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Concert / Live in London
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The Beach Boys
Concert / Live In London
Capitol Records
72435-31861-2-8
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Almost from the very moment the Beach Boys hit the top ten, fans across the country couldn’t wait to hear if the group could duplicate those terrific harmonies in person. It’s on this CD…which features concerts from two disparate times in their career…that you’ll hear that the Beach Boys were not just terrific studio singers. Onstage, they could also create sounds that would make you feel like you were on the beach in California, that “Surf City” fantasy being one of the true primal attractions of the group’s music from the very beginning.
In December 1961, after “Surfin’” had hit the local airwaves, the Beach Boys played brief sets at a few hops and shows, notably their first paid gig on New Year’s Eve at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium. Mike Love recalls that night. “We got three hundred dollars to play [three songs at] a Richie Valens memorial dance. I can still remember it because we got paid for something besides working, which was really a trip. We got paid for playing music.”
1962 was the year the Beach Boys cut their teeth as rock ‘n’ rollers with regular performances at local L.A. teen clubs like the Rainbow Gardens. They were often hired by concert promoter, disc-jockey and game show host Bob Eubanks to play several half-hour sets a night at his Cinnamon Cinder club. These dates weren’t very lucrative, according to Eubanks. “I used to pay them about a hundred dollars a night, twenty dollars a man. We always did capacity when the Beach Boys played.” Capacity, however, meant about four hundred people.
For many of their early dates in Southern California (what manager Murry Wilson called “the forty freebies”), the Beach Boys didn’t get paid at all; their reward came when the local DJs, who hosted the record hops, would play the group’s records on the radio, thereby increasing sales. Other promotional gigs might find the Beach Boys performing a few songs at a local record store, to increase customer traffic and encourage the retailer to stock larger quantities of their records. Everything was designed to increase airplay, back then the only way to have hit records.
But, as former Beach Boy David Marks recalls, after “Surfin’ Safari” hit the charts, the Beach Boys immediately became an in-person attraction. And in 1962, he remembers, the group flew to Chicago and toured the mid-west, traveling in a station wagon and pulling a U-Haul trailer (the only economically feasible way to get from show to show).
While those dates didn’t earn them a fortune, they were not only vital to building a career but good playing experience for the group.
Performing live has traditionally been the way to earn fan loyalty, and the Beach Boys worked hard to win a following. By 1963, their strategy had succeeded. Almost every single they released for the next four years went top twenty. Their concerts reflected their success.
The Beach Boys’ fans were excited to see the group in person, especially Dennis, for whom the adulation was clearly the most intense. After all, rock ‘n’ roll shows really weren’t about listening. Screaming, yes. That was expected, especially after the Beatles came to America.
Recorded in 1964, Beach Boys Concert, like the Beatles’ mid-60s tours of America, features a half-hour set which so excited the crowd that their shrieking often drowned out the music. Those wailing teens are no engineering trick. The screaming seems unbelievable, but it’s for real. In fact, the kids were so loud that the Beach Boys’ vocals were often drowned out to the point that before this album could be released, the group had to go back into the studio and re-record some of their vocals.
And not only were the fans loud, they were really fanatical. On outtakes from this concert, you can even hear them shouting out requests like “Denny’s Drums” (certainly one of the most obscure tracks in the group’s history), an indication of Dennis’ enormous popularity as the sex symbol of the group.
But the Beach Boys weren’t yet a major concert attraction when long-time Beach Boys associate Fred Vail (who in 1963 was a local Sacramento disc-jockey and about to become concert promoter – it’s his voice on Concert introducing the Beach Boys) first booked them for a show on May 24, 1963.
As Vail recalls, he hired the Beach Boys to play a fundraiser for his alma mater, Sacramento’s El Camino High School. Vail: “We agreed on seven hundred and fifty dollars for one night’s performance…the [William] Morris office was really underselling them… On the day before the concert, we made the deposit…the contract…was for Carl Wilson and four musicians.” It’s interesting to note that as early as 1963, a not-yet-seventeen year-old Carl Wilson was the acknowledged musical leader of the touring group.
As Fred Vail himself was only nineteen years old in 1963, the Beach Boys’ youth didn’t bother him. In fact, he was certain that their appeal, as demonstrated by their hit records on the local radio station where he worked, would make the concert a big success, even though the Beach Boys had only one top ten hit to date, “Surfin’ U.S.A.”
Confidently, concert promoter Vail went to work, printing posters and tickets. The show was set for the Sacramento Auditorium, a hall which to that point had been used primarily for singing stars like Johnny Mathis, orchestras and visiting ballet companies. (It’s important to note that in 1963, rock shows were very different from what they’ve become today…really not what we would nowadays consider concerts at all. The typical show, which might be repeated a half dozen times a day, was usually put on at local movie theaters. Organized and MC’d by people like Dick Clark, these revues featured a traveling troupe of stars and groups doing their current hit(s) and highlighted by a show-closer like Dion who might perform for fifteen minutes.)
The tickets, as incredible as it may seem today, were only $1.75. Vail recalls they sold at such a brisk pace that by the day of the show, advance ticket sales were over a thousand. Vail’s expenses had already been covered. Anything else was pure profit for El Camino High.
The afternoon of the concert, Vail got in his old station wagon and went to the airport to meet the Beach Boys. When the plane arrived, Murry and the Beach Boys got off the plane.
Vail picks up the story: “Now, you gotta remember that we’re all kids…we’re loading the equipment into the wagon and Carl says, ‘Who’s the promoter?’ I said, ‘I am.’ And Carl says, ‘You can’t be, you’re just a kid.’ So I said, ‘Well, you guys are young. I’ve been around.’
“And Carl said, ‘Fine. Well, who’s on the show tonight? Who’s the opening act?’ I said, ‘You guys.’ And he said, ‘Who else?’ And I said, ‘You guys are the headliners.’”
Fred remembers that at that point, the boys all shared looks of astonishment “and said, ‘We’re not headliners.’ And I’ll never forget, Carl then said, ‘You’re going to take a beating tonight, aren’t you?’ And I said, ‘No, I don’t think so.’”
Fred reassured the guys. “Just worry about the show. Let’s get down to the auditorium, and set up.’ So we went to the auditorium, and we all got along great because we were all kids. It was my first big auditorium presentation, and it was their first shot as featured act at an out-of-town show. We weren’t a beach city; we were inland, and they didn’t even know their popularity stretched that far.” (A brief aside: At this time, considering their chart performance and the fact that they’d already been on tour, the Beach Boys certainly knew they were popular nationally. What they hadn’t experienced at that point…because those kind of shows didn’t exist…was headlining, all by themselves, in an auditorium setting.)
As Vail recalls, “I was the kid with the radio voice. I MC’d the show. I went out there and introduced the boys…they came out and did a forty-minute set, and the kids went crazy. Then there was a ten-minute intermission and then another forty-minute show. ‘The Boys’ [as Fred has always called them] didn’t know that much material, so primarily, they just repeated what had gone over well in the first set, and did a couple of other things…a lot of Chuck Berry, Dion. Al sang [Del Shannon’s huge #1 hit] ‘Runaway.’
“We had a super gate that night; we ended up with about three thousand kids, which was a tremendous crowd for just the Beach Boys back then.” Indeed, for the Beach Boys, who often played clubs in front of a few hundred people, a crowd of three thousand was an incredible rush. It was an extra nice surprise to them because, as Fred notes, they hadn’t expected to be the only headliners.
Historical Note: Beach Boys Concert was recorded in 1964 in Sacramento. The choice of that locale was hardly accidental. One of the more meaningful shows from the early days was that first Fred Vail-promoted night in Sacramento in 1963. It apparently was memorable to the group; the fans in Sacramento were so loyal and vocal, that when it came time for the Beach Boys to record a live album, Sacramento was the natural selection.
