Mike Love in New Issue of Mojo - "I'm always blamed! It's horsesh*t!"

[HeyJude]

Regarding C50, I don't believe anybody has called the e-mail into question. What I and others have long contended, and Mike surprisingly *confirms* in this new interview, is that he clearly knew that if he had *come back* to Brian and Melinda and tried to work out more bookings (Mike also confirms offers were on the table; remember when some now-departed Mike apologies claimed there maybe were none?) or follow up in some fashion, they could have continued the reunion tour.

So he admits that he was engaging in a pissing contest and rather than sucking it up for the greater good, he balked and scheduled his own shows.

I of course believe he's also leaving a TON of other factors out, about how he just doesn't like Melinda, about how he would probably make more money touring with his own edition of the tour, and so on. He doesn't even proffer his old standby reasons used in his 2012 LA Times article nor those found in his own book.

It seems to me that in this case, Mike didn't want to engage in a pissing contest with Melinda.   

The final seemed pretty final, and perhaps Mike figured it wasn't worth trying to change Melinda's mind. 

No, I'm not reading it like that.

Mike says in the interview:

we didn’t go back to them
and ask, “Oh my God, what are you thinking? We
should continue to do this” – which is what I
think they hoped we would do

This indicates to me that Mike believes Melinda and Brian would have been open to discussion if he had come back to the table to try to discuss it. And all of this is just assuming that Mike's interpretation and recounting of Melinda's e-mail is accurate.

Mike is saying he went out of his way to NOT come back to them with the one sentence that just about ALL fans wanted someone to say, which is: "What are you thinking? We should continue to do this!"

That Mike knows what he could have done to make the reunion continue but *didn't* do because he didn't want to give Melinda the response *he* thinks *she* was hoping for, makes Mike come across as a big of a jerk as he wants us to think Melinda is, and by Mike's own words continues to paint him as the guy who refused to discuss it further and started booking his own shows, which would then in turn give him an *even easier* excuse to not do more reunion shows (hey, I have my own shows booked now!).

If Mike had wanted the reunion to continue, he had about 37 easy avenues to make that happen. He chose not to, and to his (relative) credit, confirms this in his new interview.

Now, all that being said, I highly doubt Melinda was just trying to jerk Mike around with some sort or reverse psychology, trying to nefariously get Mike to grovel. I think at some point they sent that e-mail, and then changed their minds, and Mike, who had likely *already* long ago decided not to continue (as evidenced by his litany of complaints in his book), took that further step of not even trying to work something out for more shows.

I also question the details of what specific obligations Mike has to BRI about booking shows. I'm not quite convinced he HAD to IMMEDIATELY start booking shows on his own.

[KDS]

Regarding C50, I don't believe anybody has called the e-mail into question. What I and others have long contended, and Mike surprisingly *confirms* in this new interview, is that he clearly knew that if he had *come back* to Brian and Melinda and tried to work out more bookings (Mike also confirms offers were on the table; remember when some now-departed Mike apologies claimed there maybe were none?) or follow up in some fashion, they could have continued the reunion tour.

So he admits that he was engaging in a pissing contest and rather than sucking it up for the greater good, he balked and scheduled his own shows.

I of course believe he's also leaving a TON of other factors out, about how he just doesn't like Melinda, about how he would probably make more money touring with his own edition of the tour, and so on. He doesn't even proffer his old standby reasons used in his 2012 LA Times article nor those found in his own book.

It seems to me that in this case, Mike didn't want to engage in a pissing contest with Melinda.   

The final seemed pretty final, and perhaps Mike figured it wasn't worth trying to change Melinda's mind. 

No, I'm not reading it like that.

Mike says in the interview:

we didn’t go back to them
and ask, “Oh my God, what are you thinking? We
should continue to do this” – which is what I
think they hoped we would do

This indicates to me that Mike believes Melinda and Brian would have been open to discussion if he had come back to the table to try to discuss it. And all of this is just assuming that Mike's interpretation and recounting of Melinda's e-mail is accurate.

Mike is saying he went out of his way to NOT come back to them with the one sentence that just about ALL fans wanted someone to say, which is: "What are you thinking? We should continue to do this!"

