himself , nor was Melinda . I am  hopeful that everyone takes a deep breath and thanks their lucky stars for what has happened since 2000:Pet Sounds live, SMiLE completed and released, That Lucky Old Sun , Gershwin , The SMiLE Sessions;  the impossible but true Beach Boys reunion in 2012. It did not happen by accident !  

Amen. To think of everything he has done in the last 12 years is pretty astounding but when you look at it, it all happened so logically. Line upon line, precept upon precept; as the saying goes.  

[coco1997]

"Angels In Love" and "Night Came Gently" sound like great titles.

The next album can't come soon enough!  

[CarCrazyCutie]

I am so, so glad to hear is doing so well