Reviews of the Brian and Al tour.

November 22 Beacon Theatre New York, NY 8:00PM

I believe the only difference in the setlist was that a cool, classic version of "Little Saint Nick" was included. We were seated in the back of the orchestra, in the center, and the sound mix was better to my ears than on Tuesday. Brian's voice wasn't as strong but the harmonies sounded better, and especially in the second set, the vocals seemed mixed higher (I felt that at several points on Tuesday, the guitars were mixed too high and the vocals weren't in the forefront). The vocal harmonies sounded great. Despite the slightly weaker lead vocals, I enjoyed the Pet Sounds set more Wednesday.

The crowd didn't seem as passionate at first but folks started standing up en masse earlier than on Tuesday. There was a standing ovation again after "God Only Knows," and it was prolonged, but not nearly as long as Tuesday and not as passionate. We talked to some of the band afterwards and I think they felt Tuesday was stronger, but that it was still a good show. Dauber shook Brian's hand. I don't think he was unhappy about that. Richie Havens was there, looking younger than he did 25 years ago, as was Dennis Diken of the Smithereens. We spent the longest time talking to Nelson Bragg, who was warm and charming, and was full of enthusiasm for his own projects. Darien was, as always, cooler than one man should be.

Those of us who saw Brian in his first return concert at the Beacon couldn't believe the progress that Brian has made as a performer. It's a load off of my mind, anyway, not to be at a concert worrying about Brian's well-being, and whether he'll hit a note, or just seem glum and unhappy. Brian was playing a bit in these two concerts. He was bending notes, adding syllables and words to some songs (intentionally). During Sloop John B on Wednesday, as he was switching leads with Al, he started improvising vocal responses. Brian doing call and response on the fly!

Nelson said after the concert that this was the first time Brian did this -- to me this is an indication that Brian was "in the moment." It's thrilling to see this playful and spontaneous side. -- David Feldman on PSML

It was excellent--Brian was in surprisingly good voice, and Al Jardine is actually very good as well. And the band, well, I must say, they've assembled one hell of a backing band that does the music absolute justice. The band played a set of Beach Boys standards before intermission, and then came back and performed Pet Sounds live before a nice, long encore. Good show and very much worth the craziness of the rest of the day.

Follow up:

November 21 Beacon Theatre New York, NY 8:00PM

The band just sizzled last night - they were on fire!! I also saw Boston [which was amazing] and Philly [also amazing!], but this show topped them appreciably. There was an energy at the Beacon that just wasn't there at the first two shows.

Unfortunately, the sound at the Beacon just sucks. It was too loud [to the point of distortion, almost], the balance was uneven...the show we saw was worthy of better sound all around.

Al is just such a great addition to this crew - even tho he does seem confused at times, as if he's not quite sure yet exactly where he fits in, he is clearly having a ball, and the band have taken to him very nicely. It alsmot looks like he's been there all along - like he belongs on that stage with Brian's musicians. His guitar playing doesn't add a blessed thing, but his vocals add EVERYTHING to the sound! Breakaway...oh my God. Awesome.

The standing O after GOK seemed to almost scare Brian, and Darian picked up on that and strted right in with the next song. To his credit, tho - and a major departure from Brian in years past - a few songs later, Brian said, "Incidentally, ladies and gentlemen, i really appreciated that ovation after God ONly Knows. We really appreciate it." So good for him - immediate confrontation of his demons.

I also really enjoyed the Tuesday show at the Beacon. I love the theater, but the sound was just too muddy, and the show did suffer a bit as a result of the acoustics. To my taste the band was a bit too loose--in a way that's better than their note-perfect days, but in some ways they really could have been tighter. As always, they were great on Sailor and Marcella, which should be made into singles if only Brian could do those vocals.

Seeing Alan was much more fun than expected--and actually moving in some ways. His vocals, as already mentioned, made a big difference to the show. I loved "Then I Kissed Her" and also Rhonda in the encore; California and I Know There's An Answer were also exciting to hear. It was moving to have 2 Beach Boys on stage. Now if they could only pipe in the original Mike bass vocals, without having him on stage....Have to say that when Al put his arm around Brian during "LGAFA"--as mentioned by Aum Bop--all I could think of what that Brian is still taller than Al, even when he's sitting down and Al is standing! Too cynical, I guess.

Brian looked more relaxed than I've ever seen. The hand motions were charming, especially when he pretends to surf. Best vocal was "That's Not Me."

