The T.A.M.I. Show (Wilson Show)

[kirkmc- banned on the run]

If that doesn't show a blind man just how far ahead the Beach Boys were in sophisticated harmonics and excitement in rock'n'roll-nothing does...a) Brian's writing and arranging is operating on another dimension...Carl's guitar playing (he in his teens?) is bordering on virtuoso...And Dennis is thee first real Drummer Rock God...He does moves that Moon did later and got credit for...It's the boys' at the top of their game. Love, of course looks like a complete idiot who just does not belong. He looks like an old man trying to hang out with kids. (And, of course,  without proper production sounds even worse.) But the real star of the show for me is Chuck Berry doin' JBG! He just knows he's the king...That's by far my fav' part...The rest...is a nice historical document, I guess. Pitty the poor buggers who had to follow the Beach Boys..

P.s. Why didn't they release Catch A Wave as a single? Little Honda? There's probably more...Thinking...Wendy maybe?

[Andrew G. Doe]

If that doesn't show a blind man just how far ahead the Beach Boys were in sophisticated harmonics and excitement in rock'n'roll-nothing does...a) Brian's writing and arranging is operating on another dimension...Carl's guitar playing (he in his teens?) is bordering on virtuoso...And Dennis is thee first real Drummer Rock God...He does moves that Moon did later and got credit for...It's the boys' at the top of their game. Love, of course looks like a complete idiot who just does not belong. He looks like an old man trying to hang out with kids. (And, of course,  without proper production sounds even worse.) But the real star of the show for me is Chuck Berry doin' JBG! He just knows he's the king...That's by far my fav' part...The rest...is a nice historical document, I guess. Pitty the poor buggers who had to follow the Beach Boys..

P.s. Why didn't they release Catch A Wave as a single? Little Honda? There's probably more...Thinking...Wendy maybe?

True story: Brian was going to release "Honda" as a 45 but during playback, someone walking down the studio corridor stuck his head through the door and Brian asked him what he thought of it. "Don't like it much" came the reply... and that's why The Hondells and not The Beach Boys had a Top 10 hit with it.

[Rocker]

Everyone, including Mike, is pretty cool on the TAMI-show. Probably the best footage of the Beach Boys and exciting as hell. Not too many artists could compare with this

[Sam_BFC]

Any news on a UK release of TAMI yet?

[Pretty Funky]

Watched the PBS program pushing the DVD last night. All but 18 songs shown but I missed the first part which I guess may have been Chuck Berry. Dean Torrance was telling stories about the show. He mentioned the Beach Boys (Murry?)
got their songs cut due to them changing direction and wanting to get away from the car/ surf songs.

Good to see the show and Dean looking well. High light for me was James Brown then the Rolling Stones pulling out all the stops after.

[Custom Machine]

P.s. Why didn't they release Catch A Wave as a single? Little Honda? There's probably more...Thinking...Wendy maybe?

Capitol did release a 45 rpm EP "Four by The Beach Boys" in Sept 64 with Wendy and Don't Back Down on Side One and Little Honda and Hushabye on Side Two.  The EP came in a picture sleeve with Little Honda and Wendy in larger all capital letters, and Don't Back Down and Hushabye in smaller lettering underneath. 
While a regular 45 single had a list price of 99 cents back then, my recollection is that this EP listed for around $1.29 or so. 

Four by The Beach Boys was released around a month after Little Honda by the Hondells (produced by Nick Venet and arranged by Gary Usher) and both Wendy and Little Honda received radio airplay and charted (Wendy to #44 and Little Honda to #65 on Billboard's Hot 100). 

In the San Diego market in which I lived, there were three rock stations.  Wendy made it to number 14 on KCBQ, Wendy/Little Honda made it to number 14 on KGB, and neither song made the KDEO survey.  But, KDEO did play She Knows Me Too Well (flip of Dance Dance Dance) in it's regular rotation, and both KDEO and KGB played The Warmth of the Sun (flip of Dance, Dance, Dance) in their regular rotations, although neither SKMTW nor TWOTS made the Billboard Hot 100.

[kirkmc- banned on the run]

The Beach Boy music and performance is so rippin' - it's gets me past past how completely nerdy they are...Candy-striped shirts, and oldish balding lookin guy, a chubby kinda Carl, a way to big Brian-a tiny Al-and they kick ass...I don't get it-)...What's even more trippy is J&D sang a few tunes BRian co-wrote as well, so the Boys' were well represented. Man they owned that era.

