Stamos accused…

[18thofMay]

Wait for it…  DENNIS!

First time I ever heard that. I always thought it was Mike, especially since he gave Endless Summer its title. And wasn't he involved with the track selections? Really surprising that Dennis gave up on the artsy fartsy stuff he'd been working on, even after his hand injury. What did he (and Carl) have in the can at that point? River Song. And the stuff they cut at Caribou. And the songs that have eventually been released after he died. This is a very surprising revelation. I always thought Carl bowed to Mike after the success of Endless Summer and Spirit Of America and that was it.

So they listened to Dennis......

The group agreed with Dennis.  They all wanted to fill the seats.  Without a fan base you're nothing.  Your statement about the rest of the stuff involving Dennis is a different subject (studio recordings, etc.) and should not be confused with the group agreeing to have Dennis approach Jim Guercio about helping them out with their live performances.  There is an awful lot of uninformed hypothesis being thrown around on this board.  A LOT of broad stroke statements.  You are aware that Dennis released the best of ALL the solo albums in 1977?  Why would you ask this question?

I have no problem saying if you want to learn more about The Beach Boys, then subscribe to ESQ.  Or, at the very least, order back issues that cover topics that interest you.  It is not up to those "in the know" or "on the inside" (or whatever term you want to use here) to spend our time here giving you inside scoops or explaining the group's history.  Back in the day before message boards, we didn't call everyone we knew after an interview and tell them everything.  They got the information when the issue was mailed.  Before ESQ (and other BB fanzines) you had to drive to a record  and book store (sometimes the same place).  

The only reason I became involved in this thread was to share a firsthand example of a group of guys (Mike Love & company) treated my son Ethan like he was one of the gang.  I don't appreciate ANYONE taking a shot at my relationship with the band members and how that is why they were kind to my son (who has special needs).  That's not asking too much is it?  <— I am not asking this in a sarcastic tone.  I mean it.  

I care deeply about the group's legacy and every member knows that I love them.  I have been involved with ESQ for 21 years, but that does not entitle me to anything.  It does afford me the opportunity to provide a service to the fans of the music of The Beach Boys.  Because I oversee the content for each edition of ESQ, it is my intent to supply the reader with content about Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston and everlasting musical imprints left behind by Dennis and Carl Wilson.  I am proud to say, for the most part, ESQ is successful in this endeavor.  

I got involved with ESQ because I was FASCINATED with Smile…could not get enough.  I traveled to a record convention, met Lee Dempsey…and the rest they say is history.  After that I watched the An American Band video…now I was REALLY going nuts.  MORE!!  Then came Pet Sounds., and books by David Leaf, Byron Preiss and John Milward.  

For me, the best part about being a Beach Boys fan is the music…not how many silly pictures of Mike Love there are…not whether or not beach balls at a concert made an appearance, etc.

Stop for just a second…

Isn't there a song by the group that just turns you on your head?  Get your foot tapping?  Gives you goose bumps?  Moves you to a deeply emotional place (even though you've heard it countless times)?  Versatility.  

For me, music is color, and the music of The Beach Boys is as vivid as any painting I've ever seen hanging in a museum.  

Fact, Brian is a world class studio GENIUS.
Fact, Mike is a world class entertainer (and pretty damn good lyricist).
Fact, Al's voice is the best in the business (in any group that has been around for five generations)
Fact, Bruce is a the only classically trained musician (and has compositional and arranging skills that deserve deeper inspection).
Fact, David is a living example of the authentic surf guitar sound.
Fact, Dennis and Carl will NEVER be replaced…there is no debate.  *No one is trying to replace them.

I invite all of you to subscribe to ESQ, or buy one issue.  See what you think.  The only thing that I can guarantee is — like you — I love the music, and it shows in every quarterly issue.  Once you have it start a thread here about the mag.  Post your thoughts.  I'll listen.
http://www.esquarterly.com/order.html

One of, if not the best post I have ever read on this forum!

[The Cincinnati Kid]

Here's a question (please don't answer AGD):
Which member of The Beach Boys is primarily responsible for initiating the group's changing back to oldies act in 1974?

