You can't read about Best of the Beach Boys without being reminded it was rushed out by Capitol Records six weeks after the release of Pet Sounds. Even though that album went to #10 in the charts, it didn't sell as well as anyone hoped it would. Brian was said to be very hurt by this compilation showing up and being so heavily promoted over the album he had labored over. Bruce Eder puts it well in his review at AllMusic: "On some level, he must've felt like a child actor or teenage star whose management and producers didn't want him to mature -- and was forced to compete, in effect, with a younger version of himself." For the label to abandon their proven hit makers so quickly is sad, but it also goes to show you the pressure they were always under to deliver the goods. Brian won back Capitol's favor a few months later when "Good Vibrations" topped the charts, but then Smile happened. Looking at the album itself, you find a pretty nice 12-track sampler of what the Beach Boys were all about. The 28-minute program consists of: "Surfin' U.S.A.," "Catch a Wave," "Surfer Girl," "Little Deuce Coupe," "In My Room," "Little Honda," "Fun, Fun, Fun," "The Warmth of the Sun," "Louie, Louie," "Kiss Me Baby," "You're So Good To Me," and "Wendy." The cover of "Louie, Louie" is a bizarre inclusion as nobody would consider that a standout track in any way. There were some obvious hits not included for whatever reason such as the #1 hit "I Get Around" and "California Girls." Four months after the appearance of this collection in the United States, the UK version was released with a very different set of songs. You get two more cuts, so five more minutes, and the peculiar omissions from the US version are included. The UK version dropped "Catch a Wave," "Surfer Girl," "Little Honda," "The Warmth of the Sun," "Louie, Louie," "Kiss Me Baby," and "Wendy." It added "Surfin' Safari," "I Get Around," "All Summer Long," "Do You Wanna Dance," "Help Me Rhonda," "California Girls," "Barbara Ann," "Sloop John B," and "God Only Knows." According to the January 7, 1967 issue of Billboard, the UK LP was originally compiled by EMI as a DJ sampler. EMI's album is more respectful to the band and more well-rounded than what Capitol came up with. There are still ways to improve it, but it's a satisfying spin. In the UK, the Beach Boys popularity was at an all-time high at this point. As Capitol kept embracing their older material, the bands new recordings would sell less and less stateside. Capitol would follow up with a Vol. 2 and Vol. 3. In both cases, EMI would improve on their tracklistings, just like they did here. I've got to hand it to the UK for looking out for our boys.
One thing I like to do when listening to recordings of concerts is to put the event into some context. It's easy to just enjoy the performance, but it's fascinating for me to think about what was going on behind the scenes before, during, and after these little snapshots in time. I don't know of many shows in the history of the Beach Boys that are as intriguing as their visit to Michigan in October 1966. Fortunately for us, the shows were professionally recorded for potential release. Now just because something was seemingly well documented doesn't mean there isn't some confusing and conflicting information out there. Let's take a look. I'd first like to mention the release history of this material. The Beach Boys performed two shows on Saturday October 22, 1966 at the Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, MI. In 1993, "Good Vibrations" from the 2nd show was released on the box set Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys. The five-song medley of hits from the 1st show was released on the Endless Harmony collection in 1998. In 2016, "Wouldn't It Be Nice," "Sloop John B" and "God Only Knows" from the 1st show were released on the Pet Sounds: 50th Anniversary box set. Finally, both shows were released on the digital-only Graduation Day 1966 (with rather misleading artwork). There seems to be a few edits between tracks, but all the songs are there.