The celebration got rolling after the show’s first half, which featured some minor and major Wilson, not just “I Get Around” and “In My Room” but “Add Some Music to Your Day” and “The Little Girl I Once Knew.” Performing “Pet Sounds,” the backup band replicated the Phil Spector-gone-Baroque arrangements of the album. The basis was bulk: sometimes four guitars at once (one played by the Beach Boy Al Jardine), two keyboards, seven singers, drums and percussion.

On top of that various musicians doubled on saxophones, flutes, French horn, trumpet, vibraphone, and bass harmonica. (The bicycle-horn sound on “You Still Believe in Me” was done with an electronic keyboard.)

In the dreamlike 40 minutes of “Pet Sounds,” Mr. Wilson showed no charisma; sitting behind his keyboard and reading lyrics from a screen, he seemed as authentically uncomfortable as ever. He sang well, but his voice has changed of course: the flowing lines of “Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)” came out in a clipped staccato, and he couldn’t quite get his voice around its high pitches.

I'm going to chime in to both agree and disagree with Tom's assessments. Granted, this was a fine fine show. It was without a doubt the finest display of harmony singing I've ever heard in 30 years of seeing live shows. When Jeff referred to himself and his cohorts as "the world's greatest band" he wasn't joking. They were on it and they were hot!!

The show was not without its faults though. Brian really nailed some songs (Sail on Sailor, Marcella, and other songs that didn't challenge the limited upper range that his chest voice now carries), but he gave some perfunctory readings (Please Let Me Wonder) and he really struggled with songs at the upper end of his range (Translation: most of side 1 of Pet Sounds). Some folks complained about the sound, but toward the back of the theater where I was sitting it was decent. And I know that playing all of Pet Sounds restricts the setlist, but there was no SMiLe other than GV, Love and Mercy was the only solo Brian track that was performed and it was the only song that was written since '73 that was performed. Small gripes for a great show though... -- from PSML

Al Jardine, an original Beach Boy, joined Brian for most of the show and his voice added so much. All night I had obsessive thoughts over and over about all they, and especially Brian, had been through. The catalog of heartbreak is staggering: abusive father, creative torment, the pressure of success, the drugs, the mental collapse, the exploitation by friends, family and advisers, the death of brothers… and I thought more than once about my own tragedies, heartbreaks and disappointments and how my life has been shaped by these events. Seeing his grace makes me ashamed now to give in to cynicism, irony and self-pity.

Brian Wilson put on an incredible show last night at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. Leading a crack band, he took us all on a wistful trip through The Catalogue.

It was nice to see Wilson truly present at this show and enjoying himself. We're in the midst of the Happy Endings period of his life; he's fully exorcised the demons (Dad, Drugs, and Mike Love) and has re-claimed artistic ownership of his babies. The songs were presented accurately, but also passionately. It's possible I wept a few times. Hey. He did the entire Pet Sounds album. You'd weep too.

And the icing on the surfboard? Al Jardine was in the house!

This show was terrific, allowing the sold-out house to hear the music the way Wilson always intended - harmony ruled.

As surprising as it might seem, Wilson's own voice is probably the weakest in his large band, but it didn't matter that he was occasionally out of key or rushed the words. He made up for his missteps with a childlike enthusiasm, and the choral approach masked his errors.

November 19 Keswick Theatre Glenside, PA 7:30PM

I saw the show and thought it was great. Al's voice sounded superb. I only wish that they let him sing more leads. WIBN might have been better if Al sang it....maybe he could have done it closer to the original key.

Brian sounded great, too. He seemed a little nervous during the acoustic set, then got more confident and did a good job on the PS stuff.

November 18 Warner Theatre Washington D.C. 8:00PM

Let’s cut to the chase: Saturday night’s performance didn’t match the magic of the 2004 show, but I expected that. Instead, Brian brought along a new (albeit temporary) band member: Al Jardine, one of the original Beach Boys. Adding Al to the fold brought back some of the great Beach Boy chemistry: fun interplay between the old friends, some great harmonies, and most importantly, another singer who could take lead on songs that are increasingly outside of Brian’s age-and-abuse damaged voice.

So the first set included songs that hadn’t yet been played live by Wilson and band, including “Then I Kissed Her” (one of Jardine’s numbers back in the 1960s), and “Marcella.” And during the Pet Sounds set, Brian’s voice (which he seemed to save for this set) danced in sweet harmony with Jardine, and the two of them meshed wonderfully with the rest of the multi-talented band. Sure, he was lacking a full string section, but the loss was minor: the band still presented a gorgeous and powerful version of Pet Sounds.

