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Post by kds on Apr 15, 2020 12:25:22 GMT
This Beach Boys show from 1964 was originally filmed to show on closed circuit TV. Originally believed to be lost, the film was found in 1998 and released on VHS, and eventually on DVD. It's in perfect condition.
While only 22 minutes long (which wasn't much shorter than a standard set at the time), it's a great example of the early Beach Boys in concert, almost as good as their appearance in the TAMI Show.
It's fun to revisit the early innocent days of Brian, Carl, Mike, Al, and Dennis onstage together in their striped shirts in front of a screaming audience.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 15, 2020 12:34:36 GMT
This is a good one. Short, obviously, but that's forgivable since it wasn't ever meant to be a concert film in the traditional sense.
Because that's what we do, I'll note my objections. One, I could do without covers (considering how short the set is to begin with). Two, the "how the Beach Boys make a song" bit is tedious even the first time one sees it, to say nothing of the fifth, tenth, twentieth. It seems better suited to a middle school music class seminar than an actual rock and roll concert.
What do I like about it? Everything else. It's great seeing and hearing the band doing what they did back then, and doing it really well.
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Post by kds on Apr 15, 2020 12:53:00 GMT
This is a good one. Short, obviously, but that's forgivable since it wasn't ever meant to be a concert film in the traditional sense.
Because that's what we do, I'll note my objections. One, I could do without covers (considering how short the set is to begin with). Two, the "how the Beach Boys make a song" bit is tedious even the first time one sees it, to say nothing of the fifth, tenth, twentieth. It seems better suited to a middle school music class seminar than an actual rock and roll concert.
What do I like about it? Everything else. It's great seeing and hearing the band doing what they did back then, and doing it really well.
At least it's not as bogged down with covers as the Beach Boys Concert album. Although, I'll never really understand their fascination with Long Tall Texan.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 15, 2020 13:06:39 GMT
Although, I'll never really understand their fascination with Long Tall Texan. Me neither. But maybe it was a time and place thing, a bunch of suburban Californian teenagers for some reason were just tickled by this exotic-novelty funny southern thing?
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Post by B.E. on Apr 15, 2020 15:00:33 GMT
Although, I'll never really understand their fascination with Long Tall Texan. Me neither. But maybe it was a time and place thing, a bunch of suburban Californian teenagers for some reason were just tickled by this exotic-novelty funny southern thing? I think it was 'of the times' in another way, as well. Even as a rock 'n' roll group, they were still expected to put on a "show". Entertaining not just with music, but with choreographed dance moves and comedy. Watching this performance and the T.AM.I. show (in full) reminded me of that. It's important to note that they also recorded "Monster Mash" and it was only left out for contractual reasons. I think the guys dug the novelty tunes they chose, but I also think they thought it a necessity.
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bellbottoms
Pacific Coast Highway
Posts: 727
Likes: 201
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Post by bellbottoms on Apr 15, 2020 15:56:55 GMT
This is one that I have seen many times, and never tire of watching. I honestly wouldn't change a thing about it. Not to say that it's perfect, it isn't. But it IS perfectly imperfect. I love the Little Deuce Coupe intro with the band member introductions, I think it's clever. And how about that performance of Hawaii? So awesome.
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Post by B.E. on Apr 15, 2020 16:55:26 GMT
This Beach Boys show from 1964 was originally filmed to show on closed circuit TV. As much as I appreciate the Beach Boys performance, IMO the most interesting thing about revisiting it is how it compares to the Beatles performance. On March 14-15 1964 approximately 500,000 fans watched Lesley Gore and the Beach Boys open for the Beatles. The settings of the Beach Boys and Beatles performances couldn't have been more different. The excitement of the first US Beatles concert, alone, would have been too much for any other act to replicate, but on top of that the DC show was incompetently produced - resulting in a chaotic, raw, intimate performance compared to a more typically restrained in-studio performance. I truly wonder what effect that might have had on those 500,000 fans. Other differences have already been alluded to. The Beatles didn't perform any novelty songs. I think the Beach Boys were fortunate that "Monster Mash" was cut for financial reasons. By comparison, the group would have seemed less serious and, potentially, less hip. Also, I don't think it's an accident that the group all but eliminated their choreographed dance moves for their T.A.M.I performance. They even had Mike share Al and Carl's mic on "Surfer Girl" just as the Beatles performed "This Boy" (it's amazing how much of an improvement this presentation is). Honestly, I don't mind the synchronized dance moves, but it seems dated and, more importantly to me, belies the intensity of the performance. It's one thing for the sound coming out of the speaker to ROCK, but if my eyes see something else... On that note, even if we remove the Beatle comparison for a moment, the Beach Boys performance is tad restrained for my taste. A lot of that has to do with the setting and the mix (the guitars are far too low), but some of it is the group. I really don't want to overstate this, though, because I'm more confident than ever that this is my favorite live era of the group. They start cookin' more with "Surfin' USA" and "Shut Down" and let loose with ""Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow". And, not just the group, but Brian in particular. After singing mostly back-up falsetto parts, now he's belting out a lead and doing so with charisma and intensity. I also love the (undoubtedly planned) back and forth between Brian and Mike when Brian puts up his hand on "don't" and it looks like Mike pops him on the arm. That moment, and that song, is the most exciting part of the Beach Boys concert. Still, collectively, the Beatles outshine the Beach Boys in intensity and excitement of performance nearly across the board (again, partially due to the setting). They also take much greater care in ending songs (and this is a pet peeve of mine when it comes to Brian and the Beach Boys). Songwriting-wise, the Beatles are known for unique endings and final chords. Live, they bow. Live, the Beach Boys have a tendency to more or less just stop playing (often, messily). To me, it's one of those things you can't unhear. For this edition, check out the endings of "Fun Fun Fun", "Surfer Girl", "Shut Down", and ( to close the show!) "Hawaii". By the way, for the T.A.M.I. show the Beach Boys were bowing, too!