Note: Beach Boys Concert was the group’s first number one album, and it spent over a year on the charts. Beach Boys historian Peter Reum: “Concert was the album that really solidified the Beach Boys as a presence on the LP charts, not only because it was number one for four weeks, but its 62 week stay was an extraordinarily long time for that era. Also, it was one of the first live albums by an American rock group that became a big hit, and it gave their fans a concrete idea of what their shows sounded like.” Reum also points out that “unfortunately, because kids in the early and mid-60s wanted live albums full of familiar hit songs they could dance to, only five of the thirteen tracks on Concert were Beach Boys originals.”
At the show at which Concert was recorded, the Beach Boys did do many of their own songs (e.g. “Don’t Back Down,” “Be True To Your School” and “Surfer Girl”) that didn’t make the record. On this CD, one of those classics, “Don’t Worry Baby,” is included as a bonus track.
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TRACK-BY-TRACK
“Fun, Fun, Fun”
Lead Vocal: Mike
One of the trademarks of Beach Boys concerts in the sixties is that they were unlike any other regular touring group who usually saved their biggest hit for last. The Beach Boys had so many hit records that they almost always opened their show with one of them, immediately getting the crowd on their feet.
“The Little Old Lady From Pasadena”
Lead Vocal: Mike
When the Beach Boys recorded this concert, “Little Old Lady…” was a top three hit for Jan and Dean. It was co-written by Brian’s friend and sometimes-lyricist, Roger Christian. Working with Christian and Jan Berry of Jan and Dean, Brian co-wrote many of Jan and Dean’s biggest smashes including “Surf City,” “Drag City,” “Deadman’s Curve,” “Ride The Wild Surf,” “Sidewalk Surfin’” and “The New Girl In School,” all of which were top forty hits.
For the Beach Boys to perform a Jan and Dean hit was poetic justice. Dean Torrence remembers meeting the Beach Boys for the first time in 1962 at a hop the two groups were doing together. Dean: “Since we weren’t a self-contained band, the Beach Boys were going to back us up. So we met a couple of hours early in a house trailer and practiced…they learned our four songs and they had their six or seven.”
The scene of the hop was near Hawthorne, the Beach Boys’ home turf, and although Jan and Dean were the headliners, Dean recalls that “the audience was very pro-Beach Boy.” After all, Dean points out, they were “local town heroes.”
Dean notes that “it went by pretty quickly. After they did their songs, we did ours. We didn’t talk very much…the total concert was maybe a thirty-minute job.” But the audience wanted an encore. The two groups hadn’t rehearsed anything else, so Jan and Dean decided to perform two Beach Boys songs, “Surfin’” and “Surfin’ Safari.” Dean: “They kind of looked at us as if to say, ‘You’d do our songs with us and let us stand up front?’ They thought they had to stand in the back…they were really amazed. We had a lot of fun.”
Ironically, within two years, not only had the Beach Boys become the biggest American rock group, far outdistancing their Southern California friends, but Brian Wilson had become a key creative component in Jan and Dean’s own chart success…co-writing their hits and lending his falsetto to their records.
“Little Deuce Coupe”
Lead Vocal: Mike
Mike’s clever introduction of “Little Deuce Coupe” gave him the chance to spotlight each member of the band and effectively demonstrate how the various instruments come together to make the Beach Boys sound.
As Mike mentions each Beach Boy, you’ll hear their individual popularity reflected in the crowd’s screaming.
“Long, Tall Texan”
Lead Vocal: Mike
In late 1963, “Long, Tall Texan” was a minor hit for a singer by the name of Murry Kellum. Listening to this track in 1990, it’s hard to know what its appeal was to the Beach Boys that made them include this as a part of their act back in 1964. Except that when you listen to it, you’ll hear that it was really a crowd-pleasing, clap-along. At the end, it also sounds like Mike Love might have taken out his rarely-used saxophone for a few honks.
“In My Room”
Lead Vocal: Brian
From the opening notes of “In My Room,” you can hear that this great song has always been a crowd favorite.
“Monster Mash”
Lead Vocal: Mike
Brian, sounding not at all mike-shy, introduces “Boris” Love on “Monster Mash,” a #1 hit in 1962 for Bobby “Boris” Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers. Note the minor lyrical adjustment to include the Beach Boys in the “mash.” The album photo of Mike performing this song gives an idea of how well-suited Mike was as the Beach Boys’ energetic frontman.
“Let’s Go Trippin’”
From the crowd reaction to the intro of “Let’s Go Trippin’” it’s obvious that it was a concert staple for the band. Listening to it, it’s amazing to hear how big and raucous a sound the Beach Boys were producing with just the four instruments.
“Let’s Go Trippin’” was the biggest hit of Dick Dale’s career. Even though Dale and his Deltones only managed to reach #60 on the “Hot 100” with this song, it was very influential. Some people consider “Let’s Go Trippin’” to be the very first surf record. On this live version, you’ll hear how this Beach Boys “roots” music really inspired Carl’s guitar-playing and the group’s overall sound.
“Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow”
Lead Vocal: Brian
Like the other cover versions on this LP, the Beach Boys never recorded “Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow” for a studio album (unless you count Party!) but on this cut, you can hear that the group were really hard core rock ‘n’ rollers. Mike’s incredible bass part and Brian’s wailing lead power this cover of the Rivington’s 1962 #48 hit.
“The Wanderer”
Lead Vocal: Dennis
It’s hard to tell whether the crowd was more excited by Dennis’ singing or his looks, but they certainly went wild for him. “The Wanderer,” a #2 hit for Dion in early 1962, was never recorded in the studio by the Beach Boys. But the New York doo-wop of Dion’s backing groups, whether it was the Belmonts or the Del-Satins, had a strong influence on many of the Beach Boys’ early records.
“Hawaii”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
This straightforward version of an album track from the Surfer Girl LP shows how well the Beach Boys could reproduce their sound in concert.
“Graduation Day”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
The Four Freshmen, who had a top twenty hit with this song in 1956, were one of Brian’s first musical obsessions. You can hear the genesis of the Beach Boys’ vocal blend on the Freshmen’s version of this song. This was the only Beach Boys rendition of this song available until a studio recording of “Graduation Day” was included as a bonus track on the Capitol “Double Play” CD of The Beach Boys Today! / Summer Days! (And Summer Nights!!).
Production Note: That’s Dennis, sitting way back on the drums, who shouts out the “day” near the end of the song.
Historical Note: Mike’s remark in the intro about not being out of high school was something of an in-joke as Carl Wilson was in high school during the first three years of the Beach Boys’ career. As most of us had enough trouble getting through geometry and puberty, it’s impossible to imagine what it must have been like for Carl to be in the biggest rock group in America at the same time he was trying to earn his diploma.
“I Get Around”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
“I Get Around” had hit #1 on the charts just weeks before this concert; the crowd reaction was appropriately ecstatic.
For more on this Beach Boys classic, see the liner notes on the Capitol “Double Play” CD of Little Deuce Coupe / All Summer Long.
“Johnny B. Goode”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
This spirited cover of the Chuck Berry standard gives you an idea of how powerful a rock ‘n’ roll band the Beach Boys could be in person.
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By the time Live In London was recorded, the late ‘60s hippie subculture in America had decreed that the Beach Boys were the ultimate squares and that their music was irrelevant.
Ironically, the group’s popularity was still at a peak in England. Sunflower, the album that came out about eighteen months after this concert was recorded, was greeted in the British rock press as “the Beach Boys’ Sgt. Pepper.”
As you can hear from the crowd reaction, the Beach Boys were (and still are) big favorites in England. This show (which was released overseas as the Live In London album in 1970 and was reportedly put out without the Beach Boys’ permission) is an example of how the group’s concert approach was evolving to include esoteric album tracks like “Wake The World” and “Aren’t You Glad.”
With the album replacing the hit single in the late ‘60s, it was inevitable that concerts would reflect that transition. The style of the times dictated a change from a rigid “do your hits” format to the kind of shows the Beach Boys would give at their “comeback” shows at L.A.’s Whisky in 1970 and especially at New York’s Carnegie Hall in 1971. Those two hour concerts included not only hits but important album tracks, as well as current and unreleased material…beautifully arranged by Captain Keyboard [aka Daryl Dragon] to be performed with a full backing band and horn section. The Beach Boys’ terrific singing and great song selection make those concerts, from a hard core fan’s perspective, the most memorable performances of their career. The incredible live shows the Beach Boys regularly gave in the early ‘70s were a major part of their creative renaissance in America.
