The Beach Boys Are Reuniting! Oh Wait, No They Aren’t

from Rolling Stone:

In Capitol Records’ giant Studio A in Los Angeles this summer, the surviving Beach Boys — Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine and Bruce Johnston — gathered around a microphone and, for the first time in two dec­ades, harmonized on a track. The song was, appropriately enough, a rerecording of their stomping 1968 hit “Do It Again.” “Even the veteran sound engineers were moved,” says Jardine. “Not all of us are left, but there are still enough of us for that vibration to come through.”

“The song title has pretty firm implications, doesn’t it?” says Love. “Brian asked me, ‘How does a 70-year-old sound that good?'”‰”

After resolving decades of bitter legal battles, the band is reuniting to celebrate its 50th anniversary in a major way, with archival releases on the way, including the upcoming Smile Sessions (out November 1st). And the “Do It Again” session was filmed as a promotional video for a likely world tour next year. “We’ll do maybe 50 amphitheaters here and 50 or 60 overseas,” says Jardine. “It’ll be whenever the buyers think is the best time for us. We’re wide open for that.”

Dan Wiencek: “I don’t really like working with the guys, but it all depends on how we feel and how much money’s involved.”

Well, he’s being honest at least.

Jason Hare: I, for one, am hoping they tackle Brian’s recent cover of “Kiss the Girl.”

Brian Boone: It’s here! It’s here! A real Beach Boys reunion. Well, not counting Dennis Wilson. And not counting Carl Wilson. And 85 percent of Brian Wilson. And it’s the hollowed out alien-controlled shell of what used to be Mike Love. BUT AL JARDINE IS IN, PEOPLE!

Chris Holmes: No David Marks, no peace!

Michael Parr: What about Stamos? I mean, he’s got to be there, right?

Dave Lifton: Fuck Mike Love.

David Medsker: Finally, someone says it. What took so long?

Holmes: Isn’t it pretty much just assumed at all times?

Ken Shane: I have been so hoping that Brian doesn’t give in to this terrible idea. They can spin it however they want, but there are no Beach Boys without Dennis and Carl, simple as that. I’m still hopeful that this is just another one of those stories that are leaked in an attempt to get a reaction from Brian. His reaction in the story is all you need to know.

Jeff Giles: He sounded open to it in the quotes he gave, provided the promoter writes a big enough check.

I wonder who’d be willing to break the bank for this, though. Mike’s been on the road every summer for years, diluting the value of the Beach Boys brand, and as much as people love Brian, the only reason they don’t demand refunds after his shows is the fact that his band kicks ass. So this “reunion tour” would basically be the same act people have been seeing at casinos and state fairs, plus the founding member who hates touring the most — or maybe, at best, the Wondermints plus (Fuck) Mike Love. Is there really enough demand to satisfy the cost?

If they had done this 15 years ago, it would have been as big as Fleetwood Mac’s The Dance. Now, I think it’d be a disaster.

Holmes: “There’s been talk that I was going to join the Mike Love group but it’s not true.”

Oof.

Shane: Perhaps Al should have spoken with Brian first. He has debunked the reunion tour rumor.

Giles: That picture is the saddest thing I’m going to see all day.

Medsker: I’ve seen it, I can’t unsee it. Damn.

Springer: The great thing is, as we recently learned, I’m pretty sure Mike Love would do it for a decent meal. A tour sounds like a horrifying prospect. If they insisted on doing something, from a business perspective, I could see a short string of LA shows working, with filming and recording to create a “nice” DVD and CD package. That way the technical geniuses behind all these reissues and new Wilson projects could have some time to engineer the actual shows into something that would sound halfway decent.