[Custom Machine]

Just a quick correction - I should have said She Knows Me too Well was the flip of When I Grow Up (to be a Man).  This was truly an amazing time for the BBs, as the moment one single was on its decent down the charts, another was on its way up.  During this time the BBs had 5 singles in a row (counting the EP) where both sides were played on some or all Top 40 radio stations in a given market.

[Peadar 'Big Dinner' O'Driscoll]

You can now get it from some second hand sellers on amazon.co.uk. can't wait to see this!

Any news on a UK release of TAMI yet?

[Pinder's Gone To Kokomo And Back Again]

If that doesn't show a blind man just how far ahead the Beach Boys were in sophisticated harmonics and excitement in rock'n'roll-nothing does...a) Brian's writing and arranging is operating on another dimension...Carl's guitar playing (he in his teens?) is bordering on virtuoso...And Dennis is thee first real Drummer Rock God...He does moves that Moon did later and got credit for...It's the boys' at the top of their game. Love, of course looks like a complete idiot who just does not belong. He looks like an old man trying to hang out with kids. (And, of course,  without proper production sounds even worse.) But the real star of the show for me is Chuck Berry doin' JBG! He just knows he's the king...That's by far my fav' part...The rest...is a nice historical document, I guess. Pitty the poor buggers who had to follow the Beach Boys..

P.s. Why didn't they release Catch A Wave as a single? Little Honda? There's probably more...Thinking...Wendy maybe?

I dunno, man! Yeah, Mike looks pretty dorky on the T.A.M.I show, and I dunno why he's standing like he is the whole time with his knees half bent, but hmm...... on one side you have these awesome harmonies from Brian, Carl and Al, then you have serious rock n roll in the back from Dennis.... then you have this...... voice.... from like another planet! It's not sweet singing, not crooning, or trying to sound soul, or anything you can define! Just this odd, nasal voice with quite a bit of personality and attitude which is pretty freakin cool!!! You mix it with the heavenly harmonies and the rock n roll, and you have..... THE BEACH BOYS!!!!!!

I can't find a damn thing worth complaining about!

[18thofMay]

Can we get it here in Australia

[Pretty Funky]

I would expect it will turn up. You could try the 'contact' link for the 'Shout! Factory' below who have put it out and ask.

http://www.shoutfactory.com/browse/312/the_tami_show.aspx

[Don_Zabu]

The TAMI show is just phenomenal. The Boys are in their live-performance prime, the setlist is great, and the film quality is so high you can see the bags under Brian's eyes.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Oh my - this is something special. I'd love to have seen Gerry Marsden's face when he was told he was performing with Chuck Berry !

Any low points ? Yeah, two: The Barbarians... why ? And Dean trying to sing falsetto and missing by a margin almost too wide to accurately measure.  Otherwise... perfect.

[Jon Stebbins]

Oh my - this is something special. I'd love to have seen Gerry Marsden's face when he was told he was performing with Chuck Berry !

Any low points ? Yeah, two: The Barbarians... why ? And Dean trying to sing falsetto and missing by a margin almost too wide to accurately measure.  Otherwise... perfect.

I can understand saying "why?" regarding The Barbarians when everyone else on the bill were already stars and they were not, they were more of a regional favorite that never broke out nationally. They must have known somebody on the inside, casting director, producer, something got them in...plus they got one song while everyone else had multiples. So in a way they were amateur hour compared to the rest. BUT, I would not say their performance was a low point...IMO it was just the opposite. The Barbarians were an early sign of what was coming, a harbinger of what effect Brit Invasion bands like The Kinks, Zombies, Yardbirds etc...had on Americans. Within a year of TAMI groups with an aesthetic similar to that of the Barbarians were popping up all over the the States. Think of groups like Shadows of Knight, Standells, Blues Magoos, Leaves, Vagrants, Remains, Raiders, Chocolate Watchband etc... The All-American garage punk style. TAMI had no other US act representing that ethos. The Stones obviously did a great job of covering that end of things, but they were Brits interpreting American R&B, and one step earlier than what happened when Americans began interpreting Brits interpreting Americans. The Barbarians attitude, their hair, their clothes, and their energy says 1966 US garage punk. To see them up there doing that trip in Oct. 1964 was truly ahead of its time, for America. Plus their drummer had one hand!

