Your Personal Beach Boys Story

[Andrew G. Doe]

I also think it's pretty cool that there are people here like AGD that I've seen at these gigs too, never spoken to you Andrew...

Eh... I would probably have ignored you anyway. It's a long-established fact that I don't talk to mere fans at gigs and am, in fact, a complete asshole. 

[Pretty Funky]

The Bruce Johnston way of doing things then?

[MBE]

I also think it's pretty cool that there are people here like AGD that I've seen at these gigs too, never spoken to you Andrew...

Eh... I would probably have ignored you anyway. It's a long-established fact that I don't talk to mere fans at gigs and am, in fact, a complete asshole. 

We wouldn't want to spoil your image, but......he's actually fantastic!

[bgas]

A few minutes later we kind of got caught up in the crowd and talked to Al Jardine briefly. (He was touring with Brian for a short time in 2006.) My wife told Al that as an English teacher, she loves that he included a reference to Travels With Charley in "California." He said, "I'll letcha in on a little secret...I never actually read that book!" (Obviously -- because the lyrics sheet spells Charley's name incorrectly, and the book doesn't really take place in Salinas.) She laughed at the time, but she kind of looks back on that with disappointment; she can't help but feel a little let down.

"Travels with Charley" documents the driving trip John Steinbeck took in his camper with his dog Charley around the United States in the 1960s. He wanted to see the U.S. on a personal level, since he made his living writing about it. He wanted to know first hand what Americans were really like. However, he found that the "New America" did not live up to his expectations. He started his travels in Long Island, New York, then throughout the North, the Pacific Northwest, into Monterey, then down into his native Salinas Valley, across to Texas, up through the Deep South, and then back to New York. His whole trip encompassed nearly 10,000 miles.

Steinbeck was born and he grew up in Salinas. Steinbeck also wrote about the romance of his parents near Salinas in "Travels with Charley". Salinas is also a central location in many of Steinbeck's works. He spent much of his time on Fremont Peak (near Salinas). His goodbye to his past in "Travels With Charley" is some of Steinbeck's finest writing.

I happen to live near the "gateway" to Steinbeck Country. This area also includes Big Sur, where Al lives. He may not have read the book, but he knew exactly where he was writing about!

Have you ever been down Salinas way?
Where Steinbeck found the valley
And he wrote about it the way it was in his "Travelin's with Charley"

If you're ever in Salinas, Make sure to visit the Steinbeck Museum; it's a really great place!  

[mikeddonn]

I also think it's pretty cool that there are people here like AGD that I've seen at these gigs too, never spoken to you Andrew...

Eh... I would probably have ignored you anyway. It's a long-established fact that I don't talk to mere fans at gigs and am, in fact, a complete asshole. 

We wouldn't want to spoil your image, but......he's actually fantastic!

"I'll Bet He's Nice" 

[Jon Stebbins]

I've had a lot of really memorable moments, brushes with the boys so to speak...don't want to brag, I'm a fan and sometimes it just hits me how ridiculously cool/lucky/weird it is to have occasional interactions with my heroes that, well, make the fan in me go wow! I've met all of them and was really lucky, early on, before I was a writer, to meet Dennis in '78, Brian in '79 etc... But here's a few that stand out for me.

I was at Brian's solo gig in Orange County in 1999, this is before any of my books had been published, I know Brian had no idea who i was (he probably still doesn't)...but this night there was a short reception in the lobby area after the concert. I'd gone to the show with Ed Roach and we'd had an amazing time, so I'm just chilling in the lobby watching all these people swarming around Brian. He's chatting with friends and fans, signing stuff, he's really getting massive attention from too many people. Ed was off talking to people and I was standing alone. I was on the opposite side of the room from Brian, probably 100 feet away with 100 people in between us. I was just leaning against the wall, drinking a beer, watching Brian deal with the throng. Suddenly he locks eyes with me from way across the room. Its that intense Brian stare. I'm looking behind me, around me, thinking he must be looking at someone else. Right then he just bolts through the crowd, and like a lazer guided Wilson, he is walking straight towards me... still staring at me. And I'm still thinking he must be coming over to see someone else, or maybe there's a door here for him to disappear through. But no, he walks directly up to me, puts out his hand, and says with a great big smile, "thanks for coming to the show tonight!" I'm stunned as I shake his hand, and then he's gone. What? Did that just happen? No explanation. It was so cool, and so Brian.

