Brian / Al / Blondie Summer 2015 Tour Thread

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

To quote Brian when introducng "Wild Honey" last night:  "It rocks like all hell."

Who's Random Black Man?

[Rocker]

Note to future reviewers: The white piano is just a shell holding BW's usual electric keyboard. Try not to make too much of it. A great piece otherwise, though!

I remember I realized that when I saw them taking it apart between his and Jeff Beck's set on the 2013 tour, I thought that was pretty funny.  But it makes for a cool looking prop nonetheless.

That's common practice in the business and has been so for quite a while. It's much easier to have the great sight of a grand piano that way but at the same time don't have to worry about tuning.

[Autotune]

I'm a big fan of Brian's rendition of Busy. Surf's Up... nnnnno.

[guitarfool2002]

Note to future reviewers: The white piano is just a shell holding BW's usual electric keyboard. Try not to make too much of it. A great piece otherwise, though!

I remember I realized that when I saw them taking it apart between his and Jeff Beck's set on the 2013 tour, I thought that was pretty funny.  But it makes for a cool looking prop nonetheless.

That's common practice in the business and has been so for quite a while. It's much easier to have the great sight of a grand piano that way but at the same time don't have to worry about tuning.

Common practice is correct, maybe even moreso in the world of guitars and amps, especially in how rock shows have been staged for years. It's part of stage design. Many rock shows which feature heavy guitar have been staged for decades where the visual on stage is the guitarist rocking out in front of a wall of amps, it used to be walls of Marshall full stacks or Orange stacks, or a bank of Fender Twins or AC30's. Most of those setups were done purely for show. Stage a rock show, have a wall of Marshall amps on stage.

The truth is, in most cases only one of those amps is actually the primary amp that is mic'ed and going to the house, or if it's stereo then several mic'ed and panned as needed.

Neil Young on various tours was known for having a wall of amps on stage as part of the set. Yet his actual tone was coming from a small Fender tweed Deluxe outfitted with a mechanical switching device he called "The Whizzer", a low-wattage 50's amp that was generating his main tone which the crowd heard. Yet they had a wall of amp stacks on stage, and ear-splitting house sound, while Neil's old Deluxe was delivering most of the tones.

Same with AC/DC, their stages were full of amps at various times during tours, suggesting all of the heavy riffs and tones were pumping out from a massive wall of amp power. The real tone was coming from a single Marshall amp head in most cases that Angus would run through and if I remember correctly, it wasn't even seen on stage but rather placed and mic'ed off stage.

So it's common practice and showbiz too across the board, but it is a cool visual to see a white grand on stage! I'll drink to that.  

[Gohi]

I'm a big fan of Brian's rendition of Busy. Surf's Up... nnnnno.

I agree. It's nice to see them attempt it but I feel pretty bad hearing some of those vocals. He's really doing his best and should be commended for it but... 
Brian sounded pretty great on several other songs at that concert though. Maybe he just has to get a few more performances of Surf's Up under his belt.

[shadownoze]

I'm hearing Ding Dang at sound check in Austin right now. Brian is directing.

[ontor pertawst]

GAH!

[HeyJude]

I'm hearing Ding Dang at sound check in Austin right now. Brian is directing.

It ain’t exactly musically mind-blowing, but it would be a huge kick to see Brian and Al do that one on stage!

How about “Santa Ana Winds”, “Goin’ On”, and “Funky Pretty” next?

[shadownoze]

They say they're saving Ding Dang to do in Dallas tomorrow. But they ARE doing Cal Saga tonight.

[shadownoze]

Dunno if it'll be in the set tonight, but the band is running Funky Pretty right now. Somebody reads this board!

[lee]

Californ-i-a and Funky Pretty? Nice!

[HeyJude]

Hope the "Holland" tracks make it in the setlist soon (with YouTube videos of course!).

I finally got around to watching some of the Greek Theatre LA video clips, and it's interesting to note that while Al is singing "Wake the World" in that clip, it was definitely Brian singing it opening night in Saratoga.

[HeyJude]

Dunno if it'll be in the set tonight, but the band is running Funky Pretty right now. Somebody reads this board!

I'd love to think the "somebody" reads this board and considers songs accordingly. I'm sure they do the former, not sure how much the latter. I think in the case of "Funky Pretty" it might have something to do with Al pushing for it. He said in an interview before the tour that he really wanted to do that one with Blondie.