To me the low point, musically, was def Jan and Dean. i know they have a lot of great fans around here, and their records made a lot of people happy and lifelong fans. They made GREAT hosts for the show. But IMO when they did their mini-set, their vocal limitations were a problem, and their persona didn't come off all that electric either. Compared to The Beach Boys its like night and day. The Beach Boys set explodes like an incredible rocking harmonic orgasm. Jan and Dean look like two guys standing there with uncomfortable body language singing not too good. If the Beach Boys had been five Mike Loves they would have been something closer to Jan and Dean. But the Beach Boys used their Mike Love perfectly, which balanced their Big sensitive/jock Brian, their two-headed guitar/harmony machine Carl/Al and their primal animal on drums. That said, i think Jan and Dean did a beautiful job of handling the transitions as emcees, and their presence in the opening theme footage and throughout was a big plus. Could have done without the mega-close-up of Diana Ross' face during the Supremes set, geez that was creepy!

[Andrew G. Doe]

Actually, one other problem - the running order. My impression is, they pulled the names out of a hat. The Barbarians* wouldn't have seemed so out of place if they'd opened... and speaking of opening, who was the genius who had the idea of CHUCK BERRY kicking things off ??

[* Jon, you have to remember that outside of the US, except to serious garage band heads, The Barbarians are known, if at all, for one thing and one thing only. Moulty. That was the very first time I'd ever heard them and frankly, I was severely underwhelmed. Like you say, they had to know someone, or someone else dropped out and they came cheap. Bit like The Power Station at Live Aid.]

[Jon Stebbins]

Actually, one other problem - the running order. My impression is, they pulled the names out of a hat. The Barbarians* wouldn't have seemed so out of place if they'd opened... and speaking of opening, who was the genius who had the idea of CHUCK BERRY kicking things off ??

[* Jon, you have to remember that outside of the US, except to serious garage band heads, The Barbarians are known, if at all, for one thing and one thing only. Moulty. That was the very first time I'd ever heard them and frankly, I was severely underwhelmed. Like you say, they had to know someone, or someone else dropped out and they came cheap. Bit like The Power Station at Live Aid.]

No argument here about them looking out of place. To me part of why they did is they feel more '66 than '64. And yes, an opening slot would have been perfect for them...just to get things rolling and rocking. Speaking of out of place...To me Smokey and the Miracles are on the other end...feeling more '62 than '64. Another thing that hit me as i watched TAMI, as limited as Billy J. and the Dakotas were, the two Lennon and McCartney tunes they performed stood out as fine pop compositions, I mean did anything the Stones or James Brown did leave you humming and whistling? Even the BB's relied more on their energy than their songs in that setting, which was great!. But those two John and Paul tunes that Billy J. warbled out, Beatles rejects mind you, performed shakily...but still great little tunes.

[Andrew G. Doe]

One thing that I forgot to touch on at all - no fixing, no overdubs: what we saw and heard is what happened that day. Some of it wasn't pretty, but damn, was it energetic.

And also... was James Brown moonwalking ? I'd say, as close as makes no difference. 

[Rocker]

One thing that I forgot to touch on at all - no fixing, no overdubs: what we saw and heard is what happened that day. Some of it wasn't pretty, but damn, was it energetic.

And also... was James Brown moonwalking ? I'd say, as close as makes no difference. 

The basics of moonwalking (in terms of dancing) were all over the place for a long time. Wouldn't be surprised if James Brown showed some of it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxZcLWAmdco&feature=related

[Mark A. Moore]

Oh my - this is something special. I'd love to have seen Gerry Marsden's face when he was told he was performing with Chuck Berry !

Any low points ? Yeah, two: The Barbarians... why ? And Dean trying to sing falsetto and missing by a margin almost too wide to accurately measure.  Otherwise... perfect.