Don't guess… Oh, and it wasn't John Stamos.

Carl?

Not Carl…not Mike…not Brian…not Bruce…not Al.

Wait for it…  DENNIS!

He sure does, because after talking to Carl and Mike Dennis went up to Caribou to see Guercio.

David, didn't Jim Guercio also have a pretty big hand in it, as well?

Yes, he did.  Dennis was responsible for visiting Guercio and asking him to come see their shows to see what they were doing wrong (as their audiences were declining).  This was after a vote was taken with Carl, Mike and Al present. 

Guercio told me this firsthand back in 2008 when I interviewed him for the Dennis Wilson Legacy edition notes that I co-authored with Jon Stebbins.  We used some of this in the liner notes, but the interview appears in its original unabridged form in the Summer 2008 edition of ESQ.  Stebbins and I had the good fortune of spending some time with Jim at the Wilson release Party @ Dennis' son Michael's "Wilson" restaurant in '08.  It was a very memorable night.

And that right there is one of the reasons why it's worth being an ESQ subscriber!

Cheers!!

I know you've sold me.  I'll be paying through paypal, so all I have to do is send the money and I'll see an issue in the mail in a few weeks?

Yep.  Sometimes, depending on schedules, it can take up to four weeks, but it is seldom that it takes that long.     

Ok, thanks!  Can't wait to get it!

[Cyncie]

22 pages in. Maybe we're finally winding down. Someone should do a flow chart for these types of topics. It would save us a lot of time.

[Pinder's Gone To Kokomo And Back Again]

These kinds of discussions are always a giant infinity pool because no matter how much we talk up Brian as this great intellectual artist and diss Mike, Stamos, Bruce, etc ...... the truth is, The Beach Boys are goofballs who made goofball music. Sure, they were cool enough in the very early days when surf music was the thing, but ever since The Beatles, they've been the major dorks they always really were..... Even Dennis was a major dork by association. Pet Sounds is a bit less dorky, but even SMILE is totally dorky and lame: songs about the old west and You Are My Sunshine, Plymoth Rock, Crows, "You're under arrest"!!!! .... Awesome stuff, yes, but completely lame and dorky and cheeseball .... Soooooooooo, turning into an "oldies" act at whatever point, Stamos, Summer Of Love ..... none of this is really much of a drop in dorkiness from what came before ...... Maybe they were a bit cooler again circa CATP, HOLLAND, but that's a mere blip on the radar .... Love You has got to be one of the  most gloriously lame and idiotic creations ever released!!!! It's an amazing album but it's not like you can hold it up next to Tago Mago or something and a random listener might mistake the latter for being the totally lame product of the two..... So, maybe it's unfortunate to have to accept Stamos as just more continued numbskull, dorky behavior by the most awesome dorks in the history of the world ever, but it helps to just let it roll ...... I see Brian's camp try and fight it. His band are all really hip and cool guys but why do they have them wearing such lame, bright colored duds and Hawaiian-shirts-in-denial? Why? Because they know they can't completely win the fight over the basic inherent dorkiness of the material. EVEN the high art stuff. Hell, Mike and Bruce's band actually dresses more cool than Brian's? Why is that? Well, maybe it's because Mike couldn't give two fucks about coming off as hip or artiste, so there's no pressure or insecurity. He revels in the cheese and owns it! And what's wrong with that? .....

Anyhow, I just see these arguments as fruitless in the end ..... The Beach Boys and what they were and what they are. And it's so easy to accept it and love it ...... ALL of it.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Problem is, human nature. I will never stop picking people up on ridiculously petty points of BB history... OSD would never have stopped lambasting Mike in his tediously puerile manner, to name but two shining examples. Mostly, we're people who won't change their spots. In some cases it's like trying to have a reasoned discussion about evolution with a Creationist from Hooterville, Mississippi. Shouting will inevitably ensue. Some posters have an axe to grind, be it real or imagined, others have their preferences, others still post mainly to amuse (frequently only themselves) and yet others... well, I've not really worked them out yet, but in the main we post here because of our deep and abiding love of the band and the music. And the mystery.