As you’ll also hear, the Beach Boys never needed any “rehabilitation” in England. The only thing they’ve ever done wrong there is not schedule enough shows to meet the enormous demand.
Historical Note: Live In London was actually taken from several 1968 shows recorded at England’s Finsbury Park (August 12th) and at London’s Palladium (December 1).
Note: Unlike Beach Boys Concert, Live In London features songs which all appeared on other Beach Boys records. Also, by this time, they had added a horn section to more accurately reproduce their studio sound, a high priority for them from 1967 through 1975. Live In London was not released in America until 1976 when it came out under the title Beach Boys ‘69.
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TRACK-BY-TRACK
“Darlin’”
Lead Vocal: Carl
From the opening notes of “Darlin’,” complete with horns and strong backing, it’s clear that in the five years since Beach Boys Concert, the group had grown into an extremely talented performing unit. Carl’s vocal on this track is exceptionally soulful, and the background harmonies are, as the English say, “spot on.”
“Wouldn’t It Be Nice”
Lead Vocal: Al and Mike
Unlike in America, the Pet Sounds album has always been recognized in England as a major work of art. One of the main causes of disagreement surrounding the recording of that album had been the Beach Boys’ concern that the songs on Pet Sounds would be very difficult to put across in concert. Clearly, the Beach Boys had nothing to be worried about as the three tracks from Pet Sounds included on this record are terrific.
“Sloop John B”
Lead Vocal: Al, Carl and Mike
Dennis Wilson was never known as a great studio drummer, but as you can hear on this track (and throughout the album), he had the perfect combination of power and energy that made him an impressive concert drummer.
“California Girls”
Lead Vocal: Mike
Lost amidst all the talk of the production genius of Brian Wilson was the fact that he wrote great rock ‘n’ roll songs. The studio version of “California Girls” is a miniature pop symphony. In concert, it’s a great rocker. Listen to how the background “ooh wahs” from the Beach Boys energize this performance.
“Do It Again”
Lead Vocal: Mike (with Al & Carl on the bridge)
With a “Monster Mash” groove, the Beach Boys performed a great version of their last top twenty hit of the decade. Cleverly arranged, the horns duplicate the high vocals that Brian had sung on the original record.
“Wake The World”
Lead Vocal: Al and Carl
On the introduction to this beautiful song from the Friends album, you’ll hear Mike Love’s sense of humor. Mike: “Trying to draw a bridge between the music and the audience and make it interesting is something that I’ve always been interested in doing… There’s one thing I do that’s kind of a personal thing – I tell jokes sometimes which are corny, which are outright stupid, and bomb. That, to me, is funny when nobody laughs.”
“Aren’t You Glad”
Lead Vocal: Mike, Al and Carl
Again, the sensational horns and strong group vocals carry this song which originally appeared on 1967’s Wild Honey LP.
“Bluebirds Over The Mountain”
Lead Vocal: Mike
That’s Mike showing off his Spanish on the introduction. The Beach Boys first cut this song as a single; it subsequently was included on their last ‘60s Capitol release, 20/20.
Listen for the blues/rock guitar which was typical for the times but very rare on a Beach Boys song. The vocal ending of this song is especially pretty.
Historical Note: “Bluebirds Over The Mountain” was a #75 hit for rockabilly singer Ersel Hickey in 1958.
Beach Boys History: The lead guitar on “Bluebirds…” on both the live and album versions, was played by Ed Carter, the group’s touring bass player for over twenty years.
“Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring”
Lead Vocals: Group
No overdubbing. No re-takes. No studio tricks. Very simply, on “Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring” the Beach Boys demonstrate what great singers they are. In his intro, Mike mentions that if you listen quietly, you can hear the mistakes. What mistakes?
“Good Vibrations”
Lead Vocal: Carl and Mike
On the concert closing “Good Vibrations,” the Beach Boys showed that they had found a way to take their most complicated record and translate it to the stage. Carl’s lead is exceptional, and the original feel of the song…a hard-edged R&B sound…comes through live. (A personal aside: indelibly etched in my mind from seeing the Beach Boys during the late ‘60s is the sight of Mike playing the Theremin live. The Beach Boys did quite a good job of capturing the studio sound of this record onstage.)
“God Only Knows”
Lead Vocal: Carl
If Carl’s voice isn’t that of an angel, then someone had better come up with a better description. From the opening French horn to the final vocals, this song is always one of the highlights of Beach Boys concerts.
“Barbara Ann”
A perfect sing-along encore, “Barbara Ann,” originally a surprise hit from the Party! album for the Beach Boys in early ‘66, has become one of their most popular in-concert songs. To this day, it is often one of the songs the group performs in its encores.
Historical Note: Live In London, as this album was originally titled, was first released in England (1970), Japan (1971) and in France, Holland and Germany (1972). As an indication of their lack of popularity in the early ‘70s at home, the album didn’t come out in America until 1976.
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BONUS TRACKS
“Don’t Worry Baby”
Lead Vocal: Brian
What makes this outtake (from the 1964 show recorded for Beach Boys Concert) interesting is that this is the earliest performance of the song that could be located for this CD.
As “Don’t Worry Baby” has always been considered to be one of the best and most popular of Beach Boys records, it’s nice to finally hear how it sounded “live” when Brian was on tour and “Don’t Worry Baby” was still “just” a recent hit and not yet a legendary classic (as when the Beach Boys do it on their 1973 In Concert LP).
Listening to it, you can get a sense of how challenging it could be for the Beach Boys to duplicate their great studio vocals onstage.
“Heroes And Villains”
Lead Vocal: Brian (with Al)
In August of 1967, after they had finished Smiley Smile but before it was released, the Beach Boys went to Hawaii to record a concert that was to be released as the live Lei’d In Hawaii album. It has long been assumed that the tapes of that show were lost, but they turned up during a recent search of the Beach Boys’ archives. On this CD, Capitol presents a “live” version of the most important Beach Boys song of 1967…a performance (8/25/67) at the Honolulu International Center that is most notable for the fact that onstage with the group, making his first full concert appearance since the end of 1964, was Brian Wilson.
As you’ll hear on this bonus track, the Beach Boys really succeeded in recreating the vocal wizardry of their most recent single.
A Personal Note: In my experience, one of the most exciting things in the world is to hear a current hit record performed live by the group that made it famous. For the Beach Boys in the 1960s, virtually every show featured a ton of hits, at least a couple of which were currently riding the charts. I remember seeing the Beach Boys live in 1967, and the show…even though it was brief…was non-stop excitement – one hit after another, one high after another.
Historical Update: There is nothing so impressive as looking at a typical Beach Boys song line-up for a 1990 concert and seeing how many hits the Beach Boys perform, and then realizing that the set list doesn’t even come close to including all of their great records.
In the past fifteen years, the Beach Boys shows in America, such as their annual Fourth of July events, have turned into celebrations, as the group continues to take the feeling of California to the rest of the world.
Liner notes by David Leaf (© 1990 David Leaf)
(David Leaf is the author of the critically acclaimed Brian Wilson biography, The Beach Boys And The California Myth.)
