Interesting ebay listing

[Ed Roach]

Was just 'cleaning things up' on my computer, and I noticed something I had clicked to 'Watch this item' back in July.  It was another of those "worn by Dennis Wilson" items, and I'd clicked on this just to see what it eventually would sell for; (not that I'd ever sell anything he gave to me!)  Imagine my surprise, when in cleaning things out, I discovered I'm connected to this item, too, in the description and story given.  Thought some would find this interesting:

Beach Boys’ Dennis Wilson Personally-owned Sweatshirt
Given to me by Dennis in 1978
 
Ended: Aug 02, 200916:00:45 PDT
 
Bid history: 10 bids
 
Winning bid: US $51.00


 On the heels of the release of his now-acclaimed “Pacific Ocean Blue” LP, I interviewed Dennis Wilson at Brother Studios in January 1978.  The most memorable highlight of our chat that day was the revelation that he had recently unearthed the Beach Boys’ legendary “Smile” tapes, often purported to have been lost or even destroyed by his brother Brian.  Some of this conversation was featured in the radio program “The Robert W. Morgan Special of the Week” later that year.  At the conclusion of our interview, Dennis had engineer Earle Mankey cue up the mythic “Fire” section of “Smile’s” Elements Suite and Dennis tried to maintain a poker face as my jaw dropped to the floor.

 This wasn’t my first or last conversation with Dennis, but it was the one that led to a casual friendship that persisted over the next four years.  The last time I saw him was probably a year before his death.  I acquired this sweatshirt, however, a few months after the aforementioned interview, in the spring of ’78. 

 I had run into Dennis at Venice Beach, who convinced me to make the schlep up to Chez Jay’s bar in Santa Monica with him and his friend Eddie Roach.  It was my first time in the legendary watering hole, and my first time drinking tequila shots.  Dennis was at his funny, charming best, and he was definitely the king in his court there that day.  After a couple of hours, we headed back south to Venice to hit another venue, but Dennis detoured to the marina where his boat, Harmony, was moored to pick up some cash.

 As the sun had now set, I was freezing in shorts and a short-sleeved shirt, so Dennis grabbed this sweatshirt for me from the boat.  When I earnestly promised to get it back to him soon he just laughed at me.

 I continued to wear the sweatshirt for years.  I didn’t think of it as an artifact, it just had a nice set of memories attached to it.  By the time that it started to fray and fall apart, Dennis had long since passed away, and the memory of that afternoon and evening precluded any thought of tossing it out.  In the years since, I have become an inveterate Beach Boys collector, but I don’t collect clothes.  And having unearthed this item after squirreling it away in a closet for nearly 20 years, it seemed like time to pass it on.
 

I've just written to the person listing this, asking who the heck he is?!?!  However, I bet someone here will nail it before I even hear back from him!

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Do you think it was legit?

[Nicole]

Wow, that's cool. I'm kind of surprised it had 10 bids and only went up to $51.

[Eric Aniversario]

Wow.  That's kind of a low selling price.  It would take at least $1000 for me to part with something like that.  At LEAST that much.

[DonnaK]

Ed, make sure you let us know when you find out!!!!!

[Ed Roach]

It was legit, alright!  Got an email from the fellow last night; turns out he 'reminded' me of our initial meeting at a CWF event several years ago...  He also told me another story, about Carl's solo show at The Roxy.  I doubt he'd mind if I quoted him here:  "I reminded you of that story --and Dennis' introducing me to Cuervo!-- and also the time that he showed up with his parade of surfers from the beach at Carl's solo premiere at the Roxy. 
 
Dennis was fairly drunk, as you'll recall, and kept hollering throughout the show.  Carl was so annoyed.  I was sitting at a table on the riser directly behind Dennis, and I reached down and put my hand on his shoulder and said, "Hey, Dennis, cool it."  He jumped up, turned around, and started to take a swing at me, then saw who it was and stopped in his tracks and said, "Sorry, man."

That was some strange night!  (Also the night Dennis & Shawn actually 'got together'!)  Dennis rented tuxes for just about everybody, (I refused, but gave in a little and wore a 3 piece suit), and several of them were sold  the next day on Venice Beach!  I've got some real interesting pictures from that night, including one of all 3 Wilson boys backstage after the show!

[c-man]

Great story, Ed!  Thanks so much for sharing, 'cause these stories of yours are such a great  way to keep Dennis alive for us.

[Jonas]

Pictures or bust!!

[Nicole]

Ed, you are an impossibly lucky guy. I love reading the stories and memories you post.

[Custom Machine]

It was   I've got some real interesting pictures from that night, including one of all 3 Wilson boys backstage after the show!

Hey Ed -

Hope you can post at least one photo.  (And in the not too distant future you've gotta do a book!)  I hadn't realized Dennis and Brian had been backstage.  When I was backstage after the show I encountered Carl, Bruce, and Audry Wilson.  Talked to Brian before and after Carl's concert, and definitely heard Dennis (who was continually shouting and cheering from toward the back of the Roxy) but never saw him.  The LA Times reviewer, not realizing that Carl's most vocal fan was his brother Dennis, wrote "Sometimes those guys (the fans) seemed a mite overappreciative.  The modest falsetto in 'Heaven,' for example, hardly seemed worth screaming about."

[urbanite]

Come on Ed, let's see some more of your fantastic photos!

[Pretty Funky]

I think a few are here.

http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,6812.msg109387.html#msg109387

[Chris Brown]

Your stories are always fantastic Ed, I enjoy reading them all immensely!

I'm pretty shocked too that the winning bid was only $51.  I would have expected at least a few hundred.

[DonnaK]

Thanks for the update Ed. What I want to know, is what,who, how much, and what can WE do to talk you into publishing your story and photos?? NOT just because you were Dennis' best buddy, but because it seems like you've had such a cool (most of the time), life. You've lived the life that so many here wish they could have.  I know it's a time consuming thing, but Ed, you have GOT to do it!!!!!

How can we help???

[c-man]

Ed, what were Dennis' thoughts about Carl's solo tour?  Especially in light of The Beach Boys telling Dennis he couldn't do a solo tour a few years earlier?