Regarding the venue, the Endless Harmony and Graduation Day releases simply say "Live at the University of Michigan." The 50th anniversary Pet Sounds box lists the tracks as from Eastern Michigan University, which is a completely different school. Rolling Stone's website said the shows happened at the non-existent Hills Auditorium. In his book, Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson, Peter Ames Carlin says the shows took place "in the gym at the University of Michigan" (p. 107). The Hill is no gym. It's actually a beautiful place to see a show and totals over 3500 seats with a main floor, mezzanine, and balcony. I've been to a handful of shows at this venue and I was lucky enough to stand on the stage myself a few years back. You can get really close to the performers and the acoustics are wonderful. One peculiar thing about these shows is that they took place at all. They were their first concerts in three weeks and the guys then flew to Europe for a few weeks of shows. Maybe things were different in the 1960s when it comes to touring musicians, but the idea of playing a few random shows in Michigan before embarking on a European tour seems unusual to me. The shows took place five months after the release of Pet Sounds and two weeks after "Good Vibrations" hit the airwaves. In the three weeks before these shows, Brian and the guys were in the studio working on what would become the legendary lost Smile album. This is an incredible period of transition for the band. These shows in Michigan took place in the middle of what is arguably their most interesting and important period, with Brian at the height of his powers and right before things came crashing down. Here we have the guys on stage singing "Surfin' U.S.A." and "Little Deuce Coupe" where a few days earlier Brian was working on "Do You Like Worms," "Heroes and Villains," and "Cabin Essence." Brian actually took a break from the Smile sessions to travel to Michigan and help the guys rehearse "Good Vibrations" for live performance. It's a complex song and, like the highly produced Wrecking Crew Pet Sounds material, isn't easily adapted to their basic setup. In Keith Badman's book The Beach Boys, he says Brian went to "oversee a lengthy and arduous day-long rehearsal for the song" (p. 153). In the 2nd show, however, Mike Love commented that there were five hours between the shows that day, so they likely didn't spend all day working on this song. What is awesome is that there is actually a picture of Brian on stage in the Hill Auditorium during those rehearsals! I had never seen that picture until recently and I was floored that it exists. What a piece of music history at such an important time! Two more things that are often mentioned regarding these shows are Brian's appearance on stage and the first performance of "Good Vibrations." First, if you didn't know already, Brian wasn't an acting touring member of the group. Bruce Johnston had taken his place, if someone could actually take Brian's place, a year earlier. Brian basically stayed at home creating marvelous recordings while the other guys toured the world. There is no mention of Brian during the 1st show, but right before "Johnny B. Goode," the last song of the 2nd show, the guys ask Brian to peak his head out and wave to the crowd. Carlin says he joined the band on stage for "Barbara Ann" (p. 108), but that's not true as that song was performed before Brian's presence was announced. Badman says "Brian is coaxed into jumping up on stage to sing 'Johnny B. Goode' as an encore" (p. 153). If Brian actually did perform with the guys, there doesn't seem to be any audio evidence of that. It sounds like Mike and Carl sharing the lead, but I suppose it's possible. Were these shows on October 22, 1966 the first ever public performances of "Good Vibrations" as has often been claimed? It makes sense as they are the first shows since it was released and Brian traveled to Michigan to oversee it, but before each performance of the song that day, Mike says something interesting. Before "Good Vibrations" in the 1st show, Mike says "we've done this one time before in front of people." When it comes to show #2 of the day, Mike says "it's the second night we've tried it." Even though it isn't mentioned nearly anywhere, there seems to have been a show the night before at the Jenison Field House in East Lansing, MI, which is an hour from Ann Arbor. Mike mentions the Beach Boys being picketed "last night" and I have seen posts online that suggest this show did happen. One problem is that the East Lansing show wasn't recorded so we don't know if they played "Good Vibrations" or not, but it's possible to conclude they did given Mike's comments from the stage in Ann Arbor. The best we can say with any certainty is that the first public performance of "Good Vibrations" was in Michigan on either October 21 or 22, 1966.
One reason the Beatles gave for quitting touring was the inability to duplicate their increasingly complicated studio recordings on stage. You have to hand it to the Beach Boys for at least trying. Six guys on stage with guitar, bass, and drums could not possibly come close to Brian's productions featuring a dozen musicians and meticulously multi-tracked group harmonies. Given the circumstances I think they did fairly well. The drumming provided by Dennis is strong, Bruce's voice is quite weak, but Carl and Al seem very capable of doing what they need to do. The guys seem to goof around a lot and have a very casual attitude about things. Sometimes they will call attention to their own mistakes and make light of their music. I can only imagine how frustrating it could be for Brian to work with them in the studio, especially if they aren't as excited about the material as he is. Still, I think the live performances at this time are the best they could be given the circumstances. If the audience is put off by the stripped down arrangements of "Good Vibrations" and the songs from Pet Sounds, you wouldn't know it. Everything they do seems well received. One thing I've never understood is why the crowd is so quiet at these shows. Their concerts from 1964 and 1965 have constant screams and overwhelming fan enthusiasm like you would hear at a Beatles show. Suddenly in 1966 you can hear a pin drop. The same is noticeable on the shows from 1967 and 1968 they have released. I wonder what changed. Late 1966 finds the Beach Boys at the height of their popularity. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" and "Sloop John B" were on the radio that summer, "Good Vibrations" was a brand new #1 sensation, and you hear no response when these songs are announced. The applause afterward, however, is strong. It's just very different from how concerts were and what they would become.
