Another S**t stirring article in The Independent today !

[Justin]

Exactly. It's refreshing to see some more mellowed responses to the situation. The Beach Boys aren't going to be splintering forever, never to reunite. There just happens to be a little bump in the road in the form of previous contractual obligations for the Michael and Bruce band. Besides...if there's to be another album I doubt Brian's going to be able to write on the road. Same with Al and David. Let them relax for a while and come up with some new stuff.

Correct, it's clear Brian can't create while on the road...it never worked in the past...why would it work now?  The logical thing is to have Brian (and Al and David) sit back and come up with something.  Well, what is Mike and Bruce supposed to do durng this time?  Stay home amd wait?

[Jason]

Exactly. It's refreshing to see some more mellowed responses to the situation. The Beach Boys aren't going to be splintering forever, never to reunite. There just happens to be a little bump in the road in the form of previous contractual obligations for the Michael and Bruce band. Besides...if there's to be another album I doubt Brian's going to be able to write on the road. Same with Al and David. Let them relax for a while and come up with some new stuff.

yes, I agree, but why won't they say that instead of us; a 19 word press release will calm us down: "Mike and Bruce will do some shows while we rest up for the new album and the next tour."

Previous experience dictates that the Beach Boys collectively and individually have their reasons that only they know.

[Jason]

Exactly. It's refreshing to see some more mellowed responses to the situation. The Beach Boys aren't going to be splintering forever, never to reunite. There just happens to be a little bump in the road in the form of previous contractual obligations for the Michael and Bruce band. Besides...if there's to be another album I doubt Brian's going to be able to write on the road. Same with Al and David. Let them relax for a while and come up with some new stuff.

Correct, it's clear Brian can't create while on the road...it never worked in the past...why would it work now?  The logical thing is to have Brian (and Al and David) sit back and come up with something.  Well, what is Mike and Bruce supposed to do durng this time?  Stay home amd wait?

Exactly. Besides, Michael has proven pretty decent at writing lyrics after hearing tracks over the phone on tour. Gee, this sounds like 1966 all over again!

[Justin]

yes, I agree, but why won't they say that instead of us; a 19 word press release will calm us down: "Mike and Bruce will do some shows while we rest up for the new album and the next tour."

I just think in business you never want to reveal your cards to the public, especially when there's no 100% guarantee that plans will come to fruition.  With a fanbase as aggressive (and greedy?) as the Beach Boys' are....they would be questioned at every moment when they would reunite again.  "But you said 3 months ago that there'd be a new tour...where is it??"   To avoid that unnecessary prodding....just keep it safe with a clear cut message: this tour is over.  No need to put in any teasers or carrots to dangle in front of us.   It's irrelevant.  If/when they do announce they're all coming back...the response will still be the same anyway: a resounding YES! 

It's the same method Mick Jagger and the Stones currently use.  They've stopped revealing tour plans to the press because everyone holds them to the flame on every single damn thing they say.  So now, he keeps mum and denies everything.  It's just safer that way and less of a pain in the ass than having to defend what you said 5 months ago when things looked a lot more differently than they do today....

[Shady]

I turned on the radio a few minutes ago and they were discussing the "break up"

People were talking about wanting refunds to the UK gigs. This is getting a little out of hand, a statement needs to be issued

[runnersdialzero]

This is getting a little out of hand

Yes, it is.

[Jason]

I turned on the radio a few minutes ago and they were discussing the "break up"

People were talking about wanting refunds to the UK gigs. This is getting a little out of hand, a statement needs to be issued

Let them bitch about their refunds. And all this time I thought that John Bull's people were such HUGE Beach Boys fans...

[Heysaboda]

Nice NFL football reference Andrew! For the record, the coach was Cleveland Browns head coach Sam Rutigliano, who issued his comment to a tense locker room immediately prior to their January 4, 1981 AFC championship game against the Oakland Raiders - which included the infamous Red Right 88 interception pass.

A game Rutigliano lost with his boneheaded calls.

I lived in Cleveland then.  I moved out of Cleveland, but I haven't moved on!  The pain still aches!

[Jon Stebbins]

I thought I read (an accurate?) quote from Mike Love that he would like to record another Beach Boys' album - if he could write some songs with Brian. Not ALL the songs (if I remember correctly), but SOME songs. Wouldn't that be considered continuing the reunion?