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1. FUN, FUN, FUN
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52708
2. THE LITTLE OLD LADY FROM PASADENA
(D. Altfield-R. Christian)
Screen Gems-EMI Music Inc. BMI
Master #52701
3. LITTLE DEUCE COUPE
(B. Wilson-R. Christian)
Master #52712
4. LONG TALL TEXAN
(H. Strezlecki)
Isle City Music ASCAP
Master #52711
5. IN MY ROOM
(B. Wilson-G. Usher)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52710
6. MONSTER MASH
(B. Pickett-L. Capizzi)
Acoustic Music, Inc./Capizzi Music Co./Gary S. Paxton Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52705
7. LET’S GO TRIPPIN’
(Dick Dale)
Monsour Publishing Company BMI
Master #52703
8. PAPA-OOM-MOW-MOW
(Frazier-White-Wilson, Jr.-Harris)
Beechwood Music Corp. BMI
Master #52700
9. THE WANDERER
(Ernest Maresca)
Mijac Music adm. by Warner-Tamerlane Publishing BMI
Master #52704
10. HAWAII
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52702
11. GRADUATION DAY
(J. Sherman-N. Sherman)
Erasmus Music BMI
Master #52706
12. I GET AROUND
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52707
13. JOHNNY B. GOODE
(Chuck Berry
Arc Music Corp. BMI
Master #52709
14. DARLIN’
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93491
15. WOULDN’T IT BE NICE
(B. Wilson-M. Love-T. Asher)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93492
16. SLOOP JOHN B
(Trad. Arr./Brian Wilson)
New Executive Music BMI
Master #93493
17. CALIFORNIA GIRLS
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93494
18. DO IT AGAIN
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93495
19. WAKE THE WORLD
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93496
20. AREN’T YOU GLAD
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93497
21. BLUEBIRDS OVER THE MOUNTAIN
(Ersel Hickey)
Brother Publishing Co. BMI
Master #93498
22. THEIR HEARTS WERE FULL OF SPRING
(Bobby Troup)
Fred Raphael Music Co. BMI
Master #93499
23. GOOD VIBRATIONS
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93500
24. GOD ONLY KNOWS
(B. Wilson-T. Asher)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93501
25. BARBARA ANN
(Fred Fassert)
Cousins, Inc./Shoestring Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93502
26. DON’T WORRY BABY*
(B. Wilson-R. Christian)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #51285A
27. HEROES AND VILLAINS*
(B. Wilson-V.D. Parks)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #57020B
* BONUS TRACKS
ALL TRACKS IN STEREO
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TRACKS 1-13, 26, RECORDED ON 8/1/64 AT THE CIVIC AUDITORIUM IN SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA
TRACKS 14-25 RECORDED ON 12/1/68 AT THE PALLADIUM, LONDON, ENGLAND
TRACK 27 RECORDED ON 8/25/67 AT HONOLULU INTERNATIONAL CENTER, HAWAII
“Beach Boys Concert” LP – Produced by Brian Wilson. Engineered by Chuck Britz. Originally released on 10/19/64 by Capitol Records (Capitol TAO/STAO 2198) Charted 11/7/64 Reached #1
“Beach Boys ‘69 (The Beach Boys Live In London)” LP – Produced by Brian Wilson. Originally released on 11/76 by Capitol Records (Capitol ST-11584) Charted 12/11/76 Reached # 75
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In the preparation of this compact disc, every effort has been made to make these historic recordings sound as they did when Brian, Mike, Carl, Dennis, Al and Bruce first made them. Numerous tapes were auditioned in order to find the best sounding master. No remixing was attempted, as it was felt that this would not be faithful to the original productions. The original mono and stereo tapes were transferred using a specially modified ampex tape machine and custom-made analog-to-digital converters.
The disc has been mastered using the Pacific Microsonics HDCD system which encodes 24 bits onto a conventional 16 bit CD. The bonus tracks have been selected from a variety of sources and were mixed directly from the original three and four track masters.
Mark Linett
Los Angeles, CA
December 2000
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REISSUE PRODUCED AND COORDINATED BY MARK LINETT.
24-BIT DIGITALLY REMASTERED BY JOE GASTWIRT AT OCEANVIEW DIGITAL MASTERING, LOS ANGELES, CA, UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF MARK LINETT – 2000.
BONUS TRACKS MIXED BY MARK LINETT AT YOUR PLACE OR MINE STUDIOS, LOS ANGELES, CA.
ADDITIONAL RESEARCH BY ANDY PALEY.
CHART INFORMATION COURTESY OF BILLBOARD AND JOEL WHITBURN.
LINER NOTES BY DAVID LEAF.
ART DIRECTION BY TOMMY STEELE.
DESIGN BY CHUCK AMES.
PHOTO RESEARCH BY BRAD BENEDICT.
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FOR INFORMATION ON THE BEACH BOYS FAN CLUB, SEND A SELF-ADDRESSED, STAMPED #10 ENVELOPE TO:
BBFC
Mail Stop 504, 252 Convention Center Dr., Las Vegas, NV 89109
http://www.beachboysfanclub.com/
BEACH BOYS BRITAIN IS THE OFFICIAL BRITISH FAN CLUB FOR THE BEACH BOYS. FOR INFORMATION, WRITE TO:
Beach Boys Britain
3 Mill Grove, Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 4BS, England
http://www.angelfire.com/la/Beachboysbritain/
FOR INFORMATION ON THE BRIAN WILSON FAN CLUB, WRITE TO:
Brian Wilson Fan Club
15030 Ventura Boulevard, 1-710, Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
http://www.celebritymerch.com/bw/index.htm
FOR INFORMATION ON THE MIKE LOVE FAN CLUB, WRITE TO:
The Mike Love Fan Club
114 Gov. Winthrop Road, Somerville, MA 02145
http://www.mikelovefanclub.com/
OTHER BEACH BOYS FAN CLUBS AND FANZINES ARE:
Endless Summer Quarterly
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Good Vibrations Quarterly
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P.O. Box 106, North Strathfield 2137, Australia
California Saga
P.O. Box 1607 50106 Bergheim, Germany
http://members.aol.com/chaschke/index.html
BEACH BOYS DOUBLE CDs AVAILABLE INCLUDE:
SURFIN’ SAFARI / SURFIN’ USA (31517)
SURFER GIRL / SHUT DOWN VOLUME TWO (31515)
LITTLE DEUCE COUPE / ALL SUMMER LONG (31516)
TODAY! / SUMMER DAYS (AND SUMMER NIGHTS!!) (31639)
PARTY! / STACK-O-TRACKS (31641)
SMILEY SMILE / WILD HONEY (31862)
FRIENDS / 20/20 (31638)
BEACH BOYS CONCERT / LIVE IN LONDON (31861)
SUNFLOWER / SURF’S UP (25692)
CARL & THE PASSIONS “SO TOUGH” / HOLLAND (25694)
IN CONCERT (25933)
15 BIG ONES / LOVE YOU (27945)
M.I.U. ALBUM / L.A. (LIGHT ALBUM) (27950)
KEEPIN’ THE SUMMER ALIVE / THE BEACH BOYS (27948)
OTHER BEACH BOYS CDs AVAILABLE INCLUDE:
PET SOUNDS (26266)
ENDLESS HARMONY (24002)
ULTIMATE CHRISTMAS (95734)
GREATEST HITS VOLUME 1 (21860)
GREATEST HITS VOLUME 2 (20238)
GREATEST HITS VOLUME 3 THE BEST OF THE BROTHER YEARS 1970-1986 (24511)
THE PET SOUNDS SESSIONS – BOX SET (37662)
GOOD VIBRATIONS-THIRTY YEARS OF THE BEACH BOYS – BOX SET (81294)
BEACH BOYS VIDEO/DVD AVAILABLE INCLUDE:
ENDLESS HARMONY (VHS) (92154)
ENDLESS HARMONY (DVD) (92353)
ALL TRACKS 24-BIT DIGITALLY REMASTERED
(P) 2001 © 1990 Capitol Records, Inc. Manufactured by Capitol Records, Inc., 1750 N. Vine Street, Hollywood, CA 90028. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws. Printed in U.S.A.
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The Beach Boys
Concert / Live In London
Capitol Records
72435-31861-2-8
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Almost from the very moment the Beach Boys hit the top ten, fans across the country couldn’t wait to hear if the group could duplicate those terrific harmonies in person. It’s on this CD…which features concerts from two disparate times in their career…that you’ll hear that the Beach Boys were not just terrific studio singers. Onstage, they could also create sounds that would make you feel like you were on the beach in California, that “Surf City” fantasy being one of the true primal attractions of the group’s music from the very beginning.
In December 1961, after “Surfin’” had hit the local airwaves, the Beach Boys played brief sets at a few hops and shows, notably their first paid gig on New Year’s Eve at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium. Mike Love recalls that night. “We got three hundred dollars to play [three songs at] a Richie Valens memorial dance. I can still remember it because we got paid for something besides working, which was really a trip. We got paid for playing music.”