[Tab Lloyd]

So true. Embrace the dorkiness. We are all dork followers, if not fellow dorks.

These kinds of discussions are always a giant infinity pool because no matter how much we talk up Brian as this great intellectual artist and diss Mike, Stamos, Bruce, etc ...... the truth is, The Beach Boys are goofballs who made goofball music. Sure, they were cool enough in the very early days when surf music was the thing, but ever since The Beatles, they've been the major dorks they always really were..... Even Dennis was a major dork by association. Pet Sounds is a bit less dorky, but even SMILE is totally dorky and lame: songs about the old west and You Are My Sunshine, Plymoth Rock, Crows, "You're under arrest"!!!! .... Awesome stuff, yes, but completely lame and dorky and cheeseball .... Soooooooooo, turning into an "oldies" act at whatever point, Stamos, Summer Of Love ..... none of this is really much of a drop in dorkiness from what came before ...... Maybe they were a bit cooler again circa CATP, HOLLAND, but that's a mere blip on the radar .... Love You has got to be one of the  most gloriously lame and idiotic creations ever released!!!! It's an amazing album but it's not like you can hold it up next to Tago Mago or something and a random listener might mistake the latter for being the totally lame product of the two..... So, maybe it's unfortunate to have to accept Stamos as just more continued numbskull, dorky behavior by the most awesome dorks in the history of the world ever, but it helps to just let it roll ...... I see Brian's camp try and fight it. His band are all really hip and cool guys but why do they have them wearing such lame, bright colored duds and Hawaiian-shirts-in-denial? Why? Because they know they can't completely win the fight over the basic inherent dorkiness of the material. EVEN the high art stuff. Hell, Mike and Bruce's band actually dresses more cool than Brian's? Why is that? Well, maybe it's because Mike couldn't give two fucks about coming off as hip or artiste, so there's no pressure or insecurity. He revels in the cheese and owns it! And what's wrong with that? .....

Anyhow, I just see these arguments as fruitless in the end ..... The Beach Boys and what they were and what they are. And it's so easy to accept it and love it ...... ALL of it.

[Lowbacca]

Problem is, human nature. I will never stop picking people up on ridiculously petty points of BB history... OSD would never have stopped lambasting Mike in his tediously puerile manner, to name but two shining examples. Mostly, we're people who won't change their spots. In some cases it's like trying to have a reasoned discussion about evolution with a Creationist from Hooterville, Mississippi. Shouting will inevitably ensue. Some posters have an axe to grind, be it real or imagined, others have their preferences, others still post mainly to amuse (frequently only themselves) and yet others... well, I've not really worked them out yet, but in the main we post here because of our deep and abiding love of the band and the music. And the mystery.

Well put.

[ToneBender631]

Just to stir things up a bit more, here's an excerpt of a post Mike made a few hours ago on Facebook:

"We had a full stage these last few shows. You may even say a 'full house.' It's always so great to have our dear friend of nearly 30 years John Stamos out with us. His energy, charisma and musicianship add so much. And to watch the crowd respond is quite a thrill. We also had David Marks out with us. His authentic tasty surf licks on the lead guitar bring me right back to our first few years when my cousins and I hoped in the old station wagon and played high school dances and municipal auditoriums."

-------

Is it me, or does Stamos get more props, you may even say "Love", in that paragraph than David, an original member of the band? I think this kind of sums it up, doesn't it? John, his dear friend (no argument there), brings "energy, charisma, and musicianship (?!?!?!?)" whereas David brings "authentic tasty surf licks" and reminds him of "when my cousins and I hopped in the old station wagon" (was David not in said wagon?) to play high school gyms and town auditoriums.

Am I the only one that took that paragraph as Mike elevating John higher than David in importance and talent? Or is Mike just aware of the drubbing his dear friend has been taking on here the past week or two and saw fit to rectify that with his words?