Years later after some of my books had come out, my friend and collaborator Dave Marks and his wife Carrie are visiting my home. It just happens to be the weekend that I'm moving my family to another (better) house across town. So here's Beach Boy David Lee Marks schlepping my moving boxes from my garage to my van. That's right, David Marks is helping me move. As we're loading the van for another trip across town my phone rings. I run into the house and grab the phone, the caller ID says "Al Jardine"...i say hello, the voice (obviously Al) says, "Hi..is Dave there?" Ummm...yeah...hang on a sec, he's carrying boxes of my sh*t to my van..as I'm tracking down Dave, the phone beeps, its another call, I have call waiting...with Al on the line, the caller ID says the call coming in is from "Neil Young"...I say to Al, "can you hang on a minute...Neil Young is on the other line"...Well, it wasn't actually Neil himself, it was John Hanlon Neil's recording engineer who was at Neil's house mixing that day. "Sorry John i can't chat right now I have Al Jardine on the phone, and Dave Marks moving my furniture." This was one of those head shaking moments. BTW Al was confirming with Dave that he was driving up to see him, which he did the next day, my house is near Morro Bay, just an hour drive or so to Big Sur.

One more...I'm sitting with David at his home in NY, just mellow, on the couch both of us have guitars. Not really jamming, just noodling, He's an easy guy to hang and play a little with because he's generous and relaxed about it. I'm a novice guitarist compared to him, but he never makes me feel that way. We're just talking, playing, a very nice afternoon...and i start to play In My Room. Dave says, "actually...this is the way we played it"...and boom, its the record sitting next to me, but its alive. Hard to describe...but my mind was melting...just something so genuine, authentic, THAT sound...the fingers that recorded the classic, two feet away, showing me how. He says, "Carl did this, and I did this..." I'm drooling. Then he showed me how they played "What'd I Say"...and it sounds EXACTLY like the live Australia "64 version, that riff. Put it this way, sitting and hearing dave play that stuff is the absolute closest you can get to Carl Wilson now that he's gone. Carl's very unique guitar technique lives within David's DNA, he could play an interchangeable guitar dance with Carl, and he knows both partners moves in a way no one else does. This was a moment that gave me chills.

[leggo of my ego]

I've had a lot of really memorable moments, brushes with the boys so to speak...don't want to brag, I'm a fan and sometimes it just hits me how ridiculously cool/lucky/weird it is to have occasional interactions with my heroes that, well, make the fan in me go wow! I've met all of them and was really lucky, early on, before I was a writer, to meet Dennis in '78, Brian in '79 etc... But here's a few that stand out for me.

I was at Brian's solo gig in Orange County in 1999, this is before any of my books had been published, I know Brian had no idea who i was (he probably still doesn't)...but this night there was a short reception in the lobby area after the concert. I'd gone to the show with Ed Roach and we'd had an amazing time, so I'm just chilling in the lobby watching all these people swarming around Brian. He's chatting with friends and fans, signing stuff, he's really getting massive attention from too many people. Ed was off talking to people and I was standing alone. I was on the opposite side of the room from Brian, probably 100 feet away with 100 people in between us. I was just leaning against the wall, drinking a beer, watching Brian deal with the throng. Suddenly he locks eyes with me from way across the room. Its that intense Brian stare. I'm looking behind me, around me, thinking he must be looking at someone else. Right then he just bolts through the crowd, and like a lazer guided Wilson, he is walking straight towards me... still staring at me. And I'm still thinking he must be coming over to see someone else, or maybe there's a door here for him to disappear through. But no, he walks directly up to me, puts out his hand, and says with a great big smile, "thanks for coming to the show tonight!" I'm stunned as I shake his hand, and then he's gone. What? Did that just happen? No explanation. It was so cool, and so Brian.