That Mike knows what he could have done to make the reunion continue but *didn't* do because he didn't want to give Melinda the response *he* thinks *she* was hoping for, makes Mike come across as a big of a jerk as he wants us to think Melinda is, and by Mike's own words continues to paint him as the guy who refused to discuss it further and started booking his own shows, which would then in turn give him an *even easier* excuse to not do more reunion shows (hey, I have my own shows booked now!).

If Mike had wanted the reunion to continue, he had about 37 easy avenues to make that happen. He chose not to, and to his (relative) credit, confirms this in his new interview.

Now, all that being said, I highly doubt Melinda was just trying to jerk Mike around with some sort or reverse psychology, trying to nefariously get Mike to grovel. I think at some point they sent that e-mail, and then changed their minds, and Mike, who had likely *already* long ago decided not to continue (as evidenced by his litany of complaints in his book), took that further step of not even trying to work something out for more shows.

I also question the details of what specific obligations Mike has to BRI about booking shows. I'm not quite convinced he HAD to IMMEDIATELY start booking shows on his own.

OK, fair points.  But if you ask me, the blame should lie with the originator of that email.   For had that email not been sent, who knows what would've happened? 

Like you said, I highly doubt Melinda would've sent the email if she wanted Mike to come back and say "oh no, Melinda, please lets's do more shows." 

Neither side really comes out smelling like roses if you ask me. 

[HeyJude]

It's worth noting that in *Mike's retelling* of the story, neither side comes out looking good. We haven't even really heard Brian or Melinda's side specifically concerning that alleged e-mail.

Given what we know about what went on during the tour, and Mike's own statements in interviews and his own book, I think this alleged Melinda e-mail had ZERO to do with the demise of the reunion and reunion tour.

I suppose it gave Mike a potentially easier "out" for explaining why he wasn't trying to work out more reunion shows. I think Mike's "explanations" for the demise of the tour have continued to shift. His LA Times letter has one set of reasons, his subsequent interviews reiterated some of those reasons and then offered some alternates, and then in his book he went through yet another list of complaints.

But at no point has he expressed either directly or passively that he was all-in to continue the reunion, only to then receive Melinda's e-mail. As is the case with a number of his "reasons" for the reunion ending, I think it boils down to him not liking Melinda and not liking possibly making less money, and then developing a bunch of other reasons/minor complaints that don't actually matter much or at all, to try to back up his decision. (Too many musicians on stage, the "autotune phantom" episode, "giving it a rest" in order to "build up demand", etc.).

[Jay]

I try my damnedest to like the guy, I really do. Then he does sh*t like this. *sigh*

[rab2591]

Regarding C50, I don't believe anybody has called the e-mail into question. What I and others have long contended, and Mike surprisingly *confirms* in this new interview, is that he clearly knew that if he had *come back* to Brian and Melinda and tried to work out more bookings (Mike also confirms offers were on the table; remember when some now-departed Mike apologies claimed there maybe were none?) or follow up in some fashion, they could have continued the reunion tour.

So he admits that he was engaging in a pissing contest and rather than sucking it up for the greater good, he balked and scheduled his own shows.

I of course believe he's also leaving a TON of other factors out, about how he just doesn't like Melinda, about how he would probably make more money touring with his own edition of the tour, and so on. He doesn't even proffer his old standby reasons used in his 2012 LA Times article nor those found in his own book.

It seems to me that in this case, Mike didn't want to engage in a pissing contest with Melinda.   

The final seemed pretty final, and perhaps Mike figured it wasn't worth trying to change Melinda's mind. 

No, I'm not reading it like that.

Mike says in the interview:

we didn’t go back to them
and ask, “Oh my God, what are you thinking? We
should continue to do this” – which is what I
think they hoped we would do

This indicates to me that Mike believes Melinda and Brian would have been open to discussion if he had come back to the table to try to discuss it. And all of this is just assuming that Mike's interpretation and recounting of Melinda's e-mail is accurate.

Mike is saying he went out of his way to NOT come back to them with the one sentence that just about ALL fans wanted someone to say, which is: "What are you thinking? We should continue to do this!"