It also makes sense to add that one if they're inclined to work Blondie into the show more. There are only so many BB tracks they could do that feature him prominently. A few tracks off of CATP and Holland are about all they have to work with.

Someone get the news songs on video and up on YouTube! I would have tried at Saratoga, but they are sporadically rather draconian there about use of cameras.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Dunno if it'll be in the set tonight, but the band is running Funky Pretty right now. Somebody reads this board!

I'm at the show too! Took an hour to find the damn place as Google maps took us wrong, and by the time we got here we already missed the meet n greet and the soundcheck.  Construction is a bitch over here.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Best show ever. Brian was in top form, and seriously sounded better than I've ever heard him.

[Wirestone]

Cool! Any debuts?

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Nah same setlist but it was so good it didn't matter

[shadownoze]

Setlist for Austin, 6/23/15:

Our Prayer
Heroes & Villains — Brian sounds very strong, not whispery like sometimes
California Girls
Shut Down — lead by Al
Little Deuce Coupe — lead by Al
I Get Around
Little Girl I Once Knew
This Whole World — Darian
Then I Kissed Her — Al
California Saga — Al
In My Room
Surfer Girl
Don't Worry Baby — Matt
One Kind of Love
Sail Away — Blondie comes onstage at this point
Wild Honey — fantastic!
Sail On Sailor — Blondie leaves after this one...but he was great on vocal AND guitar on this song
She Knows Me Too Well — Matt
Wake the World — Al
Busy Doin' Nothin' — Brian sounded so strong and on pitch that I looked to see who was doubling him...nobody! He was in great voice and great mood.
Surf's Up — a tiny bit shaky, but still awesome...and Al did his part at the end.
Right Time
Runaway Dancer — Brian seems to really love this song
Wouldn't It Be Nice — Matt
Sloop John B
God Only Knows
Good Vibrations
_________

Encore set:
All Summer Long
Help Me Rhonda
Barbara Ann
Surfin' USA
Fun Fun Fun

Love & Mercy — Brian was singing the verses with great feeling and improvising on the rhythms and words a bit, seemed very into it. At one point he stopped singing his line and it seemed he got a little choked up.

The band sounded incredible and the mix was very good. You folks in the next few shows, be ready...Ding Dang and Funky Pretty are definitely in the works.

Rodriguez's opening set was about 45 minutes. He was led onstage by four people and I wonder if he is almost blind; truly seemed that way, reaching out to feel where the mic was, like Stevie Wonder does. There were some in the audience who came mainly to see him and he was well received by all, especially on the songs from Searching For Sugar Man. Two things surprised me about Rodriguez. 1. Before EVERY song, he turned down his guitar, played the first three or four bars of the next song, then turned the volume back up and began; it was like he was reminding himself of how each song started. Very unusual. 2. He did a surprising amount of covers, especially for a 45-minute set by a guy with a couple of albums to pick from. He did "Fever." Yeah, the Peggy Lee "Fever"! He did "La Bamba." He did Elton's "Your Song" and Jefferson Airplane's "Somebody to Love." He sounded good, played the guitar well.

Finally, the VIP experience was fairly smooth and less strict than VIP Nation's version on the C50 tour. Today, we were let into sound check, told we could sit anywhere, roam around, take as many photos as we wanted. That was great! Almost made the concert anticlimactic. Al and Blondie were still trading lines on Sail Away: "Why don't you do this part and I'll come in here..." When Brian, Al, and Blondie left, the band stayed to run through some stuff and that's when I heard them trying Funky Pretty. We were escorted to a table in the lobby where the three BBs sat, Sharpies in hand. They were all pleasant, signing things readily, and Brian gave some very genuine smiles and handshakes, looking me right in the eye when I thanked him. Good experience.
Now I'm beat and I suspect I have seen Brian Wilson for the last time. If that's true, I'm completely at peace with it. He has given me more than I can ever express.

