Post by kds on Jun 15, 2020 12:45:46 GMT
It's hard to believe it's been nearly a decade since a truly life changing concert took place.
I know I've shared this on several other forums, but I don't know if I had on here. Just before midnight on Thursday, June 14, 2012, I decided to purchase a lawn ticket to see The Beach Boys 50th Anniversary Tour at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. I was a pretty casual fan, but I figured this would be my only chance to see a full version of The Beach Boys in person.
Friday, June 15, 2012 - I drove to Columbia and went up to Will Call to pick up my ticket. I went by myself, something not too uncommon for a 31 year old guy who listens to bands celebrating their 50th anniversaries. I checked out the merch, but unfortunately my money situation wasn't so great, so the $100 for the autographed copy of TWGMTR, while tempting, was a tad too high.
I found a spot on the lawn on a perfect early summer night, and right around 8pm, the show started. The primary five Beach Boys were introduced one by one by Jeff Foskett. Of course the loudest ovation was for one Briiiian Willllson. And the band went into the opening song Do It Again, quickly followed by Catch a Wave and Hawaii. This was pretty much what I'd expected so far, a run through of greatest hits.
Unfortunately, the spot I'd found on the lawn was poor as there was a pole that obstructed my view of Brian at his piano, so I had to move a little higher about five songs in.
I was pleasantly surprised at a few songs that I wasn't overly familiar with - This Whole World in particular. There were also tracks that I vaguely recognized from my Warmth of the Sun comp, but for whatever reason I hadn't paid much attention to before, like It's OK, Kiss Me Baby, and Please Let Me Wonder.
Somewhat disappointingly, the crowd in the lawn would get up, and some even danced, for the familiar songs, and they would often chatter during the deeper cuts or the two new songs played this evening.
The post intermission set was probably what changed me from a casual fan with two comps to a fanatic, starting with Add Some Music, with David, Mike, Al, and Bruce around Brian's piano. Then, Heroes and Villains, Sloop, WIBN, and probably the biggest surprise - I Just Wasn't Made for These Times.
I was expecting a 90 minute run through of hits. Instead, I got a 48 song two and a half hour set. I was simply amazed. I hadn't noticed while on the packed lawn, but it got pretty chilly as I walked back to the car, buzzing from the show.
As soon as I got home, I pulled out my WOTS CD and listened to some of the songs I'd heard that evening that I somehow passed over before. As the summer went on, I started to collect more BB albums. So, the summer of 2012 was my indoctrination to The Beach Boys. I even bought a copy of Peter Carlin's Catch a Wave book.
Wouldn't you know it, at the very end of the summer, I met the woman I would wind up carrying. Her birthday happens to be June 15. We've attended five Brian shows, three M&B shows, and two Al shows. We danced to God Only Knows at our wedding. I'm not sure how much I believe in fate, but there's something to that.
I know I've shared this on several other forums, but I don't know if I had on here. Just before midnight on Thursday, June 14, 2012, I decided to purchase a lawn ticket to see The Beach Boys 50th Anniversary Tour at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. I was a pretty casual fan, but I figured this would be my only chance to see a full version of The Beach Boys in person.
Friday, June 15, 2012 - I drove to Columbia and went up to Will Call to pick up my ticket. I went by myself, something not too uncommon for a 31 year old guy who listens to bands celebrating their 50th anniversaries. I checked out the merch, but unfortunately my money situation wasn't so great, so the $100 for the autographed copy of TWGMTR, while tempting, was a tad too high.
I found a spot on the lawn on a perfect early summer night, and right around 8pm, the show started. The primary five Beach Boys were introduced one by one by Jeff Foskett. Of course the loudest ovation was for one Briiiian Willllson. And the band went into the opening song Do It Again, quickly followed by Catch a Wave and Hawaii. This was pretty much what I'd expected so far, a run through of greatest hits.
Unfortunately, the spot I'd found on the lawn was poor as there was a pole that obstructed my view of Brian at his piano, so I had to move a little higher about five songs in.
I was pleasantly surprised at a few songs that I wasn't overly familiar with - This Whole World in particular. There were also tracks that I vaguely recognized from my Warmth of the Sun comp, but for whatever reason I hadn't paid much attention to before, like It's OK, Kiss Me Baby, and Please Let Me Wonder.
Somewhat disappointingly, the crowd in the lawn would get up, and some even danced, for the familiar songs, and they would often chatter during the deeper cuts or the two new songs played this evening.
The post intermission set was probably what changed me from a casual fan with two comps to a fanatic, starting with Add Some Music, with David, Mike, Al, and Bruce around Brian's piano. Then, Heroes and Villains, Sloop, WIBN, and probably the biggest surprise - I Just Wasn't Made for These Times.
I was expecting a 90 minute run through of hits. Instead, I got a 48 song two and a half hour set. I was simply amazed. I hadn't noticed while on the packed lawn, but it got pretty chilly as I walked back to the car, buzzing from the show.
As soon as I got home, I pulled out my WOTS CD and listened to some of the songs I'd heard that evening that I somehow passed over before. As the summer went on, I started to collect more BB albums. So, the summer of 2012 was my indoctrination to The Beach Boys. I even bought a copy of Peter Carlin's Catch a Wave book.
Wouldn't you know it, at the very end of the summer, I met the woman I would wind up carrying. Her birthday happens to be June 15. We've attended five Brian shows, three M&B shows, and two Al shows. We danced to God Only Knows at our wedding. I'm not sure how much I believe in fate, but there's something to that.