Also, if Brian, Al, and David continued touring with Mike & Bruce immediately after the scheduled reunion dates, where would they get the money to pay everyone? You would know better than me, aren't the performance fees for the upcoming Mike & Bruce shows already contractually agreed upon? And, you would know this better than anyone, would David agree to play with Mike & Bruce at a substantially lower pay than he is getting for the reunion shows? And, do you know how David would feel if a guitar player would get "bumped" if David joined the Mike & Bruce band for the upcoming shows?

Its my understanding that more offers became available for more reunion shows, so instead of stopping at say 75, they had offers for 10 or 20 more or something...more dates tacked on to the reunion tour...but these were turned down because Mike chose/planned/contracted to return to his pre-reunion set-up and his own bookings. I really don't know the motivation or details, just the generality that there were more reunion lineup offers left on the table, and from my impression Brian, Al and Dave were up for keeping it going, but Mike was not. Again i only have a general knowledge that this was the case, but no specifics as to how, why, where etc... And yes, Mike has said he'd like to record and write more with Brian, so hopefully that means with the five of them together.

[Justin]

I turned on the radio a few minutes ago and they were discussing the "break up"

People were talking about wanting refunds to the UK gigs.

But why? They want refunds for a show to protest the breakup that hasn't even happened yet?  All 5 BB will be on stage tomorrow...why would anyone refuse to see them now?    Their loss! 

[Shady]

I turned on the radio a few minutes ago and they were discussing the "break up"

People were talking about wanting refunds to the UK gigs.

But why? They want refunds for a show to protest the breakup that hasn't even happened yet?  All 5 BB will be on stage tomorrow...why would anyone refuse to see them now?    Their loss! 

People think that it's going to be just Mike and Bruce on stage tomorrow and Friday..

All the articles making the rounds claim that 3 members have been fired. It's crazy

[Justin]

Oh okay.  Sheesh....still a little nuts if that's the case.  Never thought it'd be misinterpreted like that but it should be clear to anyone who actually reads the entire story and not just the headline.

[runnersdialzero]

Why should Mike accommodate them when he's been doing it this way forever? 

Because, despite whatever the legality of the matter, he should realize it's not "his" band? That it belongs to him, Bruce, Brian, Al, and David and he should do the "human" thing and consider their feelings on the matter even though he has the authority to ignore them?

Don't get me wrong, I see both sides of this and the endless Mike bashing is, as always, tiring and too often (not always) coming from an ill informed kid-on-the-internet "HE DONE WRECKED SMILE, THE ASSHOLE" point of view. I can't believe people are actually accusing Mike of firing Brian, Al, and David now. I just wanted to say this, as I don't think it's irrational to expect him to consider such things. I know he has his kids and his friends to look after in regards to taking them out on the road, but it doesn't have to be like this.

[EgoHanger1966]

Why should Mike accommodate them when he's been doing it this way forever? 

Because, despite whatever the legality of the matter, he should realize it's not "his" band? That it belongs to him, Bruce, Brian, Al, and David and he should do the "human" thing and consider their feelings on the matter even though he has the authority to ignore them?

Don't get me wrong, I see both sides of this and the endless Mike bashing is, as always, tiring and too often (not always) coming from an ill informed kid-on-the-internet "HE DONE WRECKED SMILE, THE ASSHOLE" point of view. I can't believe people are actually accusing Mike of firing Brian, Al, and David now. I just wanted to say this, as I don't think it's irrational to expect him to consider such things. I know he has his kids and his friends to look after in regards to taking them out on the road, but it doesn't have to be like this.

It's so easy to get carried away with this. If people remember that he had former commitments to honor, he's a business man, he needs to do his thing. To do the dates he is contractually obligated to do, he has to do that with his "small band" to make money out of those deals. But when those dates are over, if he's a very good business man he'll at least think of making some changes to the way he markets his touring band when Brian, Al, and David aren't a part of it.

[Pretty Funky]

I turned on the radio a few minutes ago and they were discussing the "break up"

People were talking about wanting refunds to the UK gigs.

But why? They want refunds for a show to protest the breakup that hasn't even happened yet?  All 5 BB will be on stage tomorrow...why would anyone refuse to see them now?   Their loss!  

Because there are some dumba*s people out there!

Heck, I'd be offering to take them off their hands cheap and then making a killing outside the gig.

When this whole celebration thing was announced Dec 16, who here would have put money on Brian agreeing to 50 gigs then upping that to 70 plus THEN want to keep it going? Strange things happen!

[Jason]

I turned on the radio a few minutes ago and they were discussing the "break up"

People were talking about wanting refunds to the UK gigs.

But why? They want refunds for a show to protest the breakup that hasn't even happened yet?  All 5 BB will be on stage tomorrow...why would anyone refuse to see them now?    Their loss! 