[Cam Mott]

Just to stir things up a bit more, here's an excerpt of a post Mike made a few hours ago on Facebook:

"We had a full stage these last few shows. You may even say a 'full house.' It's always so great to have our dear friend of nearly 30 years John Stamos out with us. His energy, charisma and musicianship add so much. And to watch the crowd respond is quite a thrill. We also had David Marks out with us. His authentic tasty surf licks on the lead guitar bring me right back to our first few years when my cousins and I hoped in the old station wagon and played high school dances and municipal auditoriums."

-------

Is it me, or does Stamos get more props, you may even say "Love", in that paragraph than David, an original member of the band? I think this kind of sums it up, doesn't it? John, his dear friend (no argument there), brings "energy, charisma, and musicianship (?!?!?!?)" whereas David brings "authentic tasty surf licks" and reminds him of "when my cousins and I hopped in the old station wagon" (was David not in said wagon?) to play high school gyms and town auditoriums.

Am I the only one that took that paragraph as Mike elevating John higher than David in importance and talent? Or is Mike just aware of the drubbing his dear friend has been taking on here the past week or two and saw fit to rectify that with his words?

It's just you.

[Nicko1234]

Just to stir things up a bit more, here's an excerpt of a post Mike made a few hours ago on Facebook:

"We had a full stage these last few shows. You may even say a 'full house.' It's always so great to have our dear friend of nearly 30 years John Stamos out with us. His energy, charisma and musicianship add so much. And to watch the crowd respond is quite a thrill. We also had David Marks out with us. His authentic tasty surf licks on the lead guitar bring me right back to our first few years when my cousins and I hoped in the old station wagon and played high school dances and municipal auditoriums."

-------

Is it me, or does Stamos get more props, you may even say "Love", in that paragraph than David, an original member of the band? I think this kind of sums it up, doesn't it? John, his dear friend (no argument there), brings "energy, charisma, and musicianship (?!?!?!?)" whereas David brings "authentic tasty surf licks" and reminds him of "when my cousins and I hopped in the old station wagon" (was David not in said wagon?) to play high school gyms and town auditoriums.

Am I the only one that took that paragraph as Mike elevating John higher than David in importance and talent? Or is Mike just aware of the drubbing his dear friend has been taking on here the past week or two and saw fit to rectify that with his words?

His comments about the station wagon were obviously meant because David was there back then too. He was being positive about both of them.

[leggo of my ego]

These kinds of discussions are always a giant infinity pool because no matter how much we talk up Brian as this great intellectual artist and diss Mike, Stamos, Bruce, etc ...... the truth is, The Beach Boys are goofballs who made goofball music. Sure, they were cool enough in the very early days when surf music was the thing, but ever since The Beatles, they've been the major dorks they always really were..... Even Dennis was a major dork by association. Pet Sounds is a bit less dorky, but even SMILE is totally dorky and lame: songs about the old west and You Are My Sunshine, Plymoth Rock, Crows, "You're under arrest"!!!! .... Awesome stuff, yes, but completely lame and dorky and cheeseball .... Soooooooooo, turning into an "oldies" act at whatever point, Stamos, Summer Of Love ..... none of this is really much of a drop in dorkiness from what came before ...... Maybe they were a bit cooler again circa CATP, HOLLAND, but that's a mere blip on the radar .... Love You has got to be one of the  most gloriously lame and idiotic creations ever released!!!! It's an amazing album but it's not like you can hold it up next to Tago Mago or something and a random listener might mistake the latter for being the totally lame product of the two..... So, maybe it's unfortunate to have to accept Stamos as just more continued numbskull, dorky behavior by the most awesome dorks in the history of the world ever, but it helps to just let it roll ...... I see Brian's camp try and fight it. His band are all really hip and cool guys but why do they have them wearing such lame, bright colored duds and Hawaiian-shirts-in-denial? Why? Because they know they can't completely win the fight over the basic inherent dorkiness of the material. EVEN the high art stuff. Hell, Mike and Bruce's band actually dresses more cool than Brian's? Why is that? Well, maybe it's because Mike couldn't give two fucks about coming off as hip or artiste, so there's no pressure or insecurity. He revels in the cheese and owns it! And what's wrong with that? .....