1962 was the year the Beach Boys cut their teeth as rock ‘n’ rollers with regular performances at local L.A. teen clubs like the Rainbow Gardens. They were often hired by concert promoter, disc-jockey and game show host Bob Eubanks to play several half-hour sets a night at his Cinnamon Cinder club. These dates weren’t very lucrative, according to Eubanks. “I used to pay them about a hundred dollars a night, twenty dollars a man. We always did capacity when the Beach Boys played.” Capacity, however, meant about four hundred people.
For many of their early dates in Southern California (what manager Murry Wilson called “the forty freebies”), the Beach Boys didn’t get paid at all; their reward came when the local DJs, who hosted the record hops, would play the group’s records on the radio, thereby increasing sales. Other promotional gigs might find the Beach Boys performing a few songs at a local record store, to increase customer traffic and encourage the retailer to stock larger quantities of their records. Everything was designed to increase airplay, back then the only way to have hit records.
But, as former Beach Boy David Marks recalls, after “Surfin’ Safari” hit the charts, the Beach Boys immediately became an in-person attraction. And in 1962, he remembers, the group flew to Chicago and toured the mid-west, traveling in a station wagon and pulling a U-Haul trailer (the only economically feasible way to get from show to show).
While those dates didn’t earn them a fortune, they were not only vital to building a career but good playing experience for the group.
Performing live has traditionally been the way to earn fan loyalty, and the Beach Boys worked hard to win a following. By 1963, their strategy had succeeded. Almost every single they released for the next four years went top twenty. Their concerts reflected their success.
The Beach Boys’ fans were excited to see the group in person, especially Dennis, for whom the adulation was clearly the most intense. After all, rock ‘n’ roll shows really weren’t about listening. Screaming, yes. That was expected, especially after the Beatles came to America.
Recorded in 1964, Beach Boys Concert, like the Beatles’ mid-60s tours of America, features a half-hour set which so excited the crowd that their shrieking often drowned out the music. Those wailing teens are no engineering trick. The screaming seems unbelievable, but it’s for real. In fact, the kids were so loud that the Beach Boys’ vocals were often drowned out to the point that before this album could be released, the group had to go back into the studio and re-record some of their vocals.
And not only were the fans loud, they were really fanatical. On outtakes from this concert, you can even hear them shouting out requests like “Denny’s Drums” (certainly one of the most obscure tracks in the group’s history), an indication of Dennis’ enormous popularity as the sex symbol of the group.
But the Beach Boys weren’t yet a major concert attraction when long-time Beach Boys associate Fred Vail (who in 1963 was a local Sacramento disc-jockey and about to become concert promoter – it’s his voice on Concert introducing the Beach Boys) first booked them for a show on May 24, 1963.
As Vail recalls, he hired the Beach Boys to play a fundraiser for his alma mater, Sacramento’s El Camino High School. Vail: “We agreed on seven hundred and fifty dollars for one night’s performance…the [William] Morris office was really underselling them… On the day before the concert, we made the deposit…the contract…was for Carl Wilson and four musicians.” It’s interesting to note that as early as 1963, a not-yet-seventeen year-old Carl Wilson was the acknowledged musical leader of the touring group.
As Fred Vail himself was only nineteen years old in 1963, the Beach Boys’ youth didn’t bother him. In fact, he was certain that their appeal, as demonstrated by their hit records on the local radio station where he worked, would make the concert a big success, even though the Beach Boys had only one top ten hit to date, “Surfin’ U.S.A.”
Confidently, concert promoter Vail went to work, printing posters and tickets. The show was set for the Sacramento Auditorium, a hall which to that point had been used primarily for singing stars like Johnny Mathis, orchestras and visiting ballet companies. (It’s important to note that in 1963, rock shows were very different from what they’ve become today…really not what we would nowadays consider concerts at all. The typical show, which might be repeated a half dozen times a day, was usually put on at local movie theaters. Organized and MC’d by people like Dick Clark, these revues featured a traveling troupe of stars and groups doing their current hit(s) and highlighted by a show-closer like Dion who might perform for fifteen minutes.)
The tickets, as incredible as it may seem today, were only $1.75. Vail recalls they sold at such a brisk pace that by the day of the show, advance ticket sales were over a thousand. Vail’s expenses had already been covered. Anything else was pure profit for El Camino High.
The afternoon of the concert, Vail got in his old station wagon and went to the airport to meet the Beach Boys. When the plane arrived, Murry and the Beach Boys got off the plane.
Vail picks up the story: “Now, you gotta remember that we’re all kids…we’re loading the equipment into the wagon and Carl says, ‘Who’s the promoter?’ I said, ‘I am.’ And Carl says, ‘You can’t be, you’re just a kid.’ So I said, ‘Well, you guys are young. I’ve been around.’
“And Carl said, ‘Fine. Well, who’s on the show tonight? Who’s the opening act?’ I said, ‘You guys.’ And he said, ‘Who else?’ And I said, ‘You guys are the headliners.’”
Fred remembers that at that point, the boys all shared looks of astonishment “and said, ‘We’re not headliners.’ And I’ll never forget, Carl then said, ‘You’re going to take a beating tonight, aren’t you?’ And I said, ‘No, I don’t think so.’”
Fred reassured the guys. “Just worry about the show. Let’s get down to the auditorium, and set up.’ So we went to the auditorium, and we all got along great because we were all kids. It was my first big auditorium presentation, and it was their first shot as featured act at an out-of-town show. We weren’t a beach city; we were inland, and they didn’t even know their popularity stretched that far.” (A brief aside: At this time, considering their chart performance and the fact that they’d already been on tour, the Beach Boys certainly knew they were popular nationally. What they hadn’t experienced at that point…because those kind of shows didn’t exist…was headlining, all by themselves, in an auditorium setting.)
As Vail recalls, “I was the kid with the radio voice. I MC’d the show. I went out there and introduced the boys…they came out and did a forty-minute set, and the kids went crazy. Then there was a ten-minute intermission and then another forty-minute show. ‘The Boys’ [as Fred has always called them] didn’t know that much material, so primarily, they just repeated what had gone over well in the first set, and did a couple of other things…a lot of Chuck Berry, Dion. Al sang [Del Shannon’s huge #1 hit] ‘Runaway.’
“We had a super gate that night; we ended up with about three thousand kids, which was a tremendous crowd for just the Beach Boys back then.” Indeed, for the Beach Boys, who often played clubs in front of a few hundred people, a crowd of three thousand was an incredible rush. It was an extra nice surprise to them because, as Fred notes, they hadn’t expected to be the only headliners.
Historical Note: Beach Boys Concert was recorded in 1964 in Sacramento. The choice of that locale was hardly accidental. One of the more meaningful shows from the early days was that first Fred Vail-promoted night in Sacramento in 1963. It apparently was memorable to the group; the fans in Sacramento were so loyal and vocal, that when it came time for the Beach Boys to record a live album, Sacramento was the natural selection.
Note: Beach Boys Concert was the group’s first number one album, and it spent over a year on the charts. Beach Boys historian Peter Reum: “Concert was the album that really solidified the Beach Boys as a presence on the LP charts, not only because it was number one for four weeks, but its 62 week stay was an extraordinarily long time for that era. Also, it was one of the first live albums by an American rock group that became a big hit, and it gave their fans a concrete idea of what their shows sounded like.” Reum also points out that “unfortunately, because kids in the early and mid-60s wanted live albums full of familiar hit songs they could dance to, only five of the thirteen tracks on Concert were Beach Boys originals.”
At the show at which Concert was recorded, the Beach Boys did do many of their own songs (e.g. “Don’t Back Down,” “Be True To Your School” and “Surfer Girl”) that didn’t make the record. On this CD, one of those classics, “Don’t Worry Baby,” is included as a bonus track.
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TRACK-BY-TRACK
“Fun, Fun, Fun”
Lead Vocal: Mike
One of the trademarks of Beach Boys concerts in the sixties is that they were unlike any other regular touring group who usually saved their biggest hit for last. The Beach Boys had so many hit records that they almost always opened their show with one of them, immediately getting the crowd on their feet.