Years later after some of my books had come out, my friend and collaborator Dave Marks and his wife Carrie are visiting my home. It just happens to be the weekend that I'm moving my family to another (better) house across town. So here's Beach Boy David Lee Marks schlepping my moving boxes from my garage to my van. That's right, David Marks is helping me move. As we're loading the van for another trip across town my phone rings. I run into the house and grab the phone, the caller ID says "Al Jardine"...i say hello, the voice (obviously Al) says, "Hi..is Dave there?" Ummm...yeah...hang on a sec, he's carrying boxes of my sh*t to my van..as I'm tracking down Dave, the phone beeps, its another call, I have call waiting...with Al on the line, the caller ID says the call coming in is from "Neil Young"...I say to Al, "can you hang on a minute...Neil Young is on the other line"...Well, it wasn't actually Neil himself, it was John Hanlon Neil's recording engineer who was at Neil's house mixing that day. "Sorry John i can't chat right now I have Al Jardine on the phone, and Dave Marks moving my furniture." This was one of those head shaking moments. BTW Al was confirming with Dave that he was driving up to see him, which he did the next day, my house is near Morro Bay, just an hour drive or so to Big Sur.

One more...I'm sitting with David at his home in NY, just mellow, on the couch both of us have guitars. Not really jamming, just noodling, He's an easy guy to hang and play a little with because he's generous and relaxed about it. I'm a novice guitarist compared to him, but he never makes me feel that way. We're just talking, playing, a very nice afternoon...and i start to play In My Room. Dave says, "actually...this is the way we played it"...and boom, its the record sitting next to me, but its alive. Hard to describe...but my mind was melting...just something so genuine, authentic, THAT sound...the fingers that recorded the classic, two feet away, showing me how. He says, "Carl did this, and I did this..." I'm drooling. Then he showed me how they played "What'd I Say"...and it sounds EXACTLY like the live Australia "64 version, that riff. Put it this way, sitting and hearing dave play that stuff is the absolute closest you can get to Carl Wilson now that he's gone. Carl's very unique guitar technique lives within David's DNA, he could play an interchangeable guitar dance with Carl, and he knows both partners moves in a way no one else does. This was a moment that gave me chills.

No one will top these. 

[Mikie]

A few minutes later we kind of got caught up in the crowd and talked to Al Jardine briefly. (He was touring with Brian for a short time in 2006.) My wife told Al that as an English teacher, she loves that he included a reference to Travels With Charley in "California." He said, "I'll letcha in on a little secret...I never actually read that book!" (Obviously -- because the lyrics sheet spells Charley's name incorrectly, and the book doesn't really take place in Salinas.) She laughed at the time, but she kind of looks back on that with disappointment; she can't help but feel a little let down.

"Travels with Charley" documents the driving trip John Steinbeck took in his camper with his dog Charley around the United States in the 1960s. He wanted to see the U.S. on a personal level, since he made his living writing about it. He wanted to know first hand what Americans were really like. However, he found that the "New America" did not live up to his expectations. He started his travels in Long Island, New York, then throughout the North, the Pacific Northwest, into Monterey, then down into his native Salinas Valley, across to Texas, up through the Deep South, and then back to New York. His whole trip encompassed nearly 10,000 miles.

Steinbeck was born and he grew up in Salinas. Steinbeck also wrote about the romance of his parents near Salinas in "Travels with Charley". Salinas is also a central location in many of Steinbeck's works. He spent much of his time on Fremont Peak (near Salinas). His goodbye to his past in "Travels With Charley" is some of Steinbeck's finest writing.

I happen to live near the "gateway" to Steinbeck Country. This area also includes Big Sur, where Al lives. He may not have read the book, but he knew exactly where he was writing about!

Have you ever been down Salinas way?
Where Steinbeck found the valley
And he wrote about it the way it was in his "Travelin's with Charley"

If you're ever in Salinas, Make sure to visit the Steinbeck Museum; it's a really great place!  

I have. And it is.     But.....where's Penny's Place?

[Mikie]

No one will top these.  

Oh! Oh!  Are we suppose to top each other's stories here??  I didn't know that!  I should post more in this thread then!  I mean, sh*t. That's what this board is about, right?  One-upmanship??

[Daniel]

Nah, its about reading amazing posts like yours and Jon's and loving this band even more

[MBE]

I've had a lot of really memorable moments, brushes with the boys so to speak...don't want to brag, I'm a fan and sometimes it just hits me how ridiculously cool/lucky/weird it is to have occasional interactions with my heroes that, well, make the fan in me go wow! I've met all of them and was really lucky, early on, before I was a writer, to meet Dennis in '78, Brian in '79 etc... But here's a few that stand out for me.

