If it was difficult to deliver on the promise of "The B-sides" tour at a venue where the most important thing on people's minds was how much strawberry shortcake one could devour, the Beach Boys Family and Friends certainly made a down payment on a promising future.
Plagued by a rather ineffective sound system (very low volume, stage patter could not be heard by any except the first several rows....cries of "louder" could be heard coming from many areas of the stadium during both shows), the group jump-started the artistic side of the Beach Boys without ignoring the hits that brought the curiosity-seekers into the venue.
The 4:30 show at the Florida Strawberry Festival was sold out, albeit with mostly folks who thought they were going to see THE Beach Boys. Too bad. What they got was a much more diversified and musically glorious performance than the actual Beach Boys have given in years (save the 1993 "box set tour").
Opening with "I Can Hear Music" the band proved its expertise right off the bat. To a single strummed guitar, Wendy Wilson, Carnie Wilson, and Owen Elliot gave the first verse a sweet girl group sound. The Jardine family and the band came in full-force at the chorus boosting this to a heavenly mix of Wilson and Spector.
A crowd-pleasing "Do It Again" followed, showing that Matt Jardine was capable of handling the Mike Love vocal as well as the gorgeous falsetto that was on display.
"Darlin" was up next, with Carnie and Matt alternating verses.Al Jardine then led us on a romp through "Come Go With Me". Then the show took on its first peak....a performance of "Surfer Girl" that absolutely ripped at the heart strings. Carnie introduced the song, noting that "my father Brian wrote this when he was only 19 or 20....which is really incredible". So was this performance. When Wendy went for the high part at the end, I could have been putty in anyone's hands. I actually felt goose bumps and a tear. Stunning.
"Don't Worry Baby" sung by Wendy and Matt was next, as well as a nice rocking version of "I Get Around". It was very nice to hear that song in isolation, instead of at the end of a marathon car medley set!
Peak number two was next: Adam Jardine taking the lead on "Girl Don't Tell Me". The arrangment of this song has to be heard to be believed. This should become a concert staple for the band as it is fun...and sounds believable.
Peak number three was right behind....an incredible almost lullabye-like "In My Room", followed by Al Jardine taking on Denny Doherty's part on "Monday Monday".(Big applause when the crowd found out just who Owen Elliot was).
Carnie spoke about how they all missed "Uncle Carl" as they performed a very respectful and moving "God Only Knows", followed by "You Still Believe In Me". This one-two punch was particularly effective.
The show finished with Pet Sounds era hits...."Sloop John B" (complete with accapella break restored)..."Wouldn't It Be Nice"....and "Good Vibrations"...the first reading of the classic in eons that didn't sound like a campfire song. It sounded like the classic that it is.
A nice group performance on "All Summer Long" followed by "Heroes and Villians". The performance of "Heroes" was noteworthy in that Al was trying to fit in as many of the variations of the song ("we'll be here twenty minutes if we do the whole thing") as possible. He flubbed it though, saying "Hey I made a mistake, but I'll never admit it!") bringing a light hearted touch to a great concert. The audience seemed a little puzzled after the band wound the song up and called it a "work in progress", but the BB fans around me were jumping for joy that the song was even attempted!
Back for an encore of "Help Me Rhonda", the band was joined by Marilyn Wilson, who is still stunning to behold both visually and aurally.
Show number two came at 7:30, and the set list had been revamped to change the order of the songs to put more of an emphasis on the hits. I Can Hear Music/Darlin/Do It Again/Don't Worry Baby/I Get Around/Surfer Girl/In My Room/Monday Monday/God Only Knows/Girl Don't Tell Me/You Still Believe In Me/Sloop John B/Wouldn't It Be Nice/Good Vibrations.
Then the only song change...."Lookin At Tomorrow" (the Surfs Up classic) which featured an excellent Al vocal and stunning sax work from Richie Cannata. Then on with Come Go With Me and All Summer Long to finish....no Heroes and Villians at the second show. Again the encore was Help Me Rhonda.
Al noted that keyboardist Billy Hinsche was the man responsible for holding the band together...and he did a great job. The playing was tight and inspired, doing proud by the records. Vocally, that family blend that is missing from the Love-led Beach Boy shows is on display full force. This group at times surpassed the beauty of the original recordings. The Wilson sisters and Owen caused me to fall in love all over again with the music, and their graceful presence on stage.
I hope that as this tour progresses, they will stay away from these "fair" type venues and concentrate on theatres, where the musical beauty can really shine, and where they can be guaranteed an audience that is there to see what this band can really do, not just some passers-by who are hoping for fun-in-sun time. Perhaps they'll do a longer set, throw in some more of the promised rarities...maybe even a Wilson Phillips song or two...how about a live "Everything I Need".....(from the same writing team that gave us Pet Sounds....)
Don't miss this concert if it comes your way. It is everything that real Beach Boys fans have hoped for at a concert but rarely got after the early 80s. Thank you Beach Boys Family and Friends. The six hour drive, the rain and the wind, the hot sun, and the sound problems were all worth it. Thank you for an incredible, uplifting musical experience.
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