“The Little Old Lady From Pasadena”
Lead Vocal: Mike
When the Beach Boys recorded this concert, “Little Old Lady…” was a top three hit for Jan and Dean. It was co-written by Brian’s friend and sometimes-lyricist, Roger Christian. Working with Christian and Jan Berry of Jan and Dean, Brian co-wrote many of Jan and Dean’s biggest smashes including “Surf City,” “Drag City,” “Deadman’s Curve,” “Ride The Wild Surf,” “Sidewalk Surfin’” and “The New Girl In School,” all of which were top forty hits.
For the Beach Boys to perform a Jan and Dean hit was poetic justice. Dean Torrence remembers meeting the Beach Boys for the first time in 1962 at a hop the two groups were doing together. Dean: “Since we weren’t a self-contained band, the Beach Boys were going to back us up. So we met a couple of hours early in a house trailer and practiced…they learned our four songs and they had their six or seven.”
The scene of the hop was near Hawthorne, the Beach Boys’ home turf, and although Jan and Dean were the headliners, Dean recalls that “the audience was very pro-Beach Boy.” After all, Dean points out, they were “local town heroes.”
Dean notes that “it went by pretty quickly. After they did their songs, we did ours. We didn’t talk very much…the total concert was maybe a thirty-minute job.” But the audience wanted an encore. The two groups hadn’t rehearsed anything else, so Jan and Dean decided to perform two Beach Boys songs, “Surfin’” and “Surfin’ Safari.” Dean: “They kind of looked at us as if to say, ‘You’d do our songs with us and let us stand up front?’ They thought they had to stand in the back…they were really amazed. We had a lot of fun.”
Ironically, within two years, not only had the Beach Boys become the biggest American rock group, far outdistancing their Southern California friends, but Brian Wilson had become a key creative component in Jan and Dean’s own chart success…co-writing their hits and lending his falsetto to their records.
“Little Deuce Coupe”
Lead Vocal: Mike
Mike’s clever introduction of “Little Deuce Coupe” gave him the chance to spotlight each member of the band and effectively demonstrate how the various instruments come together to make the Beach Boys sound.
As Mike mentions each Beach Boy, you’ll hear their individual popularity reflected in the crowd’s screaming.
“Long, Tall Texan”
Lead Vocal: Mike
In late 1963, “Long, Tall Texan” was a minor hit for a singer by the name of Murry Kellum. Listening to this track in 1990, it’s hard to know what its appeal was to the Beach Boys that made them include this as a part of their act back in 1964. Except that when you listen to it, you’ll hear that it was really a crowd-pleasing, clap-along. At the end, it also sounds like Mike Love might have taken out his rarely-used saxophone for a few honks.
“In My Room”
Lead Vocal: Brian
From the opening notes of “In My Room,” you can hear that this great song has always been a crowd favorite.
“Monster Mash”
Lead Vocal: Mike
Brian, sounding not at all mike-shy, introduces “Boris” Love on “Monster Mash,” a #1 hit in 1962 for Bobby “Boris” Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers. Note the minor lyrical adjustment to include the Beach Boys in the “mash.” The album photo of Mike performing this song gives an idea of how well-suited Mike was as the Beach Boys’ energetic frontman.
“Let’s Go Trippin’”
From the crowd reaction to the intro of “Let’s Go Trippin’” it’s obvious that it was a concert staple for the band. Listening to it, it’s amazing to hear how big and raucous a sound the Beach Boys were producing with just the four instruments.
“Let’s Go Trippin’” was the biggest hit of Dick Dale’s career. Even though Dale and his Deltones only managed to reach #60 on the “Hot 100” with this song, it was very influential. Some people consider “Let’s Go Trippin’” to be the very first surf record. On this live version, you’ll hear how this Beach Boys “roots” music really inspired Carl’s guitar-playing and the group’s overall sound.
“Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow”
Lead Vocal: Brian
Like the other cover versions on this LP, the Beach Boys never recorded “Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow” for a studio album (unless you count Party!) but on this cut, you can hear that the group were really hard core rock ‘n’ rollers. Mike’s incredible bass part and Brian’s wailing lead power this cover of the Rivington’s 1962 #48 hit.
“The Wanderer”
Lead Vocal: Dennis
It’s hard to tell whether the crowd was more excited by Dennis’ singing or his looks, but they certainly went wild for him. “The Wanderer,” a #2 hit for Dion in early 1962, was never recorded in the studio by the Beach Boys. But the New York doo-wop of Dion’s backing groups, whether it was the Belmonts or the Del-Satins, had a strong influence on many of the Beach Boys’ early records.
“Hawaii”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
This straightforward version of an album track from the Surfer Girl LP shows how well the Beach Boys could reproduce their sound in concert.
“Graduation Day”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
The Four Freshmen, who had a top twenty hit with this song in 1956, were one of Brian’s first musical obsessions. You can hear the genesis of the Beach Boys’ vocal blend on the Freshmen’s version of this song. This was the only Beach Boys rendition of this song available until a studio recording of “Graduation Day” was included as a bonus track on the Capitol “Double Play” CD of The Beach Boys Today! / Summer Days! (And Summer Nights!!).
Production Note: That’s Dennis, sitting way back on the drums, who shouts out the “day” near the end of the song.
Historical Note: Mike’s remark in the intro about not being out of high school was something of an in-joke as Carl Wilson was in high school during the first three years of the Beach Boys’ career. As most of us had enough trouble getting through geometry and puberty, it’s impossible to imagine what it must have been like for Carl to be in the biggest rock group in America at the same time he was trying to earn his diploma.
“I Get Around”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
“I Get Around” had hit #1 on the charts just weeks before this concert; the crowd reaction was appropriately ecstatic.
For more on this Beach Boys classic, see the liner notes on the Capitol “Double Play” CD of Little Deuce Coupe / All Summer Long.
“Johnny B. Goode”
Lead Vocal: Mike and Brian
This spirited cover of the Chuck Berry standard gives you an idea of how powerful a rock ‘n’ roll band the Beach Boys could be in person.
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By the time Live In London was recorded, the late ‘60s hippie subculture in America had decreed that the Beach Boys were the ultimate squares and that their music was irrelevant.
Ironically, the group’s popularity was still at a peak in England. Sunflower, the album that came out about eighteen months after this concert was recorded, was greeted in the British rock press as “the Beach Boys’ Sgt. Pepper.”
As you can hear from the crowd reaction, the Beach Boys were (and still are) big favorites in England. This show (which was released overseas as the Live In London album in 1970 and was reportedly put out without the Beach Boys’ permission) is an example of how the group’s concert approach was evolving to include esoteric album tracks like “Wake The World” and “Aren’t You Glad.”
With the album replacing the hit single in the late ‘60s, it was inevitable that concerts would reflect that transition. The style of the times dictated a change from a rigid “do your hits” format to the kind of shows the Beach Boys would give at their “comeback” shows at L.A.’s Whisky in 1970 and especially at New York’s Carnegie Hall in 1971. Those two hour concerts included not only hits but important album tracks, as well as current and unreleased material…beautifully arranged by Captain Keyboard [aka Daryl Dragon] to be performed with a full backing band and horn section. The Beach Boys’ terrific singing and great song selection make those concerts, from a hard core fan’s perspective, the most memorable performances of their career. The incredible live shows the Beach Boys regularly gave in the early ‘70s were a major part of their creative renaissance in America.
As you’ll also hear, the Beach Boys never needed any “rehabilitation” in England. The only thing they’ve ever done wrong there is not schedule enough shows to meet the enormous demand.
Historical Note: Live In London was actually taken from several 1968 shows recorded at England’s Finsbury Park (August 12th) and at London’s Palladium (December 1).
Note: Unlike Beach Boys Concert, Live In London features songs which all appeared on other Beach Boys records. Also, by this time, they had added a horn section to more accurately reproduce their studio sound, a high priority for them from 1967 through 1975. Live In London was not released in America until 1976 when it came out under the title Beach Boys ‘69.
