It's been years since I've been back - I mean properly staying in and exploring the city. The last time was a road trip for Brian's Smile performance, which was overwhelming and unforgettable. But from what I've heard, many of the places I used to know back in the day are gone, and a lot of the areas with some original gritty character left standing when I was there have been given a shiny corporate makeover, and sadly that included getting rid of many if not all of my go-to bars/pubs and late-night junk food hangout haunts.
Beach Boys connections? The one most obvious:
And anyone should do what I did on an earlier 2003 road trip return to Boston: Park illegally on the street, jump out and snap photos, and get back in the car!
Having lived there for 7-8 years both at Berklee and working there in town afterward, I realized I had never gotten a photo of that iconic statue, even though I was previously a member of the MFA and would go there regularly with my pass. So I said now's the time, and drove the car up there leaving town after the BW gig to snag the photos. BTW just down the road from MFA, close to Northeastern was a favorite pool hall where we'd go to shoot some stick and hang out...I'm sure that's gone now too.
Almost 18 years later and 25-30 pounds lighter:
Then there was the warm June night in 1999 when if you were standing in the right place you got to see this musical genius walk by on a side street just off Mass Ave, smiling and waving to a group of fans:
I'm still not fully over that experience, at Symphony Hall no less, and it truly was the impossible becoming a reality. I've written about it before, but here's what another audience member Al Kooper had to say about it:
http://www.alkooper.com/diary-1999-brian-wilson.htmlYes, it was that good.
Bonus points for identifying yet another place and time when someone in the right place could grab a candid shot of that musical genius entering a stretch limo at night after a gig:
Any guesses where that was taken?
Going back to the old places that no longer exist, a lot of venues where the Beach Boys played have been torn down or replaced, so I don't know how much of the old history still exists. The outdoor gig in the 70's, anyone can go to the Commons to walk around but it really isn't BB-specific other than that they played a big show there.
Then there's David Marks and Berklee, his apartment has already been listed but at that time David was attending, Berklee I believe had taken up residence mostly at 1140 Boylston for classes and recitals, I'd have to research when they took over 150 Mass Ave as dorms, classrooms, and the Performance Center (BPC), but I think it was a few years after David had left, in the mid-70's.
Sorry I couldn't give more specifics, all the record shops I used to go for the good unreleased BB session material on CD and dubbed cassettes are probably gone too and not BB's related anyway, but I'm curious to see if you can dig up more!