That Mike knows what he could have done to make the reunion continue but *didn't* do because he didn't want to give Melinda the response *he* thinks *she* was hoping for, makes Mike come across as a big of a jerk as he wants us to think Melinda is, and by Mike's own words continues to paint him as the guy who refused to discuss it further and started booking his own shows, which would then in turn give him an *even easier* excuse to not do more reunion shows (hey, I have my own shows booked now!).

If Mike had wanted the reunion to continue, he had about 37 easy avenues to make that happen. He chose not to, and to his (relative) credit, confirms this in his new interview.

Now, all that being said, I highly doubt Melinda was just trying to jerk Mike around with some sort or reverse psychology, trying to nefariously get Mike to grovel. I think at some point they sent that e-mail, and then changed their minds, and Mike, who had likely *already* long ago decided not to continue (as evidenced by his litany of complaints in his book), took that further step of not even trying to work something out for more shows.

I also question the details of what specific obligations Mike has to BRI about booking shows. I'm not quite convinced he HAD to IMMEDIATELY start booking shows on his own.

OK, fair points.  But if you ask me, the blame should lie with the originator of that email.   For had that email not been sent, who knows what would've happened? 

Like you said, I highly doubt Melinda would've sent the email if she wanted Mike to come back and say "oh no, Melinda, please lets's do more shows." 

Neither side really comes out smelling like roses if you ask me. 

One thing about this email, I know Doe touts this one line to nauseating degrees, and I have no doubt the validity of the email. But I would just love to know if there were further emails that were sent before or after between the two camps. I mean, we get this convenient one liner, but like everything else in the fandom, it can’t be all black and white.

[HeyJude]

I also think the timing of the alleged e-mail would be important. How far along the tour was it? Which offers were on the table before and after? Did Mike truly have no bookings planned prior to the e-mail? (Remember, rumors leaked pretty early into the tour that non-reunion South American dates were being booked for the Mike/Bruce show). When did Brian/Melinda express a desire to continue?

It looks like rumors started in mid-June of 2012 (less than two months into the tour, and over three months before its conclusion) that Mike/Bruce were booking South America shows for after the reunion. I can only find evidence of two *canceled* Mike/Bruce shows for late October of 2012 in South America.

Remember this: Despite numerous mentions of the e-mails, Mike has NEVER said either directly or indirectly that, had that e-mail not arrived, he would have continued the reunion for any length of time let alone in perpetuity. Indeed, his book details a litany of reasons he almost quit the tour before it started and/or during the tour. So it has never been a case of Mike saying "Everything seemed fine, and then out of the blue Melinda sent an e-mail."

If anything, it seems Brian and Al, whether it sprung from naivety or something else, seemed to be the ones surprised by Mike bailing.

[SMiLE Brian]

Mike made up for last year with "Quality" instead of "quantity"  interviews.....

[Rick5150]

So we finally get the long-missing piece of the "they canceled our screening" story (which I had heard some time back), which is that Jonah and Justin FINALLY for once voted against Mike.

I am not clear on this. Did Jonah and Justyn vote against Mike, or were their votes enough of a majority where Mike's vote would not make a difference so he didn't have to bother? It seems to me that if there were time constraints and Mike was dragging his feet, they had every right to vote however they wanted.

Anyone know how Justyn and Jonah get along with Uncle Brian?

[SMiLE Brian]

I try my damnedest to like the guy, I really do. Then he does sh*t like this. *sigh*

Well said Jay....

[urbanite]

When Melinda Wilson sends Mike Love an e-mail that says no more shows for Wilson, Mike Love is supposed to know she/Brian doesn't mean it?  Is Mike Love supposed to think, based on that e-mail, that Brian really wanted to do more shows.  Why did Melinda send Mike that e-mail?  Has anyone ever asked her that question?  I would ask her, when the 50th anniversary tour started to fall apart and went public, why didn't you or Brian call Mike and try to fix things and lay the groundwork for some more shows.

I am no fan of Mike Love, but on this issue he has a point.  If this is an example of what Melinda Wilson is like to deal with, there's probably some other equally stupid things she did during the tour that irritated some of the band.

[willmansell]

I can understand how difficult a dynamic it must be between the remaining BB, Brian and Melinda. When Brian is probably quite happy to think about music and creativity and go with the flow, the organisational reality seems to be left to either the BB or Melinda - both of whom have different points of view.