I was at Brian's solo gig in Orange County in 1999, this is before any of my books had been published, I know Brian had no idea who i was (he probably still doesn't)...but this night there was a short reception in the lobby area after the concert. I'd gone to the show with Ed Roach and we'd had an amazing time, so I'm just chilling in the lobby watching all these people swarming around Brian. He's chatting with friends and fans, signing stuff, he's really getting massive attention from too many people. Ed was off talking to people and I was standing alone. I was on the opposite side of the room from Brian, probably 100 feet away with 100 people in between us. I was just leaning against the wall, drinking a beer, watching Brian deal with the throng. Suddenly he locks eyes with me from way across the room. Its that intense Brian stare. I'm looking behind me, around me, thinking he must be looking at someone else. Right then he just bolts through the crowd, and like a lazer guided Wilson, he is walking straight towards me... still staring at me. And I'm still thinking he must be coming over to see someone else, or maybe there's a door here for him to disappear through. But no, he walks directly up to me, puts out his hand, and says with a great big smile, "thanks for coming to the show tonight!" I'm stunned as I shake his hand, and then he's gone. What? Did that just happen? No explanation. It was so cool, and so Brian.

Years later after some of my books had come out, my friend and collaborator Dave Marks and his wife Carrie are visiting my home. It just happens to be the weekend that I'm moving my family to another (better) house across town. So here's Beach Boy David Lee Marks schlepping my moving boxes from my garage to my van. That's right, David Marks is helping me move. As we're loading the van for another trip across town my phone rings. I run into the house and grab the phone, the caller ID says "Al Jardine"...i say hello, the voice (obviously Al) says, "Hi..is Dave there?" Ummm...yeah...hang on a sec, he's carrying boxes of my sh*t to my van..as I'm tracking down Dave, the phone beeps, its another call, I have call waiting...with Al on the line, the caller ID says the call coming in is from "Neil Young"...I say to Al, "can you hang on a minute...Neil Young is on the other line"...Well, it wasn't actually Neil himself, it was John Hanlon Neil's recording engineer who was at Neil's house mixing that day. "Sorry John i can't chat right now I have Al Jardine on the phone, and Dave Marks moving my furniture." This was one of those head shaking moments. BTW Al was confirming with Dave that he was driving up to see him, which he did the next day, my house is near Morro Bay, just an hour drive or so to Big Sur.

One more...I'm sitting with David at his home in NY, just mellow, on the couch both of us have guitars. Not really jamming, just noodling, He's an easy guy to hang and play a little with because he's generous and relaxed about it. I'm a novice guitarist compared to him, but he never makes me feel that way. We're just talking, playing, a very nice afternoon...and i start to play In My Room. Dave says, "actually...this is the way we played it"...and boom, its the record sitting next to me, but its alive. Hard to describe...but my mind was melting...just something so genuine, authentic, THAT sound...the fingers that recorded the classic, two feet away, showing me how. He says, "Carl did this, and I did this..." I'm drooling. Then he showed me how they played "What'd I Say"...and it sounds EXACTLY like the live Australia "64 version, that riff. Put it this way, sitting and hearing dave play that stuff is the absolute closest you can get to Carl Wilson now that he's gone. Carl's very unique guitar technique lives within David's DNA, he could play an interchangeable guitar dance with Carl, and he knows both partners moves in a way no one else does. This was a moment that gave me chills.

Great stuff Jon and I know you don't take it for granted. I've been lucky enough to have this happen for me with The First Edition and I can't tell you how rare it is that real friendships evolve from the groups you write about.

[Alan Smith]

I met Brian in Los Angeles in June, 1976. Then I hung out with him for about an hour at his house in Bel-Air.

Mikie, cool stuff, can you tell us more?  Did you get a sneak preview of 15 Big One's - or were you just shooting the breeze and enjoying the day?

[Mikie]

I met Brian in Los Angeles in June, 1976. Then I hung out with him for about an hour at his house in Bel-Air.

Mikie, cool stuff, can you tell us more?  Did you get a sneak preview of 15 Big One's - or were you just shooting the breeze and enjoying the day?

Yeah, it's a long story, Alan. One that I like to embellish and milk for all it's worth. 