Because there are some dumba*s people out there!

No, they're just not real fans.

[Justin]

Why should Mike accommodate them when he's been doing it this way forever? 

Because, despite whatever the legality of the matter, he should realize it's not "his" band? That it belongs to him, Bruce, Brian, Al, and David and he should do the "human" thing and consider their feelings on the matter even though he has the authority to ignore them?

Don't get me wrong, I see both sides of this and the endless Mike bashing is, as always, tiring and too often (not always) coming from an ill informed kid-on-the-internet "HE DONE WRECKED SMILE, THE ASSHOLE" point of view. I can't believe people are actually accusing Mike of firing Brian, Al, and David now. I just wanted to say this, as I don't think it's irrational to expect him to consider such things. I know he has his kids and his friends to look after in regards to taking them out on the road, but it doesn't have to be like this.

Yeah it doesn't have to be like "this"...but there's hardly anything really going on for us to be that worried about.  Mike/Bruce have booked what, like 2 or 3 shows after this tour?  Not really full tours/legs (yet)...so there's no reason to jump the gun here.  We don't know Mike's plans and how he plans to move forward.  All we know is, Mike booked a few shows some time back when it was very clear that the reunion tour would conclude by September.   Those Mike/Bruce shows will go on as scheduled, and there are no new dates planned for any more Mike/Bruce shows at this point.  We should keep that in mind. 

[DonnyL]

As Jon pointed out, the main problem here is that Al, Brian and Dave want to continue with the 50th and keep the current band together. And that's what most of the fans want to. It's a beautiful thing.

But Mike doesn't want to (for whatever reason); he'd rather adhere to the previous plan. Which is fine, but the organization must understand that it's really just bad PR at this point.

The thing I don't get is that so many fans here seem to be defending Mike's position ('this was already planned', 'he has the legal right', etc). Yes, we knew this was going to happen months ago ... but it doesn't change the current reality. What we're seeing in the media is the average public reaction.

The Beach Boys are probably the most important American group of all time. Regardless of the unfortunate things we've come to accept as fans over the years, a group touring as 'the Beach Boys' without Al, Brian and Dave at this point is tasteless.

Plans change. Keeping The Beach Boys together (whether this means cancelling the shows or including the rest of the guys) would be the right thing to do, all things considered. Something so obvious to anyone outside of the Beach Boys world seems foreign to some here who have come to accept the weirdness of the whole scene.

[EgoHanger1966]

I turned on the radio a few minutes ago and they were discussing the "break up"

People were talking about wanting refunds to the UK gigs.

But why? They want refunds for a show to protest the breakup that hasn't even happened yet?  All 5 BB will be on stage tomorrow...why would anyone refuse to see them now?   Their loss!  

Because there are some dumba*s people out there!

Heck, I'd be offering to take them off their hands cheap and then making a killing outside the gig.

When this whole celebration thing was announced Dec 16, who here would have put money on Brian agreeing to 50 gigs then upping that to 70 plus THEN want to keep it going? Strange things happen!

It's kinda easy to see that Brian likes it because he's Brian and leading concerts is something he still doesn't like to do. Although he still has his stage phobias, and looked nervous/scared/zonked sometimes on this tour, it must have been easier on him because he didn't have to worry about being the showman. Does he really want to go back to touring solo and having to take on those responsibilities again? I bet if he was the one with his piano upfront, trying to work the crowds, he wouldn't be so willing to keep on with these four bums....  

[18thofMay]

From what I understand some of the supporting band are fairly supportive of Mike and Bruce and are pretty keen for the tour to finish up!

[Justin]

As Jon pointed out, the main problem here is that Al, Brian and Dave want to continue with the 50th and keep the current band together. And that's what most of the fans want to. It's a beautiful thing.

But Mike doesn't want to (for whatever reason); he'd rather adhere to the previous plan. Which is fine, but the organization must understand that it's really just bad PR at this point.

The thing I don't get is that so many fans here seem to be defending Mike's position ('this was already planned', 'he has the legal right', etc). Yes, we knew this was going to happen months ago ... but it doesn't change the current reality. What we're seeing in the media is the average public reaction. 

Well the success of the reunion tour and the band's willingness to "continue" on really wasn't a reality when Mike booked these Mike/Bruce shows.  As far as he knew, the reunion would be done and over and everyone would be happy to move along.  It looks like everyone was surprised by how well the tour was going and were surprised to realize themselves that they wouldn't mind it continuing.  Too bad that Mike already made plans without them.  Now, Mike's gotta follow through with those plans.  It sucks...but I don't see any way around it.  We mentioned it earlier: it's great that Brian and Al are having a grand time on tour--but who's to say that Mike is having a great time having to answer to Brian's management for nearly every detail of this tour?  Al has said that every member needed to "give up something" to make this tour work--I have no doubt that Mike definitely had to give up a few things on his part in order to make this work.

