Brian Wilson 2016 Tour Thread (Pet Sounds 50th Anniversary Tour)

[Debbie KL]

Another stray observation from Baltimore's concert last night. 

Nobody sang Mike's lyrics on the coda of WIBN ("Good Night / Sleep Night / etc"). 

Has this occurred on other shows on the tour? 

I vaguely remember that might have happened in Kansas City, geez, or somewhere else I attended.  Maybe someone who was there could help me out?  I had a lot going on at the time (a large group of friends attending I was "sort of" hosting, and a long-time friend I hadn't seen in years to enjoy for a brief time in KC).  Maybe they didn't do it?  Maybe I missed it?  In any case, I didn't miss it. It's rather inconsequential to the song in my opinion.

[pudge104]

Updated the setlist links on the top post. Anyone have a setlist for the 8/18 Asheville show? That one is still missing.

I was there, I'm pretty confident the set list is the same as the 16th.  Hopefully someone can confirm.

[lee]

I was there too and the setlist was exactly the same as the 16th.

[Debbie KL]

I was there too and the setlist was exactly the same as the 16th.

To avoid confusion on previous posts: I don't believe anyone was speaking of the setlist in Kansas City - just the "good night..." phrase.  I certainly would never consider WIBN inconsequential.

[EgoHanger1966]

On a whim, I bought tickets mid-week to see Brian and co. at the Circus Maximus Theatre in Caesar's Atlantic City. Brian was in very good form. In fact, for the first part of the show, I've never seen him so animated - until about 1/4th of the way through the show when he settled into his usual reserved (but still singing very well) self. Brian stopped the I Get Around/Shut Down medley right in the middle to sing Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Show started at 9PM. No intermission. The band played through until 10:50.

Setlist


Our Prayer
Heroes and Villains
California Girls - with River Deep, Mountain High into
Dance, Dance, Dance
I Get Around
Row, Row, Row Your Boat thing
Shut Down
Little Deuce Coupe
Little Honda
Surfer Girl
Don't Worry Baby
California Saga: California
You're So Good to Me
Wild Honey
Sail On, Sailor

Pet Sounds in full - enjoyed some of the new ways Brian is approaching vocals on this set.

Good Vibrations
Help Me, Rhonda
Barbara Ann
Surfin' U.S.A.
Fun, Fun, Fun


So, no L&M (very surprised), Wake The World, Add Some Music. But even as a shortened set, it was still longer than most full shows by other bands. They all seemed happy to be there. Great show!

[GoodToMyBaby]

Saw Brian at the New York State Fair in Syracuse tonight.  I had a great time.  Brian seemed like he was having trouble hearing himself but the band was on fire.

[Bhw]

I, too, was at Syracuse and had a great time.  As usual the band was on fire. An insider mentioned they were tired but it did not show. Brian was not animated at all and the concert was the shortest I've attended in 30 years of BB related concerts. Still, it was a wonderful evening and Herman's Hermits were great, too!

The setlist...

1.   California Girls
2.   I Get Around
3.   Shut Down
4.   Little Deuce Coupe
5.   California Saga: California
6.   Wild Honey
7.   Sail On, Sailor
8.   Wouldn't It Be Nice
9.   You Still Believe in Me
10.   That's Not Me
11.   Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)
12.   I'm Waiting for the Day
13.   Let's Go Away for Awhile
14.   Sloop John B
15.   God Only Knows
16.   I Know There's an Answer
17.   Here Today
18.   I Just Wasn't Made for These Times
19.   Pet Sounds
20.   Caroline, No
21.   Good Vibrations
22.   Help Me, Rhonda
23.   Barbara Ann
24.   Surfin' U.S.A.
25.   Fun, Fun, Fun

BTW - Blondie was the man onstage!!!

[Marty Castillo]

Has anyone done the VIP soundcheck and meet & greet recently? I'm going to the show on September 30 and it seems the rules can evolve throughout a tour. My main questions: How many items can I get signed (I assume two)? Do they restrict your items to one personal, one giveaway (i.e. poster or GOK lyric sheet)? I would prefer to do two personal items...

[HeyJude]

I, too, was at Syracuse and had a great time.  As usual the band was on fire. An insider mentioned they were tired but it did not show. Brian was not animated at all and the concert was the shortest I've attended in 30 years of BB related concerts. Still, it was a wonderful evening and Herman's Hermits were great, too!

That indeed was a short show. Though, to be fair, for this to have been the shortest show you've attended in 30 years, you would have missed the 2001 Paul Simon tour. Brian's opening set on that tour was much shorter than even this, especially in terms of total time.

I'd also say both Al solo shows (well, one was "Family & Friends") I've seen were shorter than this as well. It's probably also still longer than some of the 28-song setlists the BBs did back in the 80s and 90s when there were more medleys and short surf/car songs instead of some of the longer PS songs.

[Generation42]

I was at the Syracuse gig, as well.

Being the last in a string of recent shows, I anticipated some of the 'phoning it in' element might creep in, but the musicians were on-point throughout.  The number "Pet Sounds" was well-played and went over particularly well with the crowd.