Just kidding. I'm gonna send Jon my story and let him tell it. He's a better writer than I am.

[Alan Smith]

I met Brian in Los Angeles in June, 1976. Then I hung out with him for about an hour at his house in Bel-Air.

Mikie, cool stuff, can you tell us more?  Did you get a sneak preview of 15 Big One's - or were you just shooting the breeze and enjoying the day?

Yeah, it's a long story, Alan. One that I like to embellish and milk for all it's worth. 

Just kidding. I'm gonna send Jon my story and let him tell it. He's a better writer than I am.

Lived by Mikie; told by Jon Stebbins! 

A killer combo - Sign me up  - cheers, man - A

[metal flake paint]

I've had one BB encounter (shared this before.)

I saw the C50 show in Hong Kong, which blew my mind. That started the current obsession which has escalated to a hobby.

Much later in March, I was going to see Mike and Bruce. When waiting for the ferry, I saw Bruce, who I went to talk to. He was incredibly friendly, and I talked to him and Tim Bonhomme for a little while. Met Mike too, but briefy.

I'm glad to hear you had a good experience talking to Bruce. As has often been discussed around here, he seems to have his good and bad days.

I was at a pre-show gathering for Danish fans, when Mike and Bruce played in Copenhagen in around 2004,... or was it '05? Quite a few years ago at least. We were only about 10-15 hardcore fans gathered at a small meeting room we had booked at the venue. One of the fans went outside to catch some fresh air before the show, only to bump into Bruce who apparently was having a stroll around the venue. So this fan tells him about the fan gathering, Bruce says he'd be glad to stop by and say hi and the two of them come up to where the rest of us are. I then think that Bruce was underwhelmed by the poor turnout in there - I don't know if the fellow fan had given him the impression that there was hundreds of us there or a bunch of blonde, goodlookin' female fans. :-) Whatever, he came across as very grumpy, even dissing a teenage guy who asked him a, admittedly dumb, question. ("I can see in this old Danish teen magazine that when you played here in 66 you were wearing RED striped shirts. I thought you guys only wore blue stripes?") I can't remember how Bruce responded word by word but it was something along the lines of "how the f*** would I know or even care about what we wore that many years ago?" I don't blame Bruce though - it was a strange question. He seemed in a pretty bad mood and it was all pretty bizarre. Got to shake his hand though and have him sign my copy of Friends.

For me personally, such an encounter doesn't change anything at all. Being surrounded by geeky fanboys like myself mulling over the most inane details of your career could surely also piss me off.

Considering his mood and his opinion of Friends, you're lucky you got a signature 

[bgas]

Wish I could remember all my stories, if only to relate them to Jon so he could regale you with mine also   

[Alan Smith]

Wish I could remember all my stories, if only to relate them to Jon so he could regale you with mine also  

 Aren't better placed to visit Peter Reum?  Can't let Jon get all the scoops.

The pair of you should both be featured in ESQ, as far as I'm concerned.

[Jon Stebbins]

I met Brian in Los Angeles in June, 1976. Then I hung out with him for about an hour at his house in Bel-Air.

Mikie, cool stuff, can you tell us more?  Did you get a sneak preview of 15 Big One's - or were you just shooting the breeze and enjoying the day?

Yeah, it's a long story, Alan. One that I like to embellish and milk for all it's worth. 

Just kidding. I'm gonna send Jon my story and let him tell it. He's a better writer than I am.

Mikie and I were both at the same Beach Boys concert on July 2, 1976 at the Oakland Coliseum. Day on the Green. Brian was there too. And the Beach Boys came back in December and played the indoor Oakland Coliseum Arena. Bet Mikie was there too. So was Brian.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Interesting... someone I expected to be all over my last post hasn't said word one.

Also, in response to the off-board questions, I though I'd done the "Brian-played-"Rhapsody In Blue"-for-me-in-1985" story to death. 

[Jukka]

Interesting... someone I expected to be all over my last post hasn't said word one.

Also, in response to the off-board questions, I though I'd done the "Brian-played-"Rhapsody In Blue"-for-me-in-1985" story to death. 

No, you haven't! Do tell again, haven't heard this one...

[kwan_dk]

I've had one BB encounter (shared this before.)