The Beach Boys are probably the most important American group of all time. Regardless of the unfortunate things we've come to accept as fans over the years, a group touring as 'the Beach Boys' without Al, Brian and Dave at this point is tasteless.

I agree ...to a point.  But I think how Mike views the band and its legacy is far tougher than any of us care to see it.  I believe Mike believes that the Beach Boys legacy will sustain over any hardship--afterall, it always has!  Regardless of how things "unravel" after this reunion tour ends, even if he and Bruce go out on the road for 3 more years until Brian, Al, and David rejoin again---Mike is confident that the group will, once again, win.  The hype, the media and the fans will  all be there waiting for them.  We may treat their legacy a bit more carefully but Mike seems to believe that they will survive anything that comes their way. At the end of the day, Mike is a shrewd businessman who doesn't think with his heart---but just his brain.  That's the only way to do it.  Mike needs to move forward and if it means with his own band until the reunion group reforms again---so be it. 

It truely is amazing how much Mike Love and Chuck Berry are alike.  Mike has never been shy to admit just how much Chuck Berry was an influence on his lyric writing...well, the exact same can be said on Mike's business model.   He has followed Chuck's business mentality to the T:  push forward with very little/to no crew.  Chuck for years toured with a pickup band in every city.  He traveled all by himself from show to show.  This method resulted in very inconsistent shows with new musicians on every stop--with no rehearsal or soundcheck.  People grew concerned that his unwillingness to hire a steady band was in the end, hurting his legacy and his amazing catalog.  Going to see Chuck Berry was a gamble.   But with no crew/band, it meant for big checks for Chuck.   Thankfully today, Chuck now usually travels with his usual band when he goes from town to town.  So he eventually came around and learned that his way wasn't always the "only" way.  Hopefully Mike will come around one day too....

[bgas]

It truely is amazing how much Mike Love and Chuck Berry are alike.  Mike has never been shy to admit just how much Chuck Berry was an influence on his lyric writing...well, the exact same can be said on Mike's business model.   He has followed Chuck's business mentality to the T:  push forward with very little/to no crew.  Chuck for years toured with a pickup band in every city.  He traveled all by himself from show to show.  This method resulted in very inconsistent shows with new musicians on every stop--with no rehearsal or soundcheck.  People grew concerned that his unwillingness to hire a steady band was in the end, hurting his legacy and his amazing catalog.  Going to see Chuck Berry was a gamble.   But with no crew/band, it meant for big checks for Chuck.   Thankfully today, Chuck now usually travels with his usual band when he goes from town to town.  So he eventually came around and learned that his way wasn't always the "only" way.  Hopefully Mike will come around one day too....

  Mike is alreaady planning to tour with his own band, as he was doing before the reunion shows, so I don't think it's a great analogy.
 Perhaps he's simply using the M&B shows as leverage to force the writing of new songs with Brian

To make the upcoming UK show "just perfect",  it would be SUPER  for  Mike and Bruce  to come out and start the show without the others, as if they've been fired. 

[Justin]

Mike is alreaady planning to tour with his own band, as he was doing before the reunion shows, so I don't think it's a great analogy.

You missed the point.  Chuck stuck with a business plan because he thought it was the only thing best for him and his needs (travel light with no crew).  Mike is doing the same thing here by preferring to continue on with Bruce and their much smaller group instead of the larger crew that the reunion tour required.   Mike is unwilling to see things any other way except the only way he knows how to do things which is to carry on regardless of the situation.  Mike and Chuck have more in common than just lyrical chops.

[Shady]

The best headline so far

The Beach Boys Have Been Fired from The Beach Boys...

 

http://www.thedailyswarm.com/headlines/beach-boys-have-been-fired-beach-boys/

[Jonathan Blum]

It's kinda struck me as funny how for years many fans assumed that Mike was desperate to work with Brian under any circumstances - now these same type of people are criticising him for not jumping at the click of Brian's fingers.

I don't think people *have* been assuming that.  If anything, they've assumed that Mike was entirely happy to keep riding the ever-diminishing gravy train of touring without the others, based on the past nearly-fifteen years of that.  I don't think anyone figured that the reunion only came about now because *Brian* was playing hard-to-get...

Cheers,
Jon Blum