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TRACK-BY-TRACK
“Darlin’”
Lead Vocal: Carl
From the opening notes of “Darlin’,” complete with horns and strong backing, it’s clear that in the five years since Beach Boys Concert, the group had grown into an extremely talented performing unit. Carl’s vocal on this track is exceptionally soulful, and the background harmonies are, as the English say, “spot on.”
“Wouldn’t It Be Nice”
Lead Vocal: Al and Mike
Unlike in America, the Pet Sounds album has always been recognized in England as a major work of art. One of the main causes of disagreement surrounding the recording of that album had been the Beach Boys’ concern that the songs on Pet Sounds would be very difficult to put across in concert. Clearly, the Beach Boys had nothing to be worried about as the three tracks from Pet Sounds included on this record are terrific.
“Sloop John B”
Lead Vocal: Al, Carl and Mike
Dennis Wilson was never known as a great studio drummer, but as you can hear on this track (and throughout the album), he had the perfect combination of power and energy that made him an impressive concert drummer.
“California Girls”
Lead Vocal: Mike
Lost amidst all the talk of the production genius of Brian Wilson was the fact that he wrote great rock ‘n’ roll songs. The studio version of “California Girls” is a miniature pop symphony. In concert, it’s a great rocker. Listen to how the background “ooh wahs” from the Beach Boys energize this performance.
“Do It Again”
Lead Vocal: Mike (with Al & Carl on the bridge)
With a “Monster Mash” groove, the Beach Boys performed a great version of their last top twenty hit of the decade. Cleverly arranged, the horns duplicate the high vocals that Brian had sung on the original record.
“Wake The World”
Lead Vocal: Al and Carl
On the introduction to this beautiful song from the Friends album, you’ll hear Mike Love’s sense of humor. Mike: “Trying to draw a bridge between the music and the audience and make it interesting is something that I’ve always been interested in doing… There’s one thing I do that’s kind of a personal thing – I tell jokes sometimes which are corny, which are outright stupid, and bomb. That, to me, is funny when nobody laughs.”
“Aren’t You Glad”
Lead Vocal: Mike, Al and Carl
Again, the sensational horns and strong group vocals carry this song which originally appeared on 1967’s Wild Honey LP.
“Bluebirds Over The Mountain”
Lead Vocal: Mike
That’s Mike showing off his Spanish on the introduction. The Beach Boys first cut this song as a single; it subsequently was included on their last ‘60s Capitol release, 20/20.
Listen for the blues/rock guitar which was typical for the times but very rare on a Beach Boys song. The vocal ending of this song is especially pretty.
Historical Note: “Bluebirds Over The Mountain” was a #75 hit for rockabilly singer Ersel Hickey in 1958.
Beach Boys History: The lead guitar on “Bluebirds…” on both the live and album versions, was played by Ed Carter, the group’s touring bass player for over twenty years.
“Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring”
Lead Vocals: Group
No overdubbing. No re-takes. No studio tricks. Very simply, on “Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring” the Beach Boys demonstrate what great singers they are. In his intro, Mike mentions that if you listen quietly, you can hear the mistakes. What mistakes?
“Good Vibrations”
Lead Vocal: Carl and Mike
On the concert closing “Good Vibrations,” the Beach Boys showed that they had found a way to take their most complicated record and translate it to the stage. Carl’s lead is exceptional, and the original feel of the song…a hard-edged R&B sound…comes through live. (A personal aside: indelibly etched in my mind from seeing the Beach Boys during the late ‘60s is the sight of Mike playing the Theremin live. The Beach Boys did quite a good job of capturing the studio sound of this record onstage.)
“God Only Knows”
Lead Vocal: Carl
If Carl’s voice isn’t that of an angel, then someone had better come up with a better description. From the opening French horn to the final vocals, this song is always one of the highlights of Beach Boys concerts.
“Barbara Ann”
A perfect sing-along encore, “Barbara Ann,” originally a surprise hit from the Party! album for the Beach Boys in early ‘66, has become one of their most popular in-concert songs. To this day, it is often one of the songs the group performs in its encores.
Historical Note: Live In London, as this album was originally titled, was first released in England (1970), Japan (1971) and in France, Holland and Germany (1972). As an indication of their lack of popularity in the early ‘70s at home, the album didn’t come out in America until 1976.
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BONUS TRACKS
“Don’t Worry Baby”
Lead Vocal: Brian
What makes this outtake (from the 1964 show recorded for Beach Boys Concert) interesting is that this is the earliest performance of the song that could be located for this CD.
As “Don’t Worry Baby” has always been considered to be one of the best and most popular of Beach Boys records, it’s nice to finally hear how it sounded “live” when Brian was on tour and “Don’t Worry Baby” was still “just” a recent hit and not yet a legendary classic (as when the Beach Boys do it on their 1973 In Concert LP).
Listening to it, you can get a sense of how challenging it could be for the Beach Boys to duplicate their great studio vocals onstage.
“Heroes And Villains”
Lead Vocal: Brian (with Al)
In August of 1967, after they had finished Smiley Smile but before it was released, the Beach Boys went to Hawaii to record a concert that was to be released as the live Lei’d In Hawaii album. It has long been assumed that the tapes of that show were lost, but they turned up during a recent search of the Beach Boys’ archives. On this CD, Capitol presents a “live” version of the most important Beach Boys song of 1967…a performance (8/25/67) at the Honolulu International Center that is most notable for the fact that onstage with the group, making his first full concert appearance since the end of 1964, was Brian Wilson.
As you’ll hear on this bonus track, the Beach Boys really succeeded in recreating the vocal wizardry of their most recent single.
A Personal Note: In my experience, one of the most exciting things in the world is to hear a current hit record performed live by the group that made it famous. For the Beach Boys in the 1960s, virtually every show featured a ton of hits, at least a couple of which were currently riding the charts. I remember seeing the Beach Boys live in 1967, and the show…even though it was brief…was non-stop excitement – one hit after another, one high after another.
Historical Update: There is nothing so impressive as looking at a typical Beach Boys song line-up for a 1990 concert and seeing how many hits the Beach Boys perform, and then realizing that the set list doesn’t even come close to including all of their great records.
In the past fifteen years, the Beach Boys shows in America, such as their annual Fourth of July events, have turned into celebrations, as the group continues to take the feeling of California to the rest of the world.
Liner notes by David Leaf (© 1990 David Leaf)
(David Leaf is the author of the critically acclaimed Brian Wilson biography, The Beach Boys And The California Myth.)