[baseball95]

Setlist for Austin, 6/23/15:

Our Prayer
Heroes & Villains — Brian sounds very strong, not whispery like sometimes
Shut Down — lead by Al
Little Deuce Coupe — lead by Al
I Get Around
Little Girl I Once Knew
This Whole World — Darian
Then I Kissed Her — Al
California Saga — Al
In My Room
Surfer Girl
Don't Worry Baby — Matt
One Kind of Love
Sail Away — Blondie comes onstage at this point
Wild Honey — fantastic!
Sail On Sailor — Blondie leaves after this one...but he was great on vocal AND guitar on this song
She Knows Me Too Well — Matt
Wake the World — Al
Busy Doin' Nothin' — Brian sounded so strong and on pitch that I looked to see who was doubling him...nobody! He was in great voice and great mood.
Surf's Up — a tiny bit shaky, but still awesome...and Al did his part at the end.
Right Time
Runaway Dancer — Brian seems to really love this song
Wouldn't It Be Nice — Matt
Sloop John B
God Only Knows
Good Vibrations
_________

Encore set:
All Summer Long
Help Me Rhonda
Barbara Ann
Surfin' USA
Fun Fun Fun

Love & Mercy — Brian was singing the verses with great feeling and improvising on the rhythms and words a bit, seemed very into it. At one point he stopped singing his line and it seemed he got a little choked up.

The band sounded incredible and the mix was very good. You folks in the next few shows, be ready...Ding Dang and Funky Pretty are definitely in the works.

Rodriguez's opening set was about 45 minutes. He was led onstage by four people and I wonder if he is almost blind; truly seemed that way, reaching out to feel where the mic was, like Stevie Wonder does. There were some in the audience who came mainly to see him and he was well received by all, especially on the songs from Searching For Sugar Man. Two things surprised me about Rodriguez. 1. Before EVERY song, he turned down his guitar, played the first three or four bars of the next song, then turned the volume back up and began; it was like he was reminding himself of how each song started. Very unusual. 2. He did a surprising amount of covers, especially for a 45-minute set by a guy with a couple of albums to pick from. He did "Fever." Yeah, the Peggy Lee "Fever"! He did "La Bamba." He did Elton's "Your Song" and Jefferson Airplane's "Somebody to Love." He sounded good, played the guitar well.

Finally, the VIP experience was fairly smooth and less strict than VIP Nation's version on the C50 tour. Today, we were let into sound check, told we could sit anywhere, roam around, take as many photos as we wanted. That was great! Almost made the concert anticlimactic. Al and Blondie were still trading lines on Sail Away: "Why don't you do this part and I'll come in here..." When Brian, Al, and Blondie left, the band stayed to run through some stuff and that's when I heard them trying Funky Pretty. We were escorted to a table in the lobby where the three BBs sat, Sharpies in hand. They were all pleasant, signing things readily, and Brian gave some very genuine smiles and handshakes, looking me right in the eye when I thanked him. Good experience.
Now I'm beat and I suspect I have seen Brian Wilson for the last time. If that's true, I'm completely at peace with it. He has given me more than I can ever express.

No California Girls? Wow

[HeyJude]

Looks like they've handed over more leads to Al. In Saratoga, Brian sang Shut Down, Little Deuce Coupe, and Wake the World. Looks like they dropped Cottonfields to add California Saga.

[shadownoze]

Oops, my mistake, California Girls was right after Heroes & Villains.

[Rocky Raccoon]

Sounds like an amazing show.  I didn't realize Blondie is only onstage for three songs though, that's kind of disappointing, I was under the impression he was a full member of the band on this tour as David Marks was on the 2013 tour.  I've read Rodriguez has lost most of his eyesight due to effects of glaucoma in recent years.  But it sounds like it hasn't diminished his performance ability so good for him.

[shadownoze]

Blondie did come back out for the entire encore.

One other little note: before launching into California Saga, Al introduced it as being from "my solo album, A Postcard From California." Nice try, buddy.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

The crowd was something else. During Rodriguez's set somebody yelled out 'I love you Rodriguez ', and he laughed and said 'I'm sure that's the drinks talking,  but thank you!'

Of course I was no better...I'm the guy who yelled out 'I love you Brian...in a platonic way though ' and got a chuckle  out of Al.

Hope you didn't waste your money on the food there, though...

[MyDrKnowsItKeepsMeCalm]

These reviews and setlists are great. With the rumors of new US dates in the fall, I'm hoping that NYC's Beacon Theater might be one of their stops later in the year. I will have to miss the Jones Beach show next week... pretty bummed about that.