Anyhow, I just see these arguments as fruitless in the end ..... The Beach Boys and what they were and what they are. And it's so easy to accept it and love it ...... ALL of it.

So you think the Beach Boys are dorks and their music is dorky?

I love the BB music despite the tumultuous & dysfunctional history of the band members.

But calling them dorky just makes you sound like the dork, Pinder. jeez. or are you kidding around?

[Lowbacca]

These kinds of discussions are always a giant infinity pool because no matter how much we talk up Brian as this great intellectual artist and diss Mike, Stamos, Bruce, etc ...... the truth is, The Beach Boys are goofballs who made goofball music. Sure, they were cool enough in the very early days when surf music was the thing, but ever since The Beatles, they've been the major dorks they always really were..... Even Dennis was a major dork by association. Pet Sounds is a bit less dorky, but even SMILE is totally dorky and lame: songs about the old west and You Are My Sunshine, Plymoth Rock, Crows, "You're under arrest"!!!! .... Awesome stuff, yes, but completely lame and dorky and cheeseball .... Soooooooooo, turning into an "oldies" act at whatever point, Stamos, Summer Of Love ..... none of this is really much of a drop in dorkiness from what came before ...... Maybe they were a bit cooler again circa CATP, HOLLAND, but that's a mere blip on the radar .... Love You has got to be one of the  most gloriously lame and idiotic creations ever released!!!! It's an amazing album but it's not like you can hold it up next to Tago Mago or something and a random listener might mistake the latter for being the totally lame product of the two..... So, maybe it's unfortunate to have to accept Stamos as just more continued numbskull, dorky behavior by the most awesome dorks in the history of the world ever, but it helps to just let it roll ...... I see Brian's camp try and fight it. His band are all really hip and cool guys but why do they have them wearing such lame, bright colored duds and Hawaiian-shirts-in-denial? Why? Because they know they can't completely win the fight over the basic inherent dorkiness of the material. EVEN the high art stuff. Hell, Mike and Bruce's band actually dresses more cool than Brian's? Why is that? Well, maybe it's because Mike couldn't give two fucks about coming off as hip or artiste, so there's no pressure or insecurity. He revels in the cheese and owns it! And what's wrong with that? .....

Anyhow, I just see these arguments as fruitless in the end ..... The Beach Boys and what they were and what they are. And it's so easy to accept it and love it ...... ALL of it.

So you think the Beach Boys are dorks and their music is dorky?

I love the BB music despite the tumultuous & dysfunctional history of the band members.

But calling them dorky just makes you sound like the dork, Pinder. jeez. or are you kidding around?

Well, they are dorky? Pinder may exaggerate a bit, but.. er, no, actually, they have been, are and will always be on the dorky side of life. And there's nothing wrong with it. I sympathise.

[leggo of my ego]

These kinds of discussions are always a giant infinity pool because no matter how much we talk up Brian as this great intellectual artist and diss Mike, Stamos, Bruce, etc ...... the truth is, The Beach Boys are goofballs who made goofball music. Sure, they were cool enough in the very early days when surf music was the thing, but ever since The Beatles, they've been the major dorks they always really were..... Even Dennis was a major dork by association. Pet Sounds is a bit less dorky, but even SMILE is totally dorky and lame: songs about the old west and You Are My Sunshine, Plymoth Rock, Crows, "You're under arrest"!!!! .... Awesome stuff, yes, but completely lame and dorky and cheeseball .... Soooooooooo, turning into an "oldies" act at whatever point, Stamos, Summer Of Love ..... none of this is really much of a drop in dorkiness from what came before ...... Maybe they were a bit cooler again circa CATP, HOLLAND, but that's a mere blip on the radar .... Love You has got to be one of the  most gloriously lame and idiotic creations ever released!!!! It's an amazing album but it's not like you can hold it up next to Tago Mago or something and a random listener might mistake the latter for being the totally lame product of the two..... So, maybe it's unfortunate to have to accept Stamos as just more continued numbskull, dorky behavior by the most awesome dorks in the history of the world ever, but it helps to just let it roll ...... I see Brian's camp try and fight it. His band are all really hip and cool guys but why do they have them wearing such lame, bright colored duds and Hawaiian-shirts-in-denial? Why? Because they know they can't completely win the fight over the basic inherent dorkiness of the material. EVEN the high art stuff. Hell, Mike and Bruce's band actually dresses more cool than Brian's? Why is that? Well, maybe it's because Mike couldn't give two fucks about coming off as hip or artiste, so there's no pressure or insecurity. He revels in the cheese and owns it! And what's wrong with that? .....