Other highlights:

- Matt was smooth as ever, vocally.  I never thought Jeff Foskett deserved some of the harsher criticisms he used to get, but I have to admit to now kind of wishing the younger Jardine had taken the iconic falsetto parts during the C50 tour.

- Yes, Blondie was the man.  And damn, is his guitar tone ever sweet.


And the big guys?  I had seen some samplings of the tour from earlier this summer; videos where Al was a little rough, vocally.  Well, he must have been battling a cold or something back then, because last evening, I thought Jardine sounded terrific.




Brian was Brian.  Vocally, he teetered between sublime and (to be fair)... less so.  This (along with the shortened set) was maybe the one noticeable evidence of what must have been a tired group of fellas.  Still, from his "Good evening Syracuse," to introducing each number, Wilson did engage the audience a little more than I remember him doing so back in 2012 (though this may just be a function of necessity, what with the Love'ster not being there to emcee between cuts).  Brian did his little wiggling fingers thing during the chorus of "Good Vibrations" and, rather than making his "Clap! Clap!" entreaty to the crowd (Dub just looked to the crowd and clapped himself to get the point across), Wilson instead waited until just before the big vocal "Aaaahhhh!" to suddenly command us to "Stop clapping!"  That made me chuckle.

Others' MMV, but I'd say the guy was fairly charming, myself.




The band received a standing ovation after "God Only Knows," and, as he's done before, Brian asked us (twice) to "Please be seated."  Also, maybe three different times during the Pet Sounds set, Wilson almost apologetically promised we'd be "rocking" again soon.  I know we're not quite an English crowd, Brian, but some of us (a lot of us) adore your more introspective work!

---

My only real disappointment?  Yep, you guessed it:  The truncated set list.  Look, I get that last night's show amounted to what is known as a "getaway day" game in baseball.  That, and what the hell do I have to complain about, anyway?  It was Brian Wilson -- and for free(!)  But I so wanted to hear "Our Prayer."  Brian and the rest of the Beach Boys performed "Heroes and Villains" when I saw them in 2012, of course.  But for whatever reason, they skipped "Prayer" that evening.  Hearing these two coupled together would have been sublime.

And, well, this was my first time seeing Brian and Al since C50.  While I knew full well that this was to be a very different thing, I suppose that I naturally (if unfairly) gauged one thing against the other to some degree.

---

But toss all of that aside.  While the magic may not have risen to the level I experienced that June evening four years ago (But then, how could it?), I certainly did have a wonderful, memorable time.

The very best part of it all?  Well, that's easy: Being there with my mom and daughter.  This was my five year-old's first look at Bee-Dub in the flesh, and she had a glorious experience.  Yeah, she was the one who kept gleefully shouting "Brian Wiiiiilson!!!" between numbers.  Apologies to anyone within earshot who may have grown weary of that!  


ETA: http://www.syracuse.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2016/08/brian_wilson_nys_fair_syracuse_review.html

[Bhw]

Hey Jude,

Somehow, I  DID miss the 2001 show.. and it was only an hour away. The Al shows I saw were also 25 songs. I should have typed "among the shortest I have attended."  I hope my post didn't reflect that I distliked the concert  as it was awesome in many ways!!

R. Smith,

Ironic, I also brought my Mom and kids. It was neat to have see this special evening.

On to Buffalo at the end of September!!!

[HeyJude]

Hey Jude,

Somehow, I  DID miss the 2001 show.. and it was only an hour away. The Al shows I saw were also 25 songs. I should have typed "among the shortest I have attended."  I hope my post didn't reflect that I distliked the concert  as it was awesome in many ways!!

R. Smith,

Ironic, I also brought my Mom and kids. It was neat to have see this special evening.

On to Buffalo at the end of September!!!

It's all good; I'm glad you enjoyed the show. I would have been hard pressed to not be at least a little bummed at a shortened setlist. I'd probably guess going into a "Fair" show that it would be shorter. But still a bummer to see a truncated show, but also obviously a treat to see these guys on stage.

[Generation42]

R. Smith,

Ironic, I also brought my Mom and kids. It was neat to have see this special evening.

On to Buffalo at the end of September!!!

Right on!

[nybbfan1]

My daughter and I also saw the State Fair show at Syracuse last night.  This was the third time I've seen Brian in recent years (50th tour at Beacon Theater NY; the Jeff Beck show in 2013 also at the Beacon where Brian surprised us by playing Pet Sounds in its entirety).   Last night band was very strong and persevered through a number of technical problems (did they even get a real sound check in?  Peter Noone played in the afternoon, so when could they have fitted that in?).  Blondie was a revelation and his guitar solos took a much more prominent part  (and his singing stronger) than I remember from 3 years ago.  Al is charming and ageless:  California Saga was a highlight. Brian, however, was much diminished from the previous appearances I've seen.  When did he start this clipped, almost sing-speak style?   Maybe it was intentional - or maybe he couldn't hear himself - but he was singing before or behind the beat, maybe largely because he wouldn't/couldn't hold the notes?  This was especially exposed on several Pet Sounds songs, such as "Here Today" and "Caroline No."   Also,  it was off-putting that this was clearly advertised as a "Pet Sounds" concert but Brian  kept needlessly apologizing for playing Pet Sounds ("we'll get rocking soon", "we'll be rocking in about half an hour" etc).  The audience was very appreciative and there was zero need to make excuses.   Brian did sound much stronger when he was singing with the ensemble, especially on Good Vibrations.  Was Brian's calling Nicky "Stevie Wonder" an inside joke?  (Al did jump in to cover up).   I didn't sense the band being tired, but Brian seemed tired of playing Pet Sounds. 