I saw the C50 show in Hong Kong, which blew my mind. That started the current obsession which has escalated to a hobby.

Much later in March, I was going to see Mike and Bruce. When waiting for the ferry, I saw Bruce, who I went to talk to. He was incredibly friendly, and I talked to him and Tim Bonhomme for a little while. Met Mike too, but briefy.

I'm glad to hear you had a good experience talking to Bruce. As has often been discussed around here, he seems to have his good and bad days.

I was at a pre-show gathering for Danish fans, when Mike and Bruce played in Copenhagen in around 2004,... or was it '05? Quite a few years ago at least. We were only about 10-15 hardcore fans gathered at a small meeting room we had booked at the venue. One of the fans went outside to catch some fresh air before the show, only to bump into Bruce who apparently was having a stroll around the venue. So this fan tells him about the fan gathering, Bruce says he'd be glad to stop by and say hi and the two of them come up to where the rest of us are. I then think that Bruce was underwhelmed by the poor turnout in there - I don't know if the fellow fan had given him the impression that there was hundreds of us there or a bunch of blonde, goodlookin' female fans. :-) Whatever, he came across as very grumpy, even dissing a teenage guy who asked him a, admittedly dumb, question. ("I can see in this old Danish teen magazine that when you played here in 66 you were wearing RED striped shirts. I thought you guys only wore blue stripes?") I can't remember how Bruce responded word by word but it was something along the lines of "how the f*** would I know or even care about what we wore that many years ago?" I don't blame Bruce though - it was a strange question. He seemed in a pretty bad mood and it was all pretty bizarre. Got to shake his hand though and have him sign my copy of Friends.

For me personally, such an encounter doesn't change anything at all. Being surrounded by geeky fanboys like myself mulling over the most inane details of your career could surely also piss me off.

Considering his mood and his opinion of Friends, you're lucky you got a signature 

Ha ha, yeah, I was wondering when someone would pick up on that. In all fairness, I didn't know how he felt about the album back then. But yeah, asking him to sign it probably didn't help his mood one bit. 

[Daniel]

I met Brian in Los Angeles in June, 1976. Then I hung out with him for about an hour at his house in Bel-Air.

Mikie, cool stuff, can you tell us more?  Did you get a sneak preview of 15 Big One's - or were you just shooting the breeze and enjoying the day?

Yeah, it's a long story, Alan. One that I like to embellish and milk for all it's worth. 

Just kidding. I'm gonna send Jon my story and let him tell it. He's a better writer than I am.

I, for one, would love to hear that story. Do tell....

[Niko]

Glad this thread is here, you guys have some amazing stories! 
Keep em coming... 

[The Shift]

I run into the house and grab the phone, the caller ID says "Al Jardine"...i say hello, the voice (obviously Al) says, "Hi..is Dave there?" Ummm...yeah...hang on a sec, he's carrying boxes of my sh*t to my van..as I'm tracking down Dave, the phone beeps, its another call, I have call waiting...with Al on the line, the caller ID says the call coming in is from "Neil Young"...I say to Al, "can you hang on a minute...Neil Young is on the other line"...Well, it wasn't actually Neil himself, it was John Hanlon Neil's recording engineer who was at Neil's house mixing that day. "Sorry John i can't chat right now I have Al Jardine on the phone, and Dave Marks moving my furniture."

Marvellous!

[Matt Bielewicz]

I wouldn't attempt to top Jon's stories, but here's another one.

I nearly became a Beach Boys fan several times. My parents played the Live In London album all the time when I was a kid. I remember dancing to Good Vibrations and God Only Knows when I was five, but the live versions were all I ever heard. The other track I really remembered was "Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring" — the harmonies got me right away. But I never heard any studio versions of anything, and by seven, I had forgotten all about the Beach Boys, like you do at that age.

In 1988, my Dad mentioned that Brian Wilson was thinking about releasing his abandoned album SMiLE when a (Landy-sponsored?) story about it appeared in one of the UK weekend papers. I was a big Beatles and Simon & Garfunkel fan, and was fascinated that there was a whole classic 1960s album somehow sitting unreleased. I was also interested that the Beach Boys even *had* a weird 60s off-the-wall album at all. I couldn't imagine anyone more square at the time — the band had recently had their hit with the Fat Boys in the UK, and I was heavily into electronic music. A couple of years later, in about 1991, the story of the Fire session was related in a Melody Maker special book about unreleased albums, and I remembered the article my Dad had shown me. I was again briefly curious that the clean-cut, super-square Beach Boys had a drug-fuelled album of craziness filed away somewhere, but again, I never followed it up.

