Sunday, October 15, 2006

Good Vibrations

Friday night, the Wife and I went to see the Beach Boys.

I've enjoyed listening to the Beach Boys for years. Ever since they were the Beach Boys, in fact.

You see, only one of the original Beach Boys is still with the band. Al Jardine and Brian Wilson have retired from touring. Carl and Dennis Wilson are dead, which has hindered their touring quite a bit. But Mike Love is still touring. And, so is Bruce Johnston. While Johnston isn't an original Beach Boy, he's been with the band since 1964. So we can count him.

Anyway, we got to see the Beach Boys ... which consisted of traditional Beach Boys Mike Love and Bruce Johnston ... and the other musicians ... put on one heckuva show. Oh, the other musicians in the band all got to sing along ... and they have the Beach Boys sound. Most of them had been with the band for a bit, though. I think Mike Kowalski was still on drums. And John Cowsill (yes, from the Cowsills) did an excellent job on vocals. He joined the band after taking Carl died and Al retired.

The Wife and I thoroughly enjoyed the concert Friday night. But it was a shame that so many others didn't. You see, the Beach Boys were the featured show Friday night at the Georgia National Fair in Perry. And the arena was only half full.

The low turnout surprised me. Then it disappointed me. But in the end, I was happy.

The Beach Boys didn't cancel their appearance. The Fair didn't call it off, either. I have no idea if the Fair or the Beach Boys made any money on the show. But I had a good time. And so did the Wife.

We got to hear many of the great songs by the Beach Boys: 409, Surfin' USA, Help Me Rhonda, California Girls, Barbara Ann, Sloop John B, Good Vibrations, Kokomo, Fun Fun Fun ... and much, much more.

They acknowledged how old they were. And razzed on the Village People, N*Sync, and finally, Barry Manilow. The whole thing was a set-up for Bruce Johnston to sing I Write the Songs. In case you weren't aware, he wrote I Write the Songs. I knew that, because I once had the Bruce Johnston Going Public album, where it appears.

Of course, most of the songs were sung by Mike Love, who actually sang lead on most of the Beach Boys hits.

Now, I had seen the Beach Boys before. Twice. In Savannah. About 25-30 years ago. But it was the first time the Wife had seen them.

When I saw them back in the '70s & '80s, it was easy to stand up and sit down. Friday night, no so easy.

There were times when the crowd, who had jumped to their feet during a particular song, sort of all just sat down. Actually, not all. But most of the ones around my age. The younger crowd stayed on their feet longer. But the older folks ... like me ... grabbed the chairs and sat down. Slowly. So not to pull or aggrevate anything.

Still, every time they started a new song, I was a teenager again.

I'm still amazed at the small turnout. The ones that didn't show don't know what they missed. And if I get the chance to see the Beach Boys again, I would. And wouldn't it be nice!

4 comments:

  1. I saw the Beach Boys in Macon a few years back. Fun, fun, fun!

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  2. Dang. I so reminisce with the Beach Boys. Gimme those guys over the corporate s**t which spews forth from the Top 40 airwaves these days!

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  3. Husband and I saw them at a county fair several years ago, and it was packed. We had such a good time! The best part was when they played "Wouldn't It Be Nice" which is our wedding song.

    Yes, really!

    And I have one of those "best of" CD's in the truck; my kids love "Dance, Dance, Dance."

    The Beach Boys were out in Harrisburg last month to help welcome home National Guardsmen coming back from Iraq!!

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  4. The Beach Boys are a national treasure.

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