I'm starting to think though, about all the resentment we put down in writing towards and about Mike Love. Now I've bashed as much as anyone, but is it worth it? Does it make us as bad as Mike and this article in Mojo? Whilst we argue that Mike can't understand or appreciate Brian and the Beach Boy's legacy, we also must see as outsiders that we can't understand their own family dynamic. And if anything, to me the way Mike acts shows a need for sympathy not apathy. After all, living with that much unhappiness and built up resentment for so long wouldn't be nice for anyone. Just my thoughts.

[mtaber]

I don't "know" Mike Love.  I don't "know" Brian Wilson or his wife, or Al, or anyone in the band personally.  It's hard enough for me to try to figure out the people I actually DO know personally, much less trying to get a handle on celebrities that I only know from a distance.  All I can say is that Mike doesn't seem to realize that he comes across as the "villain" due, in large part, to his attitude in interviews such as this one.  He comes across as a total ass.  If I had to bet, I'd say that's what he is.

[KDS]

Regarding C50, I don't believe anybody has called the e-mail into question. What I and others have long contended, and Mike surprisingly *confirms* in this new interview, is that he clearly knew that if he had *come back* to Brian and Melinda and tried to work out more bookings (Mike also confirms offers were on the table; remember when some now-departed Mike apologies claimed there maybe were none?) or follow up in some fashion, they could have continued the reunion tour.

So he admits that he was engaging in a pissing contest and rather than sucking it up for the greater good, he balked and scheduled his own shows.

I of course believe he's also leaving a TON of other factors out, about how he just doesn't like Melinda, about how he would probably make more money touring with his own edition of the tour, and so on. He doesn't even proffer his old standby reasons used in his 2012 LA Times article nor those found in his own book.

It seems to me that in this case, Mike didn't want to engage in a pissing contest with Melinda.   

The final seemed pretty final, and perhaps Mike figured it wasn't worth trying to change Melinda's mind. 

No, I'm not reading it like that.

Mike says in the interview:

we didn’t go back to them
and ask, “Oh my God, what are you thinking? We
should continue to do this” – which is what I
think they hoped we would do

This indicates to me that Mike believes Melinda and Brian would have been open to discussion if he had come back to the table to try to discuss it. And all of this is just assuming that Mike's interpretation and recounting of Melinda's e-mail is accurate.

Mike is saying he went out of his way to NOT come back to them with the one sentence that just about ALL fans wanted someone to say, which is: "What are you thinking? We should continue to do this!"

That Mike knows what he could have done to make the reunion continue but *didn't* do because he didn't want to give Melinda the response *he* thinks *she* was hoping for, makes Mike come across as a big of a jerk as he wants us to think Melinda is, and by Mike's own words continues to paint him as the guy who refused to discuss it further and started booking his own shows, which would then in turn give him an *even easier* excuse to not do more reunion shows (hey, I have my own shows booked now!).

If Mike had wanted the reunion to continue, he had about 37 easy avenues to make that happen. He chose not to, and to his (relative) credit, confirms this in his new interview.

Now, all that being said, I highly doubt Melinda was just trying to jerk Mike around with some sort or reverse psychology, trying to nefariously get Mike to grovel. I think at some point they sent that e-mail, and then changed their minds, and Mike, who had likely *already* long ago decided not to continue (as evidenced by his litany of complaints in his book), took that further step of not even trying to work something out for more shows.

I also question the details of what specific obligations Mike has to BRI about booking shows. I'm not quite convinced he HAD to IMMEDIATELY start booking shows on his own.

OK, fair points.  But if you ask me, the blame should lie with the originator of that email.   For had that email not been sent, who knows what would've happened? 

Like you said, I highly doubt Melinda would've sent the email if she wanted Mike to come back and say "oh no, Melinda, please lets's do more shows." 

Neither side really comes out smelling like roses if you ask me. 

One thing about this email, I know Doe touts this one line to nauseating degrees, and I have no doubt the validity of the email. But I would just love to know if there were further emails that were sent before or after between the two camps. I mean, we get this convenient one liner, but like everything else in the fandom, it can’t be all black and white.

I agree.  There are still a lot of questions.  Too many to really put sole blame on either ML.