Anyhow, I just see these arguments as fruitless in the end ..... The Beach Boys and what they were and what they are. And it's so easy to accept it and love it ...... ALL of it.

So you think the Beach Boys are dorks and their music is dorky?

I love the BB music despite the tumultuous & dysfunctional history of the band members.

But calling them dorky just makes you sound like the dork, Pinder. jeez. or are you kidding around?

Well, they are dorky? Pinder may exaggerate a bit, but.. er, no, actually, they have been, are and will always be on the dorky side of life. And there's nothing wrong with it. I sympathise.

You should have posted pics of KISS - in my book thats dorky.

Oh well, lets all just self-depreciate into a primordial  puddle of "dorkiness" to be One with the BB.

 

[startBBtoday]

Just to stir things up a bit more, here's an excerpt of a post Mike made a few hours ago on Facebook:

"We had a full stage these last few shows. You may even say a 'full house.' It's always so great to have our dear friend of nearly 30 years John Stamos out with us. His energy, charisma and musicianship add so much. And to watch the crowd respond is quite a thrill. We also had David Marks out with us. His authentic tasty surf licks on the lead guitar bring me right back to our first few years when my cousins and I hoped in the old station wagon and played high school dances and municipal auditoriums."

-------

Is it me, or does Stamos get more props, you may even say "Love", in that paragraph than David, an original member of the band? I think this kind of sums it up, doesn't it? John, his dear friend (no argument there), brings "energy, charisma, and musicianship (?!?!?!?)" whereas David brings "authentic tasty surf licks" and reminds him of "when my cousins and I hopped in the old station wagon" (was David not in said wagon?) to play high school gyms and town auditoriums.

Am I the only one that took that paragraph as Mike elevating John higher than David in importance and talent? Or is Mike just aware of the drubbing his dear friend has been taking on here the past week or two and saw fit to rectify that with his words?

Well, he used 36 words on Stamos and 45 on Marks, so it might just be you.

[startBBtoday]

This is hilarious: After Stamos sang "Forever" at the Ohio State fair, he dedicates the song to Nelson Bragg:

http://youtu.be/WMYEAfpPgsc?t=52m7s

He also thanks Brian, Carl, Dennis, Al, Bruce and Mike (in that order) for the Beach Boys' music before going into the song.

[Mikie]

One of, if not the best post I have ever read on this forum!

You must not read the forum very much.

[Mikie]

Just to stir things up a bit more, here's an excerpt of a post Mike made a few hours ago on Facebook:

"We had a full stage these last few shows. You may even say a 'full house.' It's always so great to have our dear friend of nearly 30 years John Stamos out with us. His energy, charisma and musicianship add so much. And to watch the crowd respond is quite a thrill. We also had David Marks out with us. His authentic tasty surf licks on the lead guitar bring me right back to our first few years when my cousins and I hoped in the old station wagon and played high school dances and municipal auditoriums."

-------

Is it me, or does Stamos get more props, you may even say "Love", in that paragraph than David, an original member of the band? I think this kind of sums it up, doesn't it? John, his dear friend (no argument there), brings "energy, charisma, and musicianship (?!?!?!?)" whereas David brings "authentic tasty surf licks" and reminds him of "when my cousins and I hopped in the old station wagon" (was David not in said wagon?) to play high school gyms and town auditoriums.