As I mentioned before, these shows took place while Brian was still working on the Smile album. As someone who has obsessed over this project and daydreamed about "what if's," it's unreal to put yourself back in time before its collapse, when Brian's curiosity and creativity refused to quit, and when a Smile album could truly be on the horizon. When the guys return from Europe, they start hearing things like "Surf's Up" and "Vega-Tables" for the first time. At the end of the year, however, Smile wasn't near completion as expected. In early 1967 Brian would obsess over additional sections to "Heroes & Villains" and would keep adding more and more pieces to the puzzle to where things got so large, and he got so scattered, that he couldn't put it all together. There was too much material, nobody to help him make sense out of it all, and not much support from the other guys. Brian has always needed other people's enthusiasm to keep him going and he wasn't feeling that anymore. His behavior started to get more bizarre and friends such as Smile collaborator Van Dyke Parks and others would begin leaving Brian's circle.
One more thing that took place the very day after these Ann Arbor concerts has been referred to as a turning point in this entire saga. On the flight home, Brian radioed his wife and asked her to invite some of his friends and acquaintances to meet him at the airport when he returned to Los Angeles. "They are told it is very important that they attend: Brian wants reassurance that he is loved," (Badman, p. 153). Brian has a photographer take pictures of the group and he has one blown up and hung in his living room. Keith Badman continues, "But within months it will be gone - and most of the people will no longer be his friends. One by one, each will step out or be forced out of the picture." Without getting too dramatic, because good work did continue to take place, this weekend could be seen as the moment it all went down. I don't know if anything happened between him and the guys that made him call his wife from the plane. It seems clear that nothing was the same after this and the Brian the guys encountered after their tour was in a worse way than the Brian they said goodbye to in Michigan. Peter Ames Carlin writes, "the airport photograph would take on a symbolic importance, as if it marked the point at which Brian's astonishing creative arc leveled off, nosing slowly toward a descent" (p. 109). Just months after the accomplishment of Pet Sounds and with "Good Vibrations" selling big, it's sobering to think how quickly things can change. A happy postscript: On March 9, 1999, Brian would start his first ever solo tour with a show at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor. The Michigan Theater isn't even half a mile away from the Hill Auditorium! How fitting that this place became the spot of the rebirth of his career.
"Little Bird" was the first time a Dennis Wilson composition was released under the Beach Boys name. Co-written with poet Steve Kalinich, the song was recorded February 29, 1968 at Brian's home studio in Bel Air, CA. It was mixed a week later at Western Recorders in Hollywood. A mono mix of the song came out as the b-side of the "Friends" single on April 8, 1968. The stereo mix found a spot on the Friends album in June of that year. The song fades out before hitting the 2-minute mark, but a lot is packed into that short time. Jim Gordon played drums, Lyle Ritz was on bass, Al Vescovo rocked the banjo, and Igor Horoshevsky supplied the cello. Brian is prominently heard on the "na na, na na na na" backing vocals. One highlight of "Little Bird" are the harmonies at :47. A cappella and backing track versions of the song were released on the digital-only Wake The World: The Friends Sessions in 2018. Brian clearly helped his brother with the production as his style is all over this track. He likely deserved a writing credit since, according to Kalinich, Brian wrote the bridge. The label of the single says "Arranged by Brian Wilson." You can also hear a bit of a reference to the Smile track "Child Is Father Of The Man" at 1:24. It's really magnificent how he worked that in. Author David Leaf pointed out "the muted trumpet emulates the tune's title character." It's a really cool track and an excellent production that makes you wish Brian and Dennis worked together more. It was nice to see Brian add it to his live shows in 2013 (sung by David Marks) and 2019 (sung by Brian).
55 years ago today, the Beach Boys recorded their vocals for "California Girls." The instrumental backing was recorded two months earlier on April 6th. Brian didn't have a title or lyrics yet. This session was also the first time Bruce Johnston sang with the guys in the studio. The song was released on the album Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) a week before coming out as a single backed with "Let Him Run Wild." "California Girls" peaked at #3 in the US and went on to become, arguably, their signature song; opening hundreds of concerts. Let us revisit Brian's incredible vocal arrangement from Columbia Studio in Los Angeles: June 4th, 1965.