The applause was more deafening, however, when Al Jardine walked onstage and launched into "Then I Kissed Her," a post-Wilson Beach Boys hit. Sporting his trademark pink Stratocaster, a blue jacket and a huge grin, Jardine was greeted with a standing ovation and shouts of "We love you little Al!" from the upper balcony. Together, Wilson and Jardine energetically ran through a number of Beach Boys hits, culminating in back-to-back performances of 1964's "I Get Around" (the Boys' first US #1) and the following summer's LSD-inspired "California Girls." Wilson closed out the first half of the performance with a faithful reading of "Good Vibrations," widely regarded as his single most influential composition. His "pocket symphony" sounded near-perfect, down to the warped notes of the forever distinctive electro-theremin line.

I would be lying if I told you that Wilson's final performance of Pet Sounds was note perfect or if I suggested that the pop icon is still in his prime. Brian Wilson has aged and it shows — his voice sounds weathered and he looks and sounds far less nimble than he once was. The vocal harmonies still sound great but that's thanks more to his backing band than to Wilson himself. Despite these flaws, however, Wilson still manages to give his audience something that no one else can: brief glimpses of true melodic genius. As the grey-haired crowd slowly filtered out into the lobby, the words "musical genius" seemed to emanate from every smiling face. God bless Brian Wilson, indeed.

I saw the Brian & Al show last night at the Warner Theatre in DC. I went to see Al and his voice was the highlight of the show for me. It sounded the same as when I saw Al open a BBs concert in Baltimore with "Rhonda" in 1966. Al walked on stage to a standing ovation and belted out “Then I Kissed Her” (Wow!). Last night Al also played lead guitar on "Do It Again" and "Sail on Sailor". Al obviously was having a hard time hearing on stage and he and Jeff spent some time last night motioning to the sound tech. The sound for the concert wasn't as good as it should have been. I saw the Smile concert at the Warner Theatre and the sound was much better then. What was funny to me is that Al has to look over at Brian and indicate "are you singing this verse (or song) or am I". It happened on "Sloop John B" (Al sang the second and third verses), "Rhonda" (Al sang the lead throughout the song). Al also sang some of the lead on "WIBN" after Brian sang the beginning. I loved Al singing with Brian on “Breakaway” and Al and Brian trading off the ending “I Just Wasn’t made for these Times”. Al & Brian sang “I Know There's an Answer" in unison (except for the opening low section which Brian sang) with Al's voice standing out. Brian flubbed the words on the opening to "Cal. Saga" which cracked Al up. Later in the same song Al flubbed some of his own lyrics. Brian was enthusiastic and played with the melodies like a singer (twisting the melody and riffing a little like a jazz singer). Sometimes he missed hitting the note, but most times he nailed it. Brian only had one small monitor for the lyrics instead of two large ones (and no monitor that I could see on the acoustic set which opened with “Surfer Girl”). He had the audience sing “Row, row your boat” later in the show. IMHO Brian’s hand movements are getting more appropriate for the songs. Still strange, but it looks like Brian has thought them out in advance and they are more complex at times. Brian played keyboards on “In My Room” as well as the new intro featuring Taylor on “Marcella” (BTW, Taylor’s husband & Brian’s former drummer Todd Sucherman was playing in nearby Baltimore last night with Styx). Some of the songs had new harmony endings. The band was excellent as usual. A highlight for me was Nelson and Jim drum solos on “Pet Sounds” as well as Paul’s sax solo. Al is supposed to tour the east coast of the US with his Endless Summer band in Feb./March 2007. If you get a chance go hear him. You won’t be disappointed. -- Doug S. on PSML

November 17 Orpheum Theatre Boston, MA 7:30PM

If there were any doubts that “Pet Sounds” is not only Brian Wilson’s masterpiece, but pop music’s, they were erased last night at the Orpheum.

Wilson and his band began crowded in a tiny corner of the stage around a few mics, harmonizing to “Add Some Music to Your Day” and “Surfer Girl.” For a lesser group, this type of campfire sing-along would come off as corny, but they pulled it off perfectly.

After the intimate set, Beach Boy Al Jardine emerged and the crowd exploded in a standing ovation. Jardine wasted no time diving into “Then I Kissed Her.” The Phil Spector-penned tune was a fitting introduction to Wilson’s Spector-influenced catalogue of hits.