[HeyJude]

Updated numerous setlists in the top post, and also added a November 3rd Dubai date.

[marcella27]

My daughter and I also saw the State Fair show at Syracuse last night.  This was the third time I've seen Brian in recent years (50th tour at Beacon Theater NY; the Jeff Beck show in 2013 also at the Beacon where Brian surprised us by playing Pet Sounds in its entirety).   Last night band was very strong and persevered through a number of technical problems (did they even get a real sound check in?  Peter Noone played in the afternoon, so when could they have fitted that in?).  Blondie was a revelation and his guitar solos took a much more prominent part  (and his singing stronger) than I remember from 3 years ago.  Al is charming and ageless:  California Saga was a highlight. Brian, however, was much diminished from the previous appearances I've seen.  When did he start this clipped, almost sing-speak style?   Maybe it was intentional - or maybe he couldn't hear himself - but he was singing before or behind the beat, maybe largely because he wouldn't/couldn't hold the notes?  This was especially exposed on several Pet Sounds songs, such as "Here Today" and "Caroline No."   Also,  it was off-putting that this was clearly advertised as a "Pet Sounds" concert but Brian  kept needlessly apologizing for playing Pet Sounds ("we'll get rocking soon", "we'll be rocking in about half an hour" etc).  The audience was very appreciative and there was zero need to make excuses.   Brian did sound much stronger when he was singing with the ensemble, especially on Good Vibrations.  Was Brian's calling Nicky "Stevie Wonder" an inside joke?  (Al did jump in to cover up).   I didn't sense the band being tired, but Brian seemed tired of playing Pet Sounds. 

It was Al, not Brian, who called Nicky Wonder "Stevie Wonder".  And Nicky replied - I don't think everyone heard it because it was sort of buried amongst laughter - "I'm his whiter cousin".  One of the funniest moments of the show. 

[marcella27]

I was at the Syracuse show as well.  I won't talk much about the concert because others have summed it up well.  I'll just say that even though I was expecting a shorter set, I was disappointed at just how short it was.  I know the concert was included in the (very cheap) fair admission, but in addition to the people who were there just because it was a free show, there were also lots of serious fans in attendance.  In my case, we drove over three hours to get there.  So I think when bands assume that the audiences at fair or festival gigs won't contain real fans, they're mistaken.  We talked to lots of nice people who were longtime fans (including a really nice guy with a Carl Wilson Foundation shirt - are you on this board?!)

I really missed a couple of the songs they've been doing on this tour (especially Heroes + Villains) and, oddly enough, one of the things I missed most of all was the band introductions!  Not only is this band is unreal and therefore very deserving of individual introductions, but the way they've been doing it on the tour has been really fun.   

Despite the short set, it was a good show, and it sounded great (especially for an outdoor gig).  I actually thought Brian's voice was pretty good.  In particular, during the first verse of Sloop John B, Al sang lead and Brian did the higher harmony part.  His voice was softer, but man, he nailed it.  He also sounded really good on God Only Knows. 

I'm so lucky I got to see them again!

[thatjacob]

The concert at Cliff's Pavilion seems to have only been 26 songs, despite not being a festival show. I really hope that I get to see the full setlist on Friday in Atlanta.

[thatjacob]

The concert at Cliff's Pavilion seems to have only been 26 songs, despite not being a festival show. I really hope that I get to see the full setlist on Friday in Atlanta.

Iceland tonight seems to be the truncated 26 song setlist as well...
It's not looking good for Atlanta.

[astroray]

The Atlanta show will be the best pen-ultimate Brian Wilson Pet Sounds Show! (because I will be there)!

[Robbie Mac]

The Atlanta show will be the best pen-ultimate Brian Wilson Pet Sounds Show! (because I will be there)!

It's also kinda silly to pre-judge a show at a real venue based upon festival/fair shows.

[tpesky]

Hoping things get longer again before I see him in a few weeks and I hope he's feeing all right.  36-38 songs down to 28 is a big cut.

[thatjacob]

The Atlanta show will be the best pen-ultimate Brian Wilson Pet Sounds Show! (because I will be there)!

It's also kinda silly to pre-judge a show at a real venue based upon festival/fair shows.

Iceland was in a real venue. A fairly upscale one, but still a real venue. That's the only reason I'm worried.

there's a picture of the interior.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Wow that looks nice

[Emdeeh]

See you in Atlanta, Ray!