Am I the only one that took that paragraph as Mike elevating John higher than David in importance and talent? Or is Mike just aware of the drubbing his dear friend has been taking on here the past week or two and saw fit to rectify that with his words?

Nope, don't see any stirring here. Mike gave equal time to both of his good friends.

[Lowbacca]

This is hilarious: After Stamos sang "Forever" at the Ohio State fair, he dedicates the song to Nelson Bragg:

http://youtu.be/WMYEAfpPgsc?t=52m7s

[Ang Jones]

I think some of the lyrics are dorky (and I'm not just picking on Mike here - 'If Mars had life on it, I might find my wife on it' wasn't written by Mike) but the music is in many cases extremely sophisticated. The Beach Boys are almost defined by such contradictions.

Those beach balls - I'm not an intellectual snob. Sometimes it comes across to me as cynical. It's not that the audience all arrived bearing beach balls. It's a deliberate attempt to create a particular atmosphere. Surely if the music is right it can do that on its own? And during 409 or Ballad of Old Betsy but being hit on the head by a ball thrown by some prat during God Only Knows - no thanks.

Each to his own.

John Stamos dedicating Forever to Nelson?  Wonder what he will dedicate to this thread if it's still going on when they do the next show?

[Lowbacca]

[...] Wonder what he will dedicate to this thread if it's still going on when they do the next show?

"Our Team".

[ToneBender631]

Just to stir things up a bit more, here's an excerpt of a post Mike made a few hours ago on Facebook:

"We had a full stage these last few shows. You may even say a 'full house.' It's always so great to have our dear friend of nearly 30 years John Stamos out with us. His energy, charisma and musicianship add so much. And to watch the crowd respond is quite a thrill. We also had David Marks out with us. His authentic tasty surf licks on the lead guitar bring me right back to our first few years when my cousins and I hoped in the old station wagon and played high school dances and municipal auditoriums."

-------

Is it me, or does Stamos get more props, you may even say "Love", in that paragraph than David, an original member of the band? I think this kind of sums it up, doesn't it? John, his dear friend (no argument there), brings "energy, charisma, and musicianship (?!?!?!?)" whereas David brings "authentic tasty surf licks" and reminds him of "when my cousins and I hopped in the old station wagon" (was David not in said wagon?) to play high school gyms and town auditoriums.

Am I the only one that took that paragraph as Mike elevating John higher than David in importance and talent? Or is Mike just aware of the drubbing his dear friend has been taking on here the past week or two and saw fit to rectify that with his words?

Well, he used 36 words on Stamos and 45 on Marks, so it might just be you.

Really? Word count has something to do with it? Not the actual words themselves? That's got to be one of the more ridiculous things I've read in quite awhile.

He praises the "energy, charisma and musicianship" and then comments on the crowd reaction for Stamos. Then he says that David played the "authentic tasty surf licks" that brought him back to riding a station wagon playing school gyms when the band first started. You're right, since David got more "words" that means that the words that he used don't matter.

[Mike's Beard]

Everytime David plays with Mike his presence and playing remind Mike of the early days when everything about the band was young and new and exciting. It was no doubt one of the best times of Mike's life. He could not have praised Dave higher than what he said.

[Bean Bag]

In some cases it's like trying to have a reasoned discussion about evolution with a Creationist from Hooterville, Mississippi.

OR   hee-hee-hee . . . like having a reasoned discussion on religion, creationism (and why there even is evolution in the first place) with a fascist, Evolutionist from Intolerantville, Buttland.

[ToneBender631]

Everytime David plays with Mike his presence and playing remind Mike of the early days when everything about the band was young and new and exciting. It was no doubt one of the best times of Mike's life. He could not have praised Dave higher than what he said.

That's a more reasonable explanation to me, although the comments about Stamos, as compared to the limited praise for David, struck me a little bit as overcompensating. I seem to recall some folks going to the recent JB show and mentioning that David was barely even acknowledged up on-stage, especially compared to John's presence. That's kind of the thing that rubs me (and others) the wrong way and that's not in any way meant as a dig towards John.

[SMiLE Brian]

Its all about Stamos.