For his second set, Wilson dove into “Pet Sounds.” But after the hourlong first set, his voice sounded flat on the first few songs. It’s here that the magic of Jardine came in. As Jardine jumped in to back up Wilson, the maestro’s voice was buoyed. After a few songs, Wilson warmed and began hitting the high notes with confidence.

Beach Boys co-founders Brian Wilson and Al Jardine kick off their joint mini-tour on Friday, November 17th, in Boston. Earlier this month in Los Angeles, the pair first teamed up for a show at UCLA that featured over a dozen Beach Boys classics, as well as the group's 1966 Pet Sounds album in its entirety.

He said that his warm-up show with Wilson at UCLA worked out great, despite his lack of rehearsal: "There was a little bit of anxiety on my part. Of course there was a lot of joy once we actually got through it that first night. I didn't even have keys for the songs until the day of the show, so I went in ice-cold. But when the crowd reacted I felt very humbled. And Brian gave me a darn good introduction."

November 1 Royce Hall (UCLA campus) Los Angeles, CA 8:00PM

Almost forgot what a joy this band can be when its running on all cylinders, which it was by the time it got to "Add Some Music to Your Day" (first three songs very shaky, partic. Brian) Al didn't join until song number 6---but when he did---WOW. Sure, there was all that great emotional resonance for longtime fan obsessives of just seeing him there---that feeling never went away, all night---but most especially, he is singing as well as he EVER did. Stunning, actually. Some other notes before the set list: "MArcella" rocked way harder than ever before; the opening of "Cali Girls," a song I usually zone out during from overexposure, was luminous and perfect and solid--what a beautiful piece of music, buried thru repetition; they sang the superior BBs single lyrics of "GV" rather than the SMILE ones; and while in many ways it seemed a sign of graciousess above and beyond the call that Al got as much vocal play as he did, it would have been better if he'd had even MORE; he should particularly have spelled the Big Man on "Sail on Sailor" and "marcella" and "I Know There's an Answer".....

During "Let's Go Away...." Al walked over to Brian and the two of them back turned to the audience were doing this incredibly endearing fannish geek out of a sort I've done while trying to make people REALLY FOCUS on Brian's music---these great lunging and rising hand gestures accompanying what the movement of the music was doing---but it was for THEIR OWN benefit, not ours, they weren't even facing us, just talking and communicating to each other the glories of the composition---twas very sweet---and when AL introed "Come Go With Me" with a rap about how this is the sort of thing they used to do around the piano so many years ago, and the wonderful life he's had thanks to Brian and his brothers..."and cousin..." I was awe-shucked by the graciousness of it all.....

Scritti Politti played a 30-minute set, tailored as best we could to a packed theatre of impatient Beach Boys fanatics. We slipped off quietly into the green room, to find Brian standing there in a purple cowboy shirt, eating chocolate cake. "Nice shirt, Brian!" said someone. "Thanks!" he said, before walking over and looking at me intently. "Where's the stage?" he asked me. "It's that way, Brian," I said, pointing to the door. He turned abruptly, and marched off to wait in the wings. I like to think this exchange was a pivotal moment in rock history.

It was a stunning show; Brian's voice is not all that it used to be, but to have him sitting there at all felt like a rare privilege. During the instrumental Let's Go Away for Awhile - once described by Brian as "the most satisfying piece of music I've ever made" - he turned and sat with his back to the audience;

Al Jardine walked over to him, and as they sat side by side, Al whispered something in his ear, and slipped an arm around his shoulder. And this was my cue to start blubbing uncontrollably.

Not for the first time, nor the last, Brian is back.

Read a review of the concert.

http://www.dailynews.com/music/ci_4589768">Though today the album is largely thought of as a piece of '60s iconography, Wilson and his band members on Wednesday made a persuasive argument as to its timelessness.

It was Wilson's singing that made this night unforgettable: confident, unhesitant and, most notably, solo. Gone were the tentative, almost meek vocals he offered just a few years ago. Instead, Wilson boldly supplied the bulk of the lead singing, never needing to fall back on his cohorts.

This encore performance, following his presentation of "Pet Sounds" in its entirety six years ago at the Hollywood Bowl, came with two big differences: Wilson's interceding years of confidence-building live shows and the guest appearance by the only surviving original Beach Boy he's ever likely to share a stage with again, Al Jardine.

Both contributed to Wilson's relaxed manner and, perhaps, to his willingness to stretch for some notes in the long-lost falsetto range of that once-magnificent voice, one of the casualties of his drug abuse and nervous breakdown in the '60s.