[KDS]

When Melinda Wilson sends Mike Love an e-mail that says no more shows for Wilson, Mike Love is supposed to know she/Brian doesn't mean it?  Is Mike Love supposed to think, based on that e-mail, that Brian really wanted to do more shows.  Why did Melinda send Mike that e-mail?  Has anyone ever asked her that question?  I would ask her, when the 50th anniversary tour started to fall apart and went public, why didn't you or Brian call Mike and try to fix things and lay the groundwork for some more shows.

I am no fan of Mike Love, but on this issue he has a point.  If this is an example of what Melinda Wilson is like to deal with, there's probably some other equally stupid things she did during the tour that irritated some of the band.

All good questions

[Chocolate Shake Man]

When Melinda Wilson sends Mike Love an e-mail that says no more shows for Wilson, Mike Love is supposed to know she/Brian doesn't mean it?

What evidence is there that, at the time, she didn't mean it other than Mike Love's assumption that she was being passive aggressive?

Interestingly enough - and I could be wrong here - but the only person who has put forth the notion that she didn't mean it is Mike Love himself. So while you ask, "how was Mike Love supposed to know," his own words suggest that at the time he outright believed that she didn't mean it. So maybe that's a good question for Mike Love - what made you think she didn't mean it?

[rab2591]

I don't "know" Mike Love.  I don't "know" Brian Wilson or his wife, or Al, or anyone in the band personally.  It's hard enough for me to try to figure out the people I actually DO know personally, much less trying to get a handle on celebrities that I only know from a distance.  All I can say is that Mike doesn't seem to realize that he comes across as the "villain" due, in large part, to his attitude in interviews such as this one.  He comes across as a total ass.  If I had to bet, I'd say that's what he is.

This. I don’t know every in and out of the tumultuous relationship that Mike and Brian have. But you don’t really need to examine the relationship in great detail to conclude that the lies told in the 2005 lawsuit about Brian Wilson are not told by someone who needs any sympathy.

The last few months I’ve had a slight change of attitude about how I post, because I do want to see this place more focused on the music and less on Mike Love’s character. So I’m gonna bow out here now, and conclude that I really hope Mike will look back on the past year of pretty tasteful interviews and see that such mellow behavior is what is best for his image and the fandom. He just released an album, he tours with what a lot of people call a great sounding band, he has got financial security for he and his family (something that much of the world doesn’t have), he has his name on some of the most beautiful music ever recorded. Dude needs to chill out and breathe some fresh air for a while.

[guitarfool2002]

The only question that needs to be asked regarding the "no more Wilson" email is what email(s) came before that one in the email chain.

Ask Mike that one. Hell, ask anyone involved that one. Until that question is answered, the email that has been waved in our collective faces by Doe and now by Mike himself is meaningless without context.

And I'll repeat again, what happened to the reason Mike and others around him gave when his book came out, that C50 was "losing money"? Ask that too.

[tpesky]

So if said email was sent and intentions were clear, wasn't that earlier on in the tour? Brian and/or Melinda couldn't have changed their minds? He got more an more into the tour as time went on.  Mike said nope sorry you sent an email, can't go back on it now. No more shows for Wilson. No give backs!

[guitarfool2002]

The only question that needs to be asked is what came before that email.

[SMiLE Brian]

#releasetheemails... 

[♩♬☮ Billy C ♯♫♩☮]

Regarding C50, I don't believe anybody has called the e-mail into question. What I and others have long contended, and Mike surprisingly *confirms* in this new interview, is that he clearly knew that if he had *come back* to Brian and Melinda and tried to work out more bookings (Mike also confirms offers were on the table; remember when some now-departed Mike apologies claimed there maybe were none?) or follow up in some fashion, they could have continued the reunion tour.

So he admits that he was engaging in a pissing contest and rather than sucking it up for the greater good, he balked and scheduled his own shows.

I of course believe he's also leaving a TON of other factors out, about how he just doesn't like Melinda, about how he would probably make more money touring with his own edition of the tour, and so on. He doesn't even proffer his old standby reasons used in his 2012 LA Times article nor those found in his own book.

It seems to me that in this case, Mike didn't want to engage in a pissing contest with Melinda.  

The final seemed pretty final, and perhaps Mike figured it wasn't worth trying to change Melinda's mind.  

No, I'm not reading it like that.