I can understand saying "why?" regarding The Barbarians when everyone else on the bill were already stars and they were not, they were more of a regional favorite that never broke out nationally. They must have known somebody on the inside, casting director, producer, something got them in...plus they got one song while everyone else had multiples. So in a way they were amateur hour compared to the rest. BUT, I would not say their performance was a low point...IMO it was just the opposite. The Barbarians were an early sign of what was coming, a harbinger of what effect Brit Invasion bands like The Kinks, Zombies, Yardbirds etc...had on Americans. Within a year of TAMI groups with an aesthetic similar to that of the Barbarians were popping up all over the the States. Think of groups like Shadows of Knight, Standells, Blues Magoos, Leaves, Vagrants, Remains, Raiders, Chocolate Watchband etc... The All-American garage punk style. TAMI had no other US act representing that ethos. The Stones obviously did a great job of covering that end of things, but they were Brits interpreting American R&B, and one step earlier than what happened when Americans began interpreting Brits interpreting Americans. The Barbarians attitude, their hair, their clothes, and their energy says 1966 US garage punk. To see them up there doing that trip in Oct. 1964 was truly ahead of its time, for America. Plus their drummer had one hand!

To me the low point, musically, was def Jan and Dean. i know they have a lot of great fans around here, and their records made a lot of people happy and lifelong fans. They made GREAT hosts for the show. But IMO when they did their mini-set, their vocal limitations were a problem, and their persona didn't come off all that electric either. Compared to The Beach Boys its like night and day. The Beach Boys set explodes like an incredible rocking harmonic orgasm. Jan and Dean look like two guys standing there with uncomfortable body language singing not too good. If the Beach Boys had been five Mike Loves they would have been something closer to Jan and Dean. But the Beach Boys used their Mike Love perfectly, which balanced their Big sensitive/jock Brian, their two-headed guitar/harmony machine Carl/Al and their primal animal on drums. That said, i think Jan and Dean did a beautiful job of handling the transitions as emcees, and their presence in the opening theme footage and throughout was a big plus. Could have done without the mega-close-up of Diana Ross' face during the Supremes set, geez that was creepy!

J&D are bad in TAMI . . . but it's to be expected. At least the brass parts, etc., are played from the charts used for the studio versions. You can hear Sloan and Barri singing harmonies on TAMI, but the leads are nonchalant, to say the least.

The best visual instances of J&D live performances are captured in the Jan & Dean On the Run TV pilot from early '66. In that footage, you see them in front of the whole band -- Hal Blaine with his double bass drum kit, and George Tipton conducting the entire ensemble (of Wrecking Crew members). J&D are jumping around (even with Jan's leg in a cast), and the overall energy is much higher.

Not stellar for live vocals, but a far cry from TAMI. Not even close.

[?]

I can understand saying "why?" regarding The Barbarians when everyone else on the bill were already stars and they were not, they were more of a regional favorite that never broke out nationally. They must have known somebody on the inside, casting director, producer, something got them in...

I read a Mojo interview with the director that explains The Barbarians participation.  The full interview can be found here but this is the relevant section:

Mojo: Now, with the Beach Boys, they played the show but didn’t make the final cut. What happened there?

Binder: That was the father, who had total--there’s books written about it--total domination, total control. He made the deal with Bill Sargeant that he have control over the film after its initial run, and he insisted, not realizing that it was going to be a classic years later, that it be pulled from the original print, which they did. Then he came back, Bill told me this, and begged that they put the Beach Boys back in, by that time it was too expensive to reinsert it. So, the pints that were struck after the initial run, and the edited prints, there were very few left with any Beach Boys in them. I’m surprised you were able to find one. But you can find anything on EBay...There was one group that was the house band, the Barbarians, and that was a Bill Sargeant house act that he was hoping would become rock stars. If you notice, they only did one or two numbers at the most. They weren’t part of the known acts. I remember arguing whether they should even be in the show or not.

I just watched this for the first time the other night.  For me, the standout was Leslie Gore.  Her performance of You Don't Own Me was mind blowing.  So good!

Since the dvd is clearly sourced from film, does that mean the "Electronovision" original no longer exists?  It's a shame if that's the case.  I would love to get a look at that on Blu Ray!

[37!ws]

Great DVD overall....and were the go-go dancers on crack or something?! Never saw dancing so hyper in my life!

I did notice, though, that there are audience shots that are on the Beach Boys' TAMI performances in other documentaries -- An American Band, etc. -- that are NOT anywhere in the DVD, particularly the kid with his fingers in his ears....wonder if this was a different edit/camera shot/etc....