A question about when Brian filled in for Mike

[Jay]

Are there any pictures that exist with Brian on stage with the group when he "replaced" Mike for a few shows in 1970? What about when Brian joined the group at the Long Beach show in 1971?

[MBE]

I have a bunch of the 1970 shots. www.yousendit.com/download/TTdFTkZpSWU4Q1RIRGc9PQ
Notice how normal and animated Brian seems. Compare these to 90 percent of his stage shots since the '76 comeback.
Never saw any 71 or 73 shots but Brian also seems together in the Whiskey photos later that year. I bet in the 71 at least he seemed ok. The 73 he may have been starting to change.

[Jay]

Thanks a lot for posting that file.  I've seen a few of those before. Was that at an actual Beach Boys concert? It looks like a very small place. I always assumed those pictures came from an informal party or something. Brian does seem pretty much like his old self there. It's odd to see him center stage. I always thought he would have sat at a piano or keyboard. That is what he did in the one picture I've seen from the Whiskey shows. On the Seattle recording that circulates, Brian seems to be pretty much in the background. it's hard to tell by the poor sound quality though.

[MBE]

He sings his old parts on that tape from what I can tell. Most Whiskey pictures he is seated but there are a few where you see him shaking hands with people out front. The Beach Boys played small venues during that period.

[Jason]

The Beach Boys played small venues during that period.

Did that mean their popularity was waning, or was their fanbase becoming more selective?

 

[The Shift]

Nice pics  -  who are the other folks on stage? Recognise the two ladies in Brian's life of course, but who's drumming? And who's the tall guy (think how tall Brian is!) with the Mick Jagger lips?

[MBE]

Danny Hutten may be the guy, could be one of the Raiders? Dennis is the drummer look close.
The fan base that was with them then were the real fans like us I would think.

[Christian]

Nice pics  -  who are the other folks on stage? Recognise the two ladies in Brian's life of course, but who's drumming? And who's the tall guy (think how tall Brian is!) with the Mick Jagger lips?

The drummer is John Guerin and the tall guy is Tandyn Almer.

[MBE]

Now I looked close myself maybe that isn't Dennis??

[c-man]

I don't think these photos are from the Mike-less tour.  A couple of these pictures are included on page 132 of David Leaf's book.  The caption reads "Jamming with The Flame at a L.A. club, 1970". 

[The Shift]

Haven't got David Leaf's book to hand but in the pics made available here I don't see any members of the Flame. The Honeys/Spring yes, but not the Flame...

[c-man]

Haven't got David Leaf's book to hand but in the pics made available here I don't see any members of the Flame. The Honeys/Spring yes, but not the Flame...

Regardless, I don't think it's a Beach Boys gig, but rather Brian, Carl, Marilyn & Diane, Tandyn, John Guerin, and others jamming at a club in L.A.  In the Leaf book, the curly-haired guitarist seen in the background looks like Blondie, but in the photos posted here by Jay, the guy's hair color seems too light to be Mr. Chaplin.

[John]

He sings his old parts on that tape from what I can tell. Most Whiskey pictures he is seated but there are a few where you see him shaking hands with people out front. The Beach Boys played small venues during that period.

He sings the lead on Add Some Music, I think. By which I mean, Mike's part.

[Christian]

... I don't see any members of the Flame. The Honeys/Spring yes, but not the Flame...

No members of The Flame on stage, but if you look closely, you´ll see little pictures of Blondie & Ricky leaning on the wall in one photo - whatever that might suggest. 

[Ian]

The photos were taken by Earl Leaf and some appeared in the Sept 1970 Teen Magazine (for which publication Earl wrote a column).  He states that the BBs threw a party for their "proteges" The Flame.  After the Flame played a set (there is a photo of this), Brian, Carl, Bruce and Billy Hinsche jammed with Desi Arnaz Jr on Drums and 16 year old Ricci Martin there too. Also taking part were BBs "womenfolk"-including Marilyn Rovell.   Therefore the pics come from sometime in the late summer of 1970 (early Sept at the latest).  Probably the party was to celebrate the completion of The Flame's first LP on Brother.

[MBE]

Thanks Ian. I have been trying to figure these out since I saw the Leaf book. I think I posted a few times on here about it and we came to the erroneous conclusion that it was the tour. When did Carl grow the beard? I think on the July 29th 1970 publicity photos of the WB signing it looks like it was fresh grown in. On the Aussie tour of 1970 he is growing it. Unless he shaved and grew it back the concert would have had to have taken place in the spring maybe April? See The Light came out in October so April is perhaps when they were signed and perhaps when the LP was recorded?

P.S. any chance you can scan the photos and article from Teen?

[Ian]

He experimented with the beard-but he didn't adopt it for good until the European tour in 1970.  If you look at the photos from the Nov Whiskey shows-he seems to have shaved it off again-after the first show.  I have a picture of Carl arriving in New Zealand in 1970 and he had no beard. Nor does he have one in the Sunflower era publicity photos of each member (printed in Badman's book). 

[MBE]

I never saw a Whiskey shot without the beard. I have seen pictures from the two different days Brian played and he had a beard both those days. He also had it at the gig at Big Sur and during the My Solution session. It is so full in the Europe tour that I doubt he shaved it for several months. He could have shaved it off after the 7-29 photo, but it again looks so full in October that I doubt it. I know he never had it before the Aussie tour though.

[Ian]

All I can say is that the photos and story are in the Sept 1970 Teen Magazine- I have no proof that it happened in August-it could have been June, July or even May....but-Carl was producing an album for The Flame and thinking logically-having a party to celebrate completion of that project makes sense-but again no proof.  That being said Earl's column was fairly up to date. The  Nov 1970 Teen has Whiskey photos-so right before putting the mag to be printed...If your proof that this show was spring is based on Carl's beard-I can grow a beard in four days....As far as Whiskey photos-its clear in some that Carl has much less beard-like he shaved it and then decided to grow it right back-look again.  There was no Flame party advertised in the LA Times in 1970-but it clearly was a private party-so unlikely we will learn the right date-Maybe ask Billy Hinsche?

[She Dont Know A Thing]

There's photos of the My Solution session?

[Steve Mayo]

carl had a beard at the october 1970 big sur shows....

[Ian]

I forgot-I have articles and photos of the BBs app at the Milwaukee Pop Fest-June 14 1970.  Color photos of Carl at that show are in Preiss book-paperback page 100 and 102-BBs in sort of Military blue outfits.  So Carl had no beard on June 14 1970.  A photo from this show is also used for the cover of a foreign record jacket...

[MBE]

Good find, I know the photos you are talking about. Carl's beard in the Aussie and July 29th pics do look not fully grown so I agree the private party pics could be as late as July, the magazine was up to date so most likely they are sometime either in June or July?  Perhaps Stephen Desper knows when the party was?

[MBE]

I just wanted to say I am happy you all liked the photos. 150 downloads!

[variable2]

I just wanted to say I am happy you all liked the photos. 150 downloads!

I enjoyed them    they would be even cooler without the watermark, but you can't always get what you want.