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1. FUN, FUN, FUN
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52708
2. THE LITTLE OLD LADY FROM PASADENA
(D. Altfield-R. Christian)
Screen Gems-EMI Music Inc. BMI
Master #52701
3. LITTLE DEUCE COUPE
(B. Wilson-R. Christian)
Master #52712
4. LONG TALL TEXAN
(H. Strezlecki)
Isle City Music ASCAP
Master #52711
5. IN MY ROOM
(B. Wilson-G. Usher)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52710
6. MONSTER MASH
(B. Pickett-L. Capizzi)
Acoustic Music, Inc./Capizzi Music Co./Gary S. Paxton Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52705
7. LET’S GO TRIPPIN’
(Dick Dale)
Monsour Publishing Company BMI
Master #52703
8. PAPA-OOM-MOW-MOW
(Frazier-White-Wilson, Jr.-Harris)
Beechwood Music Corp. BMI
Master #52700
9. THE WANDERER
(Ernest Maresca)
Mijac Music adm. by Warner-Tamerlane Publishing BMI
Master #52704
10. HAWAII
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52702
11. GRADUATION DAY
(J. Sherman-N. Sherman)
Erasmus Music BMI
Master #52706
12. I GET AROUND
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #52707
13. JOHNNY B. GOODE
(Chuck Berry
Arc Music Corp. BMI
Master #52709
14. DARLIN’
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93491
15. WOULDN’T IT BE NICE
(B. Wilson-M. Love-T. Asher)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93492
16. SLOOP JOHN B
(Trad. Arr./Brian Wilson)
New Executive Music BMI
Master #93493
17. CALIFORNIA GIRLS
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93494
18. DO IT AGAIN
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93495
19. WAKE THE WORLD
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93496
20. AREN’T YOU GLAD
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93497
21. BLUEBIRDS OVER THE MOUNTAIN
(Ersel Hickey)
Brother Publishing Co. BMI
Master #93498
22. THEIR HEARTS WERE FULL OF SPRING
(Bobby Troup)
Fred Raphael Music Co. BMI
Master #93499
23. GOOD VIBRATIONS
(B. Wilson-M. Love)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93500
24. GOD ONLY KNOWS
(B. Wilson-T. Asher)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93501
25. BARBARA ANN
(Fred Fassert)
Cousins, Inc./Shoestring Music, Inc. BMI
Master #93502
26. DON’T WORRY BABY*
(B. Wilson-R. Christian)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #51285A
27. HEROES AND VILLAINS*
(B. Wilson-V.D. Parks)
Irving Music, Inc. BMI
Master #57020B
* BONUS TRACKS
ALL TRACKS IN STEREO
_____________________________________________
TRACKS 1-13, 26, RECORDED ON 8/1/64 AT THE CIVIC AUDITORIUM IN SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA
TRACKS 14-25 RECORDED ON 12/1/68 AT THE PALLADIUM, LONDON, ENGLAND
TRACK 27 RECORDED ON 8/25/67 AT HONOLULU INTERNATIONAL CENTER, HAWAII
“Beach Boys Concert” LP – Produced by Brian Wilson. Engineered by Chuck Britz. Originally released on 10/19/64 by Capitol Records (Capitol TAO/STAO 2198) Charted 11/7/64 Reached #1
“Beach Boys ‘69 (The Beach Boys Live In London)” LP – Produced by Brian Wilson. Originally released on 11/76 by Capitol Records (Capitol ST-11584) Charted 12/11/76 Reached # 75
_____________________________________________
In the preparation of this compact disc, every effort has been made to make these historic recordings sound as they did when Brian, Mike, Carl, Dennis, Al and Bruce first made them. Numerous tapes were auditioned in order to find the best sounding master. No remixing was attempted, as it was felt that this would not be faithful to the original productions. The original mono and stereo tapes were transferred using a specially modified ampex tape machine and custom-made analog-to-digital converters.
The disc has been mastered using the Pacific Microsonics HDCD system which encodes 24 bits onto a conventional 16 bit CD. The bonus tracks have been selected from a variety of sources and were mixed directly from the original three and four track masters.
Mark Linett
Los Angeles, CA
December 2000
_____________________________________________
REISSUE PRODUCED AND COORDINATED BY MARK LINETT.
24-BIT DIGITALLY REMASTERED BY JOE GASTWIRT AT OCEANVIEW DIGITAL MASTERING, LOS ANGELES, CA, UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF MARK LINETT – 2000.
BONUS TRACKS MIXED BY MARK LINETT AT YOUR PLACE OR MINE STUDIOS, LOS ANGELES, CA.
ADDITIONAL RESEARCH BY ANDY PALEY.
CHART INFORMATION COURTESY OF BILLBOARD AND JOEL WHITBURN.
LINER NOTES BY DAVID LEAF.
ART DIRECTION BY TOMMY STEELE.
DESIGN BY CHUCK AMES.
PHOTO RESEARCH BY BRAD BENEDICT.
_____________________________________________
FOR INFORMATION ON THE BEACH BOYS FAN CLUB, SEND A SELF-ADDRESSED, STAMPED #10 ENVELOPE TO:
BBFC
Mail Stop 504, 252 Convention Center Dr., Las Vegas, NV 89109
http://www.beachboysfanclub.com/
BEACH BOYS BRITAIN IS THE OFFICIAL BRITISH FAN CLUB FOR THE BEACH BOYS. FOR INFORMATION, WRITE TO:
Beach Boys Britain
3 Mill Grove, Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 4BS, England
http://www.angelfire.com/la/Beachboysbritain/
FOR INFORMATION ON THE BRIAN WILSON FAN CLUB, WRITE TO:
Brian Wilson Fan Club
15030 Ventura Boulevard, 1-710, Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
http://www.celebritymerch.com/bw/index.htm
FOR INFORMATION ON THE MIKE LOVE FAN CLUB, WRITE TO:
The Mike Love Fan Club
114 Gov. Winthrop Road, Somerville, MA 02145
http://www.mikelovefanclub.com/
OTHER BEACH BOYS FAN CLUBS AND FANZINES ARE:
Endless Summer Quarterly
P.O. Box 470315, Charlotte, NC 28427
http://www.members.aol.com/esqeditor/welcome.html
Good Vibrations Quarterly
600 Sandra Court, Hampton, Virginia 23669
Beach Boys Stomp
22 Avondale Road, Wealdstone, Middlesex HA3 7RE, England
Beach Boys Australia
P.O. Box 106, North Strathfield 2137, Australia
California Saga
P.O. Box 1607 50106 Bergheim, Germany
http://members.aol.com/chaschke/index.html
BEACH BOYS DOUBLE CDs AVAILABLE INCLUDE:
SURFIN’ SAFARI / SURFIN’ USA (31517)
SURFER GIRL / SHUT DOWN VOLUME TWO (31515)
LITTLE DEUCE COUPE / ALL SUMMER LONG (31516)
TODAY! / SUMMER DAYS (AND SUMMER NIGHTS!!) (31639)
PARTY! / STACK-O-TRACKS (31641)
SMILEY SMILE / WILD HONEY (31862)
FRIENDS / 20/20 (31638)
BEACH BOYS CONCERT / LIVE IN LONDON (31861)
SUNFLOWER / SURF’S UP (25692)
CARL & THE PASSIONS “SO TOUGH” / HOLLAND (25694)
IN CONCERT (25933)
15 BIG ONES / LOVE YOU (27945)
M.I.U. ALBUM / L.A. (LIGHT ALBUM) (27950)
KEEPIN’ THE SUMMER ALIVE / THE BEACH BOYS (27948)
OTHER BEACH BOYS CDs AVAILABLE INCLUDE:
PET SOUNDS (26266)
ENDLESS HARMONY (24002)
ULTIMATE CHRISTMAS (95734)
GREATEST HITS VOLUME 1 (21860)
GREATEST HITS VOLUME 2 (20238)
GREATEST HITS VOLUME 3 THE BEST OF THE BROTHER YEARS 1970-1986 (24511)
THE PET SOUNDS SESSIONS – BOX SET (37662)
GOOD VIBRATIONS-THIRTY YEARS OF THE BEACH BOYS – BOX SET (81294)
BEACH BOYS VIDEO/DVD AVAILABLE INCLUDE:
ENDLESS HARMONY (VHS) (92154)
ENDLESS HARMONY (DVD) (92353)
ALL TRACKS 24-BIT DIGITALLY REMASTERED
(P) 2001 © 1990 Capitol Records, Inc. Manufactured by Capitol Records, Inc., 1750 N. Vine Street, Hollywood, CA 90028. All rights reserved. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws. Printed in U.S.A.
HDCD®
72435-31861-2-8
See Hollywood and Vine
hollywoodandvine.com/beachboys
__________________________________________________________
Surfin' Safari / Surfin' USA
Surfer Girl / Shut Down, Volume Two
Little Deuce Coupe / All Summer Long
Today! / Summer Days, Summer Nights
Party! / Stack-O-Tracks
Smiley Smile / Wild Honey
Concert / Live In London
Sunflower / Surf's Up
Friends / 20/20
Carl & The Passions: So Tough / Holland
Keeping The Summer Alive / Beach Boys (1985 Release)
M.I.U. / Light Album
15 Big Ones / Love You
Surfer Girl / Shut Down, Volume Two
Little Deuce Coupe / All Summer Long
Today! / Summer Days, Summer Nights
Party! / Stack-O-Tracks
Smiley Smile / Wild Honey
Concert / Live In London
Sunflower / Surf's Up
Friends / 20/20
Carl & The Passions: So Tough / Holland
Keeping The Summer Alive / Beach Boys (1985 Release)
M.I.U. / Light Album
15 Big Ones / Love You
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