By 1995, lots of music journalists in the UK were talking about Pet Sounds and I wanted to know more. I also saw the Don Was film when it was first shown on TV. The short performance of Brian and Carl at the piano singing God Only Knows reminded me of that ancient copy of Live In London, and the clip of Brian singing Til I Die in that tickled my musical sensibilities (that ending! those harmonies!). I bought a Greatest Hits compilation, the Was soundtrack, and, remembering SMiLE for the third time, also got the nearest thing I could buy in 1995: the Smiley Smile/Wild Honey twofer. I was instantly fascinated by Heroes and Villains (and enjoyed reacquainting myself with 'Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring') and then became a full-on SMiLE nut, scouring the nascent Internet community of Beach Boys fans for information. Then it was business as usual round here: mixing my own SMiLE tape on a four-track, buying bootlegs, and so on and so on.

In 1999, I had a chance to go to California with my work for the first time, to a musical retail trade show (yawn). I had never been to America before, let alone California. The NAMM show (a trade-only event for musical instrument retailers) was in downtown Los Angeles that year. Normally it's held in Anaheim, south of LA, but for some reason it was at the LA Convention Centre for a couple of years around the Millennium instead. My work got us rooms at the Holiday Inn in Hollywood (which has now been demolished and replaced with the Renaissance hotel behind the Chinese Theater), within sight of the famous sign.

OK, so I hadn't boarded a time machine set for the 1960s Hollywood Boulevard, but this was the next best (and of course, in the absence of Bill & Ted's phone booth, the *only* available) thing. I was very California-struck and lapped up the ambience throughout the trip, visiting Venice Beach, and checking out the studios on Hollywood, the Hollywood Hills and the Farmer's Market at Fairfax & Third (anything about the address give you a clue as to why...?). I also did something that Dauber (I think) wrote about on the Internet years ago, about coming in to land at LAX, looking over the roofs and houses of South LA and thinking 'the Beach Boys grew up somewhere down there. And if there's any tapes left with SMiLE on them, they're SOMEWHERE DOWN THERE. How weird is that??' I did the same.

Anyway, I got ready for the mind-numbing dullness of a music biz trade show, and got myself to the LA Convention Center about half an hour before the doors opened to the public on the first morning. I had an exhibitors' pass, so I was allowed in early and I wandered through one of the large foyers next to an exhibition hall, psyching myself up for a few days of mindlessly pressing flesh and schmoozing visitors to the show.

Suddenly, I saw a big guy and a petite lady ambling down the foyer towards me. "Huh, crazy," I thought. "My first ever trip to LA and I run straight into a bloke that looks just like Brian Wilson. Hey, this guy even walks like him..."

You can guess the rest. It WAS Brian, checking out the keyboards at NAMM as he is wont to do every few years. I believe the lady with him may have been Lauri Klobas - she was certainly organising him and 'straightening his tie', metaphorically speaking.

Well, I'd love to say that I impressed Brian with my wit and love of steak so much that I ended up jamming all night at Ocean Way with him, high on ReddiWhip, but of course I didn't — I did what most of us here, I suspect, would do. Knowing full well already what the answer was, I stammered out "Are you Brian Wilson?" and when he shambled out a sort of broken "Well... yes I am!" in return and the lady started trying to head me off, muttering something like "Brian really has to get to an appointment right now..." I just about managed to thank him for all the music he'd made and tell him how much I loved Pet Sounds (I remembered not to mention SMiLE - these were the days when you weren't supposed to do that to Brian...), shook his hand, made my excuses and left the foyer, my head absolutely spinning.

I still can't quite believe that of all the 315 million people I could meet in public on my first ever trip to the United States of America, I ran right into Brian Wilson, who by then was a musical hero of mine and one of the country's most favoured, yet reclusive sons — and I shook his hand. The odds against it were and are staggering — but it happened. I swear I am not making this up!

I continued going to the NAMM show for the next decade, but it was all downhill from that moment. I mean, where do you go from there...?