Mike says in the interview:

we didn’t go back to them
and ask, “Oh my God, what are you thinking? We
should continue to do this” – which is what I
think they hoped we would do

This indicates to me that Mike believes Melinda and Brian would have been open to discussion if he had come back to the table to try to discuss it. And all of this is just assuming that Mike's interpretation and recounting of Melinda's e-mail is accurate.

Mike is saying he went out of his way to NOT come back to them with the one sentence that just about ALL fans wanted someone to say, which is: "What are you thinking? We should continue to do this!"

That Mike knows what he could have done to make the reunion continue but *didn't* do because he didn't want to give Melinda the response *he* thinks *she* was hoping for, makes Mike come across as a big of a jerk as he wants us to think Melinda is, and by Mike's own words continues to paint him as the guy who refused to discuss it further and started booking his own shows, which would then in turn give him an *even easier* excuse to not do more reunion shows (hey, I have my own shows booked now!).

If Mike had wanted the reunion to continue, he had about 37 easy avenues to make that happen. He chose not to, and to his (relative) credit, confirms this in his new interview.

Now, all that being said, I highly doubt Melinda was just trying to jerk Mike around with some sort or reverse psychology, trying to nefariously get Mike to grovel. I think at some point they sent that e-mail, and then changed their minds, and Mike, who had likely *already* long ago decided not to continue (as evidenced by his litany of complaints in his book), took that further step of not even trying to work something out for more shows.

I also question the details of what specific obligations Mike has to BRI about booking shows. I'm not quite convinced he HAD to IMMEDIATELY start booking shows on his own.

OK, fair points.  But if you ask me, the blame should lie with the originator of that email.   For had that email not been sent, who knows what would've happened?  

Like you said, I highly doubt Melinda would've sent the email if she wanted Mike to come back and say "oh no, Melinda, please lets's do more shows."  

Neither side really comes out smelling like roses if you ask me.  

One thing about this email, I know Doe touts this one line to nauseating degrees, and I have no doubt the validity of the email. But I would just love to know if there were further emails that were sent before or after between the two camps. I mean, we get this convenient one liner, but like everything else in the fandom, it can’t be all black and white.

i'm still trying to figure out why Melinda referred to her husband as "Wilson". I don't refer to my wife as "Castillo". Just seems odd, and not plausible. Not really buying it.

[Rocky Raccoon]

I imagine that email was sent from a member of Brian’s management team and Mike just assumed or misremembers it as being from Melinda.  Could have been a an error in communication.  He does seem to hold a weird grudge against her, especially judging from his memoir.  I find it especially odd that Mike would take a fragmented sentence email at its word and nobody brought up adding more tour dates afterwards?  Did these people not talk to each other once they left the stage?

[SurfRiderHawaii]

I am probably wrong about this but it was my understanding that the email was sent during the first
group of shows.  Brian's back was really bothering him.

Then he had some treatment and he felt better, more shows were added. And then Brian wanted to do even more but Mike put the kabash on that.

[Zesterz]

SurfRider hits the nail on the head. Easily the most plausible sequence of events and logical cause of confusion

[Amy B.]

Yes, there could have been any number of reasons why Melinda or Brian's management sent that email. Maybe Brian wasn't feeling well (physically or mentally) and was refusing to do any more shows, so someone sent the email. (Then Brian later felt better and changed his mind.) Maybe there was an argument or incident between Brian's camp and Mike's camp that led Brian's camp to decide they'd had enough. Why assume it was Melinda playing games? Maybe it was, but there's a possibility it wasn't. 

If we're to believe Mike, he got that email out of the blue. The weird thing is, why, upon receiving it, he didn't follow up and ask what the problem was, rather than go ahead and book shows without Brian? If my estranged cousin makes dinner plans with me and abruptly sends an email saying "Not going," I would reply to ask if everything is OK, especially if my cousin has health problems and a history of not wanting to go out to dinner! I don't just say to myself, "OK, I'll find someone else to have dinner with."

If you're going to tour with Brian Wilson (even taking Melinda out of the equation), you have to expect some unpredictability. That's why I think there's some context to that email that Mike's not revealing. Maybe, as some are speculating, "No more shows for Wilson" was in reply to an email from Mike's camp.