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Post by B.E. on Apr 15, 2020 17:14:08 GMT
I love the Little Deuce Coupe intro with the band member introductions, I think it's clever. So do I. Just to expand a little bit on my last post and why this era is my favorite - I love the clarity of just having the five of them on stage together. Of course, clarity alone isn't really it - it's their proficiency, too. This time around, I really got a kick out of zeroing in on Al and Carl (both here and TAMI). Listening to them sing together in the middle of the stack and their complimentary guitar playing. Of course, Brian's prime falsetto is key. They never really recovered from losing it, IMO. (Understandably.)
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Post by B.E. on Apr 15, 2020 17:29:04 GMT
If interested, here's a link with some info about the closed-circuit concert. It seems the date of the Beach Boys performance is still a mystery of sorts. www.pophistorydig.com/topics/beatles-wash-dc-1964/Here's the entire Beatles DC concert. It starts at about the 5 minute mark.
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Post by kds on Apr 15, 2020 18:19:04 GMT
This is one that I have seen many times, and never tire of watching. I honestly wouldn't change a thing about it. Not to say that it's perfect, it isn't. But it IS perfectly imperfect. I love the Little Deuce Coupe intro with the band member introductions, I think it's clever. And how about that performance of Hawaii? So awesome. I enjoy that little bit too.
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Post by kds on Apr 15, 2020 18:22:33 GMT
This Beach Boys show from 1964 was originally filmed to show on closed circuit TV. As much as I appreciate the Beach Boys performance, IMO the most interesting thing about revisiting it is how it compares to the Beatles performance. On March 14-15 1964 approximately 500,000 fans watched Lesley Gore and the Beach Boys open for the Beatles. The settings of the Beach Boys and Beatles performances couldn't have been more different. The excitement of the first US Beatles concert, alone, would have been too much for any other act to replicate, but on top of that the DC show was incompetently produced - resulting in a chaotic, raw, intimate performance compared to a more typically restrained in-studio performance. I truly wonder what effect that might have had on those 500,000 fans. Other differences have already been alluded to. The Beatles didn't perform any novelty songs. I think the Beach Boys were fortunate that "Monster Mash" was cut for financial reasons. By comparison, the group would have seemed less serious and, potentially, less hip. Also, I don't think it's an accident that the group all but eliminated their choreographed dance moves for their T.A.M.I performance. They even had Mike share Al and Carl's mic on "Surfer Girl" just as the Beatles performed "This Boy" (it's amazing how much of an improvement this presentation is). Honestly, I don't mind the synchronized dance moves, but it seems dated and, more importantly to me, belies the intensity of the performance. It's one thing for the sound coming out of the speaker to ROCK, but if my eyes see something else... On that note, even if we remove the Beatle comparison for a moment, the Beach Boys performance is tad restrained for my taste. A lot of that has to do with the setting and the mix (the guitars are far too low), but some of it is the group. I really don't want to overstate this, though, because I'm more confident than ever that this is my favorite live era of the group. They start cookin' more with "Surfin' USA" and "Shut Down" and let loose with ""Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow". And, not just the group, but Brian in particular. After singing mostly back-up falsetto parts, now he's belting out a lead and doing so with charisma and intensity. I also love the (undoubtedly planned) back and forth between Brian and Mike when Brian puts up his hand on "don't" and it looks like Mike pops him on the arm. That moment, and that song, is the most exciting part of the Beach Boys concert. Still, collectively, the Beatles outshine the Beach Boys in intensity and excitement of performance nearly across the board (again, partially due to the setting). They also take much greater care in ending songs (and this is a pet peeve of mine when it comes to Brian and the Beach Boys). Songwriting-wise, the Beatles are known for unique endings and final chords. Live, they bow. Live, the Beach Boys have a tendency to more or less just stop playing (often, messily). To me, it's one of those things you can't unhear. For this edition, check out the endings of "Fun Fun Fun", "Surfer Girl", "Shut Down", and ( to close the show!) "Hawaii". By the way, for the T.A.M.I. show the Beach Boys were bowing, too! Even to this day, The Beach Boys' endings of songs in concert leaves a little to be desired. One of the few pet peeves I have of the Mike and Bruce shows, and even the C50 version of the band, is how they tend to play in a medley style with each song bleeding into the next. The Beatles were much more of a well oiled machine in concert. The experience from playing Hamburg really helped them out, where as The Beach Boys still appeared a little green.
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